school's out for summer!

School ended a week and a half ago. What have I been doing? Here are some highlights:

*On the day after school got out, a friend and I went to this amazing restaurant called Cafe Izmir. It is now my favorite! The wait staff was amazing and the food was divine! It's a Middle Eastern tapas place. We had a tasty pitcher of sangria which we weren't sure we would be able to finish and I was treated to delicious cake and a bottle of wine, compliments of the house for my b-day!

*I celebrated my birthday with some friends. We went to a yummy Venezuelan restaurant and then to a Cuban music concert in a sculpture garden in downtown Dallas. The food was delicious, the music was very good, and I had a wonderful evening in spite of sweating profusely (I felt like I was back in Maracaibo...).

*I'm trying to get back into my gym routine. I'm still going but haven't been doing much strength training. Plus, my eating habits have been deplorable over the last several weeks so I need to start making wiser choices in that department.

*My cat Ginger is sick. She has lot about 5 pounds of the last couple of months and has been throwing up a lot more frequently (she has hairballs about once a month but she started throwing up about once a day, gross!). I took her to the vet on Monday worried that it was diabetes. They ran several tests and found that she has hyperthyroidism. Out of all the common illnesses older cats can have, this is the most managable. She will just need a pill every day for the rest of her life but no shots which is good. She hid under my bed for about a day and a half after coming back from the vet, pouting. She also does NOT like getting her medicine; I have to wrap her up in a towel like a kitty burrito so she doesn't claw me to death. Once I hold her mouth open, shove the meds in, close her mouth and hold it shut until she swalls, I let her go and she promptly runs and hids under some furniture. But I redeem myself by giving her a couple of treats each time so I think she's learning to accept it.

*I've been reading, one of my favorite pastimes. My current books are Little Women, The Book Thief, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, and someone let me borrow Twilight. I've never read Little Women before and I'm loving it! Such a sweet story. The Book Thief is very good, set in Germany during World War II.

*I'm trying to get more prepared for seminary. I'm supposed to read about 20 different books before I start taking classes but I doubt that will happen. Plus, some of the books are for classes I'm not taking until spring semester or next year. I'm going to focus on one book, Living By the Book by Howard and William Hendricks. I'm trying to figure out financial aid stuff and looking for a roommate. Lots of unknowns right now but I know it will all come together.

I start work in another week so I'm trying to enjoy these last moments of true freedom. I'm going to be a companion for a 10, 12, 14 and 16 year old; basically, I'm carting them around to various activities, making sure they don't burn down the house, stuff like that. The kids are great and I'm looking forward to working with them.

Some things I'm looking forward to for the summer:

*I'm dog and house sitting for a family this coming week and they have a pool in their backyard. Score!

*Hopefully, I'm going to Mexico in August for a wedding. The wedding is in Playa del Carmen, just south of Cancun. Haven't been to Mexico yet, can't wait!

*Reading! I want to do as much of it as I can before classes start because I won't have time to do any fun reading after that. I hope to finish the Harry Potter series and maybe the Twilight one if the first one is any good.