The Rat Pack

I am typing this post from the University of Houston Optometry School's computer lab...otherwise known as my husband's home away from home :) I came up here tonight to be Reagan's first patient. His Competency Exam (basically a hands on test making sure he can do everything they have learned in the Optometry lab the past year and a half) is coming up in 5 weeks and tonight was the night he signed up to practice. I met him on campus and enjoyed a delicious sandwich and broccoli and cheddar soup from McAllisters. Then, he showed me around the Eye Institute. I got to see his locker, his classroom, and the famous Borish room him and his friends like the study in. Borish is the founder of modern Optometry and Reagan's favorite part about being in school. The guy is 98 and Reagan got to meet him last year. He loves talking about it; I love that his idol is a 98 year old that looks like Einstein (I always remind him of what a nerd he is)! Then again, that room is full of students studying right now and one girl told me "Borish's stuff is hanging all on the walls and on the shelves, it's like he's with us!", so I guess this entire place thinks like that! :) Anyways, we have a little while to spare before we have to be down in the clinic so I am making a quick post while Reagan prints off notes and prepares to do his first complete eye exam. I am a little nervous about having bright lights shown in my eyes for that long, but he is more nervous trying to impress me! :) It is so cute to see him all dressed up wheeling around his Optometry bag (called "a trial lens case" for any eye people out there). I am very excited to be his first patient to experience all five "stations" that he will have to complete for his competency exam. Just to give you an idea about the magnitude of this test...you get two chances to pass it and if you fail any of the stations either time you cannot move on to be a Year 3 and you have to repeat your second year ALL over!! Of course, I have total faith in Reagan. He's still nervous, but that is totally understandable. Anyways, I am rambling on simply because I am just so excited to finally get to come up here and see what Reagan does all day. I feel like during the day we live two totally separate lives. Our work/school experiences are just so different at this stage in our lives. I am glad I get to put a picture in my mind for when he tells me stories about his day. As a final note...Reagan takes his Compentency Exam on November 22nd...I am sure he would appreciate your thoughts and prayers (I know I would!!) Well...off to the clinic...wish us luck!!!

I have been wanting to post pictures of my new niece Addison Rylee. She was born on August 29th, and has been the most exciting part of my family ever since! She is the first grandchild for my mom (Gigi) and dad (Poppa), so needless to say she has been getting ALOT of attention! She is actually getting pretty spoiled; she will only sleep well while you hold her and starts fussing after you put her down for like 10 minutes. I guess she has been so used to visitors fighting over holding her all the time! My family gets together pretty much every Sunday for family dinners, and I always have to fight off Gigi and Aunt KoKo for holding time :) The boys are normally just fine with watching from afar ;) Anyways, here the sweet girl is...

Addison Rylee (1 day old), born August 29th, 6 lbs. 18 1/2 inches long

Thanks Kaycee for taking such great newborn pictures of Addison! They turned out great!Mommy and Addison (thank you Kelly for giving me such a beautiful niece!! :))
Aunt Kacey and Addison...the day we discovered she was a little tree frog...I picked her up like this and she just curled up and fell asleep. :)
Our little tree frog! :)

So as I was looking around at my blog, trying to decide what to do with it next, when I noticed my blog title. "My Beautiful Love". As I was thinking about why I picked that title, I realized I never put on here why the title means so much to me. Reagan and I were married a year and a half ago, and our first dance as a married couple was to "Beautiful Love" by the Afters. I was so excited when we found that song to dance to (it was originally a rock type song and they re-made it into an acoustic version that we danced to). I love it so much because of the lyrics and their meaning. My favorite part talks about our love catching like fire, and how "maybe a greater thing with happen". When I hear that it makes me think about our mission here on Earth as God's disciples. It makes me hope that because of mine and Reagan's marriage, something greater will happen. It makes me hope that God has greater plans for us than we can even imagine, and that through our love others may come to see and know Christ. "Maybe a greater thing will happen, maybe all will see, maybe our love will catch like fire, as it burns through me."

Here's the song in its original version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXX4Dd8o7Xwhttp://

Well, if you ever look at this blog, you can thank my friend Shallan for this post. After a re-uniting of college friends this weekend, I was scolded for my inability to make new blog posts. So, Shallan (and anyone else who may have wondered when the next post was coming) here ya go!

A few updates on my life in the past 9 months...
Reagan and I celebrated our 1 year Anniversary (we ate our 1 year old wedding cake, which was surprisingly good, followed by a blow to my self esteem when I couldn't zip up my wedding dress :( and then just enjoyed a relaxing night in since our anniversary fell in the middle of Reagan's test week (thank you Optometry school!)...we added a new memeber to our family in June (a charcoal lab named Drake)...joined the Friendswood Young Life team :) and took our first group of kids to camp this summer...I became an aunt (love you Addison!)...started my second year teaching Life Skills in Pearland...and turned 24!!!

My newest highlight...LOVING this cool fall weather...this is definately my favorite time of the year! I cannot wait to find the time (and the money!) to decorate our house in beautiful fall colors :)

Well I know it has been a while and this was quite short, but that will have to do for now, the hubby is on his way home, and I need to take a shower before he gets here. Welcoming him home smelling like a dog was probably okay in the first year, but we are no longer newlyweds, so I guess I should step my game up a little bit :)

I would promise you all (Shallan) that there will be a new post soon with lots of pictures, but I have learned that that is probably not likely. I think I am going to take the approach of not trying and maybe it will just happen...we will see :) Until next time...