Ha ha ha...Merry Christmas!

So last night Boyd and I were watching 30 Rock. I've only seen a few episodes and snippets here and there because it is one of the things Boyd watches while I'm studying, so I don't know much about it, and I made the serious mistake of drinking a glass of water while watching. All the sudden Tina Fey is saying something that is so funny that I start snorting the water into my nose. And then since I couldn't hear the rest of the scene because of my snorting we rewound it. Big mistake. The scene restarted and then I was laughing so hard I actually began choking on my water. Really choking. To the point where I not only spit it out, but threw the rest of it up. I am awesome. That show needs a warning label. Or something.

So school is out for the next three weeks! I really can't believe that I am almost done learning all of the basic science of medical school. We just finished our block on infectious diseases and I'm beginning to feel like I know things now. Before this block, I wasn't even clear on the basics of the flu, which is pretty pathetic for someone who had already finished a year of medical school. I mean, that sounds so easy, but since we didn't learn about it until now I felt pretty useless. Now people ask me questions about things and I always surprise myself by the information that comes out of my mouth. So I gues they're doing something right at school.

So with my three weeks of freedom I'm taking suggestions as to what I should do. Books to read, movies to watch, and things to do here in Tucson, AZ. So if anybody needs any help with their busy Christmas schedules/baking/wrapping/decorating/babysitting...let me know!

Bullseye!

(By the way, this is Boyd--I know I never contribute.) Although I've often felt that my job is a lot like living an episode of "The Office", this past Friday was an all-time high for awkward ridiculousness. First, my boss: "Stew" Stewart, the CEO of our little company (about 100 people) occasionally comes to company meetings in costume, such as hippie or crocodile hunter, and proceeds to host company-trivia quiz games while fading in and out of a bad accent (to go with the costume). This past Friday we had our annual United Way balloon toss, where, if we've met our donation goals for United Way, we get to throw water balloons at the members of the Board of Directors--including Stew. It's kind of like a dunking tank with no tank, and multiple targets. The number of balloons you get depends on your donation size, and they read out your name when it's your turn to pelt the bosses. Doesn't this already sound like a day at Dunder Mifflin?

I got two balloons, and I wasn't too sure how I wanted to use them, but I knew I wanted to get Stew with at least one. So I aimed carefully--water balloons don't roll like a ball when you release, and with only two, it's tough to get the feel in time to do any damage. Anyway I let the first one fly, and bullseye! It was a direct hit--right to Stew--right in the crotch. He winced, I flinched, and the crowd cheered. My coworker said it almost looked like Stew might start crying. I can't remember the last time I've gotten that many high fives and congratulations. So I'd like to thank my parents for giving me a nice long throwing arm and enough sense to aim elsewhere with my next balloon, which hit my fairly tall manager in the shoulder.

The Victim

A howling good time had by all

Here is what it is like to live at the intersection of River and Campbell right now in lovely Tucson, AZ, in case you were wondering:

1. An ambulance, a police car, and a firetruck are all barreling down the road
2. A pack of coyotes has clearly found dinner
3. All of the neighborhood dogs have decided to tell us about it

Special Delivery!

I delivered my very first baby tonight! And even though I don't get to take it home, like most people who post about delivering a baby, I got to be right there in the trenches. I got to check the cervix, monitor the labor progress, don the sterile gloves and gown, and have my hands right there when the baby was crowning. It is more elegant than I ever thought possible. Then I got to suction the baby and hear him cry for the first time, clamp the cord, deliver the placenta, and draw the cord blood. The mom was such a trooper, she didn't have an epidural, and this was her very first pregnancy. She was such a pro!

These are the days when I am reminded why I am in school. The miracle of it all. A little perspective can make it all worthwhile. So tomorrow when I am in the nursery helping with his newborn exam, studying pathology won't seem like such a burden after all.

I can't wait for that moment when I am the mom and that is our baby. I won't even mind if a medical student needs to learn on me, because the first time is a once in a lifetime experience.

