I would like to keep a better record of life. I'm not a writer, nor am I a photographer. I am, however, somewhat of a perfectionist, which keeps me from writing or taking pictures because I won't be good at it. There's my confession and hopefully I can leave that at the door and just record life for myself and our family.
On my husband's residency: Intern year sucks. It just does. There was a new rotation about every month. Chris worked well over the 80-hour weeks for the majority of the year. And I wasn't even living with him for the first 6 months, which was super hard because that schedule can get someone depressed fast. But God is faithful. He brought us through. I appreciate any time that I have with my husband now. The 2nd year is much better so far. There are still long hours and this year he has several weeks of 30-hour (most often without sleep) shifts every 3rd day. I do not even know how he functions that. I honestly tell people that I'm glad that it's not me. And I'm so proud of Chris for how hard he works and how well he cares for his patients. Being at Duke has been a challenge to keep a good perspective on such things. There is a certain pressure to excel, to be the best and contribute to research, blah blah blah. Chris has realized that he needsto not care about meeting crazy expectations and that he really just wants to be a good physician and take care of his patients. That is a nice and important reali zation, but difficult to keep in mind in this environment.
I am thankful for the way residency has developed our marriage. I think that I've learned how to encourage in whole new ways. We've learned to not take our time for granted. We've learned that, though Christ's strength, we can do way more that we ever thought. It's been a tough but sweet time.
On occupational therapy: I still can hardly believe that I am licenses to do this on my own. I have many questions and still feel that I don't really think as a therapist sometimes. I know that God has intentionally placed me at Duke and I look forward to feeling really confident in my role, which honestly, is difficult for me. I believe that the general medicine service (which I primarily work in) at such a huge institution is a great place to begin my career. I see a little bit of everything and I am thankful for the experience I am getting even if I can't yet see it in the big picture. It's also nice to occasionally see Chris at work! :)
On 5 years of marriage: How have we already been married for almost 5 1/2 years?! I really don't feel old enough for that. It has been a fun journey thus far. I just love Chris. And he loves me so well. It's been fun to grow up together. I realize that people who wait a little longer to get married probably don't have to deal with some of the immaturity that plagued our first couple of years (and sometimes pops it's head up now), but I wouldn't change our story for a minute. I'm thankful for such a witty, handsome, and caring best friend to grow up and old with. I wouldn't want to do life any other way! I just enjoy hanging out with Chris and, although our time together is limited, we just have fun together. I am so thankful for the gift of his companionship and for these years spent as just us cultivating a strong friendship.
Here's to better record keeping in the years to come!
Friday, November 15, 2013
Monday, August 29, 2011
At it again?
After almost 2.5 years I think I will try my hand at blogging again. Why the revived interest? I recently finished reading a "book" that my grandma wrote for her family. Entitled Travels with Grandma, the book was written on a type writer, copied, lovingly placed in 3-ring binders and distributed to each of her family members. It is not what one might consider fancy or well-finished. But it is her simple thoughts and memories, along with a few pictures, of the 20 some travel-filled years that she got to spend with my grandpa. Grandma wrote in her journal as much as she could possibly take in during her trips around the U.S., Mexico, Australia, Germany, Italy, and many more countries, and from these journals and photo albums she compiled her memories to share with us. As I read I was struck by how much she loved learning. I love that she put the effort into sharing her experiences and impressions with her loved ones.
My aspirations to once again blog are likely to only be read by my sister and sister-in-law at this point (after I remind them of my blog address). And I am completely fine with that. I am horrible at journaling or anything like that, but I truly enjoyed reading about my grandmother's experiences. I realized that I do not remember details very well right now, let alone 10 or 50 years down the road. So I will attempt to have this blog be a simple space for me to record what is happening in my mostly mundane life. Hopefully this way I will be able to look back and remember thoughts and times of life that God has taken me through, be them interesting to other people or not.
I just began my 2nd year of occupational therapy school. I was ready for the daily routine that school provides but sad to see the summer go. I've thoroughly enjoyed my 1st full summer break in several years. Unfortunately, I believe it may be my last summer break as next summer I will have classes and Chris will likely be moving to start his residency. So I have tried to fill up my spare time with crafting. This was the perpetual state of our dining room this summer:
I made hair clips for my new niece, Ruby, who arrived on August 23rd,
myself a dress (not a great view of it, but I'm wearing it below)
and skirt (notice anything familiar from the bows?),
another skirt that I probably won't wear and may give away (cut slightly too small), a swimsuit cover-up dress, and a little make-up bag. 
