Pecan Pie

My, oh my.
Pretty is as pretty does (translation: it might not look like much, but it was DELICIOUS.)

Giving Thanks

I'm sitting next to the fire, watching football in fuzzy socks, laughing with friends as something else gets broken in the kitchen, and salivating to the smells coming from the oven. What's NOT to be thankful for?! I have many blessings to count these days. I pray you feel wrapped in love, friendship, and the sweet, sweet smells of tryptophan. Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy some pictures from Paige's shower.

Notice the "chocolate" diaper cake.

Keri adding to her stack of "J"s for one of the games.

So many cute gifts!

Getting excited about one of the games.

J for Jair.

Memory Game
Paige and her momma. Notice the pumpkin buggy!

Thank you gifts for the guests - so everyone can have their own bun in the oven!
Don't get any ideas from this picture!
And he's finally here!

I'm trying!

But it's SO hard. I'm trying to work on lecture before the fun weekend begins, but I'm too excited to write. And I'm trying not to get ahead of myself (i.e. no Christmas music until after Thanksgiving), but I couldn't resist watching this.



I'm such a Christmas sucker.

Anticipation.

This amount of food can only mean good things. We're heading up to Big Bear today for a long weekend to celebrate Thanksgiving with friends. Look for lots up catch-up posts over the next few days! IF I can stay out of the hot tub for an extended amount of time.

This Guy.

Definitely got a personal foul during the intramural playoffs. It was in the first of our three games today, against the team we beat last week. The team is actually made up of a bunch of great people, with the exception of one guy who has some major anger issues. Let's be honest...he's got Little Man Syndrome. Anyway, he played cheap and mouthed us all during last week's game and was on track to repeat history with today's game. Until Ben finally had enough, that is. That moment happened to occur right after Napoleon tried to karate chop the ball out of my hands when I caught a pass for a two point conversion. I didn't notice because he simultaneously stepped on my foot with his cleat and knocked me down. By the time I got back up and dusted myself off, Ben was in his face and saying some fightin' words. My Ben. The guy who can't even yell because he's so soft spoken and who still feels guilty for shooting squirrels with his pellet gun when he was twelve. Who knew he had it in him?! I literally had to pull him away before arms started swinging.

The good news is that we beat them. The bad news is that we lost in the championship game. There's always next year, I guess. GO BARRY'S MANILOW!

Ready or not...

...here he comes! My friend, Paige, is currently dilated to an 8. Gulp! Please pray for a smooth, healthy delivery. God speed, little Jair! Aunt Robin needs to get on top of getting those baby shower pictures posted!

Murphy's Dog's Law

Fact: When your bed is made up with fresh linens, a newly laundered duvet cover, and a newly dry-cleaned duvet, your dog WILL throw up on it at 3 a.m.



She only looks innocent. Anyone want a dog?

Serious Post For The Week: Difficult Grace

I just finished a book for one of my classes entitled, "Heal Thyself: Spirituality, Medicine, and the Distortion of Christianity." It was a very dense book, so I'm sure I missed 85% of the points that were made, but this one left an impression on me:

"In telling of the regular visits [the poet Donald Hall] and [his wife, Jane] Kenyon received from their pastor, Hall offers a very different portrayal of God and a very different sense of the way God was with them during their suffering, as a presence that promised nothing by itself:

When their minister
Alice Ling, brought communion to the house
Or the hospital bed,
Or when they held hands as Alice prayed,
Grace was evident
But not the comfort of mercy or reprieve.
The embodied figure
On the cross still twisted under the sun.

This is mysterious and difficult grace, this grace that is clearly evident but that may not include 'the comfort of mercy or reprieve.'"

I'm chewing on this. I think it holds important implications for my time at City of Hope.

My New Best Friend

Yep. You read that right. Brad and I go way back - at least three years. It all started that one day when my cousin ran into him at Noah's, and then we later saw him filming in Burbank. Coincidence? I think not. It was the beginning of a beautiful relationship. Now we usually meet once a week for coffee, either at Pete's or Starbucks around the corner from my house. Granted, we never talk to each other, per say, nor do we sit at the same table, but we're always in close vicinity. Like today, I can tell you that he's debating whether or not to do Celebrity Jeopardy and that he's pretty stoked about the upcoming presidential inauguration because, man, what a great experience for the kids, you know? I'll probably see his wife later when I get my nails done, as we occasionally frequent the same salon. We might shoot the breeze about how glad she is that they live in Pasadena and not Montecito.

Don't you just love friends? I know I do.

Ray says it best.

This morning I was having me some Ray Charles with my morning report writing, when I was reminded of this golden moment of televison. You're welcome.

Music soothes my soul...

Girls' Night at all-female Hotel Cafe Tour in Anaheim a few weeks ago. I love music and I love these women.

I'm Going To Be An Aunt - Again!

Congratulations to Rian, Jennifer, and Austin - soon you'll be a family of four!

A Night At The Blair House

2 humans + 2 cats + 1 dog =

The Part Where The Rainbow Comes Out.

Just a quick thank you to everyone who responded with prayers, words of encouragement, phone calls, and hugs. Today was a good day. Still stressful, but good. I'm a firm believer that these good days are possible because of my community. I am a blessed and loved woman. Thank you for reminding me of that.

PS: Feel free to have a melt down around me anytime...I'm kind of getting good at them.

Pardon me...

...as I have a quick meltdown.

You could say I have a lot on my plate these days. You could also say that I think all work and no play makes Robin a dull girl. So, you could then see how every now and then when this combination gets mixed in a pressure cooker, I eventually reach the point of combustion and all hell breaks loose. Today was that day.

Going on about ten hours of sleep in the last two days (thank you, Halloween parties and clerkship duties), I thought I was doing a fair job of managing my stress when everything that could go wrong did. That's when I finally threw in the towel, luckily within the confines of my therapist's office, and just started sobbing. Because here's the deal, Internet. Just below my silly, sarcastic exterior, lies the ugly truth that most days I feel I can barely hold my shit together. I fight the sneaky suspicion that I'm not smart enough, driven enough, professional enough, or good enough to pull off this sham that I know what I'm doing. Sometimes I feel like I'm not enough, period, and it's only a matter of time before you all realize it.

Bleh. This year was supposed to be easier. Not the year I put all my ish up on my blog.

Okay. Meltdown over. I'm going to bed. And tomorrow will be better. If not, there's always another therapy session to look forward to. :)