Thanks for voting folks!!! The first post of the Women's Health Corner is scheduled for tomorrow!! :)

What was I thinking?

After scheduling the rest of my rotations at the end of last year, I still had two weeks left that I had to fill and I decided to go back to the general,vascular and thoracic surgeon that I did my Core Surgery rotation for 3 months with last summer. I knew that I would learn a lot from him, get brushed up on my knowledge of medicine as well as surgical technique, and that coming back as a 4th year doing an elective, he would let me do even more than he'd already let me do as a 3rd yr.

As my cardiology rotation was winding down these last few weeks, I started to think back to the looooong days, the ~40 mile commute, the heavy patient load and the sheer exhaustion and then thought to myself What was I thinking??!! , and my classmates and friends asked me the same thing. I could've easily picked a laid back elective that would have cushy hours and light responsibilities, but that just would not have been my M.O. I knew I needed to keep my mind sharp since residency is just around the corner.

So, now at 9pm I sit at my desk after only just getting home. My feet hurt, I am hungry and tired, and I have to wake up at 4am and do it again. But you know what? I had an awesome day! I was first assist on about 5 cases, including a Laparascopic Cholecystectomy (gall bladder removal using laparascopes), and even a C-section when an OB/Gyn asked our surgeon for an assist.

Coming back basically as a colleague as opposed to a student was awesome. I got hugs from everyone at the hospital who I'd worked with before; from the nurses, scrub techs, secretaries, even my surgeon who is a wonderful guy. He boasted about me to the other docs all day. I even amazed myself at how much I remembered and just did automatically, so I cannot complain- especially since I only have to be sleep deprived in medical school for 2 more weeks.

My Birthday Boy

Today is Randy's birthday!!! He wasn't and still isn't too thrilled to be turning 30 but I'm sure that he'll get over it soon enough. :) No parties, no fuss, and shamefully he is making me breakfast right now. (I know, I'm spoiled)

Randy is a very hard person to shop for. He does not ask for much and the things that he likes are usually quite expensive (go figure) so I was happy when I was able to get him this extra fancy, gaming friendly keyboard that he'd been talking about getting for weeks and weeks.

I'm glad he liked it :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HONEY!!!!

IT'S HERE!!! :)

I received some awesome emails this week from Laine Strutton, my Women's Corner contributor, that was full of thought provoking information, that helped spurn me on to finish preparing my first post. So, since I already have that done, and I have an interesting topic from her ready to go, plus topics for discussion, I figure I should go ahead and schedule the posts' releases, and put up my button since I go back to 14hr days of Surgery on Monday (for only 2 weeks and then I AM DONE WITH MEDICAL SCHOOL!!! )
So, feel free to button up and check out my new blog!! :)

Thanks again to all my friends and family who supported and encouraged me as I embarked on this project!!!

Kudos to My Honey

Today, Randy had an incredibly awesome review at work. In only little over a year, he has grown, shone, reguvinated and revitalized his position and has been receiving the recognition for it.
I am very proud of you honey. Our kids are gonna have a very cool, sweet, ambitious and talented dad to look up to!!
I love you!!!

UPCOMING ATTRACTIONS!!!!

In about a week, this image will be on my blog sidebar as a button, so that you can be linked directly to Dr. D's Women's Health Corner. I am so very excited about this and still can't believe that I am taking on such a task at a point when my life is about to get even more hectic than before, but the thought came into my mind some weeks ago that I should use this wonderful forum as a way to do my good in this world and it just kept nagging me until I decided to go for it. What has surprised me is the overwhelmingly positive and excited responses I have gotten from many of my family and friends when they hear that this is something that I want to do.

I declared to my family at the age of 3 that I was going to be a doctor, and was thereafter dubbed "Dr. D" by my favorite aunt (Auntie Michelle) and then others, so I thought that it would be fitting to name the women's health corner accordingly.

Upcoming topics include but are not limited to:

₪ Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome

₪Menopause

₪Women and Heart Health

₪Domestic Violence

₪Post Partum Depression

with international issues affecting women such as:

₪ Female Genital Cutting

₪ Breast ironing in Cameroon

My dear friend Laine Strutton will be contributing the international aspects of women's rights and women's health to the blog.

