Tags: M, A, J, me

Oh, and Happy Canada Day, eh!

Tags: J, M, holiday

We finally got around to downloading photos off the camera and here's one from graduation a little while ago. It was a long day for everyone, especially the kids. But it's official now. My preschooler called me Dr. Mommy the other day. I don't think I'll ever get used to being called Dr. anything.

Intern year has actually started (orientation at least) and I am on call my very first day and whole first weekend. This is a q4 month, which kind of stinks, so we'll see if I can keep these posts up.

Tags: grandparents, J, A, M, me, school

Tags: J, M

I don't know if anyone else does this (or if we are a totally bizarre family), but sometimes we pretend to eat the children and vice versa.

In contrast to yesterday's peaceful family photo, here is a sequence of us goofing around.

Tags: J, A, M, me

Tags: J, A, M, me

Walking up and down the aisles (is it just me or are they getting narrower?) during the flight helped a little bit.

Tags: travel, A, J

Well, we survived! And of course, I think we all had a good time (especially the kids). We just dropped off the boys at daycare and picked up my laptop, and I am now going to attack the mess that used to be the living room floor (luggage, laundry, mail, toys) and I think my husband is going to take a much-needed nap.

We deleted the blurry/bad photos off the camera, and have over 400 remaining to download. Of those, I think maybe a hundred or so are some real winners, some of which I will try to format and post over the next few days.

Here are a few that I emailed my mom today. I'll be back soon to post more about our trip. For those of you who were curious, it was helpful to have the carseat (for my little guy) on the plane, and no, it does not fit through the xray machine at the airport (we have the Britax Decathlon). They have to check it manually.

Tags: travel, A, M, J, me

Tags: A, J

Tags: A, J

I'm post-call again, but this time I got out at 12:30pm, a big improvement from last time (I realize it's only about 1.5 hours more, but when you are tired, every minute counts). I even had a chance to have lunch with Jason at one of the cafeterias at the medical school, something we hardly ever get to do.

I'm really looking forward to seeing the kids today, since I haven't seen them (awake) since Tuesday night. I did talk to them on the phone last night, which was really cute. When I am a resident, I plan to iChat with them when I am on call, and even have them meet me at the hospital on quiet weekend calls. We can have lunch or dinner or just play in the courtyards. This is all theoretical, of course. I'll find a way to make it work.

Oh, and remember that patient I had to write a transfer summary for on my last call? They weren't transferred on Saturday, and instead moved to the floor only yesterday (and a new transfer summary had to be written). It did make it a bit easier to have done it already, since I could just add an addendum to it, but I would have preferred to have written it after having a reasonable night's rest.

Tags: J, A, school

What do you know, it was raining then too!

Tags: A, M, J

Tags: M, J, me

Tags: J, M, A

We recently took the boys to a park with a petting zoo, where they enjoyed being up close to the animals. A was fearless, despite being around some aggressive goats (it was early morning so they were hungry). M was more cautious, preferring to toss the food near them rather than have them eat from his hand. It's interesting to see the differences in their personalities at such a young age.

It was a bit drizzly, so the park wasn't crowded, which was really nice. The boys loved wearing their rainboots too. It was a really cold day. While I always dress the boys in layers, I often forget to dress myself appropriately. After living in California for so long, my standard outfit is pretty much a t-shirt and casual pants. And a jacket thrown on top if it is chilly. The temperature has been dipping into the 30s and 40s lately, so it's been cold, even for me.

Tags: A, J, me, M

Tags: A, J

A little while ago, we all went to our friend Isabella's second birthday party, which was held at Chuck E. Cheese. I haven't been there in about 20 years, so it was interesting to see what it was like from an adult's perspective. Noisy and chaotic! And I don't know if they are all like the one near us, but it seemed a lot smaller than I the one I went to as a kid (but I guess I'm quite a bit bigger now).

