Welcome to Summer! :)

This past weekend, Pete and I made our first long trip -- home to MN to see family! It cut the trip in half -- even with fairly frequent stops! And... along the way we got to see some pretty neat scenery.

 

A Steel Mill - Gary, Indiana; something I found remarkable -- you can see the smoke settle along I-94, essentially forming a band directly above the highway.

Chicago-- absolutely amazing flying through/over Navy Pier at 2000 feet through the VFR corridor. We had to talk to O'Hare traffic control while traveling through this area, and were able to see big jets go above us and other little planes around us. A really neat experience! Also, we could see the backed up traffic from Chicago rush hour and I was reminded that we never would have been able to go out there for this last minute weekend trip had it not been for the ability to fly out there. It cut the travel time in about 1/2 even with frequent stops.

 Welcoming committee at the airport. This pic is a bit blurry, but makes me smile. Never have we ever had such a crew out to watch us land! :) It was so fun to see everyone both at the airport and at a little party at Mindy's afterward! :)

Outside of the gathering at Mindy's where we got to see family and friends, while in Minnesota...

• I went shopping with my mom and sister's to find a few new shirts for school (and make use of the no sales tax on clothing).
• Visited with most of my maternal aunts/uncles after a wedding.
• Went boating and water skiing on the below lake until the skies turned dark and twisting with fingers coming down from the clouds (and yes, tornado sirens were going off.

• Had my first grilled hamburger of summer at a cookout at my mom and dad's (along with all the sides -- scrumptious watermelon, baked beans, chips, among other good food). 
• Did a lot of visiting, and even managed to get some studying in.
• And Pete was able to share his hobby of flying with a few more people (i.e. he gave a few airplane rides to my siblings, parents and his brother).

It was a very fun weekend and great way to kick off summer! :) But, now it feels good to be home, be unpacked, and ready to return to some serious studying for the next couple weeks. Wishing all the best to you and yours! :)

A few more pics of Chicago (for good measure) -- taken on the way home.

Weekend update

It looks like I am not going to be able to do this newest photo challenge~ somehow, as boards creep closer (about 2 months from now -- Jun 18th)... my time seems to be less and less in conjunction with studying and required activities. I have been told that this time limitation only gets worse next year -- but, oddly I am looking forward to that. Third year is spent in the hospitals and clinics. It involves some rotations requiring 24 hour call, overnight call, and coming in on the weekends. I am looking forward to applying all that I have learned these last 2 years in the care of patients, and learning more about many areas of medicine... despite having a crazy schedule.

Last night, I shadowed in the Emergency Department. I felt like I was able to help the doctors with a few things (like removing patient bandages, handing equipment, etc. nothing major) and in the process learn something about Emergency Medicine and review stuff I should already know. It was a lot of fun, and reminded me of why I want to be a doctor -- to help people, solve puzzles, and never be bored.

So, here is my weekend: Friday night shadowing. Going to try on short white coats today, so that they can be ordered and ready before I start 3rd year at the end of June. Hopefully, getting the chance to go to church tomorrow (Easter). And interspersed... getting a LOT of studying done. T-9 days and counting until my next big exam where I regurgitate all I know about metabolism, nutrition, hormone disorders, and reproduction.

30 Day Photo Challenge - Catch Up, Days 25&26

About a week ago -- I had a killer exam, a 3-hour test on everything I need to know about the cardiovascular system to do well on boards and get me started next year when I am in the hospital. For me, this was probably my most difficult exam of the year -- both because I studied less for it/had more of a life during this domain and there was a lot of content. Most of the content was of the teach yourself variety as the school is trying to push us towards figuring out what we need to learn, rather than spoon feeding us material in the form of lectures... because once we get into the clinics it will be up to us to review/learn in order to best serve our patients. But, I did well on the test and can now move on to the next subject: metabolic, endocrine and reproductive disorders.