This is why I haven't posted in awhile...

My professor expects me to understand this:

"Metabolism of fructose-2,6-bisphosphate and regulation of the pathway: The formation of fructose-2,6-bisphosphate is catalyzed by phosphofructokinase-2 and its breakdown is catalyzed by fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase. Phosphofructokinase-2 is not an enzyme of the glycolytic pathway. Although phosphofructokinase-2 uses fructose-6-phosphate from the glycolytic pathway, the product of this kinase reaction is strictly a regulator of phosphofructokinase-1 and fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase. The amount of fructose-6-phosphate removed from the glycolytic pathway to produce fructose-2,6-bisphosphate is inconsequential."

I think the part that really strikes me is the part that says, "...is inconsequential." That I understand.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Li5nMsXg1Lk

Flossing's for the birds

I can hear my dental hygienist scolding me in my mind when I don't floss. So annoying! I have clearly committed dental sin and then I have to floss twice the next day as penance. However, I can pop in the cheetos and my doctor is still smiling merrily at me saying, "you deserve it!" I like my doctor. So sometimes I want to tell my dental hygienist to get herself some fanny floss and mind her own business.

Some things I do solely out of guilt. Flossing is one of them, hands down. Checking out books that can be classified as something other than literary junk food is another. You know, the classics, like (yawn) Moby Dick. I'll get a few chapters in and then, whoops!, they're due again already. Darn. But no one's the wiser that I finished that cheap-o murder mystery or read every recipe in the cookbook about chocolate, plus polished off the whole Twilight series in the same week. And it's really just because the librarian gives me that stare, you know? I feel all guilty inside if I slip into the romance section because I know she's throwing me eye darts from the set in the back of her head.

So does anyone else do things like this solely out of guilt? Or does everyone actually read those stuffy classics they check out?

Swimingly

You know that feeling when you drink the first cold sip of water in the morning and you can feel the coolness spreading all the way down your chest? It’s like someone poured cool water right through you. I love that feeling.

And here's a non-sequitur--I really want a camera. There was this window at MGH this morning that had a letter on each of twelve 8 1/2 x 11 pieces of paper spelling, "GET BETTER DAN!" It was so simple and it looked sunny but sad in the window of the 14th floor. It would have made an interesting story captured in a photograph. That's what I was thinking. Also, I was thinking that I wanted Dan to get better too.

So now I'm at work. A part of me really wants to get all sorts of scut work done with so that I can go to my boss and tell her all the ridiculous things I've been doing with my days and also tell her that there's really nothing more I can possibly do because no one else has scut work for me. In essence I've done IT ALL. And then another part of me thinks, I am really too good for scut work. And instead just writes on this blog of mine. Or checks my bank account. Or writes Boyd an email. Or looks up the movies in town this weekend--which, by the way, includes the 6th Harry Potter :) I mean, really, they're paying me $10.50/hour. What do they expect when they don't give me anything to do? I am only 50% the type to seek out grunt work is all I'm saying.

At the house I'm subletting for the summer there are these water glasses with little blown glass goldfish embedded in them, and there is also a white bone mug with an artsy panda on it that says "bei jing" all phonetically with the accenture marks over the vowels and everything. I'm really in love with both of these. Needless to say I drink my chammomile/spearamint tea out of the panda mug which makes me feel like I've just consumed a hug. The panda helps. And the fish glasses are sort of rose-colored (theoretically speaking) making me think that life is going swimingly to say the least.

Also, I'm addicted to Pandora, which is only a slight consolation prize for the gorgeous 70 degree day I'm missing outside. My optimistic side made me put on sunscreen anyways, since I don't want the spotty, fugly arms that seem to dot most women in their 6th decade. And since I may decide to become a dermatologist it only seems logical.

No cute photos of our kids until I get that camera! And then, no promises since said kids don't exactly exist yet. Ah well.

