Well, it's been awhile since our last post...but, things have been wonderful! We took a quick trip back to Florida to celebrate Darren's 10 year transplant anniversary, I'm now in my third clinical rotation, Brendan finished up his internship and has now started his Fall Semester at UH, the fur babies are doing very well together, Renegade has a boyfriend, I have made an awesome new girl friend, Brendan has taken on a leadership position with IEEE...lots of stuff!!
First, the trip to Florida was much needed. Because we went home for such a huge celebration, we got to see a lot of our family and friends. My forever friend, Brittany, came over early Saturday morning and helped us prepare the house for the 80-something guest we would have! It was awesome to have her over early so we could really spend some time together before the crowd arrived. Dana, my brother Jerry's girlfriend (sorry to use the term girlfriend, Dana, but ladyfriend sounds too old!) was there and she is amazing. She fits right in with our family, it was nice to spend time with her. My sister and her boyfriend were in town to celebrate, and she is so very happy. It was my first time meeting George, and he fits in perfectly as well. Sheri is in love and is looking more beautiful than ever. It's amazing what love does to you! I don't know what's going on, but it seems everyone in the family is really in a good place in life...happy and in love! Aunt Connie and Uncle Frank were also in from across the state...they are wonderful and every time we get to see them is a treat for sure. One of the most special guests was Darren's nurse...she was there for us through the challenging times of his transplant. I think every one in my family cried when we saw her. We are so thankful for everything she did for Darren and the family during that time. She is a very special person and it was absolutely amazing to have her there with us celebrating 10 years. She now lives very close to my family in Florida, and we hope to continue to build our friendship with her. She is an awesome person. There were so many other guests who came in and out throughout the day. My other family, the Gaines, were there. I couldn't have gotten through the transplant without them...I lived with them while trying to make it through junior year of high school, and on the weekends I would drive up to see Darren in Gainesville. Without the Gaines, I don't think I would have come out of the challenges the way I did. They provided a stable home for me live and provided nothing but a loving environment. Anyway, it was a fabulous day celebrating the life of my brother, one of my best friends. We are very lucky... I could write a novel about the guests we had to celebrate Darren's life, and that alone is a gift. We are surrounded by nothing but love. Darren has been surrounded by love this entire time. He has amazing support and he is living life to the fullest. Of course, we are forever thankful to his donor family. You have the power to give the biggest gift, the gift of life. Be an organ donor.
So, Brendan has finished up his internship and started his Fall semester. He has taken on a leadership position, as the Chair of Company Outreach for the electrical engineering organization at UH. He is just kicking butt, and I couldn't be more proud.
I am in my third month of my surgical/emergency medicine block. I loved the emergency department, learned a lot in general surgery, and now I am in Urology. I have had two job offers already. I can't believe it! Another cool thing, is a PA I am working with has changed fields multiple times. He went from EENT to Urology and is also picking up shifts in the Emergency Department. It's awesome that he is actually doing this, because this flexibility is something that attracted me to the PA field. I have a huge exam at the end of this rotation, so I'll be spending more time studying this month than the last few months.
Renegade has a boyfriend. His name is Captain Jack, or CJ. He is a handsome golden retriever who is also 5 months old. He lives in our neighborhood so they have been having play dates here. We also went to the dog park together. Renny still LOVES the dog park. They are adorable. They even give eachother real kisses. CJ came over with his parents the other night and the 7 of us had a great time...until Renny broke a wine glass with red wine in it all over the couch. No worries...we got the wine out just fine. WHEW. (And Renny is now not allowed on the couch. She's learning pretty quickly, which is awesome.) Molly hung out with the people, and the two puppies had a blast. I really get along with CJ's mom. It's nice to have a girl friend to hang out with. We got pedicures and did some shopping yesterday. It was a really nice day :-)
We are thinking of renting a house next year if we are committed to staying in TX another year. Depends on jobs, etc. But we would love to have more space!! It's ok when it is just the four of us, but when anyone comes over it feels a little cramped. Plus it would be nice to have a fenced in backyard for Renny.
We also have made a huge purchase. We bought a new fancy dancy camera! Why??? Because we are planning a trip to EUROPE!!!! We are going to be going to Europe this December-January. We are starting off in Paris. We are still deciding where else to go. We just realized today that Brendan doesn't start classes until Jan 20, so we have a lot of time that we could spend in Europe. We are thinking of maybe expanding the trip to London, too. We are so excited. We want to take advantage of this time off together because soon we won't have that, or it won't be as easy to have that. And sooner or later there will be little non-fur babies running around. So, we are biting the bullet and planning an awesome Just the Two of Us trip to Europe!!
College Football is back and we couldn't be more excited. Can't wait to see our Noles play tonight.
Hoping to get some family photos soon with our new camera.
My mom is going to come into town the weekend Brendan goes to Austin for his brothers bachelor party. I am really looking forward to that.
Three more weeks in urology/urosurgery, then a huge test, then I start Internal Medicine Block with my first month in Pulmonology, and then I go to the VA for IM and Mental Health. I still haven't decided where I'd like to start my PA career, but I do know now more than ever that this is 100% the right career for me!
I'll try to be better about updating, and fill y'all in on the little details and small stories.
Life is good. We are healthy and happy. Couldn't ask for anything more.
