Our 9th Anniversary

This past week, we reached our nine year anniversary! We had to wait until Saturday to celebrate, but that allowed us to also celebrate Brad's completion of his fellowship and his medical training years. In some ways it is hard to believe it's been nine years already and in other ways it seems like a lot longer, considering we've been a couple for 13 years and friends for even longer than that. God has been so faithful to us over these years and through many ups and downs - through many years of schooling and graduations, 2 big moves, the purchase of our first house, the birth of our three precious children, and so much more. We are still the very best of friends and as we look ahead to all the exciting possibilities this year holds in this new phase of life we are thrilled at what this 10th year will hold and beyond!

Yesterday, Brad sent me out early in the day with my bestest girl Karen for a girl's day out! I had commented recently that I needed a nanny and a maid for a day, so Brad decided he would be both for me while I had a relaxing time out with a good friend - isn't that so sweet?! It was truly just what I needed.

We went to Simply Crepes for lunch on the canal. It was fantastic!

We got the seasonal Peaches and Creme crepe for dessert - yumalish! :)

We went for my very first pedicure! It was soooo relaxing and enjoyable!

And then we did a little shopping before heading home. Karen stayed with the kids and Brad and I took off for our date night!

We had an amazing gourmet dinner at Edibles in the city. Cheers!

And then took a nice walk through the park. It was such a beautiful evening with the perfect warm breeze.

So excited for the year ahead. Happy Anniversary Babe! I love you!

Arrrr Summer

We are still enjoying our (or ARRR!) summer to the fullest and I have so much to catch up on here this week, but here is a little peek at some of the fun we had over the weekend. LOTS more photos to come of that and more!

This is a big week for us! On Wednesday we hit 9 years of marriage and on Friday Brad finishes his Fellowship, so after ELEVEN years of training he will officially be a Board Certified Physician!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He will have the rest of the month of August off and starts the next phase of his career which will hopefully prove to be a lot more family friendly than the last 11. :) We are very excited at the prospect of having a daddy and husband around a LOT more. We may actually learn what a weekend is again (those actually exist, right?) !

BFF's

...and new baby Anyah!

Dr. Brad checking out his newest patient!

Welcome Baby!

What's My Secret?!

With all the "projects" around our house I've been sharing lately (I have more coming soon to share here!) I've been getting a ton of comments on my blog, on facebook, and in person all basically asking me the same question...as a mother of 3 how do you do it?! I kind of chuckle each time I hear this question because, frankly, I don't think what I am doing is anything all that amazing or difficult to make time for. But it got me thinking if so many people are asking then I must have a secret...or maybe not, cause it's a secret to me...but what does it come down to?

Here's what I think might make the difference for me:

1. You will always make time for the things you think are important.
Whether that's laundry, or spending time with friends, or playing with your kids, or painting a room, or reading a book, or building a piece of furniture, or watching a tv show, and the list goes on. If you didn't think it was important you probably wouldn't waste your time! We're all given 24 hours in a day and make choices each day of how to spend every minute, and as a busy mom I understand how those minutes fill up. There are some days that I admit the laundry doesn't get put away and sits in the basket, but I make sure to read to my kids every day!

2. You should make time for the things you enjoy.
I happen to enjoy working with my hands and "creating." I enjoy artsy things. Whether that is painting, building, designing, sewing, decorating, gardening, you name it. I especially enjoy "creating" my environment. So I make time to do that on a regular basis. (-- especially when Brad is working a ton like he is recently. It helps take my mind off missing him!) If you don't enjoy that kind of thing then you probably won't make time for it and should make time for something else! But every mom should take a little time out of each day to do something that makes you happy, even if it's a 5 minute soak in the tub or reading a chapter in a novel!

3. Turn off the tv.
We are not an anti-television family, but we are very selective about what we watch and how much we watch. The tv is on minimally for the kids each day. I may turn it on for myself a little bit while the kids are napping on a rainy day, but it is never just running in the background. I can get a lot done around the house in a day when I'm not distracted by the tv, and honestly is there anything on worth watching in the daytime? It's amazing how much time you could free up if you think about how many hours you may spend watching....

4. Make sure everything has a place.
We've lived in our home for 4 years now and I am still working through this issue, but I really believe this is the key to a tidy home. Not necessarily a clean home, but a tidy one! The stuff that clutters and piles up is the stuff that doesn't have anywhere to go. So we make sure we have places for all the toys, diapers, mail, folders, receipts, magazines, and all the other things that can clutter a house. That makes picking up pretty easy and we don't have to spend a lot of time each day doing it - plus the kids are expected to help. Is my house always clean and picked up? NO! And that's ok too :).