The Moral of the Story

Tonight is my first night in Boston for my (lonely) 6 week internship at Mass General Hospital. I do have a roommate and sadly it's not Boyd. I've warped back to college with the mismatched plates and shower bulging at the seams with random bath gels. My roommate is young and her parents were here when I arrived, stocking her half of the refrigerator. I remember those days. And I am proud that I now know exactly what to buy to stock my half. I even know how to cook it all without calling mom.

I love this city--I'm living steps away from beautiful Harvard Sqaure in an old brick walk-up and it's 60 degrees outside to boot--but it's just not the same without fancy Sunday night desserts, Simpson's episodes, and goodnight kisses.

I never realized how much time I spend just shooting the breeze with Boyd. I called him today to tell him about the beautiful breeze I felt sitting beneath the spotty shadows of a maple tree in Porter square while eating an ice cream cone but he wasn't there and it made me sad even amidst the beauty of it all.

This is a growing experience. If for nothing else than for me to realize that I am so lucky to have what I've got so that I will be wise enough to never let it go. But since I'm here now, I'm looking on the bright side and I'm going to chalk it up to adventure.

Someday

I have to say that I've never really written anything personal on our blog, and after last week of having my pity party I just want to thank the cheering section I didn't know I had! Thanks to Morgan who helped me finally figure out how to cheer up our blog.

So on occasion I come up with baby names that I "submit" to Boyd. Since the usefulness of such a practice is null for us at this point it shouldn't really be serious, but we definitely take it seriously and have full-fledged discussions on the merit of a name. Recently I told him that I liked the name Ginger for a girl. As any good husband should, he was thoughtful about this lastest whim. However then he proceeded to tell me that in England if you have red hair you actually have "ginger" hair. And since the probability of us having a redhead is pretty high he didn't think that would be very nice if some bloke said one day to our daughter (in English accent), "You're kidding me--really--your mum and dad named you Ginger and you have ginger hair. Well that's jolly ridiculous."

So maybe not.

In other news, in school we are learning about the GI system which is fairly disgusting, Boyd goes on his 1st buisness trip to exotic Milwaukee at the beginning of June, and I finished my very first sewing project since high school making pillows for our couch.

Also, I was talking to an old high school friend last night who's in culinary school and I was so jealous. She said in their pastry class they recently made banana cream pie and they deep fried the bananas first, and then folded them into pastry cream with a copious amount of fresh whipped cream on the top. Wow. I seriously would like to raid her refrigerator. Anyways there are a few things that I really can't wait to do in life and culinary school is definitely top on my list. I'm pretty sure Boyd is even more excited about that then the whole med school thing. He's not quite sure how he feels about having to be a guinea pig when I'm practicing physical exam skills. But he has made it quite clear that he'd better be a guinea pig for culinary school. I think he misses the days when I took all the cooking classes at BYU and brought him home the leftovers.

I want to hear what other people are jealous of--or are just hoping to do "someday." I am definitely OCD and have a whole list. Having 4 kids is in there somewhere. As is planting a fruit and vegetable garden. And maybe becoming Martha (minus the trouble with the law).

The one person who truly understands it all

I am not a blogger. I am not a scrapbooker. I am not crafty. I am not so many things that I sometimes pretend to be. I just spent the last hour trying to make our blog background cute and interesting since I've never changed it (and it seems like everyone else has skills in these areas and so clearly I should too). But I'm over it. Done. I admit defeat.

I basically just want to cry right now. But I have no reason to--my life isn't hard. I don't have any screaming kids, or a negative bank account, or even a pimple. I'm not pregnant and swollen, I didn't just burn dinner, and my husband is not working the night shift. I'm not single and lonely, nobody in my family is sick, and I am not sleep deprived. I didn't just fail a test or get rejected from a job. Everyone I know has any of a hundred reasons to feel like crying--but not me.

