Sick :P

Tissues, Vicks vapor rub, drugs...yep, we're sick.  John started it.  Thanks, John.  So we stayed home (instead of traveling to Pittsburgh to see John's mom and dad...wouldn't want to bring the germs) and ordered Chinese and watched a movie in our sweatpants.  Oh, and we celebrated Fall with some pumpkin bread and apple cider.

I've been ready for bed since 8:30.  Lame.

ljb

Acceptance Numero Uno

Yesterday Leah Joy received her first acceptance letter to a physician assistant program! She was accepted to Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine. A week and a half ago Leah had an on-campus interview and thought it went well. Obviously it did and it was really exciting to get the initial email acceptance. Totally sweet. This makes things very real for Leah and I and that is cool. We celebrated with some Starbucks and then came back to the quad for a student-led live soap opera which was well done and a lot of fun.

Today we drove all the way to Boardman, OH to look at a Subaru Forester...apparently the guy didn't understand me when I asked him on the phone if it had any rust or made any funny noises. As soon as we started the thing up and pulled out of the driveway it sounded like an elephant giving birth. Needless to say we didn't even make an offer. What a waste...So for now we are still the proud owners of a 1997 Mitsubishi Galant with a bad tranny, no turn signals, intermittent air conditiong, no airbags, and now a fancy new check engine light!!! Luxury baby!

On the flip side Dad is back in the hospital going through MINT chemo...we are still hopeful and we look forward to going back to the burg this weekend to see everyone (if my cold goes away). We pray for healing, grace, and peace. Continue to pray for and with us. Thanks! Adios.

Interviews...

I will take this moment to brag about my sweet wife. So far Leah Joy has received five on-campus interviews from the ten PA schools she has applied to. We are still waiting to hear back from the rest but so far she has been invited on campus to two schools in the Chicago area, on school in Mesa, Arizona, one Oakland California, and also Saint Louis University. It is pretty exciting for both of us to hear back from schools and it really makes the potential of her being in school next year feel very real. Pretty cool stuff.

The Dreaded Long Run

Today I ran 20 miles.  It is never an easy task to run that far, but today was the best long run I have ever had.  Maybe it was the sport beans...maybe it was my loving husband driving out to check on me every few miles. ;)

Here is what I saw a lot of along the way:  mailmen and dead frogs.

But, I did save one little froggie from getting squashed on the road.  Hopefully, he will live a long, happy life in the roadside marsh.

Just an update on my training:  my self-diagnosed hip flexor strain caused me to miss almost two weeks of running.  I finally started back up again last week, just running through the pain.  After stretching and icing, the pain has subsided and I am back in the game.  It looks as though I will be able to continue to train as planned and run the race on October 12th!

Oh, and I'd also like to ask all of you to be a part of Team World Vision.  Whether poor or well-0ff, I do believe that each of us can find a few dollars to spare for those in need of clean water.  Please visit www.firstgiving.com/leahbaldauff to give a donation and to learn more about why I am running the Chicago marathon. 

Enjoy your Saturday afternoon!

leah

Bloggin it up...

