Two Down, Three To Go!

The four people pictured above (L to R: Drs. Miller, Hollenbeck, Earles & Barden) deserve a HUGE pat on the back! At the end of the work day today their 2nd year of orthopedic surgery residency will be officially over! The first two years of residency are extremely challenging and difficult with the 2nd year being brutal. They have worked extremely hard, put in unthinkable hours and sacrificed so much this year. And, so have the spouses and significant others. So...a big pat on the back to Laisa, myself, Ben & Lauren! This moment feels like a huge milestone for all us as we look forward to call being taken at home instead of requiring the residents to stay in house, a little lighter schedule and simply said having another year under our (their) belts.

In the past few weeks we have enjoyed the roast, the picnic and last night...the trauma dinner. One of the attendings treated all of us to dinner at an amazing restaurant here in Greenville, AZIA. This was to celebrate the residents completing their rotation on trauma, a traumatic one at that! The attendings (their bosses) and their spouses were so generous and it was lovely to share dinner with them. We had amazing sushi...Matt had steak and lobster mac & cheese (to die for!)...I had tempura fried sea scallops...and we shared the hot chocolate souffle. Not to mention the delicious, and many, bottles of wine! It was a great night out for Matt and me, but also with the other 2nd years that we first met two years ago. We began this journey with them and are so grateful to call them friends and to have them by our side for the next three years. They are truly a family away from family.

So...here is to having another year done and here is to a great 3rd year! And, a word of advice, stay out of the ER the month of July. July 1st marks the day that the new (and clueless) residents begin :) a little residency joke for ya!

Weekend Fun!

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We hosted the annual Orthopedic Surgery Resident Picnic this year and had a great time! There was great food, lots of fun for both kids and adults, and of course all of the wonderful people of this program here in Greenville! Matt and I also had a lazy Sunday enjoying some outdoor fun with the boys...a rare event during Matt's rigorous residency training. Enjoy the pictures from our fun weekend!

Multi-Tasking...

When Daddy has time to talk while on call at the hospital, you take the call...no matter what!

A Day For Daddy

I am wondering if there are ever any pictures of Matt in regular street clothes?! The truth is these pictures show that Matt is a wonderful father. He rolled in this Father's Day morning around 10am to complete his on call that began the pre-dawn hours on Saturday (which really means working non-stop for almost 30 hours). Last night he took a 3-hour break from the hospital to attend the orthopedic resident roast with me, and got a total of 2 hours of sleep that entire stent of call that were actually split into 1-hour "naps." After all of that, he still came in the door with a smile on his face excited to see the boys! He anxiously opened gifts...handmade keepsakes the boys made at school (Blake is showing Daddy how he made his foot), a St. Louis Cardinals Tervis Tumbler, and a very special gift.

The picture Matt is holding is an embroidered prayer that his Mom, Audrey, did before she passed away when he was a teenager. The work she did is gorgeous and he is so proud to have it framed. We are now able to hang it in our home to admire every day. I hope this will be a memorable Father's Day for Matt. He is such an amazing husband and father, and there is nothing the boys and I could have done to express how proud we are of him and how much he means to us. None of you see first-hand the schedule and amount of work he has to deal with on a daily basis. If you did, you would be in awe at how he is a master at juggling it all with grace and a smile on his face. We are extremely blessed!

Matt and I also want to acknowledge our wonderful fathers. We miss being able to be with them this Father's Day and hope they know how much we admire them and love them. They have shown us so much support over the years and continue to help us in many ways as we travel through life. Thank you both for all you do for us!

Happy Father's Day to all the great Dads we know and love!

June

My apologies for not posting lately, but June is such a hectic month! Here is what has been happening and what the rest of this busy month entails...

• School finishes and Blake begins summer "school" at Little Folks of Fourth @ Fourth Presbyterian with Dane.
• Go to dentist appointments and other random doctor appointments we don't get to during the school year.
• Blake continues private speech therapy and occupational therapy.
• Matt is in his last month of ER rotation, a not so enjoyable rotation for him or us.
• Ortho resident roast and final hoorah to the 5th year residents on June 19th.
• Ortho resident family picnic and welcome to new incoming residents on June 26th. Here is the main reason for not posting...we are hosting this soiree.
• Matt and I will attend the "trauma dinner" hosted by attendings as a recognition of survival of the ER/trauma rotation on June 29th.
• And last, but certainly not least, Matt finishes 2nd year of residency June 30th!

As we reach mid-month it is nice to have Blake adjusted to summer school, to feel like a responsible adult having gone to the dentist (yuck!), to have fun events to look forward to the remainder of the month, and for goodness sakes leaving the two hardest years of residency (or so we've been told) behind us! Happy June & Happy Summer!

Conquering the Fudgesicle

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I couldn't help but post a slideshow of all the pictures of Dane eating this fudgesicle (certainly in his own way!). It was too difficult to choose one or two. This is a time I wish I could put them into a flip book...one that the pictures change slightly, but as you flip quickly it tells the story. He wouldn't hold the stick at the bottom, so he found a creative way to consume this yummy treat after lunch today! It was what Matt came home to after being on call all night...certainly a light-hearted moment after a long night :)