5. Involve the kids!
When I do work on a project, the kids are not plopped in front of the tv, nor are they running around like crazies! :) A lot of the time my kids just enjoy playing together and letting me work. It helps that Elijah takes a few naps throughout the day too. I do make a point whenever possible to involve them somehow and make them feel like they are doing something important or helping in some way. Quite often they just like to watch and imitate. While I was building the bench, the kids got their play tools out and picked up my scraps and started "building" too. When they'd ask to help, I'd let them hammer a piece of wood that I wasn't using. It keeps them entertained and caters to many teachable moments as we "work" side by side. As they get older, I am looking forward to having them actually help out too!

6. Be realistic. Do a little at a time, but be sure to finish.
When you start a project don't expect to get it all done in one sitting. Have reasonable expectations with little kids to take care of and a house to run. I try to do one part at a time and then break it up with doing something with the kids, like read books or play a game or bake cookies, and get a chore or two done as well. Even if you get a section or a part done each day, that will get you closer and closer to finishing. And don't start a project without the intention of finishing in a certain amount of time. This will add stress to you, and probably leave a mess where you started. Set a goal and stick to it.

7. Enjoy what you have and make it yours. And look for ways to do it cheap!
It's easy in our culture to focus on the bigger house we could have or the nicer stuff we want, but really it's about taking what you have and enjoying it! We have a house that isn't the nicest by any means. (I'm reminded of that every time I go over to my friend's gorgeous house (ahem...mansion) that is well over half a mil...) and we have a list a mile long of work we need/want to do on it, but it is ours and it's home! And while God has us living here we are going to make it an enjoyable and functional place for us to live without spending a fortune. You can make a big difference in the feel of a room with a new coat of paint. You can also change things up just by moving furniture and decorations between rooms without spending a cent. We enjoy eating outdoors in the summer and have lived with a tiny hand me down table for years that was starting to make it a lot less enjoyable to do that for us. If building an outdoor table myself is going to allow us to keep doing that as a family, and save us $400, then I'm going to build a table! And that just became something important to me which brings us back to #1 :).

So there you go. I'm sure there are more but I think those kind of hit it on the head for me. Do what you love. Love what you do. Do it well and do it cheap :).

Togetherness Ahead!

Hooray! We made it through one tough stretch of scheduling and Brad is finally on vacation this week!!! We are looking forward to spending a lot of time TOGETHER!

It means we will be doing a lot of this . . .

Ahhh sleep. And Exhibit A of why Melissa needs a king sized bed. Haha.

We have so many fun things planned with friends this week and since we didn't really get to celebrate Valentine's Day this weekend we are going on a date later in the week! We also have a trip to the science museum and a hockey game planned too. There is so much fun ahead it almost makes me forget we have to sit down and do our taxes this week. Oh well, at least we get to do them...together! :)

And togetherness makes me feel like this . . .

HAPPY!

So Proud

This past weekend, after going through 10+ years of schooling and training together, we reached a significant milestone in Brad's career. On Saturday, Brad officially graduated from family medicine residency, receiving both the Residency Teacher award elected by his peers, and the Women's Health Care award. Since then, I have had people ask me the funniest questions...like, "So does that mean he can start working now?" Um...well I'm pretty sure he's been working his tail off the last 10 years, so I'm not sure how to answer that one. And..."Does that mean he's a real doctor now?" Well, he's been an MD treating patients for the last 3 years, so if he wasn't a real doctor before now, those people might be in a lot of trouble.

Another question I am frequently asked now is, "so what's next?" Well, first and foremost, what's next is a 6 week break starting June 25th. No pagers, no call, no conferences, no nothing except time together as a family and lots of rest! Within that time, we are taking a 3 week trip up the East coast. (We did this same trip 6 years ago when my nephew was born, but it was BK...before kids, so it will be a whole new experience this time!) We will camp the first week, spending time in NH, Maine, New Brunswick, and ending up in Halifax, NS. There we will visit Brad's sister's home and the rest of his family for a little over a week, including a couple days in PEI with Brad's sister and her husband while the kids stay with Nana and Papa! Then we have the 3rd week to head back home at our leisure and will be celebrating our 8th wedding anniversary. It will be wonderful.

What's next for Brad's career? Brad is continuing his training to get further experience in a Maternal and Prenatal care fellowship, where he will be certified to perform c-sections as a part of his family practice. This fellowship will take a year, and will be completed at the same hospital and clinic he has been a part of the last 3 years. He loves the philospohy of health care within the family medicine system, and prenatal care and delieveries are a major part of that system, especially in the inner city.

