One Year.

Sooooo. Anybody know what happened a year ago this week?

I'll give you a hint: It involves where we currently live and one of my eyeballs.

This time last year, we announced to our church and the world that Clay was accepted to the University of St. Andrews, we would be moving to Scotland in the fall, and then my eye decided to start eating itself from the inside.

Kate Ryan, the frisbee champ.

It doesn't feel like a year ago. I remember like it was yesterday. Got up, dropped Clay off at NOMA for work, went to CFA for my ever-hectic Saturday shift, and all my cute kitchen ladies insisted on calling me "ojo rojo" and telling me I had pinkeye. We spent the evening enjoying a lovely picnic in City Park, playing frisbee and croquet with the Solomons and the Ryan/Scott Conglomerate. All the while, my eye was getting redder and redder. Sunday, we told our church we were leaving, and I cried and hugged everyone. Monday, we went to see Jurassic Park in 3D, and that's when I could tell something was horribly wrong. I remember looking around the theater in the dark, telling Clay something was wrong with my eye.



I'm pretty sure he said something along the lines of, "Shut up, there are 3D dinosaurs on a giant movie screen."

So began the worst week. Tried to go to work and my boss kicked me out. How I even drove home in literal blinding pain was beyond me. Misdiagnosed by a walk-in clinic, spent $100 on useless medication, and tried to go back to work. All the while, my eye got redder and more painful, to the point where I couldn't sleep and my eye clamped shut. Went BACK to the doctor, who referred me to an ophthalmologist, and that's where it all began.

Uveitis week. You've all seen my progress. So how have we progressed in Scotland?

One year later, and it's been 3 months since my last flare up. My eye still has scar tissue in it, but you can really only notice a difference in really bright or really dark spaces. One eye expands and contracts based on the lighting. The other just... stays. My vision has greatly improved. If I look at things through my bad eye, eventually it focuses and becomes clear. Just takes time. I have worn contacts regularly for over a month with no issues, and I've been off all medication and eye drops for almost 2.



Looking back on the past year, it's easy to try to blame someone for my eye. Blame the walk-in clinic for misdiagnosing me, making me suffer through painful uveitis with no medication for 4 days, possibly creating irreversible damage to my eye. Blame the ophthalmologist for never taking the extra 5 minutes to listen to me talk about what my eye was doing and rushing me out without thoroughly thinking about the consequences of weaning me off eye drops so soon. Blame the rheumatologist for putting me on useless medication and giving me hope that my eye would go back to normal. Blame myself for stressing out, causing me to become sick and my antibodies to become low, making me susceptible to illness. Blame God for giving me a crazy HLA-B27 gene and not healing me like I asked all those times.

Honestly, it's just one of those things. I don't know why it happened, but I'm thankful that I'm not where I was a year ago. Thankful that, even despite all the hospital visits and prescriptions and medication and pain, we still made it to Scotland and God has taken care of us in every single step. There's no way, through all of the medical and financial obstacles that we faced in those last 4 months in the States, that we would have made it here. I've done the math, I've looked at our bank accounts like a mental patient, and there's NO WAY.

So I'm thankful. We could have said we made it to Scotland all on our own, but uveitis just made it that much more difficult to do it on our own. It's a fantastic miracle and a complete testament on how, despite illness or stress or impending doom, God takes care of his own.

But anywho. Scotland is nice and pretty today. Right now, it's near 60 degrees, mostly sunny, and it feels heavenly. I have the windows open and everything. Ummm, and the sun goes down at 8:00! For those of you who have been in our flat, you know our living room/kitchen has these ginormous windows, and lucky for us, the sun shines into one of them the entire time it's up. I'm pretty sure while I've been writing this, I've gotten a sweet face sunburn from all the sun. Completely different from the weather 4 months ago. There are daffodils blooming everywhere and bunnies are hopping around in our front yard. The birds and seagulls are almost deafening during the day, and the lower humidity just makes it perfect.

I picked these from the front yard!

Bunnies! and more daffodils!

But I've found over the last few weeks that there are very specific things that I miss from America. I miss hole-in-the-wall barbecue restaurants with my grandparents and cookouts with friends. I miss Braves games and the sound of crickets and cicadas. I miss going to the beach with my sister and being sunkissed and warm. I miss people-watching in the French Quarter. I miss Target. I miss Community Coffee and Chick-fil-A. I miss driving and I miss shopping and being able to go wherever and get whatever I needed within an hour because I could just drive there, shop around, and drive whatever back to my house. Such is life, huh?

