Thunderstorms and peaceful afternoons

So, after all the craziness of my LSAT and Sean's surgery is dying down a bit I wanted to just touch base with everyone and reconnect with the blog. 

So, as far as Im concerned right now I'm in the waiting game concerning my score. It should be in by the end of the month. I was initially really anxiety ridden and a little overwhelmed after the test. I haven't busted my bum like that since the Junior project! As far as the schools I am shooting for the LSAT score is equally weighted with my undergrad GPA. Its a primary factor in determining my eligibility and most importantly my scholarship potential. I'm not sure how Ryan's experience was with LSAT, but I'm sure it was a relief for him to be finished up too. 

It was pretty amusing watching the other testers that day- i of course was seated next to the "Rain Man" of test takers. He couldn't remember to tie his shoe but flew through that exam like a bird. Im hoping he nailed it-  and anyway, lawyers rely on paralegals for more basic skills than tying their shoes ;-) 

Sean is doing really well. It was quite the surgery. He had three moderate size incisions that will heal nicely. I think one could give him a nice background story for a pretty thug-life-esque gunshot story.

He is also in the midst of his heavy course work in his master's program so Im hoping he can get plenty of rest and be back to normal soon. It seems tough to do financial accounting with vicadin fog. But thank you so much for the prayers- he did really well! 

This week our little Eamon turns 3! I can hardly believe it! He will be in preschool this fall- things really do move fast. 

Well, except the LSAT scores, but hey, I can wait a while in "toddler time" with my soon to be 3 year old... 

Three Dates

If we could ask for your prayers for three dates this month:

Monday, June 3. I (Sean) have a meeting with the Wisconsin not-for-profit service leader at Grant Thornton (5th largest accounting firm by revenue). Being a non-traditional accounting student, I've been sorta concerned about breaking into the recruiting pipeline to actually wrangle a job out of doubling-down on this grad school gambit. I could use your prayers that I make a good impression and maybe leave a step closer to actually working in accounting.

Monday, June 10. Lucie sits the LSAT. She must check-in no later than 12 pm, and the test begins at 1 pm. She has been studying intensively for it since the start of the year, and her recent practice tests have been showing very promising results. Law schools weigh this one score about equal with four years of class work. She could use your prayers that she hits an all-time high on test day. 

Wednesday, June 12. I am having my gallbladder removed. Turns out, I've got a stone the size of a raspberry (or an 8-week-along baby) that exhibits what the surgeon called "positive Murphy signs." They're gonna puff my belly full of air, slice the gallbladder out, and close me up. I go in at 5 am, should be home by lunch and recovered within a month. I'd just appreciate a prayer that no complications occur.

Thanks everyone.

Guilty Pleasures

Lucie's a week away from LSAT, so I'll be guest blogging this one.

I'm not sure if this really counts as a guilty pleasure because, well, we're really quite unabashed about it. We cannot get enough Gordon Ramsay. Maybe it's because we both worked in food service (and masochistically enjoyed it). Maybe it's because, for a very brief stint, we were planning on starting a brew pub. Maybe it's because we're both spastic Type-A types who enjoy watching slackers and the incompetent get reamed.

Stock footage.

We've power-watched an entire season of Hell's Kitchen just to recover before. We've also watched both versions (U.S. and U.K.) of Kitchen Nightmares. We watch MasterChef on a weekly basis. Fortunately, the man is so shamelessly prolific that he has multiple shows airing at any part of the year. Oh no, the season finale of Kitchen Nightmares was the other week? MasterChef starts. Hell's Kitchen winds to a close? Hotel Hell. And on the off chance there's no new Ramsay-hosted show to watch? We get hangry.

Similar sorta feeling as when Colbert gives himself a week off for Memorial Day.

And we get hangry because it forces us to accept that another day has started and we need to return to our productive, hyperachieving lives.

Also: Shaun T.

In Medias Res

I wanted to write something up about what we're all up to. This already has been an absurdly packed year, so I suppose it's fitting that I should summarize with a Christmas letter in late-May. Let's begin.

Lucie is currently pulling her hair out. Not really, it's grown out most of the way from when she cut it real short last summer, but as she's entering mole-person territory as the LSAT approaches it's fair to say it's only from monumental self control that she doesn't look like that lady from Shutter Island.

Yeah, remember this lady? Creepiest part of the whole movie.

Oh, yeah. Did we mention that Lucie's preparing to apply to law school? We may have forgotten that. Let's see, last year she started a post-baccalaureate program in paralegalism. After wading through the grime and the muck of the law -- what else would you call transcribing dictation and drafting traffic complaints -- and still wanting more, Lucie decided on going to law school. So in the midst of an internship at the district attorney's office, getting a 4.0 in her second semester of the program and everything else involved in the day-to-day, she's been completing an arduous self-study program for the LSAT. She's sitting it on June 10th, and may be hard to come by until then.

Sean, myself, also finished this latest semester with a 4.0. Big surprise, huh, glasses couple is busy wearing glasses. So, I should back up a little. I spent last year working as a Field Agent for the Knights of Columbus, selling life insurance and a few other things, and that was alright. But, although I had decided against diving further in academia, the salesman lifestyle wasn't quite what I had in mind either. So, I started a MS in Accounting program through Texas A&M University Commerce. Can't remember where, but while I was freelance writing I heard it repeated that "accounting is the language of business." Makes sense to me, and the deeper into my program I get the more sense it makes. 
Since February or so, I returned to freelance writing. I got to stay at home with the kids and also have time to keep up with my classes. Over the next seven months I'll be taking 27 credits, which should put me on track to graduate and start working in public accounting by the time Lucie starts law school. So from time to time I may look like Charlie from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

Should I link this up as my selfie?

Anyway, that's more or less what Lucie and I are up to. Lucie's also still teaching Irish step for her school, and I started brewing beer. The kids will have to be the subject of another post because I spent way too much time finding screenshots for this post.

Mother's day!

Im just posting to say how happy and grateful i am for my two beautiful healthy children. I feel so blessed today.

Green!

Here are some snaps of my favorite color... I have always loved it. Im the only "green eyed" in my family and i always liked that :-)
I always wait for the first bright green leaf buds each spring... Finally they are here!

Tildy and her "pony"

This is Matilda Margaret and her purple zebra.
She has the sweetest, most knowing little face sometimes.