Halloween Fun

This Halloween was just a little different than most years. In addition to the usual trick-or-treater ducking (complete with turning out all the lights in the house and turning down the volume on our movie, so people think we're not home), we added one extra activity. A pregnancy test. Matthew and I made a special trip to get a new pack (the ones we had at the house were expired) and made a stop at McDonalds on the way back. I took the test, and we got results so fast, I had barely set the timer for 3 minutes. When I saw the read-out, Matthew thought I had seen a mouse because I yelped! Yep, we're pregnant! I went to the doctor the next day, and he confirmed it. I got pre-natal vitamins and the name of an OB to see down in Winchester. So far, it seems the due date is the end of June, which works out perfectly for us- Matthew and I will both be off of school by then, and I'll have several weeks to freak out and finish "nesting."
So far I've been feeling really good, no morning sickness or any of that stuff. I'm just becoming an expert at napping- I'm tired all the time. I've really had fun telling our friends, and they've already been great about offering to help out. (We already have a virtual army of friends ready to babysit.)
So keep us in your prayers, and I'll TRY to keep up on my blog, so you all are up-to-date!!!

Septuagint 1, Laptop 0

Hi Everybody!
Yes, I've been absent for a while, and no, CPE didn't totally eat my brain! I'm back and healthy, and already in the throes of my Middler year, Wahoo!

How fitting is it, then, that my triumphant return to the blogosphere is centered around an epic battle. This battle embodies many things, Science vs. Religion, Faith vs. Physics, or more specifically the Septuagint vs. my Laptop.

In this corner, we have my Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Torah!It is used in our Greek class and various other Bible classes. It's a about the size of a double-thick Book of Common Prayer, and has been a lot of fun to page through.

In this corner, we have my laptop. One would think it would be sturdier than my Septuagint, but we've all been wrong once or twice before, haven't we?

What happened was this. I was putting a few books away on a shelf above my desk, and my Septuagint literally flew off the shelf and attacked my laptop! (Well, not literally, but it sure looked dileberate!) The result? I have two keys missing, and a great blue scar running across the lower left corner of my laptop. The book? Not a scratch. That's one tough book of Scripture!!! :)

We're half-way done!
I can't believe I've just finished week 5 of CPE. It's been a crazy summer so far, with lots of ups and and several downs, but I think the hardest part is behind me. You know, the "Oh no, I have no idea where I am or how to find my way around this hospital or what to say to this patient, and I feel like I'm in the way of the nursing staff" part. Here's my list of how I know things are getting better...
1-I haven't gotten lost on the way to the cafeteria in almost a month.
2-I can identify that frightened look in a patient's eyes, when THEY'RE trying to find their way to the cafeteria!
3-Once I see a lost person, I can usually help them find where they're trying to go.
4-I can suit up into the apron-gloves-mask combo for contact precautions in less than 10 minutes.
5-I can help a patient order lunch from their room. (Think roomservice...)
6-I've learned that if a nurse asks me if MRSA freaks me out, they're referring to the bacteria, not some person named Marissa.
7-I'm able to communicate to nervous patients that they don't need to be dying in order to get a visit from me: I can do more than "Last Rites."
8-I don't feel like I'm cheating when I use the "Clergy" parking pass to park at the hospital.
9-I spend more time charting my patients than trying to remember my passwords to get into the charting programs.
And....
10-The lunch lady doesn't give me the 3rd degree before giving me my free "Chaplain coffee."

So you see, there is hope! Good luck to all my other CPE friends out there. See ya in August!

Hi folks!
Sorry everyone, I know it's been a while since Quiet Day!
Matthew and I are spending the summer in Naples, Florida, and we're enjoying it a lot! It's a little hot and humid, but we have the Gulf of Mexico to cool us down! The beach is beatiful, and we get to go at least a couple of times a week to look for seashells. The people are nice, the weather is great and the shopping is fabulous (especially compared to Sewanee- they even have a Starbucks down here- ha ha).

Quiet Day

Today was our Spring Quiet Day, in addition to being Maundy Thursday. What is Quiet Day you ask? Well, the day is a requirement for all students, and most of the faculty show up as well. Picture this: You get up in the morning and go to a convent. You have morning prayer and you hear someone give a talk. After the talk, you sit and meditate or journal or read the Bible for an hour. Then you hear another talk, meditate, maybe eat some lunch, have another short prayer service, and keep repeating this pattern until the day is finished. Did I mention that nobody except the guest speaker talks for the whole day?

What a battery charger! For starters, I got to wear my pajamas, a pair of bunny slipper-socks and my Birkenstocks. I took my over-sized pillow so I didn't have to sit on the floor, and the fleece Packer blanket my mother-in-law made for Matthew. Other people were there in their "comfort clothes," blankets, one person even brought a sleeping bag! Any day that I get to wear pajamas all day is a good day!

The three talks were interesting, but really the best part was time set aside to just sit and meditate. I really enjoyed just sitting and not feeling guilty about all the work I have to do. Any school that has a required day to sit and be quiet for a while is good in my book!

The Bishop is Coming! The Bishop is Coming!

Wow, what a couple of weeks! We were on Spring Break two weeks ago, and my Bishop was in town last week.

Spring Break was kind of a bust. I had so many papers due that I spend the whole week writing and doing research. The nice thing was I got to sleep in, and when I took a break from my work, I could go into the living room and Matthew was there to hang out with me. (He had Spring Break too!) There's nothing like sharing Daily Show Reruns at 1:00 in the afternoon with your loved one to perk you up! :) The good news is I got all my work done in time for the Bishop's visit.

I think it's official now. Fond du Lac has the coolest Bishop ever. Bishop Russel E. Jacobus was our Bishop-In-Residence at Sewanee last week, and we just had a great time. He was a big hit with my classmates, and even showed his support by attending a concert put on by Shrimp Boots, a seminary band. He sat in on some classes, met with some students and faculty, and participated in a community forum about church politics. Here's what some students have said...
"Your Bishop is so cool."
"We don't share the same political views, but even so, I would work for him in a heartbeat."
"He is so pastoral."
"I would work for him if I could handle the weather in Wisconsin!"
"He has such a cool name!" (I didn't make that one up!)
and on and on...
So...
Thank you to Bishop Jacobus for a great visit. We're all looking forward to seeing you again next year!

Spring in March? Unheard of!

Sorry, all you Wisconsinites! I just had to share how gorgeous it is down here! This photo was taken by seminarian Rob Goodrich at one of the local fields. Yup. Those yellow things are daffodyls.

This picture is from our back yard. There are more now, but I didn't want to rub it in! :)

Any suggestions out there for fun bulbs to plant in the fall? I'm open to suggestions, since I get to see my handiwork in March!