January 2011

Happy 2011:  The year I graduate!!!!  The Christmas season has come and gone.  It was really nice being down in our home town for my internship so that both sets of grandparents were in the area for Spencer. . . and yes, Santa was very good to him this year.  The only bummer is that this year I was not on winter break.  I had to be at work every day that my clinical instructor was there, so besides getting off work Christmas Eve on Friday and New Year’s Eve the following Friday, I was reminiscing previous winter breaks while treating patients.

Another internship is over with, and one more to go.  It was a great experience and I learned a lot.  It was nice to be able to become a little more independent with the patients I saw and use the stuff I had learned.  On my last day, as tradition (I found out), I got thrown into the pool.  It was no use putting up a fight, so I had just enough time to slip off my shoes before being tossed into the water.

Right now, we’re in the middle of packing to head up to Portland, OR for my last rotation at a hospital.  We’ve got an apartment set up, a u-haul trailer to pick up tomorrow, and fingers crossed that it will be good weather.  With a 3 year old, we’ll see how far we get each day.  We plan on about 3 days to get up there; I’ll let you know next time how it went.  Just 12 more weeks of internships, then back to Denver to wrap things up and graduate.  Just about there. 

With graduation coming soon, I have sort of started studying for the national boards.  I got a few study guide books to read through and get myself ready.  Just to see where I was, I took a practice test last week.  It consisted of 200 questions and you had 4 hours to complete it.  I did it in about 2 hours, rushing it here and there, and pulled a 58%.  Obviously I have some work to do.  But where would the fun be if I didn’t have something else to study? 

Christmas was a lot of fun this year. I made this kitchen/check-out stand for him, and it even came with a cash register. He's at the age where he loves to play pretend games and adventures. He sure makes life fun.

Here's the extent of our New Year's Eve Party. We played some games and had some fun with Spencer until about 9:30. After he was asleep, we stayed up until only 11:00. New Year's Eve is just not as exciting as it used to be, I guess.

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December 2010

 This 3^rd rotation is just about over.  I’ve been here 9 weeks with just 3 more to go.  It has felt more like a job than anything; I have my own patient case load; I do all the documentation and initial evaluations; for the most part, I stay pretty busy at the clinic.  Now if only we could get paid for it.  🙂

The nice thing about being on these internships is that there is a lot less “school” work. . . . but still we have little assignments here and there to turn in.  For example, our project for this internship is to choose some sort of outcome tool, use it on at least 5 people, then write a paper about the outcome tool and the interventions used on patients.  Not terribly exciting, but hey, it could be worse.

Other than that, speaking of school related, I try to find time each day to study out of the massive book for the national boards exam.  Note the word “try.”  The rest of the time is spent getting ready for the Christmas holiday. 

Here we are at Hogle Zoo in SLC, UT. I liked this one a little more than Denver Zoo's light show. There were more lights here. Check out the sweet glasses Spencer wore to make all the lights look like snowflakes. Cool? Absolutely. Worth the $2? Debateable (depends on who you ask).

Since we are in my home town, Spencer is going to have a blast with grandparents in the area.  For the last 2 years at this time, I was finishing up exams and heading home over the Rocky Mountains for the holidays.  It’s nice already being here.  However, I miss seeing classmates every day.  After having spent the majority of the last 2 years together (I’m pretty sure I spent more time with them than my own family), I miss their company.  Luckily I have a dog that entertains me by chasing the cows in the back field until they get sick of it and stampede at her; I’ve never seen her run so fast.  Plus I have a little 3 ½ year old boy who is getting smarter and smarter each day; he’s becoming quite the negotiator with everything we do. 

Out getting the Christmas tree

Got it. The dogs loved being out in the mountains. 3 years ago, while tree hunting, Daisy saw a deer and took off after it. Lucky for me, she stood on a cactus and came limping back 15 minutes later.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

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December 30, 2009

Here Spencer and I pose with a hippo at the Denver Zoo Christmas Light Show. Lots of fun.

Another Christmas has come and gone.  Like the majority of my classmates, we went home for the holidays.  The only eventful part of our 8 hour drive to Utah consisted of watching Spencer torment Daisy by putting treats by her nose then hurrying and eating them himself instead (Usually, Daisy is in the very back of the car, but this time she got to sit right next to Spencer, which also meant she was breathing down my neck from time to time to get a better view of what was ahead on the road).

                Christmas morning has become more and more exciting as Spencer is getting older.  He’s slowly getting the idea about Santa and so he was really excited to see presents magically appear in the front room.  I’m most proud of the stick horse I made for him.  The other day, while reviewing what textbooks I still need to buy for the upcoming semester, I think I should have asked Santa for some of those books.  Oh well . . . . I really did need that remote control helicopter that I’m waiting for either Spencer to eventually break or Daisy to bite while in the air.

                So, amid 4-wheeler riding, sledding, feeding Grandpa’s cows, and reading NON-textbooks (it’s such a relief), it has been a nice break so far.

Just having fun after a week full of stressful tests.

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