I also made a birthday gift with an actual pattern all by myself, which I cannot explain further at this time. A couple of weeks ago I hosted two of my OT friends so that they could make skirts as well.
It's fun to be creative. And since my time is worth pretty much nothing at this point, these items are pretty cheap to make!
A couple more photos from summer:
The above is $7 worth of fabulous estate sale finds! The side table thing is now used to store my fabric that was previously spilling out in all directions in our office/guest/storage room. I use the purse and wallet all the time. The floral fabric is actually an old lady skirt that I bought with the intention of hemming for a new summer skirt. instead I've worn it belted as a dress.
The hubs and me celebrating our 3rd Anniversary in June. Looking forward to many more anniversaries!
My aspirations to once again blog are likely to only be read by my sister and sister-in-law at this point (after I remind them of my blog address). And I am completely fine with that. I am horrible at journaling or anything like that, but I truly enjoyed reading about my grandmother's experiences. I realized that I do not remember details very well right now, let alone 10 or 50 years down the road. So I will attempt to have this blog be a simple space for me to record what is happening in my mostly mundane life. Hopefully this way I will be able to look back and remember thoughts and times of life that God has taken me through, be them interesting to other people or not.
I just began my 2nd year of occupational therapy school. I was ready for the daily routine that school provides but sad to see the summer go. I've thoroughly enjoyed my 1st full summer break in several years. Unfortunately, I believe it may be my last summer break as next summer I will have classes and Chris will likely be moving to start his residency. So I have tried to fill up my spare time with crafting. This was the perpetual state of our dining room this summer:
I made hair clips for my new niece, Ruby, who arrived on August 23rd,
myself a dress (not a great view of it, but I'm wearing it below)
and skirt (notice anything familiar from the bows?),
another skirt that I probably won't wear and may give away (cut slightly too small), a swimsuit cover-up dress, and a little make-up bag. 
I also made a birthday gift with an actual pattern all by myself, which I cannot explain further at this time. A couple of weeks ago I hosted two of my OT friends so that they could make skirts as well.
It's fun to be creative. And since my time is worth pretty much nothing at this point, these items are pretty cheap to make!
A couple more photos from summer:
The above is $7 worth of fabulous estate sale finds! The side table thing is now used to store my fabric that was previously spilling out in all directions in our office/guest/storage room. I use the purse and wallet all the time. The floral fabric is actually an old lady skirt that I bought with the intention of hemming for a new summer skirt. instead I've worn it belted as a dress.
The hubs and me celebrating our 3rd Anniversary in June. Looking forward to many more anniversaries!
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Lately
I get to relax and watch movies, or more popular, tv shows on DVD. One friend referred to them as "the crack cocaine of entertainment." So i try to let the tv viewing be a reward for accomplishing something.
The above is accomplished while my husband studies. See below example. Imagine flow and charts and diagrams scattered about the apartment. So much to memorize! I am glad that he's finally finished with gross anatomy. No more coming home to random (real) bones strewn about--gross.
We've started renting the cute little house below. The official move in will be in a couple of weeks after finals for Chris. We have a good amount of cleaning to do in it and a decent amount of storage furniture to acquire--old home=little to no closet space. It has a porch swing. I'm thrilled.
Chris turned 23 and the in-laws came to help celebrate. I also cut my hair--see below.
I was so blessed to meet up with my beautiful, creative, witty, authentic, and loving friends in Pittsburgh this past weekend. Fun city and even more fun people to share it with.
Coming this summer...Moving. My last visit to my childhood home (while my parents are still living in it). A visit to Nashville. A possible neurobiology class. Many visits to the farmers' market. Our first "couple's vacation" to Maine. A mini family reunion with my wonderful parents, siblings, and nephews. A few wonderful people's weddings. And possibly what I'm most excited about--A summer full of evenings with a homework-less husband.
The above is accomplished while my husband studies. See below example. Imagine flow and charts and diagrams scattered about the apartment. So much to memorize! I am glad that he's finally finished with gross anatomy. No more coming home to random (real) bones strewn about--gross.
