Some of you may remember my jubilation back in October when the Dolphins beat the Patriots. If you have forgotten you can read about it here. Today my joy is full.
I am nothing if not a Dolphin fan. I also possess a deep disdain for the Jets only surpassed by my absolute hatred for the Patriots. Today we reached the peak of the mountain that we started climbing after the AFC championship game last year. The Patriots lost in the Super Bowl leaving them with one loss in a season where the aforementioned Dolphins won one game. That same Patriots team lost their overrated quarterback and struggled to an 11-5 finish this year. Any other year 11-5 gets you into the playoffs, but not this year. You see the Patriots needed the Dolphins to lose today to get into the playoffs. This brings us to my fullness of joy. The Dolphins went from 1-15 to 11-5 and in the last game of the season they not only beat the Jets to make the playoffs, but they also ensured that the Patriots would be left out of the party this year. Victory and Vengeance all in one afternoon.
I can now turn all my attention to the Utes game on Friday. With all due respect to Florida and Oklahoma, if Utah can beat Alabama in New Orleans they deserve to be ranked number 1. That won't happen, but it should. It is inconceivable that a team can finish the season ranked in the top 6 in the nation and beat a top 5 team in a BCS bowl game to finish the season as the only undefeated team in college football and yet be an afterthought in the national title picture. What makes it even worse is that if the Utes win, the team they will have beaten was the consensus number one team in the nation just one month ago heading into the SEC championship game.
Go Utes!
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
One Down, One to Go
Jessi had surgery yesterday morning to remove her tubes. She had developed a tumor next to one so it had to be removed and the other one once cleaned off pretty much was falling out on its own so it was removed as well. The ENT doesn't think she needs new ones due to her ear growth so we are hopeful that her ears won't cause her any more problems and she can have fun in the pool with her brothers this summer. She did a great job and charmed every nurse that she saw earning herself a stash of stickers. She was a bit upset after surgery as the anesthesia wore off but calmed down rather quickly in her daddy's lap and was ready to go home by 9:00. On a funny note, before they took her back for surgery they gave her a drug to help calm her. Within 5 minutes she was swaying in circle while holding on to the bars of the bed and watching her hands sway back and forth in the air. It was hilarious. She was so out of it she doesn't remember them rolling her down the hall and mommy and daddy leaving. Ah the miracle of drugs.
Yesterday afternoon we also had an appointment for Spencer with the Urologist. He has been having pain when he urinates and it is getting rather bothersome to him. With one look at Spencer the doctor was sure that he needs to have surgery. They need to widen his "pee pee hole" (Spencer's term) as the doctor says it currently barely exists. So it looks like in late January we will be back in the hospital again for another round of surgery. Just like Jessi, they won't need an IV as it is so short they can just use a mask. Once Spencer heard there were no shots and it wouldn't hurt him anymore to urinate he got rather excited at the prospect of minor surgery. He is also hoping to round up some stickers. Well see how his charms work on the nurses.
Thank you to all of our friends who have watched of our children during all of our doctor's appointments this month. It has been a little crazy keeping up with them all but knowing there was always someone willing to watch the kids really relieved a whole ton of my stress. Thanks again, and let me know when we can repay the favor.
Yesterday afternoon we also had an appointment for Spencer with the Urologist. He has been having pain when he urinates and it is getting rather bothersome to him. With one look at Spencer the doctor was sure that he needs to have surgery. They need to widen his "pee pee hole" (Spencer's term) as the doctor says it currently barely exists. So it looks like in late January we will be back in the hospital again for another round of surgery. Just like Jessi, they won't need an IV as it is so short they can just use a mask. Once Spencer heard there were no shots and it wouldn't hurt him anymore to urinate he got rather excited at the prospect of minor surgery. He is also hoping to round up some stickers. Well see how his charms work on the nurses.
Thank you to all of our friends who have watched of our children during all of our doctor's appointments this month. It has been a little crazy keeping up with them all but knowing there was always someone willing to watch the kids really relieved a whole ton of my stress. Thanks again, and let me know when we can repay the favor.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Electronic Christmas Letter
Here is a copy of our Christmas letter this year. If you received a copy in the mail feel free to skip down to the pictures but for those that didn't Jacob wrote the letter this year. You know that means a fantastically witty annual Christmas letter. Sorry to those that did not receive a copy of this in the mail. We love and think of you all but unfortunately I don't have the time, and/or energy to repeat my wedding invitation process ever again.
Dear Family and Friends,
“Life is just like an old time rail journey … delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride.” -Gordon B Hinckley
This year began in Cedar City, Utah for us. I finished my 4th year of medical school at Pikeville College School of Osteopathic Medicine. As I have often been asked if my medical school education was online I will inform you that the 4th year of medical school is almost entirely filled with elective rotations (elective in that you choose which rotations to do not elective in choosing whether or not to do them). I chose to move my family back to Cedar City and finish out my schooling with the doctors I plan to work alongside in the future.
In the spring we received news that we would be moving to South Bend, Indiana to start a 3 year residency in Family Practice. Following graduation in June we bought a house, loaded up the Penske and anxiously began our next adventure in life.
Let me share with you some of the beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed.
Spencer will be 6 in January. He started Kindergarten this year and seems to enjoy each and every day. At a recent parent-teacher conference we were informed that Spencer is a joy to have in class because he approaches each day with such enthusiasm. According to his teacher Spencer is genuinely excited and almost surprised to see his friends each morning in class. It’s almost as if he is expecting them, or us, to move….
Jessi, 3, is overjoyed to have her own room fit for a princess. Melissa outdid herself painting and decorating Jessi’s room with stripes of pink and green along with shelves to display her Cinderella collection (graciously bestowed upon her by her wonderful Aunt Corinne). I’m somewhat surprised Melissa didn’t splurge on a Cinderella Fathead to put on the wall (if you don’t know what that is you need to ask the football fan in your family).
Kristian is a true Corry. Growing up it seemed everybody in my family had a strange nickname. I had a brother named Luther, a sister named Pard, I was called Frank from time to time. There were others, but I can’t remember them right now. At any rate Kristian is our little Nader, sometimes Naderman (pronounced like skater as opposed to chatter). He turned 2 on the 5th of December and enjoyed every minute of his birthday. This year has seen him start to walk, and talk. He’s still growing like a weed and he gets stronger every day. I have visions of him being my star football player in a few years (not that I’m trying to relive my life through my children or anything like that).
Melissa is somewhere between the 3rd and 7th months of her 4th pregnancy. I do know she is due in March (though I’m not sure on the date). She had an ultrasound so I know she’s past 20 weeks. The baby was not at all cooperative so we don’t know the sex. I’ve thought about taking her into the clinic or the hospital and playing around with the ultrasound myself, but we both are pretty excited to be surprised this time around. Melissa loves South Bend! She has made some wonderful friends and is slowly but surely making this house into quite a home.
Through the year we’ve experienced tragedies and triumphs, sicknesses, and health. We’ve felt love and longing, and this year, like no other, we feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude for the journey.
We wish you all the merriest of Christmases and hope this finds you well.
Love,
The Corrys
“Life is just like an old time rail journey … delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride.” -Gordon B Hinckley
This year began in Cedar City, Utah for us. I finished my 4th year of medical school at Pikeville College School of Osteopathic Medicine. As I have often been asked if my medical school education was online I will inform you that the 4th year of medical school is almost entirely filled with elective rotations (elective in that you choose which rotations to do not elective in choosing whether or not to do them). I chose to move my family back to Cedar City and finish out my schooling with the doctors I plan to work alongside in the future.
In the spring we received news that we would be moving to South Bend, Indiana to start a 3 year residency in Family Practice. Following graduation in June we bought a house, loaded up the Penske and anxiously began our next adventure in life.
Let me share with you some of the beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed.
Spencer will be 6 in January. He started Kindergarten this year and seems to enjoy each and every day. At a recent parent-teacher conference we were informed that Spencer is a joy to have in class because he approaches each day with such enthusiasm. According to his teacher Spencer is genuinely excited and almost surprised to see his friends each morning in class. It’s almost as if he is expecting them, or us, to move….
Jessi, 3, is overjoyed to have her own room fit for a princess. Melissa outdid herself painting and decorating Jessi’s room with stripes of pink and green along with shelves to display her Cinderella collection (graciously bestowed upon her by her wonderful Aunt Corinne). I’m somewhat surprised Melissa didn’t splurge on a Cinderella Fathead to put on the wall (if you don’t know what that is you need to ask the football fan in your family).
Kristian is a true Corry. Growing up it seemed everybody in my family had a strange nickname. I had a brother named Luther, a sister named Pard, I was called Frank from time to time. There were others, but I can’t remember them right now. At any rate Kristian is our little Nader, sometimes Naderman (pronounced like skater as opposed to chatter). He turned 2 on the 5th of December and enjoyed every minute of his birthday. This year has seen him start to walk, and talk. He’s still growing like a weed and he gets stronger every day. I have visions of him being my star football player in a few years (not that I’m trying to relive my life through my children or anything like that).
Melissa is somewhere between the 3rd and 7th months of her 4th pregnancy. I do know she is due in March (though I’m not sure on the date). She had an ultrasound so I know she’s past 20 weeks. The baby was not at all cooperative so we don’t know the sex. I’ve thought about taking her into the clinic or the hospital and playing around with the ultrasound myself, but we both are pretty excited to be surprised this time around. Melissa loves South Bend! She has made some wonderful friends and is slowly but surely making this house into quite a home.
Through the year we’ve experienced tragedies and triumphs, sicknesses, and health. We’ve felt love and longing, and this year, like no other, we feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude for the journey.
We wish you all the merriest of Christmases and hope this finds you well.
Love,
The Corrys
The first picture is what we sent out with the letter and then I added some additional pictures from the same photo session.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
I just can't get enough of these things.
1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? It has to be wrapped. Where's the joy in opening a bag. Unfortunately unless I can find somebody to wrap my gifts they usually end up in gift bags. Though Melissa likes gift bags because she can reuse them later (you will soon see that frugality is a theme for our Christmases).
2. Real tree or Artificial? I grew up with real trees and we may go back when we get to Cedar and we can go cut down our own tree, but for now it's fake.
3. When do you put up the tree? I try to push it to December, but we usually get it up the day after Thanksgiving.
4. When do you take the tree down? I think January, and unfortunately it's trees.
5. Do you like eggnog? I think eggnog should be on the shelves all year long right next to the chocolate milk. I wish Hershey's would make an eggnog syrup. Think of it, you could turn all your milk into eggnog, use it as a topping for ice cream, or pour it over pancakes. The possibilities are limitless.
6. Favorite gift received as a child? Optimus Prime (you may remeber from a previous post about a toy that I sold on ebay and miss dearly.)
7. Hardest person to buy for? Melissa of course. She doesn't like it when I spend to much, but she also really likes a surprise. One of these days I'm going to spend way too much and see if the surprise wins over the frugality.
8. Easiest person to buy for? Spencer, I hope it stays this way, but currently he loves all the same toys I do so shopping for him is fabulous.
9. Do you have a nativity scene? We have 3, though one is a series of small figurines (I think they have a name, but I can't remember it) that the kids are allowed to play with. some of the heads are gone so we may have to use it as a halloween decoration in the future.
10. Best Christmas gift you ever received? When we were engaged Melissa bought me the "Teachings of the Prophets" set. We weren't married yet so I couldn't get mad at her for how much it cost (we really are tightwads). It was completely unexpected and wonderful. My older brother made me a dresser that is probably second on the list. It wasn't done in time for Christmas so he put a copy of the plan in a large pickle jar and wrapped that up. When he finished it he asked me about putting handles on the drawers, but I couldn't decide what I wanted so they never got put on. That dresser has lived in Logan, Laramie, Denver, SLC, Pikeville, Yakima, Cedar City, and now South Bend. It still doesn't have any hardware.
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Slovakian Christmas (This one only my siblings will understand)
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Grinch and the Santa Clause series.
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Whenever Melissa can force me to do so.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Sure, We have a tradition of getting a 2L bottle of soda each year. The container gets put in the recycling bin and the soda gets gets returned to nature following an extensive water purification process, unless we happen to be tubing up the cabin when the soda is consumed then it just gets returned to nature in it's alreay pure form.