In any case, after the party, J and I realized something in common about all the guests (parents) at the party - they were all residents or attendings (I was the only student). I have never been around that many doctors at the same time (other than being on the wards, I mean). It was a weird experience, particularly since nearly every field in medicine was represented. Isabella's parents are both graduates of my school - her dad is a plastic surgery resident, and her mom is an internal medicine attending (and expecting a second girl soon - congrats you guys!). The other guests consisted of residents and attendings from: pathology, anesthesia, neurosurgery, radiology, pediatrics, urology, endocrinology, psychiatry, and cardiology. And there were more, but I can't remember them all. Little did the other Chuck E. Cheese patrons know that if anyone had a medical emergency there, they would have been covered.



Here's the birthday girl blowing out her candles:


I think the boys had a good time, even though they were a bit skeptical about the giant animatronic mouse:


Chuck E. Cheese school? I wonder if it's a party school.

Tags: A, J, M, me

I know, I'm a lucky gal.

Tags: J, M, A

See? We do did stuff.

Tags: J, me

Tags: holiday, me, M, J, A

A had a comb-over!

Tags: J, M, A

We're experiencing a bit of a cold snap here in California, which is somewhat refreshing. It's not always the balmy 80 degrees that everyone thinks it is (though it doesn't compare to the cold winters in other parts of the country!). People aren't used to it being this cold, and thus are not usually well-prepared for days like this, where ice freezes on the windshield in the early mornings. I've had to douse warm water on the car windshield on days that I've had to hurry out the door in the morning and don't have time to wait for the defroster to kick in.

With temperatures in the 30s, we'll have to drink smoothies to stay warm! I actually like the cold weather, but I find the difficulty here is to dress appropriately because it often tends to warm up quite a bit. I guess layers are the way to go, but you try to wrestle two wriggly boys into putting on a couple layers of clothes!

We have a fair supply of hooded sweatshirts for the kids, which seem to be well-tolerated (it is often the only way I can keep a hat on A). And being easy to wash helps too, since they get pretty grimy at the end of the day. They are definitely a staple in our household, and many of you have probably already noticed that in our photos.

Here's A hamming it up for the camera:



The kids don't really seem to mind the cold weather too much, but that's probably because they are moving around so much. J is usually the coldest one in the family, seeing as he has zero body fat, and has never lived outside of the state. He can occasionally be found wearing his winter jacket inside the house, which baffles me, since I am usually too warm (unlike J, I have more body fat than I want or need - that's a big New Year's resolution for me this year). Time to start running again! How in the world do people stay fit when they have children?

I try to keep a supply of warm hats for him, especially for nights he goes back into work after the boys go to sleep, and this year bought him a comfy cashmere one for Christmas. He does have a habit of misplacing them, so hopefully this one will last through the winter.

Tags: M, A, J

Tags: J, M, me, A

Tags: holiday, M, A, J, me

Way back before any of the baby chaos arrived, we did fun grown-up stuff, like watch movies, travel, and hang out. In 2003, we were lucky enough to get tickets to some television show tapings, and my sister-in-law K came along as well. One of those tapings was "The Tonight Show." I like Jay Leno's monologue and his headlines always crack me up. I'm never able to catch him on TV anymore (seeing as how I rarely watch television these days). In any case, before the show starts, he picks a few people to come up and take photos with him (rather, someone usually shouts out "Jay, Jay! Can I take a photo with you?!" and that starts the whole mob scene). We happened to be sitting in the front row off to the side, and so I think it was easy enough for him to pick us (although, ahem, I was the only one of my party who had my hand up - no thanks to my shy and reserved companions, you know who you are). He chatted with us and asked where we were from and what we did and a staff member took out a polaroid and took our picture (no cameras are allowed in the studio). He was a very nice, normal guy. Whenever anyone sees this photo, they assume we were guests on the show, which is kind of funny. Pretty cool, eh?