We've started renting the cute little house below. The official move in will be in a couple of weeks after finals for Chris. We have a good amount of cleaning to do in it and a decent amount of storage furniture to acquire--old home=little to no closet space. It has a porch swing. I'm thrilled.
Chris turned 23 and the in-laws came to help celebrate. I also cut my hair--see below.
I was so blessed to meet up with my beautiful, creative, witty, authentic, and loving friends in Pittsburgh this past weekend. Fun city and even more fun people to share it with.
Coming this summer...Moving. My last visit to my childhood home (while my parents are still living in it). A visit to Nashville. A possible neurobiology class. Many visits to the farmers' market. Our first "couple's vacation" to Maine. A mini family reunion with my wonderful parents, siblings, and nephews. A few wonderful people's weddings. And possibly what I'm most excited about--A summer full of evenings with a homework-less husband.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
change begins, emotions ensue
I'm feeling in a bit of a nostalgic mood tonight. It's mostly because I'm realizing that this phase of my life is coming to an end VERY quickly. I'm graduating from college in three weeks. WHAT?!?! I have to become an adult now? Hmm, there are mixed feelings about that. A few things on my to do lists within the next couple...Join the real world and search for a job, learn to be a good wife, move--to a city (something I've never done before), and the one that I'm having the hardest time with right now, leave the comfort of a community of amazing friends. These thoughts are all added to end of the school year stress (i'm supposed to be writing a research paper right now) and wedding plans. How I've dealing dealing with all of this over the last couple of days: crying. Not the i'm-panicking-and-don't-know-how-to-handle-life-right-now type of crying, it's more of an i'm-sad-this-is-ending-and-this-is-how-my-body-reacts-to-any-type-of-emotional-stimulus kind.
I feel change very deeply. I love what is predictable and routine. For example, I was in a funk for a couple of weeks when I moved across campus my sophomore year. And I was joining a hall with about 10 of my dearest friends and only moving about a 3 minute walk from my old residence hall for goodness sake! I have full confidence that what is to come in my life will be so good! I'm really looking forward to the next phase! But I am realizing that I sort of have to grieve what I'm leaving behind. Again, not wallowing in sadness, but instead I need to mentally process the change and think back on the past few years so that I can experience closure and move on from here.
Sidenote--This is one of the reasons I find it so hard to journal or blog consistently, I feel like I need to explain background on what I'm thinking/doing before I get to the actual thoughts/feelings/actions. Oh well. But here are of few of those anyway...
I feel change very deeply. I love what is predictable and routine. For example, I was in a funk for a couple of weeks when I moved across campus my sophomore year. And I was joining a hall with about 10 of my dearest friends and only moving about a 3 minute walk from my old residence hall for goodness sake! I have full confidence that what is to come in my life will be so good! I'm really looking forward to the next phase! But I am realizing that I sort of have to grieve what I'm leaving behind. Again, not wallowing in sadness, but instead I need to mentally process the change and think back on the past few years so that I can experience closure and move on from here.
Sidenote--This is one of the reasons I find it so hard to journal or blog consistently, I feel like I need to explain background on what I'm thinking/doing before I get to the actual thoughts/feelings/actions. Oh well. But here are of few of those anyway...
- I have been blessed beyond measure being able to be at JBU these last four years. I am relational, so mainly I mean relationally. It's also been through challenging my thoughts and beliefs. I've learned academically, theologically, and about myself.
- I'm ready to leave. Although I love it here, I can't and don't want to stay longer. I find myself growing restless in this stage and see more of a gap between myself and freshmen all of the time. This is what I've been preparing for and that's exciting!
- I am thrilled at the thought of seeing my amazing, beautiful, and talented friends (including the fiance) get to use their talents and abilities in the real world. Thinking of the possibilities of how God will use each of them is way more exciting to me right now than thinking about my own personal future! Seriously, I hope that anyone who reads this gets the chance to know some of my unique and incredible friends.
- As my wonderful fiance asked me about last night, I am fully confident in God's provisions for my future and all of my needs.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Mostly for Tonya...
I am making this post an ode to my sister, because I know that she would have loved this fun night and she's the one who taught me how to tease my hair--maybe that was when i was 4 and she was trying to give me a beehive behind mom's back and i was balling my eyes out, but she did teach me.