I encourage you to spread the word, and to please email me at doctordkm@yahoo.com if there is any topic that you would like explained/discussed. Also, please let others know that they can still vote. The poll does not close until the 31st of this month.
All of the topics in the Women's Health Corner will be open for discussion

Pet Peeve

Today, one of my pet peeves that usually gets under my skin, really got under my skin. Doctors who write illegibly in charts!!! I mean, what is the point of writing in the chart when no one else can understand it? This is not their personal diary for crying out loud!!

I and one of the nurses digressed for at least 15 mins at the nurses station griping about this and she stressed that the new generation of doctors have to shrug off the old way of doing things and make the system better.

Which brings me to my other peeve. Bogus consults!!! Now I know that no current doctors are reading this, but I say this to my fellow soon-to be M.D's: If you do Family Med or Internal Med residency and you don't feel comfortable managing a sick patient who happens to have Hypertension or a little chest discomfort, then please reconsider if you learned anything in residency at all, and also, be ashamed of yourself. I don't care what specialty you are, please do not call a cardiology consult for something that you should be able to manage yourself. It is your patient, so take care of them. Think about how much money the patients and the government are being charged everytime a consult is called.

Do you know how many times we get a consult when the cardiologist can't even tell me why he was called cause he doesn't know??? ARGGHHH!!!!

Whew, now that I got that off of my chest I can go on with the rest of my day.

Some Inspiration from Church

In the sidebar of my blog I have a phrase that I made up that says "Joy is being able to be happy, even when life sucks. Here's to you finding your joy" Well today, Pastor Chip at my church (Oakbrook Community Church) was adding to his series called 'Tough Times Survival Kit'. Today he spoke of another survival aide in tough times which is to Rejoice. He spoke of the difference between happiness and Joy. These are a few of the comparisons that he made.

Happiness is based on expectation
Joy is based on Salvation

Happiness produces a feeling
Joy produces results and growth

Happiness is self sought
While Joy is Christ bought

From a christian perspective, when we have the assurances of God's grace, mercy and love in our hearts, there will always be a source of joy for us. Therefore, whether times are good or bad, we should always have a reason to rejoice.

I know that as a nation we are facing an upheaval right now in our way of life, and I know that there are a lot of people who may find it hard to rejoice in a time like this, but I encourage all of us to remember that while sometimes there may not be anything around us to be happy about, there is usually always something to be joyful about. Whether it be the caress of a spouse/partner, or the love you feel for your child.

For me it is the blessed assurance of knowing that my life is in good hands (God's), that my salvation is secured, and that I have people around me with my best interests at heart. (The caress of my spouse is high up on the list as well)

When we seek things that make us happy, we may never be able to stop looking for things because sources of happiness aren't constants. But, when we have that which brings us joy, we can rest amidst storms, good times or bad, knowing that those things will never change. They are there whether u've had a bad day or not.

Seeking Joy in our lives is something more attainable and dependable than seeking happiness, which is so temperamental and conditional that we will never be satisfied and will always have to keep looking for it.

Here's to you finding your joy

Celebration!

Last night, Randy and I, were invited by one of my med school friends to go to Club Crescendo in Chicago, to celebrate our success. Aarti (Pediatrics), Me(Obstetrics & Gynecology), Vanessa (Family Medicine) & Tisha(Internal Medicine)

I looked at these ladies last night and thought of all of the times during school where we were stressed out, overwhelmed and were suffering from a bit of self doubt, and we cheered eachother on. I AM VERY PROUD OF YOU GUYS!!!

We made it!!

Me and Randy

Me and Tisha.

Jammin to the music. I was not drinking alcohol last night, but it was entertaining to see all of the drunk people stumbling around and looking crazy. Good times lol

One thing to check off the list

Yesterday Randy and I worked on my graduation announcements. My graduation will be held at Madison Square Garden in New York. My school (Ross University School of Medicine) has put a 6 ticket allowance for each graduate until March 27 when ticket ordering is closed and they can see how many extra tickets they can dish out. Since not everyone can come to the graduation and we want to share the news of this event with a lot of people who have touched my life, we decided to do a graduation announcement instead of an invitation. As mentioned earlier, Randy and I bought stationary and printed out the announcements. Now, all we have to do is mail them out. One thing down, a hundred things left to do.
















