Surgery Scramble

Nick's first day of his surgery rotation began MUCH differently than he would have liked.

At 9:00AM he received a text from a fellow student saying "we're waiting on you, in the professional building." Well... Nick was still laying in bed with the belief that he didn't have anything until his scrub-in clinic at 1:00PM. Yep, apparently he had missed an email saying that there was an orientation starting at 9:00AM. Oops.

He was up, dressed, and out the door in under 5 minutes. I felt so bad for him. Surgery is an intimidating rotation WITHOUT being "that guy" on the first day. Luckily we live super close and he was there shortly after, but still nothing like starting out behind the 8 ball.

He said when he entered the room everyone just stopped and stared at him and shortly after the resident leading the orientation made a comment like "and be sure to be on time." Wonder who that was aimed at? Poor guy! After that the students were supposed to go meet up with different teams to follow and get a feel for the rotation- Nick didn't have his white coat as he didn't have any idea what to expect so before he could join the team he had to RUN all the out to his car, grab his coat and doctor stuff and RUN all the way back. He said by the time he reached the team he was a sweaty, flustered mess.

Anyone who knows Nick knows he HATES being late and HATES being unprepared. So that whole day from start to finish was his absolute worst nightmare!

Sooo... basically the good news is that it can only go up from there right?


Nick's surgery rotation goes from mid November-mid February. As part of the general surgery rotation it sounds like Nick will be jumping around through all different units, spending a week or so at a time with each group.

My current understanding of his schedule is roughly:

• Day starts early- he's out the door by 5:15AM to report in with his team at 5:30AM
• Tuesday mornings he has surgery clinic
• Days seem to vary a little on length but for the most part he won't be home until 6:00PM or so.
• He has a pager that goes off whenever someone comes in/something big happens (yay...) 
• It doesn't seem like he will work too many weekends- so that's a nice surprise! 

** We also know he will have 1-2 weeks spent on the night shift. This means he will report in around 6-7PM and stay until around 7AM.  And that he may have a handful of on-call shifts as well (still waiting on clarification of this one!)

His attire for the next few months!!! Much preferred to the dress clothes he wore last rotation! AND there is a scrub machine... so less clothes for me to clean... double win! Maybe the one perk to the Surgery rotation!

Internal Medicine Shelf

Wooo Wooo! Nick has officially written his first shelf exam of clinicals! IM was a great rotation to start with because it covers SO many bases and allowed him to dibble dabble in a lot of different issues. However, that made studying for the Shelf a lot more broad and a little less fun!

Monday Nick had his oral exam in which he sat down with one of his Attendings and was asked questions regarding a couple of the case reports he had written based on patients he had worked with over the past 12 weeks. This was pretty quick and Nick felt really good about it and got good reviews/a good grade! Woo!

The second part was the written portion which took place on Friday.  It was extra helpful because his last day working in IM was Tuesday- giving him all day Wednesday and Thursday to prepare. Nothing like a couple of good 10 hour days in the library to remind you that although you are in the hospital and seeing patients... you are still a student! haha.

The overall consensus from Nick and other students was that the IM shelf exam was EXTREMELY general and broad. They felt that on many of the questions they didn't really have enough information to answer the question (a sign that they are getting so super smart?!) But Nick feels like he did well and passed. From what I've heard it can take FOREVER to get grades back... so it may be awhile before we officially know how he did! 

Overall IM was a great success and Nick left with several letters of recommendation and many more great connections made!

Now for the next 12 weeks it's goodbye dress clothes- hello scrubs!

Internal Med/Life Update

Nick is still chugging along through his Internal Medicine rotation. He only hasa week or so left before he takes his 1st Shelf Exam and moves onto his next rotation (surgery.)  He continues to love IM and has learned SO much! Most days he has 2-3 of his own patients and so far all of his evaluations from the Doctors and Residents he has worked with have all been GREAT and rave about how well he is doing on the floor/in the clinic. YAY! Not that I am at all surprised, but definitely proud wifey over here.

He has now switched from working on the floor to working in the clinic. Clinic hours are definitely pretty awesome- he goes in at 8AM and is home around 4:30PM every day. He's super busy studying and completing case reports so he usually only spends an hour at home before heading off to the library for a couple hours. Still... much shorter days, and especially now that he has a 5 minute commute rather than a 40 minute commute... he's a much happier boy!  I know he misses some of the floor stuff, but I think it has been a nice change of pace and change of scenery to be in the clinic for a couple weeks! He has definitely loved internal medicine and I think he is surprised by how much he has enjoyed it. As of right now I believe Emergency Medicine is still his #1 but I know that the past 10 weeks have definitely opened his eyes to life as an IM doctor and he is definitely not crossing it off his list as a potential career!

