Family Portraits 2009

While we were in Ohio all together as a family, my sister wanted to make sure she took some family pictures. I can't stress enough how talented a photographer she is!!! She has such a good eye for things and I totally get/love her style of photography. We took the pictures in the snow, so it was pretty cold but she still ended up with a serious amount of photos. They take a long time to process to get them up to her standards (which are high because she is so good :)but luckily she gave us these to begin with. The entire family
The boys Me and my brothers Me and my mommy :) Me and my big sister.
Aren't they fabulous? And these are just the beginning! There were so many more favorites of mine that I glanced at while she was going through them. Seriously, now I want her to come and take pictures of me on a regular basis for any and all occasions. If you ever need pictures done around the Ohio area, she is the best person to go to for sure!

Parkes/Fillon/Lagana Family Christmas 2009

I just got back from Ohio where I spent the last 4 days visiting with family at my sister's house. It was cold, but the snow was beautiful!!!! It made everything look like a Christmas card!

We spent a lot of time on my sister's super-comfy couch watching TV or playing board games by the fire. We ended up watching a lot of Thomas the Train episodes courtesy of my 2 year old nephew Savino. Seriously, he is like a Thomas the Train savant. He sits there, barely even looking like he is paying attention to the TV and then a train whistle sounds and he just keeps on playing and says which train it is (they each have distinctive whistles, by the way). It was too cute!

My brothers wanted to buy sunglasses and excitedly found some matching aviators. They wore them ALL the time while we were there. What goofs!

When I first arrived on Tuesday, the snow looked really inviting. Sooo, we had a snowball fight!

The snow was too powdery to make good projectiles, but we did our best at throwing snow dust at each other.

I also couldn't resist making my first snow angel. The snow looked so powdery and soft, so it was a little surprising to realize how cold and wet it was. I know that sounds like "duh!!", but to this Florida girl snow is a new and unfamiliar creature.
Not bad, right?

We had so much fun hanging out as a family, it seriously was one of the best vacations I have had in a long time. I didn't have any responsibilities or worries and there was no stress or drama. I really am lucky to have a family that I love to spend time with. I would do things with them all day all the time! I know a lot of people who have a hard time spending extended periods of time with their family for various reasons, and I am so glad that mine is not like that :)

Virginia loves to save!

I decided to get a jump start on my New Year's resolutions and I created a coupon blog to explain all about how I do what I do :) More than a few people recently have asked/pleaded with me to show them the coupon ropes so I thought it would be best to create a resource that I can just refer everyone to. Don't get me wrong, I would LOVE to sit down and talk coupons all day with someone if they want to because it is so much fun for me, but most other people just want the facts so they can get on with what they were doing :)

So here it is:
www.virginialovestosave.blogspot.com

It is still in the developing stage, but hopefully I can get it up and running the way I would like in no time. Feel free to add me to your google reader, blog rolls, etc... at least until I bore you to death with coupon tips!

More graduation photos

Finally: Virginia Parkes Lagana, MHS, CRC!

Graduation was wonderful!!! You never realize it until you get there, but some things just don't feel official until there is a ceremony. I can't believe that I am no longer a student! Of course, Anthony thinks that is the most exciting thing in the world, but there is the nerd in me that is also kind of sad about that. There are lots more pictures to come, but here is what I could wrangle from friends:
My name in the program. The program is the same one for everyone graduating in December 2009, so mine has Tim Tebow in it!
Waiting, waiting, and more waiting :)We were the very last college to walk across the stage so we had to sit through about two hours of everyone else walking before us. They save the best for last, right? This is me finally walking across the stage. I think there were about 10 people behind me before the end of the entire ceremony! I think we got some extra cheers just because we were the last group. The master of ceremonies (is that the right title?), anyway, he was one of my professors and right before I went to shook the Dean of the Graduate School's hand, he looked at my name card and asked me if there was a Santa Claus. I said yes. This is a group of most of my classmates, one of my professors who was a doctoral student who got her PhD that night, and the other on my right is my major professor and advisor. She was seriously the best professor ever, and we all just love her to death. When she escorted the other student across the stage a girl sitting next to me started talking to her friend about Dr. Young and how boring she was (I guess she guest lectured or something). I seriously wanted to challenge her to a duel or something. After all, we were wearing ceremonial robes right :)

The other fun/interesting event of the night is that Harry Potter attended my graduation! Not really, but some joker tricked the announcer into reading his name card with "Harry Potter" written on it. Everyone got a good laugh and I spent a good portion of the rest of the ceremony looking through the program to see if that really was his name. Nope. My coworker is convinced that UF is going to get back at him by taking an exxxxtra long time in getting his diploma in the mail...

