Another one down

Well that's it another month of OB under the belt. My next month of OB isn't until next March then I have another one 2 months after that one to finish out my 4. Don't tell anyone but I'm kind of disappointed that I don't have any OB for 10 months. It's been tiring for sure (though we had a relatively light month as far as OB goes), but with each passing month of OB since my 3rd year of medical school (this makes 4) my distaste for the specialty has decreased. I might even go so far as to say that I like OB and I could certainly see myself delivering babies back in Cedar so long as I have a brother who does the same and we could trade OB call from time to time. Time will tell.

4 Triumphs

It is no secret that I was a bit worried about how I would adjust to having 4 children. After Kristian was born the adjustment was very difficult for me. My life seemed to fall apart for two months and I don't remember much of that time. So I was scared because if the transition to 3 was that hard I assumed the transition to 4 would put me in the loony bin.

It has been 6 weeks and I can happily say that ,amazingly enough, 4 has been much easier than 3. I would even go as far as to say that the transition has been rather enjoyable. I actually get a little sad when I look at Kamryn and see how quickly she is growing and changing. (although that doesn't last too long)

I was contemplating this triumph this morning and trying to figure out what I have to contribute this too. I came up with the following :

1 - I have a son that is old enough to not only want to help his baby sister but actually be able to provide help. Spencer is so quick to do mostly anything I ask and has been a huge help to me.

2 - I have a daughter that is in love with her baby sister and some how, has become the master of the binki. Jessi can always get Kami to take her binki even when I can't. I guess I need to study her technique.

3 - I have a toddler that, most of the time, is pretty laid back. Sometimes I think he has barely noticed that a baby has come and stolen much of his attention time.

4 - Although at times it has been hard to have Jacob on call it also has the nice benefit when looked at in the right light. The nights that he is on call I don't have to worry about waking him and could feed her in bed in the middle of the night. Also, the day after he is on call he gets home much earlier and has time to spend with all of us, giving me a break, and also gives me nap time to run to the store. Heaven!!

5 - I have a beautiful infant who is a pretty good little girl. She has her issues with gas and constipation just like all the rest but she also has followed suit with the rest and started to sleep through the night at 6 weeks and takes a binki rather well. Unlike the others, she hates showers but loves tummy time. What an opposite for me. She has also started to smile and coo and that can melt away any amount of stress.

6 - I think that I grew a lot after that hard transition. I seem to be able to let go of my crazy OCD impulses much easier and am able to go with the flow when necessary. Crying also doesn't grade my nerves as much as it used to. I think I can honestly say I am learning and progressing when it comes to being the mom of an infant.

So I guess my conclusion is that I am very grateful to my family for helping me to become a better mommy and showing me that infants are not as scary as they once were and that I am growing and adapting. I love you all!!

P.S. I also should say thank you to all of my friends that supported me and brought meals and such. I was going to put you in the number list but it was an opportunity to list about each of my family members and my OCD would not allow me to mix in others. I know, I'm a little crazy.

Aw Shucks.

I was not going to do this. I really wasn't going to do this. It was too frilly. I even commented on the blog of the creator that I wouldn't participate (after being invited to do so), but what can I say I'm an addict. I try and try to stop but I just can't.

So without further ado here is the wedding tag.


1) What was your wedding date?
You want me to say that I don't know or have to look it up, but I remember it well. 12/29/2001




just kidding it was 2000

2) How long from "I will" to "I Do"
4 months which happened to be significantly longer than the amount of time from "hello nice to meet you" to "Will you marry me".

3) Where were you married?
Mount Timpanogss Temple somewhat interesting as I pretty much abhor everything between the point of the mountain and Nephi. Something about a blue kitty..

4) What were your wedding colours?
There were colors?

5) Who was in your wedding party?
I don't even know what that means. Wedding party? I don't remember having a party. Why was I not invited to this party? Did I miss out on some gifts?

6) Honestly, could your bridesmaids REALLY have worn the dress again?
I didn't have any bridesmaids though Melissa did have a self appointed maid of honor (that's right you know who you are) and I believe she chose her own dress.

7) Did you LOVE your gown? Would you choose the same gown again?
It was so nice. I spent months looking for the perfect one. I took my mother with me to every store in the Wasatch front. Unfortunately I was never allowed to wear it to the wedding. Something about Mormon standards and cross dressing. I would definitely chose the same one again.

8) Flowers: Real or Silk?
I don't remember any flowers. I do remember a bunch of pine trees or at least that's what I'm told by my brother-in-law. Apparently it required some clean up and was slightly messy. What do I know I left long before any of that. On second thought I do remember a bouquet toss and a maid of honor bouquet that involved real flowers.

9) Reception: Full meal or Calling reception?
I guess it was a calling reception.

10) Dance or no dance?
There was music. There were lulls in the line at times and I do believe Melissa danced a bit so sure I'll say dance.