Since we've been together since high school, I have seen him through a lot in the last decade. I have seen him complete pre-med undergrad, with a wife and full time job as a medical tech, in only 3 years. I have seen him work up to 120 hours a week outside the home in medical school and flourish at the top of his class and in the high esteems of the nurses and professors, while becoming a first time daddy. I have seen him accepted into a top residency program, while our family grew, working massive hours at the office and hospital only to come home and clean the kitchen for me and play with the kids. I have seen him receive many awards and acclamations for his high achievements, his quality of character, and his excellence in his profession. And I have to say I couldn't be prouder of how much he has accomplished in the last 10 years, and how he is not only an amazing doctor, but the best husband and daddy we could ever ask for.

I think you can see just how proud I am of my best friend in the picture above. I love you Brad!

Musings of a Doctor's Wife

This is a week I would refer to myself as a resident's widow. I caught a brief glimpse of my husband last night as I was dozing to sleep, but I haven't had a conversation with him since...hmmm....Tuesday. And I won't again until Friday evening...or possibly Saturday afternoon if he's late coming home Friday. I haven't even been able to talk to him on the phone.

I had plans Monday night with friends, but then had to scramble last minute to find a babysitter because Brad had to work late. Then Monday night he was called in at 2:30 in the morning for a delivery that didn't happen until the middle of the afternoon on Tuesday. Then he was on practice call (taking after-hour calls for the clinic) all night and you'd be surprised at the incredibly stupid things people will call about at 3am. Wednesday he left before I was awake, and came home as I was falling asleep, and left again this morning before I was awake and has to stay for a meeting after work today. I'm not sure the last time the kids saw him.

I have lunch plans on Saturday that have been scheduled for a couple months now, and just found out he has to work, so now I am scrambling (again) to make arrangements for the kids so I don't miss seeing friends I only get to see a few times a year. And I was further disappointed to realize upon receiving another friend's wedding invitation in the mail yesterday that Brad will be on his trip to Honduras that day and I will be attending alone (anyone wanna be my date?).

This is my life. I had a friend ask me last night if I was used to it by now and I wasn't sure how to answer except that this is my life. I guess I am used to it, but it's still hard and not fun. Some weeks and months are better than others and those are the ones we look forward to and keep us going. It's easy to feel trapped on weeks like this because the days are very very long, and I can't just make plans for an evening or a weekend without it being complicated. Thankfully I was able to make arrangements to go out Monday night, and last night our small group went out for dinner (my kids were at their church program) so that has helped break up the week for me.


Despite all this, there are two things I know:

Doctors work harder and sacrifice more than anybody on this planet and are often underappreciated and too often disrespected.

As much as I miss him, I love my husband and am so proud of him. I wouldn't wish for anything else but that he continues to love helping the sick and needy.

My Daddy, M.D.

Today was a very special Father's Day! Brad had the day off so we were able to take a day trip to Erie with my parents and brother Tim. We met my brother Josh who drove up from Pittsburgh to spend the day with us there. We went to the Erie Zoo (which was quite impressive for a smaller zoo - it exceeded my expectations anyways) and had a nice mid-day meal at the Olive Garden. (We took a lot of photos of our trip today, so I will be posting the link to an album as soon as I get them uploaded.) Aside from a popped tire on the Thruway about a half an hour from home, we had an awesome time! As soon as we got home the kids ran for the playroom and daddy joined in the fun. It was special to have him with us for Father's Day.

A friend shared a great poem with me that I framed for Brad with a photo of the kids. I just thought it was the sweetest thing, and perfect for Brad.

My Daddy, M.D.

Whenever Daddy signs his name,

He always writes M.D.,

So everyone will know

That he belongs to me.

For M.D. means "My Daddy"

Or something just the same

And that is why he always puts

These letters in his name.

Some letters in his name are small,

But these are not, you see

He always makes them big like that

Because he's so proud of me.

122 Hours

My husband is a very hard worker. He loves his job and the people he works with and for. Otherwise I'm not sure how he does it. The Internal Medicine rotation is one of my top 3 least favorite schedules. After today Brad will have worked 94 hours in the last week. He is on his 10th day straight of work today, so he has worked 122 hrs without a day off. On Medicine months he gets only 4 out of the 30/31 days completely off (which I say with hesitation because most of those "days off" he is getting paged all day and catching up on paperwork), and that's also assuming he doesn't get called in for a delivery, which has happened before. In fact, he had a 16 hr day scheduled today, but was paged at 4:00am this morning for a delivery and went in, making it an 18 hour day for him now. No wonder I feel like I haven't seen him in a month and a half! I am very thankful for a husband who works so hard for our family and to help other people...but I miss him!

I am REALLY looking forward to our vacation at the end of the month.