Being the numbers minded person that my husband is, whenever we've had huge decisions to make and/or a lot of things going on at one time, he makes a spreadsheet so that we can see everything on one page and stay on track. (When I was looking at residency programs to apply to, he made a database that I used to compare the different programs based on certain criteria that I decided on). I love this because during college I would do the same thing, just not as fancy as what he can do. Well, as I sit typing here, Randy is on his computer as well, working on spreadsheets for apartment hunting in Philadelphia, moving costs etc.
I know..... we are nerds, but we are cool nerds OK! Besides, any one who knows Randy will say that he is way too smart to be as cool as he is lol

And We're Off!!!!

Today Randy and I, being the cool nerds that we are, went to office max to purchase planners, notepads, a wall calendar and other organizational tools so that we can start actually planning our future tomorrow. Between now and June we have to buy plane tickets to my graduation in NY on June 5th and for me to fly to AZ in May for my youngest sister's highschool graduation. We also have to organize a trip to Philadelphia to find a new place to live. We're making our own graduation notifications (we made our own wedding invitations, menus, programs and place cards, so we've become kind of pros at stuff like that), and soon I will have lots of paper work to keep organized and fill out.

While I have felt physically drained all day, feeling the toll that the excitement of the week has made, I also feel energized by the fact that our path before us is visible again, and we are ready to hit it full force.

Its Actually Happening

Just a second ago, the program director at Albert Einstein gave me a call. He sounded very excited and told me that they were very happy and excited that they were going to be having me. He said that he knows that I will fit in there and do well there and that I will help the program to be even better just by being who I am. He asked me if I was excited and I answered him truthfully that once I got over the shock, I am comforted by the fact that I will be at a program that is truly excited about me and that wants me for me.

You know what, only a few hrs status post utter disappointment and I am already seeing God's hand at work. I can't believe that this is actually happening; that a determination that sparked in me at 3yrs old has completed its course this yr 2009. I can't believe how incredibly blessed I am, but boy am I ready to get to work!!!
Thank You God

My Fate

My last interview of the season, when I thought I had my mind made up and knew where I wanted to go, I walked into Albert Einstein Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with no expectations. I felt like I was going through the motions but I still tried to give it my best and impress everyone, because after all, you never know. I listened to the orientation about the program, etc and tried to stay positive because to be honest, while I saw that the program was really good, It just wasn't love at first sight.

When I walked into the office of Dr. Charles Beckmann, the author of the book that all medical students swear by for their Ob/Gyn rotation and shelf exams called Obstetrics and Gynecology, he shook my hand vigorously and excitedly proclaimed "I've been looking forward to meeting with you!!!" I was taken aback but I smiled and sat down. He went on to exclaim that he had told his wife that he had dubbed me "Smiling Earrings" since my picture that I had submitted was cropped from my wedding and I was wearing long dangly earrings and a big smile. He said that unlike a lot of the applicants' pictures, I looked truly happy. When I told him where the picture was from, he smiled and jotted more notes down on my sheet which already had lots of stars and circles.
During this interview, my medical missions to Mexico and Honduras came up and he got excited again, giving me the website for the hospital that he and his colleagues founded in Honduras, not too far away from where I'd been. Once again, he jotted on his notes, writing "MISSIONS" in big letters, and circled it. By this point I started feeling a bit befuddled. Here was this doctor whose book was in my office at home, excited about me. Crazy.

Well, by the end of the interview he had told me some things that ur not really supposed to say to the candidates- he asked me if I was planning on getting pregnant during residency. I tried to say maybe even though I knew that Randy and I were planning to start a family this year and he said to me that any program that is not supportive of that is not somewhere that I should be. He said that he would be happy for me if I were to start a family during residency.
He told me things that he saw in me that I did not think anyone could figure out in such a short time and frankly, he did most of the talking. What struck me was that he looked into my eyes and said that He will be ranking me highly and that he wants me to be there not only because he knew that I would be a blessing to the program, but because I would be a pleasure to teach. He said that he sensed that I am here because of a true love for medicine and touching the lives of people, and that is who he wants in his program. I seriously thought that he was going to make me cry.

