6 months later!

so here's what we've been up to the last 6 months (since we last posted)...

in may: stuart and mandy visit STL to see andrew, kristan and their sweet kiddos. mandy gets a raise! she still loves her job. stuart is invited to join AOA and is in the middle of his surgery rotation and begins to have second thoughts about his love for ob-gyn, thinking maybe he'd rather be a surgeon full-time. this does not make mandy happy. also, we love spending time with our new niece abigail.

stuart with kara & anna in STL

kristan & mandy with alden, kara & anna

abigail, speaking the truth about her auntie :)

in june: stuart's dad has an ACOG at big cedar lodge near branson, mo. there's a small family reunion when all of stuart's siblings and their sweet kids all come together to hang out for the weekend, and stuart's love of ob-gyn is rekindled. this makes mandy happy. we also have our 1st wedding anniversary! we travel to mt. magazine state park in northern arkansas (think beautiful, rocky ozark mountains), and we then find out that mt. magazine lodge is mostly intended for geriatric patrons, and the buffet that is offered for each meal leaves us lacking. but the view from our room is worth it for sure. frozen groom's cake (the infamous A1 cake) was also enjoyed.

A1 cake

hiking mt. magazine

view from our balcony, so beautiful.

in july: we have lots of visitors! mom, dad and sister acree travel from nc to spend 4th of july in little rock. it was a busy trip, including an all-day kayak float on the buffalo river, a day to see the extended pierce family in pine bluff and shoot off fireworks in the courtyard, and a trip to the little rock zoo. solid QT time with the acrees, for sure. then, 2 days later wen and casey reagan come to arkansas! we enjoy some time at the farmer's market, a sip & shop/1st thursday on kavanaugh, and loafing around to different restaurants. stuart and mandy's minds are blown when wen and casey get to meet chris and jill (our worlds collide!). one of the happiest moments of our lives :) at the end of july, stuart takes the step 2 exam (2nd part to the MD licensure process) and he totally rocks it, just like we all knew he would.

dad A. at the LR zoo with pig sooie

stu and katie, sparklers in the PB courtyard

pierce and acree ladies in mom P's kitchen, PB

sisters, at the young pierce residence in LR

pirate dad A, father's day celebration kayak float on the buffalo river, AR

mom A & katie in the background, stu & mandy in the foreground

reagans meet merricks!

my favorite ladies all together: me, casey & jill

in august: mandy's best childhood friend gets married! she travels to NC/WV for 2 weeks to make sure elizabeth jones gets married off appropriately, then travels to WV to visit her grandparents for the first time since graduating nursing school. it was a great time for the whole family, riding 4wheelers, shooting off fireworks and hanging out with cousins. mandy's pappa acree has lymphoma, and she was even able to go to a doctor's appointment with him, which she was thankful for. while in WV, matthew traveled up with his lady friend, meredith, to meet the family at a bed & breakfast for the grandparents' 50th anniversary celebration. the whole family likes meredith. a lot. stuart, meanwhile, is stuck in the hospital in little rock doing gyn-oncology. he likes it a lot and remembers that although he loves ob-gyn, he totally rocks at surgery. maybe he will do a fellowship after residency that would allow him to do more surgery than a general ob-gyn...

[mandy is very sad that she forgot the camera on her trip to NC and has ZERO photos from it]

professional photo from EJ's wedding, i'm 2nd to the right of the groom!
[Runner Photography, 2011]

in september: it starts to feel like fall! we kick off the month with a grill-out by the arkansas river with jenna and colin. stuart submits his application(s) to residency programs across the country (ranging from san francisco to boston, and everywhere in between). the interviews start pouring in, and we are very proud of him. mandy submits her one-year portfolio at work (she has been a nurse for ONE YEAR!) and gets another raise! her co-workers start to hear rumors that stuart won't be in medical school forever, and that he might have to move to a different city, taking mandy with him. they immediately begin petitioning the ob-gyn residency director in little rock. mandy goes to visit her favorite-ever-friend, hannah morgan, in kansas city, mo. it's the most refreshing weekend, full of antique shopping, a trip to trader joe's, and meeting hannah's new man-friend, dan, who is well-liked and approved by mandy. stuart and mandy also begin a bible study on galatians in their home with some couples that live close by in their community. they are thankful for believers that live in their neighborhood and who are thirsty for biblical community, just like they are.

[mandy also forgot to take her camera to visit hannah. big sad face.]

mandy & jenna, grilled corn and burgers

colin on the grill

stuart getting the coals just perfect

in october: mandy celebrates, because this is her favorite month! stuart doesn't mind it so much either, although he leans a little more toward november. the first weekend in october is spent in fayetteville with chris and jill merrick, seeing some sweet friends, kim and eddie mengarelli. there is also a wedding of one of stuart's closest friends in med school, and they danced the night away. the drive to and from fayetteville is much enjoyed, as the merricks and pierces together on a roadtrip is a beautiful thing. also, the leaves changing along the highways aren't bad, either. lots more is in store in october... trips to pumpkin patches, shopping trips to branson (girls only!) and some camping. also, hopefully stuart's first interview will fall somewhere toward the end of october. it's a very exciting year for us!