New England in two Days

I neglected to blog anymore from Boston, I'm sorry...but we've been here and done that, so not really too much new to report on.  There were meetings, dinners, naps, etc.  Just like normal, right?  ;)

BUT, Thursday finally came, and we were done with Boston and ready to take on the rest of New England.  We packed our bags, checked out of the Sheraton, and took a taxi to the airport to pick up our rental car.  It was a 2012 Ford Focus - small, but very surprisingly NICE!  Kerry nicknamed it the squirrel, and we took off headed north.

As soon as we crossed into the state of Maine, we pulled off at the welcome center to get some maps and plot our lighthouse route on the way to Portland.  We saw a total of 7 - there were many more on the way, they were just a couple of miles offshore, and only visible by boat or helicopter (of which we had neither).  We stopped for lunch nearby Cape Elizabeth at the Lobster Shack for a lobster roll and french fries.  Of all the food I ate on the trip, I must say that a lobster roll is the one thing I'd love to have again and again! The air temperature stayed in the mid-70s, and the drive was absolutely beautiful.  If it wasn't for the winters, I'd be very tempted to pack up and move up that way!  I don't do winter too well! :)

After a full day of chasing down lighthouses and points of interest, we pulled into the B&B, and were greeted warmly by the innkeeper.  He showed us to the 3rd floor of a VERY old house, and told us it was ours!  Yay for privacy.  :)  He gave us a few pointers on dinner - we wanted somewhere the locals would hang out rather than the overpriced, tourist-driven, fancy-shmancy stuff. He sent us to the harbor area to J's Oyster Bar.  Definitely a gritty hole-in-the-wall, but the servers were fun, and had that awesome distinctive Maine accent.  "You ottah go up to Bah Habah.  It's ahhsome."  We both ordered the steamed dinner (1 1/2 pound lobster, a dozen clams, and an ear of corn), and got the lesson in how to eat them.  Only word for it was FAB-U-LOUS.  We meandered around the cobblestone streets downtown for a few and headed back to the B&B.

Breakfast Friday morning was a bread boule stuffed with eggs, local cheeses, and bacon...A+ in my book!  You can't go wrong with bacon. ;)   The innkeeper was kind enough to give us directions to the Kancamangus  Highway for a scenic drive through Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.  We drove for a total of maybe 8 hours all day (through 5 states and 3 mountain ranges), but we made it from Portland all the way to Albany, New York - and then back to Framingham, MA to spend the night.

So now here we sit at the airport, rental care turned in and waiting to check our bags.  It'll be another long day of travel, but we'll eventually be back to PCB and real life - and laundry.  Tomorrow, we pick up Otis!  I can't wait to see my little man...it's been 2 weeks!  Thanks for checking up on us - til next time.  :)

Bright Lights and a Bigger City!

It's Varner Vacation time again!  Except this time around it's only about 50% vacation for Kerry.  We're here in the great city of Boston, MA for the AANA annual conference.  He's been pretty busy at the Wellness Committee's booth, so I've had time to catch up on sleep, shop, etc.

We left Friday morning bright and early from PCB's airport headed up (with a pit stop in Baltimore to change planes).  We arrived at Logan around noon, and quickly realized at the baggage claim that the airline had broken and ripped our bags.  {Side note - Southwest Airlines, you will be hearing from me.  Bags fly free, but not gently, huh?} Kerry asked a nearby airport employee for directions to the T (subway), and he told us to jump on the next shuttle.  WELL, about 2 minutes into the ride we realized we had gotten on without paying, so MBTA, here is my apology for being a stow-away on the bus, then the red and green lines, respectively!  We resurfaced and headed down the 2 block walk to the hotel, and checked in.  Kerry had to go to the conference pretty much immediately, so I unpacked.  As I unpacked I discovered not only were our bags broken, but some of our stuff was, also.  So, after some rinsing and muttering under my breath, our clothes finally smell normal again.  Ugh.
We ate dinner at the food court that's part of the Prudential Center's mall (aka the PRU), and enjoyed a little stroll around outside.  Temps in the 70s are MUUUUUCH better than 110 in the shade back home!

Saturday after the conference activities were finished, the group went to Fenway Pahk to see the Sox beat up on the Yankees!  It was such a good time.  We hung out at the Bleacher Bar for a few before going into the stadium for the game.  Kerry absoultely loves it here.  It's fun to see him like such a little kid.  :)
After the game, we all walked to Beacon Hill to eat at the 21st Amendment - which claims to be the first pub to open after the repeal of Prohibition.  Pretty cool. :)

I'll update again as the trip goes on.  So far, so good, though.

Helloooooooooooooo Dothan!

Since Thursday, you haven't been able to wipe the smiles off the faces around this house!  Know why?  We got the call--Kerry has a job lined up for when he is finished with school!  We are so thrilled!

We had been kayaking the Econfina all day Thursday with my parents.  When we got back to the car to unload and drive back to PCB, both our phones had missed calls from Dothan, AL numbers.  He returned the call, and put it on speaker phone so we could hear the conversation.  Kerry will be working for Flowers Hospital!  Let me tell you, I was DANCING in that passenger seat!  We are one step closer to being done now, and we are both thankful that we will still be close to family.

So of course, typical me, I laid awake most of the night that night worrying about change.  Change is good, but change stresses me out 99.99% of the time.  "We need to find a house."   "How can we afford a house?  We've only rented the entire time we've been married."  "What will I do now?"  "We'll have to find a new church, doctors, friends, etc"  All these things were running through my mind at once!  I always envisioned the day we found out where we'd end up would be a load off our minds, not a NEW load. 