But Scotland is nice. I'm happy here. I'll leave you with some pictures to prove it.

double rainbow on south street!

got these from my mom today! Foxy sweater and matching socks :)

Carm

Spring!

You know how moms are really good at encouraging you to do something without telling you "you better do this or else you're in big, big trouble?"

Peny Turner told me it was time for a blog post.

It's been nearly three months since I've updated everyone on my life. It's been busy but not much has really happened.

January was dark and quiet in St. Andrews. Students were at home for winter holiday and the sun was coming up at 8:40 and going down at 3:55. This has taken some getting used to. Many people here told me to prepare myself for the depression that would come with all the dark after Christmas. Honestly, I think it's because they never left the house. Luckily for me, I had a job that actually got me out and doing stuff instead of sitting at home in the dark. Don't get me wrong, the fact that the sun came up TWO AND A HALF HOURS after I woke up and was down two hours BEFORE I went home was pretty sad, and what little sunlight you DID have was covered by cloud or rain or rainy cloud, but it didn't last long.

January was also a slower month at Mitchell's, which meant there were many nights where it was just me on the front of the house. For those of you who have worked in a restaurant, you understand the stress of not knowing if you're going to be busy and trying to handle everything from the bar to the deli to table service on your own. It was doable, just character-building, I guess.

The week before my birthday, Clayton and I took some holiday time and went to Glasgow to explore. We went to the University, the Kelvingrove Art Gallery, the Necropolis, and some old cathedrals that made me feel like I was living out the real-life version of the Sword in the Stone or Harry Potter. It was fun to get out of St. Andrews and go somewhere we've never been.

About to walk around on the Necropolis

inside the cathedral

this is Dumbledore's office, just to give you some perspective.

inside the main room of the Kevingrove - these faces!

February was busier, at work and in life in general. On my days off, Clayton and I started exploring around
the city of St. Andrews and making a point to walk somewhere we'd never been. We walked the entirety of the Lade Braes (until it had us traipsing through the woods and eventually into someone's field on the outskirts of town). We walked down the entire 2 miles of West Sands beach, crunching on seashells and watching people wind surf with skateboards? We walked outside of town until we saw Highland Cows and down part the Fife Coastal Path .

Trying to touch a critter. These sheep were not having it.

Did anyone else know how GINORMOUS Highland Cows were?!

Now it's March. The days are longer (sun up at 6:20 and down at 6:20!) and the sun has been out sooooooo much more. You don't realize how much the sun makes a difference in the weather until you've experienced windy Scotland at 50 degrees in the rain, the cloud, and the sun. Seriously, 50 degrees in the sun is like flip-flops and shorts weather here. I never thought I would say that, especially thinking about how cold I was the morning of Mardi Gras last year and it was 58 degrees.

But our trip down the Fife Coastal Path was nice. We went Sunday after church, and lucky for us, it wasn't too windy and was sunny and warm(er than usual). We walked/hiked for about 5 hours, past the Fairmont and St. Andrews Bay Golf Course, and got to see some crazy things. Giant pieces of the rocky coast out in the water, random black cows on the path (who would NOT let me touch them!), and a very old WW2-looking bunker that we were brave enough to crawl into and walk around in it! We made some plans for eventual camping when it gets a little warmer. Should be fun!

climbing around with his walking stick

this was right about the time my foot sank down into the mud

inside the WW2 bunker!

this is where we turned around and started back!

cow selfie. I had to moo at her to get her looking at the camera. Also note how high up we were. The cows climbed up there!

and then this happened. Do you see it?

he climbed up on the rock! WITH HIS WALKING STICK?!

We're also waiting for news on PhD. For those of you who don't already know, Clayton and I came here with the understanding that the 1-year degree he is getting now (MLitt) would help him prepare for eventual PhD work. However, he still has yet to be accepted into the program. His would-have-been supervisor is on research leave and can't take on any more PhD students at the time. This is all unofficial information heard through the grapevine, and nothing is definite. We haven't heard a no, but we haven't heard a yes. It's a scary place to be, especially considering the whole reason we came here is for PhD and we dropped everything and spent everything to get here. I am praying for a quick decision, and then some amazing scholarship to fund us while we're here (yes, I believe we're staying).

All that being said, I am continuing to look forward to our time here, especially when the sun comes up at 4:30am in May and all of the cheap traveling we have yet to do. Did you know we can fly to Dublin for £9.99? That's cheaper than a train ticket to anywhere. Should have some more adventures to blog about soon.

the lovely sunny view from the window right now!

