Someone very special is getting married tomorrow! I am so excited and thrilled to be a part of her special day! I pray that tomorrow is everything you've dreamed of and planned for and a trillion times more. I love you!
I had a wonderful Thanksgiving break! I completely blew off school (which I'll pay for next week, lol) and had a great time with my family. My mom, aunts, and cousins and I went Black Friday shopping in Buford. We found lots of great deals, and I'm practically through with Christmas gifts. Of course it helped that we're only doing parent gifts this year, we aren't even exchanging gifts between Justin and I (because if it's God's will, we're going on a TRIP right after Christmas, PTL!). I've even wrapped them all and have them under the tree!
Prayer request for my mom. She's having surgery on Tuesday. She's very very nervous and has some other things going on that make things a bit more complicated. She's having the surgery done at Emory, which is helpful for me because I can be right there to see her. Just pray that everything goes well with no complications.
I'm counting down the days till the 13th, my last final! There's a lot going on between here and there so I pray that things go smoothly and quickly! Of course there is someone special's wedding in there somewhere that I'm super excited for and plan to enjoy every minute! ;-)
Happy (almost) December!
~BKL
Pumpkin carving time!
Justin's Bob Marley Pumpkin
My spider
Two of my favorites! Chuck Norris is hilarious and I love the house!
Group photo
Can't wait to see everyone's cute Halloween photos!
~BKL
My birthday has came and gone. It was pretty low key. I had a 13 hour clinical on the day of but several sweet people went out of their way to make it special. My clinical instructor brought doughnuts and a classmate made a cake. Justin also had cute owl cupcakes that he made waiting on me when I got home, along with several sweet cards and gifts that came in the mail.
We celebrated with his mom the following Saturday for lunch and my parents Saturday evening and grandmothers on Sunday. 
I a bit mourned the loss of 22 because it was such a good year but bring on 23!
~BKL
My stress level has crept up and up on the scale of stressfulness. Between tests, papers, and care plans, I have way too much to do before fall break. Going to class seems like such a waste when I have all this work to do, but I have to do that too. 5 days and counting!!!
I also started my 12 hour clinicals in the transplant unit last week. Sweet patient and sweet nurse, but lots of down time, especially while my patient was in dialysis, and I get bored easily, so I wasn't a fan of that, BUT I'd rather be bored than doing other less desirable things ;-) This is where I'll celebrate my birthday next week. Yay for me, lol.
Here's some pre-mud, mud run photos from last week. 
Hope everyone has a good week!
~BKL
There's been a lack of blogging on my end for many reasons. Mostly, I've been writing so much for school, I haven't been able to muster up any more enthusiasm for writing elsewhere. And of course, life is in a lull, not a whole lot going on outside of the norm.
My grandmother recently had knee surgery, and is doing well. She's determined to drive asap so she's pushing it extra hard with the PT. Makes me proud, yet worried all at once. :-)
I finished my psych rotation. Bummed to see it go because the 12 hour shifts are up next... Transplant unit, hopefully, I'll hear some interesting stories while I'm there.
Justin's out of town this weekend, doing a Marine Corp hosted mud run in Columbia, SC with his buddies. He's excited. Hopefully, I'll be productive in studying for my trillion upcoming midterms while he's gone. I am also going to sweet J's bridal shower and to see sweet Emi cheer at her middle school football game tomorrow. It should be a good weekend!
~BKL
I had my first full day on the psych unit at Wesley Woods Geriatric Hospital yesterday. It was VERY interesting. I encountered so many delusions and hallucinations.
"Glass is in my mouth so I can't swallow"
"There is a gas leak in my room"
"There is a vacuum in my bed trying to suck up my fat"
"There is a fire under my bed"
"Sleep is death"
"A space ship landed beside me and turned into a hamburger so I ate it. I need to eat objects made of metal to feed it so it can gas up and return to outer space"
"Little men with copper wires are in my toes trying to cut them off"
I was dreading my time on this unit, but it's actually quite fascinating. Looking forward to my next two weeks there!
~BKL
This weekend we celebrated our one year anniversary! I can't believe it's been one year already. It's been such a great year, and I look forward to many more spent together.