I can't believe he almost has one full and long rotation under his belt! Time is flying! Surgery is next up, and while I know he will like it, I am definitely not very excited for the crazy hours it entails. However, I AM HAPPY to have it over with BEFORE baby arrives AND he has 2 weeks or so off for Christmas break- so I guess I can't complain too much about the timing :) Plus, I'm sure surgery will bring some good stories from his experiences... we already have a suture kit in our kitchen at almost all times so God only knows what else is to follow... ;)

In other news:  we are almost completely settled into our new house!! Wooo hoo! We've been living here for a full week or so now and really only have some small things left to do/some organizing, but all in all it's quite homey and we are loving it! Pictures and more updates on that another time.

Baby is continuing to grow big and strong and my glorified beer gut baby belly is gradually turning into a full on baby bump! Every day I see obvious changes, which is weird, but fun! Still waiting to feel the little nugget move!

He's dressed so doctor-y and cute every day that I couldn't resist snapping a quick picture! The cutest IM student ever!!!

16 weeks pregnant and enjoying having some energy back and the fall weather/wardrobe!

Internal Medicine

We officially have a 3rd year Internal Medicine Half-Doctor in the house!!! Nick's orientation was on Wednesday August 14th and his first official day on the job was Monday, August 19th! He came home from his orientation SO EXCITED about his very doctor-esque beeper that he was given. AKA the hospital version of a handcuff to ensure students/employees are never too far out of reach! While it's exciting today... I say give it about a month and that thing will be his enemy (or maybe mostly mine)- when it goes off around 2am!

Nick has successfully completed his first full week of Internal Medicine rotations, and so far, so good! His first day he dove right in offering to take the less ideal jobs that the higher up residents did not want to do. This doesn't surprise me at all. Unlike some medical students, Nick worked in the hospital for 2 years before attending SGU. He is used to getting his hands dirty and being the low guy on the totem poll. There are very few tasks that phase him- and actually, he is eager and willing to do all and any that get thrown his way!

An added perk so far has been that Nick has a "noon conference" every day which includes a catered lunch! Some days it is better than others but either way, this wifey (and our bank account) enjoy not having to make to lunches every day!  

The first week involved a little bit of everything- from having his own patients to check in with/report on during rounds, attending lectures, shadowing on exciting cases, and overall just getting oriented to St. John's Hospital. Some days he comes home feeling like he is on top of his game and other days he comes home and quickly sticks his head in a medical book- eager to learn more to have a better understanding the next day.

His schedule for Internal Med has been pretty good with his hospital day starting roughly around 7:00AM and ending anywhere between 3:00- 6:00PM and he works some weekends, but not all. His day rarely is over when he walks in the door however, because there is usually something he wants to learn up on before bed... but all in all not a terrible schedule for his first rotation!

He is learning so much and comes home with interesting/exciting stories every day and it's crazy how much he has learned already in such a short period of time! They sure do work these med students hard! :)

3rd Year Clinical Schedule

It's been a couple of weeks since we got the official word that Nick would be remaining in Detroit at St. John's Hospital and since then we have been hard on the house hunt and preparing to move into our new (although still unknown) home.

Life post STEP continues to be awesome, but ONE week from today the hubs is back in medstudent mode- this time ready to conquer his 3rd year of medical school and the 6 hospital rotations that come with it!

We got his schedule today which was really exciting! In short, the overview of his year looks like this:

1. Internal Medicine (a 12 week rotation)
2. General Surgery  (a 12 weeks rotation)
3. Family Medicine (a 6 week rotation)
4. Pediatrics (a 6 week rotation)
5. OB/GYN (a 5 week rotation)
6. Psychiatry (and as of right now his schedule says this is a super short 2 week rotation- so we'll see if that is correct or changes.) 

3rd year is filled with all mandatory rotations that every medstudent must take, but in 4th year he will have a little flexibility to pick a few rotations that he is especially interested in (ie: Emergency Medicine)- so that will be fun! This schedule takes him from August 19, 2013 - June 30, 2014! As 3rd year comes to an end in June, Nick will then need to be preparing for his STEP 2 exams and getting ready to begin the residency application process (which from what we've read, heard, and been told- is rather lengthy.)

 His breaks in between each rotation are pretty short, but his schedule within each rotation will definitely vary dramatically- with some being more intense than others. We've heard a little of what to expect from those who have completed 3rd year ahead of us, but we'll see what our own personal impression of each one is!

Nick's definitely not ready to give up the relaxed life yet, but he loves (and thrives) in the hospital setting so I think once he's back in his scrubs and white coat he'll be lovin' all the hands on experience that comes with each clinical rotation!

Handy Home-RENTERS: Adirondack Chair Project

Now that we know we are staying in Michigan- life gets a lot easier AND a lot more fun! Instead of packing our bags to move half way across the country, we are packing up our belongings to move 30 minutes. Instead of cramming our lives into a 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom apartment- we will be moving into a house... with a yard, and a garage, and SPACE.

