Selfie time. Please excuse the dirty hair, I've been cooped up in the house all week s-t-u-d-y-i-n-g like mad. The semester is almost over! just a few more weeks. I've been spending a lot of time studying in my bed, the weather has suddenly turned cold! It's finally starting to feel a little bit like fall.

Another reason it feels like fall? this pumpkin in our living room. no one carved it-- it was too hot, and all we saw were rotting pumpkins all week-- and now no one has the heart to toss it out. I love this little guy.

I drove to Baton Rouge with my friend Sydney just to go to the brand-new TJ's that opened last week. Did it take an hour and a half each way? Yes. Are we crazy? Yes, obviously. But it sure feels worth it when I can drink my Joe's coffee in the morning with my vanilla granola. When I squinted my eyes at the store I almost felt like I was in Hollywood (OR). Needless to say, we stocked up.

date night! We went mini-golfing with another couple (one of Mikes' co-workers and his girlfriend) at the new course at City Park. Lots of fun over the course of 18 holes. Each hole is themed with a New Orleans street, so there are lots of plaques to read and facts to learn. Love those facts.

Mike and I have been working pretty different schedules, but we often have mornings off. It's been nice to spend that time together!

With my friend Ashley at Krewe de Boo, the Halloween parade that rolled through the French Quarter.  Halloween is a huge deal down here-- New Orleanians love any excuse to dress up, decorate their houses, and party in the streets.

EDGAR ALLAN PO' BOY? I MEAN! God I love Halloween.

 Something new I've been doing this fall: boxing. Unfortunately, the gym is pretty far away so I'm only making it (with roommates in tow) about once a week. I love it.

Another great paddleboarding experience! Coldest and windiest (ie: toughest) day so far. Still great, as always. I arranged this time: three girls from lululemon (including one with bunny ears, in honor of Halloween week), my roomie Sarah and friend Tracy (who is pregnant with a baby boy! i am thrilled for her!). Not pictured: the donuts we enjoyed just before paddling out. I had a Vietnamese Coffee Donut from a new hipster coffee shop just down the street, and it was magical.

Downer news now: my runner's knees are not getting better. Still constantly sore and making weird cracking noises (and have been since August). My doctor thinks it's cartilage damage, and I'm going in for x-rays in a few days to confirm this. Hopefully it is indeed the cartilage, so I can go to physical therapy and then start running again. I really, really miss running. And I'm really tired of having sore knees all the time. Fingers are crossed it's found to be fixable.

I just love this guy. He is so supportive of me in everything that i do. Here he is in his favorite shirt.

Kaitlin is visiting from Portland this week, and we've been busy busy busy! She's in town through Tuesday-- that's a 9-day trip-- so we've had lots of time to sightsee, work out and relax together. She happened to come during fall break (Thursday & Friday of this past week) so it's worked out perfectly. I've been so happy to take some time away from work & school and do some exploring! We've done a lot of the mandatory tourist stuff: French Quarter tour, plantation tour, Audubon and City Park, and, of course, lots and lots of eating. I've also been taking Kaitlin to spin classes, yoga & my favorite coffee shops. She's been a great houseguest, and we're happy just soaking up the sun & reading too.

We went to see a brass band, the Brass-a-holics, play a few nights ago. They put on a great show. (Also: please notice that for the first time in my life, I am the Tall Friend. These girls are so tiny that I'm actually bending down here)

Paddleboarding on Lake Pontchartrain! I feel like an old hand at paddleboarding at this point-- but paddling on the Lake was much harder than paddling on the Bayou! Here we are at the harbor:

We also went pedal boating at City Park! This one's been on my NOLA bucket list for a long time.

 And here we are at Audubon Park! It's been absolutely perfect weather this week, 75 degrees & breezy with no humidity.

And at the Plantation! It's fun to be in these pictures, because I'm usually the one one taking them :)

That's it for now! We're going to the Seafood Festival later today to hear some good music & get some more good stuff to eat!

I went to my first Youth Run NOLA event a few weeks ago! It was AMAZING to see the coaches, volunteers and kids that I worked with, for, and heard about all summer long. The event was the Tipitina's Foundation 5K, and it benefitted the Foundation, which in turn supports marching bands in New Orleans. Because of that, we had marching bands all along the route, cheering us along the way. We started at the Rouse's Market / Tipitina's Uptown, ran back down Tchopitoulous (basically back to my house), and then turned around and ended at Tipitina's. It was an evening race, so it was HOT HOT HOT.

