School's back in session...

And it is still HARD WORK.

I just finished my first round of exams on Wednesday. you'd think that since i am repeating second year it would be a little easier, but it's just as bad. I study the same amount if not more, but the difference is that this year, I LOVE doing it. Well, maybe I don't "love" it, but I see the purpose of it, I realize that it's worth my time and effort in the long run, and my life is so much more calm that it is nice to study and not a hassle.

So... Let me list a couple of reasons I am thankful for studying this time around:

1. I am not going to rehab 3 times a week, or for that matter, at all! I am not recovering from knee surgery and it's good to be able to walk without a brace, not have to plan studying around PT, and to have that extra time to myself.

2. I am not moving twice in one month. I am thankful to have an unpacked, clean house that I share with the man that I love and no one else (besides our two crazy dogs). I feel at home in this house, everything is where it is supposed to be and it is great.

3. I have a fiance who supports me through everything. I am so blessed. Phil treats me like a queen and understands that I can't hang out with him the weekend before the tests. He leaves me to study, and even cooks and cleans while I sit upstairs in my study nook for hours on end going through flashcards.

4. I have a study nook! Once again, Phil is amazing. He set me up a place where I can study and stream podcasts over our tv. So, I can review a lecture, or stay home and study while watching the podcast on double speed (this feature is AMAZING!). The nook is comfortable, quiet, and ALL MINE. I love it!

5. I have learned discipline (I thought I knew what this was, but I didn't). I've learned how to put fun times on hold in order to get through what I need to do, and to reward myself when it is a job well done. Those rewards feel amazing after I've accomplished what I needed to accomplish. It makes everything that much better.

6. I am learning to say no to others. While this seems like something simple to most, I'm learning that medical school cannot be put on hold for every major life event, and while you must roll with the punches, you also have to choose what punches are worth taking. Some are inevitable, but others are a choice. And I'm finally choosing to be successful in what I do.

Anyways, I did well on my exams and blogging is one of the rewards that I gave myself once I finished the module.

So this is what I've been up to since July 5th:
I went to Phoenix on my first "paid business trip" aka
I had to deposit a large check in Quichia's bank account and could only deposit it in person. Therefore, Quichia flew me out to Phoenix to accomplish this task. On that note, Quichia made me Power of Attorney over her finances while she is in Japan... yeah, that's right. I'm pretty legit :) Well, at least Quichia thinks so.

While on my "business trip", I was able to see most of my favorite people :) I spent the day with Beth and baby Micah, treated myself to a pedicure with my BFF, spent a day with Ali and her crazy Bosnian girls. I am in LOVE with all three of these little kids :) Micah is such a happy baby that I love just seeing him smile. I think I could make him smile all day and feel content in life. Honestly, I never thought another boy would be able to do that to me besides my nephews, but Micah is just as special as they are. My heart may explode for how much I love those three boys :) And then there is Berlin.
She is the epitome of the "chill baby". I think her and Micah may date someday... Mostly because they both have the same sort of demeanor. They roll with the punches, smile all the time and are so content. I loved it.

To add to this, there is Ali's sweet, sassy, full of attitude: beautiful little girl named London. She is so smart, so pretty and and has such an amazing personality. I've never had to work for a little kid to like me before but with London, "working" for her approval pretty much means that you ignore her until she is nice to you. She was turning 2 the weekend after I was in Phoenix, so I treated her to build a bear for her birthday present :) She built a "mana" which is Bonian for cat. She wouldn't let it go and that made my heart happy. Oh, and on a side note, I got in my first MOMMY FIGHT. Ha! I'm not even a mom, but when Ali asked me to watch London while she breastfed, I became her mommy for a bit and when the other older kids tried to take advantage of her tiny stature, I was there to step in... Ali was proud. I was just feisty.

I was also able to visit John's grave with Lila. She keeps it so nice, but it broke my heart being out there. John death has really thrown me for a loop. It;s hard to explain, but it was a life-changing, game changing moment for me. I still haven't fully figured out why, but it definitely was.

Finally, I was able to go to sushi and FroYo with one of my favorite couples, Patrick and Dawn, as well as Dulce and Lila. I haven't laughed as hard as I did in a very long time. It was great!
And then I ended the trip, drunk in the airport after a crazy night with my HSLM, Christine. How that girl gets me so drunk I may never know, but it seems like I am always vomiting after going out with her, and this time was no exception.

I came back to TX on July 4th, spent the day in my PJ's, on the couch, recovering from a hangover. Phil is so good to me. That next week was somewhat of a blur, but on the 10th, Christian and Jacob came into town, which was followed by a month long barrage of visitors. At a couple of points, there were 9 people and 3 dogs in the house, but I loved every minute of it. While I like the silence for studying, I miss my family tremendously and would trade hearing Christian and Trevis giggle any day.

A couple of things we were able to do with my family (in no particular order):

1. We took Jacob and Christian out to the Serengeti Resort (where we are getting married!!). Fed the animals, and sped away from the crazy ostriches and Clyde, the man-eating camel that I'm in love with.

2. We took the boys to a dino exhibit at the Witte Museum. Tuesday are free after 3:30. We definitely took advantage of that!
3. Christian and I went bowling. He beat me once. I am embarassed, but that's how it goes sometimes (especially in bowling).
4. We went to Sea World several times. Thank goodness for season passes and all day dining deals! Everytime I loved it and so did the kids :)
5. There were lots of days and nights filled with Guitar Hero and Rock Band. I've never seen my family get so excited about music. lol.
6. We took Christian and Jacob to Dave and Buster's. Played lots of video games, ate great food and bought prizes with our tickets. (Christian used his tickets to buy his brother a present. I though this was so so so sweet).
7. We "toob"ed the river. Christian got stuck in back current, Phil had to save him. It was all pretty dramatic, but when is my life not?8. Christina turned a plastic container into a "swimming pool" for the kids in my backyard... ingenious, and yet sad at the same time.

9. I was schooled in "go fish" by Trevis. That kid is definitely a smarty pants and know how to win Go Fish.

10. All the while, I was studying, going to school, and loving having my family so close.


And some other cool things we did without the fam:

Lila came into Fort Hood. I was able to go see her beautiful self for a bit :)

We went us to Austin and ate BBQ out of an old school bus. It was pretty amazing.We went to Dallas Cowboys training camp. Phil was pretty excited about this :)
After everyone left, Phil and I shampooed the carpets (because of the dogs, not the people). AMAZING! I LOVE clean carpets. Then it was lots of studying to catch up in my classes. But it was worth it. i finished my testing and am now getting to enjoy having just Phil and I in the house. It's been great.

On the wedding front. The wedding coordinator quoted some OUTRAGEOUS prices for invitations and flowers/decorations, so we figured since the wedding was so far away, we should do some of it ourselves. I designed the invitations and am so proud of them! They even have a pocketfold. Plus! I have some great plans for decorations :) I am so glad that I am getting to use my creativity and that we are saving so much money! It gives me a sense of accomplishment. I LOVE IT!

On the med school front. I have class 8-12 or 8-3. it depends on the day and the subject matter. the time I'm not in class I'm studying, or cleaning, or trying to workout. We just finished the General Concepts module which was pretty much everything that didn't fit in any other module and have now moved onto Respiratory. It's exhausting sitting in class for that long, but, my tailbone is healing and slowly but surely I am able to sit for longer and longer. There a definitely days when I HATE repeating. But those are few and far between and are mostly when I have to go perform exams on the same standardized patients as last year.


And I will leave you with such a great video. Here's what Katie does when she hears a siren. LOL. Love it!