Whooooo are you, who who, who who?

So you don't think I am crazy the title of this blog is an old Rock and Roll song (commonly heard on CSI New York?) and it was Halloween weekend so that makes perfect sense!

Emily, me and Katie (former OCH roomies)

Last night my roommates and I had some people over for Halloween and it was a lot of fun!  I think between all of us we covered every base...Rubik cube, to the SNL schweety balls skit, 80s work out, spider and web, and even God's greatest gift to earth.  We had a great time just having a moment to hang out and not worry about school....and put on fun outfits.  Halloween is a throwback to the days of dress up and I am pretty sure that we all secretly miss that. 



Junior Year (fall 2008) at Rockhurst homecoming. Marina
 is in the purple dress in the center and I am to the right.



This weekend I also got to see my very good friend Marina, who is working on her Masters of public health administration and KUMed.  We met on move-in day in MeGee (freshman dorm at Rockhurst) and lived down the hall from each other and have been friends since!  We went and saw the movie 50/50 instead of watching the World Series game (Yes we know missing the World Series is pretty much breaking the 11th commandment).  I think the Cardinals won? :)  Being St. Louise natives, they were beyond excited! So again I had to go get an awesome picture from a couple of years ago because I don't always remember to take pictures!

Last week we had a pretty quiet week in school and classes went by surprisingly fast!  Neurological conditions right now is really interesting because we are learning about Parkinson's disease.  I find it really fascinating!  We also got to learning about body weight supported gait training in lab, which is actually a something that can help people with Parkinson's.  I even got to get on the machine and it was crazy weird feeling (and made me look like a sloppy mess when walking). 

12 days of class and we're so excited!  An early Happy Halloween and Happy November!



Molly, Megan, Kevin, Emily, Lauren, me and Jessica
Some awesome PT classmates!
(sorry the pic is blurry, Brian is not very good with cameras!)



Listen to the music

With the Halloween and 80s prom weekends quickly approaching, this weekend was more of a laid back one. My Friday was consumed with that lovely neuro test I referred to, along with a dash of calling car mechanics....jealous yet?  (No worries, my car is getting some serious TLC tomorrow).  It was one of those situations when you realize that while it is way easier for dad to take care of the car problems, it was time to be an adult (?!?!?!) and take care of business.  Trust me, I'd rather let dad handle it but he was Elk hunting in the Montana mountains on a horse! 



2005, fall of our senior year...Hannah and I in high school on
"Hick Day", in honorof our biggest football rival!

 I also got to see another long lost friend!  My friend Hannah, who is now living in California attending graduate school, was in Kansas City for a friends wedding.  So we got to hang out and catch up Sunday, which was really nice.  We first met when we were 13 (I think) when both swimming for the Gator Swim Team in Cape and then attending high school together.  I was not on top of the whole picture thing so I pulled this one out of the deep dark spaces of my external hard drive. :) ...just to be fair, it is an oldie!

Sunday was also when the Bishop presided at the Rockhurst student mass and I was very honored to play some of the music.  I have played flute for 10ish years and when I came to Rockhurst back in the day, I started playing at the special masses (Mass of the Holy Spirit, Orientation, Bishop, Baccalaureate, etc).  I have always loved music and playing my flute, so I love the excuse to dive into some music!  While it completely dorky for me to say, being a musician has always been a huge part of my life and I love that feeling of hitting a really expressive part of the music and turning notes into music (yes, I was in marching band, and pit orchestra for musicals, don't hate!)  It also gives me a chance to play around on the piano, which is something I wish I had more time for! 

On a funny note, my dearest Rockhurst has decided to alter my career paths...the pamphlet read that I was a Masters of Occupational Therapy 2012.  While I have been working very hard to get my Doctorate of Physical Therapy 2013, I will surely take their editing into consideration.....

Slow Your Roll PT school, slowwww your rollllll

Nothing puts the fear into students when you realize there are a mere 16 days of class left before our semester is over.  Yup, that's right math majors, 4 weeks and about 2348975 million things to do until then!  Because we will be going out on a 3 week rotation after Thanksgiving break, all things school have to be wrapped up before then.  This thought is absolutely crazy!  There is no way I am almost through semester 5 of 9.....while we are good at being students at this point, we can't be one forever.  Watch out Lee's Summit, I'm coming for you in December!



