Oh blog world...how I have missed thee

We are back and making a Kwanza commitment to be better at updating our blog after taking some time off for our Obamabration. As you can see, I have decided to grow my hair out and Amber seems to think I am getting handsomer by the day! Winter has gotten off to a great start here in the Valley. We have been bunkered down with the rest of Phoenix as our temps have plunged into the single digits (that is 60 degrees here) with wind chills of around 55 degrees. Don't feel sorry for us though; we have space heaters, heating blankets, and a big strong man to keep everybody happy and toasty (Jon).

Amber is toiling away in a pediatric rotation. She has managed to bring home a number of colds, but not the flu yet. I have encouraged her to bring her work home but thus far, she does not feel I have earned the opportunity to assist in her homework; though I have been in charge of Vitamin C caplets, foot massages, and cooking and cleaning detail. While the practice that she is at has not been as fast paced as her previous two rotations, she is learning how to navigate three and four year olds through a health exam. While they have confessed to virtually every malady under the sun, our favorite is the little boy with dinosaur unicorns in his tummy that were making him go potty too much. My little wife sure is good with the kiddies though.

We spent Thanksgiving down in Tucson. That is such a fun town if you ever have the chance to visit. We stayed in the northeaster portion, tucked against the mountains. It rained virtually the entire weekend but we still were able to get out for some hiking and wandering. Also, Tucson is home to Mount Lemon, which is a really fascinating place. While the lower reaches were in the 70s, at the top we found ourselves in the midst of a snow storm and watched the ski lifts take their first load of the season up. The geography of Arizona is a lot of fun and there is lots to see in them thar hills!

Christmas is going to be great. We feel rather acclimated to the winter frost thanks to our experience with climate change in the Valley and are making the trek over to Oklahoma. First stop, however, is a brief stay up in Las Vegas to take in the neon Christmas; after all, this is technically my Christmas so I decided we are going to spend some time in Vegas. We leave for Oklahoma on Monday and will be there for over a week for a good old fashioned Christmas with the Foys and Aunt Kathy who is coming to town from Utah. The whole crew will not be around this time as it is Brittney's turn so she, Sterling, and Kade will be in Utah, the Glasgows are venturing on their own holiday in Omaha, and Elder Foy is out recruiting in Oregon.

Oh, and Amber is growing her hair out. It is long and strong. See for yourself (I think that she is just jealous of my beautiful locks).

This time of year is a lot of fun as long as we take our time to enjoy it; otherwise, it can sure go by fast!

Come by and visit us and find out what you are missing down here in Arizona.

Where is Fall?

We decided to take off this weekend in search of some Fall color. Living in the valley of the sun is great, but I really love the fall and we get nothing of the sort here. It is really hard to tell what season it is in the rest of the U.S. based on our weather. I didn't have any Friday afternoon surgeries and no mothers in labor i.e. a very rare Friday indeed. We headed up to Payson which is northeast of Mesa. It was fun to watch the temperature drop 30 degrees as we drove 1 hour away. But when the sun went down we were freezing. We built a fire to stay warm, but it wasn't doing much so we went to bed early. We have some good sleeping bags, although my didn't do much for my ice cold feet. It got down to 20 degrees that night.

The next morning we went to the lake and hiked around, set up my lawn chair and got caught up on my medical journals and cooking magazines. We continued hiking around this never ending lake before we decided to turn back because it just kept going. Turns out our search for fall was somewhat futile because Payson is full of evergreens! I found one tree near our campsite and saw some as we were driving. We got to see a change of color that being green as compared to our desert landscape, but I am still in search of some good fall color. I was spoiled last year because I got to go to Philadelphia and Boston for 5 days of fall. Oh well maybe next weekend.

Race for the Cure

Two weeks ago Jon and I ran in the Susan G. Komen 5k Race for the Cure. Several of my classmates got together and we decorated shirts and ran together. This for me made it official that I was over my ankle break in June as I trained and ran in this race. We had a great time and helped raise money for a good cause.