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Sausage rolls. I'm not sure Melissa has ever made them, but she will most likely learn this year just to make me happy. She is such a good wife. I also enjoy eating lots and lots of chocolate truffles. I was introduced to all of these by Melissa and she has continued her mother's traditions since we have moved away.
16. Lights on the tree? well duh. Who doesn't have lights on their tree? If you reply and say you don't have light on your tree or have seen a tree without lights on it I will delete your comment.
17. Favorite Christmas song? Currently it's 12 days by Straight no Chaser.
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? We travel whenever we can, but this year will be at home.
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? If you can't name all the reindeer you don't deserve to celebrate Christmas. Are you kidding me here? Who can't name all the reindeer? It's in the song! A better qestion would be can you tell me how many candles are on the menorah (now be sure to comment if you aren't sure what the menorah is). Let's go back to number 16 and ask if you light your menorah.
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Angel on the upstairs tree, Elf hat on the downstairs tree. I'm told we will be replacing the hat with a star when they go on sale after Christmas (have I mentioned how cheap we are?). The two tree thing is not something I had planned for. We bought a 6 foot tree for our first Christmas together. It was a cheap (that keeps coming up) little thing from Big Lots. We have always intended on replacing it, but never got around to it. This summer I found a nice 8 foot tree at a garage sale so I snatched it up and parted with my $2. I was so excited to show my wonderful purchase to Melissa (she happens to be a Christmas junky). When the moment came her response was, "wonderful now we can have an upstairs tree and a downstairs tree". Whoa now, what did I just do!?! I shouldn't have been surprised because for a few years Melissa's mother had 3 trees in her house, but I was totally blindsided and I fear I may never be able to get us back down to one tree. We keep talking about getting a prelit Christmas tree (after Christmas of course, or maybe at a garage sale), but if the point of a prelit tree is to lessen the work of Christmas I'll be nixing this plan. Three trees is just unacceptable!
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? One present on Christmas eve then the rest on Christmas day. Unless you have my sister who opens up any present she can get to long before Christmas then tries her best to wrap them back up so no one knows. I hope Heather grows up the same way.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? The cold, I think the time we've been above freezing since November is better measured in hours than in days. What is this Canada? I'm plotting to spend a few Christmases in Hawaii or Mexico in the future.
23. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Since I only have one to choose from I'm going to have to say Turkey and Ham (I've never had a Christmas without both). I'm thinking that we may start a tradition of having Filet and Lobster for Christmas, but first I have to perfect my culinary skills (Melissa doesn't grill and she's not to keen on cooking shellfish). Maybe I'll try marinating in an eggnog sauce, my mouth is watering already.
24. What do you want for Christmas this year? Apparently I wanted a new starter for the minivan. What I really want is to not be called into the hospital that night.
2. Real tree or Artificial? I grew up with real trees and we may go back when we get to Cedar and we can go cut down our own tree, but for now it's fake.
3. When do you put up the tree? I try to push it to December, but we usually get it up the day after Thanksgiving.
4. When do you take the tree down? I think January, and unfortunately it's trees.
5. Do you like eggnog? I think eggnog should be on the shelves all year long right next to the chocolate milk. I wish Hershey's would make an eggnog syrup. Think of it, you could turn all your milk into eggnog, use it as a topping for ice cream, or pour it over pancakes. The possibilities are limitless.
6. Favorite gift received as a child? Optimus Prime (you may remeber from a previous post about a toy that I sold on ebay and miss dearly.)
7. Hardest person to buy for? Melissa of course. She doesn't like it when I spend to much, but she also really likes a surprise. One of these days I'm going to spend way too much and see if the surprise wins over the frugality.
8. Easiest person to buy for? Spencer, I hope it stays this way, but currently he loves all the same toys I do so shopping for him is fabulous.
9. Do you have a nativity scene? We have 3, though one is a series of small figurines (I think they have a name, but I can't remember it) that the kids are allowed to play with. some of the heads are gone so we may have to use it as a halloween decoration in the future.
10. Best Christmas gift you ever received? When we were engaged Melissa bought me the "Teachings of the Prophets" set. We weren't married yet so I couldn't get mad at her for how much it cost (we really are tightwads). It was completely unexpected and wonderful. My older brother made me a dresser that is probably second on the list. It wasn't done in time for Christmas so he put a copy of the plan in a large pickle jar and wrapped that up. When he finished it he asked me about putting handles on the drawers, but I couldn't decide what I wanted so they never got put on. That dresser has lived in Logan, Laramie, Denver, SLC, Pikeville, Yakima, Cedar City, and now South Bend. It still doesn't have any hardware.
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Slovakian Christmas (This one only my siblings will understand)
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Grinch and the Santa Clause series.
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Whenever Melissa can force me to do so.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Sure, We have a tradition of getting a 2L bottle of soda each year. The container gets put in the recycling bin and the soda gets gets returned to nature following an extensive water purification process, unless we happen to be tubing up the cabin when the soda is consumed then it just gets returned to nature in it's alreay pure form.
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Sausage rolls. I'm not sure Melissa has ever made them, but she will most likely learn this year just to make me happy. She is such a good wife. I also enjoy eating lots and lots of chocolate truffles. I was introduced to all of these by Melissa and she has continued her mother's traditions since we have moved away.
16. Lights on the tree? well duh. Who doesn't have lights on their tree? If you reply and say you don't have light on your tree or have seen a tree without lights on it I will delete your comment.
17. Favorite Christmas song? Currently it's 12 days by Straight no Chaser.
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? We travel whenever we can, but this year will be at home.
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? If you can't name all the reindeer you don't deserve to celebrate Christmas. Are you kidding me here? Who can't name all the reindeer? It's in the song! A better qestion would be can you tell me how many candles are on the menorah (now be sure to comment if you aren't sure what the menorah is). Let's go back to number 16 and ask if you light your menorah.
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Angel on the upstairs tree, Elf hat on the downstairs tree. I'm told we will be replacing the hat with a star when they go on sale after Christmas (have I mentioned how cheap we are?). The two tree thing is not something I had planned for. We bought a 6 foot tree for our first Christmas together. It was a cheap (that keeps coming up) little thing from Big Lots. We have always intended on replacing it, but never got around to it. This summer I found a nice 8 foot tree at a garage sale so I snatched it up and parted with my $2. I was so excited to show my wonderful purchase to Melissa (she happens to be a Christmas junky). When the moment came her response was, "wonderful now we can have an upstairs tree and a downstairs tree". Whoa now, what did I just do!?! I shouldn't have been surprised because for a few years Melissa's mother had 3 trees in her house, but I was totally blindsided and I fear I may never be able to get us back down to one tree. We keep talking about getting a prelit Christmas tree (after Christmas of course, or maybe at a garage sale), but if the point of a prelit tree is to lessen the work of Christmas I'll be nixing this plan. Three trees is just unacceptable!
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? One present on Christmas eve then the rest on Christmas day. Unless you have my sister who opens up any present she can get to long before Christmas then tries her best to wrap them back up so no one knows. I hope Heather grows up the same way.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? The cold, I think the time we've been above freezing since November is better measured in hours than in days. What is this Canada? I'm plotting to spend a few Christmases in Hawaii or Mexico in the future.
23. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Since I only have one to choose from I'm going to have to say Turkey and Ham (I've never had a Christmas without both). I'm thinking that we may start a tradition of having Filet and Lobster for Christmas, but first I have to perfect my culinary skills (Melissa doesn't grill and she's not to keen on cooking shellfish). Maybe I'll try marinating in an eggnog sauce, my mouth is watering already.
24. What do you want for Christmas this year? Apparently I wanted a new starter for the minivan. What I really want is to not be called into the hospital that night.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Do guys do these things?
I've never taken part in any of these blog tags, but I liked this one because I've enjoyed reading the comments that people put next to the items they feel a need to justify. I've got lots of comments.
1. Started your own blog (2 actually, though Melissa seems to be trying to wrestle this one from me)
2. Slept under the stars (every summer night from age 5-19)
3. Played in a band (I played for one year then pretended to play for 2 more)
4. Visited Hawaii (not yet)
5. Watched a meteor shower (who hasn't)
6. Given more than you can afford to charity (I've never gone into debt for my charitable donations. I'm of the belief that this is the only way I can give more that I can afford )
7. Been to Disneyland (Melissa hasn't)
8. Climbed a mountain (Are you kidding me?)
9. Held a praying mantis (I'm pretty sure I did this as a kid, I think everybody does)
10. Sang a solo (every day in the shower)
11. Bungee jumped (I've never been able to justify the cost)
12. Visited Paris (not until we get to Brazil)
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea (does watching the perfect storm on DVD while sitting on a houseboat count?)
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch (if photography is an art then I have certainly taught myself an art as I know how to push the button, that said I don't think I'm a very good teacher)
15. Adopted a child (this is a dangerous one for those who have adopted a child if said child is old enough to read but not old enough to know he/she is adopted)
16. Had food poisoning (Only from food made in restaurants)
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty (I'm waiting for the escalator)
18. Grown your own vegetables (I've also failed to grow my own share of vegetable, hence the 23 chipmunks buried in our backyard)
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France (see #12)
20. Slept on an overnight train (I've slept on an overnight bus)
21. Had a pillow fight (This is a weekly thing in our house)
22. Hitch hiked (um...no)
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill (I just started my first real job in July, it will take some time)
24. Built a snow fort (They tend to be pretty pathetic because I get claustrophobic pretty easily)
25. Held a lamb (Actually I've never held the whole lamb, but the part I did hold was rather tasty)
26. Gone skinny dipping (my morals never allowed me to do this with members of the opposite sex and my good sense helped me to see how stupid it would be to do this with guys)
27. Run a Marathon (I've never stuck an ice pick in my eye either)
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice (#12)
29. Seen a total eclipse (How do you miss these? It seems everybody is outside each time it comes around)
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset (this is somewhat more difficult in the east where you can't often see the horizon)
31. Hit a home run (I hit a double to right field in my only hit during my only year of little league)
32. Been on a cruise (That's where I met Paige and told my friends in high school that she was the first girl I ever kissed. She was real, but the kiss was a figment of my imagination)
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person (as opposed to seeing it out of person)
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (#12)
35. Seen an Amish community (it's pathetic that we haven't been up to Amish Acres yet)
36. Taught yourself a new language (I've been working on Spanish so I'm counting this one)
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied (I don't like this one because I'm pretty satisfied right now, but I would like a truck and a Polaris RZR to put in the back of it. Of course that would require me to build a carport on the side of the house and we just don't have the money for that stuff, but I'm still pretty satisfied currently)
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person (#12, and #33)
39. Gone rock climbing (I've been rappelling a bunch of times, but that climbing thing hasn't really appealed to me)
40. Seen Michelangelo's David (#12)
41. Sung karaoke (heaven's no)
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt (We'll probably do this again before all that Europe stuff too)
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant (I've given Strangers money but I'm not too sure they used it for a meal...)
44. Visited Africa (not too high on my list of priorities)
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight (yeah with my siblings when I was a kid)
46. Been transported in an ambulance (I've never even been a patient in an ER)
47. Had your portrait painted (but Spencer draws me all the time)
48. Gone deep sea fishing (Maybe next year)
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person (#12, seriously what's with all the Europe references? Where's the questions about Machu Pichu, The Amazon, or Iguacu falls? Now those are some worthy destinations)
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower (I give up)
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling (in the tub)
52. Kissed in the rain (seriously what married man hasn't been forced to do this by his wife?)
53. Played in the mud (every chance I get)
54. Gone to a drive-in theater (I've driven to them lots of times, but I've never seen a movie there)
55. Been in a movie (Usually I'm the director, but occasionally Melissa takes over and I get in on the action)
56. Visited the Great Wall of China (what's so great about the wall? It's a giant wall that stretches across a continent, big deal.)