Tags: travel, J, me, holiday

J is a good sport when it comes to playing with the boys in places that were clearly not made for adults. This particular slide wasn't that small, but because J is so tall, he practically had to go down the slide lying down in order to not bump his head. Aside from the cramped quarters, he also had to endure the crazy amount of static electricity that plastic slides tend to give off, especially when you're wearing fleece. Fun times.

Tags: J, M, A

Here are some stats for this week (and it's only Thursday!)

75% of my household is sick.

50% of the chromosomes of the members of my household who are sick are Y.

A combined total of 3.25 days of daycare have been missed.

A combined total of 3 workdays have been missed (I'm on research right now, so it's flexible, thank goodness).

3 different medications are being taken.

2 residency interviews have been attended (on 1 day).

8000 tissues have been used (give or take a few).

1 miracle is needed for the remaining person not to catch something.

Fortunately, everyone is at work, school, or doing research today (and studying for Step 2), so we'll keep our fingers crossed. Whew!

Tags: health, A, M, J, me

This picture was taken almost exactly three years ago.

Tags: J, M

A while ago, I joked about A being a meat-eater. Here he is eating his very first breakfast sausage. We don't even usually have these at home (this was at the Breakfast with Santa event we went to recently) but I will probably add these to my grocery list, seeing as how A seems to really enjoy them. This might be one of my favorite photos taken of A so far. He just looks so darn cute stuffing the sausage in his mouth, and going for the orange slices at the same time.

He's also wearing a Pampers Bibster, which was a spontaneous add-on when I placed an order for diapers at Diapers.com. We were pleasantly surprised to find that they are very useful when eating out (we keep them in the car and use them when we forget to bring a washable bib from home). I bought the large size, and even M has used them when he is having a particular messy meal while we're out. They have a waterproof backing as well as a specially-designed collection area that actually stays open to catch food (it's not folded down properly in the photo). More details about Diapers.com and a special coupon code can be found on the Shopping Resources page.

Tags: food, holiday, A, J

Tags: J, M, A, me

Tags: A, J, M

I can't believe how time flies. Or how much the boys grow in a year. Here's M wearing a hat I picked up during a conference in Toronto (Go Canada!). I love this photo - he looks like he's ready for a hike.

I love doing these flashback posts. Not only are they relatively quick and easy, but I have a chance to look back at all the great photos of the boys, and see how much they've grown in such a short time. If you're only used to being around adults, you don't really notice how quickly times passes, at least not in the sense that you see it in the way people age. But if you have any friends or family with kids, you'll know what I mean when I say that every time I see a new photo of someone else's children, it's almost as if they are completely different people. They grow so much in such short intervals, that it almost makes it tough to recognize them.

This is particularly true during this time of year, when we get lots of holiday cards with new family photos. The parents generally look the same, but the kids have grown several inches (or more). It's crazy how fast time flies.



I hope you all have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving!

Tags: M, A, J, holiday

Merry-go-rounds make me dizzy, but the boys really love riding them. The one we usually go to has sea and shore creatures rather than horses, which is kind of strange, but no one seems to mind.

Tags: M, A, J

Tags: M, A, J

It's always fun to pick up the kids at daycare, especially if they've been painting.

Tags: A, J

Look at this line. It's one of the many lines you have to stand in to spend a day at Disneyland. This one happened to be the early entry line, and we were shocked at just how many people had early entry tickets. We decided to buy the 3-day park hopper pass even though one or two days would have been plenty of time, only because you get a day of early admission to the park when you buy the 3-day tickets (marketing genius). That one extra hour you have is truly a golden one, as you can get on quite a few rides in an hour. I would happily have paid more for a day ticket that had early entry to the park. With two young children in tow, standing in line after line was not an option. In any case, there were several lines full of people with the same plan as ours, but luckily it didn't take that long for all of us to get into the park. And while we did have to stand in a lot of lines, they weren't nearly as long as they could have been.