The one thing that makes such a seemingly perfect life hard sometimes is that feeling of not fitting in anywhere. Sometimes I think the Lord has asked me to take one of the hardest roads of all--the road not taken. I know my life isn't full of the real difficulties in life--the 2am wake up calls from a fussy baby or the trying to figure out which top ramen flavor we want to eat tonight to make ends meet. I don't get the hangover all my classmates get after a crazy party or hear all the heartbreaking gossip from the local bar they all went to on Thursday night. But as crazy as it sounds, it's the not going through those trials that is hard. Because it's lonely.

At church I am probably the only one that doesn't have any kids--and isn't planning on it in the next five years. I'm not sure how to contribute my two sense on morning sickness, or labor and delivery, or potty training a two-year-old even though I'd like to. Little do most people know that I actually envy their shared experiences.

At school I am the only girl who's married and Mormon. I don't fit into the Mormon click because I'm a girl. And let's be honest: there is no married click. Boyd and I try to make an effort to go to the parties and bring our own rootbeer and that works for the first hour before everyone gets drunk. I can't quite keep up with the Twitter of it all.

So, well, it's going to be a white blog. And maybe after re-reading this it's not so bad. "In the depth of winter, we find within us an invincible summer." Especially in Arizona. I may not have an adorable mormon mommy blog, or a recipe for green jello, but somewhere I know I am not alone. Thanks to the one person who truly understands it all--Jesus Christ.

PUBLISHED!

My very first publication as first author was accepted to the Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism this week! It is on quality of life in patients cured of acromegaly, which is a disease of too much growth hormone. It should be available online next month through pubmed and published in hard copy this summer. This summer I will be working on a follow up publication for our drug study at MGH which shows that quality of life in subjects with previous acromegaly and current growth hormone deficiency improves after replacement treatment with growth hormone. It should be pretty exciting! Hooray for Boston!

Evolution of the nest

We have this dove who lives in a tree outside our front window. And since we live on the second floor we look right into her nest. She had two little eggs about 3 weeks ago and then they became active, fluffy little chicks. Then they got a little too big for the nest and now they are gone. I wish I had seen the flying lessons.

But now the mom bird is acting kind of strange. When I got home from school today she was hopping up our front stairs one at a time. I didn't want to disturb her so I just watched for a few minutes and sure enough she hopped up every one. I don't think I've ever seen a bird hop stairs before. Now she is pacing our balcony looking very forlorn.

I think she is having a midlife crisis now that she is an empty-nester. Also, she doesn't like me. I keep trying to tell her that I just want to look at her babies, not eat them, but she doesn't trust me. She's really not much of a pet. Maybe next year we will get a cat.

Thanks to everyone who gave me fantastic color suggestions for our white house! I decided to go with an outdoor, sort of nature theme a la pottery barn since Boyd and I would really rather be outdoors than in. So I am going to decorate with grass and sage greens and chocolate brown. We'll see how it goes...

So I decided to answer a few questions I got over email and share them with everyone, just for fun since I'm on spring break and have way too much time on my hands:

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
My middle name, Elise, came from one of my mom's good friends at the time. My first name is a family surname from the Lindsays who raised my grandpa Dahl up in Canada.

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED?
Tuesday morning. I was trying to be a people pleaser and it just wasn't working out.

3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
One of my secret talents. I have phenomenal handwriting. The pharmacist is never going to call me in frustration.

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
Bacon

5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS?
Not yet. But I hope to have 4 within the next 20 years

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
I hope so.

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM?
Not that often.

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS?
No. I got them out at 17 and have never had strep throat since.

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
Absolutely

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?
Cinnamon Toast Crunch

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
No

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?
Haagen Daaz sundae cone. If you haven't tried this you need to run to the store right now.

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?
Their social skills

15. RED OR PINK?
Pink

16. WHAT IS YOUR LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?
I am judgemental. Case in point: I thought Boyd was such a slacker when I first met him for having to take 5 years to finish college and I wondered who would wear those glasses anyways? Good thing I gave him a chance (he also got new glasses). I hope this case in point shows that my judgements are never final.