57. Started a business (hoping to never do this)
58. Taken a martial arts class (I don't know if Capoeira counts as Martial arts, but I took a Capoeira class in Brazil)
59. Visited Russia (not until we get to Hawaii, Brazil, Europe, and Africa)
60. Served at a soup kitchen (Sadly no)
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies (hence the title of the post)
62. Gone whale watching (I do this all the time and something tells me I'm watching in the wrong places)
63. Got flowers for no reason (I got them for Melissa)
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma (not as much as I should)
65. Gone sky diving (Definitely a top 10 moment of my life)
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp (Europe again?)
67. Bounced a check (I am way too anal for this one)
68. Flown in a helicopter (Engine failure makes me a little afraid to do this anytime soon, there's no coasting in with a helicopter)
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy (then sold it on ebay for $300 and bought a universal weight set that I gave away to a neighbor in Yakima. I sure miss that toy)
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial (Ah Good old American landmarks)
71. Eaten Caviar (fish eggs? I don't think so)
72. Pieced a quilt (I am a heterosexual male, no offense to any of you men out there who have pieced a quilt. Wait a minute no male is going to read this post all the way to #72)
73. Stood in Times Square (We'll get to that hopefully before Hawaii)
74. Toured the Everglades (I've been to Okefenokee swamp. I think that should count)
75. Been fired from a job (not in this lifetime)
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London (Europe is quickly moving below Russia on the list of places to visit)
77. Broken a bone (I did break my nose, but that doesn't really qualify as a "bone")
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle (I've never even been on a under-the-speed-limit motorcycle)
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person (We listened to NKOTB all the way there and all the way back with our exchange student Hajime)
80. Published a book (I'm working on my skills through blog posts like these)
81. Visited the Vatican (Isn't that in Europe?)
82. Bought a brand new car (Only after the Probe died on the road between Tooele and WVC, I don't plan to buy a new car ever again)
83. Walked in Jerusalem (Definitely want to do this before Europe)
84. Had your picture in the newspaper (I'm from Cedar City, UT and we have our own newspaper so this one isn't too difficult)
85. Read the entire Bible (I have according to the Gideons)
86. Visited the White House (I've driven past it. Does that count?)
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating (Ah the joys of growing up in rural Utah)
88. Had chickenpox (I think this one's a yes, but I'm not entirely sure)
89. Saved some one's life (I'm not too sure how instrumental I was in the life saving, but none of my code patients have passed on my time....yet)
90. Sat on a jury (I hear the ticking every day and it's driving me insane. When will my time come. It's like waiting for the Code siren to go off.)
91. Met someone famous – (this is very ambiguous because what qualifies as famous? I’ve met people that are “Utah famous”)
92. Joined a book club (I leave these to Melissa)
93. Lost a loved one (We lost Mark once coming down from the cabin, but we found him a short time later)
94. Had a baby (I'm really beginning to think I'm of the wrong sex to be doing this)
95. Seen the Alamo in person (I don't like Texas)
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake (It was more like bobbing)
97. Been involved in a law suit (not yet)
98. Owned a cell phone (I sure don't want to)
99. Been stung by a bee (Only once)
100. Read an entire book in one day (one day I read six, and Spencer loved every one of them)
So there you have it folks. I'm not going to tag anybody because just having read this far I think you've suffered enough.
I think that for the next sewing group night I'll make up my own list of 100 things that all men should do. I can assure you the only reference to Europe on that list will be driving on the Autobahn in a Ferrari (or the Italian sports car of your choice).
1. Started your own blog (2 actually, though Melissa seems to be trying to wrestle this one from me)
2. Slept under the stars (every summer night from age 5-19)
3. Played in a band (I played for one year then pretended to play for 2 more)
4. Visited Hawaii (not yet)
5. Watched a meteor shower (who hasn't)
6. Given more than you can afford to charity (I've never gone into debt for my charitable donations. I'm of the belief that this is the only way I can give more that I can afford )
7. Been to Disneyland (Melissa hasn't)
8. Climbed a mountain (Are you kidding me?)
9. Held a praying mantis (I'm pretty sure I did this as a kid, I think everybody does)
10. Sang a solo (every day in the shower)
11. Bungee jumped (I've never been able to justify the cost)
12. Visited Paris (not until we get to Brazil)
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea (does watching the perfect storm on DVD while sitting on a houseboat count?)
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch (if photography is an art then I have certainly taught myself an art as I know how to push the button, that said I don't think I'm a very good teacher)
15. Adopted a child (this is a dangerous one for those who have adopted a child if said child is old enough to read but not old enough to know he/she is adopted)
16. Had food poisoning (Only from food made in restaurants)
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty (I'm waiting for the escalator)
18. Grown your own vegetables (I've also failed to grow my own share of vegetable, hence the 23 chipmunks buried in our backyard)
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France (see #12)
20. Slept on an overnight train (I've slept on an overnight bus)
21. Had a pillow fight (This is a weekly thing in our house)
22. Hitch hiked (um...no)
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill (I just started my first real job in July, it will take some time)
24. Built a snow fort (They tend to be pretty pathetic because I get claustrophobic pretty easily)
25. Held a lamb (Actually I've never held the whole lamb, but the part I did hold was rather tasty)
26. Gone skinny dipping (my morals never allowed me to do this with members of the opposite sex and my good sense helped me to see how stupid it would be to do this with guys)
27. Run a Marathon (I've never stuck an ice pick in my eye either)
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice (#12)
29. Seen a total eclipse (How do you miss these? It seems everybody is outside each time it comes around)
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset (this is somewhat more difficult in the east where you can't often see the horizon)
31. Hit a home run (I hit a double to right field in my only hit during my only year of little league)
32. Been on a cruise (That's where I met Paige and told my friends in high school that she was the first girl I ever kissed. She was real, but the kiss was a figment of my imagination)
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person (as opposed to seeing it out of person)
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (#12)
35. Seen an Amish community (it's pathetic that we haven't been up to Amish Acres yet)
36. Taught yourself a new language (I've been working on Spanish so I'm counting this one)
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied (I don't like this one because I'm pretty satisfied right now, but I would like a truck and a Polaris RZR to put in the back of it. Of course that would require me to build a carport on the side of the house and we just don't have the money for that stuff, but I'm still pretty satisfied currently)
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person (#12, and #33)
39. Gone rock climbing (I've been rappelling a bunch of times, but that climbing thing hasn't really appealed to me)
40. Seen Michelangelo's David (#12)
41. Sung karaoke (heaven's no)
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt (We'll probably do this again before all that Europe stuff too)
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant (I've given Strangers money but I'm not too sure they used it for a meal...)
44. Visited Africa (not too high on my list of priorities)
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight (yeah with my siblings when I was a kid)
46. Been transported in an ambulance (I've never even been a patient in an ER)
47. Had your portrait painted (but Spencer draws me all the time)
48. Gone deep sea fishing (Maybe next year)
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person (#12, seriously what's with all the Europe references? Where's the questions about Machu Pichu, The Amazon, or Iguacu falls? Now those are some worthy destinations)
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower (I give up)
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling (in the tub)
52. Kissed in the rain (seriously what married man hasn't been forced to do this by his wife?)
53. Played in the mud (every chance I get)
54. Gone to a drive-in theater (I've driven to them lots of times, but I've never seen a movie there)
55. Been in a movie (Usually I'm the director, but occasionally Melissa takes over and I get in on the action)
56. Visited the Great Wall of China (what's so great about the wall? It's a giant wall that stretches across a continent, big deal.)
57. Started a business (hoping to never do this)
58. Taken a martial arts class (I don't know if Capoeira counts as Martial arts, but I took a Capoeira class in Brazil)
59. Visited Russia (not until we get to Hawaii, Brazil, Europe, and Africa)
60. Served at a soup kitchen (Sadly no)
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies (hence the title of the post)
62. Gone whale watching (I do this all the time and something tells me I'm watching in the wrong places)
63. Got flowers for no reason (I got them for Melissa)
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma (not as much as I should)
65. Gone sky diving (Definitely a top 10 moment of my life)
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp (Europe again?)
67. Bounced a check (I am way too anal for this one)
68. Flown in a helicopter (Engine failure makes me a little afraid to do this anytime soon, there's no coasting in with a helicopter)
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy (then sold it on ebay for $300 and bought a universal weight set that I gave away to a neighbor in Yakima. I sure miss that toy)
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial (Ah Good old American landmarks)
71. Eaten Caviar (fish eggs? I don't think so)
72. Pieced a quilt (I am a heterosexual male, no offense to any of you men out there who have pieced a quilt. Wait a minute no male is going to read this post all the way to #72)
73. Stood in Times Square (We'll get to that hopefully before Hawaii)
74. Toured the Everglades (I've been to Okefenokee swamp. I think that should count)
75. Been fired from a job (not in this lifetime)
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London (Europe is quickly moving below Russia on the list of places to visit)
77. Broken a bone (I did break my nose, but that doesn't really qualify as a "bone")
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle (I've never even been on a under-the-speed-limit motorcycle)
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person (We listened to NKOTB all the way there and all the way back with our exchange student Hajime)
80. Published a book (I'm working on my skills through blog posts like these)
81. Visited the Vatican (Isn't that in Europe?)
82. Bought a brand new car (Only after the Probe died on the road between Tooele and WVC, I don't plan to buy a new car ever again)
83. Walked in Jerusalem (Definitely want to do this before Europe)
84. Had your picture in the newspaper (I'm from Cedar City, UT and we have our own newspaper so this one isn't too difficult)
85. Read the entire Bible (I have according to the Gideons)
86. Visited the White House (I've driven past it. Does that count?)
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating (Ah the joys of growing up in rural Utah)
88. Had chickenpox (I think this one's a yes, but I'm not entirely sure)
89. Saved some one's life (I'm not too sure how instrumental I was in the life saving, but none of my code patients have passed on my time....yet)
90. Sat on a jury (I hear the ticking every day and it's driving me insane. When will my time come. It's like waiting for the Code siren to go off.)
91. Met someone famous – (this is very ambiguous because what qualifies as famous? I’ve met people that are “Utah famous”)
92. Joined a book club (I leave these to Melissa)
93. Lost a loved one (We lost Mark once coming down from the cabin, but we found him a short time later)
94. Had a baby (I'm really beginning to think I'm of the wrong sex to be doing this)
95. Seen the Alamo in person (I don't like Texas)
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake (It was more like bobbing)
97. Been involved in a law suit (not yet)
98. Owned a cell phone (I sure don't want to)
99. Been stung by a bee (Only once)
100. Read an entire book in one day (one day I read six, and Spencer loved every one of them)
So there you have it folks. I'm not going to tag anybody because just having read this far I think you've suffered enough.
I think that for the next sewing group night I'll make up my own list of 100 things that all men should do. I can assure you the only reference to Europe on that list will be driving on the Autobahn in a Ferrari (or the Italian sports car of your choice).
Monday, December 8, 2008
Finally My Celebrity Status Is Secure
Here's a link to an article about me in my hometown newspaper.
Well actually it isn't about me per say, but it does mention me.
I'm not specifically mentioned by name, but if you read far enough you will get to the part about the son in residency. That's me! Famous indeed.
Ok, Ok, this is an article about my Dad and his battle with Lymphoma (he's currently winning). He's very embarrassed about the whole deal so I'm doing my part to get the word out to further increase that embarrassment a little bit.... and because I love him.
Well actually it isn't about me per say, but it does mention me.
I'm not specifically mentioned by name, but if you read far enough you will get to the part about the son in residency. That's me! Famous indeed.
Ok, Ok, this is an article about my Dad and his battle with Lymphoma (he's currently winning). He's very embarrassed about the whole deal so I'm doing my part to get the word out to further increase that embarrassment a little bit.... and because I love him.
Happy Birthday Kristian
Kristian turned 2 on Friday. I think he must have known it was his birthday as he was per-ma-grin all day. He woke up with a huge smile and ran around excited for most of the morning. Spencer and Jessi kept telling him that he was the boss since it was his birthday. He seemed to relish in this and had a great time being "in charge" of their play time throughout the day.
When we started making his cake he went from per-ma-grin to totally hyper. He kept running around the kitchen trying to push me out of the way so he could see what was going on. For a 2 year old he is surprisingly strong and I eventually had to get Jacob to take him downstairs as I couldn't get the cake iced with him pushing me every 2 minutes. This put a momentary damper on the per-ma-grin but he got over it when he was shown the finish product.
