August came and went way too fast. My sister and brother in
law came down the first week of August. She booked a condo in Gulf Shores, so
we (me, Craig, Mom, Dad, Hilary and Matt - Ashley’s best friend and her
husband) all headed down there for her birthday. We had fun relaxing at the
pool and at the beach. We drank fruity beach drinks and sang happy birthday.
For Ashley’s birthday dinner, we met up with Uncle Steven and Aunt Rosey at the
Original Oyster House. The food was amazing, and we enjoyed each other’s
company. Afterwards, we tried partying at the Florabama, but it was LAAAAAAAME.
They had live bands that were evidently on break when we got there (I have no
idea why they all were on break at the same damn time). There wasn’t even
intermission music playing. We were extremely disappointed, and Hilary and I
demanded our money back. Much to our surprise, we got it all back! After the
beach trip, we had fun just visiting and we even made a trip out on the boat to
Horn Island (imagine that?). We had a really good time with Ashley and Mark
during their visit. We really wish they would move back home where they belong.
I was able to attend a friend’s baby shower. Jillian and
Cooper were expecting, but they chose to keep the baby’s gender a
surprise. Turns out, A BABY BOY! Little Liam was born on September 18th. Congratulations Jill and Coop! I made one of my diaper cakes as a gift (it’s kinda my thing I
guess). I absolutely loved the way this one turned out. I also made another one
for a friend who just recently gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. Meryl
Gleason was born on August 30th. Congratulations Fallon, Sean, and
big sister Shelbi Drew!
My good friend Tiffany recently moved to Gulfport after
serving in the military. We went to vet school together and she chose the
military route and had been serving at Fort Rucker in Alabama. She is an
amazing surgeon, and I know she will make an even better civilian vet (in both
ways)! I went over to help her unpack some things and she invited me to go to
see Steve-O and Tom Green at the Hard Rock. I had a good time hanging out with
my girl. We even got to take a pic with the dude.
I went out on the boat a couple more times with the folks and
also made another trip down to Gulf Shores when my other friend from vet school
was down. Her family had a condo in Orange Beach and we went down to hang out
on the beach with them for the day. I was able to meet her significant other
that I heard a lot of good things about. I am so glad that Erin has found
someone that makes her truly happy. She is such a good person and deserves that
and more. Her family is always very welcoming and we enjoyed hanging out and
eating dinner with these fine New Orleanians.
We travelled to Jackson to celebrate
Everett’s first birthday. His parents, Mindi and Joey, are good friends, and I
was present for Everett’s birth one year ago. He has grown so much and has
overcome some major things in his life thus far. He is a strong and amazing
little boy. Check out his story here. Happy Birthday Everett! We had a
wonderful time seeing all of our friends. We also made it home to boil shrimp
and watch the Saint’s first home game. WHO DAT!
A couple of weekends ago was spent mostly on getting things ready to have our floors re-done. We have split brick covering most of the downstairs. We had it resurfaced and new sealant put on. The biggest change though is we took out the carpet in the living room (and pantry area) and had stained concrete put down. I LOVE the look of stained concrete, and I think it would go great with our brick flooring already. I will post pics on a separate blog. We are also putting down hardwood in our dining room, but that will take place at a later date. I was also able to sneak away to Pensacola to watch the Bulldogs play at my Aunt Rosey's house after picking up a relief shift at my previous place of employment. Hey, gotta make tha money!
I haven’t been very diligent
with my blog writing, but I have a legitimate excuse. I've been very busy! I accepted a position
with Jackson County working as the shelter veterinarian, so August was spent preparing to start work. I had to obtain my license to practice in
Mississippi, which was a task in itself. This included a drive to Jackson to
sit in front of the board. So, thankfully, I am now licensed to practice in the
state of Mississippi and Alabama. Woo! I had to do several tasks to be employed
by the county. As the head veterinarian (and only vet), I am in charge of
ordering, DEA stuff, and a lot of other things I have never done before, but I
am learning a lot. Shelter medicine is a lot different than what I am used
to, but I am up for this new challenge. I just hope I can remain strong (and I
hope I don’t take in anymore animals). So far, I have enjoyed working here this past month. We even had the chance to sneak away last week to the Smokies. I have several additional blogs in the works, so stay tuned!
Cheers!
Tara