Gingerbread House: CSI Style

So this is what happens when you get a bunch of grown siblings decorating a gingerbread house. We had no idea what to do or how exactly to decorate... until we decided to put some dead people in it. Pretty soon that evolved into a murdered candy stick-figure with gum drop caution tape surrounding it (notice the bottom right lawn and the gum drop caution tape on the door):
A few minutes later we decided that the culprit felt guilty (seeing as it is Christmas and all) and committed suicide around the back of the gingerbread house. The makings of a murderer? Slightly crushed gumball head, a carved gum drop gun, red icing and sprinkles blood/brain matter:
Anthony swears that I have been watching too much Criminal Minds, since I keep suspecting overly cautious drivers of having bodies in their trunks and making Murder/Suicide gingerbread houses. He might have a point :)

On a less morbid note, tomorrow is graduation! I've got my regalia all laid out and I am getting really excited. I can't believe it is happening after all this time! Of course, I am already considering going back to school because of the stinky job market, but I wouldn't be me if I didn't already start hatching plans for my next big accomplishment :) More pictures and an anniversary post to come!

He passed!!!

Anthony passed his really difficult class!!!!! We are both beside ourselves excited at how incredibly awesome this is!!! Seriously, we both had lots of reasons and stories about how ridiculous his one professor was, but in the end there wasn't much we could do about it except try to play by her rules, no matter how insane. All semester Anthony has been averaging 79's or 80's on the exams and that is with studying nonstop everyday. You need an 84 to pass the class, so we figured he would need a 90 on the comprehensive final to get the score he needed. Umm, we were both pretty sure that that wasn't going to happen. SO, Anthony still studied really hard but we both resigned ourselves to him having to repeat the course. He didn't turn in his paperwork for clinicals next semester, and he went ahead and reregistered himself for the same class for next semester.

And then, miracle of all miracles, Anthony called me today to tell me that he got a 93 on the exam!!! The neatest part is that the exam was just as hard as the previous exams but Anthony has worked so hard and learned so many different study strategies over the semester that it is like they all came together for this exam. I cannot tell you how much of a surprise and fall-down-on-your-knees blessing this is. This class has been such a trial for both of us, involving a lot of tears and disappointment at different times in the past few months. But, we pulled through and persevered and the Lord DEFINITELY blessed us tremendously. Even in the past few weeks leading up to this test, we both were feeling a lot of peace about what was happening and we trusted that maybe there was a reason that Heavenly Father wanted Anthony to retake this course (like maybe there was something he didn't learn the first time around that he would learn the second time that would save someone's life down the road).

So, thank you, thank you, thank you Heavenly Father, and congratulations to Anthony for all of his hard work and perseverance. Some of his classmates dropped the course after the first two tests, thinking that there was no way they could make the grade. It is a testament to Anthony's true love and desire for learning what he needs to know that he didn't take the easy way out and drop the class. He continued to study his booty off and work hard just so he could learn as much as he could, not expecting that he would get the grade he needed. I married the best man in the world :)

Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas friends and family!!! I almost didn't put up Christmas decorations this year since we are spending the actual holiday out of town with family, but as soon as Thanksgiving was over I was craving some more holiday cheer :) So, last Monday for Family Home Evening Ant and I put up our tree.

I tried to get a good picture of us but I haven't really mastered being both photo-taker and photo-subject yet. Sitting here putting up the photos I realized that I am wearing almost the exact same thing as last Monday night. I guess that is my Monday work-out outfit. (And if Ant and I do anything together at night you can pretty much bet it will be right before or after a workout. Hence, the sweaty, make-up free photo :)
I am so excited that it is December already! Not only is it the best time of year, but this year it is full of celebrations. Next week is Ant and my 4 year wedding anniversary and my graduation from graduate school. The week after that is Christmas, and the week after that I am spending in Ohio at my sister's house with the rest of my family.