For dinner we had Kristian's assumed favorite, Pancake Dinner. We assume this is his favorite as he can put them away like nothing else. He enjoyed his pancakes, sausage, biscuits, and fry ups. (So its not the healthiest birthday dinner) As soon as dinner was cleared he was ready for cake. He grinned from ear to ear while we sang happy birthday to him and then couldn't quite figure out while we all kept telling him to blow on it. With a little help from his siblings we got the candles blown out and then enjoyed his football shaped birthday cake and ice cream.
After cake and ice cream it was time for presents. Kristian understood this year that there was a toy inside the paper and couldn't tear it off fast enough. I love when they get old enough to understand the concept of presents. He was very happy with his gifts and played for them for the rest of the evening. At bed time he climbed in his bed with his new football and was particularly happy when Mom and Dad decided it was okay for him to sleep with it, as it was his birthday. And you better believe he was asleep before he even had a chance to play with it. Nothing like a great birthday to wear you out.
Kristian is such a joy in our lives. He is a ball of energy each and every day and can go for hours. He is generally a pretty easy going kid and doesn't get upset to often. He likes to pack away the food and I often wonder if he is ever full. He is learning to talk more and surprises us each day with the new words he has picked up. He is really starting to love playing and watching sports with Daddy. They cheer on their teams and practice play on time-outs. It is a blast to watch. We are so grateful to have his precious little spirit in our family. We love you, Nader Man!
Christmas is Coming!!
We spent last Sunday and Monday getting our house ready for Christmas. It took two days this year as we had two trees to put up. Ah yes, I am following in my Mother's footsteps. (Although I have promised Jacob that I will never make him do three trees) Jacob found a great tree at a garage sale last summer for $3.00. He bought it thinking to replace our smaller tree. I was so excited when he brought it home to realize that I could now have two trees.
It was the perfect year to start the two tree tradition as we now have two rooms for Christmas trees. We put the "new to us" tree in the living room and decorated it with the matching ornaments, ribbon, and white lights. How we got all of these matching decorations is a quirky story.
When I was pregnant with Spencer the company that I worked for announced that it would be closing its doors. My boss and I were responsible to go through all of the assets and account for each as we sold them. When we got to the end of the list we realized we still had a few things in the storage shed that hadn't been accounted for. This included the Christmas Decorations for the tree they put in the lobby each year. As it was never listed as an asset it wasn't required to go in the "sale" pile of assets that had been sold to another company. And wham, suddenly I inherited a beautiful set of ornaments to decorate my own Christmas tree. And all I had to do was lose my job :) I also got a cool office tree (one of those fake ones) but it never made the move.
So this "new to us tree" and "new to us decorations" now makes up my "formal" Christmas tree. I love it. I can't tell you how happy I am not to have Homer Simpson hanging on my beautiful Christmas tree. I can't wait for the after Christmas sells. I would like to get a few more of the really nice ornaments for my formal tree, just for some variety, but I can't bring myself to pay for them at the before Christmas prices when I know they will be going 50% - 75% off after and it really looks great now so it is definitely something that can wait.
So where is Homer now? We set up our old tree in the family room and even bought (shocker I know) some colored lights and a few more glass balls for it. (the ornaments where a little thin now that they are divided between two trees, I love that Dollar Tree.) The tree turned out great and it is so fun to see all of the handmade ornaments that the kids have made. Although I think next year we won't be putting candy canes on it as I keep finding them stuffed in my couch cushions, broken in half with one bite out of them. Thanks Kristian.
All in all, it turned out to be more fun to set up our Christmas stuff then it has been in the past. Spencer was much more of a help this year and all of the kids really seemed to get into the process more. The kids get so excited each morning to take another mini ornament out of the advent calendar and they plug in the Christmas lights any time they are in the room. It is just fun to see them so caught up in the Christmas Spirit.
Friday, November 28, 2008
The First Annual Eastern Corry Thanksgiving
So as I am typing this for my Journal as well so you will get an in depth play by play of what went on mostly in the kitchen. Feel free to skim or skip.
It was a great Thanksgiving Holiday for us. Jacob was slammed at the Hospital all day Wednesday but when 8:00 rolled around everything just slowed down. He headed to the call room and was able to sleep most of the night. This was a huge blessing as he arrived home at 7:00ish on Thursday morning and was able to enjoy the entire Thanksgiving Day without needing a nap first.
Meagan and I stayed pretty busy most of the day in the kitchen. I feel pretty good about our first go of making an entire Thanksgiving Meal on our own. We prepared the pies on Wednesday so that was out of the way. We had a great breakfast of Pumpkin Pancakes (courtesy of Doug and Meagan) Eggs, and Bacon. The pancakes were a great hit, especially with Kristian. He ate three and had pumpkin toots the rest of the day. Yup that is right, pumpkin toots. This means when Kristian tooted, it smelled like pumpkin. Hilarious.
After breakfast we started making the rolls. The guys took the kids outside to play with the remote control cars. The kids had a blast chasing after the cars and I think Jacob and Doug had just about as much fun, keeping them away from the chasing kids. While the kids were outside and out from under foot Meagan and I moved on to prepping the turkey, that was a fun experience. It is amazing how you can watch your mom do this whole preparation every year but suddenly when you are in charge you realize you never payed very close attention. Ah well, Thanks again mom for keeping your cell phone close to you all day and answering question after question.
During nap time Meagan and I finished prepping all of the Thanksgiving sides and Jacob and Doug went to see The Dark Knight. They triple checked to make sure this was okay and we let them know they were allowed to go as long as when they got back they did whatever we asked of them, including dishes. (Which they did, Thanks guys!!) Upon their return from the movie, began the "down to the wire" time. Meagan and I had every burner on the stove going and Jacob and Doug has us laughing with their creative carving techniques and their constant howls of "oh man, that's hot". With very little stress, much less than I was anticipating, we were sitting up to the table ready for a prayer at 5:15. We had planned for 5:00 so I figure this is pretty good.
The turkey turned out great, very moist and we even managed to have gravy from the drippings that wasn't lumpy. (this was the part that caused the most worries) All the sides (Rolls, Stuffing, 2 types of Potatoes, and 3 Veggies) were wonderful, with a slight exception to the roast potatoes which were a little underdone. Meagan's family's tradition of Pretzel Salad was a big hit and a great addition to the meal. By the time we pushed away from the table everyone was sufficiently full and we waited a little bit for pie.
After clean up, which went super fast, we sat back up for pie and I was very happy with how our homemade crust's turned out. This was only my second time making pie crust so I was a bit nervous of how the end result would be. The pies continued to be pulled out throughout the rest of the evening. We put the kids to bed at 8:00, I fell asleep on the floor at 8:30 and Jacob and I went up to bed at 9:00. Doug and Meagan said they followed to bed pretty soon after that. We are party animals!!
So that is the play by play of the First Annual Eastern Corry Thanksgiving. We are hoping to have Mark and Krista join us next year, and whom ever else we can coax to visit. It was a wonderful visit with Doug and Meagan and we are so grateful they were able to come. There was lots of laughs, chats, and good old family fun. We have so much to be grateful for and I am overwhelmed at how much the Lord has blessed me and my family.
The Big Game
As Jacob wrote, we went over to a friends to watch the big game. Here is our little family picture just before leaving to go to watch the game. 
Jacob was on call the next day and wasn't able to attend church with us. I decided that we would celebrate for him by wearing our favorite team's colors. Here is a picture of the kids. Most everyone asked if we were taking Christmas pictures after church and I let them know we were celebrating the big win. However, after looking at the pictures, we might end up with a Christmas one that looks very similar, with mom and dad added of course.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
4th and 18 no more (and an update sent by email for those who don't check the blog)
At long last I can wash from my mind the visions of Austin Collie getting behind the Utes defense on 4th and 18 for a gain of half the field. The last second touchdown of 2006 is but a memory now. I'm betting any Cougar fan would gladly trade those two games for what Ute fans are experiencing now. Though I must admit it's not quite so exciting for me the second time around.
We were fortunate enough to watch the game from start to finish at a friend's house. Being surrounded by BYU fans made it a little difficult for me to properly celebrate with each Max Hall miscue, but that's probably a good thing. I was very nervous when the Utah offense seemed to shut-down soon after the second quarter commenced. I had visions of a blow-out when the Cougars started to get on track and got a few defensive stops. When the second half started and the Cougars pulled within 3 I was pretty sure the game was going to get out of hand. The Utes hadn't done anything on offense, excepting one long pass play after an interception, for 45 minutes (real time not game time). Then, inexplicably, Max Hall decided to put his stamp on the game. The Cougars were running all over the field. So it is only natural that they would want to balance out their game (people try to do this with their financial portfolios all the time by selling their big gainers to buy more losers) by drawing more pass plays. At this point I think the Utes had already batted down 3 balls. We all know what happened next. For those of you who don't, Max Hall threw 4 more interceptions and fumbled the ball. The Utes capitalized and my memories were washed clean.
I think the Utes played a good game, but not a great game. Some of the turnovers were good defensive plays and some were just poor decisions (or mistakes) by the BYU offense. My sympathies to all you Cougar fans out there. I'm trying not to gloat, but I have two years of pent up rage just now being released. I'm also still perturbed by all the attention this Cougar team got during the offseason.
Now that I've bored half of you and offended the other half let's see what's going on here in South Bend.
I'm in my last week of OB call and while very taxing physically I have enjoyed the month for the most part. The attending physicians I have worked with have been wonderful. They've been very receptive to my questions and I feel like I have learned a great deal over the past few weeks. I haven't decided for sure whether or not I want to do OB as part of my practice for the next 30 years, but I'm leaning more toward that avenue now than I was a month ago. We'll see how I feel about it when I'm called in for my own patients rather than being on the floor for each 24 hour call.
Melissa continues to discover new aches and pains with each passing day. I keep expecting to come home from call to a house in disorder and children sacked out in front of the TV, but it just hasn't happened. I'm not sure why I expect this as it never happened with her 3 previous pregnancies either. She has kept herself busy with a variety of books and sewing projects as well as helping Spencer with his homework, encouraging Jessi in her lifelong battle with the potty, and keeping Kristian from breaking everything n the house. She is very happy here and has the best support group I could wish for. She constantly tells me of these wonderful women who continue to support and comfort her at playgroup, sewing group and whatever other group she can fit into the week.
Spencer is still loving school, though he does enjoy his Saturdays. He and I went over to the school the other day to fly his kite. I haven't flown a kit since I was a kid and I've got to tell you it was a lot of fun. His kite is a cheap flimsy thing we got from the dollar store, but it was very fun for both of us. I may have to buy a nicer kite when spring rolls around.
Jessi's relationship with the potty is on the rocks once again. She has done so well for the past few months, but apparently she's just not into it at the moment. She has a cold and her ears have been draining so I'm hoping that her her potty issues will resolve when her cold does.
As I mentioned previously Kristian gets into everything. It feels strange to us that he will turn 2 next week. The last time we had a 2 year we also had a 6 month old so this feels a little different. His babbling is becoming a little more understandable, but he has found that temper tantrums are the way to go most of the time. Compared to our other kids Kristian is exceptionally strong (and aggressive) If we leave the bathroom doors open he climbs until he can just reach the faucet then proceeds to pull himself up to the counter so that he can get into the cabinet and play with the toothbrushes. I was certain somebody was helping him get up there until I saw the feat for myself.
We very much enjoyed Mark and Krista's whirlwind visit for interviews. I think they enjoyed themselves as well and we are pulling for them to make South Bend home (for 3 years anyway). We are also looking forward to Doug and Maegan's visit for Thanksgiving (though I will spend most of their time here within the warm confines of the hospital).
We wish you all a happy Thanksgiving and hope this finds you well.