For my gift to Justin, I wanted to stick to the traditional theme, so as most of you probably know, one year is paper. I tried and tried to come up with something unique. When I heard Jack Johnson was coming to Atlanta the weekend of our anniversary, I realized how perfect it was, tickets to the show could be my paper! Justin has told me so many times that he wanted to see JJ live so he was beyond excited. We had an awesome time! It's seriously the best concert I've ever been to. His openers played from 7-9 and he played 9-11. I've never seen anyone play that long and it was just so nice. He played all of our favorites! He also sang to his wife which made me tear up. I debtated lawn vs. covered and I am SO GLAD I went for the covered because it poured the ENTIRE time! Here's some photos:
"Paper"
Prior to the concert
At the concert: 
Saturday morning we slept in and then we headed to Little Five Points and just looked around. We had lunch at a little cafe and window shopped a little more. For dinner, we went to Rosebud. It was amazing! They're known for cooking locally grown food. The fried eggplant chips (appetizer) is one of the best things I've ever put in my mouth. I had fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and mac and cheese (which had cranberries in it- odd but good). Justin had shrimp and grits. We both loved everything. 
Afterward we went to Cafe Intermezzo for dessert. OUT OF THIS WORLD! (http://www.cafeintermezzo.com/) Then we came back home and watched a movie on NetFlix. Matilda, specifically, one of my all time favorites. Justin complained at first, but he'd never saw it, and who doesn't like Matilda? ;-)
Sunday, we woke up around nine, and Justin made pancakes for breakfast. We fell asleep on the couch after eating and didn't wake up till 1:30. We grabbed a quick lunch at the DQ and went and had a fabulous couples massage! We had dinner at home. Justin grilled steaks and fixings. We ate our anniversary cake for dessert. We'd forgot what flavor we choose and were surprised with strawberry! The cake was surprisingly good. I couldn't eat the icing, it was too sweet and grainy but the cake was delicious. 
Justin also surprised me with a gift from Shane. :-) It's a band identical to my wedding band to go on top of my engagement ring. I'll admit, I'd been dropping a few subtle hints but had no idea if he'd get it or if they'd even still have that same band!
It was an awesome weekend. Justin agreed to let me plan the weekend (to my delight- I love to plan!) so he was surprised throughout the weekend which made it extra fun for me. I hid little hints and gifts through out the house. I debated going somewhere, but when I heard Jack Johnson would be here in ATL, I knew we had to stay. It actually worked out great because we were able to afford to do more things than if we'd of had to pay money for a hotel. I never knew how important an anniversary could be until I got married. I hope we always take the time to celebrate. :-)
~BKL
Finished my first semester of the program and I could not be happier!!!!!!!!!
Off to a glorious week at the beach!
~BKL
I posted earlier about my community clinical, Hagar's House.
Hagar's House is a 30 day emergency shelter for single moms and their children. I have so enjoyed my time there. It has just been so humbling. The moms are so strong. I look at them and see the strength of my great-grandmother. Many of these women, like her, are widows, left to raise a family on their own. Unforeseen circumstances have left them homeless. Things that could easily happen to any of us. This experience has redefined my idea of homelessness. We tend to stereotype the homeless as lazy, unproductive citizens. These women are not lazy. One mom, has seven children. Just like my Ma. Seven lively, healthy, robust children. Children that need food, clothes, and a place to call home. My Ma easily could have become homeless when her husband was killed. She was 35, had never worked, and had seven children. With the help of family and neighbors, she got by. Barely, but she did. These women haven't been so lucky. They have no families.
For five weeks, I have spent time with their children. Amazing, resilient kids. These moms are not lazy, unproductive citizens. They are doing something so incredibly right. They are raising families and teaching them the importance of taking care of one another. 
Playing with Nataria. 
Destiny's artwork.
Pray with me that these moms find jobs and secure housing for their precious, precious families.
~BKL
Two more weeks of classes and one week of finals between me and the ocean.
That sounds so heavenly; however, thats: four hospital clinicals, two community clinicals, twelve classes, three care worksheets, two regular exams, two final exams, a nine page paper, two group presentations, a case study, and four care plans.
