45 Years & Lots of Love

September 14th was my parent's 45th wedding anniversary. 

Yep, you read that right: 45 years.

That's a whole lot of years.

Even more days.

An innumerable amount of seconds.

And a whole lot of love.

I really am blessed to have these two as my parents as well as my best friends. They're the kindest, most supportive, and loving people I have ever known. They've encouraged me and been there for me through every decision, every up, and every down - basically, every moment of every day of my entire life.

And what's more, they've been there and supportive of each other across the years as well. It's inspiring to have them to look up to as I've grown up. They're a testament to a true partnership - they're there for each other through the thicks and thins and the ups and downs. They know exactly how to push each other's buttons and exactly how to make each other happy. 

I've said it before, but in a world filled with divorces every other weekend, it's a blessing to have two people showing how to keep that commitment  to each other and prove that love really is all you need. 

These two really have made me who I am today. And I could not (and would not) be where or who I am without their love, support, guidance, and example. They're my best friends in the world. And I couldn't be happier or prouder of that fact. 

Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad!
I love you both with everything I am!
Here's to 45 (or more) more!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

I love my father as the stars - 

he's a bright shining example 

and a happy twinkling in my heart.

- Terri Guillemets

Happy Birthday to the most amazing man I have ever known! Your dedication and passion in life for all that you do and the kindness and love you always show to those around you have made me into the person I am today. I can only hope to follow in your footsteps as I go down this path of my life. 

Happy Birthday to the man who has always stood behind me in all the tough (and easy) decisions I've ever made in my life. Thank you for never doubting me or second guessing me - but for always being a sounding board and a gentle hand of guidance in the right direction when I wasn't so sure I was going the right way.  

Happy Birthday to the man who has taught me to love and be proud of the country in which I was born and raised. Your years of service in the Air Force as well as the years you've worked in the NICU have shown me what true dedication and service looks like. I am proud of many things in my life, but there are not many things I'm more proud of than being your daughter.

Happy Birthday to a man with a sense of humor I totally get and probably take after (along with mom's as well, that's for sure!). Thanks for teaching me it's (almost) always okay to randomly stick your arm into holes in hundreds of years old ruins. Especially when there's a silly picture to be taken.

Happy Birthday to a man with a sense of adventure - even though it's taken us a while, I cannot wait to go on many, many more fun and exciting trips with you and mom! I am so glad that I studied abroad in Italy (and that you and mom let me!) for so many reasons, but one of the biggest reasons is that it got you and mom bit by the travel bug! I cannot imagine our lives without our recent adventures/vacations! From North Carolina to Rome to Paris to Budapest to Prague to Poland to Vienna - we've been a lot of places in this world so far! The world is our open book - where to next? 

Happy Birthday to the #1 man in my life since the day I was born. You've never left my side and have loved me and helped me through every scraped knee, ear infection, broken heart, rejection letter, rejection anything-else, disappointment, and let-down. And thank you for always being there to rejoice and cheer me on through every fencing win, soccer/t-ball/softball game, academic success, silly role in a play, endless (and seemingly pointless) field hockey games, and every other bit of happy that has ever filled my life. I am so blessed to have you as my father. And even better, I'm so blessed to have had you and mom there to love and raise me every day of my life.

Happy Birthday Daddy! Here's to many, many more together! 

He didn't tell me how to live;

he lived, and he let me watch him do it.

- Clarence Budington Kelland

Shoulders & Family Times

 Last Tuesday my dad went into the hospital for shoulder surgery. He had his right shoulder done a few years ago and it was a pretty simple surgery with a fairly easy recovery. This time he expected much the same thing. However, when the doctor went in, they found that a bunch more damage had been done to this shoulder and there was more to repair. Thankfully all went well and he was in and out as scheduled. Instead of a nice, normal, across the body type thing, he's in this crazy contraption of foam and velcro that criss crosses over him a few times and has his arm at a 90 degree angle from his body. It's really crazy looking, and even more impossible to get right, let me tell you. So, he was a little out of sorts when he realized that this sling, and this surgery, meant that he was going to be in this contraption for four to six weeks. 