The kids did great, I ran for the first time in almost 2 months and iced my knees for the next three days.

I was included in the most recent Tulane School of Public Health & Tropical Medicine newsletter! It's all about my work with Youth Run NOLA this past summer. Check me out:

http://prc.tulane.edu/news/detail/54813/Youth-empowerment-group-focuses-on-evaluation-with-Tulane-grad-students-help

We've been up to lots of fun stuff at lululemon lately. Here's the whole team after a tough circuit workout that we did in this crazy garage gym in the LGD. Yes, it included hitting those giant tires with those huge hammers. I really love this crew of jocks! Never thought I would say that in my life. I'm a little hard to spot, I'm in the back :)

We were all ready for Hurricane Karen last weekend-- bought lots of bottled water & food, filled the car with gas, etc. The whole city was on high alert, with some areas evacuated. But luckily she was downgraded to a tropical storm, and then ended up dissipating before she did any damage. We just got a little sprinkling of rain after all that. Weathering the storm!

Girls on the Run is back again! I'm coaching at the International School once again, for some of the same girls as last season. They're so sweet-- and wild too! :)

i've been helping out with a yoga in schools program! the program director is someone i know because she's a lululemon ambassador and also teaches yoga at my favorite local studio. i'm using her program for my monitoring & evaluation project for one of my classes, so basically doing a miniature version of what i did this summer for Youth Run.

all fall sports are fully in season! this is the view i have of Mike most of the time. it's also the only hint we have that it's fall. it's still 90+ degrees every day, and too hot to hang out outside.

had a yoga class with my coworkers at the New Orleans Athletic Club ballroom, which was glorious. such a beautiful space in a very, very old health New Orleans health club.

this week, i happen to be doing a unit in one of my classes on breastfeeding, and a few of the readings are comparing the U.S. state with the highest rate of breastfeeding to the state with the lowest rate of breastfeeding--- that would be Oregon versus Louisiana. of course, i'm finding this unit particularly interesting for a variety of reasons, but it's things like this that remind me to be proud of where i'm from and proud of where i have chosen to be!

we had a glorious time in Florida! all of those 12 - 14 hour days were worth it! and the drive was worth it too. Mike got to check Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Georgia off his "states visited" list.

our three days on Amelia Island were filled with lots of swimming in the ocean and pools, drinking coffee & reading, eating great meals and seeing the Florida outdoors.

we went on a boat ride with Uncle Ken...

saw the Amelia Island Blues Festival... (here's Ashton wearing his Mr. Incredible suit underneath his t-shirt & jeans)

and Auntie Liza & I hit yoga Saturday morning. we spent a lot of time with cousins Jordan & Ashton, watched old home movies of baby Rob, Jordan, Madeline and Jack, and soaked up some good time at that sweet Fernandina house. Ken made paella and we all died of happiness.

of course, we had to do some homework too.

best of all? we watched 116 turtles hatch and make their way by moonlight across the beach and into the ocean. we couldn't take any photos, because the flash confuses them. so we just had to experience it!

Liza & I got up early Sunday morning to go to a turtle nest excavation. we found lots of turtle shells, a few unhatched eggs, one partially hatched turtle and one live one! Liza named her Madeline and we led her into the ocean. then we went for a swim while Simon waited on the beach. such a special morning.

it's about time for an update!

i thought i couldn't get busier, but i was wrong! my apologies for leaving this space so very quiet.

i've been wrapping up my practicum this week, i've been so squeezing out every second i can to work on that. like, every second i can. i've piled on 45 hours since i got back here, and i'm down to my last eight hours now!

school has started up again, and i really like my classes this semester. it helps that i worked in the field this summer, so that really makes the concepts and ideas feel so much more relevant.

Mike is here, and that is wonderful. this blog may end up becoming Mike's Adventures in New Orleans, because i like being behind the "camera" (iPhone).

here are a few of the many, many things we've done since we arrived back here:

we went to a Zephyrs game, the local AAA team. the stadium is out in the New Orleans suburbs and you can sit on the stands or on the levee. It was $3 bourbon night the night we went, and a great way to spend a hot Louisiana night. I've been wanting to go all summer but never got the chance. Glad we could make it before the season ended.

our seats weren't too bad.

i ran a 5K through the French Quarter. it ended in the Superdome, on the field! i was so happy to have Mike there cheering for me the whole way.