Tags: travel, J, M, A

A little while ago, we celebrated M's third birthday (I'm pretty behind in posting right now). I can't believe it's been over three years. I know I say it a lot but my, how time flies. It really doesn't seem that long ago that we brought him home to our tiny little one-bedroom apartment. He was so little then. And now he's talking up a storm, doing things on his own, and every bit as adorable to me as the day he was born. It's amazing how parents always think their kids are at their cutest age ever, no matter how old they are. It just keeps getting better and better.

We had a quiet celebration at home, which really consisted of a nice lunch and then ice cream cake, followed by the opening of some new toys (more photos and reviews to come soon). Pretty low key, but I figure the boys had tons of fun without the added stress of a big party. I'd like to hold off on organizing a bigger birthday party for as long as we can. Around here, they can really get quite impressive (clowns, magicians, balloon animal makers, bouncy houses, pony rides, etc). I prefer the idea of making a cake and having a barbeque in the backyard or at the park. Maybe next year (when I'm an intern?).



The cake was pretty cute. Having just moved, I didn't have time (or enough unpacked kitchen supplies) to make one, so I opted for an ice cream cake from Baskin Robbins (I haven't been there since I was a kid). They have a lot more designs than are available on their website, and the one nearby is owned by an adorable elderly couple who have really great customer service. I tried Cold Stone Creamery first, but I guess not all their stores make the character cakes offered on their website, and their customer service (at least at the local store) is mediocre at best. In any case, M loved it (chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream), and loves to play with the little Thomas wind-up train and track decoration. Even though I think the ice cream isn't as yummy as some of the homemade ice cream shops around here, I'd definitely order from them again.

Tags: M, A, J, food

This post is a little different from usual, but I wanted to at least share some thoughts about the recent news from Burma/Myanmar. Part of the reason I started this site was so that I could have some sort of record for Matthew and Andy to look back on and read about when they are older. I think it'll be interesting to read about what their parents were up to, what their mom was thinking about as they were growing up, all the different schools they attended, the places we visited, and so forth. It'll also serve to show them how the world and their lives have changed over time.

My family immigrated from Burma in 1975, for reasons that are now again becoming clear to the rest of the world. Jason and I visited my grandmother there several years ago (she has since passed on), and I was taken by what a peaceful society it was (with the exception of the military, of course). Strangers everywhere would approach us and invite us into their homes, chat with us at the marketplace, and welcome us to their community. It is a tragedy that despite fair elections favoring a democratic government, the military regime has refused to cooperate. Schools close without any notice, currency is deemed useless on any given day, and the military pretty much bullies its way through the country. Raw sewage runs alongside many of the town sidewalks, and many people are poor, hungry, and helpless. And I feel helpless. I've got lots of relatives there, specifically in the small towns where the military has now settled. I'm not sure what I can do, but I feel like I have to do something. I'll be looking into ways I can get involved once our living situation is more stable (I hate living among unpacked boxes - I can't find anything), but if anyone has ideas, I'd appreciate any suggestions.

I don't know much about politics, but I do feel that if there was ever an appropriate time for our government to invade another country, this might be one of them. I guess teak and jade don't compare to oil.

Tags: travel, safety, J, me

A turned one several days ago, and we celebrated with some homemade blueberry muffins. M (and Jason) helped to blow out his candle, and we opened all his presents together. I can't believe it's already been a whole year.



Ride-on toys are always a winner for first birthday gifts, and this adorable Wheely Bug was no exception (thank you Uncle Larry). Of course, M enjoyed the festivities as well, and they had a blast playing together with various new toys all afternoon. M's birthday is only a few weeks away, so we'll be having another fun birthday to celebrate in the very near future.

We've got plans to visit Disneyland, and we're also moving during the next few weeks (long story, I'll have to post about it after it's all done). In addition, I start my neurology rotation next week as well, so it's about time for chaos again! Now if I could only finish and submit that ERAS application, my research projects, and study for Step 2...