Both Dr. Beckmann and the program director Dr. Arnold Cohen, stressed their desire to have me and for me to come back and visit again, which I did. I left Philadelphia feeling very conflicted, flattered but conflicted.

Soon after my interview a received a long letter from the Program Director again stating all of the things about me that he thought would be an asset to their program and reiterating the strengths of the program and encouraging me once again to rank them highly, telling me that they would be ranking me highly.

I did not rank Albert Einstein as number one.
But, thank God, it was not one of my last couple choices either
Today, my heart was pounding, I was feeling nauseous, and when I opened the email on my phone, to be completely honest, I cried. I thought that I had a different plan and I felt like this program snatched me up and away from that. The program wanted me and ranked me very highly, if not number one, and for that I should be grateful. Randy has been sooooooo positive and supportive and has helped me to put things in perspective.

just under 700 applied, 70 got interviews, and I got one of the 4 spots!

So, Ladies and Gentlemen, This is the blog of an Obstetrician-Gynecologist, training at Albert Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania!!!!!! :) :)

And the Winner Is..........

Tomorrow at 1pm eastern, all of those happy people from Monday's Match day, have the second part of their future revealed to them. We get to find out where we will be going. I have jitters in my stomach, but I am calm, knowing that I at least got one of the programs that I put on my list. Randy is excited. He is taking Thursday and Friday off- thursday so that he can be home when the news hits and can react to it in the privacy of his own home :) and Friday, so that he can take the whole day and start the job of scoping out apartments/townhomes, nice neighborhoods by the hospital(s) and all the other fun stuff. He also simply just needs some time off- works been very hectic lately.

He will be following me where ever I have to go, as he always has since we met. There are some hopes and negotiations on his job front that need to be done, and a meeting is already set up with his bosses on Monday.

In any case, we feel blessed to be so blessed, and we look forward to getting on with this new stage in our life.

Needless to say, in some corner of the hospital, at noon my time tomorrow, I will be checking my email from my PDA phone. When I get home, I will update my blog.

My fate is in God's hands, not those of the program directors, or the people of the National Residency Match Program (NRMP), and that knowledge comforts me.

Pointing Fingers

While checking in on a patient in the ICU today, I noticed that on his TV was playing the interrogation of the recently appointed AIG CEO on CNN. It was interesting to hear the congressmen berate him and chastise him for the sins of his company. It felt good to hear him get yelled at, to hear the speakers talk of their suffering constituents, and get angry at the audacity of the contract writers to ensure that regardless of whether the company succeeded or failed, the executives would receive their promised retention bonuses.

When I got home and turned on CNN, I continued to watch as everyone was trying to figure out who to point the finger at for this tragedy. Eventually, after watching enough news, I became acutely aware of certain things
1. If anyone dare say that we are not all born with a sinful nature, that everyone is born good, then I beg them to tell me how come we don't need to teach kids how to lie, but have to spend their whole upbringing instilling them with the strength of character to tell the truth

2. We are outraged at the avarice of these AIG perpetrators, but do we ever look at ourselves, and the actions of our daily lives?

So many times in the hospitals I see people, from Administrators, Doctors, nurses to foodservers and housekeepers who make it their goal to do the least amount of work for their pay, who do not look at the big picture which is the patients' well being and satisfaction, but who choose to cut corners in their work, whether to save the hospital money or because they can't be bothered with the leg work. All to make their lives easier because after all no one is watching.

Just today I had to yell at the secretary at a hospital I did a Trauma Surgery rotation at way back in November, because she'd known for months that my evaluation was not done because of the fact that they did not have a picture of me, and not only did she choose not to notify me of this, but she never returned any of my calls since November. I had to get my school to contact her, and when we finally spoke today, she tried to skirt the issue when I pointed out her negligence, saying that it was all beside the point, that I'd better submit my picture if I want my eval to be done.