Glorious!

While our first official home together was in Grenada- that was a bit of a unique situation where we had limited supplies and mostly created make-shift decorations and things to get us by- so really, as far as getting down with our DIY wild sides, it doesn't exactly count. Don't be mistaken- we got SUPER creative and the majority of our house WAS as "Do It Yourself" as you could get- but this time around we are going to be able to make the house much more "homey" and OURS- even if it is just a rental!

SO here begins our HomeRENTERS adventures- where I will document all the projects, mishaps, and fun that goes into our adorable East-Side Michigan rental home :) Someday, we will finally be homeOWNERS, but until then there is no doubt we will be able to keep ourselves busy renter-style!

We have a house that we will most likely be renting but need to dot our "I's" and cross our "T's" before anything becomes official. We are so excited  (and to be honest, Nick has been stir crazy with so much time on his hands and maybe   totally, driving me nuts) so we I, had to find him a project. Nick loves "man things and projects" as he calls them, so we researched a few things and decided on Anirondack chairs. Ya know, those cool, wood, chairs that can be painted pretty colors?!

This project took several days, which was great for filling time, but also was a lot of fun! Nick hit the hardware store and bought all the supplies and a few new toys that he "needed" and then the next couple of days were filled with sawing, sanding, measuring, gluing, and drilling. We had SO much fun. Nick's incredibly handy and for a girl, I consider myself a very helpful and handy side-kick so the project overall went very smoothly and the chairs turned out AWESOME!

We still need to stain or paint them but we haven't really decided on a color or theme yet and at this point may wait until we get settled into our new place to do that since there will be more room for them to dry outside or in a garage- rather than pulling them into our current living room and possibly killing us all with the paint fumes!

YAY powertools!!!!!!

Putting together the base of the chairs and the back :)

ALL DONE!!! Still need to be painted or stained and we are going to round out the top a bit in some way, but mostly COMPLETED! And sooooooo comfy!

Relaxing after a job well done!

Nickism: Real men of Genius

I find Nick to be pretty hilarious. It's pretty much why I married him. That being said, here's the most recent "Nickism." It's not as nerdy as most Nickisms tend to be, but still most certainly worthy of the title. This Nickism is brought to you due to his need to vent his frustration about sitting near a smelly peer...

"Real men of genius: Today I salute you Oh stinky kid next to me in the library. 

Deodorant, Cologne, or a weekly shower just don't fit into your schedule. 

But a sweat-soaking workout before studying next to me couldn't be skipped. 

So crack open an Ice cold Budlight or maybe even a window- oh invader of my nares,

 because this stank is unrivaled..."

Looks like we have a blooming poet on our hands ladies and gentlemen!

ACLS Certified!!!!

Yes, it's another brag about Nick post. Sorry 'bout it. I'm just so proud of all his hard work! This past weekend was Sandblast (a big beach party put on by the school that I've talked about in previous terms) yet instead of participating in that, he opted for 3 days of Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support Training (ACLS). And, to the surprise of no one- he absolutely LOVED it!

Basically (in my layman's terms/understanding) ACLS is a systematic way of providing care to people who have either suffered from cardiac arrest or experienced other specific medical emergencies. The class covered topics such as the importance of team dynamics and communication, systems of care and immediate post-cardiac-arrest care. It also covers airway management and related pharmacology. Nick loved that it was so hands on and allowed him to actively apply things he is currently learning/has learned in the past. For a big chunk of the class they were given an issue and had to work together to "treat the patient" and spent a lot of time in the lab actually simulating real life situations.

I am not sure if an ACLS certification is a requirement for all health care professionals, but it certainly can't hurt and in many areas of health care it would be a necessary certification to have, so it's so great that he is already one step ahead of the game by getting it now! I'm so proud of him and all his work and loved listening to his stories each night because his enthusiasm was impossible to miss! I was not surprised to hear that he aced the written exam at the end of the course because when he loves something and is that interested in it, he soaks it up and thrives! 

He might not have gone to the beach party, but I think he actually had more fun playing doctor all weekend... if that doesn't scream nerdy medical school student, I don't know what does! Oh, and to all our family and friends- don't even think you can try and die on his watch now... he's the man at resuscitating people now ;)

I also feel like I should have thought it was more weird than I did to find this laying on our kitchen table when I got home, but these are the things I have become accustomed to. When I asked Nick where I should put his "weird body part toy" he excitedly exclaimed "it's the oral pharynx/larynx! Couldn't you tell from the tongue?!" Oh, silly me.... and in case you were wondering, it has only been moved from the kitchen to the living room so far.  Some people have vases and nice ottomans... we have a pharynx/larynx/tongue... almost the same thing.

