Almost Audit Time

So, I am procrastinating as usual and thought a blog post would be much more interesting than studying for Audit.  I’m so glad I’m a Tax person!  I really hope I pass this section because I’m not sure I can stand studying this material again.  Real audits have to be much more interesting than just studying how an audit works in theory!

Anyway, the exam is Friday in Huntsville.  I scheduled it at noon so I won’t have to worry about fighting morning traffic.  Unfortunately, I will have evening traffic to deal with.  At least I won’t be in any more of a hurry than rushing home to, hopefully, enjoy a frozen margarita at Casa! :)

There’s lots to be done between now and Friday and I imagine that I won’t be sleeping a lot.  I’ll just make up for it on Saturday and Sunday when I don’t have anything else to do besides enjoy my family and work on another project for my Capstone (dumb name) class.

I’d appreciate any good thoughts and well wishes anyone wants to offer up.  It’s been a stressful weekend, for reasons other than this test, and I could use some good “vibes”! haha

Happy (Belated) Birthday!!

 

My Grandmother’s 87th Birthday was this past Wednesday.  She was still in rehab recovering from her fall that happened three weeks ago yesterday, but my parents and Grandaddy tried to make a fuss over her anyway.

Mom made cupcakes for her to share with the other patients and staff.  I thought they sounded wonderful and I wish I had been able to eat one!  They were yellow cake (my Grandmother’s preferred cake from a box) and were covered with chocolate ganache. 

These cupcakes have a backstory.  They are a modified version of a cake that has a long story behind it.  My Grandmother’s  favorite cake is yellow cake with chocolate icing.  I think this is her favorite because this cake represents good times with her older sister who passed away in the last few years.  Aunt Loverda would call when she was ready to leave Haleyville and Gram would put the cake layers in the oven.  When Aunt Loverda arrived and the cakes had cooled, she would get out one of Grams’ iron skillets and cook the icing.  We hadn’t had one in ages until a few years ago—maybe around the time I went to college when Gram decided to cook them again.  I personally think she had forgotten about it because it has been several years since her sister passed away and many years more since she visited my Grandparents in Florence.  Anyway, that cake is something I’m glad that was resurrected and it translated nicely into cupcakes.

Mom also got some clothes and earrings for Grams’ gifts.  Grandaddy asked us last weekend to take care of gifts from him—not uncommon.  Grams has lost a significant amount of weight lately, so she got a couple of new outfits that won’t fall off her!

Anyway, not many people are able to celebrate a 87th birthday and I’m grateful she’s recovering from her accident and able to celebrate this one.  We might need a birthday cake redux next weekend when I’m home, too!

Under the weather

Emma, not me.  Poor baby was up a good bit of the night two days ago.  I thought she was trying to throw up at first, but then I decided she was congested and was trying to get her throat and nose clear.  Not a good night for puppy or her mommy.

I called a vet in Auburn and of course, we couldn’t get in yesterday.  They said many dogs have congestion now and it’s not bacterial, so antibiotics won’t do any good.  They suggested giving her Children’s Dimetapp (well, 1/4 the child’s dose) which I did.  She seems much better today, but not completely back to normal.  We both slept better last night and I think we are on the road to recovery.

I guess she’s paying for her adventure in the snow without her sweaters and coats!  I think all the fun she had was worth it to her though! :)

1 (hopefully) down, 3 to go

Last Friday, I took the Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR) section of the CPA exam.  Before the test I was ready to throw up, but it went better than the nightmares I had in the days leading up to the test.  My scores haven’t come back yet (and won’t for several weeks), so I don’t know yet if the dream that Ms. Murphy would yell at me that she was disappointed in me and then kick me out of the program will come true or not! :)

I was lucky with the simulations I was tested on.  Many of my friends got another topic that I know I would have struggled more with because I didn’t intensely review it as much as would have been necessary.

I thought I would leave the test knowing I failed, so having hope that I passed is a good thing.  We will just have to see in a few weeks when the scores come out.  I’m not going to think about it too much especially since we started the Audit section of Becker on Monday and have the second of five classes tonight.  It was disheartening to think that as soon as I finished the test on Friday, I had exactly 21 days until I would be seated in a similar room in Huntsville doing it all over again.

I’m just praying that, in May, this will all be over and my hard work will be rewarded with a wonderful job that is exactly where I am meant to be.

Snowpuppy

Grandaddy, Emma and I—along with much of Florence—got a snow day yesterday.  Starting around 6:30 in the morning we got sleet then snow which lasted until about 10:00.  We were supposed to go back to Auburn just as it became obvious that the snow would be around for a while.  The roads didn’t clear until around noon and we left around 1:00.  I missed work and one class and it definitely made for a long day, but spending a little extra time with Grandaddy was well worth it.  I hadn’t seen snow in quite a while either, so it was a nice, short-lived treat.  That’s another good thing about living in Alabama, when we get snow (maybe once a year) it’s pretty for a few hours and then melts—we’re not snowed in for days or weeks typically).

Emma had never seen snow before and I expected that she would hate it nearly as much as she hates rain, but I was mistaken.  Her sister hated snow and I just assumed it was something they had in common.  Well, again Emma had to be different and spent about fifteen minutes running at high speed around in the fluffy white powder.

  She was trying to figure out the best place to use the bathroom after she jumped off and discovered the snow.  Not quite sure what to do with it at this point.

Whoa!  What is this stuff?  I really need to use the bathroom and I don’t like wet feet! 

Maybe I can jump in this flower bed?  There’s less white stuff there… 

This doesn’t look like my Gram’s and Grandaddy’s yard…what happened last night?

 

Hmm…this stuff smells like water…and tastes like it too! 

I can’t see!  Why is this stuff sticking to me?

 

Ooh!  I like this stuff!  I found a stick to run with too!  This is great!

 Will you just let me play and stop taking my picture?

 

Surveying my new, white, domain.   I think I like this!

Once we got inside, Emma needed a visit with one of her good friends, the hairdryer.  We melted the ice out of her fur and then she was wrapped in a towel and fell fast asleep.  Playing in snow is hard work even if you are a snowpuppy!

Emma’s new best friend

Emma has a new best friend…a heating pad.  She really loves curling up on it.  I am very careful to keep it on warm so she doesn’t accidentally burn herself.  Another piece of evidence supporting the theory she is really a cat in dog’s clothing!

I had taken it away earlier and turned it off.  She walked over to where I put it and pawed it to let me know she wanted it.  That’s a  new one for her.  She usually only paws me and only when she wants me to do something.  I guess this was her way of telling me that she wanted her friend back!

Cell phone pictures…not the greatest quality, but I wanted to MMS them to M&D.