Yes, I'm still around...

Sorry that it has been so long since I've blogged! This past month has been incredibly hectic at work! When I got back from Red River, I started a new quarter of rotations. I have a different clinic every day of the week, and I have been busy trying to keep up with all of my learning issues...especially in Heme/Onc and HIV clinics. I also have 2 students on rotation with me right now, so I stay busy with their assignments and other teaching responsibilites. No to mention, I have another job interview coming up next week (that requires a presentation). I really hope that things will die down SOON!!! This weekend, I will be heading to Norman to celebrate a baby shower for one friend from pharmacy school (Alicia) and a wedding shower for another friend (Ashley). I am super excited! This will be the first time that all of use "pharm girls" have gotten together since graduation in June 2007! I know we'll have a great time! Stay tuned for pics! :)

MLK Weekend in Tulsa

This weekend Jason and I went to Tulsa to visit our good friends Amber and Kurtis. We spent a lot of time playing with their adorable little girl (see above). I couldn't believe how fast she is growing! She's able to sit up, jump in her bouncer, and "talks" all of the time! (baby talk, but we thought we heard her say "uncle" to Jason...haha! We also were able to go to dinner with our friends Sarah and Grant, and Marc and Alicia. I went to pharmacy school with Sarah and Alicia, and I hadn't seen either of them in a long time! Marc and Alicia (see pic above) just had a beautiful baby boy, and we were able to see him. He arrived a little early, so he was in the NICU, but he is doing really well! I can tell that Marc and Alicia are completely in love with their little sweetheart. After dinner, we got to go over to Sarah and Grant's beautiful new house! It was so pretty and well-decorated :). I can't wait to get our first house...hopefully soon! We ended up coming back to Dallas Sunday night because Jason had to work today. Luckily, I get MLK day off from work. Yay federal holidays!

BOOMER SOONER!!!

I am watching my Oklahoma Sooners play in the BCS National Championship game as we speak! My brother and brother-in-law were lucky enough to attend the game! Boomer Sooner!

Red River, NM

Last night, we made it safely to Red River, NM! Although, it took FOREVER to drive the last 45 miles because were were in the middle of a huge snowstorm! Thanks SO MUCH to mom and Chuck for allowing us to use their Chevy Tahoe...with 4 wheel drive. We saw several cars stuck in the snow along the way. After we arrived, we checked the snow report and found out that Red River got 22 inches of new snow on Sunday! That is amazing! When we came with our friends Brittan and Brant in 2006, we got 14 inches of snow and we thought that was a lot! Needless to say, all of the ski lifts and trails are open. Jason is up on the slopes right now, but I decided that I probably won't ski this year since I recently hurt my ankle. Also, I'm not the best at skiing, and tend to be content on the bunny slope. However, we're going on a snowmobile tour this evening and I am super excited about that. The first pic above is of one of the ski slopes, the second pic is showing how high the snow is around our condo (some drifts are almost covering the entire first floor windows!), the third pic is of our condo building, the forth pic is Jason getting ready to ski (and bundled up like a marshmallow), and the last pic is me, bundled up to take Jason to the slopes.

Happy New Year!

We were able to ring in 2009 with my good friend Ashley, and her fiance Matt. They are getting married in March, and her sweet friends hosted a New Year's Eve party/Couples Shower. Jason and I were able to visit with Ashley, get to know Matt, and meet several of Ashley's friends from high school. Everyone was so nice and we had a great time! We stayed late enough to ring in the New Year (in New York :), then we headed back to Irving. The shower was in Rockwall, a suburb about 30 miles outside of Dallas. By the time we hit downtown Dallas, it was midnight! We were able to see all of the fireworks downtown! They were spectacular! Another sight to be seen was the huge number of cars PARKED along the edge of I-35 in both directions! I have never seen such a thing...especially on a major interstate in the middle of a major city! I guess that the police allow this sort of thing on New Year's. They must have other problems that they're worried about. Although it would've been nice to actually be downtown, I definitely was grateful that we could avoid the crowds and celebrate with friends. HAPPY 2009!!!

Bumper Bummer!