Powderpuff && Dodge ball

SGU IEA hosted a Powderpuff football tournament for the first time this term- so naturally Nick's foobtall team (and their fabulous cheerleaders) had to put together a team! We had SO many players that we actually ended up being forced into breaking it up into 2 teams! At first we were bummed that we had to split up our fabulous gang, but in the end it worked out because we were all able to play a lot more this way. We thought the tourney would only last a couple hours and we'd just play a few games... well 8 hours in the beating sun and 6 games later... the tournament was over! Our team played great and went into the finals undefeated but unfortunately lost in the final game.

What an exhausting, but incredibly fun filled day! We had hardly eaten and did not drink nearly enough water (as we didn't expect it to last all day- we were severely unprepared.)  Nick actually ended up super dehydrated and sick (and most likely suffered from hypoglycemic shock) which was horribly scarey! What can I say? Powderpuff is hardcore!!! And... I could literally not move for a week afterward. Go Free Agents (and gals!)

Another fun event was the dodge ball tournament. Nick and the football boys have played in previous terms and have always been competitive, but this term they went in with 2 goals: 1)win the costume contest and 2)win the tournament. Nothing less.

After discussing what their costume should be continuously the week prior- they decided to paint their faces like the KISS Band members and wear white shirts that said "Kiss This" on it. It was pretty cute watching 10 guys carefully painting each others faces before hand. I am happy to report- they successfully accomplished BOTH goals! They won the costume contest AND tournament! It was so, so, so fun and nothing short of ridiculously competitive!

5th term for the Doctor-Man

So, what does 5th term have in store for the Doctor-Man-To-Be? Here's a little run down: 5th term consists of 4 classes, with the big one being Pathophysiology. Although you spend most of your first 2 years at SGU hearing about term 4 and Pathology the 13 credit monster- don't be fooled, Pathophysiology may be a slight step down, but it's no easy walk in the park. It rings in a close second at 12 credits and is not lacking for material. The other 3 classes are Pharmacology (drugs, drugs, drugs!), Intro to Clinical Medicine (5th term students go to the a local Grenadian hospital twice a week to get some actual hands-on experience. The hospital in Grenada is not exactly what we are used to in the States, which adds to the experience! But, there is no AC and Nick will be wearing dress pants, a dress shirt, AND a white coat (he's a doctor!)... so to say he will be a bit toasty during his couple hours a week there is putting it lightly! Nick's super excited about the hands-on work though and has missed interacting with patients, so it will be a nice change and break from sitting in a desk for a couple hours, two days a week!) and Foundation to Clinical Reasoning (something along the lines of applying what they've learned so far to clinical vignettes.)

Whew, that was a mouth-full.  Besides classes, Nick has also been bumped up from VP to Mr. El-Presidenté of the Emergency Medicine Club at SGU. This has already been keeping him busy as he plans events, speakers, clinics, and does all sorts of President busy work and running around. He loves it though. What can I say... the man loves to be busy and continues to love Emergency Medicine!

And last but not least, with the USMLE Step 1 Board Exam quickly approaching, Nick is also dedicating a few hours each week to reviewing and studying test prep materials. The big push for studying will come in May after 5th term is complete, but he feels that getting his bearings and attempting to stay on top of all the material now, will help him during those overwhelming cram-weeks later on :) He has also already submitted his application to take the test so we are just waiting to set an official date! Crazy! I think it's safe to say 5th term is officially in full-swing and the glorious days of having Nick around the house are over for now! Let the good times crazy hours of lecture and studying in medical school roll!

The Doctor-Man-To-Be himself, sporting his nerdy totally awesome, and crazy accurate anatomy shirt! He came home from school SUPER proud because all his classmates thought he was so cool... oh medical school humor! I must say, it is pretty cool though!

Peace Out, 4th Term!

I've been home a little over 2 weeks and honestly am not sure where time has gone! Life has been busy, but a fun busy! I've been running all over doing last minute wedding stuff- dotting our Is and crossing our Ts. Thankfully, we got SO much help from family here on the home front while we were gone that although I feel like I have been doing a lot non-stop- really, there was not too much left that needed to be done :) We are SO appreciative of all the help because it has allowed this process to stay fun and relatively free of stress!

The final missing piece to the puzzle lands in the U.S in a few short hours!!! YES, Nick has OFFICIALLY completed 4th term and I could not be more proud! Now, I say this each term and after each test (and genuinely mean it each time because he amazes me) but let me tell you... 4th term, was hard. It was draining. It was exhausting. It was stressful. It was consumed by Pathology, with several other classes also demanding attention as well. It was long. And Nick handled it like a freakin' champ and now I get to brag on him a bit :) He ran on just a few hours of sleep each night and endured 12+ hour days filled with class, followed by lab, further followed by hours of studying... for 5 months straight. Yet, through it all he still managed to come home with a smile on his face more days than not. Still managed to leave his stress from studying at the door more days than not. Still would surprise me with help around the house whenever he could. And still sent me sweet messages on Skype, when the days got long and we were hardly seeing each other. Annnnnddd, on top of all that, he ROCKED Pathology, a 13 credit, hard as can be class. He's a rock star. And probably not going to be a fan of all my bragging about him... but it's deserved, and I am allowed :)

Tomorrow starts wedding week! And I am so excited to have him home to be a part of it! I love how excited he is and how much he likes to be involved :) Nothing sounds better than a week of pre-wedding last minute things in front of Christmas movies with my favorite guy, family, and closest friends!

