It’s been a while since I’ve had a chance to write.  I’ve been insanely busy with school, selecting my fourth year rotation sites and preparing for finals.  But all of that is over now and I can finally truly enjoy the holiday season!   I can’t wait for all of the food, family and fun, but I have lots to do before then!  I haven’t even had a chance to begin Christmas shopping, so I have a lot of catching up to do!  One of my favorite parts of the holiday season, second only to spending time with my amazing family and friends is the FOOD!  But this holiday, I’m going to have to be a little inventive.  I recently made the decision to become a vegan--I don’t consume any food prepared with animal products--No meat, no eggs, and no cow’s milk containing dairy.  I decided to make the change about six months ago, and am very happy with my decision.  Since then, I’ve tried lots of new foods and products including soy, almond, coconut, and rice...

This time of the year always makes me think about all of the blessings I’ve received in my life.   I have an amazingly supportive family who has guided and shaped me into the person that I am.   I have a wonderful circle of friends who mean the world to me and have helped me survive some of the most stressful times in my life.   I married the love of my life and each day that I spend as Mrs. Newman is just as exciting and wonderful as all the ones before it.   I’ve been blessed to have found a wonderful career that I love and I’m so excited to be finished with school in a year and a half.   I hate to admit that there are times when I forget how much I have.   I focus too much on trying to get things that I want rather than appreciating all the things I already have.   But each year as the holidays roll around, I’m reminded of the many blessings I’ve received and can appreciate and be thankful for each of them. I’m especially thankful for the amazin...

I love reading blogs and have always wanted one of my own... so today I decided to start one.  I'm not sure how good I'm going to be at this, but I thought I'd give it a shot. This year has been a big year for me, and I can't believe it's almost over.  On March 13th of this year, I married my best friend and the love of my life.  On that day I became Mrs. Newman and it was the best day of my life!  I can't imagine spending my life with anyone else and I have been so blessed to find a man as wonderful as Kyle.  I've never been so sure about anything in my life, and I know that no one could ever make me as happy as he has.  I can't wait to see what the future holds for us! We honeymooned in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina and the week that we spent there was amazing.  Kyle proposed in Hilton Head while we were vacationing with his family in the summer of 2008, so we decided that it was only appropriate to spend our honeymoon there as well.  I...