We were fortunate enough to watch the game from start to finish at a friend's house. Being surrounded by BYU fans made it a little difficult for me to properly celebrate with each Max Hall miscue, but that's probably a good thing. I was very nervous when the Utah offense seemed to shut-down soon after the second quarter commenced. I had visions of a blow-out when the Cougars started to get on track and got a few defensive stops. When the second half started and the Cougars pulled within 3 I was pretty sure the game was going to get out of hand. The Utes hadn't done anything on offense, excepting one long pass play after an interception, for 45 minutes (real time not game time). Then, inexplicably, Max Hall decided to put his stamp on the game. The Cougars were running all over the field. So it is only natural that they would want to balance out their game (people try to do this with their financial portfolios all the time by selling their big gainers to buy more losers) by drawing more pass plays. At this point I think the Utes had already batted down 3 balls. We all know what happened next. For those of you who don't, Max Hall threw 4 more interceptions and fumbled the ball. The Utes capitalized and my memories were washed clean.
I think the Utes played a good game, but not a great game. Some of the turnovers were good defensive plays and some were just poor decisions (or mistakes) by the BYU offense. My sympathies to all you Cougar fans out there. I'm trying not to gloat, but I have two years of pent up rage just now being released. I'm also still perturbed by all the attention this Cougar team got during the offseason.
Now that I've bored half of you and offended the other half let's see what's going on here in South Bend.
I'm in my last week of OB call and while very taxing physically I have enjoyed the month for the most part. The attending physicians I have worked with have been wonderful. They've been very receptive to my questions and I feel like I have learned a great deal over the past few weeks. I haven't decided for sure whether or not I want to do OB as part of my practice for the next 30 years, but I'm leaning more toward that avenue now than I was a month ago. We'll see how I feel about it when I'm called in for my own patients rather than being on the floor for each 24 hour call.
Melissa continues to discover new aches and pains with each passing day. I keep expecting to come home from call to a house in disorder and children sacked out in front of the TV, but it just hasn't happened. I'm not sure why I expect this as it never happened with her 3 previous pregnancies either. She has kept herself busy with a variety of books and sewing projects as well as helping Spencer with his homework, encouraging Jessi in her lifelong battle with the potty, and keeping Kristian from breaking everything n the house. She is very happy here and has the best support group I could wish for. She constantly tells me of these wonderful women who continue to support and comfort her at playgroup, sewing group and whatever other group she can fit into the week.
Spencer is still loving school, though he does enjoy his Saturdays. He and I went over to the school the other day to fly his kite. I haven't flown a kit since I was a kid and I've got to tell you it was a lot of fun. His kite is a cheap flimsy thing we got from the dollar store, but it was very fun for both of us. I may have to buy a nicer kite when spring rolls around.
Jessi's relationship with the potty is on the rocks once again. She has done so well for the past few months, but apparently she's just not into it at the moment. She has a cold and her ears have been draining so I'm hoping that her her potty issues will resolve when her cold does.
As I mentioned previously Kristian gets into everything. It feels strange to us that he will turn 2 next week. The last time we had a 2 year we also had a 6 month old so this feels a little different. His babbling is becoming a little more understandable, but he has found that temper tantrums are the way to go most of the time. Compared to our other kids Kristian is exceptionally strong (and aggressive) If we leave the bathroom doors open he climbs until he can just reach the faucet then proceeds to pull himself up to the counter so that he can get into the cabinet and play with the toothbrushes. I was certain somebody was helping him get up there until I saw the feat for myself.
We very much enjoyed Mark and Krista's whirlwind visit for interviews. I think they enjoyed themselves as well and we are pulling for them to make South Bend home (for 3 years anyway). We are also looking forward to Doug and Maegan's visit for Thanksgiving (though I will spend most of their time here within the warm confines of the hospital).
We wish you all a happy Thanksgiving and hope this finds you well.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Not in denial
Spencer: "Dad be quiet. I'm talking to myself and I can't hear."
With a statement like that who cares what the background story is.
With a statement like that who cares what the background story is.
Thank You Mr. Snowplow Guy
So Jacob was on call last night (so he isn't home this morning) and it snowed a ton. When I woke up I was in a rush to get all of the kids ready hoping that I could at least have time to clear a foot path for Spencer to get to his ride for school. We had bought snow shovels the other day and Jacob decided we needed a big one and a small one. He asked me (or kind of told me) to only use the small one and only throw a very small amount of snow at a time and only when necessary. (he knows my ability to over-do-it very well). I decided this was very good request and started shoveling with my small shovel in about a foot width swipes. About half way down one swipe of the drive I started to realize, at this rate, the footpath alone was going to take me all morning.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a young man pulls up in my drive with a plow attached to the front of his truck and lets me know "he's got it". He then proceeded to plow my entire drive in 2 minutes flat. I said thank you, over and over, and he said "No Big Deal" and proceeded to clear the driveway's of the condos across the street from us. The ones he gets paid to do. I felt such an overwhelming sense of gratitude to this person. So I did what all Betty-Homemakers do, I threw some brownies in a bag and ran them across the street to him and said Thank You again. I explained to him that I am pregnant and that his help was a huge blessing to me. He explained that when he saw me he just felt like I needed some help and then added that whenever he was assigned to this route he would make sure to get my driveway as well.
I am so grateful for tender mercies from my Heavenly Father. This morning was truly a blessing and I am so grateful for it. The young man kept telling me it was no big deal, but for me it was a very big deal. So whoever you are, thank you a million times over, Mr. Snowplow Guy!!
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a young man pulls up in my drive with a plow attached to the front of his truck and lets me know "he's got it". He then proceeded to plow my entire drive in 2 minutes flat. I said thank you, over and over, and he said "No Big Deal" and proceeded to clear the driveway's of the condos across the street from us. The ones he gets paid to do. I felt such an overwhelming sense of gratitude to this person. So I did what all Betty-Homemakers do, I threw some brownies in a bag and ran them across the street to him and said Thank You again. I explained to him that I am pregnant and that his help was a huge blessing to me. He explained that when he saw me he just felt like I needed some help and then added that whenever he was assigned to this route he would make sure to get my driveway as well.
I am so grateful for tender mercies from my Heavenly Father. This morning was truly a blessing and I am so grateful for it. The young man kept telling me it was no big deal, but for me it was a very big deal. So whoever you are, thank you a million times over, Mr. Snowplow Guy!!
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
My greatest lesson in Life
So I've noticed there are basically two types of blogs; opinion blogs, and information blogs. This blog seems to have a pretty even share of the two because Melissa does a good job with the information/pictures that most of you care about and I tend to write more opinion posts that probably only appeal to a small portion of our faithful readers. So without further ado here is another pictureless post.
I've been reflecting a lot over the past month on my dad. The post some time ago about my sobfest home from the ER was caused by his diagnosis of Lymphoma. He has started his treatment and though it will be very difficult we all feel very confident that everything will turn out okay.
My dad and I have always gotten along really well. I consider myself lucky that I have been able to go to him for help at any time in my 31 years of life and he has always been able to give that help. It should come as no surprise that much of what I am I contribute to my father. If there was any time that our relationship was the least bit strained it was during my high school years. Ironically, over the last year I have realized that my greatest lesson in life started at one singular moment with my dad during those years.
I ran Track and Cross Country in high school, and at the time my dad was the girls' coach for both sports. Our distance coach in track was nonexistant so dad did a lot with the boys team as well. Track and Field in Utah consists of three major meets with a bunch of smaller ones thrown in for good measure. One of those major meets is the BYU invitational. When I was a junior I remember getting ready to run the 3200 (2 mile) at BYU. My best time was right near the division point of one heat to another. As is custom we embelished my time a little to get me into the faster heat. Up until recently I have considered this a terrible decision.
I started off the race doing well but as we got further and further along I got further behind the main pack of runners and I'm pretty sure by the middle of my 7th lap I was alone in last place. These guys were just better than me. Rather than give up I ran as hard as I ever had for fear of being lapped by the lead runner (I did avoid being lapped, but just barely). As I rounded the last turn on my 8th lap I was the only runner left on the track. I was getting the courtesy clap from most of the crowd. When I finished I found that I had run my fastest 3200 ever and it wasn't even close. I was devastated and embarrassed to have taken last. I gained no measure of comfort from the fact that I had done my best. My dad on the other hand couldn't have been prouder. In fact I can't remember a race in my high school career where my dad was more excited with my performance.
Fast forward to my senior year. Very early in the season I ran a 5 minute mile. Generally you can expect to improve quite a bit over the process of a season so the prospect of running at state and actually running well was not out of the question. Through no lack of laziness on my part that race was the fastest of my career. Though he never said much (and still doesn't) I'm pretty sure my dad was disappointed in my lack of progress that season. I had a great spring that year and actually placed well in a few races, but when I look back I know that I could have done better.
The lesson in all this, that I am finally beginning to see at 31 years of age, is that life is all about doing your best. The world tells us that success is defined by how well you do compared to everyone around you. You have to make more money than your neighbor. You have to be a better father than your coworker. Your kid needs to be the smartest kid in class. There is no truth in this way of thinking. Success is all about doing your best. It's not even about improving from yesterday, because that isn't always possible (another thing I have learned from my dad as he has aged and started going through Chemo). If I can look back at my day each night (or each morning after having been on call) and say that I did my best it is a good day.
In my race of life there are times I feel I'm running in first and times I feel I'm running in last, but for the past little while at least I feel like the Father who's watching this race is pretty happy with me because I'm staying on track to run my best time, and I think that makes my dad happy too.
I've been reflecting a lot over the past month on my dad. The post some time ago about my sobfest home from the ER was caused by his diagnosis of Lymphoma. He has started his treatment and though it will be very difficult we all feel very confident that everything will turn out okay.
My dad and I have always gotten along really well. I consider myself lucky that I have been able to go to him for help at any time in my 31 years of life and he has always been able to give that help. It should come as no surprise that much of what I am I contribute to my father. If there was any time that our relationship was the least bit strained it was during my high school years. Ironically, over the last year I have realized that my greatest lesson in life started at one singular moment with my dad during those years.
I ran Track and Cross Country in high school, and at the time my dad was the girls' coach for both sports. Our distance coach in track was nonexistant so dad did a lot with the boys team as well. Track and Field in Utah consists of three major meets with a bunch of smaller ones thrown in for good measure. One of those major meets is the BYU invitational. When I was a junior I remember getting ready to run the 3200 (2 mile) at BYU. My best time was right near the division point of one heat to another. As is custom we embelished my time a little to get me into the faster heat. Up until recently I have considered this a terrible decision.
I started off the race doing well but as we got further and further along I got further behind the main pack of runners and I'm pretty sure by the middle of my 7th lap I was alone in last place. These guys were just better than me. Rather than give up I ran as hard as I ever had for fear of being lapped by the lead runner (I did avoid being lapped, but just barely). As I rounded the last turn on my 8th lap I was the only runner left on the track. I was getting the courtesy clap from most of the crowd. When I finished I found that I had run my fastest 3200 ever and it wasn't even close. I was devastated and embarrassed to have taken last. I gained no measure of comfort from the fact that I had done my best. My dad on the other hand couldn't have been prouder. In fact I can't remember a race in my high school career where my dad was more excited with my performance.
Fast forward to my senior year. Very early in the season I ran a 5 minute mile. Generally you can expect to improve quite a bit over the process of a season so the prospect of running at state and actually running well was not out of the question. Through no lack of laziness on my part that race was the fastest of my career. Though he never said much (and still doesn't) I'm pretty sure my dad was disappointed in my lack of progress that season. I had a great spring that year and actually placed well in a few races, but when I look back I know that I could have done better.
The lesson in all this, that I am finally beginning to see at 31 years of age, is that life is all about doing your best. The world tells us that success is defined by how well you do compared to everyone around you. You have to make more money than your neighbor. You have to be a better father than your coworker. Your kid needs to be the smartest kid in class. There is no truth in this way of thinking. Success is all about doing your best. It's not even about improving from yesterday, because that isn't always possible (another thing I have learned from my dad as he has aged and started going through Chemo). If I can look back at my day each night (or each morning after having been on call) and say that I did my best it is a good day.
In my race of life there are times I feel I'm running in first and times I feel I'm running in last, but for the past little while at least I feel like the Father who's watching this race is pretty happy with me because I'm staying on track to run my best time, and I think that makes my dad happy too.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Better Late than Never
So I have been meaning to post pictures of our trip to Cleavland and Halloween for quite sometime. So without further ado . . .