3. We are so enraged but if these same shady business dealings were making us money, we wouldn't have cared, which is how we got in this mess in the first place. Why is it that we as a society only seem to care if something is being done wrong when it affects us?


I pray for the US government officials right now who are trying to bring a change to the way that business is being done in this country, because I know that theirs is an almost impossible battle. I say this because there is simply no amount of legislation that can erase the fact that we are sinful creatures, prone to selfishness and greed and without the Holy Spirit strong within our hearts, guiding our paths, we will always chose that which is easy over that which is hard; that which is profitable over that which is right.

While we point a finger at ex-president Bush or the current administration, or AIG, I encourage all of us to look at ourselves and see if there is anything in the way that we go about our lives that may need some serious reform as well.

ST. PATRICK'S DAY Chicago Style

Today is St. Patrick's Day, and Chicago is one city that takes it seriously. All weekend, different areas have held parades, and festivals, and for the past forty years, Chicago's Plumber's Union has dyed the Chicago River green! Now I am by no means Irish- although I do have strong Scottish blood in me, believe it or not (my paternal grandmother is half Scottish, and there is scottish blood on the other side of my family as well), but even I could not help but feel the lightened spirits in the air on this beautiful day. I trust that this day is celebrated responsibly and I hope that at least it helps the nation to forget about this country's woes for at least one day.

I'VE GOT A JOB!!!! :) :) :)

Thanks and praise is due to God who has seen me through this long and arduous journey! At 11am my time, I found out that not only do I get to be a doctor, but that a spot has been secured for me to become an Obstetrician/Gynecologist. I am so very excited, not just for myself, but for all of my classmates who've plowed through the trenches with me and have stayed the course. Congratulations to all you new generation of Doctors out there!!!

On Thursday, I get to find out if I got my first choice, my last choice, or a program somewhere in between. You can all imagine what I and everyone else would like to have. :)

Sorry Honey :)

It is the night before I am to find out if I matched at a program. On facebook, all of my classmates are nervous. seeking enouragement that everything will be OK and wishing each other good luck. Church today was enriching and uplifting as usual, and we had a great weekend, enjoying the warmth and the much needed sun, but now, as Randy and I are doing laundry and trying to keep me occupied, I think that I am losing my mind. I have started acting quite wacky, getting bored but feeling overstimulated at the same time. I don't feel like reading, watching tv or pretty much anything, and I am sure that I am perturbing my poor husband. If this is a harbinger of how this week will be, then I say in advance to Randy:
SORRY HONEY. Thanks for putting up with me, and this life :) I love you!

Stay Tuned

If you haven't already noticed, I am counting down the days till next week when I find out where I will be going for residency. On Monday, medical students all over the United States find out if we Matched into a program, or if after the applications and interviews, our ranking of the programs and their ranking of us, did not result in a mutual desire, hence we did not Match.

On thursday, those of us who did match into one of the programs on our list, will find out which exact program that will be. Between Monday and Thursday, those who did not match have the opportunity to "scramble" into other unfilled positions- sometimes into specialties that are not the ones that they originally wanted. Some people will stay in that new specialty, or work there for a yr and try the residency match process again next yr.

I am going to be specializing in the incredibly challenging, versatile and rewarding field of obstetrics and gynecology. I will be a surgeon, a women's health advocate, a helper in the many stages of a woman's life; be it the birth of their child, or their battle with ovarian or other such cancers. I will see women in all stages of their lives. Early womanhood to postmenopause. I am so excited and honored to be in this position.

My top three choices are a program in Cincinnati, Phoenix and Chicago. It is an awesome thought to think that in an email, I will find out where in the US I will be spending at least the next 4yrs of my life.

My future is out of my hands at this point, and I cannot wait to get it back. So, stay tuned. Next week is going to be an interesting one to say the least. While I have received good feedback from program directors and residents, the way that this process works, you really don't actually know where you stand until Match Day. This is not a normal hiring process.
The process to becoming a practicing physician in this country is a long and tumultuous one. With all the emotional lability to make anyone go crazy if they did not have a proper support system around them.