Wednesday night and Thursday morning, however, he wasn't feeling so great so (after making him call the doctor and listening to what they had to say.... honestly, people in the medical profession are the most stubborn about going to the doctor/hospital) I took him into the ER just to have things checked out. Having to call mom at work and let her know we were headed in was tough - because I didn't want to worry her because neither me or my dad thought it was that bad. But we (obviously) had to let her know what was going on, but we didn't want to worry her! We ended up spending all day in the ER and he was admitted for the night as a just in case precaution (seriously all day - we got in at about 11 and he got moved to his room at about 7pm and mom and I left at about 8pm....).  

Thankfully everything was okay with him and we took him home Friday morning. If nothing else, going in and being checked out made him feel a lot better about his shoulder and how he was feeling. The nurses that took care of him while he was there were amazing. They had a lot to talk about with my dad - seeing as he was there overnight (the shift he works in the NICU at his hospital), they made jokes about the night shift and hospital life. It was nice to see such great people working in our local hospital - and even nicer to see that my dad had them there taking care of him. It was amusing because he kept making comments about how now he 'knows how the babies he works with feel' and how this time was his first time overnight in a hospital not working. Nurses are really amazing people.

I'm really lucky to have my dad as mine. He's a great guy, and seeing him in pain with this surgery hasn't been fun. Then, no kid ever likes to see their parents in the hospital or in pain, and I'm no different. But, as an only child, I think that maybe it's a little harder for me? And watching my mom worry over my dad just as much as I've been worrying over him reminds me of just how special a love that lasts that long is - how important the people in your life are. 

I love my parents, they've been my biggest supporters and encouragers and friends my entire life. I've always known I was a lucky kid - my parents have never had anything other than my best interest at heart (even when, at the time I might have thought otherwise), and gave up a lot of their time to do things with/for me that they probably didn't want to be doing (or had things that they wanted/needed to do). So, yes, I know I'm lucky. But sometimes it takes something like an unexpected, all-day trip to the ER to remind you just how good you've got it. 

So, in these days post-Christmas and nearing to the end of 2012, hug your parents and tell them you love them. Because, really, they're some of the most important people in your world. 

Mom and Dad?  You ROCK! 

I love you both! 

On Loss

Source: google.com via Hanna on Pinterest

Over the weekend one of the doctors my dad works with passed away while on vacation. If I haven't mentioned it on here before, my dad is a nurse and works in the NICU (the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) with premature and very, very sick babies. This doctor was a really good man and an amazing doctor and will be sadly missed by his work family, real family, and friends.

I've been having a really rough start to the week coming to terms with this. Which may seem strange, because I wasn't close to him by any means, but I'm having a rough time nonetheless. First, I think this is because it's been really hard for my dad to lose a friend and colleague whom he cared for and respected so much. He was one of the Doc's that dad always has a story to tell about - both from his life in Russia before he moved to the US and from fun or interesting things that he had to say at work. It's hard to hear my dad hurt at the loss of a friend. I'm so over protective of my family, and I hate to see them hurting. And knowing there's nothing I can do to help ease that pain is totally a part of this. Secondly, it's hard because it was a very random and not predicted death. Sickness or prolonged illness have a way of helping us cope with the loss of family or friends because we are able to prepare ourselves for the inevitable. When people die suddenly it leaves us wondering why and at the same time realizing it could happen to anyone, anywhere, anytime. And that, right there, is the most unsettling thing to think about. Thirdly? I've had a lot of loss in my life over the last nine months. I think my quota is filled, okay?

I like to think that he's in a better place now. If there's anything I think I know about heaven, it's this: men like this doctor and my dad? There's a special, amazing place in heaven reserved for people like them; for people who help bring the innocent, sick, and helpless little babies into the world and care for them so that they're able to stay with us. This doctor saved the lives of countless babies over the course of his career, and if there's any profession that God will let into heaven? It's these guys. So, if you have the time, please say an extra prayer and send some extra good vibes out into heaven for his family, friends, coworkers, and other loved ones who lost an amazing man that day.

We'll miss you Dr. George.

43 Years Strong

Today is my parent's 43rd wedding anniversary.

Yes, you read that right.

Forty-Third.