Salt, sand, and ocean, please get here soon before I go insane.
~BKL
I've been doing a home based clinical at a place called Branan Towers. It's a high rise independent living tower for 62 and olders. Most people who live there are lower income. (Rent is 30% of their income). Anyway, we've been practicing our health history taking and each were assigned two residents.
My first was a sweet sweet lady. She reminded me so much of my Ma. She only made it to the third grade and worked as a farm hand. She had TWELVE kids. Um?!? Ouch. Anyway, her interesting story was that when she was 8, she was thrown off of a mule, and hurt a rib. She said they were too poor to do anything so her mom put a homemade remedy on it and she had to suck it up and go on. When she was having one of those twelve kids her rib moved and punctured her THIRD kidney that she just happened to be born with and she had to have emergency surgery.
The man I was assigned to is hilarious. He loves to read palms so we started off our first meeting with a palm reading. I am going to have two kids, I'm good with money, I have a guardian watching over me, and I have strong ideals, LOL! Any way as we were talking, I noticed a slam toy (those things kids slam that talk) in the shape of a Jerry Springer head. I said "Did you go to the Jerry Springer show?" And he said "Oh yeah, I was on TV!" I said "Oh, cool, you were in the audience and made it on the show?" Oh no. He was a contestant. And you don't even want to know the episode
title.................
Senior Citizens Still Getting Busy.
Yes, indeed. What do you say to that one? Thank goodness we never made it to the sexual history portion of the form...
~BKL
This week I start my community clinical rotation at Hagar's House.
Here's the link if you're interested, I can never get the clicky type to work.
http://www.ogumc.org/templates/cusoakgroveumc/details.asp?id=35004&PID=672032
It's a 90 day emergency shelter for women and children that is ran by the Decatur Cooperative Ministry and is affiliated with Oak Grove United Methodist Church. I am so excited!
The only downside to this clinical site is that it only operates in the evening/night so that's a bit of a bummer, but I think it'll be worth it!
~BKL
that Justin found a job!
It's in his field, which is awesome, and eases the sending of the student loan payments a bit too!
He started today, and it was a long day (6:30-5:15ish, but getting up at 5) in the heat. He has been hired as a project manager, but in order for him to manage well, they want him to understand how long things take which definitely makes sense, soooo he's working with the installation crew for a bit to get a feel for things.
He says it's the hardest he's ever worked and came home covered in dirt from head to toe. He also drank over a gallon of water. I find that crazy! We need to go to SAMs and stock up on sunscreen and Gatorade!
Anywho, thank you all for praying with us that he would find a job. This job was definitely an answered prayer. They weren't even hiring and Justin just happened to find them online and send in a resume and cover letter. The last couple of months have been very hard for us financially and needless to say we've accumulated some debt so we're both happy to be able to start paying on what we owe because we both hate owing others money!
Hope everyone had a Happy Father's Day with your families!
~BK
My life is crazy. If you call if a life, lol. Thankfully my husband is the best. He definitely makes my life easier.
Last Friday, I passed my first nursing final and lab practical! Many more to come.
On Saturday, we went to Summerfest, one of the best festivals in Atlanta, with some of my classmates and their SO's. We didn't have any money to buy anything, but the booths were amazing with the neatest stuff. (Imagine pre-fourth x 100). They also had tons of food vendors and live music, including Tonic. It was a blast!
Today I had my first home based clinical, although we didn't really start, we just toured the place and met some of the residents. It's in a high rise tower apartment for 62+. It should be an interesting experience, lol.
This weekend, we're house and dog sitting. I'm so freaking exciting about sitting by the pool, hopefully the weather will cooperate with my plans.
Hope things are good with everyone in our blog circle! Big congrats to J! Check out her blog for her news!! Have a great weekend!
~BK
This weekend has been busy busy.
Friday we had our first visitors at our new place! My mom and grandmother came out for a visit (due to Saturday's events). We ate at the Olive Garden (yummy) and rented Dear John. It was good, but I like the book better, partly because it accurately portrays melanoma unlike the movie who changed it to lymphoma and I felt like the book was more realistic, but the movie ending was a happy one which is always good! Justin tried to hook up our internet while we watched our chick flick but had no luck. I am dying without it. We have to figure it out by tomorrow, especially considering that we are paying for it already.