11) What would you have done differently?
I would have had my in-laws keep all our presents at their house and kept the keys to our house in my pocket. Ripping my shower curtain and damaging the porcelain on the sink while trying to remove the packing tape (that I had purchased some time earlier) was not my idea of a funny joke. Throwing away a cupboard full of canned food because the labels had been removed was somewhat wastefull too. You can't even donate canned food without labels on it. That's right folks you know who you are. I still hold a grudge. You wonder why we haven't made it back to Canada in so long.**


Okay so I don't really still hold a grudge, but for the life of me I still can't find humor in the situation, maybe in another 8 years.

12) Any disasters?
There was this one painting........

13) Best Gift you received?
I really liked the TV and bed that our parents gave us, but the more time that passes the more attached I get to the aforementioned painting. It really looks good on the wall between my two princesses.

14) Strangest gift you received?
I seem to remember a painting.*

15) Most memorable moment that day?
Looking across the cultural hall at a giant painting of a couple of little girls. Just kidding actually my most memorable moment was after all of our family and friends had left the sealing room and Melissa and I were left alone with the sealer. I don't remember a whole lot of what was said during the sealing, but I remember vividly the words he spoke to us after everyone else had left the room.


*There is a painting of Melissa and her Twin sister when they were children hanging between the crib and the bed in the girls room. It was given to Melissa as a wedding present by her sister and at the time created a stir of emotions for those involved (as well as those not involved if I remember correctly). For all the turmoil at the time it has become a very sentimental piece of art and I'm sure it will be a sought after item for the kids when Melissa and I die.

**Upon returning home from work this morning I was confronted by a somewhat perturbed wife who thought I may have offended some of our relatives. It was a joke. We haven't been back to Canada because we've spent almost every vacation since getting married going back to Utah. We really did appreciat all of the relatives who made the trip down to Utah for our wedding and look forward to some future trip to America Junior (I really want to see Banf).

Reflections

*This list has gotten kind of sappy so feel free to skim or ignore.

As I near the end of my first year of residency I've decided to make a list of some of the things I have learned:

1. At any time during or after a 24 hour shift I can fall asleep in any position within 10 minutes.
2. "Weekends off" is a phrase I look forward too immensely.
3. A lot of fun can be crammed into 4 days during any given call month.
4. Sleeping in is a priveledge not to be taken for granted (many of these lessons apply to those with infants as well especially this one).
5. Stress if best handled if shared with others.
6. Hospitals are a slice of heaven at times.
7. Hospitals are a slice of hell many times.
8. The telephone was the second worst invention of the last 500 years only superseeded by the pager.
9. The value of a competent nurse cannot be overestimated.
10. The frustration caused by an incompetent nurse cannot be overestimated (I'm sure the same can be said of incompetent residents).
11. Sometimes you just have to sit back and laugh. I just triaged an OB patient who called an ambulance because she lost her mucous plug in the shower.
12. Sometimes you just have to break down and cry, but only in the protection of your home in the arms of a woman who loves you and would never tell anyone how much of a sissy you are...unless you're a woman then you can cry in the hospital.
13. There are a lot of really good people in the world who need help.
14. There are a few really good people who always seem willing to give that help.
15. My kids don't care how smart I am, or dumb as the case may be.
16. My kids don't care how many hours I worked.
17. My kids don't care how much money I make (at least not yet).
18. My kids want to wrestle, read stories, and play hide and go find dad at all times of the day.
19. Sometimes you have to act like a kid to feel normal again. You can do that by staying up until 3 AM playing games at a friend's house, but only if you're kids allow it and your friends don't kick you out.
20. Lots of people have hard jobs and lots of people have no jobs.
21. A code siren can elicit joy or dread depending on my rotation.
22. Sometimes it feels good to wear a suit.
23. Hospital beds are not comfortable.
24. When the ER doc says they want to admit one of your partner's patients you should always ask the patient who they think their doctor is.
25. Computers are glorious things until they aren't.
26. You can't tell the sex of a baby from a speculum exam (same patient as #11)
27. "Baby daddy" is not a good reflection on our society.
28. Hospitals are not hotels and Ambulances are not taxis.
29. Threatening your doctor is not a good way to get your vicodin.
30. Conjunctivitis is a reason for admission.
31. Conjuctivitis is NOT a good reason for admission.
32. The line between against-medical-advice and with-staff-encouragement is very thin.
33. There are few things in life better than a good donut.
34. Handing off my pager makes me feel like I'm on a Red Bull commercial.
35. 3:30 AM is a bad time to come to the hospital for vaginal itching of 5 days duration.
36. I do not know what crazy people do during daylight hours.
37. Having a hole in your foot is not normal.
38. If the blood in that hole gets replaced by green goo that does not mean it is getting better.
39. Coumadin should not be taken on a prn basis.
40. We should have a name for the 2 AM meal in the English language.

The joys of Spring

Today spring has arrived at the Corry household. There are few things I enjoy more than eating dutch oven food. One of those things is cooking dutch oven food and today I did just that. I went out to plant the garden after waking up from my post-call nap and the weather was so nice that I decided to break out the ovens. The only downer is that I'm still getting over a bad case of stomach flu that kept me in bed most of Sunday and Monday so I didn't actually eat much of the chicken and potatoes, but it's all about the fire anyway.


Looking forward to many more smoke filled evenings in the backyard.