Good riddance 4th term! I'll GLADLY take my student back now :) So proud of Nick and all of my 4th term friends and their SOs for surviving this beast of a term!

Medical school student in da house!

I've mentioned before that Nick is currently taking a class commonly referred to as CPD, which stands for Communication Skills and Physical Diagnosis.  This class is interesting because it actually allows the students to start learning and practicing basic physical exams, assessments, and evaluations on each other and (paid actor) patients..... and in our case... Nick gets to practice on me.

For the past several evenings Nick has come home from studying on campus a couple hours early, and our house has turned into Dr. Leo's medical office. He runs through these general assessments- obtaining vital signs (blood pressure, pulse, respiration, temperature), checks for jugular venous pressure and pulsation, checks peripheral vascular system (using tests such as: Allen’s test, Buerger’s test, a manual compression test,  Pratt test and Homan sign), does examinations on the ear, nose, and sinuses (using tests such as the Whisper test and sinus transillumination).... you get the idea. Lots of fun, real life doctor stuff- with real doctor tools. He continues to impress me with his ever growing knowledge and seeing him apply it is fun... plus, it appears that according to these tests, other than needing stronger contact lenses (sad day when you fail a vision test that is supposed to just be for practice) I appear to be healthy and regularly functioning!

So, while seeing him act all professional is all super fun and cute, when he announced he was coming home to test out some skills on me the other night- more specifically the ears/nose/throat skills, I was a little less than enthused... see, I am currently battling a cold. Awesome. It's already a little weird to spend my night having my fiance looking up my nose or in my ears- let alone on a night when I am a bit under the weather... But, he is going to be quizzed on these assessments soon, so in true medical school spirit, the exams went on! Weird or not, a passing grade is definitely more important than him not being prepared due to the possibility of wax in my ears or boogers in my nose.

Yep, getting married to a doctor-in-training sure is a romantic.

1/3 of the way through 4th term!!!!!

Okay so... I need to brag a little bit here.

Nick just completed his first round of 4th term exams! He had a Pathology (the huge 13 credit class) exam on Monday and a Micro exam on Friday. The weeks leading up to these exams were even more intense than usual, with him easily putting in 15+ hour study days and battling ever growing stress and exhaustion. However, all that hard work paid off and Nick brought home 2 A's!!! And, not just any old A's... but two good, solid, above average, completely rock my socks off, A's! I could not be more proud :) 

There is nothing better than seeing all his countless hours of labor, endless cups of coffee, and nights with far too little sleep, pay off! My fiancé is one hardworking and smart man! I'll steal a little credit and say it's because I keep him clothed and well fed... ;)

So, it goes without saying that after exams were done Nick deserved to let loose, have some fun, and sleep! And that is exactly what we did all weekend long! We had a perfect weekend filled with time on the water in the "donut boat", dinner at our place with friends, late night swimming at our neighbor's pool, sleeping in, big yummy breakfast, thunderstorms, napping in the hammock, church, movies, and football... LOTS of football!

Our set up for the football games. Doors wide open, breeze blowing in, thunderstorms pouring down... as close to fall weather as we will ever get here... it was AWESOME!

I am not ready to surrender Nick back over to 4th term yet, but sadly our weekend of bliss has come to an end and he was back out the door early this morning for class and studying. 4th term sure does make you cherish quality time and I am already looking forward to our next weekend of fun in about... 5-6 weeks... sigh. In the meantime, send positive thoughts and prayers his way so that he is able to not only continue chugging away lecture by lecture, but that he continues to dominate :)

3rd term academic update

So, since most of my posts lately have been about fun stuff that both Nick and I have been able to do during this magnificent 3rd term, I thought it might be time for a school update. This term Nick is more or less taking 3 subjects that were combined into 1 class under the umbrella term "Behavior Sciences and Medicine."  It breaks down something like this: 1 part- Behavioral Sciences, 1 part- Biostatistics/Epidemiology/Health Systems, and 1 part- Jurisprudence & Clinical Ethics. 

Obviously, I am not in the class, but the impression I have gotten is that some of it is super common sense and therefore makes for a really boring lecture, some stuff is interesting, some is a bit challenging, and some just falls somewhere in between... so really there is a mix of difficulty level, but all in all, seems doable without killing yourself (a nice break from previous terms.)

