Passion Not Paycheck

Top 5 Reasons Team Members Stay At A Practice
1- Not "Just A Job"
2- Recognition
3- Professional Growth
4- Work-Life Balance
5- Strong Supervisor

Anya and I had a very lazy week. I was able to get out to the Fairfax County shelter to help do some spays and neuters, picking up some new tricks and tips on the way. I enjoyed the extremely lazy weekend though by setting up my new Apple TV. If anyone has any app suggestions let me know!
For my January adventure, I was hoping to go snowboarding this past weekend, however work ran later than accepted on Friday night and I wasn't able to get enough sleep to go on Saturday morning. The snowboard trip was suppose to be my travel opportunity for the month. Sadly, I will have to settle for the new restaurants and new movie theater that I visited as this month's new location instead of travel location.

Songs For The Soul

I watched/listened to several musicals this past week. Wouldn't life would be so much more passionate if it were a musical and we all just sang how we felt?

For every phase of our lives, there's a song that speaks to us at that moment and it will speak to everyone differently and for different reasons. For every person that has come into my life there's a song to remind me of them. For every hardship I've endured, there's a song that got me through. Each memory has its own soundtrack. Every song has a feeling. There are songs that you can never listen to again because they are too painful ("I Won't Give Up" - Jason Mraz), songs that lift you up ("Titanium" - David Cuetta), songs that sound like they were written for you ("Wild Things" - Alessia Cara), songs that everyone knows ("Don't Stop Believin'" - Journey), songs that make you long for a certain location ("Happiest Man Alive" -Machel Montano), songs that make you want to dance ("Can't Hold Us" - Macklemore), and songs that you always sing at karaoke ("Black Velvet" - Alannah Myles).
A person's playlist says everything about them. Behind everyone's favorite song is a story, what's yours?

Fantastic Lyrics: 

"So hey, we brought our drum and this is how we dance....Then leave us alone, 'cause we don't need your policies, we have no apologies for being. Find me where the wild things are" -Alessia Cara "Wild Things"

"You can find me where the music meets the ocean" - Zac Brown Band "Jump Right In"

"Let me remind you this was what you wanted. You ended it. You were all I wanted but not like this, all you had to do was stay"  - Taylor Swift "Stay"

"I only wanna die alive, never be the hands of a broken heart"  -Ariana Grande "Break Free"

"Shoot me down but I won't fall, I am titanium" -David Guetta "Titanium"

"So wake me up when it's all over.  When I'm wiser and I'm older.  All this time I was finding myself and I didn't know I was lost" -Avicii "Wake Me Up"

"The rest of the world was black and white but we were in screaming color" -Taylor Swift "Out Of The Wood"

"Run away with me, lost souls and reverie. Running wild and running free....Living like we're renegades" -X Ambassadors "Renegades"

"See the line where the sky meets the sea, it calls me" - Moana "How Far I'll Go"

"I'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies; I'll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife" - Hozier "Take Me To Church"

Be Addicted To Bettering Yourself

Single Ladies Mantra 2018

Planning my trips this year! My goal is to go someplace new every month, whether it be international or local. I have about half of my year planned, but still need to decide where to go the other half. If my work schedule doesn't allow for travel, then I will at least go to a new restaurant/winery/hike. Stay tuned for where I'm going this month! Here's a hint...it's the complete opposite of where you would think I would go.

For the start of the new year, I started a 30 day workout/eating better challenge.  The challenge has all my meals already planned out and luckily everything is really tasty! There's even more new recipes that I can't wait to try.  Let's see how it goes! I've never been a fad diet person, because let's face it, I rather be happy than craving foods that I can't have. It's all about everything in moderation. However, whatever makes you feel like you best self is the best diet for you!

My little PSA for the month: My clinic is hiring doctors, so if you or anyone you know is interested, just send me a message and I can get the information out to you!

New Year Cold Front

Happy New Year.....here's to 15 degree weather all week......

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

I've been behind on writing this week with so much going on, maybe that will be one of my resolutions. On Christmas day, Anya and I hung out watching Christmas movies and cooking my Grandma JB's pasta sauce. We then both traveled home later in the week to celebrate Christmas with my immediate family. Then the same day I got back to VA, I had a friend come into town for a quick visit. And now it's the start of the new year!
Reflecting back over the past year, I've heard a lot of complaints about how 2017 was the worst year. Just wanted to remind you, that's in all in your attitude how terrible or wonderful your year went.  You don't need a new year in order to start over, although it doesn't hurt.  My year was full of a new job, a new apartment, a new car, and a new location. I traveled to Iceland, Denmark, and Turks and Caicos. I learned a lot about what I want and what I don't want, made new friends, and reconnected with old. Some of the resolutions I have set for myself are to get rid of negative energy (already saged my apartment), read one book a month, learn the guitar again, visit someplace new once a month, join a meetup group/be more social, get better about actively going to church (not just watching it), and the usual of eating better and working out more.  I hope you're able to leave the negative of 2017 behind and leap forward into 2018 with a new attitude and fresh new slate.  Do more of what you love and what makes you happy. Here's wishing you a new year ahead!

Movie Time

I was one of the winners of my work's Christmas dessert contest! Thank you to everyone who voted for my stuck santas! I had a lot of fun making them and I hope you enjoyed eating them!

40 Movies Every Woman Should See Before 40 

While finishing up preparations for the holidays, I indulged and caught up on some movies this week. I watched Thor, Coco, Mother!, The Glass Castle, Wonder, The Greatest Showman, as well as a few Hallmark movies. I also plan on going to see Pitch Perfect 3 at some point this weekend.
The Greatest Showman was exciting and lively - I've been listening to the soundtrack since I saw it. Musicals just always have a way of putting you in a good mood and of course making you want to break out in song and dance.
Mother! on the other hand was rich in symbolism and profound that it really made you take a step back and think about the meaning...... Let's be honest, it was incredibly dark and I had to research the symbolism involved. I will give you a hint though....Mother Nature.

Christmas Baking

My beautifully talented great friend painted me this incredible picture for Christmas. She modeled this after one of my dancing pictures and I adore everything about it! 

My work secret santa was so wonderful and thoughtful! When I went to open my gift (wrapped in Christmas palm tree wrapping paper) that was on the gift table, it said "Sorry this isn't your actual gift....look under the drink table for your real gift." Underneath the drink table was a large box with several other smaller boxes inside, with an elephant wine holder, elephant jewelry, and my favorite scented candle.  I love all of it, so whoever you were, thank you so much!

I also made these fun stuck santas!

I traveled home to visit my parents for their birthdays this weekend and the Christmas baking continued! I made my grandma's oatmeal raisin cookies and her Christmas cookies, chocolate covered peppermint pretzels, white chocolate covered pretzels, peppermint chocolate fudge, and chex mix.  There will even be more baking next week for Christmas, including peppermint cheesecake, strawberry cheesecake, butterscotch pudding, and broken glass cake! Yum!