Letting the cat out of the bag.

photo by Maura Johnson


It's Friday night, May 21st, I'm currently home alone- well, unless you count my abnormally humanized dog, Billi. My parents left for the weekend in celebration of their like millionth-something anniversary so it's "anything goes" around here. I'm forced to play chauffeur, which I hate, so I just dropped baby sister Emma off at my high school alma mater for a play called, "Urinetown," ew. Well, that's all basically irrelevant. I just thought I needed some sort of segue into the following...

KARL & I WON 3RD PLACE IN THE CRATE & BARREL CONTEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Could I be more excited? No. I don't think so. Want to hear more about my dramatic week full of C&B surprises? Keep reading...

We found out that we were 1 of the 50 semi-finalists a while ago- thanks to all of you we were in the top 50 most voted for couples (#22 to be exact :) ) which was all we needed to move on. This got us in this sweet picture.
This heart is full of the pictures of the 50 semi-finalists! I think it's really cool; mine & K's is towards the top in the middle!

Last Tuesday I got home from running wedding errands to find a FedEx envelope here at home addressed to Karl & I from New York City... weird. I open it and scan the cover letter topping a stack of papers... It reads, "Dear Hannah & Karl: Important notice! You entered the Crate and Barrel Ultimate Wedding Contest... (blah blah blah) your entry was selected as a potential winner in our contest. Please read this letter carefully, and follow the directions exactly as stated, as your eligibility depends upon your adherence to its terms." The rest of the letter goes on the give super explicit instructions on the W9 & two affidavits that K & I each need to have filled out and NOTARIZED and overnighted back to NYC. OK, calm. This wouldn't be such a big deal if it weren't for the fact that KARL IS IN IRAQ! What the heck? Where do you find a notary in Iraq??? Obviously I send Karl a super bossy email and tell him that if he messes this up he blows all our chances of winning any sort of prize. AND at this point we don't even know if we have won a prize and if so, what prize we have won. Needless to say, Karl, after a 12 hour shift of manual labor, is able to find a notary and scans/emails his affidavit back to me. OK. First hoop jumped through successfully. FedEx picks up the packet on Wednesday and it's back in NYC just in time.

and there's me with the priceless (or should I say $2,500) envelope before I sent it off!!

So, Thursday I get an email from a Crate & Barrel exec...
"Dear Hannah and Karl,

Now that we’ve received your signed documents, I am pleased to present you with the official prize letter for 3rd Place. Congratulations!

Please be sure to read the letter carefully as there is confidentiality language we need you to adhere to.

The sooner you can sign and fax back – or scan and email back – to the numbers in the letter, the sooner we can announce your prize and the sooner you will receive your prize. If you can do this today, it would be greatly appreciated."

Great...now I get to have Karl rush around again to print/sign/scan/email all while he's in Iraq. ANNNNDDD we both have to keep our mouths shut because this time we are signing saying we won't tell a soul!! BOOOO!! I am THE WORST secret keeper and have had so many people asking about the contest, I hate lying and saying, "I still don't know." Woof. BUT WE WERE SO EXCITED AT THIS POINT! I had such an overwhelming feeling of joy, thankfulness, excitement... boy are we humbled by this recognition and acknowledgement of our story. So grateful for the votes of loved ones and strangers alike- I just can't even verbalize the excitement!!

Now back to today, Friday, I get an email from another contest sponsor in LA (no big deal, K&I are just an east coast & west coast known couple at this point...) who tells me that they will announce the 1st, 2nd, & 3rd place winners to the public on MONDAY, which is actually the day you will all read this.

K&I are overjoyed. After the Tuesday envelope arrived, I kept brainstorming with my family all the possible prizes that we may or may not have won. Part of the paperwork involved was K&I signing that we agreed to pay all taxes associated with the $100,00 wedding (aka grand prize) or any prize we may win... My dad & I started brainstorming that a little... I'll just say that after we realized what those taxes would look like on $100,000 winnings, I think 3rd place is PERFECT for Karl and I :)

Thank you, thank you, thank you sweet friends for your votes, for sending the link to vote to your friends and family, for encouraging K & I. Thank you C&B- #3 out of over 9,000 entries- such a fantastic & amazing treat. Thank you sweet Lord for this precious and fun blessing- we are so excited, feel so undeserving, humbled, blessed, and in awe.