The bottom line for us has been that YES 3rd term is much more relaxed, but this doesn't mean that there isn't still a decent amount of studying per week (it just seems a lot less because the bar for studying was set SO high during the 1st year!) However, if you stay on top of lectures and studying, you can have a lot more time for relaxation and fun during this 6 weeks!

Nick's day pretty much consists of catching the 7:45 bus to campus, class from 8-noon, lunch, then a couple days a week he has small group for a couple hours after that. In between class and small group he will study, or on days where he doesn't have small group he will stay on campus for a couple hours to study. BUT that being said, with the exception of the week before finals, he has been home every night around 6:30pm-- which is awesome! 

The weekends have definitely been much more easy going, with a few hours of studying usually on Sunday, but for the most part as long as he has been able to stay on top of things during the week, his weekends have remained open for fun and island exploring!

Nick also keeps impressing me by pullin' in great grades as he absolutely rocked his midterm last week! Soooo proud! :) 

Drum Roll Please....

I am happy to say that Nick rocked his finals and therefore has successfully completed his first year of medical school!!! I could not be more proud and excited for him, and for us! It's crazy to believe that one year has passed already. This finals week was definitely no walk in the park, but despite the tough classes and dense material (plus a couple added barriers) he made it through with flying colors :) I'm so lucky to have such a dedicated, smart, and hard working guy!

Good Riddance Immunology, Genetics, Neurology, and Physiology-- it's been fun, but I am more than happy to not be sharing my boyfriend with you any longer! :)

I could be off a bit, but I think his first 2 terms consisted of give or take 7 midterm exams, 10 finals exams, a handful of practical exams, and too many pounds of coffee consumed and early mornings/late nights spent in the library... but he not only survived, but thrived! Yay!

Looking forward to having him home on Wednesday for a much deserved break before starting 3rd term in July :) 

No one likes a thief

It's hard to believe I have already been home for a little over a week...but then again at the same time, so much has happened that it seems like I left the island weeks ago.  The week since leaving Grenada has been filled with many ups and downs. We have been reminded of how hard distance can be, how fragile life is, and learned the hard way that not all people are nice.

A major stress over the past couple of days has been that Nick's computer was stolen from the 3rd floor of the library last Thursday afternoon. Talk about a horrible time for him and a horrible phone call to get for me. Ugh. There was pure panic, hurt, and frustration in his voice and I was instantly so upset for him and so mad that people really can be that cruel. Really, you are going to steal his computer, from the library, on the Thursday before he takes 6 exams... you are a mean, selfish, and horrible person. We did everything we could to track the computer, and Nick reported it stolen to both SGU Security and the police, however unfortunately so far it's still MIA.  And due to it being finals, we are trying our best to move forward, focus on the time at hand, and he has vowed to rally and still kick major butt on his exams.   Well he is doing that, I still have the iCloud tracker tab open at all times, waiting and clinging to that tiny ounce of hope that the robber will make a wrong move and the computer will pop up with a location... yes, probably unlikely. But, I can hope. Word of advice- never leave computer unattended, even if you think you will be quick and other students will watch it. Computer thefts have gone up recently, and whoever is stealing them is quick and if I had to guess experienced in the stealing business. Grr. It really grinds my gears.

So yes, that's a major bummer, but on the positive side, Nick has seen the outpouring of support from so many people since that happened. One of our friends had both a computer and iPad in Grenada and since she really only uses her iPad she has loaned Nick her computer for the remaining couple weeks of the semester. Talk about a kind and oh so much appreciated gesture. I can't even imagine how much worse this situation could have been if he had been stuck on a tiny island during finals without a computer... gah, nightmare. And like I said, in addition to her act of kindness, he has also received dozens of messages from other classmates (some of which he knows and some he doesn't, or didn't prior to his computer incident) offering to lend him iPads, tablets, help him print off notes, etc.  Honestly, this brings tears to my eyes. Despite being so angry at the person who stole the computer, I am so touched by the kindness of so many others to help my guy hold it together and make it through finals. It is so nice to know (and be reminded) that there are so many kind, and wonderful people out there, especially when you're so mad and think the world is ugly because of one person's greed.

In other news, the main reasons I came home a couple weeks early was to attend my little brother Joey's first communion and for my sister's birthday.  Well my sister's birthday is still a couple days a way, but Joey's first communion was so wonderfully cute.  He was so excited and so proud.  I just love the excitement of little kids making their first communion, and it reminds us that we too should always be that excited and anxious to participate in whatever our church service may be.

I could just eat him up he's so cute! 

The family :) 

J-dawg with all 4 grandparents :) 

Joey with his proud Godparents <3 

My boy!

yayyy siblings, and cousin Sean! Love this one!

2 exams down- 4 to go. He has Genetics and Immunology on Wednesday, physiology on Friday, and an exam to test everything he has learned in his first year of medical school on Monday. So some extra prayers and/or positive thoughts over the next week would definitely be appreciated :) We are both definitely ready for the term to be over and for him to be home!

