Orientation week...

Orientation week started on Tuesday and has kept me quite busy! I know what you're thinking: "orientation week is all about doing a bunch on icebreakers and campus tours". No ma'am!

Yes, we have had the usual meet and greets, but we've also done "business bootcamps" which attempts to bring everyone to the same level in application areas like Excel and Access.  I had never used Access at all, so this was obviously very challenging for me. The wonderful aspect about the instructors that is constantly reiterated, is the fact that professors are always willing to help.  I definitely witnessed this first-hand during the Access workshop. 

We've also already been working in a series of financial simulation group projects. Very interesting and definitely out of my comfort zone. I will say that it is quite refreshing that within the past few days of working with my group, all members have been enthusiastic and everyone has been participating. I remember in undergrad, there was always one or two members that didn't participate fully - so far, this has not been the case. Oh yeah, after day one, my group was leading the pack. Toot, toot!  Tomorrow is the final day of the simulation, ending with a group presentation for the members of the "board" who will judge the final results.

SLU has definitely mixed some fun into the week though too.  On Tuesday, we toured the new Chaifitz arena and finished with a welcome reception in the club seats. Seeing the new facility really got me excited for the upcoming basketball season! Go Billikens!

This evening, we mingled with former grads at the Moolah bowling alley. If you've never been, I highly recommend it! Besides having a bowling alley, the upper level is a movie theater, complete with leather couches and bar service. Super fun.

Class officially starts on Monday, but I definitely have felt that this week has allowed me to get my feet wet a little bit...after all, I have been out of school for over 8 years. It's great to be back!

Enjoy your day off...

School's IN for the summer!

School starts tomorrow!!! This week will is orientation week which includes meeting the faculty, business boot camp and lunch with Father Biondi. It will be great meeting everyone!

Weekend Recap...

This is a little overdue but I have had many distractions....

Sumeet and I just got back from a trip to Rochester, NY and I have a lot to blog about. We went up there for our Indian reception hosted by Sumeet's parents. Here's a brief rundown of the weekend's events ...I'll post photos later.

* I flew in Friday morning and we went straight to the Lilac Festival. I think that Rochester might be know for its lilacs and the festival was held on beautiful grounds with lilac trees all over.
* Friday afternoon, I had the mehndi applied on my hands. The girl that did this was super talented and very fast. It took her about 25 minutes to do all of this (I'll post photos later). Once the henna has been applied you have to let it dry, scrape off the excess, then it will turn dark. The longer you let it set without washing your hands, the darker it becomes.
*Saturday afternoon,  Sumeet's parents had all the out of towners over for lunch. It was great seeing friends and family we haven't seen since October. We were very fortunate that so many people were so kind to make the trip. Family/friends came from all over including Dallas, San Francisco, LA, NYC and Tennessee.
* Saturday night was the Indian reception held at the convention center. A lot of family was there, and we had a chance to meet a lot of his parents' friends. Preeti and Pooja did a fabulous Bollywood style dance for everyone that was amazing!! The reception was filled with great toasts, good food and lots of dancing.  The night ended with this amazing dessert bar, complete with sparklers and more dessert choices than guests! 
*Sunday everyone was gathered at the house, so we primarily just spent time relaxing...until we were given 2 great gifts:

 * Sumeet's parents were so kind to give us an awesome new tool...a navigation system! This definitely came in handy for our trip up north the next day. More on that later.
 * Apparently I've been talking about getting a "fancy" camera a little too much. After I     graduate, I planned on researching then buying one. Well, Sumeet and his parents were             about 10 steps ahead of me.  I was so surprised! The best part is that Sumeet's father                   knows a lot about cameras, so he knew just the right one to buy. I'm so lucky!


And a few randoms from the weekend...
*Given the time of year (and after checking the weather) I anticipated a nice, 60 degree weekend. Not so my friend. Apparently, Rochester still thought it was winter and didn't reach 55 until the day we left.
* Sumeet signed up for a facebook account! We learned from the cousins that everyone's doing it so I suppose I'll be signing up for an account soon.
* The "maid of the mist", the famous boat ride that takes you up close to the falls, should really be called "maid of the monsoon".  I'm planning on posting more on Niagara Falls a little later.

We just got our new computer...a Mac so I've been very busy trying to figure it out. I still don't know how to download pictures onto my blog, so for now, there are none.  The new computer plus the new camera = lots of fun for me!  Now I just need to learn how to use my new toys!!!

NKOTB!