Go check out the announcement at Crate & Barrel
Love,
Hannah & Karl

And if you never saw the actual entry, here it is :) click on the pictures to enlarge!

New Attitude, Sort of.

So, to recap the past week:
I celebrated with my friends our time at the U of A at a block party on one of my favorite blocks. It was fantastic- great weather, delicious food, the most incredible friends, and the best way to end the semester.




I babysat my favorite little Fayetteville toddler for the last time. Love little girl "N" that I'll miss so much!

I was pinned as an graduate of a Bachelor of Science in Nursing program at The University of Arkansas' Eleanor Mann School of Nursing. It was kind of a big deal. I addressed my class as Class Representative in a speech that forced me to fight back tears, a little anger, and a lot of happiness.


I had "brunch" (long story, for another post) at Pi Phi for the last time next to sweet friends, & I walked the stage alongside peers that have drug me thru the fire as my sweet, supportive family watched from the bleachers.



Then I packed up my entire life, drove it home in a UHaul going 55 miles per hour, and put it all in storage.

This week has been spent meeting with our wedding planner, caterer, DJ, stationary designer & printer... I have spent hours on TheKnot.com, flipping thru magazines, thinking about measurements, talking about hair & makeup... my life has made a complete turn around from 100% school to 100% wedding. Today marks 100 days until the wedding- can't wait to shift my focus to things beyond August 21st.

The Good 'Ol Days

My Genius 'mate thought to record the Oprah episode totally devoted to interviewing Laura Bush and her precious twin daughters. This morning I thought, eh, I have nothing else to watch, might as well. Best decision I have ever made. I can't help but review a few highs from the past hour, one of the best hours I've spent this past week...

-I have teared up multiple times, not really 100% why
- Round of applause to Oprah for leaving her extremely left-winged opinion out. Thanks for the pleasant surprise. Not shockingly, she obviously didn't stop herself from cutting off even Laura Bush mid-sentence. Sorry, Laura. I'll apologize for her.
- The Bush's rent puzzles to enjoy because they are expensive to buy, that's nice.
- Very interesting to hear how 9/11 was for The Bush Family- must have been terrifying to be in a bunker- literally- in the bowels of The White House
- George (first name basis) calls the swimming pool at their ranch, "The whining pool," because the twins whined for it so much he finally gave in and had one installed... sounds like my dad
- Makes me love and appreciate The Bush Dynasty so much more now that I've experienced, ahem, otherwise...
- Their love and devotion to The Lonestar State & mention of our state flower (Bluebonnets, duh) makes my heart swell with pride & joy

I cannot wait to read her book. The sweetest, classiest, most delightful woman.

153.

UPDATE: Sidenote- this is more for my own memory than reader entertainment... So, just got back from the aforementioned test. I passed. It took me 3 hours and 180 questions but I passed. I left the room (almost last) and immediately emailed Karl. Walked the sidewalk down Maple, checked my voicemail, and listened to "Beth" tell me that Karl and I got the house we have been pining for. I passed and we have a home. I passed, I am done with college, and we are adults. I passed, I am done with college, we are adults, and I am getting married. I am about 5,000 steps closer to being married to Karl. Literally walked to my car in tears. Audible, big, warm, tears. This nightmare of education, the wonderful phenomenon of collegiate life, the tests, papers, horrible & wonderful teachers, checklists, syllabi... it's over. I finally got to talk to Karl on the phone via Skype. I think I said "it's over" about 100 times. I am in awe, but not really, because I believe in The Lord, in His faithfulness and goodness. As Karl said to me this morning, "remember God is graceful & loving & He will help you." I hung to that all day, as I feel I have for nursing school, and will continue to do the rest of my life. Praise God for His fun blessings. Praise. God. It's. Over. Praise God it's just beginning (Karl- can't wait to move into OUR HOUSE and LIVE WITH YOU!!)