Tags: A, M, J, me

Do you guys remember that song?

I got a pop-up swimming pool online at Linens N Things a while ago, during the off season. It ended up costing $12, which included shipping. Unfortunately, it is no longer offered, or else I'd post it here (I don't like to post about things until after I've used them so that I don't accidentally recommend purchasing stuff that turns out to be crappy for whatever reason). In any case, I was planning to use it on one of the hotter California summer days, and for a while, I thought we weren't going to have one anytime soon. But this past week was scorching hot, and we're on a very long weekend (with both Labor Day and two daycare inservice days), so it was definitely the right time to fill it up. The boys had a great time, and I think we'll probably use it again tomorrow, if it continues to be this warm.



The pool is offered at Amazon, though for just over $20. It's totally worth it if you are looking for a larger kiddie pool. Last summer, we had a tiny inflatable one, which took forever to inflate, not to mention it was pretty wimpy and barely held any water. You do still need to inflate the ring around this one, but it felt like a real wading pool for the boys.



Happy September! Don't forget to submit your ERAS applications, for those of you who are applying for the match this spring. I haven't yet, but am planning to in the next week or so.

Tags: M, A, J, toys, gear

I was browsing through my photo library this morning, as I often do (12818 photos and growing) and wondered what we were doing on this exact date two years ago. It turns out we were at REI, buying M a bicycle helmet, so he could ride in the Burley Solo. I've been thinking about getting another bicycle trailer at some point, maybe a double. Or maybe we can consider two of those bicycle seats. Hmm. Well, I guess I'll think about it more later, as I am about to go in for my second to last call of this rotation. Besides, I'm not sure that we can afford it at the moment. I've been trying to figure out the budget for next year, when I am a lowly intern, and J is a fellow, and it looks like we're going to hit a financial wall. I currently have the luxury (more like a safety net) of student loans, which will go into repayment 6 to 9 months after I graduate. Rent (which won't be on-campus anymore) and daycare alone will exhaust our net income, so I'm currently trying to figure out a way to make it through the next year.

In any case, I'm pretty exhausted these days, trying to read for my rotation, spend time with the kids, and work on my residency applications. I didn't anticipate that there would be so much going on this month, particular regarding applications. So I've decided to put off taking Step 2 until later this year (which I am not happy about) and instead spending the few spare moments I have either sleeping, or spending time with the kids (which I am happy about).

Tags: M, J

J: "It's too bad we don't have an army of cracker people trying to attack us."
me: "huh?"
J: "Then A could just drool all over them and save us."

This is what happens when you are chronically sleep deprived.

Tags: J

As a regular activity on the circuit of easy, fun things to do on the weekend, we often take a trip to the mall, where there are several water fountains to toss pennies into. Like most people, I used to hate getting a lot of pennies back in change, but now it's a welcome coin in the household, and I've got a big jar at home just for this purpose alone. This was the first time that A threw dropped any coins in the water, which was pretty fun to watch. He reached out to try and touch the water too, which was cute. He even tried to climb over the railing, but luckily J stopped any of that nonsense.

M is starting to play more with A, and hasn't complained as much about A playing with his toys. Well, maybe he still complains, but he doesn't seem to mind and they often play together now. Up until now, they've sort of lived a peaceful coexistence but haven't really interacted that much yet. Now that A is quite active and able to crawl around, they are starting to have a lot of fun together, which makes me happy (since I'd really like for them to be buddies as they grow up). Besides, after I graduate, we can no longer live on campus, and it is quite likely we will have to move back into a two-bedroom place (rent is too outrageous around here). So the current plan is that the boys will share the bigger bedroom, and it'd be nice if they thought that was a fun idea.

Here's M offering a penny to A:


Here he is trying to share another, but A has no idea:


Here he is trying again:


I think the boys had fun:

Tags: M, A, J