Just a little update on how things are going here in Augusta:
Dustin: he's studying very hard for his "Step 2" exam, which is coming up on Friday. It's an all-day exam, and is the second in a series of three exams he'll have to take to become a licensed doctor. I've never had to take an exam that was longer than 4 hours and my exams were always on specific subjects. These exams are ridiculously long, and the questions cover every single thing they've ever been taught. Yet another reason why I am not the one who's becoming a doctor!
Bonnie: my little girl is 2.5 years old now and has really slowed down over the past few months. She used to badger me constantly to play with her, and wasn't shy about nipping me when I wouldn't get off the couch (she'd just nip my clothes, not my skin; she knew what she was doing). Now, I get about 30 minutes of excitement when I get home, then she flops back into a comfy position and dozes off. When we adopted her, I read that Golden Retrievers take longer than other breeds to leave the childhood puppy stage: most puppies calm down after a year, but Goldens take 2 years. She definitely lived up to that part of her breeding.
V: my big news is that my hair is growing again! After I lost my hair, I did not look at myself in the mirror without my scarf or wig on. That's almost 6 months of purposely avoiding my reflection. But last weekend, I was brave and looked in the mirror. I was pleasantly surprised to see that I didn't look so bad after all. My head is now a light shade of brown, rather than stark white. But the best news is that I am getting my eyebrows back. No more drawing them on like a scary old lady! And I don't look quite so much like a bowling ball!
Saturday, 28 July 2007
Harry Potter fever!
This month has been wonderful for us Harry Potter fans...
First, I saw the movie when it opened in regular theatres, then a week later, saw it in IMAX 3-D, which was absolutely fantastic! Definitely worth travelling 2.5 hours to the movie theatre! Then, of course, the final book came out last weekend. I didn't want to buy an American version of the book (I'm holding out for an Australian one to match the rest of the set), so I've been conscientiously editing what I hear on the news about the final book. Amazingly, though, I found out that someone at work had bought one, but then gone on holidays this week. So, I borrowed their copy and read it in 3 days.
After reading that really exciting book, I'm now a little lost. The book I've started reading, about threatened languages around the world, really doesn't have the same thrill!
First, I saw the movie when it opened in regular theatres, then a week later, saw it in IMAX 3-D, which was absolutely fantastic! Definitely worth travelling 2.5 hours to the movie theatre! Then, of course, the final book came out last weekend. I didn't want to buy an American version of the book (I'm holding out for an Australian one to match the rest of the set), so I've been conscientiously editing what I hear on the news about the final book. Amazingly, though, I found out that someone at work had bought one, but then gone on holidays this week. So, I borrowed their copy and read it in 3 days.
After reading that really exciting book, I'm now a little lost. The book I've started reading, about threatened languages around the world, really doesn't have the same thrill!
Thursday, 12 July 2007
Food Network and our new toy!
Of the dozens and dozens of TV channels we have access to, my favourites are E! (mindless celebrity gossip) and the Food Network (obviously cooking!). When I first came to the U.S., I wasn't allowed to work. I quickly got into the routine of watching Food Network in the morning, going to the supermarket in the afternoon, then spending two-three hours making elaborate meals for Dustin and me. That all ended once I started working! We now live on frozen dinners and pasta-and-sauce boxed meals.
I do miss cooking, though. One of my favourite TV chefs is a Georgia lady named Paula Deen. She has the most wonderful personality and of course, has the beautiful Southern drawl. Everything she cooks is hideously unhealthy, full of mayonnaise and butter and cream, but she's wonderful to watch. When my dad came to the U.S. for our wedding, we actually went to Paula Deen's restaurant in Savannah. We didn't see her, unfortunately. Another favourite TV chef is Nigella Lawson, an English lady whose recipes are very similar to Jamie Oliver. Just throw it all in a bowl, mix it and cook!
Dustin may find that I start cooking a little more often again, after our weekend shopping trip. We bought a beautiful KitchenAid mixer! We've both eyed them enviously in the shops, but at an average price of USD$400, we weren't in any hurry to get one. But, on the weekend, we found them on sale for $140! So, we lined up at the cash register to buy ours. When we got to the check-out, we were asked if we would like to open a store account to get 15% off our purchase. You better believe we did! Our sales girl was new, so she had to get her manager to help her with our sign-up. We waited maybe a minute, but the manager said he'd give us 20% off for our patience.... So, we got a $400 mixer for $100! I love shopping trips like that!! So, we brought it home, set it up and promptly made 2 loaves of bread. Yummy!
I do miss cooking, though. One of my favourite TV chefs is a Georgia lady named Paula Deen. She has the most wonderful personality and of course, has the beautiful Southern drawl. Everything she cooks is hideously unhealthy, full of mayonnaise and butter and cream, but she's wonderful to watch. When my dad came to the U.S. for our wedding, we actually went to Paula Deen's restaurant in Savannah. We didn't see her, unfortunately. Another favourite TV chef is Nigella Lawson, an English lady whose recipes are very similar to Jamie Oliver. Just throw it all in a bowl, mix it and cook!
Dustin may find that I start cooking a little more often again, after our weekend shopping trip. We bought a beautiful KitchenAid mixer! We've both eyed them enviously in the shops, but at an average price of USD$400, we weren't in any hurry to get one. But, on the weekend, we found them on sale for $140! So, we lined up at the cash register to buy ours. When we got to the check-out, we were asked if we would like to open a store account to get 15% off our purchase. You better believe we did! Our sales girl was new, so she had to get her manager to help her with our sign-up. We waited maybe a minute, but the manager said he'd give us 20% off for our patience.... So, we got a $400 mixer for $100! I love shopping trips like that!! So, we brought it home, set it up and promptly made 2 loaves of bread. Yummy!
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