Saturday, we did the Skin Cancer Awareness Network's annual Save Our Skin 5K in memory of my Papa. It was a lot of fun. My grandmother placed second in her age group! She is 74 and was in the 70-98 category which cracked us up. She improved her time from 56 minutes last year to 53 this year and was pumped. She walks four miles everyday but not at such a fast pace. I hope I'm in that good of shape when I'm her age. Justin did great, and ran the 5K in 22 minutes! Here are some photos: 
Afterwards, we headed back to Hartwell. On the way back, I was fitted for my bridesmaid dress for J's wedding. It's so classy and the color is gorgeous!
I read all the way home and continued when I got home for a couple of hours. Then we headed to one of my friend's weddings. I love weddings! I saw so many of my classmates that I haven't saw in forever!
Sunday and Monday ended up being study days. I wanted to get some lake time in, but that didn't happen thanks to the weather which actually was a blessing. I have a final for my health assessment class this Friday. This is a class that my school usually teaches in a semester and we've done it in three weeks. That's 22 chapters in three weeks. I'm a bit freaked. I've made a study guide that is THIRTY pages long. Eeeeek.
Anyway, it's back to ATL in a couple of hours to get geared up for a super busy (and most likely stressful) week.
Hope you all had a great holiday weekend!
~BKL
This week has officially proven that I am a rusty student. One year out, and I'm having a hard time getting back in the groove.
At school, I'll hear, "I went to a concert last night." "I had the best time salsa dancing last night." "Last night, my roommates and I went to this amazing restaurant."
Um? I am reading/studying/making Justin be my patient from the time I get home until it's time for sweet sleep. I seriously don't know how they do it. Oh well, I always knew I was a nerd. :-)
On another note, I love my school. This is my new home away from home (away from home sweet Hartwell). 
Everyone is extremely nice, and I can already tell that the professors love their jobs.
On one last note, our brother graduated on Friday night! So proud of him! Annnnnnd he was valedictorian, woo woo!
~BKL
My grandmother turned 74 today! We gave her a surprise luncheon. She thought just the women in our intermediate family would be in attendance, but all of her siblings and her cousin from Charlotte was also there. She was so surprised!
Here are a few photos. 
My grandmother. 
The Siblings. 
MaMa and her grand girls. (I am holding sweet Mylee, the family's newest addition! I want her!)
Me, MaMa, and my mom.
She had a lovely day! Hope you all had a fabulous weekend!
~BKL
Orientation for school starts tomorrow. I can't believe it's finally here! I'm very excited and a little nervous! Keep me in your thoughts and prayers! I will update soon. (We don't have Internet hooked up yet and blogging from my phone is quite the challenge). Hope you all have a great rest of the week!
~BKL
Last night my sweet sister had her pinning ceremony! I know she'll post more about it (and have better photos) but I wanted to make a quick post. :-)
Jamie, I am so proud of you. I fought the urge to cry last night more than you would ever believe. And although I know you know it, I just want to let it be known that I know how hard you worked and that it was NEVER easy. I know that a lot of people work hard to obtain their degree, but you took it to an entirely different level. You worked the entire time you were in school, and I admire that so much. And not only did you deal with class, clinical, and work, you had lots of extra battles and unnecessary hoops to jump through at the R.H. Daniels School of Nursing. However, you passed each one, and you did it with such dignity. Last night as you sat on that stage, I thought about all that you had to do and all of the discouraging moments that you dealt with. You deserved every award they gave. Anyone that worked as hard as you did and was as dedicated as you were, will make a dang good nurse. Never for one moment did I underestimate your intelligence and ability to make it, and you made it. YOU made it. YOU did it. I am so so proud of you. I love you.
~BKL
We got all the big stuff moved into the new place yesterday!
I think we looked like the Clampetts heading to the big city. Quite amusing. We were in two borrowed trailers. One advertising R & D car wash and one Harley Davidson trailer. Lots of looks and a few honks and hollers lol. There was a HD convention in Atlanta this weekend. Go figure...
