To New Beginnings...

Attention all. I have a very important announcement. I have finally overcome my writer's block. I plan to celebrate with a plethora of blog posts within the next 24 hours. So hang onto your pants, this is going to be fun!

What's is the fuel to my creative fire, you ask? 90's grunge music. Laugh if you must. I'm not kidding. What spurred all of this? A book I received as a Christmas present (Scar Tissue by Anthony Kieidis, who is one of the many musical geniuses of my generation. I've been raving about this book for weeks, I could go on and on about the insight I gained from reading this book, so much so that I read it twice in a little over a week. But that's another post for another time). The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nirvana, and Foo Fighters have been on constant rotation in both my I-Pod and my car. In fact, at the very second I write this, the song "Everlong" is blaring through my speakers, via my 90's grunge Pandora station. :)

Speaking of newfound motivation, I feel as if I have to discuss how much I love this time of year. I'm not huge on New Year's Resolutions (or any other situation in which there is all this societal pressure to set unrealistic goals that ultimately set people up for failure). However, I do love the sense of renewal that happens when one year ends and another begins.

2009 packed a punch. Y'all are fully aware of the health issues we were faced with in 2009. For this reason, 2009 tested our marriage. 2009 was full of life-changing events that were tough on our families, leaving many feeling hurt and angry (to put it mildly). Although I do believe that positive outcomes can come from just about any situation, some relationships suffered permanent damage in 2009, which may or may not be repairable. And that is hard. So I find myself looking to 2010 with great optimism for what the future holds for our little family. 2009 was the very beginning of great things, and I have unwavering faith in the fact that 2010 will be the continuation of these great things, for both us and our families and friends.

In honor of the new year, here are some pics of our New Year's Eve. We spent the evening at a rather low-key party with some close friends. This was the first year since we've been in California that we rang in the new year somewhere other than home (and actually stayed up until midnight, for that matter).

This is my best CA girlfriend, Danielle. Love her! ;)

Happy 2010!

Ahhhh, feels good to be back. :)

A Photo Montage

I'm feeling incredibly guilty about not writing anything inspiring or witty today. But for some reason, I'm just not feeling it. I uploaded these pics and sat here, attempting to channel my best creative juices. But I've got nothin'. So in lieu of a word-heavy post detailing all the fun goings-on, here's a photojournal of our Christmas holiday.

I think that sums it up pretty well. Happy Holidays, and here's to twenty-ten! Cheers!

One day (and one surgery) at a time...

Hello All,
I had such high hopes of writing post after post after post to make up for lost time. But I find that I am enjoying my time off so much that I haven't gotten to that. Although, I have lots of new info to share, as it's been a busy couple weeks.

First and foremost, a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my amazing stepmom, Karyn. Hope you have an absolutely wonderful day and an enjoyable week off!!!!

Well, I am officially finished with my first semester of grad school. One down, three to go. I have been tossing around the idea of going on to get my DSW (Doctorate in Social Work), because if I am going to do so, I have to start thinking about my thesis right now. Most schools only accept 7-10 students per year, so it's a highly competitive program. Although that thought is in the back of my mind, I can't get ahead of myself, because so much could change in the next 17 months. Summer 2011 is going to be a busy time, between Trevor's High School graduation, Mom & Jeff's 20th Wedding Anniversary, Mother's Day, and my birthday, which all fall within about 3 weeks of each other. I have been crossing my fingers that Trev's graduation and mine will not fall on the same day.

Moving along to other (not so great) news, I am looking at having to have a couple more surgeries in 2010, much to my dismay. No need to worry, both of these surgeries are outpatient and relatively minor, and not related in any way to the Great Lump Scare of '09. I thought 2009 was the end of the surgery business, but I was wrong. It's always something, right? Anyway, those of you who are familiar with my history know that I have bad sinuses. I've had two previous surgeries to fix structural problems, and my Ear, Nose, and Throat Doc is recommending one more to address some swelling and infection issues. I'm trying to get this one scheduled for January, so I can get it over with before school starts again. I also have to get a gum graft done sometime this year (might be pushing that one off until the summer). One surgery at a time, that's how I roll. ;)

Otherwise, we have been super busy around here getting ready for Christmas. Both Lori and Michelle will be joining us, in about 12 hours actually. We actually spent the better part of Sunday cleaning and getting everything ready. My wonderful hubbs, God bless him, spent about 8 hours helping me do an intense deep clean on Sunday. What a good man he is. :)

And with that, I guess I will wrap things up. Happy Holidays to all of our dear family and friends!!! We are so grateful to have you all in our lives!

