Memorial Day Weekend

I have spent the last two days at the beach. Yesterday I went to Isle of Palms and today we went to Sullivan's Island. Sullivan's island doesn't have as many tourists so it was really nice today. We ate at Poe's tavern. I will have to take Josh there. He has been working a baseball tournament this weekend and he has to be there on Memorial day too. I think I am going to the beach with the girls again, much better than being at work. I start teaching Summer I this week, so my Tuesday and Thursday nights are booked for 5 weeks. I don't think it will be that bad.

Wannamaker County Park

Josh and I picked up subway yesterday and brought it to a nearby park and ate lunch. It was a really neat park, they had rental bike with bike trails, boating, vollyball, water spouts, picnic tables and lots more. They also have a water park that we want to try. I didn 't have my camera with me but we will be going back b/c it was really relaxing. Here is a pic of one of the water spouts kids play in.

Day at the Beach

Well, I did forget to take pictures of our get together last night. We had fun and ate lots of food. Today we decided to take it easy. We started off the day at the beach. We went to Isle of Palms which is about 35 mintues from our house. It is a great stretch of beach, mostly locals and not a lot of tourists. Then we went shopping and saw a movie (Over the Hedge). Suprisingly not that funny. We finished off our day of relaxation at Chili's for dinner. We use to eat at Chili's once a week when we lived in Hattiesburg but now there is only one Chili' s in Charleston and it is 30 minutes away so we never go. Anyway this was a fun relaxing day. Here are some pics of the beach, Josh playing in the ocean and of course of us laying out. (you may notice you don't get the full view of us).

Josh's 30th Birthday

Well Josh is the first one of us to get old. I still have a year and a half until I leave my 20's. I gave Josh the Mel Brook's DVD collection. Lots of movies, most of which I don't think are very funny but Josh does. Anyway we are having a few friends over tonight. We will eat and play some board games. I'll post some pics (if I remember to take them).

Maymester

I started teaching my 3 week animal behavior class today. It seems like it will be a fun class. I found that eventhough I have powerpoints about my lecture I tend to fill in extra stories from past experience and knowledge of animal behavior. I find this a very easy course to teach. I will definitely try and make this into a semester long class. Josh still has a week and a half of baseball left. We then will wait and see if they go the playoffs or something like that. I am sooo glad summer is here even if I am working everyday, I am at least off my noon so I can come home.

Finals

You know when I finished school I was so glad I would not have to ever take another test or final but now instead of taking them I have to give them. I have to say that I don't enjoy it too much. I don't mind making and grading the exams it is when students come crying to my office saying they have to get a certain grade. I have some sympathy but to some extent I wonder why they didn't make more of an effort throughout the semester to make a certain grade. Most times they don't do the extra credit and they don't turn in assignments. I don't change my grading or my policy at the end of the semester so if they don't pass then I just feel bad for them and they often blame me for their poor grade (go figure). I often comment throughout the semester I am more worried about their grades then they are. Well I can say they finally get it by the end of the semester b/c that is when they begin to worry. I guess I will just have to get a tougher skin and not worry so much.

NC

I went to Raleigh this past weekend for a conference but while I was there I got to visit with Kristin and Stef (from GCRL). It was great to catch up and meet Kristin's family. I didn't get a pic of us but I did get one of Mikaela and Mia (the dog). I didn't get one of Ella I guess she was sleeping. Anyway it was a nice trip.

Easter Day

This afternoon we went to Cypress Gardens and walked around. We saw lots of animals and we got to paddle a canoe around. Josh kept going right, left, right, left. Finally I had to help him out to keep the canoe going straight.
A little piece of movie info. Part of the Patriot was recorded at Cypress Gardens.

Easter Lillies for Easter

Josh bought me easter lillies this year for easter. Hopefully they will do like my moms and grow back each year.

end of the semester

well i have one more week of classes to teach and then i give finals. this semester flew by compared to the fall. i am busy getting ready for my maymester class in animal behavior. baseball is still in full swing. they play until mid to late may so i spend my weekends at games. the good news is that it is really nice summer weather so i don't mind being outside so much. next weekend i am going to raleigh, nc for a conference with some of the undergraduates at CSU. I will get the chance to meet up with Kristen (GCRL) and see her girls. I'll post some pics when I get back.

Road Trip

Today I took off and went with the baseball team to play Savannah State. So this is my first experience riding the team bus. Suprisingly, on the way there it was pretty quiet (I guess everyone was sleeping). So, we get to Savannah and they play at a very (how do I say this nicely?) impoverished field. So I set up camp with my chair and a book. You may ask, Why a book? Weren't you watching the game? Oh, did I mention we get there 2 hours before the game for batting practice and warm-up, so I had plenty of time to kill. Anyway, we lost the game and I got sunburned. The bus ride home with a bunch of guys after they lost was interesting. The first hour no one says anything. But during this time our bus driver takes us the scenic route out of Savannah so I really enjoyed seeing some of the old homes in downtown with the tree covered streets. After we stopped for a bite to eat they finally start talking. Now it is what you would expect from a bus full of guys. Lots of cutting up and story telling so I just sat back and listened. I tell you it is good for Josh to be able to joke around with the guys because I don't have the same sense of humor. Well, my experience on the road trip was ok, maybe next time I decide to go we will win and I can report on a different kind of bus trip. Sorry I didn't take any pics, but it was a bus with seats and people sitting in them.