My grandma is 50 year survivor of breast cancer and has lived with the damage it did ever since. She not only lost one breast, but she also lost the use of her right arm. Being the medically minded person I am I have never found the direct cause of her arm being paralyzed. It developed over a two year period after the surgery and radiation treatments she received. My grandma lost her mother to breast cancer when she was 15 y/o. She still gets teary when talking about going to Salt Lake City for treatments. Her children were 6, 9, and 12 and she just wanted to live long enough to raise them. She is a survivor and learned how to write with her left hand and to do everything with one hand. She taught piano lessons well into her 80's. I can remember watching her slice vegetables and open jars in her own creative fashion. She was the best rolls and cinnamon roll maker I know. My grandma has also been a widow almost as long as I have been alive. As kids we stayed in Panguitch for almost a month every summer, both my parents are from there and grew up on the same block. I loved staying at my grandma's house because we spent the mornings outside gardening and I got to sleep in her bed with her and stay up past the news and watch Mash. Grandma lived independently until she was 90, but now due to some bad falls, one of which she broke her good arm, and being almost blind to macular degeneration, she lives with each of her 3 children for a part of the year. She has always been my hero and continues to amaze me. I know she as lived such a long life to be able to teach her children, grandchildren and those who have the privilege to know her faith in God and how to endure to the end.

Two years and counting

Tuesday Jon and I celebrated our two year anniversary. It is crazy how time flies, yet I look back and so much has changed since we got married. Choosing to marry Jon in the temple is the best decision I've ever made. I have never been very good at expressing how great he is to me and for how well he puts up with me through the ups and downs of life. He always makes me feel beautiful, smart and important. He is ultra supportive of my educational efforts and other goals. I could not have picked a better friend to spend life and eternity with. He constantly amazes me with his creativity, spirituality, smarts, and sociability. Needless to say I am in love with Jon.

Unfortunately Jon had to catch a flight to Omaha Tuesday night, however he came with me to work that morning and he worked via some downtown hotel buildings. We ended up being able to spend alot of time together via the commute, lunch, and dinner. We got to explore some of downtown while we looked for a place to eat dinner. All in all it was a great anniversary. Friday after I pick Jon up from the airport we are going for a little get away in Scottsdale for the weekend, so the celebration isn't over yet.

Jon writes me sweet poems, and this time he wrote it on the bathroom mirror, it was fun to wake up to, I almost missed it before I got in the shower. He is so sweet.

Movin' on Up

So I have already finished my first rotation. It is really hard to believe that my 6 weeks in Surgery have come and gone. I had a really great time working with Cardiothoracic Surgeons, so I saw alot of heart and lung surgeries. Needless to say I am constantly amazed by the human body and its ability to function and heal as well as the advancement of medicine in aiding the human body. While I was limited by hospital regulations on performing technical skills in surgery, I got to scrub in and put my hands in and touch everything(beating hearts, lungs, intestines, etc.) While I enjoyed surgery, it is not for me the hours are horrible, everything is late, and standing for 5-6 hours with all the sterile dress is hard.
Now I am in Women's Health in downtown Phoenix, so I get the inner city population as well as a long commute to work. But I am learning tons, prenatal visits, annuals, illness, and surgeries. The first day I got to scrub in to two C-sections, it was a big day for me. I have a tough teacher, she definitely gives me the look that makes me want to run for my books and study up so I give the right answer next time. She pushes me and everyday lets me progress a little further on my own. Can't really ask for more, but an occasional atta girl would be nice.
Jon is staying busy with work, he has been on a traveling streak for a bit. It's nice for him to get out there and meet with people. His parents also came for a visit. We enjoyed having them, they spoil us way to much. I'll have to post pics of the stuff we scored at Ikea . We're glad they visit us despite our guest room by night, living room by day accomodations. Jon's basketball league started up again, so far they have won when Jon is in town and lost when he's gone. I say that is a pretty good indication he should stop traveling so much, so he could help his team out :) Well I just wanted to let everyone know that we are alive and kicking, sorry for the lack of pictures.