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Just a little reminder that we love you forever, through thick and thin. Doing well or poorly or average on this exam doesn’t change a thing. Not even for a second.

We’re looking forward to relaxing with you during January while you take some much-deserved and highly-needed downtime. I know you’ll beat Lego Indiana Jones way before I do.

Now stop being so hard on yourself, relax, and go into that exam armed with the confidence that all these months of preparation have brought you. You know this stuff!

I can’t even describe how much it is snowing right now.

The fluffy white stuff is swirling and blizzarding and sticking to every inch of Maddy’s face. Suh is running around eating it. I’m trying to keep it from blowing in the crack in the front door.

It’s awesome.

I managed to get home from the hospital earlier this morning before it got really bad. I am now hunkered down in front of a non-stop* stream of TV movies and hot mugs. Unfortunately, the snow is going to mean Brandon will probably end up working a double shift tonight because his 11pm relief can’t get in from Tulsa.

For those of you keeping track, he’s working 24 out of 48 hours this Christmas.

We’ll be opening presents as soon as he gets home at 7am!

*Scratch that. I’m earning my warm-up down-time by helping push vehicles spinning out on our street. People here seriously do not know how to drive in snow/ice.

Maddy snoozes while Suh ponders the imminent changes in American healthcare.

Brandon is in Omaha for a wedding. I didn’t get to go what with it starting at 630pm on a Friday and being a 6+ hour drive from here and me rounding on patients in the hospital while Brandon was trying not to fall asleep behind the wheel.

It was weird to come home last night to an empty house. Being freshly married and still in that awesome head-over-heels spend-every-moment-together phase, Brandon and i enjoy doing pretty much everything together. Have I mentioned he’s my only friend down here?? So, sitting around last night deciding what to do and what to have for dinner and when to go to bed was sort of new. I almost felt like I was back in my Vancouver bachelor apartment days. If it wasn’t for the giant Great Dane trying to curl up in my lap every time I sat down, Maddy and I might have wondered if the last 2.5 years were just a dream…

In the end, my evening wasn’t very eventful. Due to a Christmas purchase on Amazon, I qualified for a free 12-month photo calendar from Shutterfly. I splurged $6.50 on shipping so 2010 can be filled with pictures of Maddy and Suh from 2009. I also spent 3 hours on a cross-stitch project trying to fill the last empty wedding present photo frame. Maddy glared at me most of the evening because I took up her half of our rather small couch. “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” was on TV. I kinda hate TV for anything other than sports and movies. Why are the commercials SO MUCH LOUDER than the program??

At 830pm I realized I hadn’t had any dinner yet. Brandon is great for reminding me when it’s a meal time and that I should eat. Even in his absence, he made sure I was well taken care of last night with some yummy leftovers in the fridge. I now know how those husbands feel when their wives leave those cute notes saying “Dinner is in the oven/fridge/etc for you, dear. Love you!” It’s one of the most awesomest feelings in the world.

By 9pm my eyes were criss-crossing. I put down my needle and curled up in bed. I am about halfway through “Drink, Play, F@#k” and it’s been a big ball of entertaining giggles so far. The first 12 chapters take place in Ireland: Disneyland for anyone looking to entertain a 3-month drinking binge. Alcoholism is a serious disease, but crap that book made me laugh. All of the good Irish stereotypes reminded me of Emmet at MUA.

By the time the author made it to the casino in Vegas, I was ready to turn out the lights. Brandon called around 10pm to say goodnight. He sounded exhausted, but I know his friends were really glad to have him there. The dogs took up 2/3rds of the bed and I drifted off to dreamland sort of laying diagonally with my knees pulled up. No matter how much room the dogs take, the bed always feels empty without Brandon there.

This morning, I slept in until 7am. Now that is something I haven’t done in a very long time. The last two hours weren’t really sleeping. Mostly just snuggling under the heavy warm duvet while the cold room air nipped my nose. There aren’t very many things more perfect in life than a warm bed in a cool room.

An hour later, I’ve made coffee and spent some time on the internet. Now I’m ready to vacuum, dust and clean the bathroom. Later, I plan to listen to an audiobook while adding a few feet of crochet to my stripey scarf.

