Abby's First Day of Kindergarten!

So, our little girl is growing up! Today was Abby's first day of kindergarten. And, she absolutely LOVED it! We are so blessed and lucky to live by such a GREAT elementary school! As the pictures will show, they really go ALL OUT for the first day of school! The theme this year is "Up, Up and Away with Orchard Elementary" and there were actual hot-air ballons and everything! All the teachers had huge bunches of balloons and when we arrived, we found her teacher, got her a balloon and then all the kids let them go at at specific time. It was pretty spectacular! We had a short orientation with the kids and her teacher and then the PTA took the kids out to recess and to the library for an activity and we got to meet her teacher and go through an entire packet of information. And, I only cried for a minute...when I was watching Abby let her balloon go. I'm so excited for her, it was hard to be sad...I can't wait for Abby to do all the exciting things that are planned! So, now she's asleep...hopefully dreaming of her fun kindergarten day!

Goodnight Abby & Yogi!

So, I was going downstairs after finishing the last post...and saw this...isn't that the cutest thing ever?!?!?! Yogi, the other member of our family rarely makes it into the "blog" so I thought she needed a little attention! Abby LOVES for Yogi to sleep with her and I guess tonight she got her wish! Doesn't she look so innocent? Can anyone believe that in a week she'll start kindergarten? It's come WAY too soon for me...pretty soon she'll be in high school and probably driving me crazy! I'll take this little sweetheart for now...goodnight, Abby!

Relaxing at the Cabin

After a fun and relaxing weekend, I was BLASTED at work today...so I thought I'd take a minute and remember how much fun we had at the cabin on Saturday! We haven't done this NEARLY as much as we should have this summer...always too many things going on. So, we just all said we were going and went! Of course, after just a short while in the river, a gigantic black cloud came up from the west and the wind blew and it RAINED really hard for a minute. The end result was we didn't get to play in the river as much as we wanted and Abby found a cool new way to express her artistic nature! Hopefully we'll be able to get to the cabin again before the summer is REALLY over! All the pictures tell a story...the first one is of the beetle my dad found, just barely alive and so Rachel gave him a proper "burial at sea" or river, as the case may be...that is Rachel in the second picture. The third picture is everyone in the cabin, looking out at the rainstorm. I kept giving my mom a heart attack with the flash on my camera...she thought it was lightning! The fourth & fifth pictures are Abby, taking advantage of all the rain and using it to write letters on the railing around the deck! Notice the very artistic "A" she drew!

So Much Birthday Fun!

Abby hanging out on the blanket.... And, Bridger doing the exact same thing!

The amazing sunset that night! One of the spectacular fireworks!

OK, I know...it's been several days (almost a week!) since my last entry, but seriously - my life has been CRAZY!!!! I spent my birthday giving a final exam and putting together binders for the 14 new students that started the rotation on Monday. Yikes! My friends at work really made my birthday fun -- they decorated my office and it was very cool! Crepe paper was woven together to make a "door" so I couldn't even get to my desk and every surface in my cubicle was covered in metallic birthday confetti! It was pretty spectacular! Then, to top it all off, Blair had delivered an enormous bouquet of flowers (including the orchids that were in my bridal bouquet) - isn't that cool? We went out with Derk & Christine for sushi that night (always fun!) and then we browsed the bookstore and went out for the most amazing chocolate pudding I've ever had! Saturday was spent at the Farmer's Market as usual, lunch with Mandy & Tony for Mandy's birthday and then Sunday dinner the next day to celebrate both my birthday and Mandy's (we are 13 years and four days apart!) Pretty fun! I was spoiled beyond what I deserve, but was very thankful for everything that everyone did! I guess 41 really isn't too bad!

Monday night was the last of the free summer concerts at Blair's work and we got to take Bridger with us! Abby & Bridger kept me entertained the entire night! Everything Abby did, Bridger did as well. They were both SOOOOOOO good, though and just stayed on the blanket and watched the Native American dancers and musicians. (See cute pictures below!) There were fireworks at the end and Bridger kept saying "I saw FIVE fireworks!" He is darling and it was fun to get to hang out with him!

And, now it's Wednesday night and I am already tired from this busy week! Work is busy, life is busy and I wonder if it will ever slow down at some point! I also wonder if I would even like that - I am happiest with a million things to do! Guess I'm pretty darn happy, eh? Good night, all!

I Love My Job!

Holly, Wendy & Me...have fun on OSCE day!

As many of you know, I have a job that most days I truly love. Right now it's the end of a third-year medical student rotation (they spend six weeks in Pediatrics) and I'm getting ready to start another rotation on Monday. We've only had nine students this time which was nice, because it's the first rotation of the year and I hadn't seen that yet. I started last October, about half-way through Rotation #3, so it's been fun introducing brand-new third year students to Pediatrics. I also have six fourth-year students whose rotations don't coincide with the third-years, so every day it's been something new! The last two days of each third-year rotation (today and tomorrow) are final exams. Today was the OSCE where students have to meet with a "standardized patient", who acts out the case and they are videotaped and then given feedback by my boss, Adam and usually another doctor. The best part of OSCE day is that the Psychiatry students have their exams at the same time and I get to hang out with Holly, the Psychiatry Coordinator and Wendy, who is in charge of all the exams and runs the control room (all exams are videotaped). I absolutely LOVE hanging out all afternoon with Holly & Wendy as you can see by the photo! They were also extremely sweet and brought me a new cookbook (Greek food - my favorite!) and a doughnut complete with candles for my birthday tomorrow! They are so great! I am truly blessed and lucky to have a job that I love so much. I really do - it's everything that I love to do! In fact, this morning I was putting all my OSCE materials in a binder, complete with tabs and everything and giggling to myself because it was just so much fun! Yes, this might be some form of mental illness but I like it! I wish everyone I knew loved their job as much as I do!

