Monday, June 27, 2011

Change of plans...

While in Boston for vacation, we received a phone call from a second med school. After lots of praying and evaluation, we decided that the last minute move was worth it professionally. Comparing the two schools, one provides more resources for surgeons. Although during our decision we received a lot of opinions from others (good and bad), it was important that we made our deciscion on our own as a family and for all that right reasons. It has been hard to explain why we have lived in this city for just a few weeks and are moving again, but we trust God in this adventure and that he will provide the means for us to follow his path. God has exceeded our expectations and everything has quickly fallen in to place. We were able to find a last minute apartment below our price range and only a block away from school, in less than a week we have someone set to take over our lease here and even sooner than we were needing, and he has provided someone to support us financially through this move and quick transition.

We appreciate everyone's support and understanding through this decision. Where we are now is a great city and we would recommend it to anyone. Now we are off to "small town" living....




Trust in the Lord with all your heart
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways, submit to Him
And he will make your paths straight.
Proverbs 3:5-6

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

One Year Anniversary

We started off with going to a nice a restaurant in downtown Ft. Worth called the Reata. The food was great and our waiter was nice enough to give us chocolate covered strawberries (my favorite!).






We also celebrated our anniversary by taking a trip to Boston. I have 3 aunts in the area to visit and hubby's never been. He liked New York, but I knew he'd love Boston! It was so great to visit family and spend some time with my little cousin, who was our flower girl in our wedding. We practiced our Boston accent ("park your car in harvard yard"), found out that Texas' winter is Boston's summer, and cheered for the Bruins! Below is a list of a few of the things we did:

1. Visited Harvard Med School

2. Museum of Fine Arts (Dale Chihuly)

3. The Aquarium

4. A few spots of the Freedom Trail

5. The famous Mike's Pastry
6. Watched the Bruins game at an Irish Bar (we brought them good luck and are officially Bruins - and hockey - fans!

7. Lexington (where the shot was first heard)
8. Sleepy Hollow cemetary
9. Old North Bridge

10. Cape Cod

11. Boston Garden


12. Boston Common

13. Boston Public Library

14. Mass General Hospital

15. Harvard Square

16. Playing in the fountains





Cheers!

Friday, June 17, 2011

Stay Close to the Ground

Ever wonder why the Japanese sleep on futons on the floor? Culture or wellness? Let's talk about wellness...

"Help! I've fallen and can't get up"
Well, when was the last time you were actually on the floor and had to get up? Think about it - from 65 on, when will you ever be on the floor? Sometimes when the elderly fall, they can't get up because they haven't used those muscles in 20-30 years! Studies show that the Japanese, because they sleep closer to the ground and use those muscles daily, when they fall they are able to get back up. This also includes staying flexible and keeping those legs in shape. Our society (especially Texans) has the mindset of bigger is better, including taller and bigger beds. Maybe making things easier for us now will only hurt us in the end?


Sometimes staying simpler can be better (and healthier).


Just food for thought...

Saturday, June 4, 2011

Going Away Parties

Our last few weeks in Austin were filled with lots of going away parties, get togethers, saying a goodbyes...

1. We were able to have dinner with our newlywed group's mentors before we left. We went to a restaurant on South Congress called HopDaddys - the best burgers ever, and milkshakes too! At that time they were a few weeks away from having their first child, so it was great to hear everything they were doing to prepare. Since then they now have a healthy little boy named Gabriel and we wish them the very best!!

2. The in-laws had a BBQ for us the Sunday before we left. It was nice to eat, lay out by the pool, play with the doggies, and enjoy some family time before we left. Yum! :)

3. At work we always had a monthly potluck for birthdays, anniversaries, and anything else we can come up with a reason to celebrate. This month we had a potluck for my going away and another girls baby shower! We both got gifts and it was a great way to say goodbye to the team. One of my friends at work is an amazing baker. We always ask her "Why do you work here? Go start your own bakery!" Hopefully, one day she will be able to fulfill that. I have to show off her amazing cupcakes for the mama to be!
and yes she made those little duckies from scratch. She melted starbursts and formed them her self and added eyes with frosting. Talented, eh?

4. We also went to Gloria's at the domain with more friends from other departments at work. At work we were constantly emailing others in another department or floor and it's rare to get a chance to put a face to the name. It's always a pleasure to hang out with the people you constantly email outside of work too.


5. We also got to do some last minute dinners and hang outs with some other friends as well! And we are ready for people to come visit us!!



God puts friends in your life for a reason, even if it is only for a season.



Check out our Fortune Cookies we got at dinner the first week in our new home...



...And on to the next season of our lives! :)

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Updates

Car Shopping...

To make a long story short, we came to the decision that now is not the time for us to buy a car. The main thing holding us back was that we recently got the title changed for my car and it is still in the temporary status; it will take 4-6 weeks for the paperwork to go through. As much as we brainstormed, we had too many expenses coming up for the big move, vacations, and med school. We also made the point that it is more important to us to not be even more stressed each month for money. We would rather enjoy going on outings with new friends, than driving around in an older car for one more year. We are happy with the decision we made and have reflected back on the decision multiple times with great contentment.

A few good things - one reason we didn't want to buy a car during a semester of med school, is because this med student wouldn't be able to give as much time, energy, and research for car searching. So I am grateful we spent that time diving into this process and being 'so close' to buying, that we know what to expect and prepare for when that time does come. It is very important to us to live within our means (we will save that topic for a later post). It is definitely hard to budget a car payment when we don't know the full income we will have.


Moving...
Well, both of our parents ended up moving on the exact same day, and then us a week later. Busy, Busy, Busy! We ended up inherting a lot of furniture that we are very grateful for.
PS: I would just like to take some time to show my appreciation for having such a strong husband. He makes moving easier on me and more affordable and he definitely put all those muscles to good use! Lets just say I came home from work early ready to fill our Uhaul and when I got home he had it ALL done. By himself. Couches, kitchen table, dressers, beds, everything!

We are now getting settled in. We love our new house and there are definitely some adjustments we are making. More to come.

Love,
the Bs