No Longer a Resident!

DRUM ROLL PLEASE........

Well, Joel did it! We did it! What a journey! He is no longer a med student OR an intern OR a resident! He's considered private practice now! Saweet!





We started this process 8 years ago when our oldest was just a baby - he's going to be 9 soon. Wow, time really does fly by. Medical school was, um, interesting. Arizona was hot and miserable in the summer, but wonderful in the winter. Those 4 years were full of growth for both of us. We bought our first house and welcomed our first daughter into the family here. I went from being a full-time teacher to a stay-at-homer. It wasn't an easy transition for me. I found myself a bit lost for a while. I didn't know what to make of the whole thing. I love it now, but it took feeling lost to find myself. Joel learned how to use more than 10% of his brain. I will never understand how these med students can even process the massive amounts of information sent their way. Thank goodness he had good buddies like Mitch and Tyler to help him through those first 2 years of intense studying. We survived and are stronger because of it.



Our transition into Joel's internship year was quite a faith promoting experience. We learned what the phrase, "take a leap of faith" really meant. Moving our family across the country from Arizona to Pennsylvania was a big jump for us. Joel and I put our trust in the Lord and were blessed for it. We were able to sell our house for a great profit - the buyer actually declined our asking price so she could pay more! What? When does that ever happen? We took another "leap of faith" when Joel decided to switch specialties from ENT to anesthesia. The University of Michigan certainly wasn't the institution Joel thought he'd get into, but through a series of amazing events, that's just what happened. So after much deliberation, we took another "leap of faith" and moved the family once again to Michigan. Christian was our Pennsylvania "blessing" during our internship year - another "leap of faith" for Heather! It was during this year that we figured out the Lord has a plan for us and we had just better have faith in his eternal perspective and "be not afraid."

Our final 3 years of Joel's residency were the most pleasant of all. Don't get me wrong - they were tough, but we survived and are stronger for it (didn't I already say that - seems to be a trend). I learned valuable lessons like repentance, forgiveness, patience and tolerance. It was interesting, annoying and hilarious living in family housing, but I'm so glad we did. We desperately wanted to buy a house, but we were led to our particular apartment for a reason. I think it was so we each could learn such valuable lessons on our journey. We also welcomed our Michigan baby, Spencer, (each of our four was born in a different state!) to the family during this time.

Now here we are starting a new chapter in lives and so far (been living here 2 weeks now) it is fabulous (more on that later). I've been so appreciative of Joel lately because of all of his hard work. It seems that I've gotten so much attention/sympathy for having endured all of these years, but Joel deserves more credit. He was the one that studied every single day of his life for years on end. He was the one that got up at 1 or 2 am to study for an upcoming test. He was the one who would have to stay up for hours and hours on end while "on call." He was the one that worked many "moonlighting" hours to help earn some extra money. He was the one that had to get into med school, residency and find a job. He is the one who can't even enjoy his time off after graduating because he has to study for boards. He has managed to accomplish all of this and be a family man too. I totally respect that about him.

So here's to you my man. You did it. Congratulations - you're amazing and I love you.

Adios to good buddies...

The "other" Gardners became our good buddies at Northwood. It was sad to say our goodbye's, but we promised each other we'd meet again. Disney sounds great to me! Anyway, here are a few pics for us to remember the good times...

By this point Joel and Michael were so sick of posing
for pictures at Potbelly's, they just wanted it DONE.
They're a bit sarcastic don't you think?

"OK, I am so hot.." "No, YOU are so hot!"
Divas!

The adorable foursome - equipped with matching necklaces, pj's and face paint!

This one is for you Tanya...

See y'all in Disney!

A Cupcake, Punch and Popsicle Party...

To celebrate all of the wonderful friendships Camryn and Christian made during our stay at Northwood, they decided to throw quite a party! Camryn wanted to have a cupcake, punch and popsicle party - three of her favorite things. She was so adorable about it too. She thoughtfully constructed goodie bags for her guests out of scrap paper. She basically stapled two sheets together (like a pillow), wrote their name on it and decorated to her heart's content.

Here are a few pictures from the event. I made sure to get at least one shot with me and my lady friends in it. Good times people, good times. No one can possibly understand living here but us eh? These kiddlins will all be missed greatly. Never will Camryn and Christian have access to as many friends in one spot again. They certainly enjoyed it while it lasted!

The best part for the kids were the unlimited drinks and popsicles provided - a dream come true for my kids at least...

Fond Farewells for Camryn!

Her Fond Farewell to FUMCN...

My little Camarondi is an official preschool graduate. The ceremony was short and sweet - just the way Mom likes it. JD, Christian and Spencer were her little cheerleaders. FUMCN is a co-op so I was very much involved. I'm so glad she was able to experience another year with Mom around before heading off to kindergarten.