Huge relief that everything made it with no damage. We had some tips from some professional movers and it totally paid off! We wrapped all our important nicer furniture in moving blankets and then wrapped it in this stuff that looked like saran wrap to keep the blankets in place. Genius!
We couldn't of done it without my parents and Dillon and Adam. Thank goodness for family! We even got some unpacking accomplished. :-)
It was pure work, and I'm still tired, but being out there got us excited. It's going to be a good time!
Hope you all had a great weekend and enjoy your week. Our last day at work is this Tuesday. Eeeeek!
~BKL
My sweet cousin Emilee turned 12 on Monday!
I remember her birth day like it was yesterday. 
She was just so cute! My aunt and uncle waited twelve years to become parents and Emilee was our answered prayer. It was one of the most exciting and most memorable days of my life. I'll never forget it.
She's been such a blessing to our family. She's caring and considerate and always kind.
Riding is her passion and although I always pray for her safety (because they make me a bit nervous!), I also pray that she always does what makes her happy. And her horses make her so happy!
We love you sweet girl and wish you many many more birthdays! 
~BKL
We finally signed our lease! We have an official place to call home for the next year (and hopefully longer).
Sorry about the condition of this photo. It's mobile, and it was raining but you can get a gist! I'll post more photos when we move in. :-)
We're happy to have this taken care of and think it will be a great fit for us! We move one week from Saturday. Eeeeek!
Still praying on a job for Justin!
~BKL
I hope you all had a great Easter! I didn't take a single photo, but we had a great day.
We surprised my grandmother and went to church with her so that she wouldn't have to go all alone on Easter. She was thrilled!
We ate lunch with Justin's family and had dinner with mine.
It was a gorgeous day! Hope you all had a wonderful day! We are so so blessed to serve such a gracious Savior.
~BKL
Oh! The Easter bunny surprised me with a new handbag!!! I haven't had a new one in two years! I'm over the moon. Isn't she cute?!? 
In one month we will move from this tiny town. I really have mixed feelings about this.
I love being close to our families and friends. Justin has a job that pays the bills. We love our home. I also love this town (and lake of course), it's home and always will be.
BUT I'm also ready for something new. A new town. New places to eat and things to do. New experiences. New memories.
So the transition is starting. I've packed one box (big whoop compared to what all I have to pack lol), but more importantly, I've come to grips with the move and have started to embrace the sweet more than the bitter.
That's not to say I won't cry when we actually move. ;-)
~BKL
This weekend we saw Alice and Wonderland. (Not in 3D). It was so very good! A lot of thought went into this production. There are several adult innuendos and lots of neat graphics. I think I could watch it again and still find things I missed.
I loved the little mouse! So random, but she was so cute! 
Of course, Johnny was great! I'm not an I LOVE JOHNNY fan or anything, but he's always so good in all the roles he plays and this was no exception.
It's time to go see it ;-) 
~BKL
Life has just been rolling along here. Let's see...
We should know about the townhouse tomorrow or Friday. We've put the brakes on looking because I was getting ill, lol, so we're really hoping this one works out, but if not, the hunt will resume soon.
Justin still has no real leads on jobs. Scary and worrisome, but we know God already has it worked out so we try not to worry too much.
Justin's freelance deck that he designed turned out great! We secretly wished it was being built for us, lol. It really made me realize that he's so talented and made me bitter that he can't work in his field. I'll get him to email me the file and share it. It even has an outdoor kitchen!
He's starting a new project now. A courtyard/prayer garden. I love watching the progress!
Both of our moms had birthdays recently. Both seemed to have good ones!
I've been getting to see J more now that she's officially done with class and her test and that has been most lovely!
I finally bit the bullet and told my work I'd be leaving. I always dread telling that bit of news. They were happy for me but are anxious to find someone. It's a long process. I'll miss them. I work with some great people!
Cardboard boxes are starting to appear at our house. How I dread the packing and leaving our home!