Happy 25th Birthday Nicholas Andrew!!

This post is a week delayed, but better late than never right?? Last weekend we celebrated Nick's 25th birthday, and due to it conveniently falling on the same weekend as Easter, he had some extra time off of school to enjoy himself! SGU had both Friday and Monday off of school, so we were able to thoroughly relax and enjoy his birthday, while also allowing him a couple days to study as well. Friday was his actual birthday and I think we were able to combine our favorite things on the island into that day. First since there was no class he actually got to sleep in (very exciting for him!) then after getting our house ready to have people over in the evening we set out to enjoy some beach time. We were met by huge waves, which was icing on the cake to a beach day in our eyes. If you know us, you know we love, love, big waves! They were breaking directly on the sand, so I have to admit, although fun, they were a bit painful this time around! 

The waves were so intense I legit lost my pants in the one. Luckily, I reached back in time to scoop them up with my hand before they got swept away and was able to get them on before it was too awkward... but the picture was snapped with my white booty just hanging out for all to see.... nice!  

The beach can go from rough to calm and vice versa so quickly! 

Such a fun day :) Love it when he can relax and enjoy himself on the beach!

Later on in the evening we had a group of friends over to BBQ and hang out before heading out to The Owl. As always it was fun to have everyone over to just relax, play some games, and eat yummy food! And of course we had to walk over to the cliff to catch the sunset- it never disappoints! 

The night continued with karaoke at The Owl. What more could the birthday boy ask for? Seriously he was in his happy place. The bar was relatively quiet too so we were able to take over the karaoke machine and sing whatever our hearts desired all  night - much to the dismay of the few locals who were there! If I had to guess I'd say our group sang somewhere around 20+ songs ranging from hardcore rap songs to Journey to NSync and Backstreet boys to songs from Grease and Aladdin.

All in all, I'd say his 25th birthday was a great success! It's hard to celebrate so far away from home, but luckily he is surrounded by great friends who helped to make his birthday very special. And, it's not every birthday us Michiganders get to celebrate on a Caribbean Island and one of the most beautiful beaches in the world! Cheers to being 25 years young!

Mr. Nick visits Limes

Today Nick came with me to the Limes After School Program for the first time, and I am so glad he did! He finally got a glimpse of what it is I do during the week and got to see how and why these kids were able to steal my heart so quickly.

I warned him before we left that I haven’t over exaggerated stories and that Limes really is chaotic even on the best days, but I think even still he underestimated what goes into being a volunteer at Limes.  Until you experience having 3-5 kids hanging on you at once, and the constant yelling of “Miss” “Miss” “Miss”, and have attempted to break up a fight while continuing a game with 10 + other kids- you cannot fully understand or appreciate Limes.  You can’t understand what makes it challenging, but even more so, you can’t understand what makes it so wonderful, heartwarming, and all in the same breath- heartbreaking.

My heart  melted watching Nick play with all the kids, both big and little.  There’s pretty much nothing cuter in the world than seeing your guy with a buncha kids! He embraced their craziness, and let them treat him like a human jungle gym.  And I loved every minute of it- and think he did too.

Most of the volunteers at Limes are girls, so when a boy comes along, it is so exciting for the kids.  The boys love having someone they can rough house with a little more and who they can be competitive with in sports- not that this doesn’t happen with us gals- but with guys it is just different, and in their eyes, better.  And the girls, oh the girls swoon. I don’t think we had been there 5 minutes when a group of the girls called me over and all giggly asked me “Miss who is that?” When I told him it was my boyfriend Nick- they erupted with laughter and giddy-ness. 

Going to medical school in Grenada is an experience all on it’s own with its own challenges. Walking down the street you see the poverty- you do not need to go looking for it. But I think when you are able to immerse yourself in the community and get to know the children of the community you really get to see Grenada in a whole new light. You see how their lives are so greatly affected, and poverty is no longer just a name, but it is given a face. No, it is given many faces, children’s faces- they are the faces of the kids you hug, laugh with, tickle, and play games with. It’s the faces of kids who just want attention so badly.

Nick has only come once so far, and hopefully he will come more when his schedule allows it, but I think now he can understand why these kids mean so much to me, and why they are so easy to love. I know I sure loved watching him love on these kids! 

Midterms are done, time for some fun!

Not only did Nick survive midterms, but he absolutely rocked them!! All the long days in the library/study hall, and immunology making him want to bash his head into the desk- paid off, because he did great on all his exams! Needless to say, I am very proud, and enjoyed having him around for the first time in 3 weeks! We celebrated St. Patties Day, lounged at the beach, went to The Owl, and simply relaxed. It was much deserved- and fabulous. 

