Making Memories

Blake is on-call again tonight, so I just came back from having dinner with him at the hospital. 20 years from now, I think these will be the memories we'll look back on and cherish most. In a way, the hospital has become a second home to us.

Tonight I packed homemade coconut-chicken soup and salad for our romantic dinner in the fluorescent-lit student lounge. But as it would turn out, he was called to the OR before we even lifted our spoons to take the first bite. He rushed out the door to attend to a c-section and be available for possibly resuscitating the newborn (he's on his NICU rotation this week). Meanwhile, I joined the other med students in a fierce game of Mario Kart. Yes... Mario Kart in the hospital. Blake returned 30 min later, mom did well, baby was fine, food was now cold... our romantic dinner resumed.

This next quarter is when I start making rounds in the hospital, and I'm pretty excited. It's a place I've come to love... and there's also someone there that I love. Can you guess who? I'll try not to give it away too much when I pass him in the halls and give him a secret wink ;-)

wedding quilt.

2 years later, and I've finally started working on the quilt using the quilt squares from our wedding. I'm really excited to see it come together.

For our wedding, instead of having a quest book we asked everyone to create a quilt square. Some people drew pictures, some wrote something funny or personal, etc. I had a lot of fun going through them the other day and reading what people wrote. Here were some of my favorites:

"Thank you for all the convos, advice, and debates we had whether they were over coffee, beer, tea, or wine. They will be treasured times in my life. Blessings and Philio. -Bryon"

My brother-in-law BJ made this one. He knows Mandarin, and I'm assuming it says congratulations.

"You better take care of my sister or you die. -Jared" (thanks, brother... glad you haven't had to kill anyone)

(make sure you read the one that follows)

"I wanted to draw a cool picture to beat Eryn and Jared and Uncle Jack. But that would take too long. So I'll leave you with a witty comment. I hope these words keep you warm at night. (cause it's a quilt. Get it?) K. Love you both! -Joe Erickson"

And yes, we called the "Best Man" the Man of Honor in our wedding

At first, I thought I was a sad head with long arms and legs... but I've been told that the dots are supposed to be the sparkles from my dress :) Gotta love kid art.

Some of the quilt squares choked me up. After losing two grandparents last year, I'm very thankful to have squares from both of them-- Grandpa Smith and Grandma Erickson. I can easily pick out both of their handwritings from all the rest.

Hopefully it won't take me another 2 years to complete this task, but I'll try and post some pictures of the progress. Thank you everyone who contributed, and I'm really looking forward to piecing it all together just right.

Oyster Roast

Before moving down to Savannah, we knew nothing about oyster roasts. But oh. my. goodness. We look forward to it every year now.

Every spring, the Hogans host a big party at their house on the marsh and invite all the Mercer students. They serve up a feast of over 500lbs of oyster, and it's a blast. Huge trays of oyster are pulled out of a vat, and then dumped directly onto a wooden plank resting on top of trash cans. People crowd around the tables and eat those babies as desired-- plain, dipped in cocktail sauce, doused with hot sauce, or coupled with a cracker. There are holes carved out above the trash cans, so that you can chuck the empty shells straight into the bin. I wish I could eat every meal this way...

the set-up

Tools to help crack open the shells

First batch being dumped onto the table

And have-at-it! The older couple to the right kept feeding me the oyster they opened, and I happily obliged to eat them ;-) They were such a funny couple. I loved that she was sporting a pair of chucks (I have the same shoes in my own closet)

The party went well into the night... the oysters just kept coming.

Until next year...

1st Quarter

Whew... 1st quarter of PA school is officially completed! That went by fast.

I started off the program carrying certain anxieties that haunted me from my past -- will people doubt me? will they find me incapable? what if it all falls down the cracks? But all of those questions faded as the quarter progressed. I just stopped worrying and trusted that God had led me here, and He wasn't going to drop me in midair to be shattered again. Because I stopped worrying, I became free to dream again.

Guys, I stinkin' love what I'm doing. I have repeated to several people over the course of this quarter this phrase -- "I know I am right where God wants me."

At the end of each quarter, a student is chosen by the class to receive something called the ACE award. It stands for Academics, Compassion, and Excellence. I was so honored to receive 1st Quarter's ACE award, and the cheesy piece of paper with my name on it meant more to me than words can say. To go from wondering if people will doubt me to being recognized as a leader by my classmates... seriously humbling.

Mr. Burns giving me my award

Mr. Burns (Program Director) and I

I held a heart in my hands today...

Before you go on reading... stop and realize that the fact you're living and breathing is a miraculous thing.

The fact that your heart is rhythmically pumping blood.

That you breathe in air at a given rate, and your lungs are facilitating gas exchange.

That, meanwhile, your heart is delivering oxygen to every inch of you (even your pinky toe).

And it keeps going and going...

Holding these organs put it all in perspective... how do our bodies not mess up more often??

Today in lab we dissected a pig's heart and lungs. Such a cool experience. A pigs' heart is slightly larger, but overall it reflects our own anatomy.

Coronal cut from the apex to see the inside of the heart. We also cut the myocardium between the right atrium and right ventricle.

Part of the tricuspid valve, chordae tendineae, and papillary muscles

I'm very proud of our trachea dissection-- we managed to get the bifurcation and clean it up nicely. Ain't it pretty?

For those of you who don't like blood and guts... sorry.

words of wisdom from Booker T.

Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has

reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.

--Booker T. Washington