We enjoyed having my mom with us during this trip to Cleavland and then the week after. Thanks again mom for coming and of course, for your help in the kitchen. We miss you already.
While visiting Cleavland we visited what Meagan called "Castle Park". Spencer was absolutely ecstatic to find that it was an actual old Castle ruin that everyone was allowed to look through. We followed that up with a walk through the near by woods and some major leaf collecting. If anyone needs any beautiful colored leaves for any projects let me know. We have more than enough for my plans. It was the absolutely perfect week to go. The trees we so beautiful. I can't believe how many colors we saw of leaves and the weather wasn't too bad either.
We also visited the "Kirtland" sites including the Johnson Farm, the Kirtland Visitors Center, the temple quarry, and the Kirtland Temple. Jacob and I had been to the Visitors Center before, but the rest of it was all brand new to us. The kids behaved pretty well throughout all of this and we were grateful for that. We only took one picture of all of this however (I don't know why, we just never pulled out the camera). The one picture we have is at the Johnson Farm. This is the Room that Joseph and Emma slept in the night he was drug from the home to be tarred and feathered. Spencer wanted a picture in it because he thought the floor looked like a giant checker board. We really enjoyed these sites and had some wonderful spiritual moments.
We also went to lunch while there to a little down home restaurant called RJ's. If you are ever in Kirtland it is the place to go. I had the best BLT I have ever had in my life. (Yes, it was even better than Angie's.) So to sum it up, we had a great weekend filled with loads of fun. Thanks again Doug and Meagan for being willing to show us around, again. You guys are the greatest!!
We enjoyed having my mom with us during this trip to Cleavland and then the week after. Thanks again mom for coming and of course, for your help in the kitchen. We miss you already.
So now on to Halloween.
The children enjoyed a whole array of activities the week of Halloween. We started with a Halloween Party for Wives club with lots and lots of Halloween Goodies. (and toys of course, which my children tend to notice more than the treats)
We had the Ward Trunk-or-treat as well. The kids had a blast with all of the activities. Their favorite was the balloon creations. Jessi got a princess wand and Spencer got a bat. They were so excited they didn't mind waiting in line for over 10 minutes for theirs. Then the trunk-or-treat began. We ended up doing this inside the church as they were concerned about the weather so the kids went around from chair to chair and loaded up on candy. Another fun evening.
The night before Halloween we carved pumpkins. They were all excited to start until they remembered what was in the pumpkins and then they decided they didn't want to "help" as much as they offered. Spencer was excited to draw his own face on his pumpkin and then had dad cut it out for him. He chose to do a pirate face with a patch on its eye. Too fun!! Jessi and Kris just watched while we told them we were working on theirs. It kept them happy.
And we finally made it to Halloween. I stayed home to hand out candy which turned out to be unnecessary. Apparently the trick or treating in our neighborhood starts on the block behind us. Next year I won't be staying home. But I did get my book finished. The kids had a great time with dad and brought home quite the stash of candy. In South Bend you are only allowed to trick-or-treat from 5 - 7 which turned out just perfect for the kids. All in all, I would say it was a very happy Halloween for all.
And that about gets me through all of the recent pictures I have taken. We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of Mark and Krista for their Residency interviews tomorrow. And then we will have Doug and Meagan for Thanksgiving. I am so grateful to have family that can visit us. It really is a blessing for us.
One last quirky story about me. 2 nights ago Jacob was reading a story to the kids at bedtime. It was called Mars Needs Moms by Berkeley Breathed. I was completely tear streaked by the end of it. It is a story of a little boy who is frustrated with his mom for always being on his case. One night Aliens come and kidnap his mom to Mars and he follows. On Mars he learns a valuable lesson (which caused the crying) but I won't give it away. It is a good thing the kids didn't ask me to read it because I never would have been able to get through it. I would blame it on the pregnancy but I am pretty sure I would have cried even if I wasn't pregnant. So if you ever want a good cry while reading to your kids, it will do the trick. (Still though, I loved the book!!)
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Spencer strikes again
This one was too good to keep to myself. As Melissa and I were watching a movie Spencer came down and started talking to us about his coloring project. Like any 5 year old he had his finger up his nose at the time (he had an itch) and after a bit of a struggle he pulled out his finger. He looked at us with his finger held high and asked in a mater-of-fact tone:
"Put the booger back in my nose?"
"Put the booger back in my nose?"
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Spencerisms
Spencer has a tendency to say some strange things that we call Spencerisms. Today we were privileged to have three such comments.
At dinner we were talking about what Spencer wanted to be when he grows up. After deciding that a professional sports career is out of the question as there are no professional teams in Cedar City (some of you may know of Spencer's desire to never move away from mom and dad) Spencer stopped us abruptly with: "Oh yeah, I remember, I want to be a garbage truck dude".
Later before bed it was Spencer's turn to say the family prayer. In the middle of his prayer he paused and loudly lamented: "Oh man, we forgot to read my dinosaur book from school." He then continued finishing his prayer.
Finally (this one is for Ryan and his desire to always reference nakedness) after I stepped out of the shower this afternoon Spencer came up to me and said: "Dad your nipples look like pepperoni".
That's my boy.
At dinner we were talking about what Spencer wanted to be when he grows up. After deciding that a professional sports career is out of the question as there are no professional teams in Cedar City (some of you may know of Spencer's desire to never move away from mom and dad) Spencer stopped us abruptly with: "Oh yeah, I remember, I want to be a garbage truck dude".
Later before bed it was Spencer's turn to say the family prayer. In the middle of his prayer he paused and loudly lamented: "Oh man, we forgot to read my dinosaur book from school." He then continued finishing his prayer.
Finally (this one is for Ryan and his desire to always reference nakedness) after I stepped out of the shower this afternoon Spencer came up to me and said: "Dad your nipples look like pepperoni".
That's my boy.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Progression of a call month
I am now in the second week of my first OB month. For those of you who don't know the OB month is generally brutal. We have three residents who rotate call so you are on every third day add to that my 1 half day of clinic per week and 2 half day OB clinics and you get quite a month. In addition to those we had our inservice exam last week so I had my first 100+ hour workweek.
I've noticed that my inhouse call months can generally be broken down into three portions, trimesters if you will. First I have the anxiety invoking trimester. This generally lasts at least a week, but sometimes longer (hopefully in the future I will be able to eliminate this portion). The next trimester is where I start to feel a little more comfortable, but begin to realize how much time I'm spending at the hospital. It is during this part of the month that I really miss my wife and kids. I kiss the kids each morning, as they sleep, before heading out the door. Finally, toward the end of the month I hit the fatigue trimester. This is where I start to realize how much sleep I have missed.
I am currently transitioning from the anxiety portion to the missing Melissa and the kids portion. I'm hoping the fatigue portion will be softened by the visits of my two younger brothers during the next two weeks.
I've noticed that my inhouse call months can generally be broken down into three portions, trimesters if you will. First I have the anxiety invoking trimester. This generally lasts at least a week, but sometimes longer (hopefully in the future I will be able to eliminate this portion). The next trimester is where I start to feel a little more comfortable, but begin to realize how much time I'm spending at the hospital. It is during this part of the month that I really miss my wife and kids. I kiss the kids each morning, as they sleep, before heading out the door. Finally, toward the end of the month I hit the fatigue trimester. This is where I start to realize how much sleep I have missed.
I am currently transitioning from the anxiety portion to the missing Melissa and the kids portion. I'm hoping the fatigue portion will be softened by the visits of my two younger brothers during the next two weeks.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Therapeutic Ramblings
I am currently on my second shift of OB call. As my faithful readers have noted over the past I have a tendency to experience anxiety from time to time, and this OB month is no different. I do feel much better tonight than I did on Sunday night, but I'm still a little high strung. I've written and spoken ad nauseum about why I've experienced so much stress during this intern year, so I'm not going to go there. Rather, I would like to write about some of the things that help me overcome stress (that's the therapy part folks).
First of all I am somewhat seasoned at recognizing when I am getting anxious due to a few months during my second year of medical school that were laced with a great deal of anxiety and depression. I know what it feels like and I'm getting better at realizing when it is getting to the point where I need to elicit help outside of my wife and kids. The interesting thing about anxiety and moreso depression is that they are taboo subjects. There seems to be an unspoken rule that you can't really talk about this stuff because it is too embarrassing. The irony is that, for me at least, the best thing I can do when I get overanxious is to surround myself with people.
Melissa is really good at talking to me and helping me see when I'm getting irrational, and from time to time she makes me talk to some good friends or family because she knows it will help. That brings me to my support group. I have a few really good friends. I don't have a ton of friends but those that I do have are special (unless you are a lurker and I don't know you, you probably belong to this group). One such example is a family that Melissa and I got to know during medical school. When I was going through the worst of things back in Pikeville there were numerous times when we went over to visit them just so I could sit on the couch and talk about school (and sometimes avoid talking about school).
There have been a few specific times since we've been here in South Bend that I can remember some of our newer friends helping me to get over some of my anxiety. One time in particular we invited another family over for dinner and spent the evening talking about everything under the sun. Of course that included the good, bad and ugly surrounding residency and it was incredibly therapeutic to talk to someone who was puting into words the exact emotions I was having. There's something special about knowing that others understand how you feel from time to time.
I think we need more friends in this world. We all have stress from time to time and for whatever reason (I tend to blame genetics) some of us are able to handle that stress better than others, but because we all experience stress we are all qualified to be the one to lend the helping hand. A couple of years ago I was on the phone with a very good friend who seemed to know the exact right words to say to help me feel better and when we were done talking she told me to remember what she said so that I could say it back to her when the time came that she needed those words. The time did come and the words did help.
In the end I am especially grateful for all the friends I do have and I hope that I can return to you some measure of kindness and support that you have given me.
Well I've been paged so I gotta go. Stay tuned for future therapeutic ramblings.
First of all I am somewhat seasoned at recognizing when I am getting anxious due to a few months during my second year of medical school that were laced with a great deal of anxiety and depression. I know what it feels like and I'm getting better at realizing when it is getting to the point where I need to elicit help outside of my wife and kids. The interesting thing about anxiety and moreso depression is that they are taboo subjects. There seems to be an unspoken rule that you can't really talk about this stuff because it is too embarrassing. The irony is that, for me at least, the best thing I can do when I get overanxious is to surround myself with people.
Melissa is really good at talking to me and helping me see when I'm getting irrational, and from time to time she makes me talk to some good friends or family because she knows it will help. That brings me to my support group. I have a few really good friends. I don't have a ton of friends but those that I do have are special (unless you are a lurker and I don't know you, you probably belong to this group). One such example is a family that Melissa and I got to know during medical school. When I was going through the worst of things back in Pikeville there were numerous times when we went over to visit them just so I could sit on the couch and talk about school (and sometimes avoid talking about school).
There have been a few specific times since we've been here in South Bend that I can remember some of our newer friends helping me to get over some of my anxiety. One time in particular we invited another family over for dinner and spent the evening talking about everything under the sun. Of course that included the good, bad and ugly surrounding residency and it was incredibly therapeutic to talk to someone who was puting into words the exact emotions I was having. There's something special about knowing that others understand how you feel from time to time.
I think we need more friends in this world. We all have stress from time to time and for whatever reason (I tend to blame genetics) some of us are able to handle that stress better than others, but because we all experience stress we are all qualified to be the one to lend the helping hand. A couple of years ago I was on the phone with a very good friend who seemed to know the exact right words to say to help me feel better and when we were done talking she told me to remember what she said so that I could say it back to her when the time came that she needed those words. The time did come and the words did help.
In the end I am especially grateful for all the friends I do have and I hope that I can return to you some measure of kindness and support that you have given me.
Well I've been paged so I gotta go. Stay tuned for future therapeutic ramblings.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Boy or a Girl?
Melissa had her ultrasound today. She has gone into this 3 previous times and each time she has been disappointed. She tries to hide it, but I know. You see, Melissa has been hoping for twins since before Spencer was born and she doesn't give up hope until after the ultrasound. Single heartbeats can be explained away as can her normal for gestational size, but she just can't argue with the ultrasound tech. Today was no different. I tried to cheer her up by telling her she gets to keep the minivan (I was threatening to purchase a Tahoe or Yukon if we ended up with twins, now my SUV dreams will have to wait another couple of years).