Her last day of school was a great opportunity to say goodbye to her close friends, Ceci, Maya, Brittani and the rest of her class.

Ms. Juli was a fun teacher that was great to work with. The kids all adored her.

Her Fond Farewell to Gymnastics...

Camryn loved going to gymnastics. She thought it was
so cool that her teacher's name was Heather and that there
was another Camryn with a purple coat in her class!

It's so fun to watch Camryn grow and develop her talents. She's a great little gymnast and I'm sure she'll continue tumbling and flipping around in Pokey.

Getting Sentimental...

Our time in Ann Arbor is sadly coming to an end. Don't get me wrong, we are looking forward with GREAT anticipation to our move. However, Ann Arbor has been our favorite city to live in during this 8-year journey. We'll miss it so much! Joel and I have a list of "must do's" to check off before we head out. Last night we enjoyed a great dinner at one of our favorite restaurants. Check. Tonight we took the kids to Joel's hospital cafeteria (to use up some of his money on his hospital card). Joel hates this place and I don't blame him, but the kids LOVE it when we take them here. They get cart blanche - a kid's dream come true. "You can get whatever you want, but you have to eat it," says Mom. Wahoo...let the races begin. They proceed to sprint through the place gathering up a cookie here, a box of cereal there, a gatorade over yonder and a yogurt around the bend - you get the point. Happy kids.

Following our feast of DE-licious cafeteria food, we decided to take the kids down to the Huron river to say adios. Man I'm going to miss this place - it's so beautiful! We took a lovely walk through the woods just trying to soak in every last bit of beauty. I hope I'll always remember how many shades of green mother nature can actually produce! I think we'll all experience a little green-withdrawl when we make it out west. Right after these pics were taken, Camryn fell into the water and cried hysterically while running around in shock (ugh, girl drama!). Christian liked the sight of it I suppose because he "fell" in as well and loved every bit of it.


What will we miss about Ann Arbor and student housing?? Lots of things like...

• My portable dishwasher
• The mole that recently made my garden his home
• Autumntime
• Berry picking in the summer
• Kids around every corner...hmmm....my kids will miss that - not me so much
• The Great Lakes and all of their attractions
• Hauling my ginormous laundry basket up 3 flights of stairs
• All of our friends made during residency (are you still cyber-stalking me Aisa? ha ha)
• Scraping off my car after an ice storm
• The Detroit government officials - go Kwame Kilpatrick!
  
• All of my fellow "green" Ann Arborites driving around in their Subaru Outbacks and Toyota Prius (what's plural for Prius...hmmm)
• Sharing an unspoken bond with a stranger wearing University of Michigan attire. Go Blue.
  
• Knowing that I'll always look at grocery carts and Radio Flyer wagons with great fondness
• The outstanding community programs offered to kids and adults alike
• The taxes (that we didn't have to pay living in student housing) needed to fund such outstanding programs!
• The cultural diversity - Chinese, Korean and Indian markets galore!
• Installing my own carpet with a staple gun
• Yummy local cuisine like...cheesecake from the Prickly Pear, Mughlai Chicken from Madras Masala, the #2 reuben from Zingerman's Deli, Gandy Dancer salads & desserts...mmmm, I'm getting hungry!

Wow, Pokey has some big shoes to fill. I hope we love it there because I feel like we're giving up a lot by leaving this this town! The only thing on my "pro" list for Pocatellodian right now is...being closer to family and not having to share a bathroom with 4 kiddos on Sunday morning. I think the list will get longer soon enough.

I'll bet having a dishwasher built into our cabinetry will help.

Run JD, Run!

JD finished his 2nd year in cross-country at Northside Elementary. The gym teacher did a fabulous job instituting a stellar program. JD will miss this program so much! In fact he had the idea of starting up a running program at his new school. All I heard was, "Hey Mom, will you put together a running program for me at my new school?" Hmmm, sounds complicated. I guess most worthwhile things are. We'll see how things look come springtime.

To celebrate the end of the season, the kids ran a 2 mile "mini 5K" race. JD is a superb runner. It is so fun to see him develop into a fine athlete. He's also a great friend. He could have kicked it and run the race alone, but he chose to run side-by-side with his buddy, Spencer. He's so thoughtful sometimes!



JD was so excited the night before the race he could barely sleep. He said he was super pumped for 3 things: the goodie bag at the end of the race, the medal and the chance to chuck his water cup on the ground during the race! Funny.

Christian came to cheer on his big bro, but alas, his little "Lolee" captured his attention instead. He truly is a lady's man!


I think I need to make JD my personal running buddy. He's pretty hardcore - he can whip my post-pregnancy bod into shape! Keep running buddy!