Shower the People You Love with Love

This weekend I threw a bridal shower for my friend Megan. She's getting married to the love of her life, Derek, on November 5th. Kyle and I are both in the wedding and we are so thrilled to be a part of their special day. Megan threw my shower for me almost 2 years ago. It was so beautiful and memorable that I couldn't wait to return the favor.

Here's a peak at Megan's retro housewife bridal shower.

We played a couple of games...

Guests were asked to fill out a recipe card they received with their invitation. They dropped it off in the box here and made a name tag for themselves...


We ate some light picnic style foods...




And after gifts we had some desserts...



All that food was washed down with a tasty raspberry lemonade cocktail that I highly recommend...

Guests also signed an apron for Megan with well wishes and advice...

The bride-to-be modeling her new kitchen attire...

Guests took a jar of homemade cinnamon honey butter as a favor...

Despite the warm weather (108 degrees) we had, I think the shower was a success and I hope Megan will think back fondly of her shower for many years to come.

Good Morning Mrs. Hickman

My main reason for staying in Arizona while Kyle went to Michigan was to work...we could certainly use the extra income. I knew I could jump right back into subbing and that's just what I've done. I've been working nearly every day of the week in classes all over the valley and of all ages. One day I'm with the little squirts in kindergarten and the next I'm in an 8th grade English class. It keeps me on my toes, always wondering what's next. I'm glad to be so busy and I feel fortunate to be able to step back into a job to bring in a little bit of money, but I certainly miss Kyle and being away from him has been even harder than I thought.

The other thing that's been hard is getting up early. I'm used to "island time" where I could sleep in late, stroll to the pool around noon, and be home by 5 to start dinner. Now, I hear my alarm go off at 6am and want to scream. I'm not saying I miss the island, but I do miss my sleep and look forward to the weekends.

I fly to Michigan on October 6th to see Kyle and I'm counting down the days. I'm also looking forward to seeing fall...a foreign concept in AZ. It should be a great time.

Until then, it's work, work, work. Hopefully I continue to stay as busy as I've been.

Srub In!

Kyle is in Michigan now, living a bit of the bachelor lifestyle (missing my cooking), and learning more of the clinical things a doctor does. He started this past week with a formal training on how to scrub in. I think they're excited to finally start applying all those things they learned over the past 2 years.

Lookin' good guys!

Where Children Sleep

I read about this book a few months ago on a blog that I frequent and I can't get it out of my mind. It's called Where Children Sleep by James Mollison and it takes a look at children all across the world, their lives, and where the rest their head at night. It's not only fascinating, but eye opening. I hope you take the time to look at it. You can look at the book for free online here.

What's New, You Ask?

Sorry for the lack of posts and updates, but since we've been home it's been go-go-go!

Kyle got right back to studying, at his old stomping grounds at ASU, for an exam he has on the 16th. I didn't get to see him as much as I would have liked, but he was usually home by 6pm. I can't complain too much. Compared to his studying hours in Dominica, this was nothing.

While he studied, I spent my days unpacking my stuff from our storage and unpacking, only to repack, Kyle's stuff. I believe I've been to our storage unit 7 times in the last 3 weeks. It's exhausting living out of boxes. I've also gotten back into substitute teaching which has been a lot of fun. It's nice to get dressed up, go to work, and finally earn a paycheck! I can't wait to work this semester.

We also got to spend time with friends and family. Something we've loved more than anything. Kyle got to golf and I got to shop, making us both happy campers!

Kyle left for Michigan yesterday. He's driving with a buddy from California. They have quite the journey ahead of them. They should arrive on Saturday, just in time for school to start Monday. As you you can imagine I miss him terribly and am counting down the days till I get to visit him in October.

That's all I have for now, folks!