To my poorly trained eye everything looked good. The baby is measuring 4 days big and the placenta is anterior.
We are excited to be having a boy... or a girl. The baby was very uncooperative and the sex was unable to be determined. We're both excited to not know (it seems to have curbed Melissa's disappointment at only getting one).
To my poorly trained eye everything looked good. The baby is measuring 4 days big and the placenta is anterior.
We are excited to be having a boy... or a girl. The baby was very uncooperative and the sex was unable to be determined. We're both excited to not know (it seems to have curbed Melissa's disappointment at only getting one).
Monday, October 27, 2008
Put Em to Work
So my mom came out this last week and a half. We had a blast. We spent the first few days of her trip in Cleveland with Doug and Maegan where we visited historic Kirtland. I will post more pictures on that another day. What I want to post about today is what my mom and I worked on the second half of her trip. That being my Kitchen.
The original plan was to paint my bedroom and bathroom while my mom was here but I think once she got a look at my kitchen she decided it was farther up the priority list. So before you knew it, all the cupboard doors were coming off, the table was being painted, and new paint was going on the ceiling, trim, back splash, and walls. The project took us 4 days and all I can say is I absolutely love it. I am wondering, however, if anyone will ever come to visit us again as we tend to put all our visitors to work.
BEFORE - Just as a note, this kitchen was okay and nothing horribly wrong with it. It worked, but for comparison sake, I will make sure to make it so horrible so that the transformation is all the more impressive.
Don't you just love the 2 toned cupboards. The inside of the cupboards is a paper laminate. It had began to scratch off in several places leaving a great look. The back splash under the cabinets was once tile, we think, but had been painted over in a tan color that just didn't quite match the counter tops.
Notice in this picture those great light fixtures in the ceiling fan. It is kind of hard to tell in these pictures but the walls are kind of a yellowish color with a hint of green in them. Not my favorite.
And here is the view down the hall just off of the kitchen. This has the same yellow color on the walls which tended to really make the hallway look small.
AND NOW . . . The new Kitchen
This picture probably shows the new wall color the best. I absolutely love it. It is just so rich and creamy and goes amazingly perfect with the cabinets. The back spalsh we sponged with a bronze metallic paint to give it the look of metal. It is also a nice tribute to our Fighting Irish (almost a mirror image of their helmets.) You can also see in this picture that we painted the table and chairs the same color as the walls. They desperately needed a paint job and I love how great they look now.
This is the other side of my kitchen. Don't you just love the drawer pulls.
I took this picture so you could see the new ceiling fan transformation. We simply bought 3 new frosted glass covers and switched the fan blades to the darker wood (they were on the other side which was the lighter wood) and wham, we have a whole new light fixture. 
I just love these knobs so much I had to put a close up of them. This is the first time I have ever had a kitchen that had hardware on the cabinets. I am loving it. Thanks to my loving husband for not only taking all of the cabinets down and taking the hardware off but for also putting them all back up and putting the hardware back on and adding the new hardware. You can also see a bit more of the pattern in the back splash. It really stands out as quite a striking feature now.
And this is the look down the hall. It is the same color as the walls in the kitchen and it is so amazing how much it opens up the space. And I just love, love, love the color. It also shows the floors a bit too. When we first moved in we thought they were scratched through they looked so bad. My mom suggested trying some Soft Scrub and an hour later (and some sore shoulders) we had a whole new kitchen floor as well.
So this is my new kitchen. I love it!! Have I said that already. Seriously, this might be a record for typing the word love in one post. Maybe it is because I am pregnant and maybe I am just weird but there have been several times that I have stood in it and been brought to tears because I just love it so much. I just never thought I would have such a nice kitchen and that I would have such a big part in making it that way. It really makes you proud of what you can accomplish. THANKS MOM!!!! I couldn't have done it without you.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Inspiration and hope in the face of despair
This is a long post that is therapeutic for me to write so feel free to skim or skip it.
I have to admit that I didn't watch any of the Saturday sessions of conference due to Notre Dame football (is that blasphemous my BYU friends?). I recently burned the talks onto CDs so that I could catch up on those talks while driving to work each day.
Some of you may know about some discouraging news we received this past week. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about I'm sorry, but I'm not really ready to post about it on the web. Suffice it to say I was very distraught driving home from the Mishawaka ER on Thursday evening. My mind was going a mile a minute and I went from fighting back tears to trying to drive home through my tears in a very short time. As I was driving I happened to be listening to President Uchtdorf's talk. It just so happened that today I listened to Elder Wirthlin's talk followed by Elder Holland's talk. Let me share with you some excerpts from these three talks and maybe you can feel a little bit of the inspiration and blessing I felt hearing these words.
From President Uchtdorf's talk:
"Hope has the power to fill our lives with happiness.2 Its absence—when this desire of our heart is delayed—can make “the heart sick."
"The scriptures say that there must be “an opposition in all things.”15 So it is with faith, hope, and charity. Doubt, despair, and failure to care for our fellowmen lead us into temptation, which can cause us to forfeit choice and precious blessings.
Finally from Elder Holland:
"My beloved brothers and sisters, I testify of angels, both the heavenly and the mortal kind. In doing so I am testifying that God never leaves us alone, never leaves us unaided in the challenges that we face. “[N]or will he, so long as time shall last, or the earth shall stand, or there shall be one man [or woman or child] upon the face thereof to be saved.”13 On occasions, global or personal, we may feel we are distanced from God, shut out from heaven, lost, alone in dark and dreary places. Often enough that distress can be of our own making, but even then the Father of us all is watching and assisting. And always there are those angels who come and go all around us, seen and unseen, known and unknown, mortal and immortal."
I have often felt that the talks in general conference seemed to be directed straight to me and the circumstances of my life. I guess I shouldn't be surprised that I was listening to these words at the exact moment that they were desperately needed. Sometimes I think the Lord just wants me to know he's still there.
I have to admit that I didn't watch any of the Saturday sessions of conference due to Notre Dame football (is that blasphemous my BYU friends?). I recently burned the talks onto CDs so that I could catch up on those talks while driving to work each day.
Some of you may know about some discouraging news we received this past week. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about I'm sorry, but I'm not really ready to post about it on the web. Suffice it to say I was very distraught driving home from the Mishawaka ER on Thursday evening. My mind was going a mile a minute and I went from fighting back tears to trying to drive home through my tears in a very short time. As I was driving I happened to be listening to President Uchtdorf's talk. It just so happened that today I listened to Elder Wirthlin's talk followed by Elder Holland's talk. Let me share with you some excerpts from these three talks and maybe you can feel a little bit of the inspiration and blessing I felt hearing these words.
From President Uchtdorf's talk:
"Hope has the power to fill our lives with happiness.2 Its absence—when this desire of our heart is delayed—can make “the heart sick."
"The scriptures say that there must be “an opposition in all things.”15 So it is with faith, hope, and charity. Doubt, despair, and failure to care for our fellowmen lead us into temptation, which can cause us to forfeit choice and precious blessings.
The adversary uses despair to bind hearts and minds in suffocating darkness. Despair drains from us all that is vibrant and joyful and leaves behind the empty remnants of what life was meant to be. Despair kills ambition, advances sickness, pollutes the soul, and deadens the heart. Despair can seem like a staircase that leads only and forever downward.
Hope, on the other hand, is like the beam of sunlight rising up and above the horizon of our present circumstances. It pierces the darkness with a brilliant dawn. It encourages and inspires us to place our trust in the loving care of an eternal Heavenly Father, who has prepared a way for those who seek for eternal truth in a world of relativism, confusion, and of fear."
"The Lord has given us a reassuring message of hope: “Fear not, little flock.”41 God will wait with “open arms to receive”42 those who give away their sins and continue in faith, hope, and charity.
And to all who suffer—to all who feel discouraged, worried, or lonely—I say with love and deep concern for you, never give in.
Never surrender.
Never allow despair to overcome your spirit.
Embrace and rely upon the Hope of Israel, for the love of the Son of God pierces all darkness, softens all sorrow, and gladdens every heart."
Now from Elder Wirthlin's talk:
"whenever my steps led through seasons of sadness and sorrow, my mother’s words often came back to me: “Come what may, and love it.”
How can we love days that are filled with sorrow? We can’t—at least not in the moment. I don’t think my mother was suggesting that we suppress discouragement or deny the reality of pain. I don’t think she was suggesting that we smother unpleasant truths beneath a cloak of pretended happiness. But I do believe that the way we react to adversity can be a major factor in how happy and successful we can be in life.
If we approach adversities wisely, our hardest times can be times of greatest growth, which in turn can lead toward times of greatest happiness."
"Learning to endure times of disappointment, suffering, and sorrow is part of our on-the-job training. These experiences, while often difficult to bear at the time, are precisely the kinds of experiences that stretch our understanding, build our character, and increase our compassion for others.
Because Jesus Christ suffered greatly, He understands our suffering. He understands our grief. We experience hard things so that we too may have increased compassion and understanding for others."
"I know why there must be opposition in all things. Adversity, if handled correctly, can be a blessing in our lives. We can learn to love it.
As we look for humor, seek for the eternal perspective, understand the principle of compensation, and draw near to our Heavenly Father, we can endure hardship and trial. We can say, as did my mother, “Come what may, and love it.”"Finally from Elder Holland:
"My beloved brothers and sisters, I testify of angels, both the heavenly and the mortal kind. In doing so I am testifying that God never leaves us alone, never leaves us unaided in the challenges that we face. “[N]or will he, so long as time shall last, or the earth shall stand, or there shall be one man [or woman or child] upon the face thereof to be saved.”13 On occasions, global or personal, we may feel we are distanced from God, shut out from heaven, lost, alone in dark and dreary places. Often enough that distress can be of our own making, but even then the Father of us all is watching and assisting. And always there are those angels who come and go all around us, seen and unseen, known and unknown, mortal and immortal."
I have often felt that the talks in general conference seemed to be directed straight to me and the circumstances of my life. I guess I shouldn't be surprised that I was listening to these words at the exact moment that they were desperately needed. Sometimes I think the Lord just wants me to know he's still there.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
The Class Clown Gene
While I am flattered that so many of you think that Spencer takes after me with his clowning around I'm sorry to say that most of you are wrong. I do consider myself to have somewhat of a quick wit and I think I can be humorous from time to time, however, I am a very shy person. I tend to be quiet and reserved when I first meet people and it is only when I become comfortable that I open up and make jokes.
I thought the poll would turn out this way which is why I put it up. I don't think Melissa gets the credit she deserves. This past week I ran into one of the secretaries as work who had gone to a recruiting lunch with Melissa and some of the other resident wives. She told me what a fun person Melissa was and how funny she was. She then proceeded to tell me of the stories that Melissa told and how she had many in the room in stitches. This is not the first time someone has told me how funny Melissa is. I was always told that she was quite the crack-up by her coworkers in Salt Lake, and I was told repeatedly in Pikeville how funny her stories were.
So there you have it folks. Spencer's ability to make other kids laugh when he first meets them is something he definitely does not get from me. He has his mother to thank for that gift. I, for one, am thankful for it because I have always felt self conscious about my shyness with new people and I don't want my kids to have to deal with that.
I thought the poll would turn out this way which is why I put it up. I don't think Melissa gets the credit she deserves. This past week I ran into one of the secretaries as work who had gone to a recruiting lunch with Melissa and some of the other resident wives. She told me what a fun person Melissa was and how funny she was. She then proceeded to tell me of the stories that Melissa told and how she had many in the room in stitches. This is not the first time someone has told me how funny Melissa is. I was always told that she was quite the crack-up by her coworkers in Salt Lake, and I was told repeatedly in Pikeville how funny her stories were.
