Moving Right Along!

Post-clincal morning heading to pump LOL

This morning I took my Radiology clerkship final. I don't know if it felt like this for everyone, but September went by soooo fast - I almost think it went by faster than my vacation month. Anyway, my radiology month was really lecture-heavy with my last week including 5 mornings of clinical time in the CT/MRI abdominal reading room at University Hospital. Being on a clerkship after you have committed to a specialty is awesome because even though my residents knew I wasn't going into radiology they really took the time to explain any female pelvic imaging that came up. I saw a number of gynecological cancers and even a fetal MRI! All of it was really, really interesting!

In other news, as of this week I have four interviews booked for residency! Even though I am trying not to obsess about the process, I can't help but compulsively check my email for ERAS (the application website) notifications. I am getting more excited by the minute! My next mission is to find a fly tailored suit, and I need to get it together because I have been stuffing my face like there is no tomorrow. I don't know what is wrong with me. I'M. SO. HUNGRY.

On October 1st, I start my Internal Medicine Sub-internship. This is another required clerkship during fourth year. For the next month, I will be treated like and act like an intern (first year resident). I am really excited about this taste of my life come July 2014! All of our third year clerkships required us to follow 2-3 patients at once, but this time we are expected to take charge of at least 6 patients, write notes and orders (the final decisions on what medicines and tests to give), answer pages, and anything else that comes up during the day.

Speaking of which, my days will start at 6:55AM and will alternate an end time of 3PM-9PM(call)-3PM-6PM. Every time I think about how long these days are going to be I get a little overwhelmed with the thought of trying to fit in at least 2 good pumping sessions so my supply doesn't dwindle during the month... One day at a time I guess.  

I am so looking forward to this weekend. I have Monday off, and I plan to soak up every valuable minute. Hope you all have a great weekend too! 

Last weekend at my brother's football game

My Must-Have List for Keeping Our Family Organized

Things have picked up quite a bit this week. And honestly, it isn't school that picked up...just the fact that now there are four of us to coordinate and we all have a lot going on - okay, the baby has a only few things going on, but still. Here are some of the resourses that have proven invaluable as we move back into the daily hustle:

1. A Multi-User Calendar

I absolutely love my iCal since it syncs between my phone and my Mac. However, when the hubby switched over to Droid, we needed to find something that was compatible with both systems. I have to give him credit for finding this one:


Cozi is an online family hub complete with calendar, message center, shared To Do lists, grocery lists, meal planner, and Journal. You can use it on your computer or through the app. There are very few apps that we actually get the full version of, and after using the grocery list feature of the lite version (which is awesome because I don't have to text the hubby while I'm walking in the store asking about things he wants me to grab), we decided that the $29.99/year fee was worth it - there is also a free 14-day trial of the full version that you can test out if you don't want to commit right away.

If you are a more traditional pen-and-paper type person (I can be this too), I found an awesomely simple monthly calendar template that you can hole punch into a binder. It has been helpful for me in giving our nanny her schedule for the month. She loves having her hours ahead of time, and I love giving them ahead of time so I don't have to worry that I forgot to tell her when to show up. Everyone wins :-)

2. A Budget

I have been a Mint user since college. I'm not sure if you could really say I was "using" it because I had nan-budget in college. But I did have an account...LOL Anyway, as we pay bills, work down our student loan debt, and build our savings, this is an awesome website and phone app to keep everything straight all in one place.

3. A Baby Log

Another quick Google search find. If you are a tad bit OCD meticulous like me, this has been great for making sure the baby is eating, sleeping, and potty-ing without any problems while you are away. They do this at daycares, so why not for when your baby is kept in the home too...

4. An "Everything" Folder

Since college, I have always carried with me one durable folder/binder for all miscellaneous paperwork, mail, hardcopy To Do lists, etc. That way, if I have down time or am running errands, I don't get mad that I left something at home that needs to be turned in/faxed/etc.

5. A Cute Bag

Okay, the cute part isn't a must-have, but it doesn't hurt to tote all the millions of things you have to carry in something that looks good... I'm still in love with this one and am trying to convince myself I don't need to get it right now... sigh.

What have you all been using to stay organized? I'm always looking for new ideas!

Friday.

Well folks, we made it to the weekend! So freaking happy.

This week, I think all the late nights started to finally catch up to me. I have a midterm on Monday, so I need to stick out the delirium for a couple more days :insert caffeine IV drip: It doesn't help that our radiology classroom is FREEZING which means we are all slowly drifting in and out of hypothermia throughout the lectures. I just woke up from a "nap" that commenced around 6:30 this evening, so hopefully I can put an acceptable dent in studying chest imaging tonight.

But when Mommy has to get up in the morning, she gets to do this...