I am FINALLY starting to exercise again. I'm doing a Women's Health DVD right now. It must be working because I am SORE! I want to get back to walking too. Anything to make me get me off my booty ;-) I'll admit, I haven't given up my cokes or my icecream and I probably never will. Cut back, okay, give up?!? I don't think so!
If you're still reading, lol, have a great day!
~BKL
This weekend went by in a blur. I feel like I didn't even get to enjoy it. But here's a quick recap.
Friday:
I got to have lunch with J. The first in forever! We chatted and caught up and it was so very lovely. I'm hoping for more of those now that she's done with class!!!
My mom's birthday was great! She loved all her gifts and was so surprised. I had secretly ordered her a coconut cake because that's her favorite. She told me last week that her best friend had ordered her one (after I had so it was too late). I secretly groaned but said nothing. The lady that her friend ordered it from ended up forgetting due to a family crisis. Mama was crushed so needless to say my cake saved the day! It was delish.
Justin went to Atlanta to meet with a company in ATL. It's not going to work out for now, but MAYBE in the future. He stayed out there with his best friend for the night.
Saturday:
Justin and Justin W drove to Rome, GA and ran a 10K. I met Justin in Atlanta later that day and we went house hunting again. And MAYBE just MAYBE we MIGHT have found the place. We're filling out an application now, and it's a process. Everything in the big city seems to be a process. Guess I better get used to that. Cross your fingers, it works out. I'm so tired of looking. If it does, I'll share some neat info with you about our landlord on another day. No Cheesecake Factory this time, but TGIFridays was wonderful.
Sunday:
We woke up and Justin's knee was killing him. He stayed in the bed most of the day. He's doing a freelance design project for a friend so he worked on that in bed. I had lunch with his wonderful family and we had supper with mine.
And poof, it's Monday!
~BKL
On Friday, Justin and I went to Atlanta to look for housing. We familiarized ourselves with the area a little bit more and then got looking. We looked at three apartments and some rental homes. Nothing felt "quite right." It was a long and grueling day, and I ended up feeling nothing but frustration. The area around the school is an older area (because the school has been there so long) and there are very few rentals available in a close proximity. After seeing what we saw, I've decided it'll be worth it to drive a little more so we've expanded our radius and have started over. We came home and googled for three hours and have some new leads. We'll head back out there to do it all again as soon as we can.
BUT, before we came home we ate at our beloved 
And of course we had to get dessert. Factory Mud Pie (oh my!!!) 
The rest of the weekend was devoted to the job hunt. Justin finished his resume and has submitted it to a couple of places. We're getting ready to just send it out everywhere we find. So if you hear of anything near the ATL area for someone with a BA let us know. He's willing to do most anything and drive.
Have a great week! My mom's birthday is Friday, and I can't wait! I have some surprises up my sleeve :-)
~BKL
So I finally updated my blog, including title, photos, background, fonts, colors, and headline. It was about time!
My new title is a bit cheesy, but so am I :-)
I hope you all had a great weekend! Ours was so laid back!
~BKL
Justin and I had planned to go to Atlanta to check out the area and look at some housing options on Friday, but that didn't happen due to the snow! We couldn't complain because it was just so beautiful! I did miss that dessert though! (We'd planned to eat at the Cheesecake Factory and I could already taste it!) We'll reschedule in a few weeks. We had a Valentine's lunch date on Friday in Hartwell instead.
We stayed in all of Friday and Saturday, except when we tromped through the snow.
Here are a few photos: 
After the snow, Justin made some yummy blueberry pancakes!!
The second half of Saturday, I was consumed with a terrible headache and slept a good part of the day. I feel for people who get migraines. I rarely get them and I just cannot function. Sleep is my only option. So if you get them, bless your heart. It's awful!
Sunday, Justin let me sleep in and didn't wake me. I felt so much better on Sunday morning when I woke up. We ate lunch with his family and then came back home. We didn't do gifts, we never really have. Justin washed and vacuumed out my car (which needed it so BAD and made me so HAPPY,lol) and I made some homemade brownies. Our mama's spoiled us with little gifties and candy so we did get some of that :-)
Overall it was a great Valentine's Weekend! 
~BKL