So there you have it folks. Spencer's ability to make other kids laugh when he first meets them is something he definitely does not get from me. He has his mother to thank for that gift. I, for one, am thankful for it because I have always felt self conscious about my shyness with new people and I don't want my kids to have to deal with that.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Picture Update
So I spent last Friday, downloading, uploading, editing, and ordering pictures. Friday morning Spencer asked me to see the pictures in the photo album of his Halloween costumes when he was a baby. This caused me to pull the albums out of the closet and realize that I haven't inserted any new pictures in a year. (mainly because I ran out of room in the album) So I started with ordering a new album, and then set to the task of downloading all of our current pictures off of 2 memory cards, editing them all, uploading them to snapfish, and then ordering a years worth of pictures. It took a while but I feel great that it is done. The albums also have a new home in the book shelf (where I think they should belong) so hopefully that will help me to keep them updated more often.
I also realized, as I was downloading pictures, that I haven't put any pictures on the blog recently. So here is an update of what we have been up to lately, in pictures.
Here is Spencer and Jessi at the Tailgate for the ND Football game that Jacob and his brother Doug were able to attend. They managed to beg these hats and bracelets off of neighboring tailgaters. Sometimes they can be little stinkers, but cute little stinkers. Jacob and Doug had a great time at the game and ND came away with the win, so an all around great time. Meagan and I had a great time once we got home and everyone took a nap, ah that is the good life.
The kids and I drove to Michigan a few weeks ago to go raspberry and apple picking. The kids quickly got bored with the raspberry picking and so that was left to me. But when it came time for apples they were all to happy to help. Jessi wanted to hold the bag, even when it got to heavy and she decided to just drag it across the ground.
I think their favorite part was playing outside afterwards. Uncle Mark taught Kristian the proper start stance. Isn't he cute. Once again, another fun filled day for all of us Corry's.
So that is what we have been doing lately. We will be sad to see Uncle Mark leave on Tuesday but we are all happy that his absence will be replaced by my mom aka Grandma Powell. I don't know what my kids are going to do when November rolls around and they are stuck with just Mom and Dad again.
I also realized, as I was downloading pictures, that I haven't put any pictures on the blog recently. So here is an update of what we have been up to lately, in pictures.
Here is Spencer and Jessi at the Tailgate for the ND Football game that Jacob and his brother Doug were able to attend. They managed to beg these hats and bracelets off of neighboring tailgaters. Sometimes they can be little stinkers, but cute little stinkers. Jacob and Doug had a great time at the game and ND came away with the win, so an all around great time. Meagan and I had a great time once we got home and everyone took a nap, ah that is the good life.
The kids and I drove to Michigan a few weeks ago to go raspberry and apple picking. The kids quickly got bored with the raspberry picking and so that was left to me. But when it came time for apples they were all to happy to help. Jessi wanted to hold the bag, even when it got to heavy and she decided to just drag it across the ground.
Spencer wanted to help by getting the apples out of tree. Sadly, this I think was Spencer's first time climbing a tree. He was a little nervous at first, but eventually figured it out, and now, anytime we go anywhere he is on the lookout for good climbing trees. He is getting quite comfortable in the trees and now it is his mom who gets nervous.
For playgroup this week we went to a farm. It had everything, and although this picture doesn't show every one's excitement, we had a great time. We started with this hayride.
Then it was off to the corn maze. I started with everyone holding hands but that didn't last for more than about 30 seconds. Kristian was all about picking his own directions and no matter how many times he tripped over fallen corn stalks, he was determined to do it on his own.
This was one point where all of the kids were actually together. After this Spencer went off with his friend Oliver, Jessi followed but quickly got nervous when she couldn't see mom and stayed put crying until mom and Kris caught back up.
Next was the pumpkin patch. Spencer didn't take long to find his and bag it up. Kristian choose once again to do it all on his own, and even managed to carry his pumpkin around for a second or two, then he feel on a vine and figured mom could carry it the rest of the day. Carrying around 3 really does get heavy.
We finished up the day with lunch, a huge playground and a petting zoo. Spencer really liked the rabbits. All in all, it was a great afternoon and the kids had a blast. And surprisingly, I wasn't as worn out as I thought I would be. Bonus.
Jacob's brother Mark has been staying with us this last week while he does some rotations at the 2 hospitals. The kids have loved having their Uncle Mark here, especially because he is always willing to wrestle with them, give them elevator rides, and play checkers or candy land. On Thursday evening we headed downtown to the College Football Hall of Fame. This is the kids 4 visit but they still find new ways to entertain themselves.
I think their favorite part was playing outside afterwards. Uncle Mark taught Kristian the proper start stance. Isn't he cute. Once again, another fun filled day for all of us Corry's.
So that is what we have been doing lately. We will be sad to see Uncle Mark leave on Tuesday but we are all happy that his absence will be replaced by my mom aka Grandma Powell. I don't know what my kids are going to do when November rolls around and they are stuck with just Mom and Dad again.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Vote in the poll!
Seriously people, 2 votes? Did I mention the poll is anonymous, as in no one knows who you voted for (or if you voted). My follow-up post is going to lose a lot of it's luster if we only have 2 votes.
I hope you people aren't this apathetic about voting in the elections this year (especially you Battleground state people). Indiana and Ohio, where your vote counts. You Utah folks are free to stay home on election day because we all know Obama is going to get fewer votes than Mitt Romney out there.
Don't think I'm letting you Canada folks off the hook either. I'd make a joke about your voting, but seriously I'm not quite sure how the political system works up there (or how the Queen of some European nation fits into all of it).
I hope you people aren't this apathetic about voting in the elections this year (especially you Battleground state people). Indiana and Ohio, where your vote counts. You Utah folks are free to stay home on election day because we all know Obama is going to get fewer votes than Mitt Romney out there.
Don't think I'm letting you Canada folks off the hook either. I'd make a joke about your voting, but seriously I'm not quite sure how the political system works up there (or how the Queen of some European nation fits into all of it).
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Our Class Clown
As has been mentioned in previous posts, Spencer is quite the class clown at school. He very much enjoys making his friends laugh and has increased his attempts to get a laugh when he gets home. As you can see I have added a poll to the site to see where our readers think Spencer gets this gene. When the poll closes or sooner I will make my vote and possibly post the defense of my decision.
The poll is anonymous
The poll is anonymous
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Sports, Sports, Sports
All of the sudden I have gone from having visions of BCS bowls for the Utes to World Series titles for the Dodgers and now I'm seeing the Lombardi trophy make a visit to Miami in a year that the Superbowl is played in Arizona.
That's right folks with the Dolphins doubling their win total from last year they have officially put themselves back in the Superbowl picture. In bringing down the Patriots the Dolphins took back a sense of pride in their division race. Granted the Patriots are a shell of their former selves since their demoralizing loss to the Giants (the loss of some guy named Brady apparently is a big deal too), but still these are the Patriots. With their win over the Chargers they showed that Ronnie Brown is the real deal (again). He averaged 5.2 yards per carry and his longest run of the day was 13 yards. That's some pretty consistent running. His 5 TDs on the season aren't too bad either.
The Dolphins haven't been a running back town since Larry Csonka and we all know how that turned out (for those of you who don't it turned out to be the only undefeated and therefore best team in NFL history).
In parting I leave you with a video of Bill Walton being Bill Walton.
That's right folks with the Dolphins doubling their win total from last year they have officially put themselves back in the Superbowl picture. In bringing down the Patriots the Dolphins took back a sense of pride in their division race. Granted the Patriots are a shell of their former selves since their demoralizing loss to the Giants (the loss of some guy named Brady apparently is a big deal too), but still these are the Patriots. With their win over the Chargers they showed that Ronnie Brown is the real deal (again). He averaged 5.2 yards per carry and his longest run of the day was 13 yards. That's some pretty consistent running. His 5 TDs on the season aren't too bad either.
The Dolphins haven't been a running back town since Larry Csonka and we all know how that turned out (for those of you who don't it turned out to be the only undefeated and therefore best team in NFL history).
In parting I leave you with a video of Bill Walton being Bill Walton.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Boo Yah
What a great day yesterday was for me. The Utes won taking them to 6-0. While it wasn't an impressive win this is the Oregon State team that took down the mighty Trojans last week. As long as they keep from making any major mistakes we should be looking at a pretty good showdown with that team down south at the end of the season. So long as the Utes keep winning I pulling for BYU as well, as I want to see them both undefeated playing for a BCS birth. Sorry Aggies, I'm a Cougar fan tonight.
It is great to be Dodger fan today, and especially living here in Cub country. What a beautiful sight it was to see the score last night in the ER. I'm keeping my kids up late to watch the games when the Dodgers make the World Series. We may even move the TV upstairs so Spencer can forever remember watching the games from his parents' bed thus solidifying his status as a Dodger fan. Go Dodgers!
It is great to be Dodger fan today, and especially living here in Cub country. What a beautiful sight it was to see the score last night in the ER. I'm keeping my kids up late to watch the games when the Dodgers make the World Series. We may even move the TV upstairs so Spencer can forever remember watching the games from his parents' bed thus solidifying his status as a Dodger fan. Go Dodgers!
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Crazy Cravings
Lately I have been having some major cravings. I mainly crave 3 food products, one at breakfast, one at lunch, and one at dinner. They are as follows
Breakfast - McDonalds Breakfast Burrito's
Just about every morning I wake up thinking man I could really go for a breakfast burrito this morning. If there were a McDonalds between our house and Spencer's school I would be in big trouble. Lucky for me (and my budget), there is not and so I am only tempted on mornings we go get groceries. But each time the drive-thru line always seems to be way to long to be worth the wait and there is no way I am using the energy to get Jessi and Kris out of the van just to go in and get a breakfast burrito. So instead I eat something at home that's quick and easy (pop tarts come to mind.)
Next is Lunch. This is where I satisfy my cravings. I love the Johnsonville Beddar with Cheddar Sausage Dogs.
Breakfast - McDonalds Breakfast Burrito's
Just about every morning I wake up thinking man I could really go for a breakfast burrito this morning. If there were a McDonalds between our house and Spencer's school I would be in big trouble. Lucky for me (and my budget), there is not and so I am only tempted on mornings we go get groceries. But each time the drive-thru line always seems to be way to long to be worth the wait and there is no way I am using the energy to get Jessi and Kris out of the van just to go in and get a breakfast burrito. So instead I eat something at home that's quick and easy (pop tarts come to mind.)Next is Lunch. This is where I satisfy my cravings. I love the Johnsonville Beddar with Cheddar Sausage Dogs.
The bad thing is I like them a lot, and normally have them for lunch 3-5 times a week. I stock up when they go on sale and that is quite frequently. Now my husband (who is a doctor) tells me this isn't to healthy. This I understand and I remind myself constantly. However, when lunch comes around I find myself frying up one (and on a few occasions 2) without even realizing it. In fact just typing this I am realizing how grateful I am that we have playgroup today and that the temptation will be far away. If this baby comes out with an insatiable appetite for hot dogs I will know why.
Now to Dinner time. I am obsessed with Pizza lately.
Every time a pizza commercial comes on TV I start to salivate. Every night when I start to figure out what to make for dinner I think I could really go for a pizza. This craving has gone so far that I have been dreaming about pizzas for about 3 nights in a row. Last night, I was delivering pizza's and kept getting disappointed when people would pay for their pizza because if they had changed their mind I would get to eat it so it didn't go to waste. 2 nights ago was my favorite dream. I dreamt that I was a first year medical intern (so that I could be as smart as my husband) and I was about to deliver a baby in a check-up room with the cast of Grey's Anatomy. I washed my hands, then put my hair in a pony-tail, and then proceeded to deliver the baby via c-section without any anesthesia. It went well and we all headed down to the cafeteria for lunch. The whole way there I asked every cast member where you can get the best pizza in town. Crazy I tell you.
I did satisfy this craving last week when I made homemade pizza with my mom's great pizza crust recipe. It was so good. BBQ Bacon Chicken, my favorite. The only problem is you have to think ahead of time so the crust has lots of time to rise and normally I don't do that. Jacob doesn't like cheap frozen pizzas so I never buy them and I won't pay for the good ones. Although I stare at the California Kitchen BBQ Chicken Pizza in the freezer section for quite awhile before deciding it isn't worth it and moving on.
I am hoping these cravings will pass soon or that I will start craving something with less grease and fat like carrots, or salad. Is that to much to ask?
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