Save the date because my thesis is cruisin'

Today I've been motivated to write another post. Turns out some people actually do read my blog! You brave, brave souls. Give yourselves a pat on the back and read on!


Wedding updates:
We finally got the save the dates sent out! It was only a month later than I wanted to, but hey, at least they're done. I was amazed how much we spent on postage! And to think we get to do it all again when we send out the official invitations. Thanks to David's Bridal (so much nice swag came with the dress!) we're also getting a free photo book (which I will be using as our guestbook), so I need to complete that this weekend. I have had lots of wedding chats with my mom this week, mostly pertaining to showers and flowers. Ha! I rhymed. She is coming into town tomorrow (yay!) for my dress bead check and first fitting. Plus Haley will get to pick up her totally adorable bridesmaid's dress! We're also going to look at some florists and head up to Round Rock so that she can "visualize" (as she puts it) the ballroom where we're getting married. 
136 days!


School updates:
Only 8 weeks until graduation! My thesis has survived its first round of final edits. I had to make a few small changes and am now waiting for any further edits my committee provides. D-day is of course April 9, and I just found out yesterday that I will be defending on April 13 (Friday the 13th, that is!). I was accepted into the PhD program. While I was happy, I didn't feel the same way as I did when I got into the Master's program. This worried me some. After talking with Jason and some trusted faculty here, I think I'm leaning toward working for awhile. I have not completed ruled out doing my PhD, but it doesn't seem like the best option for me right now. I have shifted my efforts into finding a job. Not so easy, but my resume is out there. I'm worried I may end up unemployed and no longer a student. Yikes! What exactly is a master's degree worth?


Life updates:
Last week was our cruise and I can't possibly express how much we enjoyed it. It was so nice to be away from everything for a week (including our phones!). As much as I needed a break, Jason really did. Work has been a little bit rough for him lately. His department keeps shrinking and instead of hiring new people (in fact, they're downsizing) they just keep giving Jason more work to do. Anyway, here's a summary of what we did during our amazing vacation:
Prior to being in port, we spent 2 full days on the ocean and another full day after our ports. We spent a lot of time relaxing those days and exploring the beautiful Carnival Magic. It was still a bit chilly the first two days so we avoided swimming, but there were plenty of things to do on the ship. On the last day we did swim some at the pool and used the waterslides since it was still warm. I liked getting dressed up for dinner each evening and also seeing Jason all spiffy since he's usually a jeans and t-shirt kinda guy. Of the 5 cruises I've now gone on, this was the rockiest in terms of water quality. I'm talking looking-drunk-walking-down-the-hall kind of water. Thankfully neither of us got sick at all. Our dinner company was good too. We sat with three other couples, but only really got to know one, the Gerould's. They were an older couple from Katy. Awesome and hilarious. Each night we made sure we caught the shows they put on. Some were good and some not so much. We got our picture taken every 5 seconds. If you've ever been on a cruise you know what I mean.
Jamaica: When we got off the ship, it was cloudy and drizzling. We met up with our scheduled tour and got onto a small bus. The drive to the plantation took about 1.5 hours, but it was really cool to see the two sides of Jamaica. On one hand, we saw the "Americanized" Montego Bay area which had shopping malls, KFC and Wendy's, but we also got to see the rural mountain areas. Very different. Our bus driver made sure to point out all of the beautiful plants and explain things that we saw while driving. The road was extremely narrow and people in Jamaica drive crazy (and on the wrong side of the road!). We made it to the plantation in one piece and started our tour. Winston was our tour guide and he was fantastic and knowledgeable. We got to see all kinds of fruit and coffee plants, and also got samples of pineapple, coconut, grapefruit and new things like jakfruit. They also make this juice there from pineapple skin and honey that is AMAZING. I really wish they had sold it at the gift shop because I guarantee I would have bought some. Jason sampled "the best coffee on earth", called Blue Mountain. After the tour we were served a traditional Jamaican lunch of jerk chicken, "rice and peas" (which is actually what we call red beans and rice), sweet cucumbers and collard greens (which they have another name for that I can't recall). After another terrifying hour and a half ride back and witnessing a police raid of a school, we briefly stopped to do some shopping before heading back to the ship.
Grand Cayman: We were really excited about the snuba excursion that we had booked in Grand Cayman. Neither of us had ever snuba'd and the water in the Caymans is unlike anyplace else on earth. Sadly, when we got up that morning we were informed that the tour had been cancelled due to rocky waters. We we permitted to change to a snorkeling expedition that went to the Great Barrier Reef. It was a very fun and the weather was very cooperative. We ended up getting about an hour in the water and got some fantastic pictures (see Facebook). I wish we had seen more though; we only saw a few fish and a small portion of the reef. Still, overall the excursion was successful and awesome. After we got back near the port, we did a good deal of shopping. I looked at some really pretty wedding bands in their countless jewelry stores, but they were all a bit out of our price range. Thankfully I only got a little bit pink. When we got back on the ship we were able to nap (thankfully!) before dinner. 
Cozumel- the weather was totally gorgeous. We got off the boat and met up with our tour guide. We were taken to a catamaran which took us out to Isla Pasion (Passion Island) off the north coast of Cozumel. We spent the afternoon on the beach swimming (in the freezing water!) and catching some rays. Lunch (chicken, rice, bread, chips and salsa) and drinks(mostly rum punch for me!) were included which was nice. The water was gorgeous but was a little churned up where we were swimming. I got a little more than pink that day. We did a small amount of shopping after we got back to Cozumel before we got back on the ship. 


Overall, we had a wonderful time. It was hard coming back to reality this week. If you've never been cruising before, I highly recommend it. We're already talking about going on another one for our 1 year anniversary. 


That's probably enough for now! Until next time,


-Whitney