Georgia 30, Georgia Tech 24.

Best Facebook status of the night:

"If that were a calculator I bet he wouldn't have dropped it. Nerds."

[In reference to Georgia Tech's dropped ball on 4th and 10.]

I knew my team could pull it off!! (Okay, so I didn't even want to watch the game and had an ulcer the whole time...)

But who cares?? Goooooo Dawgs!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Pull out your stretchy pants, people-- It's Thanksgiving!! Table is set, turkey's in the oven, pie is in the fridge, and I've already had the Don't-Stress-Out-Tomorrow talk with TGrass (I swear, he's more domestic than I am on Thanksgiving).

Not only does that mean watching the parade in my PJs until noon, lots o' turkey, pie, happy families, Russian Tea, and crazy shopping deals... It's officially the start of Christmas!! After we watch football, The Blind Side, and a little more football (with maybe a side of Charlie Brown Thanksgiving), we're getting our tree on Saturday and pulling out the decor.

This is good because the Georgia/Georgia Tech game is this weekend and I'm going to need something to distract me. Otherwise I'll be screaming something like, "WHY DON'T YOU @^&$##$ FIRE WILLIE MARTINEZ ALREADY?!?!?!?!," "AND MIKE BOB0 WHILE YOU'RE AT IT?!?!?" or "REALLY JOE COX, ANOTHER ONE??" and we don't want to scare the in-laws...

[Trying to tell myself, "I'm thankful for the Bulldawgs, I'm thankful for the Bulldawgs, I'm thankful for the Bulldawgs..."]

We have so much thankful for-- family, friends, classmates and co-workers, a warm home, health, happiness, faith, protection, and forgiving Savior.

Have a great day everybody!

Finito!

I took my last exams and finals this week, meaning I have NO classes, NO tests, NO papers, No thesises, (or whatever the plural of thesis is...theses?), no presentations, no more 3 hours of sleep, no mental breakdowns (school related, at least!). For a solid three months.

Just to refresh you, here was my October....

My November....

And THIS is my December....

Sparkling clean white calendar. Aahhhhhh.... Nothing scheduled but Christmas parties, vacation days, and doctor appointments (So, I'm not SO excited about doctors appointments, but...it beats six solid hours of lecture with no lunch breaks.)! Before you get too excited for me, I DO start my next clinical rotation on Monday. But I could not be more excited about 9-5 days, spending my days with kiddos, consistently scheduled weeks, free weekends, 9-5 days, a normal Christmas season, no tests...

Did I say 9-5 days with kiddos and no tests?

And in more good news, Thanksgiving is officially under way here in Arlington... Tyler's parents came in this afternoon, I've already made my pie, the dough is made for homemade cinnamon rolls in the morning (de.li.cious.), and the shopping has been done since last week (Hello, Ahead of the Game. Nice to meet you.).

I'll drop in say hi tomorrow and to wish you a happy Thanksgiving... Until then, Happy Thanksgiving Eve!

Monday Poll

What makes you want to change the channel more?

This guy's peformance against Kentucky (and Florida, and Tennessee, and Oklahoma State and...)?

OR

This guy's AMA performance last night?

(As little as I like Joe Cox at this point, I'm still going with Adam Lambert... Ga-ross.)

Inspiration

So today, not only did I take my last class of the semester, I finished my last day of Pediatrics. I guess I don't talk about it much on here, but I LOVE people with disabilities, more specifically, kids with disabilities. I don't love them because of their disability, I just have a special place in my heart for these kids. I think I don't talk about it much on here because it's sort of my "baseline"-- it's what I spend most of my day thinking and learning about, and by the time it's time to blog, it's just not that "what's new in your life" topic in my mind...

I just want to help. I know I complain about school a lot, I know I complain about the costs, but everything in me wants to do everything I can to help these kids. I know therapy takes place beyond the walls of a church, but I do consider it my ministry. I've been working with Tucker, who will forever be my "first patient," for about a year now. I love him and I love his family, and I have learned so much from working with him. It's amazing to know the personality of a little guy who doesn't even talk. To play and clap and bounce and walk with a little guy who once couldn't even sit up.

For the last semester, through my classes, I've been afforded the opportunity to meet other great kids. Some of them broke my heart, and some of them brought me great joy. A 13 month old little girl with Down Syndrome, a 4 year old boy with cerebral palsy, a blind 2 year old, a 13 year old girl with a glioblastoma (the worst of the worst of brain tumors)... Life is already hard enough without coming into the world three steps behind. Whether it's a mild developmental delay or Autism or CP, I have so much respect for these resilient kids and their families.

We finished up our last class watching a little video for inspiration. It's about Dick & Rick Hoyt, a father-son team who run marathons and Ironmans together. Rick is the son who has cerebral palsy and Dick is his dad who takes him along for every ride. I've heard their story and seen the video before, but it had been awhile.

Cue Kate in the back of the classroom crying her eyes out...

The resilience of these kids, the tenacity of their parents, the distance a father would run, literally, out of love for his child... This video embodies everything I love about these kids and their families. I just want to help them have the best life they possibly can and I consider myself beyond blessed to be a part of their theirs.

