It's Official!

I went to let Lola out in the front yard yesterday before going to bed, and a big envelope fell at my feet. It was my DIPLOMA! Yes, that's right. I've official graduated from graduate school! Woo-hoo! I knew that I finished my program at the end of July, but this just makes it feel so real. Apparently I received my Master of Arts in Teaching degree with a Reading Major on August 9, 2008. (It's funny that I never actually knew the official name or when my graduation date...oh well!) I'm so thankful to be finished with going to class from 5:00-9:00 once, sometimes twice, a week after working a full day at school. Yea for having a life again!

I took this picture to show my family (and because I'm just really dorky and excited!)

Stephanie & Max's Shower

A few weekends ago we helped throw a shower for Jonathan's best friend, Max. He and Stephanie are having a baby in November. The shower was at Allison and Taras' new house, which was beautiful. We are so excited to meet baby Madelyn! I know she is going to be the most loved baby in the world, and Max and Stephanie are going to be wonderful parents. We had fun hanging out and spending time with Max and Stephanie before the big day arrives. Here are some pictures from the evening:

The parents-to-be!

Jonathan, Max and Paul...best friends since middle school

Jonathan was super excited to play DJ with the playlist he created...especially "A Bay Bay" in honor of the baby

Krafft really enjoyed touching Stephanie's belly!

Allison and Taras...so excited to become an aunt and uncle!

We had so much fun being back in Tulsa and celebrating with good friends

Kids say the darndest things...

There was a safety situation in the neighborhood close to my school, so we were all supposed to talk to our classes about what I like to call "Stranger Danger." At the end of the day I asked my class what they would do if someone they didn't know came up to them and asked them to get in a car or go with them. They were sharing great ideas, and then I called on W. He typically says and does inappropriate things at school, so I have no idea what I was thinking when I called on him. Here's his response:

"I'll tell you what I'd do, Mrs. Teal. I'd walk right up to his window and say, 'Get away from me, you ugly Grandma!' and then I'd punch him in the weiner."

Normally I can keep the laughter back when kids say things like that, but this was different. I had to turn around and act like I was looking for something because I couldn't quit laughing. Hope this made you smile!

Vegas and Wrestling Alligators

I finally posted some pictures from our trip to Vegas. We had so much fun hanging out with Marc and Katy, and they planned a fabulous mini-vaca for us. After being picked up from the airport in a limo (riding in style - just the way I like it!) we ate breakfast and then went to a pool party at the Palms. That night we ate some great sushi and then went to Moon nightclub. It was so fun, but we're definitely not used to staying out that late anymore. On Saturday the boys played golf, so Katy and I hit the spa. AMAZING! I had the most incredible massage I've ever had, and we also spent a couple of hours enjoying the whirlpool and other relaxing amenities. That night we went to Nine steakhouse, which was also unbelievably good. After that we were all pretty tired so we headed in early. Thanks, Marc and Katy, for a wonderful trip! It was great to see you both.

While we were away we boarded Lola. She seemed fine until this past Saturday evening when she got a horrible cough. By Sunday morning it was pretty bad, so Jonathan (who is turning into the responsible parent) got up and googled it. We thought she might have "kennel cough" so we took her to the emergency animal hospital. The vet confirmed that she had a very "mild" case since she was still eating and running around...and mostly because she was a complete maniac the whole time we were there. The vet gave her a shot to sedate her and to help with the cough. Then we were just supposed to give her Robitussin every 8 hours. Easy, right? Right, until we realized she didn't like the taste of it. So then we were stuck with a syringe filled with red cough syrup and a wriggly, hyperactive lab with a clenched jaw. Jonathan would hold her like a professional wrestler - her body between his legs and his hands holding her head back - so I could attempt to squeeze the medicine in. It was pretty humorous looking back, but when running late for work it didn't seem so funny.

At work I was telling my teammates how we were wrestling an alligator that morning in the kitchen, and Kristie suggested that we cover the end of the syringe with peanut butter (which Lola loves.) SUCCESS! Only it's much better when Jonathan does it because he squeezes it in super fast, and I somehow manage to get peanut butter and red sticky stuff all over me. Her cough is getting better slowly, but it was horrible watching her cough like that at the beginning. I woke up every hour during the night to check on her. All I know is that if it is this hard to raise a dog, I can't imagine what kids are going to be like!

Las Vegas

A Look Back

We celebrated our 2nd Anniversary on Monday, September 29th! We can hardly believe that two years has already gone by. They're right when they say, "Time flies when you're having fun." We went to Las Vegas this past weekend with Jonathan's friend Marc and his girlfriend Katy, and we definitely celebrated in style. I know there's a lot more I want to say, but I'm still really tired from our trip and will have to update more later...

I was having fun looking back at pictures, so I decided to share some with you all. Here's to the next 2 years and many, many more with the love of my life!

Our 2nd Anniversary