Girls on the Run training happened earlier this weekend at a local elementary school. We're gearing up for a new season. I was recognized for a few things during training, which was really cool. also, a few girls from the School of Public Health that I recruited to be coaches came to train. that was really great. there are two sites coaching this season in French!

also, this weekend is the Saints first weekend! the city is buzzing with excitement. we're screen printing shirts at the store. they chose my design to use, which is really cool! here's the design:

we went to Gleason Gras on Friday night, a benefit for Team Gleason. Steve Gleason is a former Saints player who has ALS, and Team Gleason is his charity. lots of food, good energy, and great music. we saw Galactic perform and danced and sweated the night away.

other than that, we've been exploring the city as much as we can, and i've been introducing Mike to all of my favorite places in the neighborhood. here he is enjoying extra-spicy shrimp pho at our neighborhood vietnamese joint.

and his first snoball at Sno-Wizard on Magazine!

ok, that's all for now. we are really, really looking forward to Florida next week! much more to come.

looking back at my first seven months living in New Orleans

my life just feels so full. i'm firing on all cylinders, and i feel like i'm accomplishing so much.

i'm so excited to get up every day, and i feel like my time is being used in a way that is valuable.

i've never experienced having so much (life-wise!), and also so little (money-wise!).

through my practicum, i've been able to speak with directors of incredible youth programs all over the country. people are doing big things, and they're doing them because they passionately believe that they make a difference for these kids. it's actually beyond believing, because they're seeing the differences in these kids. people have been so kind, so open and honest and forthcoming with my time. they've taken my calls and answered my emails and shared so much with me.

that's not even to mention all of the people in New Orleans this summer, those associated with Youth Run NOLA, coaches, staff, students, teachers, the board, parents. all of them volunteering their time and caring passionately about the future of the program. their commitment to the program, and to the work that they do, has kept me excited, engaged and committed to my own work. i was so scared when i started this process, but i really dug in, and i'm getting there through pure hard work and tenacity. i have seen changes in myself, changes in my confidence in my work, my brain, my value, my energy.

i'm excited for where this role will take me, for the skills i've built and the directions it will take me. i'm also excited to stay involved with this program, into the fall and beyond. i'm excited to meet the kids this fall, and to see my plans put into action. i really feel like the work i've done will impact the health of the children of this city that i love, and directly support volunteers doing work that is invaluable and important. that lights me up. it gives me goosebumps.

i'm happy and engaged with my work at Lululemon, too! i really feel like i'm building a community of coworkers and friends. i've never been in a work environment where so much attention is put on relationships, building a sense of community, encouraging everyone in their goals (both inside and outside of the company), and people are consistently recognized for what they're doing right. i love that about my workplace, and have never felt those things before (to that degree). i'm managing community events, like our weekly in-store yoga and our soon-to-launch weekly run club, which i've spent a lot of time planning. i've met a lot of exceptional people, who i look to for support and who i run into all over the city. i've been able to try new things: yoga on rooftops and in the park, spinning and circuits and crossfit and dance and paddleboarding. i'm proud of the work i'm doing.

i've carved a place for myself in this city, and even though it's only been eight months here, i feel so at home. i've run with the bulls, run in a red dress, run over a bridge and a 10k across the city. i've seen music outside and tropical storms and mardi gras parades and eaten foods i'd never heard of before. i've met a lot of people that i already consider close friends.

there's a lot left to explore, and i'm excited for what's to come. i'm so thrilled to be coming home, to be able to reset, relax and get some perspective. but i'm already ready to dive back in! big things are coming this fall, i can feel it!

cooked a homemade vegan dinner with my friend & coworker Eleanor. she's housesitting at this gorgeous home in uptown, with original art and the most perfect screened-in porch. it's owned by two architects, naturally :)

jackson stayed for an extra week. here he is being extra exhausted after a long hot walk.

i went to a great event last Friday that was put on by the ReThinkers, a group of exceptional middle schoolers from across New Orleans that meet throughout the school year and summer to talk about problems that affect their lives and brainstorm solutions. last year they focussed on healthy school lunches, this year they focused on violence / discipline in schools. they talked about restorative justice and how parents, kids, teachers, community members, and the school board can implement changes and incorporate RJ into classrooms and school policy. they also did an incredible tribute to Trayvon Martin, which obviously had me in tears.

i went to get ideas about how to encourage youth leadership among Youth Run students, and i hope to stay involved with the ReThinkers as they pick their next topic this fall. this was truly a valuable experience for me personally, and i hope to do a lot more with them.

went on a quick overnight with my friend David to visit Sarah in Thibideaux. i'm sure gonna miss that girl when she leaves for Uganda in September!