Little Mister & Miss are adjusting to the mommy-back-at-school life wonderfully. Izzy's sleeping habits overall have been great. She goes down around 10:30/11PM and then she is back up at 1:30AM and 4:30ish. Most of the time she goes right back to bed after I feed her, but this week she stayed up smiling at me like "Hey Girl, Heeeey". Babygirl is trying to late night kick it haha

The enemy. 

In other news, I've been counting calories and finally started to "consistently" walk with the kiddos. I'm not going to rush the process but I am determined to get my body back... We won't talk about all the carbs I had this morning. Have you all heard of Cookie Butter? You can find it at Trader Joes, but then Target started carrying Biscoff spread. If you haven't had Biscoff cookies yet, TRY THEM. NOW. Anyway, the crunchy spread has me eating all kinds of toast at all times of day...

Oh and I want this bag, but I keep telling myself no big purchases because I opted for a nanny... :sigh: I think I'm going to go on a thrifting trip, that way I can cure my shopping itch within reason...

I had a late day yesterday, so it prompted my first on campus pumping experience. I was in the children's hospital and let me tell you, it was so great! Hopefully all the other hospitals are equally well-equipped...

Pretty cool, right? 

No plans this weekend aside from studying. Oh and a birthday party for one of Natey's classmates. Oh and Natey has football... And I'll probably find some other stuff to do since I am supposed to be studying ;-)

xoxo

Music Monday

Morning reading & breastfeeding...

What a quick weekend! Well, I'm back on the daily hustle and It's been way too long since my last musical share...

Hope you all have a great Monday! xoxo

What Vacation Months Are Made Of...

In case you were wondering due to my month-long absence hiatus, yes, I still blog.

Where have I been? At home. With my babies. Soaking in mommydom. And the month of August was GLORIOUS.

It started off on a great note because I turned 26 on the 1st :-) I didn't have anything in particular I wanted to do that day except for love on my babies, but my family and friends showered me with calls and cards all day and I felt so special. And the hubby hooked me up with a home-cooked gourmet dinner and some bling - which is always a win. It was an awesome day.

The rest of the month, I totally consumed myself with my role as a mom and wife, and it felt great. I'm hoping some of my stay-at-home routine sticks even post maternity leave. By the end of break, I felt organized, the house was clean, dinner was cooked by me regularly, and I have even managed a couple workouts...LOL The trickiest part of it all has been trying to somehow feel like I am balancing my time between both kids. At first I felt like my 4 year old was just totally doing his own thing but I got better about telling him what I was doing with the baby (going to change her diaper, get her dressed, feed her, etc.) and asking him if he wanted to be a part of it. He always does because he's such a great brother... I also was comfortable going on walks with both kids so the big kid could ride his bike. We even did the park twice LOL

On August 20th, the big kid started PreK and so far he really likes his class. His teacher and assistant teachers seem like they are going to be great, so I am pretty excited to see what the rest of the year brings :-) I got a little pinteresty with his back to school photo - I told ya'll this break had me reaching new heights! hahaha

My Big Boy!

At Little Miss' one month doctor's appointment, she was 10lbs 4oz and 22.25inches. The doctor and nurses were very impressed with how well she is growing. Like three times I was asked, "And this is ALL breastmilk?" LOL So thankful for such a great milk supply and I can tell baby is too because she is eating like a pro... I cannot believe we will be taking her two month picture next week!

As an aside, breastfeeding has done wonders for my post-preggo body. I'm back to my pre-preggo weight despite eating like I'm still preggers...Now I just need to start counting calories so I can have a bikini body by next summer. I'm determined to be in the best shape of my life now that we are done having kids...I think ;-) Anywho, I totally recommend for anyone to try and breastfeed. Even if it's just for a short duration, you and your baby with reap the benefits!

Our family ended my time off with a quick surprise Labor Day trip so that our grandparents could meet Izzy. We didn't tell them we were coming and their reactions when we walked into their houses were priceless...

Isabelle meets GG (hubby's grandma)

Isabelle meets Grammy (my grandma)

I am officially easing back into rotation life. I started my Radiology clerkship on Wednesday (one of the three required rotations of fourth year). So far, despite the lack of sleep, it has been a rather smooth transition. The hours are a lot lighter than most clerkships so I don't feel overwhelmed. Now to start studying for Step II... After 4+ weeks of serious searching, we found an awesome nanny for the little lady and that has made a world of difference in easing my hurting heart when I have to walk out the door without her. I have to thank God continuously for blessed childcare :tear: 

Also, my residency application goes out to programs next Sunday!!! So excited. Please keep me and my family in your prayers as we start moving towards the next big change in our household. 

xoxo