Well it has been another crazy but sweet week for these two Baldauffs. This past weekend was nuts. On Saturday we went to a lake house with the male RA staffs and played around with some jet skis, water skis, hot tubs, volleyball courts, etc. It was a great time and the guys had a blast.
That same night we drove to Pittsburgh to see mom and dad. It was really nice to be there. We played a ton of games, swam in the pool, ate really well, and got lots of free stuff which I will speak of in a second. It felt really nice to be around mom and dad and nun and uncle mark. Dad had some energy while we were there and it was cool to see him tinkering with the downspout.
Mom is now officially addicted to german-style board games and has purchased every single one ever made. We played both catan expansion packs and had a ton of fun with that. We also had some AWESOME BBQ ribs that my dad made. Those things were sweet. Leah, Mom, and I went to north park on Monday. Leah ran around the lake and mom and I biked it. That was muy funno. Then we went to see my pap in the hospital and he was his usual sarcastic self (also only half lucid). It really was a great weekend.
On top of all the fun we came back with a bunch of free stuff. We now have a freezer stocked with food! Leah also has a Sewing Machine that she plans on using to make her own clothes!!! That is pretty great. She already fixed my favorite pants that had a huge tear in them. And we also got something else for free but let me first give you some background information...
all of my life (or since I first saw them while registering for things before the wedding)I have wanted a Dyson vacuum cleaner. If you know anything about vacuums you know that Dysons are the cream of the proverbial crop. If you know about Dysons you also know that they are crazy expensive and WAY out of the price range of a RD and gerry-leg-lifter. So my hopes were quickly dashed and I decided to be ok with the crappy Hoover that we registered for. Well so we get to my parents house and my mom tells me about some free things she received and said that she was given a Dyson Animal DC07 and we could have it. SERIOUSLY?????????????? So this has definitely been the happiest day of my life. How cool is that? Very cool. So we had a great weekend in Pittsburgh.

Then when we got back Leah found out on Wednesday that she was invited to Arizona School of Health Sciences for an Interview. I am really proud of her and excited for this sweet opportunity for her. We are actually both going out there in October so that is way sweet. Exciting. She is the bomb. So this is her second interview so far. Not too shabby considering how early in the game it is. I love her.

Wow, ok. Long blog. Sorry. Bye.

One fun weekend

This past weekend I drove all over the country. Okay, pretty much just in Ohio and Pennsylvania, but it sure felt farther than that.

On Friday my dear friend Michelle Fast came to visit. She was my roommate in college for three years. She and her husband Jake were in town from Chattanooga, TN for our other roommate's wedding. It was so wonderful to see her again. We spent the evening watching the opening ceremony of the Olympics and baking thick and chewy chocolate chip cookies. Yes, we ate a lot of them.


On Saturday morning Michelle left and I drove out to Bergholz, OH (don't ask me where the heck that is...I followed a lot of windy, hilly country roads to the middle of nowhere). I met up with John and all of the other RD's and RA's from Malone at a camp on their retreat. I helped in the kichen a bit to make their meals. That night we played a life-size game of CLUE. Everyone was invited to dress "thrift formal." Here is just a taste...

John's co-workers and their spouses
yes, large, poofy bows just off the shoulder ARE back in style.
John's current RA staff for this year...studs, for sure.

I left the camp early Sunday morning to drive to Grove City, PA to be with my roommate Lindsey who got married that day to a nice boy named Nate (I think I approve, Linds). I was honored to do Lindsey's hair that morning for her wedding. The wedding was lovely and I really, really enjoyed reconnecting with many friends from college. I miss those guys. :(

After a long day I drove 2 hours back home to be with my husband. I love him.

The last of the summer getaways

Just before John started back to RD training at Malone, we took a quick trip out to the windy city! It was a great, but short, weekend. We certainly squeezed way too much fun into a couple of days.

On Friday we spent the day in the city. We took a few of our own bikes on the "el" and rented two tandem bikes. We rode along the lake front from Millennium Park to North Beach and then back down south past the Shedd Aquarium. We did alright on the tandem's until I decided that my mom and I should ride through this water fountain at Navy Pier. Oops. The ground was a little slick and our tires were pretty bald...we toppled over sideways. We suffered a few bruises, but the cool-down from the fountain was certainly worth it on that hot summer day. We spent that afternoon at the beach on Lake Michigan and then rode our bikes to the nearest Giordano's for dinner. Mmmm, Chicago Pizza.



Oh, yeah...we had Jamba Juice.

Saturday Jess, Dad and I did our long run of 16 miles. We were quite tired the rest of the day, so we didn't do too much until heading out to the theater to see THE DARK KNIGHT. Although it was a creepy and dark movie, it was really well done and I liked it a lot.

I finished out the weekend at Megan Rossi's bridal shower! She is my good friend from high school and I will be a bridesmaid in her wedding in September. It was wonderful to be there and see her for a bit.