Breaks are Good

With just three weeks of school left at the end of last week, I was itching for some down time, some time when I don't have to worry about anything. Oh, how good the Lord is, because He found it for me. For the Easter weekend, we were given both Friday of last week, and Monday of this week off. Natalie and I decided the most relaxing thing to do would be to STAY PUT! That is just what we did. Ryan went home to Canton for the weekend, and I didn't pack, or drive, or sleep in a different bed. It was wonderful!
Better yet, I cleaned, shopped, and colored Easter eggs! That literally sums up my weekend...aside from eating.

That may be funny, but in all honesty, eating was one highlight from the weekend. Being so close to Pittsburgh, we are able to go up there for an evening and have a good meal, enjoy some salsa dancing, or get in some good shopping. On Friday though, Natalie, her roommate Alisha, and I experienced two of the three. We left relatively early in the day to get up to Oakland by noon. We happened to know a great little Indian food restaurant, called India Garden, so we stopped in to have their lunch buffet. OH GLORIOUS TASTES IN MY MOUTH!!! Natalie introduced me to Indian food early this school year, and it is probably my favorite ethnic food. After our bellies were full, we headed to the Southside Works, and along East Carson street for some shopping. I was able to purchase some unique beads for the jewelry that I am giving to my bridesmaids at a place called the Bead Mine. They had a ton of beads, but zero customer service...at least it is taken care of. Natalie and I shopped and loved it all! There are some really great stores at Southside Works, including White House Black Market, Urban Outfitters, Puma, and many more. Nat was able to find some really great clothes for her interview that is coming up next week, and I found a graduation dress (most of which was on sale). To finish off the day right, we went food shopping at a small Korean grocery in Squirrel Hill (gotta love the Garlic Chili Sauce) and ate dinner back in Oakland at Korea Garden...It was a day of gardens. In the photo above, Alisha is serving us from the seafood dish that cooked right on our table. Oh the joys of ethnic food!

The rest of the weekend was fun...time spent with family...dying Easter eggs as a 21-year-old...

My Aunt and Uncle shared their home with four college students on Saturday evening for dinner, dessert, and egg coloring. I have to say, it was a blast! We had both hard boiled and blown eggs to color. The one I have in my hand is a blown egg, which I turned into a 'chick,' only it looked like a kindergartner did it because I gave it a big U-shaped mouth below its beak...anyone over the age of 10 knows that the beak IS its mouth...I thought of that right after I drew on the extra mouth. With the egg-ception of my mutant chickie, Easter was wonderful. We were able to break bread with several friends and family from Waynesburg, and I didn't think of work all weekend long.

One paper to go and I am in the clear!
Godspeed...