It's true...they're coming to St. Louis on November 10! Not sure if I'll go, but they recently performed on the Today show and were great! I really would only want to see their "old" stuff "Please don't go girl", "The Right Stuff" and so on...

It's official!

We're poor. Today was my last day working which means we are now a one income household. And we have two mortgages (hopefully for not much longer).

Ok, so we aren't really poor, but cutting out one income will definitely be a challenge.

We both were very fortunate not to have to rely on federal funding during the undergrad/med school days (thank you parents, grandparents and scholarships), but not anymore. I'm really proud to say that I filled out the FAFSA all by myself.

In all honesty, it will be a challenge this year and over the past few weeks we have recently adjusted our spending habits. (Did you see my post below about Ebay?). By making a few adjustments, we've already found ways to cut back.
We have also reevaluated our phone plans and are saving about $50/month on that. Oh, by the way, please don't call us unless you are a Verizon customer. If you aren't, you can call us after 9pm. Or just shoot us an email :)

Sumeet's into (over) analyzing EVERYTHING, including things like how tire pressure can affect gas mileage or not accelerating downhill and just cruising. I like to save money as much as the next person, but he definitely is a true saver.

We've already cut back on eating out and discovered we're pretty great cooks (plus that gives us a chance to use all of our new kitchen goodies we got for the wedding)! Of course we still like to eat out and in the past we have found great deals through Channel 5's dining out deals or on Restaurants.com

I've always been "money conscious". Sumeet takes it to the next level. I totally used to make fun of him as he cut coupons every weekend proclaiming "Molly, the paper totally pays for itself with all these coupons!". Of course, I'm so glad he has these little money-saving tricks up he sleeves.

Though the next year, we may be in fact a little "poorer", I'm definitely excited for this next chapter in my life. I know that the sacrifices we make this year in the long run won't really seem like a big deal. Plus, when I'm sitting in my corner office, running some large corporation, I'll probably still be cutting coupons :)

I'll be off-line for a few days...but have a great weekend!

Happy Mother's Day!

Today's post is obviously dedicated to my mom. She's actually working a 12 hour day today so we don't get to "celebrate" with the traditional Mother's day brunch (though we did make dinner for her on Friday night). I of course have always loved and respected my mom, but as I get older, I've grown to appreciate her and all she did for me growning up.

I can never remember a time when my mom missed a soccer game, swim meet, tennis match or an event that I was cheerleading for. And she worked. And took me to all of these sports' practices. And there were two of us!

Looking back, how is this even possible? Of course my dad helped out, but since her work schedule was a little lighter, the bulk of this responsibility fell upon her shoulders. How did mom find the time, energy or desire to do all of this for us?

To be honest, if I were in her shoes, I may have suggested that I cut back on my extracurricular activities. Of course she never did this and I never heard her complain.

My mom will always be the one to take the overcooked piece of chicken so that the rest of us can have perfectly cooked ones. She will always say "No, I don't want anything for my birthday". She will never be the one to pick the restaurant. These things I can't change, but I do know that I will alway love and appreciate her for the things she has done and will continue to do for me.

Happy Mother's day!

The Beauty of eBay...

I've always been a bit of a bargain shopper. Rarely do I pay full price for clothing items...except maybe my favorite pair of jeans. Never again. I have since discovered this wonderful website called eBay. Now, I know that you can find great deals from ebay- Sumeet has bought and sold many things on the site. This includes selling a "handi-snak" pack with 3 crackers. Why would he sell it, you ask? Because handi-snaks should come with FOUR crackers. And of course some crazy person bought his unopened 3 cracker handi-snak! Unbelievable!



Anyway, I never really realized ebay's full potential until I bought a pair of said favorite jeans for $30. And they were new with tags. "Not too bad" you might think. Until you realize the jeans retail for $150ish. I know, I am a fool for ever having paid that much for a a pair of jeans but I love them. And really, when I think about it, since I wear them all the time, it's really only 2 cents per wear. Bottom line, next time I need (ok, want) a new pair, I'm heading straight to this miraculous website called eBay.

In need of a good owner:

Dear Readers,

My current owner has decided to leave me. She tells me she has married and that it's time to move on. I'm looking for a new cool owner. Molly was great, but I hate feeling so empty. I promise I won't let you down. I'm in a great location and within walking distance to great stores and restaurants. I'm basically brand new and even come with brightly colored walls. I have lots of personality and enjoy hosting parties too! What more could you ask for? I'm pretty cool, don't ya think?

To learn more about me, please click here.

Sincerly,

A lonely loft