I thank God for bringing me this far, for infusing me with strength and determination, for giving me all of the tools that I needed to endure and excel on this journey and for surrounding me with steadfast family and friends, including a wonderful husband, who has gone on this journey with me. Match day is every much about his future as it is mine.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy birthday, dear Rayisa...... Happy Birthday to you!!!!! :)

On March 11th, 1991, my youngest sister, Rayisa was born. I was about ten years old, and once my mom brought her home, I stole her for myself. She was my baby. Rayisa may not be able to remember this, but she used to love it when I would put her to sleep. There was a particular way she liked to be held and sometimes when u tried to move her to put her in her crib, she would cry just a little, so I would end up sitting in the dark, in her room, holding her for hrs just watching her sleep lol.

I remember helping to teach her her alphabet and her numbers before she started preschool.

I remember when I was getting ready to leave for college, she would make me all these little gifts, telling me to keep it so that I would not forget her.

I remember her asking me in that voice that only the baby of the family possesses, asking me "when am I coming home?"

And now, she is about to go to college. I am very proud of her.

My prayer for you, Rayisa, is that you keep your sweet spirit, your head on your shoulders, your wits about you, and God close.

Happy birthday Ray Ray, aka Twiggy ;)

My two cents

This morning on Good Morning America, they were talking about the wave of "good, upstanding" Americans taking to a path of crime due to the economic crisis. They spoke of three white bank robbers. A deacon of a church who attempted to rob a bank after his real estate company was threatening to collapse. He ended up taking hostages and being arrested. Another recently unemployed man was convicted of robbing 12 banks (how does one get away with one, further more 12???) He said that he did it to ensure that his twin daughters would continue to have all the "nice things, that they'd become accustomed to". The best story was of the granny who had robbed a few banks. They said that she was simply trying to support her son (who, by the way, is a grown man and should be taking care of himself).

The reporter was presenting these happenings as a phenomenon. As though all of a sudden for the first time in the history of man, good people who have lost their resources are turning to crime. Upon hearing this, I turned to my husband baffled.

Wait a minute, wait a minute. So, if these are good people, then are we saying that most of those people in jail for robbing banks, etc are bad people? What makes these three so different from the rest of the criminal population??

While there are a percentage of criminals who participate in deviant behavior due to ant-social personality disorders, the lack of proper guidance growing up, the need for God in their lives, or just for the hell of it, I would argue that there are more people who find themselves on some point along the continuum of: 1.insufficient education or socioeconomic standing→2.limited earning power→ 3.desperation→4.criminal behavior being more profitable. Some of us may not start out at a low socioeconomic standing. We might be fine until things like this recession takes place and we find ourselves at the second pt.The fact is that we are the Human Animal, not all together immune from resorting to brute and downright monstrous behavior once we are pushed into a corner.

I am not advocating robbing banks or doing anything illegal when money gets tight. I am just saying that we need to be careful how we label people good or bad. We must enforce the laws of the land, but we must also continue to strive for the eradication of the slums and the ghettos, which serve as literally a petri dish, harboring the perfect environment in which generations of bank robbers are developed. Neither the guy on the poor side of town, or the soccer mom who lost her nest egg, are justified in breaking the law. To excuse one, we must excuse the other.

It should not take middle class America to lose a home or the means to pay for their Lexus SUV before we are able to look at ourselves and realize that none of us are better than those people in Jail, or any less capable of doing what some of them have done to get there.

Some pics from the Crawfish boil

1. Randy making the butter sauce

2.Dave with his bib on, ready to eat

3. Alex(the eldest) and Gabriel enjoying the food

My First Crawfish Boil

So my sister-in-law Katie is originally from the

South. The gulf coast of Mississippi. She also lived in Louisiana and Oklahoma for some years. Her and my brother-in-law, David (Randy's older brother), and their two boys Alex and Gabriel moved up here to the Chicago suburb of Addison about 4yrs ago, and ever since then, she has understandably experienced bouts of homesickness. Well, for the last few weeks she had another episode of the afore mentioned homesickness, and could not stop talking about how much she missed Louisiana style cooking. Well at the end of this week that just passed, Dave found a company online that will ship live Crawfish and he decided that we were going to have a good ole Crawfish Boil right here.