Cleaning the bathroom reminds me of a brief conversation this social media husband-and-wife had a couple of weeks ago:

“Thanks for cleaning the toilet,” Brandon called. While in the middle of using it.

“Oh, you noticed?” I asked in return. I thought I cleaned it often enough that there shouldn’t be much of a difference between Before and After.

“Nah. But I read it on Twitter.”

Just got off the phone with Brandon. He is on the road! On his way home! I wonder if he’ll notice the toilet before or after he reads this…

I’m still on track to look like an idiot in every single rotation because I get nervous when put on the spot.

Double bonus points this month because I actually *like* internal medicine and the attending I’m working with is just short of genius* and I should probably try to score well if I’m thinking I might want to go into it someday. So, blanking on how lisinopril causes hyperkalemia in the middle of the ICU isn’t necessarily the best way to go. Blurting out completely wrong answers makes me shut-up gun-shy when I actually know the right ones. Lame.

Just in case you were wondering.

And today’s photo is a random picture of Suh sitting on Brandon. Something she likes to do whether he’s on the floor, our tiny couch or at his computer desk.

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*No, he doesn’t read this. No, I’m not sucking up.

5am – Get up. Brandon eats cereal in front of the TV and watches football highlights from last night’s heartbreaker while I check email.

530am – Maddy sits right next to my chair and Suh starts barking. Signs they are ready to go out in the morning cold. It’s 35F today.

630am – Brandon heads to work. 7-3pm at the Halfway House. I finish puttering around on the computer and start puttering around the house.

7-10am – Clean bathroom. Dust. Pull up very frozen flowers from front garden.

1030am – Shower. Let the dogs back in. More computer puttering looking for a Christmas present for Brandon… Something I can afford that he wants, but won’t buy for himself.

12pm – Check TV to see what games are on. Choose Titans at Colts. Make oatmeal for lunch. Add snickerdoodle cookies (from Wal-Mart bakery and totally awesome!) for dessert.

130pm – Mute TV. Nap. Cross-stitch.

315pm – Brandon comes home and warms up leftovers for lunch.

4pm – Do some study question exams online while Brandon works on MBA homework.

6pm – Quick-fix-fend-for-yourself dinner on one of Brandon’s breaks. Watch NFL highlights while eating.

7pm – Fall asleep on the couch while watching a movie on TV with Jennifer Connolly.

8pm – Turn off Christmas tree, brush teeth, go to bed.

12am – Brandon finally finishes his homework and comes to bed.

I think you can see why I like Sundays more than Brandon… Most weekends should involve more studying for me, but it’s December and every day off feels like I should be cozy on the couch, bathed in the glow of Christmas lights, drinking eggnog and humming carols. Can you believe it’s only 18 days until Christmas?!

I’m seeing Santa everywhere. Yesterday, a fellow student motioned to a patient being wheeled into the ICU and said, “Santa!” He was right! Well, it was either Santa or ZZ Top.

We got more Christmas goodies in the mail from Brandon’s parents! ‘Tis the season to try and teach Suh to sit still for a photo. You can see Maddy looking rather bored. After more than 6 years of putting up with my lens in her face, she knows it’ll be over faster if she’s patient and indulgent.

I love the stripey pom-pom scarves!

Brandon opened the boxes of dishes and said “Oh, these are obviously for you.” Hee! Not that he doesn’t need dishes to eat on… Just that I’m more likely to appreciate both the festiveness and domestic-ness of the gift. He’s right. I love the holly pattern!

And what did Brandon get? His new PS3 is safely tucked away unopened until after he takes the USMLE Step 1 on December 30th.

Brandon and I don’t really have any money to spend on each other, but I hear there’s some other Big Super Secret Surprise on its’ way for Christmas Day…

As an aside, I’ve been trying to figure out how to write more about school/work. I’m worried that even if I change every identifiable detail and make-up fake patients, someone will read and think I’m talking about someone in real life and get their knickers in a knot. Brandon thinks I need to tell the story of the swollen scrotum. I kinda wanted to share the little old lady on morphine. Plus, there are tons of acid-base-electrolyte stuff that I learn and digest every single day. I can hardly begin to describe how awesome it is.