Blogging is my Therapy

Because of my chosen line of work, I'm very well aware of the fact that everyone has to have some form of release. Some people do yoga, some people drink, some people take drives. I write. I don't just write bits and pieces here and there. I vomit words onto paper (believe me, I have notebook upon notebook from my middle school and high school years in a box in the garage to prove it).

You might even say that writing is my therapy. Blogging has actually been my first experience at putting some of these words out there for others to read, analyze, scrutinize, whatever.

The fact I've been too busy even to blog speaks volumes about the current state of my mental well-being. To say that I am all out of sorts is a gross understatement.

Lately I've been feeling as if I'm going to explode because I have so many thoughts, so many words, that need to be released. So consider this blog post as my mini crisis session, to get me through the next week until I can sit down and return to my previous state of conducting weekly (and sometimes bi-weekly) "sessions" with y'all. I promise that I will be back and better than ever, after Tuesday December 15th at approximately 5:55pm (but who's keeping track???).

::6 more days, 6 more days, 6 more days::

Hello Blog?? It's me, Randi.

Hello there, blog. It's me, Randi. You know, the one who used to write entries all the time?? I'm so sorry if you feel ignored lately. But I promise, I'm going to make it up to you starting RIGHT NOW.

I'm finally getting around to posting some pictures from our weekend in Las Vegas. What a great trip full of great food, great drinks, and great friends! I'm convinced that having a stress reliever like this midway through the semester is just what the doctor ordered!

Here's the view from our room at Planet Hollywood:

And, a beautiful sunset on the strip, a little blurry, but I'd say it's a fitting depcition how a weekend in Vegas usually plays out.

And here's us at dinner at my all-time favorite sushi place, RA. Thank you, Christie, for introducing me to this place a few years back. My life has not been the same since. :)

There were other people on this trip besides us, and I did take lots of pictures. But they were more towards the end of the night, and, well, you know how that goes when you're in Sin City...

Coming soon: pics of Lake Tahoe!!! Stay tuned.

V-E-G-A-S!!!!!

::insert "A Little Less Conversation, A Little More Action" theme song here::

So today is the big day we have been waiting for since this summer. Time to meet up with our Bozeman friends in Las Vegas! woohooo!!!!! Guess who needs a vacation??? This girl right here. If only I could figure out how to do away with this guilt that's plaguing me over taking a few days off from reading textbooks and writing papers. Pat keeps assuring me that once I we approach the runway conveniently located right behind the strip, glass of wine in hand, all my worries will disappear. I guess Vegas has a way of doing that to you.

Pictures to come...

I got nothin'

For all those who are worried (or maybe 'annoyed' would be a better word), yes I am still here. I've had a few people comment about how I haven't updated in awhile.

Let's see...
Two weekends ago, Lori came to visit. We had a blast, doing some shopping, eating a few meals out, and going to Apple Hill (a local series of small wineries, apple orchards, and pumpkin patches). Unfortunately, the whole time she was here, we did not take one picture with our camera. Big fat FAIL on our part.

We celebrated Pat's 27th birthday while Lori was here. Pat doesn't like to make a huge fuss about his birthday, so we kept it pretty low-key.

Other than that, just plugging along. We will be meeting some of our Bozeman friends in Vegas next weekend, and it's going to be a blast!!!! But weekend vacations during the schoolyear=lots of preparation work ahead of time for me, so I best get back to my schoolwork. I'll try my best to actually take some pics during this trip (Am I even related to my mother????)

Oh, and for those of you who are curious, I did NOT contract H1N1...yet. It has spread very quickly here, though, so I'm sure it's just a matter of time. Speaking of which, have you heard about this? I love NPR, by the way, it's really the only news source I read anymore.

Til next time...