I'll leave you with a funny story. I don't know about you, but I'm incredibly cheap and I hate change. When we first moved from Crutcher #2 (AKA Burnt Bathroom Apartment) into Crutcher #4 (AKA Exactly Crutcher #2 But With Minor Annoying Differences), our toilet paper holder almost immediately came out of the drywall in the bathroom. Like, literally, ripped a hole in the wall and we had nowhere to put toilet paper. We decided to try to glue it all back together one night, and the only adhesive we had in the house was Gorilla Glue for some reason. Long story short, the Gorilla Glue only held in half of the toilet roll holder and the other half continued to rip out more drywall, making it completely pointless. So, the Gorilla Glue stayed in the bathroom for the next 2 years. One day, I was brushing my hair with my probably 10 year old hairbrush (remember how I said I was cheap and hated change?) when it completely ripped in the middle. The actual brush popped out of the stem. Time for a new hairbrush, right? WRONG. I conveniently had an effective adhesive within 12 inches of my broken brush! So I Gorilla Glued it. Now, for those of you who don't know, Gorilla Glue is the color of honey and expands a ton when it dries. So, the next morning, I woke up to find honey-colored glue puffs all around my hairbrush. So, I peeled off those puffs, and ladies and gentlemen, I am proud to say that I still use that brush. Why buy a new one when you can Gorilla Glue the one you love?

we've been through so much, little brush.

Carm

Tis the Season

Last you heard, my parents were in town. Boy, did we have a good time.



We spent most of Christmas Eve wandering around St. Andrews, enjoying 40 mph winds but plenty of sun. We wandered all over, to the cathedral ruins, through St. Salvator's Quad, and then to the Old Course. Since nobody was out playing, and it was Christmas, we just walked right out onto it, to the little old bridge that Dad has been dreaming about walking on for years. Got some good pictures, and then had some fish and chips at the Tail End.



Christmas day, we went to church first thing before I had to run to work. Yes, Mitchell's was open for Christmas. Finished around 6 and made it home in time for Christmas dinner with the family. They apparently had been watching Star Trek all day. Lucky. 

Boxing Day, we decided to trek into Edinburgh to wander around... on one of the busiest shopping days of the year! We got some good deals and explored the town for a few hours before coming back.





Spent the last few days of their visit working. Such is the life of an adult, am I right? They had fun exploring on their own and we had dinners together. We went to church together Sunday and then sent them on their way. We had such a great time!

Now, we're back in the swing of things. Clayton is back in the Baillie room working on his PhD proposal and I'm working working working. January always makes me look back at the year and wonder if we even had a clue where we'd be today when it started.

January: Rang in the New Year with the Solomons and the Ryan/Scott Conglomerate, watching people light things on fire and push them across Bayou St. John. Went to Atlanta to spend time with family and friends, touring Turner field and seeing Sam and Danny's new grownup house. I turned 26.

February: MARDI GRAS. Did anyone else see the Bellatrix/Voldemort thing we had going on? It was beyond amazing. So good that strangers followed us around.

March: Went to the NOLA taping of America's Got Talent, and Clayton is definitely in the background of some of the shots with the judges. Got my hair cut even shorter thanks to Elise and Keeva. Went to Art in Bloom at NOMA and Kate got into Pratt. Started playing Mexican Train just about every week. Had a crawfish boil.

heidi klum!

pratt! pratt! pratt!

April: Uveitis. It hit in full force and I spent the next 4 months rotating between the ophthalmologist and rheumatologist, only for them not to find out what was wrong with me. Told our church (and everyone else) that we were moving to St. Andrews, Scotland for Clayton to work toward a PhD. Moved in with John and Lauren for the summer to save money (and wouldn't have been able to make it here without them).

one of many afternoons spent at Dr. Fitsmorris' office.

May: Said goodbye to The Lord's Church. One last hoorah with the Solomons and the Ryan/Scott Conglomerate in Pensacola. So so so much fun. Celebrated our 3rd anniversary. Had lots and lots of bloodwork done and watched my face blow up because of steroids and our savings go to doctor bills. Still had uveitis.

brunch!

creeper.

Matt totally makes this picture amazing!

3rd anniversary date!

June: Moved Trev and Kate far far away. Got some new glasses. Pigged out on random things late at night because Lauren couldn't sleep and was pregnant. Had Indian food for the first time. Started freaking out because of the lack of planning for our eventual move across the world.

July: Celebrated the 4th. My last CFA Appreciation Day. Cried hysterically just about every day because we were moving. Quit CFA and cried and cried and cried some more. Went to Kentucky for Jolynne's wedding. Came back, cried some more, and moved. Spent some time with my family in PCB and saw Emily in Graceville for the first time since graduation.

my kitchen ladies!

managers unite!