Isn't it crazy how things can be rolling along smoothly, and trouble can come flying your way? (I know...a cheesy metaphor :) Last week, I was heading to work on Monday morning, just minding my own business. Traffic wasn't very heavy, but I was driving in the middle lane of the highway so the crazy drivers could pass everyone at 90mph in the left lane. Anyway, out of nowhere, I saw something quickly fly into my lane. I couldn't tell what the object was, but I knew that the car in the left lane must have hit something in the road. I heard an EXTREMELY loud bang, and I felt the object hit my car. My first thought was that the object blew my tire. I thought about continuing to drive, but I thought it would be best to pull off of the highway and see if my tire was damaged. When I got out of my car and walked around to the front, I saw pretty good-sized crack in my bumper and a chunk of my bumper missing!! This came at a very inopportune time because I knew that I would have to file an insurance claim to get the bumper replaced. It had not even been 1 week since Jason's fender bender on an icy bridge! The insurance company probably really loves us right about now. Luckily, it wasn't my fault and there really wasn't anything I could do (it happened so fast). I was really upset about the damage, but my dad reminded me that I should be thankful. If the object would've been a little bit higher, it could have flown through the windshield...or even hit me! I guess that I should try to look at the bright side. What lesson did I learn from this incident? No matter how calm things may seem, things can change in an instant!

Christmas 2008

Grandma Jean (Jason's grandmother)
Jason doing the Heisman pose

Eden (my niece), helping to make the stuffing
Chris and Jake, Dynelle and Jessica, Kari and Emma (Jason's family)
Back (L to R): Haley, Avadelle (Brent's wife), me, Ashley (Scott's wife), Jill (my cousin), Carrie (Alan's girlfriend), Alan (my brother - green shirt), Matt (my cousin), MacKenzie (Stacey's daughter), Stacey (my cousin)

Front (L to R): Brent (my cousin), Jason, Scott (my cousin), Grant (my brother)
Haley (Brent and Avadelle's little girl - Brent is my cousin)
Mom and Chuck
Jason and I
Dad and I
L to R: Lauren, Nancy (my stepmom), Danielle (my stepsister), and Mecca (Nancy's niece)


This Christmas involved a whirlwind trek across the great state of Oklahoma! We started out by heading to Enid on Tuesday. That night, I was able to visit with my good friends Emily and Lata. Lata is getting married in April, so we got to hear all about her wedding plans. I also got to try on my bridesmaid's outfit...an Indian Sari. It was soo beautiful! I am excited for her wedding! On Christmas Eve, we went to my grandparents house in Waukomis, Oklahoma. This is a little town just south of Enid. We had a fantastic lunch and then opened gifts. I was also able to see my step-sister, Danielle, and Nancy's niece, Mecca. Everyone had a great time, and we received some neat gifts...including a movie theater popcorn maker! (Jason is super excited for movie nights!) Later that afternoon, we went to my mom's house in Enid. We opened gifts with her and my stepdad, Chuck. It was nice to spend time with immediate family and Alan's girlfriend, Carrie, before the party began. Yes, my mom throws an incredible Christmas Eve party for all of my aunts, uncles, and cousins (and now their kids!). We always have a great time, especially playing Dirty Santa! This year, we took the opportunity to snap a pic with all of my cousins, their spouses, and the kids. This is a rare picture, folks!

On Christmas morning, we headed down to Norman to spend Christmas Day with Jason's family. There was a house full of people, but we had such a fun time! (Jason, of course, entertained us all!) We even got to see some of the extended family which was great. That evening, we headed over to Jason's aunt and uncle's house for Christmas dinner. On Friday, we started out to catch some post-Christmas sales, but quickly headed back to the house (everywhere was so busy!) Friday night, we came back to Irving. On Saturday (yesterday), Jason's mom came down to Texas so that she could spend some extra time with us (Jason and I, Heather, Chuck, and Eden). It was nice to have some one-on-one time with her since Christmas day was so busy.

Jason and I are so blessed to have such wonderful family and friends. We loved the opportunity to see everyone over the holidays.

Meow-y Christmas!!!

Hope you all have a Meow-y Christmas and a Happy Mew Year!!!! Love, Mia and Caesar

P.S. Check out Mia's new flower "necklace." Isn't she stylin' this holiday season?

TTUHSC Christmas Party 2008

It's that time of the year again...lots of Christmas parties! Last Friday was the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) School of Pharmacy party for the Dallas/Ft. Worth faculty, staff, and residents. One of the profs, Dr. Amie Blaszczyk, graciously volunteered to host this event, and we all enjoyed her beautiful home! The best part was the fully catered appetizers and dinner from Central Market and dessert from La Duni Bakery (I had the Panque de Limon cake with raspberry sauce....so good!). Almost all of the residents attended, and the faculty were impressed with the resident turnout! (hey...we wouldn't miss a free meal!) We spent the evening visiting with everyone and had a great time. I can't believe that Christmas is almost here!