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST?
John Anderson

18. WHO WAS YOUR FIRST LOVE?
Greg Lisse. I was 16. He had the best red hair.

19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?
Jeans and a gray tee shirt. Wow that sounds cheery. But trust me--it's hot.

21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
All American Girl by Carrie Underwood

22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?
bright green

23. FAVORITE SMELLS?
Homemade caramel--the real kind where you melt sugar. Christmas enchiladas and killer rolls are also right up there along with Boyd's cologne--clinique happy for men, and Tucson just after a monsoon storm.

24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
Hannah Mayfield, my best friend since elementary school

25. WHEN DID YOU KNOW YOUR SPOUSE WAS THE ONE?
Before we started dating Boyd told me he supported women in higher education; I was smitten. No really, when he kissed me for the first time.

26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?
Gymnastics! Probably the best sport ever invented.

27. HAIR COLOR?
Blond

28. EYE COLOR?
Hazel

29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS?
No. I love my 20/20

30. FAVORITE FOOD?
Right now, probably creme brulee. Also Philippine mangoes and macaroni and cheese--made from scratch only--I like to make a combo of the recipes my mom and stepmom each made growing up.

31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS?
Happy endings.

32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED?
The Music Within. A great movie about the beginning of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

33. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ITEM OF CLOTHING?
My grey flip flops with white fluffy flowers on them. The other day this little girl stopped me and said, "I love your flowers! I have flowers on my flip flops too but they're little like me." She was right--she pointed to two little white flower buttons on the top of her flip flops. I was glad she knew that even big girls can wear flower flip flops.

34. SUMMER OR WINTER?
Summer if it's in Boston or Seattle. Winter if it's in Tucson.

35. HUGS OR KISSES?
Mmmm, both.

36. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE HOBBY?
Cooking. I am definitely going to culinary school some day.

37. FAVORITE STORE
Hands down J.Crew

38. MESSY OR CLEAN?
Clean, but I'm not obsessive about it

39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW?
The Uglies series. I'm on the third book, Specials. It's not very well written but the idea is very intriguing and it sucks you in.

40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD?
I have a laptop so I'm sans mouse pad.

41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT?
The Office

42. FAVORITE SOUND(S)?
Waterfalls, the whole family together during the holidays, the piano

43. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN MARRIED?
2 years and 3 months

44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME?
The Philippines

45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT?
I think my best talent is perfectly fitting leftovers into containers. No seriously.

46 WHERE WERE U BORN?
Milwaukee, WI

47. WHERE DID YOU GROW UP?
Tucson, AZ

48. DID YOU GO TO COLLEGE?
Yes. I got my bachelors degree in neuroscience and now I'm in medical school.

49. WHERE WOULD YOU LIKE TO END UP LIVING?
Boston, MA

50. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE KIDS NAMES?
Elliot, Kate, Gabe, Hannah

My small obsession with white

So my favorite color is white. Yeah, I know that it's not really a color, but it's definitely an obsession that is getting out of hand. I now have white couches, white serving dishes, a white cell phone, an entirely white bathroom, a white computer, and a white ipod. I am currently taking suggestions as to what color I should use to decorate our apartment. Even though we've been married for over two years, I think it's time to start spicing up the white background. Let me know what you think!

Dessert Party!

Boyd and I are all talk when it comes to being social. We want to be, but we are just so content working on our own little hobbies that we often don't push ourselves out of our comfort zones. Not this time...we finally threw our long-talked about dessert party. And I think it was a smashing success.

The Invites:

The menu:

-A choclate fountain (thank you Michelle!) with marshmallows, prezels, strawberries, bananas, and brownies to dip

-Pumpkin cheesecake with gingersnap crust

-Vanilla bean creme brulee (the night's biggest success)

-Meyer lemon bars

-Individual bittersweet chocoalte mousse

-Mini banana cream tarts with coconut crust

-Chocolate cupcakes with buttercream frosting

-Sparkling pink lemonade and milk

Now for the pictures. I matched the frosting colors to our party colors:

The chocolate fountain station:

The party table. Boyd made the ribbon signs.

The party banner ($2 with a little paper and lace! Thanks to Hannah for being my (un)paid help for the afternoon:

Some of the guests. We made them play trivial pursuit--but we think they secretly liked it:

Our next part adventure is going to be a come-and-go mocktail party for my med school class (well, or at least some of them) and other assorted friends. So if you have any fun ideas for non-alcohol beverages we are going to hang up a menu on chalkboards and bust out the blenders.

How many does it take...

QUIZ

How many of the following does it take to get through medical school?


Books: So far, 12 and counting. Oh wait, I just bought another one today that isn't pictured--13. Note: none of these books in the picture are from my undergrad.

Dates (at least 1 per week). That would make 208:

Episodes of LOST: Approximately 45 (and then sadly the season ends)
Anniversaries: 4 (1 down!)
Hours of sleep: Hmmm. It's supposed to be 11,680.
Chocolate chip cookies: too numerous to count

Jitterbug

I challenge you to find something more nerve racking than knowing that tomorrow morning you will have to identify nearly every muscle, artery, nerve, and bone in the human body. And you will also have to know their functions and pathology. Fill in the blank. Spelling counts. On cadavers. In a room that looks like the morgue. Welcome to medical school.

Okay so I thought of a few things. Orally defending your dissertation. Taking the medical school boards. Finding out you're pregnant when you're not expecting it (don't worry, we're not pregnant). Sky diving. So actually maybe there are a lot of things. But hey, if you want your anatomy questions answered, you know who to call.

i.e. today Boyd asked me what the biggest muscle in the human body was: gluteus maximus. And then what the smallest was: the stapedius in the ear. But then we agreed that probably the smallest were the arrector pili muscles in your arm hair. They give you goose bumps. But they aren't usually counted because they are "smooth" muscle (i.e. you can't control them voluntarily). So now you know some trivia.

Also, one of my friends recently won a contest at a trivia night for knowing there are more bones in the hand than in the foot. So now you can win at trivia too. Just by reading our blog.

Creme de la creme

I feel like I need a solid 12 step program to get me blogging again. It's slightly embarrasing to have such a boring life that "Remember Halloween" is the best thing that's happened to us in the past 4 months. It's not true, so I'm here to redeem us. We had our second anniversary--here we are at Snoqualmie Falls in WA where we celebrated. I had a mushroom bisque for dinner that night that I've been thinking of ever since:

We hung one of our beautiful Christmas presents (thanks Dad and Michelle):

We are planning a dessert party for all of our married friends at the end of February and so I am busy trying out recipes (featured: Creme Brulee). If you live by us and you're married and you're our friend, or you want to be, you're invited! Our only BYU friends close are Blair and Logan so they should be looking for an invitation in the mail in the next few weeks ;) If you want an invitation, put your address in the comments. We always want more friends! Here is my new kitchen tool:


And the product of said tool. Mmmmm:

In other news, I have taken to making my own bread and so far, I have put out 9 loaves (pretty good i'd say). I've learned to incorporate ground flax into it so I feel good about the butter that I also incorporate. I think it's amazing that Boyd and I go through 2 loaves a week. We also go through a lot of cinnamon sugar.

Boyd and I are happy to report that we are still doing our New Year's Resolutions. That may or may not have to do with the fact that there are rewards attached if we do them 90% for two months (we've calculated how many days we can miss). Afterwhich we get rewarded and then choose a new reward for the next 2 months of hard work. I know you're dying to know what we pledged and what the reward is...but we're not that interesting so I need material for our next post. Till next week (hopefully not next month)!