So, go volunteer for the Special Olympics. Take time to squat down and look a child in a wheelchair straight in the eye. Make dinner for a busy mom who's juggling therapy sessions and hospital stays with soccer practice and Girl Scouts. Read to a child who can't do so on their own. Talk to child like you don't even notice those braces. I dare you. :)

Wordless Wednesday Thursday

Okay, so it won't be wordless, either....

Packin' it up!

Getting the morning started right....because apparently we're 15 years old.

Heather, high school friend and college roommate. Long overdue reunion.

Mmmmm.... Game Day in Athens.... No better place on earth.

Tyler and my cousin Britt, who went to Auburn. (Boooooooo)

Heather, Adam, and Adam's brother. (And a very excited Abbi in the background)

Me and Tyler

My mom, Britt's girlfriend Jessica, me, and Landon (sister-in-law)

Brother Charles, step-dad Rick, husband Tyler, cousin Britt. I have a great fam...

The best college town I know.

My sister's son Jacob painted this mural in Tate Center on campus. It is amazing.

See, Jacob Copetillo.

Battle hymn before kick-off. Never, ever been that on time for a game. Who knew? Before all of this, when everyone was filling the stands, they had "In the Air Tonight" by Phil Collins playing and it was very creepy and ominous. (And also genius...)

Yeah it is.

Kick-off.

Crazy baton twirler. Yes, it's in her mouth. There was a fourth one somewhere...

Caaaaan't stop it. Cannooot stop it. [Name that movie.]

Rambo turned out to be okay, but I was quite upset in the stands. It's never good when it takes 20 minutes to get someone off the field....

There was no way we were going to let them win after that... The stadium was in-sane.

Wahoo!

Four years in a row, baby.

Athens Bound!

Ahhhh... Time for my annual pilgrimage to Athens! I have two papers due on Monday, a presentation on Tuesday, and somehow, it's already the middle of November (?!?), but that's okay because for the next 48 hours, I'm going to revel in the joy that is my college town.

I'm going to wake up and eat chicken biscuits on Saturday morning, drink beer all day underneath the maples of North Campus, and salivate over the window display in Heery's. I'm going to wait too long for a table at The Grill, still wish Blue Sky Coffee weren't replaced by a Starbucks, even breathe in the putrid smell of East Campus with a smile. I'll walk up the hill on Baxter and relive everyday of my freshman year, climb the 8,000 stairs up to the chemistry building (okay, so I won't do that), and walk beneath the Arch on my way to Clayton Street (with the victory bell ringing in the background!!). Best of all, I'll spend the whole day with my favorite college friends and family members, eating, laughing, and gearing up for the big game. I'll wear my red and black and scream at the top of my lungs. And even if we lose, I will consider the weekend a success.

On Sunday, we'll drive back to Atlanta and relive the day with family, and argue over who's the better team, regardless of who has the real bragging rights, be it the Vols, Tigers, or Dawgs.

I can't wait.

GO DAWGS!

Halley OVERLOAD

What's up guys?? My name is Halley and my Aunt Kathryn asked me to fill in as a guest blogger today. She came to see me this weekend and boy, did we have a fabulous time! She also took A LOT of pictures of me, so I'll tell you all about our weekend while you look at them. Sound good? Good.

Here's the sign me and mommy made Aunt Kathryn when we picked her up at the airport. I don't know why, but she started crying as soon as she saw us.

And here is my room! I showed it to her as soon as she got here. Cute, right?

This was our first night together. I think I sleep extra good when I snuggle with Aunt Kate...

Woohoo!! Lunch time!

Some of my favorite PJs... Mom and Dad call me "Pumpkin" a lot.

See? I told you Aunt Kathryn was a good snuggler... She told me she thinks she does extra good school work when I cuddle up with her. Daddy said I look like a tree frog.

My Mom is the best...

Sometimes, I look like two completely different babies... (Aunt Kathryn thinks I look like Mommy on the left and Daddy on the right.)

I might look big in this picture, but this bed is really not very big and I am teeny tiny. (And I really do heart mommy.)

Practicing my backstroke...

On Saturday, Dad gave me my very first bottle. I did great!

I make LOTS of funny faces... Do I look grumpy or what?

My paci is almost as big as my head, but boy does it taste good!

And ALL of my clothes are way too big for me...

But that doesn't stop me from being cute!

My Aunt Kathryn sure is fun... Nobody told me how much I would like her or I would've come out sooner!! Maybe I should I apply for college at Georgetown...

And just when we were starting to have so much fun, she told me she was leaving!

So I took a nap on her bed while she packed.... This is her favorite picture of me.

And then she changed my diaper... Aunt Kate thinks I'm cuter when I'm just in my diaper.

Being a baby is tough! I am sleepy all the time (except at 3 AM).

And now... The many faces of me!

Followed by 65 seconds of me hiccupping!

Some people might not think these videos are interesting, but try telling that to my Jammie! So here's one last one of little ol' me... I can't cry yet, so these are pretty much the noises I make all day... (Prepare yourselves for another fascinating 61 seconds...)

And that's it! Thanks for checking me out... I have to go eat, poop, and sleep now.