I've done a lot of praying, and I've had Kerry bring the last 2 weeks sermons from church back to my attention (which were both about fear and worry...ironic?).  I've always hated to move, but since we've done it SO much since we got married we should be pros by now.  Hopefully this transition will be smooth, and we'll get to stay put for a long, long time. 

P90X...a retrospective.

The past 90 days we have been working our fannies off!  Literally.  :) 
I didn't really post a whole lot about it for the first couple of weeks because (classic Nicole) I was afraid of failure.  When those first 2 pounds came off and I said, "You know,  I might actually be able to do this,"  I decided to go public with the fact that we were giving it a try.  Since I never blogged about it, or did much more than write a couple of facebook statuses about it, I'll reflect on it now.

We started back in January while Kerry was on his rotation in Marianna.  We're not big on New Year's resolutions or anything, it was just a timing thing.  Based on a little research, we picked up with the Lean version - mostly because it adds more cardio into the mix, and that's what I love to do!  We also adopted a higher protein eating plan, and tried to get more veggies in the mix as well. 

Keeping track of everything was the fun part.  We took pictures the day before we started, at 30, 60, and now 90 days respectively.  We measured at 30 days (because we forgot to at the start) and again at 90...and I was a little blown away with my results.  Kerry wasn't really looking to lose weight so much as he was looking to bulk up a little and shed some flab.  What flab?  Ha...I've always thought he looked awesome myself ;)

I started out at a weight that I've been since 2006.  I'm pretty good at maintaining...I credit that to a liking for running.  Now, I'm at a number I haven't seen since my freshman year of college at Troy!  11 pounds may not be drastic like biggest loser numbers, or anything--but they're 11 pounds I won't miss!  From day 30 to day 90 I shed 8 inches as well...and depending on the brand of pants, 2 pant sizes!  Yay me!

top left: day 1  top right: day 30
bottom left: day 60  bottom right:  day 90

Kerry lost about 12 pounds and 9 inches.  The biggest difference in him has to be muscular, though.  He has abs for crying out loud!  I'm so proud of him!  :)

left: day1   right: day 90

We're not stopping here, though.  We're taking a weekend off to relax and Monday we start Insanity with Shaun T. Gluttons for punishment? Maybe so.  But to quote Tony Horton, "I hate it...but I love it."

BRING IT!!!

Happy New Year!

Bye bye, 2010! I can't even begin to say how enormously excited I am that this year has come. It is officially Kerry's graduation year. Not that we're wishing our lives away, but this is a time we would definitely like to get behind us. Everyone makes resolutions this time of year...but I'll plead the fifth for ours until later.

Christmas and the days after were good to us. We got to see nearly all of our families! We are truly blessed.

Kerry is working at a small hospital in Marianna this month, so we won't see a whole lot of each other. I'm praying this month flies by!!

Semester 4 is in the books!

Congratulations, Gooding Institute class of 2010!

Yesterday was graduation for the upper class. It was an awesome day! Watching the seniors get their hoods and diplomas, I was looking ahead to next December and just dreaming away. Kerry even received a scholarship during the ceremony! We had no idea, and it is GREATLY appreciated. I am so insanely proud of him and his accomplishments, and the best is yet to come. So now with that group graduated and out, Kerry's class is instantly promoted to senior status. One year to go. That is exciting in itself. :)

Not to put myself in the spotlight, but I will also mention that I was selected as Bay Medical Center's employee of the month for December 2010. I'm floored and deeply appreciative of this, as I've only been there right at a year. I have great co-workers, and a pretty awesome manager, and without them in the clinic, I'd be more than crazy!

Christmas is here, as well! Our favorite time of the year by far, and this year will be very special. I can't wait to see my big brother, hang out with the rest of the family, eat, go to a Christmas Eve service at church, watch 24 hours of A Christmas Story on TBS, help Brayden celebrate his first Christmas, swap gifts, and the rest of the things that come with the next few days. And since we'll be spending the night at my parents' house next weekend, I'll probably do just like I did for years as a child – look at the stars out the window in my room and look for Santa. ;)



Merry Christmas to you.

Happy (belated) Thanksgiving!

I realize it's the last day of November, and I'm late posting, but you'll have to excuse me.  We've been home in Red Level/ Andalusia loving on our new nephew, Brayden!  He is SO beautiful, and we're thrilled to be Uncle Kerry and Aunt Colie.  He got here pretty late on the 22nd, and was beautiful and healthy from the get go.  It was an amazing Thanksgiving back home with family.  Congratulations to Erin and Josh!

As December starts and this year comes to a close, we're so very excited to only have a year left as a student and wife of a student!  We don't mind it for now, but we sometimes (me in particular) get restless and ready for a change of scenery.  It is a little mind boggling that 2010 is nearly over, and as I sit here and write out Christmas cards, I can't help but look forward to all the events that will come in the next year!

Please continue to remember us in your prayers, and as soon as the magazine is out, I'll post Kerry's article.  That's his latest project...he'll be a published author!  Isn't that something?   My current projects still revolve around cooking, and I must say, I'm getting pretty darn good at it.  Except for the fact that I'm somewhat of an accident waiting to happen, i.e. slicing my finger on a mandolin and burning my entire hand on a cast iron skillet, I'm making some pretty tasty things.  So come visit, and I'll cook you up a little something ;)

I am due to return to the neurologist in a couple of weeks, so I'll update on that as it comes.