Kevin and I excited for cyropacks?! 8am
can be tough sometimes :)

 Clinical procedures let us toy with more modalities....ultrasound, and various forms of heat and cold packs.  We also wrapped up cervical spine so we can move onto thoracic next week (part of the spine in between your shoulder blades).  My group that did the cup activity in a previous blog is also working on a very entertaining presentation about the Islamic culture and Muslims.  The physics lab Emily and I teach also got to use scales, rolling chairs, and a little game of "who's stronger" to learn about Newton's Third Law of Motion. 

Drum roll please! I also managed to make my final decisions about clinical preferences and I am very pleased with them.  The next few weeks will tell if I am placed in those clinics, however.  But every toe and finger is crossed!  (Not going say where I am going until I find out, I don't want to jinx this!)




So for now, Hello weekend, I would like you to meet my good friend "take home test for neuro".  You will be spending a good amount of time together!  But on a good note, my lovely friend Hannah from high school will be in town from California and I am playing the flute at Rockhurst's student mass this weekend because the bishop will be presiding.  It isn't common knowledge I am a bit of a musician, but I do play for as many Rockhurst's special masses as my schedule will allow.

Hoping mother nature will get out of her mean streak for the weekend and warm up a little bit!

Fall break, I'm in love

My beautiful brother and sister!

You would think after 6 years of the blissful thing called fall break, I wouldn't be asking myself  "why is it already over?!" ....just another case and point that life goes by faster and faster every year!  But what a great fall break! I made my Halloween costume, finished my 80s prom dress and accessories (thanks for the help mom, you're the best!), and further advanced my edging skills when helping re-paint my parents bedroom (who needs blue tape when dad teaches you how to be a pro without it?!).  Not to mention I got some quality time with my siblings, and some of my closest friends from high school.  Fall break, I'm in love!  It was one of those trips home that makes it super hard to leave, I am surrounded by some of the best people!

On a less exciting note, I finally sucked it up and went and got my titer to prove that I have had the chicken pox for my rotations.  Even the funny story about how my dad thought I had a zit at 5 years old is not enough to show I have had those dreaded itchy bumps. 

The big and anxiety ridden news in the PT department is that the options/places we are allowed to choose from for our three 9-week rotations were released and we now all have to figure out where we want to go.  After a serious conversation with the parentals about options, first picks, and last resorts, I am still mostly undecided.  I have to put my preferences in in 1.5 weeks and I am still waiting for the heavens to open up with bright lights and trumpeting music to tell me what to do.  If only God's plans for us were that easy to figure out!  Hopefully after a few more days of thinking and scheming I will have a semi-plan.  Then in November we will all know where we are going for our next adventure!

While this week will probably be stale bread in comparison to the past week, it is time to jump back on the band wagon for a few more weeks! 

Betsy, Michelle, and Lindsey....some of my very good friends from high school!  We were
cheering on our beloved CHS tigers!

It's fall break...no creative title needed!

Linds had one of our Halloween costumes from forever ago
in her closet....oh geeze!

So first off, Oklahoma was SO MUCH FUN!  (minus the drive to and from down 2 lane highways in Kansas)  We did some major shopping for both the 80s dance and clothes appropriate for 2011, ate to much Mexican food, went to the Oklahoma state fair where she tried a fried peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and we made a new favorite dessert...Graveyard pie.  Super simple: graham cracker crust with a layer of vanilla ice cream (cup of crushed Kit-Kat mixed in) and a layer of chocolate ice cream (cup of Butterfingers mixed in).  Top it with crumpled oreos and milanos to look like tombstones and you have successfully made graveyard pie! And we got to use one of Lindsey's new food processor from the wedding.  Eventually we will really cook but last time Lindsey did that, my parents oven looked like a bad science fair project.  I can't wait to see her and Patrick (her husband, she picked a good one!) in a few weeks for Colleen's 80s birthday party!

The finished product that is Graveyard Pie, we watched
Bridesmaids while eating it lol.

Coming back for 2 days of school before fall break was insanely tough.  Having all my exams done before my weekend meant I was checked out for the beginning of this week.  We started learning about the cervical spine (neck), and surprise surprise I have abnormal movement there also!  I am on my way to winning the prize in that department!

Tuesday night me and some friends (Lauren, Jessica, Kiley) decided to celebrate fall break with a pizza, wine, and cake pop night (no worries, we are all between the ages of 23-24 :) ).  Kiley and I have both attempted in recent weeks to make successful looking cake pops and have not had the greatest luck.  Tuesday was the closest we have come!  And they are of course sooooo good!