So we had a birthday celebration a couple of weeks back. Three of the lovely ladies of my house (including me) had birthdays all within a week of each other.
What better way to celebrate than an 80's 90's dance party in our home? And with that I let you take it the amazingness visually...
The Birthday girls.
All of the housies captured in Polaroid. Perfection.
And last, but not least, the "happy" couple from different decades.
Oh, and there honestly were a lot of people and much old music accompanied with dancing, but once the party started there was no time for pictures!
So we had a birthday celebration a couple of weeks back. Three of the lovely ladies of my house (including me) had birthdays all within a week of each other.
What better way to celebrate than an 80's 90's dance party in our home? And with that I let you take it the amazingness visually...
The Birthday girls.
All of the housies captured in Polaroid. Perfection.
And last, but not least, the "happy" couple from different decades.
Oh, and there honestly were a lot of people and much old music accompanied with dancing, but once the party started there was no time for pictures!
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Back to normal...sort of.
I've been back in the states for a month and a half and back at school for 2 weeks. Sometimes it still doesn't seem like I actually spent three months of my life in Northern Ireland. But I've also wrestled with the fact that I have changed since being away and life here has gone on without me as well. At times I find myself feeling "not normal" whatever that means. It's not something that I can explain, which is frustrating to me and to the people around me who care and wish they could understand. I am so thankful that I was able to come back to live with a house of amazing friends to live with! They have been very supportive and welcoming which has helped my transition. I didn't think I would have that many problems adjusting, but I've found myself overwhelmed at the littlest decisions at times. It doesn't help that I returned home to a busy Christmas holiday as well as a flurry of wedding planning before coming back to school. But all in all I'm thankful to be back with so many loved ones and I'm beginning to get excited about all of the changes that are in store for my life in the near future. I am thankful for God's abundant blessings thus far!
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
4 more days?!!!
This morning I finished two in class essays, which leaves me with only one paper compilation and revision and then I'm done with homework for the semester! Yesterday I also finished a final research paper for literature as well as a final presentation for my art class! Things wrapping up quickly and I am so excited to get to come home soon! Here are a few photos from the whirlwind trip to London and Oxford. It was a fun weekend, but I definitely have more to see there. Next time!
The Thames, parliament buildings, and big ben.
Buckingham Palace at night. You can't see it in this picture but the flag was up and the queen was in.
Madysen and Me with one of the lions at Trafalgar's Square.
Oxford. The Eagle and Child pub is where C.S. Lewis and JRR Tolkien and other literary minds (They called themselves the Inklings) used to meet together. We ate dinner there.
My attempt to be photojournalistic. Pretty leaves and the back of the "New Building" at Magdalen College in Oxford where C.S. Lewis taught. The building is in the movie Shadow Lands (about C.S. Lewis). And by new building it means that it was built in the 1700s instead of the sixteenth century. crazy.
The entrance to the botanical gardens in Oxford.
I took this one for dad. There's a john deere on the right and real deer on the left. The deer are kept in a large grassy area at the college, weird.
Carrie and Me with London's Tower Bridge behind us.
It's crazy, but we just have 4 days to go before we head home. I've been getting a little nostalgic I'll miss Northern Ireland, but I'm so excited for home!!!
The Thames, parliament buildings, and big ben.
Buckingham Palace at night. You can't see it in this picture but the flag was up and the queen was in.
Madysen and Me with one of the lions at Trafalgar's Square.
Oxford. The Eagle and Child pub is where C.S. Lewis and JRR Tolkien and other literary minds (They called themselves the Inklings) used to meet together. We ate dinner there.
My attempt to be photojournalistic. Pretty leaves and the back of the "New Building" at Magdalen College in Oxford where C.S. Lewis taught. The building is in the movie Shadow Lands (about C.S. Lewis). And by new building it means that it was built in the 1700s instead of the sixteenth century. crazy.
The entrance to the botanical gardens in Oxford.
I took this one for dad. There's a john deere on the right and real deer on the left. The deer are kept in a large grassy area at the college, weird.
Carrie and Me with London's Tower Bridge behind us.
It's crazy, but we just have 4 days to go before we head home. I've been getting a little nostalgic I'll miss Northern Ireland, but I'm so excited for home!!!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)