Feeling a sense of rejuvenation that we haven't had in quite some time has given our home life a touch of pizazz that we've been lacking lately.
I've missed my little space on the internet. My little escape where I get to gather my thoughts, reflect on life's most enjoyable little things (and sometimes the not-so-pretty side of things), and showcase the memories we make together as a family to look back on and cherish.
Residency life (at least in J’s specialty and at this particular program) surely hasn’t been glamorous, but I suppose it’s not meant to be. One thing’s for sure – he should come out of this as a damn well trained physician who knows how to save a life or two! But in the process of getting there – whew. Of course it takes a toll on him, and in turn, takes a toll on the rest of us at home. The past couple months have been 26+ hour shifts every 3rd and 4th day with 12-14’s in between. As we push those behind us and gladly kiss them goodbye, we are welcoming these 8’s (that inevitably turn into 10-12’s) with open arms and a whole new sense of life being brought back to us! It feels freakin’ fantastic to have a few more hours in the day together as a family. Our girlies sure have missed their Daddy being around (and those of you who are momma’s out there, know that I have surely missed having him around as well!)
The schedule may still be all over the place in terms of hours, but having him around for just a few extra hours each week, whether it be in the morning or at night, makes the world of a difference in terms of our minds, body & spirits! And so for us, it now begins – SUMMER! Our summer may just be starting in August, but heck, that just means Fall is that much closer, and I'm perfectly fine with that.
For the last week and a half of this new schedule, Daddy is jumping right back into the swing of things and enjoying whatever time he can with his girlies - all 3 of us. (Side Note: Come Christmas time with our new baby boy, our term "the girls" will be changing to "the kids!" - weird!)
He's played outside with them, picked out some greenery for Momma's flower arrangement, we've gone to the zoo, shopping together, family dinners, had friends over and just happily enjoyed the simple life with our girls.
And we've had time to relax together, just the two of us - to reflect on our day to day life, what we want for our future, and think about where in the world our next move/J's job will take us!
All while trying to remind ourselves to just live one day at a time, and especially try to live in the "now" vs. living in our thoughts of what our future might look like.
The latter is certainly easier said than done. We know we have about a year until the applying/interview process begins, so really trying to figure out where on the map we might want to be is quite difficult! We know we want to start our research to just educate ourselves on how these jobs work, great areas for young families, great school districts, neighborhoods, and weighing out the pros/cons of being somewhat closer to family to lean on while we have young children and J in a position where he can't exactly pick up and leave if we need him, or if we move further away for better pay to pay off these med school loans quicker, etc.
That stuff will drive ya crazy trying to figure out, so for now in between the talks of that, we're soaking up Summertime. Soaking up every last bit of summer as a family of 4 before we become a family of 5. Enjoying E's summer before she becomes a real preschooler in the fall, and enjoying A's last 2 months as a true baby before she hits the big ONE! (Noooo!!)
With all the craziness of intern year, time has slipped away before our eyes. It is just so nice to take a breath and enjoy life as it is. Because Lord knows, we have more than we even know to be thankful for! Counting our blessings is on our daily checklist in between the chaos, that I can assure you!
Ladies and gentlemen, INTERN YEAR IS OVER!!! I think all of us "Intern Wives" would love to shout that from the rooftops - after our husbands do so first, that is. Summertime is finally upon us, family time is being pieced back together, and I could not be more thankful for my husband, my wonderful little (can I still call it "little?") family, and of course this new burst of energy that is gracing our lives with joy! Hallelujah.