I am now home enjoying Cape Girardeau and its dull and dreary weather.  But good news is there is so much on my "arts and crafts junkie" plate!  Halloween costume, 80s prom dress alterations, painting the parents bedroom, football game with some old friends, and some more! 

Have a blessed Wednesday!

To much rock for one hand

If I wasn't so exhausted from this past week I would put on my happy face and do a ridiculously embarrassing dance!  4 tests later this week is over and there is a slight burden off my shoulder.  My practicals went very well and we will see how our written tests come out next week!



Jess and Emily rocking their hair feathers!

One awesome thing we did this week in the PT department was raise money for Breast Cancer Awareness month.  The ladies in the 1st and 2nd year classes got bright pink hair feathers put in for the cause...and a good portion of their cost went straight to the cause...we raised $430!  It was a great and fun way to raise money and I must say I like mine much more than I ever thought.  Not that I will be turning into Kesha anytime soon, but the pink feathers are a lot of fun! 



New favorite tree!



One of my favorite things about fall are the beautiful colors the leaves turn.  I am quite fond of the trees that look like they are on fire.  Some of the trees on campus are starting to change and I even stepped on some crunchy leaves when walking to my car today.  I am the type of person who likes to find God in the little things, and this tree by the science center was definitely one of those small glimpses.



Linds and I when she got married 
this summer!

Speaking of blessings, tomorrow I am traveling to go see my very best friend Lindsey in Oklahoma!  Not many people get to meet their best friend when they are 2 when they become neighbors! And 21 years later, we are still so incredibly close!  (and our parents still live next door to each other)  She is seriously part of our family and we don't get to see each other enough!  So what awesome things do we have planned?  80s prom shopping, OK state fair, baking, cooking, puppy chow....basically 23 and 24 year old version of a sleepover.  I am looking forward to this beyond words!



Linds and I rocking the latest 1992 fashions at the pumpkin
patch back in the day! Who doesn't love old embarassing
pictures?



A maze of maize



Spiders don't stand a chance when Lauren and Emily are on duty!



If you see graduate students acting out in goofy, immature, and slap happy moods...chances are they had an intense week of school.  Since week 1/2 of testing was this past week, we had a few minutes of easy laughs this weekend at the Triple B.  (Triple B, or the Blonde Bombshell Bungalow, is my roommates and my duplex)

First on deck is taking care of the monster spider and her creepy web on the front porch.  Thank goodness for dads who arm their daughters with intense bug spray and brooms!  None of us like waking up to spiders in the morning or having them surprise when we come home at night. 



Trying on the dress for the wedding

 Today was a much needed day away from the books, highlighters and notes and a lot of fun!  First up was a bridesmaid dress appointment for Emily's wedding next summer. (yeah for pretty blue dresses) Emily and I became friends our sophomore year at Rockhurst over Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy notes and Physics experiments.  4.5 years later (and 3.5 of those years living together), we still find great adventures and she is one of my very best and closest friends! I am so blessed to have her as a friend and so excited for her and Andy and their wedding in July! (I have some seriously mad dance skills and have been awarded shortest wedding party member, lol)

Then came the 9 acre corn maze in Liberty, MO....where the paths add up to 8 miles of walking!  Emily and I met up with 2 first year students from the program to forge through the stalks.  Thank goodness Emily and Erica are good with maps because Dawn and I are both very directionally challenged.  After 2 turns we became the moral support and comedic relief of the expedition.  I also had a very interesting realization.  So in movies you often see the actors running quickly through the corn away from the bad guy and come out simply winded.  NOT POSSIBLE!  Rows of corn are very close together; therefore if someone was running through a field of corn I have decided the following: they would get hit in the face, with husks of corn, over and over.  It would not be pretty. 

Map of the maze and punches along the way

The fun thing about this giant maze is the annual theme.  In the past they have been Chiefs, Royals, Boarder Wars (mizzou vs KU), and Power and Light.  This year the theme was around the Comets, the indoor soccer team in Kansas City.  There are four different paths and 24 stations to find and get the punches. Thank goodness they gave us a map! After a lot of walking, a few hours, and a few wrong turns, we got all 24 punches.

Starting tomorrow it is the week of musculoskeletal...tests over manual tests, mobilizations, biomechanics, and disorders of the arm/leg joints, and lower spine.  Is it Friday yet?!  Happy October!


Erica, me, Dawn, and Emily at the Comets themed Corn Maze