I'd had shrimp, lobster, crab,oysters, scallops etc before, but I don't think I'd ever had crawfish before, so I was game. So, on Saturday (yesterday), amidst the rain and grey skies, in a large pot, Dave and Katie assembled potatoes, corn, mushrooms, onions, and a heaping helping of Dave's concoction of seasonings, and we chowed down. It was fun, but I prefer shrimp or lobster. Those little tails were such a tease. No wonder you have to eat a lot of them to get filled up. Anyway, it was good to hang out with family.

After that, we went home and Randy ended up staying up till 6:00AM this morning, working on a database for work, so it was a good thing that we got some enjoyment out of the Saturday. I stayed up till about 4:30AM to keep him company, but eventually, I ran out of games to play and things to surf online, not to mention energy. I had to hit the sack. He got his stuff in by the deadline, but we were subsequently too sleep deprived to wake up and go to church. Bummer.....

A moment to Brag

So, I am the proud oldest sister of 4 younger siblings. (In descending order) Genisha, Roland, Avianne and Rayisa. Since I have a blog, I figured I'd take a moment to let the world know that I am not the only Mills child who did not need Obama to become president in order to do something with their life.

∞ Genisha Mills is the ambitious mother of two beautiful girls, aged 5 and 3. She Graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelors degree in education- elementary education, and later earned her Masters in Curriculum and Instruction and ESL Education, and is currently teaching 1st grade for the Chandler School district. She is currently studying to get her PHD and hopes to eventually become a Principal.

∞ Roland Mills is my incredibly handsome only brother. He is currently a Senior at Northern Arizona University. In December of this year he will be graduating with a Bachelor of Music Arts (BMA)- Vocal Performance. He has an incredible tenor/baritone voice with beautiful range. Roly is very talented. He is the only one of us who will be making our musical talents into a career, and he is the one with the greatest chance :) He is also going to go to graduate school and teach while performing. From Opera to even theatre, look out for him on Broadway in a few years.

∞ Avianne Mills is my driven younger sister. Currently a Junior at the University of Arizona getting a major in Physiology with high goals of entering medical school soon after. This practically all A student and Dancer extraordinaire is going far and I'm OK with not being the only medical Doctor in the family ;)

∞ Rayisa Mills is the baby of the family, but she is not a baby any more. This year she will be graduating from High School with plans to attend Arizona State University, study Spanish and become a Dentist.

_____________

As for me, you all already know about me. I am the salsa dancing, Spanish speaking, soprano singing older sister of some really awesome people, and I am very proud of them.

Hello and Welcome!

Hello there, Dionne here. I am reluctant to start a blog. I don't really see my life as having enough day to day interesting happenings to post, but I know that there are things that pop into my mind that possibly others can benifit from and this is a good way to share my and Randy's experiences with friends and family, so I guess we'll give it a shot.
So, since this is the first real entry, I guess that I will get everyone up to speed. As of right now, Randy and I are at a new and exciting point in our lives, on many levels.
~April 10th will be my last day of medical school and on June 5th, family and friends will be gathering in NY for my graduation ceremony.
~On March 19th, we will discover where we will be going for my Ob/Gyn residency program. At the top of my list are programs in Cincinnati, Phoenix and Chicago.
~Randy and I have decided to start a family; something that we have always wanted to do as a couple and definitely something that we have both individually wanted in our lives for as long as we can remember.

My Uncle George said to me the other day, that I am now leaving a storm that I have been in for many years, and soon I will be entering another one (residency). He advised me, that in the calm between storms that I am in right now, to take the time to enjoy my life and to fortify myself with that which I need to survive the next storm. Reading books for fun (for a change), getting back into Salsa dancing etc are all things that I can and should do right now, but he stressed that I should also use this time to get even closer to God, and seek his face, seek his guidance and get reaquainted with the bible. So that when a trial arises and I am too bombarded with work, family etc, I can remember the verses that I read during this time, and find comfort in that. I can essentially live off of the stores that I'd created during the calm.
Of course he also wants me to continue reading God's word during residency and beyond, because that is what will always sustain me, but I do understand what he is saying about how to use the relative free time that I do have right now.
Thanks Uncle George, for the very good and timely advice.