August: Spent some time in Atlanta with family and friends. Had a sweet going away party at the Ritchie's. Went to TWO Braves games. Started making plans for what eventually would get us our flat. Said goodbye to everybody, and I mean, EVERYBODY. Went to the airport, not knowing if we were getting on the flight, and got business class. Landed in Manchester without a place to stay, without transportation, without phones or GPS and just let things happen. Eventually made it to St. Andrews and stayed with Philip for 10 days. Moved in with Alex after that. Made a bunch of friends in the meantime.

atlanta airport!

September: Still no place of our own. Flat won't be ready until October. Spent most of this month being rejected for job after job after job. Watched the entire series of That 70s Show, the UK Being Human, and the first two seasons of New Girl, so that's something, I guess.

October: Moved in to our flat, even though it didn't have beds yet. Got internet and utilities set up. Watched our savings get dangerously low. Begin no-job-freakout mode. Watched the leaves change colors. Had an interview for a job with the University that was going to be perfect. Ended up not getting it. Spent a large portion of this month sitting at home watching Friends and becoming best friends with the contractors working on our flat. They were very Scottish and I had a hard time understanding them.

November: Got a job right at the last possible second before all of our money was going to be gone. Got to see my sister and Amanda and celebrate Melody's 30th birthday.

December: Got to experience our first snow, and went to Edinburgh for the first time. Watched Elf and ate Christmas pudding. Spent time with my parents and rang in the new year at work with kisses from Scottish men in kilts.

All in all, I'd say 2013 was pretty good. I'm currently sitting in the living room, watching it rain (again) and looking at the hills in the distance, thinking about all that it took for us to get here. God took care of a lot of the details and though it hasn't been ideal, we've been ok. Here's hoping 2014 is just as good (minus the uveitis).

Carm

Employment and Thanksgiving

As we near closer to Christmas, I have realized that I haven't posted on here in over a month. Things have been busy, guys.

Last you heard, I got a job. I'm the Assistant Manager at Mitchell's on Market Street, and it's been challenging, exhausting, and fun. I am looking forward to learning more things and helping to alleviate some of the responsibilities of our general manager who is working a million hours and never gets time off.

Thanksgiving was great! My sister Melody and my almost-sister Amanda came to visit for a few days. Though I didn't get to spend too much time with them because of work, I think they had a great time.

We WERE able to have all of Thanksgiving Day together, so we skyped with our parents and we fixed up an amazing meal: turkey, cranberry chutney, stuffing, caramelized green beans, rolls, and pumpkin cookies. It was aaaaaaahmazing.

Melody in a phone booth by our place.

I always love having family around. If there's one thing you should know about my family, both my mom's side and dad's side, is that we're content just spending time together. We don't have to do anything or go anywhere, as long as we're together. I love it.

napping with her birthday present.

Mandy and the invisible piano-playing lion. 

Although, if you do anything with Melody, it's going to see movies. We saw the new Hunger Games as well (she saw it twice here). The girl loves movies.

The next week, we had a surprise blizzard. I call it a blizzard because the crazy wind was blowing the snow around so violently that everything was white. It started out very calmly and slowly. Clay and I started to freak out and take a billion pictures, texting them to family, and giggling uncontrollably. Then, about an hour later, it was snowing so hard it was blowing against the window. For someone who's spent most of her life in the South, any snow that sticks is reason to be giddy.

It was barely snowing here and we were positively freaking out. 

The progression of snow. I even leaned out the window into it and got snow all over me. This is huge, people.

The next day, we got up early to catch the train to Edinburgh with David, Jared, and Becky... our first trip outside of the St. Andrews since we moved here. We explored probably a tiny percentage of the city but we were there about 12 hours.

outside the castle

We even hiked up this giant mountain, which was a huge, beautiful mistake (still waiting on those pictures, David). Can't wait to explore the city again when my parents are in town.

I was laughing so hard at this point 1) because the boys were hiking up the steep part of the mountain and 2) because Jared was high-stepping the whole way!

the lovely view

on the way back down.

Other than that, I've been working my tail off at Mitchell's and Clay has been reading and writing and reading and reading some more. My parents made it into town today and we are going to spend some time together for Christmas. Dad finally gets to see the birthplace of golf! I am so excited for him.

I'll leave you with a funny picture:

i found an almond under the cushion of the couch and Clay was threatening to eat it.

  Carm