Work has been pretty stressful for me lately. Since I hold all of my stress in my stomach I've had a perpetual stomachache throughout the workday that takes away my appetite which then resolves after I get home and talk it out with Anthony. (As a side note, I seriously couldn't have picked a man more laid back and stress-free to help me through my "crazy" times). Then I proceed to catch up on my eating for the day. Eating an entire box of cheez-its isn't bad if they are whole grain right? :) On the bright side, most of the stress and hassle will resolve after this week when finals are over. Since our office is administering about 60 exams a day during finals week, I don't think I have ever been this stressed about finals, even my own.

Anthony is bravely pushing through his finals. One of his classes is going really well and the other not so much. There is all of this departmental controversy and drama over this particular professor for his problem class. She basically tries her best to fail her students by creating seriously unreasonable tests and "tricking" the students by telling them things will not be on the test and then turning around and putting several questions about it on the test. Her defense is that they should know everything about everything and photographically memorize the textbook, so if they don't know a random fact that is mentioned once in the textbook then that is the student's fault. Other professors in his program have actually come out and told students that they have a problem with this professor and one even said that she would compare her teaching style to "terrorism" and "domestic violence abuse". Next semester there will be a new Dean for the college of nursing, so the good professors are hoping that the Dean will either force this professor to start trying to actually teach her students or replace her with someone who will. Drama, drama, drama. On the bright side again, Ant's last test is Wednesday and after that he can breathe for a few weeks before it starts all over again. For all of you who are already done with school, don't you miss all of this ;)

My dogs need a job

Doesn't she look stressed out? I walked into the room and this was how she was relaxing on the couch. Oh, the life...

Bread Therapy

I decided a few weeks ago that I wanted to learn how to make homemade bread from scratch. I thought it might be a good skill to have and I've always wanted to be able to "whip up some bread" whenever I felt like being housewifey. I had no idea what I was in for. No idea.

Round 1, Sunday night: I had some time and I really wanted to get started. I had everything that I needed except yeast and it being Sunday I couldn't go to the store to buy some. A few days before I had made some zucchini bread without yeast, so I didn't think it would be that different without it. I looked up a yeast-less recipe online and the people who wrote swore that it was delicious... The batter ended up really wet, the consistency of pancake batter, but I put it in the pan and baked it anyway thinking that the recipe must know something I didn't. It baked for over an hour and didn't even brown. It ended up about a half an inch high, a yellowey white color on the outside and mushy on the inside. I almost threw it away, but Ant hates to throw things away so I put it in a container and left it on the counter. (Fast forward 5 days later and I finally threw it away after it started culturing mold and feeding fruit flies)

Round 2, Monday night: On the way home from work I picked up some yeast and milk from the grocery store. I found a different recipe online and it looked so simple that it had to work, right? Wrong. I went through all of the steps and ended up with a fist sized lump of dough that never rose and baked into a thick half-inch brick of bread. After researching online I decided that I must have killed my yeast by using too hot water to dissolve it in. Rookie mistake.

Round 3, Tuesday night: I was sure my persistence would pay off. I tried again, same recipe but made sure to use only lukewarm water as well as to proof the yeast to make double sure that they were doing whatever it is little yeasties do. Check, everything all go. I didn't think that my counter would be a warm enough place to let the dough rise so I had the genius idea to place the dough in a glass dish and put it on a stove top burner on the lowest setting to let it rise. Fast forward to an hour later, I checked on the dough and the bottom was cooked, while the rest was an unrisen yeasty dough. Oops. To much direct heat.

Round 4, Friday night: I was not going to let this bread beat me. I stocked up on extra yeast at the grocery store, and I felt like I was appropriately chastened. I had not give this bread thing the respect it deserved and the bread was punishing me. So, I went through all of the steps AGAIN and put my dough to rise on the counter. I was assured by multiple people that it would be warm enough there as long as I covered the dough with a kitchen towel. After the first round of rising and it hadn't moved, I googled some more and decided to do the next round of rising in the oven on the "warm" setting. Finally my dough rose!!! Not very much though, but at least some measurable progress. This was definitely the most bread-like of loaves so far.

