My newfound freedom and such

Oh my! Where do I even begin??? This month has gone by extraordinarily fast, and even before I had a chance to realize, it's already July 14th!  

Well, it's been more than a month since we moved into our new house, and we are absolutely loving it.  Our conversations are replaced with lawn maintenance, DIY projects, and rain (because we like free water) instead of the night scenes we should hit up with friends.  Of course, we still go out and hang out with new friends and such, but most of the hang out locations are now at their houses instead of bars and restaurants.  (To be honest, Z and I have never ventured out to the bars that much even when we lived in this great city of Houston.) It's really funny how homeownership instantly makes you feel like a grown up, and thus your favorite TV channel becomes HGTV and DIY Network.  

Z has been super busy with work.  His first rotation is in the neurosurgery department and has already gone through numbers of heartbreaking news that were delivered to the families.  I am amazed to see how he is able to compartmentalize between work and personal life, but he does an amazing job not letting work emotions affect him.  Hence, I can't be a doctor.   

I, on the other hand, have been really enjoying the free time I got recently.  The first month of unemployment (mainly in June, since May was a little bit of crazy month of moving) was emotionally difficult for me - I did not like the fact that I was not financially contributing to our family; I felt useless; I looked lazy because I was in my PJ all the time.  My dad once told me that this unexpected break from work should be a welcoming gift for me because not many people get this opportunity of personal freedom at my age.  And then, my former boss said the same thing to me, while she was making a life-changing decision moving back from Texas to New Jersey.  Since then, my perspective has changed a little bit and decided to have a positive outlook from this situation.  My current freedom was providing the necessary support that my husband needs to transition into being a medical doctor, from preparing his homemade-lunch-to-go to keeping the house in order until we get our rhythm in life back.  It was a rare time for me to take care of myself, both mental and physical health.  I started taking Lilly out for a long walk every day, doing yoga in the afternoon, and catching up on leisure reading.  I talked to my best friends for the first time in months (and sometimes years) over Skype and phone.  I am exploring my cooking skills and expanding recipes...it's a hit or miss sometimes, but Z is a very supportive guinea pig.  This is all happening without a responsibility of raising a child; it's a freedom that I should have been thankful from the beginning.  I am certainly looking for a job, but I decided to take my time and find something that I will enjoy commuting every day.  I am sure that day will come sooner or later. 

A couple of weeks ago, I braved myself and decided to hang out with strangers.  I figured using Lilly was a perfect excuse! (LOL)  St. Louis has many excellent community events, and one of them, I found was the Yappy Hour.  It's a happy hour for dog owners held at the Boat House in Forest Park every first Wednesday of each month from May to October.  Pets have the beautiful nature to play around in and their owners can enjoy half-priced drinks and appetizers in the evening.  Z was still in the hospital working, so it was just me and Lilly (Z eventually joined us in the last 10 minutes of the event).  This was clearly a popular event!  We were entertained by friendly dog owners and hyper dogs.  I was, once again, convinced that Lilly likes people more than her own canine kinds.  But it's ok, I still got to talk to people like Tom, who had a gentle Great Dane at his buddy. 

St. Louis summer gets pretty hot, actually just as hot, as Houston, but we have had no problem dealing with it.  Even with Z's limited availability at home, we have been gradually exploring what St. Louis has to offer.  I hope to show you more things we are doing as we are adjusting to our new home!