This picture is of them in Prague,

at the beginning of the day,

(the 24 hours we spent in the city, mind you)

after an over-night train ride in the tiniest sleeper-car ever

(are all sleeper cars tiny on trains?

i mean, this one had a bunk-bed, with three bunks)

So, you can tell why dad's not smiling that big

(but really, it's hard to get him to smile for a picture,

as in this picture from Paris is one of the only pictures

I have of him with a real, honest-to-goodness smile:

what's funny about that is that he's one of the funniest,

happy-go-lucky, constantly-making-jokes guys i know.

go figure about the pictures, right?)

Mom on the other hand, always smiling in pictures:

even when it's freezing and i'm making her try deep-fried foods.

Well, she's either smiling,

or making funny faces at the camera:

She's gonna kill me for posting that picture,

but you know what? I love it.

It's so my mom, if you know what I mean.

So, what you need to know:

they've been together forever.

Forever.

As in, they were high-school-sweethearts

(they'll both probably laugh when they read that),

but that's kinda cool.

I mean, really?

In a time when everyone and their brother seems to be divorcing,

here they are showing people that love exists.

Take that divorce rates.

They've lived in really random places together:

Freezing North Dakota,

Middle-of-the-Desert California,

Middle-of-Nowhere New York,

Pony-Land Kentucky,

and now Beautiful New Hampshire.

They've got me,

which makes them super awesome in my eyes.

They're partners.

Marriage is difficult, for sure - you're with someone forever.

In case you forgot,

that's a really, really long time.

You'll get on each other's nerves, for sure,

and you'll learn exactly which buttons to push to royally tick the other off,

and you'll push those buttons both on purpose and without realizing it,

but it's the getting over it and moving on to the next day that matters.

That's how 43 years happen,

and how 43 (or more!) more years will happen.

Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad!

I love you more than words!

Happiness in a Nutshell

• My daddy's been in Budapest since Sunday, which has been amazing. He, unfortunately, had to go home today. However, we had a wonderful time full of thermal baths, fabulous food, a beautiful trip to the Opera, and time to just spend together. I love having my parents come out and visit me and experience the wonders of this awesome world. I just wish they could come more! I love my family.

• The weather this past week has been amazing. With a forecast for rain, dad and I were certain that umbrellas would be a staple of our wardrobe. Mother Nature, thankfully, decided that what we needed was a week full of beautiful autumn days.
• Dad being here has also meant that I got a ton of my favorite foods from home. Hello giant jar of peanut butter, Flipz, Cheeze-Its, Starbucks VIA, and Sleepytime tea! And other awesome things made their way across the pond as well: My LLBean Wellies, a wall decoration of the NYC skyline from Target, and some leg warmers.

• School is back in full swing. I think I'm already tired of writing papers and reading scholarly articles. Can I go back to camp now, please?
• This also means that I am again addicted to coffee. Thanks Coffee guy for making my morning cup look pretty before I devour it.

• Now that it's finally fall, all my favorite TV shows are back on and I need to get caught up with them already! Sheesh, being in Europe apparently means not being able to appropriately keep up with them
• Dear Vampire Diaries, You gave me a heart attack from moment one. Thanks for keeping it real. Love, Courtney // Dear CSI, Don't you dare kill anyone this season. Love, Courtney // Dear Private Practice, I had forgotten you killed off my Dell last season. Thanks for reopening that wound. I'm still mad at you. Love, Courtney // [I'm sure there will be many more...]

• Have I mentioned I love autumn? Now, let's just see how long we can keep winter at bay...

Daddy's Girl

Any man can be a father,

but it takes someone special to be a dad.

[Anne Geddes]

Happy Father's Day To All The Dad's Out There!

But especially, happy father's day to my Dad!

the best dad in the whole wide world

(and trust me, I've travelled a lot of it!)!

My dad is the most amazing man I have ever met,

and though he might have been wrapped around

my little finger since I was born;

I was just as tightly wrapped around his.

On a trip to DC.

On a trip to the Biltmore Estate.

Graduation from UNC!

In Rome.

This may be where I get my sense of humor from...

in Paris.

in Budapest.

Thank you dad, for all you have ever done

and for all that you continue to do for me.

I LOVE YOU!

A father is always making his baby into a little woman.

And when she is a woman, he turns her back again.

[Anid Bagnold]