Round 5, Saturday night (tonight): I gambled today. I decided to change more than one thing at a time, yet another rookie mistake. I was kicking myself part of the way through for doing that, but fortunately it finally worked!! I used the same basic recipe, but I made more of it. I used highly active yeast instead of the regular kind, and I let the dough rise in the oven for the full time. I cannot tell you how excited I was to see how large those loaves got after the first hour!!!!! Here is the finished product:

After hearing about a few of my failed attempts, a friend of mine suggested that I develop a new therapy called "bread therapy" for relationships.
Insert your significant other's name when ever you see "bread":

*Bread loves it when you give it a massage. In fact, it demands it in order for it to be at its best.
*Life with bread takes commitment, perseverance, preparation, and most importantly a good sense of humor (think flour hand prints all over your hair, face, clothes, pets, children, etc..).
*Even with the most careful of plans, there will be times when bread will not cooperate and instead of getting mad and giving up you need to try to make it work, find the problem, and fix it.
*It is necessary to consistently give bread some space, or bread will rebel against you and no one will be happy.
*You must respect the finicky complexity of bread or it will not rise/bake right for you.
*You get back what you put into it.

There you have it. There's nothing like a good old fashioned throwdown with a centuries old recipe to give you a new perspective :)

Who steals crabs, honestly?

For the past few months, Ant and I have been putting out his crab trap near a local bridge and catching some blue crabs. We were able to have at least two dinners of all crab that we "caught" ourselves. There is something about eating food that you have foraged or grown yourself that makes you feel like you can accomplish anything :) Here's a picture of one of our catches: I know what you are thinking. Yes, They were delicious.

So imagine our disappointment when the last time we put the crab trap out, we went to retrieve it a day or so later and it was gone!!! Some joker stole our crab trap!!! Ant was definitely upset over it, but I couldn't really think of anything we could have done to prevent it. I mean, can you deadbolt your trap to the bottom of the ocean? It kind of ruined our crab-catching fun. It was also pretty economical too because we would pay a couple of dollars for bait and end up with a crab dinner for two.

We're becoming quite the experts on living on no money now that Anthony isn't working and I'm only making lowly-intern money. Anthony especially has been making great strides on that front. I used to have to show him over and over again how much money he was spending on his aquarium and his fishing because he just wouldn't believe me that he spent that much. Now, he comes up with creative ways to sell things so that he can buy a $10 coral from some guy down the street! As for me, I'm still a crazy coupon lady and proud of it. Today I did our weekly shopping at publix and spent $32 and saved $87! After more than a year I still get a little jolt of adrenaline everytime I see the cashier start scanning my coupons and my total starts to drop :) I keep thinking how wonderful it is that I got into doing this before we moved to Tampa because if not, life would be so much harder now with us trying to figure out how to make everything work.

Other than that, life has been pretty uneventful. Work has been heating up as finals week approaches. The testing gets crazy busy and since after next week I will be running the testing center, I'm hoping that everything goes relatively smoothly. I've been looking around at the different jobs available but I think I have decided to wait to actually apply to any of them until after I graduate. Maybe by then something at USF will have opened up....

Happy Halloween 2009!

This year for halloween we were pretty low key. Since Ant worked Friday night, we didn't go to our new ward's trunk and treat :( But, on Halloween night we went to a game night at our new friends Lindsay and Scott's house and we had a blast!!! We decided to go as gator fans, since in Tampa it really is a costume to be a gator! It is so weird compared to Gainesville where everyone wears gator attire as a matter of course (remember my counting-the-gator-clothes game that I used to play at the gym?), here I feel like I am in a secret gators club and I recognize other members because they half whisper "go gators" when I walk by in a gator shirt :) Here is a picture of everyone who came to the party: Our hosts were the Chiquita lady and a Chiquita banana, a reaper and a queen bee, another couple was a coon hound and a racoon, an 80's workout girl and Jim from the office, and a hillbilly :) Next year I vow to really go all out on the costumes!!!

So now we have a SERIOUS amount of candy that I am dying to give away, but Ant insists that we not only need to keep it, we need to get even more clearance candy from the store! A girl can't stay on a clean food diet with a husband who eats like a growing teenager!

We are still loving our jobs and school. We have definitely settled into our schedules. I get up and go to work and Anthony gets up to study all day or go to class. After work I usually go the gym while Anthony cooks dinner (!). When I get home we eat dinner and catch up for a few hours and then we go to bed. Repeat x7 weeks and you will have a pretty good picture of what we have been doing :) I've decided to run in another 5K to see if I can improve my time, so I need to get back into training. I keep waiting around for the weather to change so I don't have to run in 90 degree weather in November!