A Fun Weekend

Abby, hanging out in my dad's truck

Derk & Christine at the Market

Some of my dad's beautiful vegetables

Blair & Leland at the AIDS Luau

OK, so it's taken me a few days to download the pictures and blog about the weekend...which was really fun! Saturday mornings in the summer are generally spent at the Ogden Farmer's Market, where my family takes the produce that my dad has grown. While we haven't been the best helpers in the garden, we love to go and help sell the vegetables at the market. Derk (my brother) and I have been doing this since Ogden started their own Farmer's Market (we can't remember how many years - it might be as many as 8!) Since Derk & Christine were married in May, we've all been taking turns at the market and Saturday it was me, Abby, Derk, Christine & my mom. My dad usually brings my grandma and it's so fun! I even took a few "art" shots of the vegetables, which are gorgeous...because my dad is so good at growing things! Marilyn, Blair's mom picked up Abby from the market and took her home for the afternoon so we could attend our friends (Alan & Melissa) sealing at the Bountiful Temple. It was AWESOME! Elder Uchtdorf, one of the Apostles performed the sealing and he was pretty impressive. I am still thinking of things that he said. There was a nice lunch afterwards at the church, and then I hurried to get errands done so we could go to the AIDS Foundation benefit at Dr. Mark Pfitzner and his partner Mike's house. We went with Scott & Leland and it was FABULOUS! Lots of people from work were there, as Mark is a hospitalist at Primary Children's so it was fun to see "work" people in a party setting! It was a luau, so spending a night in "Hawaii" was a treat...I truly love all things Hawaiian! And, yes...my watch is still on Hawaiian time! And, after such a fun weekend, work is just busy again! No rest for the wicked!

Abby's Fun Day

So, I decided that this being a Friday in August, I could take a few hours off work and go play for a while. I put in a few early hours and then met Blair, Abby and some friends from our ward at the zoo. As the pictures will show, Abby had a MARVELOUS time...so marvelous that she was exhausted when I took her back to work for a few more hours. Then, it was swimming lessons and on the way out, she decided she absolutely HAD to try the climbing wall. This was one of those times as a mom that you let your little bird fly free and pray hard that she won't hurt herself! As the picture will show, she went all the way to the TOP! And, then came down and did it again! She was all casual when she hopped down..."yeah, Mom - I really like that rock-climbing stuff" as if she did it every day of her life! Maybe I'll have to find some rock-climbing people for her to hang out with...'cause I'm pretty sure I'm not attempting it with her! She is now fast asleep in bed, probably dreaming about rock climbing and/or any variety of animal she got to see today. Aren't summer Fridays awesome?!?!?!

Not a "Utah" Mom

Here are the top five reasons I am not a "Utah" mom:

1. I can't do Abby's hair. Try as I might, including an Enrichment Activity tonight, I am just awful at it. I will never have a little girl that always looks perfect on Sunday. Hey - if she's happy, does it matter? Besides, Blair does a great job with it. Nice to have a talented husband!
2. I'm too old to fit in with the moms who have kids Abby's age...and I feel too young to fit in with the moms who have older kids (like people I went to high school with). I am in the weird "middle" which makes living in Utah as a mom not the most fun.
3. I don't scrapbook. I LOVE taking pictures with the camera(s) that Blair has lovingly provided me with over the past few years...but they will never show up in a scrapbook. Maybe this blog is my technological attempt...but no, I'm not scrapbooking.
4. Unlike "Utah Moms", I like to expose Abby to LOTS of different people...different cultures, ethnic backgrounds, religions, ways of life, etc. etc. I want her to know that the world is full of marvelous people/things/experiences. And, they don't all have to look or act like her. Ironically (and luckily), living 10 minutes from Salt Lake City provides us with lots of opportunities for this kind of activity. I believe she is being enriched by this...and it isn't "bad" for her.
5. I have very liberal opinions and like to express them on occasion. This does NOT make me popular in many "Utah Mom" circles. Can I help it if I think the poor should be fed and the homeless sheltered and EVERYONE included??? I'm pretty sure I'm not going to change!

So, there it is. Not a "Utah Mom." Not even close. But, in a great book I just read called "Confessions of a Slacker Mom" maybe it doesn't matter. Maybe just being me is enough...I guess time will tell, eh?

Abby is a Fish!

So, day three of Abby's swimming lessons and she is loving every minute of it! In fact, she told me tonight that 1/2 hour is just not enough! I am debating whether to sign her up for the next class at the end of this one. She could advance to Preschool Level 2, and keep going....we'll see. She just loves it so much and it's so much fun to see her trying everything that I hate to see it end. For everyone who know me so well, I'll probably cave and we'll be doing swimming lessons until Christmas! Luckily, it's an indoor pool!