I feel like I am still in some sort of fog and recovering from this test, and so I have not posted pictures. That being said, this week was pretty busy: Monday evening I went to a shower & visited friends (a very rare treat!), Tuesday night I went to my sister-in-law's soccer game and had dinner with family, Wednesday I spent cleaning the apartment & doing laundry so it looks a little less like a college bachelor pad, and Thursday until now...  I spent in yoga pants and long-sleeved T reading up on women's hormones...  BTW -- it is so amazing that we are all here. How can one not marvel at the miracle of life!

Day 25 - Sunflare - Last Sunday's beautiful weather!

Day 26: Something old. Pete and I picked up a bin (I think 31) of these old books from the 40's for $5 at a garage sale for the day when we build - built-in bookshelves in the recesses next to the fireplace.

I will post the rest of the pictures later. Until then, take care!

30 Day Photo Challenge: Day 24

And while Pete & I did go visiting last night to Grandma & Grandpa K's, and also saw Pete's parents + younger sibs, and Mindy & Aaron + kids... I forgot to grab a picture while we were there. It was a fun night -- but today's back to the studying hard. I took a bit too much time off from studying this domain, and am playing catch-up this weekend in hopes of doing well on Monday's 3 hour exam! (We have 1 exam each 3-4 week class!)

So, today's photo challenge: A smile. Pretty sure this counts ~ this is my happy dog on our walk this evening. And yes... our grass is this green (you can also see that it's been misting today -- the grass is pretty wet)! His happiest 2 minutes each day are between the end of the walk and mealtime.

On another note: I really am liking this springtime weather!

30 Day Photo Challlenge: Day 23

As last night was rainy, I did not get a picture of the sunset... and since tonight does not look promising, I figured I would take a trip through the picture archives...

Sunset over Lake Michigan - D family camping. Probably my best picture of the sun slipping slowly beneath the horizon. No matter where you are... sunset is a beautiful event, and I don't think I have seen 2 that look identical yet! :)

Sunset over canals in Venice, Italy. This was probably one of the most picturesque places I have ever been. The buildings are old -- much older than buildings in the US, and the multitude of bridges and crazy sidewalks keeps navigating around the place interesting. Motorized travel around Venice is by boat and you get to feed the birds! Fun place to visit!

Sunset over Beijing, China. We were in Beijing about 2 weeks before the 2008 Summer Olympics. The weather there was warm and muggy (so the sunset is not so brilliant). Really neat to watch the Bird's Nest (pictured above), and other places in the city ready themselves for the games and foreign tourists. I would go back to China in a heartbeat to visit -- great food, nice people, and we were able to find enough people who spoke English making travel about the country relatively easy.

30 Day Photo Challenge: Day 22

My view this morning -- sun coming up over the trees. It's going to be another beautiful summer-like day; I plan on being outside and enjoying it!

30 Day Photo Challege: Days 19-21

Today we were able to take the plane out and just around the area... certainly looks like summer!
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In addition to Pete getting a plane Monday, I had to have a breast biopsy. Today's a great day -- not only is the weather good, but I found out the results & I do not have cancer. All the same, it was scary to be told that I needed a biopsy and it was not the least painful thing I have ever done.

 

Following my biopsy, I came home and napped here on the couch (Day 19: where I slept) -- following strict instructions to not clean, vacuum, lift anything, or move too much.

These are the books that I am reading (Day 20). Unfortunately, school leaves little time for much recreational reading during the semester. As for "recreational reading", I did get through the Breast Health pamphlet as well as the pathology report (top document) -- not so exciting reads, but important all the same.

And... today's pretty pattern: the top of the tea box we got from China (contains a wonderful loose leaf fruit tea and unfurling flower jasmine tea). I like this pattern, and today especially -- with all the sunshine, the box seems to glow. One thing that I found interesting when traveling over there, packaging matters almost as much as the product itself. We have a beautiful wood box (in storage) that contains the glass figurine of the Great Wall of China, and a nice patterned box containing my tea set.