When Garrett and I first got married, he was already starting to think about the MCAT (entrance exam for medical school), and getting stressed with picking the right classes that would best prepare him to take the test. The next summer, he spent nearly all his time studying and I remember thinking, "I can't wait until this test is over, then we can just relax and move on with our lives!"
But then the scores came in, and Garrett decided to go ahead and apply for medical schools right away, instead of taking a year off in between. So, we hurriedly got everything together, secured letters of recommendations, paid a lot of money, and waited for the letter to come. It was an extremely stressful time in our lives because Garrett was a late applicant, and he wasn't going through BYU's committee (BYU pretty much told him he would never get in any school without the committee, but we went for it anyway). Garrett was so worried that he wouldn't get into medical school, and then he would have no idea what to do with his life because he had grown up wanting to be a doctor.
Finally, the letter came saying that Garrett had gotten into medical school, and I remember thinking, "There, it's done! Garrett is definitely going to be a doctor, we know that. Now we can just relax and move on with our lives!" I knew it would be stressful and that I would never see him, and I expected the worst and hoped for the best (I do that a lot in my life... it's worked out well for me).
Then school started, and to be honest the first year wasn't too bad. He even had a summer break the next year, so we were able to spend evenings together after he got out of work. Second year started out well, too, but then the Step 1 Boards started looming over him, and the stress started up again. He studied non-stop, and sometimes didn't come home from the library until it closed. When he was home, he was studying. It wasn't a very fun time. I remember thinking, "When this test is done, everything will be just fine and we can just relax and move on with our lives!"
Then the test was over. He had a 2 week summer break that year, which was a great time for him to relax and de-stress from the test. Then third year started, and he was working in the hospitals and various clinics. And to be honest, third year wasn't too bad for me. I know he clocked in a couple of 120-hour weeks, but he averaged about 60-70 hours a week so it wasn't too bad. I remember thinking, "This is great! Garrett's enjoying what he's doing (for the most part), and now he just needs to figure out what kind of doctor he wants to be." We started thinking about residencies (additional training that he must complete after graduation, anywhere from 3-7 additional years).
Then he decided. And, I suppose that I should have known that Garrett would not choose something easy. He wouldn't specialize in something that has 1000 residency spots and only 900 applicants. He also wouldn't do something that only requires 3 more years. No, Garrett wants to do radiology, which is extremely competitive - as if we need more stress in our lives!
And so, applications to residency programs have been sent. He has applied to 45 different programs in various states - Arizona, Texas, Utah, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Mississippi, Georgia, South/North Carolinas, Florida, Louisiana, Missouri, Alabama, Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee, and Ohio. Not only is he applying to radiology, however. He is required to complete a "preliminary" year, so he applied to 30 of those programs too (it's pretty much a year of working in various places in the hospital, similar to what he is doing now... I think it's just a way for hospitals to get more cheap labor before they become board certified). Ideally, he will get a preliminary position in the same place he will be for radiology, so we only have to move once.
And that's what's happening here. Naturally, I am thinking that "once this is over, and once he gets a radiology position, then we can just relax and move on with our lives." However, I know by now that that's just never the case, and there will always be something looming over us. That's just been our life for so long that I can't even imagine a life where something isn't constantly looming over our heads.
If you are still reading this... now you know what we've been up to lately! We are anxiously awaiting invitations for Garrett to interview at the various locations. With 45 applications out, he's hoping to get 12-15 interviews (for radiology alone). So far he has one radiology interview in Knoxville in November, and a few interviews for preliminary positions (one in SC, one in NC).
So yes, life is busy and stressful right now... add to that an infant who won't sleep (and wants to be held ALL DAY), and a two-year-old who refuses to be potty trained. Isn't life great? :)
Ellie had her two month appointment on September 3. She weighed in at a whopping 8 lbs, 14 oz. We are so happy that she is finally gaining weight. As a result, she is sleeping much better, and she has become a pretty happy baby.