Friday night while pretty much all of SGU hit up Bananas (a bar located right outside of campus) we hit up The Owl- my personal favorite bar and in my opinion a million times better than Bananas. Anyways, it was dead and we were pretty much the only non locals there.  Fridays there is karaoke, and so the locals were tearing it up-- seriously, they were SO good. Naturally, we had to join in, and literally cleared he few people who were in the bar out... Apparently our 5 person version of Aladdin was less than stellar. Our night was full of adventures, and I'll let Nick's Facebook status tell the rest...  "just to recap tonight... sing aladdin song karaoke at owls with Marty and Chelsea and clear the place out, check; walk 3 miles with Mark having only one sandal on, check; take a grenadian taxi home and have his radiator blow in a back alley, check; smash the whole pizza by myself that Lindsey had me make for her but then she fell asleep, check; all-in-all i'd say tonight was pretty dece..."  


Yes. True Life Grenada. :) 

Saturday was Sandblast, which conveniently fell on the same day as St. Patrick's Day.  St. Patrick's Day however is not celebrated or even that well-known about in Grenada, so many locals were a bit confused by all our green attire, and shamrock get-ups.  When Nick's sister came to visit she brought us TONS of stuff- beads, stickers, buttons, and stick on tattoos, so we were very prepared to celebrate in style, and definitely got our green on! Although it didn't quite feel the same as St. Patrick's Day at home- it was perfect. We hung out on the beach, had some green beer, and the medical school students with their pale skin from living indoors, actually got to enjoy this wonderful island we call home... and most ended up quite sunburned.

Sunday we went snorkeling which was super fun! We went to the little beach by our house, so it wasn't the best snorkeling spot around, but was still fun! Then afterwards we got Prickly Bay pizza which is always so yummy and was such a treat for me because I was simply thrilled to not be cooking!

And of course, there was plenty of cliff action over the weekend. They kept the tradition of jumping immediately following midterms, and then we jumped again when Chelsea was here! Whenever you get to jump the cliff twice in one weekend you know it was a nice relaxing weekend! 

Happy Valentine's Day!

Definitely missing everyone at home this Valentine's Day, but very happy I got to chat with my mom on Monday for her birthday and then the whole family- including my grandma and grandpa at dinner! That was so fun, gotta love Skype! Plus, my brothers told me they would love me forever- so that was very timely for Valentine's Day :) Valentine's Day in Grenada is lower key and I absolutely loved that! There weren't a million commercials or row after row of Valentine's Day gear, but rather people wished each other happy Valentine's Day and the bus played silly and cheesy love songs all day (which I absolutely loved and was amused by obviously).

This Valentine's Day thousands of miles from home and having the unique experience of being able to live in Grenada and work with the children here for a year and half really caused me to reflect on how many things I have to be truly grateful for. I am constantly surrounded by such beauty- the crashing waves and crystal clear water and the best sunsets I've ever seen. I am constantly reminded of how much I have when I walk down the street past children and adults who aren't wearing shoes, have torn and ragged clothing, and are hungry. I am reminded how blessed I am to have grown up in a loving family surrounded by so many family members giving me attention, love, and support, and how not all children get nearly enough of this every single day. And how the lack of good role models in their life really makes you wonder what will really happen to these precious little ones as they grow up, as we leave the island, and as they stop coming to the Limes program. Hopefully we can be a positive influence and nurture them and help guide them to the a good path, but for now all we have control over is the here and now. And for this Valentine's Day we were able to share the love and encourage them to make special cards for the special people in their lives.

Valentine's Day is all about love and I got lots of it from the cute kiddos at Limes yesterday. We made Valentine's Day cards, and oh my goodness were they so cute deciding who to make them for and so serious about cutting the paper and making theirs look really cool. It was such a fun day and a perfect way to spend Vday because I got SO many hugs, kisses, and Valentine's day cards from them- it was really adorable and so sweet of them.

Nick and I also had a wonderful Valentine's Day evening. I baked way too many cupcakes and cookies, and he made a delicious dinner! We enjoyed both from our kitchen table while watching the sun set and it was perfect. Afterwards, he took a break from studying for the night and we indulged in at least 3 episodes of LOST because we are addicted. It was an absolutely perfect evening with my wonderful valentine :)

I know, my cupcake decorating skills are super impressive...

Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward together in the same direction.

-Antoine De Saint-Exupery

We've had extra beautiful sunsets the past few nights and I've finally figured out the night mode on my camera so the pictures turned out pretty well and I didn't even need to enhance the color on these! A-m-a-z-i-n-g. Happy Valentine's Day Grenada, I love you and your breathtaking sunsets. Oh, and the rain on our tin roof late every night makes me smile in my sleep. When we move back home I might need a tin roof just to help me sleep, because adjusting to life without the ocean in my backyard is going to be tough enough! I've become so spoiled by it!

Love unlocks doors and opens windows that weren't even there before.  ~Mignon McLaughlin