the end, the beginning

My last day of winter vacation.

I can hardly complain, considering I had an entire 4 weeks of glorious vacation from PA School. I enjoyed ev-er-y single minute of it. It was complete bliss.

I finally was able to clean my house. See my family (lots - I may have overstayed my welcome at my parents' house more than once). Spend time with my husband. WATCH MOVIES. I'm talking lots of movies. Even an XMen marathon with my little sister: I, II, III, and 1st Class. See some friends. Drink wine. Drink beer (I may still be hungover from New Years Eve). Read. Cuddle my dogs - for hours and hours every day. Laugh.

And I found out that my insomnia was indeed stress-induced (probably ISBM-induced to be more specific), like I thought --- I only took ambien ONCE over break!

I finally saw Soul Surfer and One Day (amidst a slew of other films I have already blogged about) --- movies I have been dying to see! And I must say that Soul Surfer is now one of my favorite movies of all time --- hands down! It is a movie with a Christian base, and it tells the story of Bethany Hamilton, a teenager who got her arm bitten off in a shark attack while surfing. Throughout the tragedy of the accident, Bethany never loses faith in God nor in her ability to make it as a professional surfer. With the help of her incredibly supportive family, she relearns how to surf, and indeed her dreams come true. This film is uplifting, encouraging, sad, and beautiful. LOVED IT. 

One Day, starring Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess, is a tale of love and friendship, and blurring the lines between the two. Anne Hathaway does her best to play a British woman...but the accent is just odd. Sometimes Scottish, sometimes American, sometimes British...mostly awkward. The movie wasn't all I had expected it to be. It was frustrating, not very romantic, kind of funny, and tragic. Not exactly my favorite ingredients for a win-me-over-rom-com. Did anyone else see it? What did you think?

I am so grateful for this time I had to reconnect with my loved ones, and reconnect with myself. Oh and reconnect with the blogworld, too :)

So, tis the end of my break. But the beginning of a new semester for me. A semester in which I hope to fare better than I did last semester (emotionally, grade-wise). One in which I will strive for that balance, and try to remember to smile and laugh more often :)

Cheers, and goodbye for now!