Boone Hall Plantation

When Josh's parents were in town we went to Boone Hall Plantation. It was where several movies have been filmed, so you may recognize the long drive with the oaks. It was cold that day and we also went to the beach. We stayed long enough to take one picture. This was back in Feb. so the weather has changed a bit. Yesterday we hit a record high of 90.

Summerville Flowertown Festival

Each year our town has a festival where all of downtown is shut down and there are lots of crafts, food and music. It is set in azalea park so it is really nice. Josh and I went today and spent a few hours walking around. Here are some pics from the festival. You will see the tents, people, bagpipe players and a picture of us (I know, shocking.... I actually forgot my camera but I ran into someone I know and she had a camera to take a picture of us at the park).

memorial bench for grant

The Bullpen Bench idea was started by CSU Baseball Alumni Mr. Dennis Evans, and his two sons, Cory Evans (CSU Baseball Alumni) and Josh Evans (current Sr.). They began building the memorial with the help of the 2006 baseball team. The coaching staff would also like to thank Andy Viars, Ryan Smith, and Brandon Massey along with everyone else that was involved in creating this memorial.

What's your Personality?

A friend of mine is doing research on dolphin personality. As part of her project she had to give personality test to her raters. Since I was one of the raters I found out what type of personality I have......

I rated HIGHEST on conscientiousness (termed as someone who is careful, well organized, punctual, ambitious and perservering)..... For those who have ever worked with me know this is true.....although this is a good thing it can have its downside. Again, for those who have worked with me know about this as well.

I rated LOWEST on neuroticism (termed as someone who has much worry, insecurity, self-consciousness and temperamentalness)...... Now, I do have to admit I probably would not have always rated lowest on neuroticism, but it took some time to realize that some things just aren't that important and really in the big scheme of things, doesn't matter.

So.... the question is: What is your personality type?
Take the test and see what your highest and lowest scores are.
http://ivos.ivillage.com/assessment/exec/personalityindex
****This website is just for fun, results may not be truly accurate****

Group Pic

Atlanta Aquarium

We got to visit the new Aquarium in Atlanta (thanks to Marie) and we went behind the scenes and saw the whale sharks being fed and we saw the beluga whales. Here are a few pics. Hopefully some of the other girls will send me some of their best pics and I will post them as well.

Atlanta conference

This past weekend I went to a conference in Atlanta where I got to meet up with some people from USM. Here are a few pics of us out to eat. Notice in one picture, I think Radhika is showing Stan how she puts on her makeup :)

crocs

i just bought a pair of flip flop crocs. I don't really like the regular crocs but these are very comfortable. I also got my patio set up today so I am excited that I can sit outside and enjoy the nice weather.

Hattiesburg Visit

While I was at home I visited Hattiesburg for a couple of days. I really had a good time and Jennifer and Jacob were nice enought to let me stay with them for a few days. There are a lot of new stores and restaurants there and I think more are coming. I was ready to move back in a second after my visit but I guess we will be in Charleston for a little while longer. Here are some pics of us out to dinner.

Leslie's house

My sister moved into their new house only a few weeks ago. They were living in a camper until the house was finished. We ate crawfish and crabs while I was there. I also took some pics of Norman (a longhorn) and some more of their longhorns in a back field. I zoomed in quite a bit on the larger group of longhorns b/c I wouldn't let Leslie get any closer to them. She assured me they wouldn't bother us but I wasn't taking any chances with their horns. It is a good thing becuase on our way back out of the field through the woods our cart that we were driving ran out of gas so we had to walk back to her house.

Gulfcoast

I flew in to Gulfport last friday for my visit. As we were flying in it was strange to look down and see hundreds of blue roofs. We flew over the water before we landed and you had a view of the coastline. Really there was nothing there. Once I landed I drove up and down the coast. I was amazed at how much was gone. They were cleaning the sand and there was so much debris left behind. There wasn't much activity until we drove past the Beau Rivage. There were hundreds of construction workers there working on the Beau. I took a few pictures of Marine Life (which was barely recognizable) and a fema trailer with beach front property.

Home

I will be going back to LA and MS this Friday. I am going to stay the whole week and visit friends and family. I will take pics of the MS gulf coast and other things that have changed since we moved. Look back for a post in a few weeks.

Here are some recent pics of us touring Charleston and at one of the baseball games. See if you can guess who was cold on one of our outings.