Michael W. Smith and the DSO

What better way to celebrate the Christmas season than go to a Christmas concert!? Two weeks ago, we went to see Michael W. Smith perform with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. We decided to get the "cheap" tickets and ended up sitting in the Choral Terrace. This was the the area right above the stage. We had a fantastic view of the entire orchestra and close-up views of the performers. Michael W. Smith was not the only exciting part of the show...remember Melinda Doolittle? She was an amazing singer on American Idol Season 6 and was just as amazing in person! Since we had such a great view of the singers, Jason noticed something familiar about one of the backup singers. After a few more glances, he said, "That's George Huff!" He was also on American Idol! (Season 3) They were soooo friendly to the entire audience and you could definitely tell that they had a strong faith in Jesus Christ. In the second half of the show, George Huff sang a solo performance of "O Holy Night." It gave me goosebumps!!! One of my favorite parts of the concert was when they turned the lights up and asked the entire audience to join in on "Oh Come All Ye Faithful." If you ever have the chance to see any of these singers, or the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, I highly recommend it!

2nd Annual Christmas Cookie Party

Anyone hungry for Christmas cookies?? If so, I have a huge supply! Today, we had our 2nd Annual Christmas Cookie party. I decided to do it last year with some of my co-residents. It was so much fun, we decided to do it again! Last year, everyone brought their dough and baked the cookies at my place. It was fun, but the kitchen (and oven) got a little crowded. This year, everyone brought the cookies already baked...much better! We had a great variety of cookies including chocolate Andes mint cookies, oatmeal raisin, peanut butter, and gingerbread cookies. I made Mexican Wedding Cakes (kind of like Sandies covered in powdered sugar). I also had a large supply of sugar cookies, ready for decorating! We had a great time trying to determine what the shapes were supposed to be. :) I also thought it would be fun to have a "Christmas craft." We made marbleized ornaments. They turned out pretty darn good! I am looking forward to next year's party. Maybe we'll have a house by then (with a much larger kitchen).






Wasn't baby Eme adorable in her Christmas dress??

ASHP Orlando 2008

This year marked my 4th ASHP (American Society of Health-System Pharmacists) Midyear Clinical Meeting. This is a big event for pharmacists all over the country, and it is the primary place for recruitment to pharmacy residency programs. This year, it was in sunny Orlando, FL. Although I didn't get a chance to go to Disney World, the Disney "feel" infiltrated the entire town...including the airport. My co-resident, Anesia, and I had a chance to meet Snow White while we were waiting to board the plane :).
During the 5-day period that I was at the meeting, I attended several CE (continuing education) programs. Not only did they provide education, but more importantly, they provided free meals!!
Katie Hazlewood (one of my fellow OU College of Pharmacy grads) is the Critical Care resident with me at the Dallas VA. It was so nice to see a familiar face when I started this program.
The above pic shows (from L to R): Nicole Russell (last year's Ambulatory Care resident), Krystal Edwards (my program director), me, and Shane Greene (one of my primary Am Care preceptors).
Another great thing about this event is that I am able to catch up with some of my friends from pharmacy school. (L to R) Teresa Nguyen, Katie Hazlewood, me, Jamie Smith, and Craig Trusley. We all graduated from OU College of Pharmacy Class of 2007--Boomer Sooner!!

I don't have a pic with her, but I was also able to see and catch up with one of my co-residents from last year, Janine. It was sooo great to see her! Also, another one of my co-residents from last year, Phil, was at the convention. I briefly saw him, but will have to make a trip down to San Antonio to visit with him a little more! :) He was busy interviewing for jobs!

I'm not sure if this will be my last trip to Midyear or not...my years of school and residency have almost come to an end! :) (finally!)

Women's Christmas Dinner

This year, I was able to attend the Women's Christmas Dinner at Irving Bible Church. I have been a part of the women's bible study over the past year, and this is a huge event that they do every year. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to attend last year because the dinner was held during the same week I was in Las Vegas for a pharmacy convention. Several of my good friends from bible study (Leah, Amy, Susan, and Robin) were in charge of organizing this dinner for probably ~1,000 women! They did such a wonderful job! Women have the ability to "host" a table, and then they are in charge of decorating the table for the dinner. I couldn't believe how BEAUTIFUL the tables were! Several of the tables had a theme (i.e. toys, western, etc.) and others displayed very creative ideas. I volunteered as a greeter for the dinner so I arrived early and had a chance to tour the tables. After a yummy, catered dinner, all of the women went to the auditorium for a variety show. The show featured talented women from Irving Bible Church that sang, played piano, performed a comedy act, and much more. I had such a great time! If I can go next year, I hope to bring lots of friends and family along! Here are pics of some of the tables: