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Showing posts from June, 2010

3 months

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We had an actual photographer take some photos of Judah since he 's now 3 months old, which on the one hand sounds like a short amount of time considering how much my life has changed since he arrived. But it's also hard to believe that he's already getting so big. He's finally started doing more laughing, which is probably the best sound ever. He loves when I take off his clothes, and that's when it's easiest to get him to laugh. He's also started scooting around in the bed more - he'll end up turned 90 degrees from the direction I lay him down in. I feel like he'll be rolling over before too long - he's started rolling up on his side some, too. It's exciting seeing him get all these milestones, but part of me doesn't want him to grow up so fast. I tried leaving him in the nursery the other night. Unfortunately, the monitor wasn't working right so I only heard him when he started crying really, really loud. I got up to the nursery an

Swimming!

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Judah took his first trip to the pool and tried swimming for the first time today. He was, I'd say, fairly indifferent to the pool. It was basically his nap time, though, and I figure anything that didn't make him cry probably means he enjoyed it. Chillin' in the shade after getting out of the pool he definitely liked.

Bug

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We had a rather cute visitor to our back porch the other day. Although you can't tell from this shot - his antennae were really, really long. I was just amazed at his incredible camouflage. He really looked just like a leaf. I enjoyed breaking out my macro lens and getting as close to him as he'd let me.

A year.

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It's amazing to me how much thing can change in a year. Last year, I remember pulling up to the end-of-the-year skit party and seeing several pregnant friends and friends with their new babies, and having to take a deep breathe and fight back tears. I almost turned right around and left. I didn't want to be there. We were just about to have our IUI , and I was stressed out about it and convinced it wasn't going to work. I was worried we might never have a baby. And here I am, just a year later, and I'm getting to love on this sweet boy. Part of me wishes I could go back and tell myself that everything would be ok. That a year is not a long time. That's God's timing is perfect and that he was about to bless me way more than I ever deserved. Of course, it doesn't work like that. And I've learned that those dark days were necessary in my life - making me see how beautiful God's work is. How wonderful his timing. And how perfect are his gifts. God is goo

Graduation!

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Well...it's all over. We had our ceremony today at lunch. I always thought I'd be more sad, but I guess since I'm not actually leaving, it was just a happy time to mark finally getting to the end of this long educational journey. I celebrated by coming home and taking a nap.

My Wife is Famous

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As an encore to Aubrey's Letter to the Editor in World magazine this last month, yesterday she was in the paper. Technically she is part of the "out with old" referred to here. But the article is highlighting how she is staying here in town. (click on the image for a bigger image that you can read.)

What I didn't know....

.... that I could look back at pictures taken just 5 or 6 or 8 weeks ago and get a little misty-eyed, thinking about that sweet baby and how little he was. ... that the thought of moving him up to his nursery would make me so sad. ... that I'd love nursing my sweet baby as much as I do. .... that I could get used to being woken up every night at least once to feed him, and get a little sad thinking about the day when he won't need me to. (a little) ... that the best part of my last call would be seeing Jeff and Judah come to the cafeteria at 7am, just in time for me to give him his morning feed. ... that I could nearly have a panic attack every. time. I think about any number of bad things happening to him. .... that the weight of his small body would feel so right nestled up next to me. ... that such a small sound - a baby laugh - could make me so incredibly happy.

Baby shoes

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I finally, finally made Judah some shoes. These have been my go-to baby gift for several years now, but I just hadn't gotten around to making any for Judah. I guess the saying holds true that the cobbler's children go without shoes.... They're a little big on him now, but I'm glad they'll fit him for several more months. One reason why I waited was because my cute boy fabric stash was sorely in need. So this past week I got a big order from fabricworm.com , my new favorite place for fabric on the web. They carry really, really cute stuff and even sell you combinations of fabric that would work together in a quilt. I've been mulling over some different quilt ideas for several days now. Maybe that will be my next project. (And yes, I worked on this on my post call day instead of finishing my paper, but I decided that after being on call I deserved to do something more fun...)

Odds and ends of the end.

Tonight is my last. call. ever. (Well, last in-house call as a resident) Woo-hoo. I can't believe it's almost over. Today I was interviewed by our local paper since I'm staying on here in town as a physician. The reporter used a recorder and everything. I felt so self-conscious in that situation - it was very bizarre. Then she took my picture, which I didn't now was happening today. Perhaps I would have done something different with my hair. I'm almost done with my paper. Just a few finishing touches to add. Three different people stopped me on Sunday at the church lunch to say that they had seen my letter in World magazine. I felt famous. I still can't believe I have less than a week left.

Someone looks like his mama....

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Busy.

Sorry for the unintended slow down of posting. In 8 days, I'll be finished with residency. As in done. As in, "Yes, I'm finally done with school and am a 100% certified, actual physician." I've got what feels like a ton to finish before then - including one academic project I'm writing a paper for and quite a few random things I have to get checked off before graduation. (This is what happens when you are pregnant during most of third year, and have a baby 2.5 months before graduation - things get left until the very end.) I'm also doing a little elective in Seneca right now, so we're staying with my parents, but I've been back and forth to Greenwood several times, which has also made these last couple of weeks a little busier. It's nice being up here, though. I'm having fun doing a fun, laid-back rotation. My mom is loving getting to watch Judah while I'm at work. Hopefully I'll be posting more photos from the days to come and mayb

Better Banana Bread

I experimented today with my favorite banana bread recipe and loved the results. And since it was such a simple change that gave lots of flavor, I thought I'd share it here. My favorite recipe is courtesy of my SIL, Melanie, who gave me one of my favorite wedding/shower gifts we got - a personalized cookbook with all my favorite recipes in it that Melanie or other people in my family make. To kick it up a notch, instead of using regular melted butter, I used brown butter . I'm just now coming to realize that brown butter is way better than regular butter. It adds a deeper, nuttier flavor that is subtle, but really can make a dish stand out. To brown butter, just melt it over medium heat, then let is continue to cook until the solids turn brown. That's it. It doesn't take that much longer than melting the butter, but adds an exceedingly nice flavor. And brown butter is not just for sweet dishes. My current favorite pasta sauce is just brown butter and sage. But that&

Sun hat.

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I fired up the sewing machine to make Judah a Sun hat. Pattern found here . I think I'm going to shorten the straps and use a snap instead of tying it as that seems more boyish. I'm hoping to do some more sewing for Judah-baby here pretty soon. I finally ordered some really cute boyish fabric, so expect to see some more cute projects soon.....

In which I again reveal my dorkiness...

One of the most exciting moments of my nerd life was when I made an on-air comment on an NPR talk show. I might have now topped it. A few weeks ago, I wrote a letter to the editors of World magazine, expressing my enjoyment of a column written by Andree Seu . A few days letter, I was delighted to receive an actual email from Andree Seu herself! I mean, she's this famous person - she gets read by thousands of people in her World Columns and online, and she took time to write me. Today, I was even more excited to discover that my letter actually got published in World magazine. I feel so cool.....

Hydrangea season

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Although I'm more of a fall girl, I do love the time of year when the hydrangeas are blooming and I can eat fresh South Carolina Peaches. I bought my first bag on my way back from Aiken, SC, where I also spotted these beautiful bushes.

Self-soother

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Judah is getting much better using his hands. I think I'm going to have a finger-sucker on my hands. (Pun intended.) I'm not too surprised considering that he actually came out of me with a callous on his hand from where he'd been sucking on it whilst still inside me. He mostly just sucks on his index finger, but sometimes gets both his index and middle finger in his mouth. He's rather loud right now when he's sucking on his fingers. And sometimes he manages to get them in so far that he actually chokes. But I think this habit is here to stay.

Be a tourist in Charleston...

So I know I don't actually live there anymore, but since I spent four years in one of the most beautiful cities on the east coast, and often get asked for recommendations about what to do there, here is my first post about Charleston. We'll start with the eating. Charleston has more delicious restaurants that you could possibly visit during even a week-long stay there. When we lived there, we tried out quite a few, but once we'd found ones that we liked, we had a really, really hard time going somewhere new. This list is certainly not all inclusive, and there are TONS more great eating places there, but this is just what I like. First off: My favorite dinner place (and one I've talked about before) is called The Mustard Seed . There are two locations, one on James Island and one in Mount pleasant. The food is super tasty, and fairly inexpensive. I recommend the butternut squash ravioli. Everytime Jeff and I visit Charleston, this is the restaurant we go to. Other great