After I passed the last test I will ever take in college (in case anyone forgot), I went and picked up my complimentary one year free membership to the U of A Alumni Association because lets face it, I'M AN ALUMNI!! Secondly, I went and ordered my final transcripts to be sent to the Texas State Board of Nursing because I'M TAKING THE NCLEX THIS SUMMER! Lastly, I went and picked up my BSN pin for the pinning ceremony on Friday because...I'M DONE WITH COLLEGE AND BEING PINNED AS A NURSE ON FRIDAY!! L.I.G. baby.

153. Why is that number significant? Because it's the number of tests I will have taken in college at the University of Arkansas as an undergraduate student as of 3 hours from now... which also happens to be the time I will be done with my undergrad career, NBD (no big deal). Should I knock on wood, though? If you read my previous post, you read that I have to pass this test in order to pull away from this city on Sunday, bags packed, never looking back. OK, so I'll look back, and come back, and walk back on memory lane. I know you're all thinking, "Zuh, she'll pass. Stop being dramatic." But let me tell you, out of the 40-something people in my class, I can almost promise at least 10 of us won't pass. Just saying. Not to jinx myself or make what I'm about to do any less special, BUT, I'm nervous. I want to go out with a bang... not a "WOO HOO, last test!... I mean, whoops... guess I'll have to re-do in two weeks..." Anyways, wish me (and Allie, and the other 40-something of our closest peers) luck as we slap good 'ol Nursing School a swift one on our way in to knock this last one out to the ballpark. Sayonara Eleanor Mann School of Nursing. Have fun wherever soul-less academic programs go to rot.

Bedrest, Qualms, & ATI

I stalk peoples blogs that I don't know and will never meet. Suit me. I came across a blog this morning written by a woman that recently had twins and was on "strict bedrest with bathroom privileges" for about 3 weeks before she had her babies. She described her bedrest daily schedule as follows: wake up, move from the bed to the couch, stay on the couch all day, get up to pee, get up to eat lunch, go back to the couch, pee, back to the couch, and then eventually back to bed at night... now I'm not pregnant but this sounds VERY familiar...

For the past 7 days I have been studying for this standardized test called ATI. Now, I'll spare you the gory details but basically it's a practice NCLEX (the RN license exam I will take this summer) that the U of A nursing school requires us to take. Basically here are my thoughts on ATI, my apologies if you've heard this rant before: the administration up here makes us take these ATI's as a means of seeing whether or not we are capable of passing the NCLEX upon graduation, statistically speaking. Why is this important to them, you ask? Oh, because we as students who work our butts off have grown near and dear to their hearts and they want to ensure that they have done their job in adequately educating us and equipping us to pass the test that determines if we are minimally capable of providing patient care. EHHHHH WRONG ANSWER! They put us through these tests (which, I may add are in no way, shape, or form required by ANY state board of nursing for sitting to take the NCLEX) to cover their butts and as a way to hope and pray that we pass the NCLEX so that they can continue to get funding for their less than renown nursing school. Here's the ugly... normally, when we don't pass these standardized bad-boys each semester, we have to take weekly remediation each semester and retake the specific ATI that we failed at the end of the following semester. So, you would think that since this is my last semester as a student, if I don't pass this last, big, and final ATI I would just go on my merry little way and pray a nice big prayer before I take the real NCLEX... no, not according to EMSON administration... get this, THEY ARE TELLING US THAT WE WILL STAY UP HERE FOR 2 WEEKS OF REMEDIATION AND THEN RETAKE THE (insert expletive) ATI! OK? no.

This brings me back to my initial thought... you can find me, on my couch, simply breaking to pee or eat, studying literally EVERYTHING I HAVE EVER LEARNED IN NURSING SCHOOL. No, not for the NCLEX but for the ATI. You are not welcome nursing school. I hate you. I hate you. I hate you. I am parting with such vices.

NOT HAPPY TO BE ON STUDY BEDREST! You can also feel free to bring me TCBY like the pregnant girl had brought to her.