My life is really amazing right now.

Brandon, Maddy, Suh and I were in the office goofing around when Suh suddenly left the room. Unlike Maddy, she likes to be around us all. the. time. She’ll sometimes do a lap of the house to satisfy her puppy ADD, but she always comes back quickly to make sure we’re not having too much fun without her.

After about 10 seconds, I looked at Brandon and said “What the heck is she doing that’s more important than us?” His eyes widened and I remembered her eyeballing the pies on the kitchen table earlier. Yes, she has enough Great Dane in her to put her muzzle on the table with ease.

We both jumped up and poked our heads out the door just in time to hear THWACK. Which, let me tell you, is much better than THMOOSH.

The pie landed aluminum plate down. Both pies were rescued to a higher kitchen counter as Brandon and I inspected them for damage. One edge of the crust was very barely disturbed by Suh’s giant muzzle. She had obviously taken great care in her important job.

“Do you think we can still eat that?” Brandon asked.

I shrugged, “I don’t see why not.”

Brandon and I can’t even begin to think about eating 12lbs of turkey, but 2 pies? No problem!

Today I am thankful for so many things, I can’t even begin to list them each by name. Most of all, I am thankful for my beautiful little family in this little house in Oklahoma. There is no place in the world I would rather be at this point in my life.

As you come off yet another night-shift this week, Brandon, I want you to know how thankful I am for the way you take care of us. I am so very proud of how hard you’re working. I am so blessed to know I won the husband lottery.

i think i’ve come across as whiny or complaining or unhappy in my last few esoteric (i had to look up the word to make sure it means what i want it to mean) and inwardly-reflective posts. i’m not unhappy. far from it. i hate sucking at everything i do (it’s why i don’t play many sports!), but the rest of my life around school and work and studying is really darn awesome.

what’s happening lately?

baby, it’s cold outside! i’m surprised at how fast the weather is changing down here. i thought late summer could hold out through October for sure. the weather widgets on my computer are convincing me it’s still better to be here in 50°F instead of those negative Celcius digits in Moose Jaw.

i write the Ob/Gyn clinical clerkship exam on Saturday. it’s a 2-hour electronic test at my local H&R Block and Brandon thinks i’m studying wayyy too much for it. i think i have the obstetric stuff down, but the list of things that can go wrong with girl parts is just too long.

i’m still working on my Spanish. it’s coming slowly, but surely. i am listening to the Coffee Break Spanish podcasts while driving to/from the clinic (having a little bit of a daily commute is actually kind of nice) and sneaking in time with Rosetta Stone when Brandon is at the gym.

i have a pile of email i’ve been neglecting since September 22nd or so. apologies all around.

Brandon bought me every book you recommended.

pumpkin cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory is AMAZING.

our wedding book album is in the mail! it might arrive this week! i recently had a dozen or so photos printed to litter about our mantle and walls. Brandon says it looks more and more like we live here. i also had a few prints framed for Brandon’s birthday: Memorial Stadium from Aunt Nancy, large map of St. Kitts and Nevis from Brandon’s parents, Nebraska Husker offense 2009 poster from Uncle Lodge and an old Dave Matthews Band poster since we couldn’t afford to go to the show in Tulsa this year.

Maddy and Suh are figuring each other out. Suh is big enough to frustrate Brandon in a good wrestle, but the girls seem to be getting along good. Maddy still wants to be queen of the house and pretend she’s annoyed that she’s not an Only Child anymore. but she doesn’t realize the house has windows to the backyard and we can see them running around cavorting and playing like puppies from the same litter. Maddy, Suh and i are having a girls-only pajama party the next couple of nights while Brandon heads to Missouri for the football game.

Brandon is experimenting in the kitchen pretty much every night and creating some fantastic masterpieces. especially for a guy who’s only been doing this cooking thing less than a year.

we have a giant pumpkin just waiting to be carved. it took a little convincing, but when i suggested that we could get a pumpkin and just colour the front, Brandon relented with the insistence that we do it right. seeds toasted in the oven and all.

October seems to be competing with September in a race for How Fast Can The Months Fly By Without You Realizing Christmas Is Right Around The Corner.

oh yes. life is good.