Monday, December 15, 2014

Review of 2014: Part 2

Continuing on with my review of 2014, I'm covering the months of April, May, and June.

 
 
 

These months were very difficult for our family. Each time, when we thought we had reached a lull and would be able to slow down and process things, something else would happen.

April

I took my oral boards in April. It was one of the most ridiculous, stressful moments of my entire professional career.  I treated myself to a fancy lunch and a trip to the Chicago art museum to decompress after the exam.





I found out I passed those boards and became a fully board certified anesthesiologist.

Duck was sick multiple times and both Hubster and I missed a significant amount of work/school staying home with him.

Dental school really started to pick up with the notorious "Super Block" and Hubster was routinely in clinic or lab until after  9 pm.

We celebrated Easter.



The weather finally turned warm and we were able to go outside. We rejoiced in the sunshine.




May

My parents came to visit us. We explored parts of Iowa and Chicago.





We welcomed two kittens into our family.



Duck continued to be ill and miss multiple days of daycare. He started loosing weight and was diagnosed with failure to thrive. We started getting multiple blood tests and referrals to specialists.

Hubster and I celebrated our 13th wedding anniversary. I wrote about what makes us work as a couple.



At the end of May, Hubster's father had a heart attack, and then two large strokes. He passed away just a few days later. Hubster had been flying out to see his father and discuss long term care; his father died while Hubster was on his last flight, just a couple hours before Hubster arrived.  I quickly arranged for some friends to watch the older boys, and Duck and I flew out to be with Hubster and attend the funeral.




June

A week after my father-in-law passed away, my father was in a very severe accident that broke multiple bones in his neck. He underwent two significant surgeries. Amazingly, despite the severity of his injuries, he had no long term damage and has no neuro defects, no paralysis, no complications.



Bug graduated 6th grade and left elementary school behind.



Bug turned 12.



Duck underwent endoscopy and was diagnosed with Celiac disease.  He went completely gluten free and the rest of us went mostly gluten free. Thjs was how we felt about the whole thing.



The boys and I ran a color 5K.



Many of my friends graduated residency and/or got new jobs that involved almost all of them moving out of state. I stayed put at my university job.

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We had good moments during those months, but for the most part, they took a huge emotional toll on our family that we are still working on recovering from. At the time, everything felt too raw and difficult to write about. Sometimes, it still does. But it's therapeutic to look back, remember, and continue to work on moving forward.

14 comments:

  1. I don't think I've ever commented, but I love your blog and I love seeing how you manage balancing motherhood with a demanding career. I'm so sorry to hear about everything you've been through this year. You seem to be handling it with such strength and grace.

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    1. Mel, thanks! I'm glad it looks like a balance on the outside, because on the inside, it feels wildly chaotic. But we do our best and love each other, and it seems to all work out.

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  2. What a rough couple of months. I'm glad they finally got a diagnosis on Duck. It's sad that he has Celiac disease, but at least it's something you can work with.

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    1. In retrospect, Celiac disease wasn't really a big deal. But with everything else going on, it felt enormous. It's been actually very manageable.

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  3. I'm sorry you had a rough few months. I love seeing all of the positivity & fun you still managed even in difficult times.

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    1. I'm glad the positivity comes through. I strive really hard for that, but always worry I still come off as a major grump.

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  4. CONGRATS on passing the boards, that is super fantastic!

    The color run picture is fantastic!

    Stopping by from the linkuP!

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    1. Thanks so much for stopping by. This was our second color run and have had an awesome time on both. I can't wait to do another.

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  5. Wow, I cried reading this... emotional roller coaster for sure. I swear it seems like a lot of people have been on that this year (my family included). Here's to hopefully the rest of your year looking up (can't wait to find out) and here's to hopefully a better 2015 for sure!

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    1. We are definitely hoping for a better 2015, as well. We'd say it couldn't get much worse, but I don't want to tempt fate. :)

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  6. Oh wow, these three months were definitely a roller coaster for you guys. I am so sorry to hear about all the downs that happened. It is so hard when little ones are sick! I have always wanted to run in a color run -- maybe this next year :D

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    1. There were a roller coaster. Hopefully, we have smoother sailing next year. And you should do a color run. They are so fun!

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  7. Holy cow a ton did happen in those three months! So many ups and downs. Congrats on passing the board! I love the Art Institute. My parents usually get memberships to it now. I had an egg tree like that for Easter growing up, so fun. Thank you again for recapping!

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    1. I didn't know anyone else did egg trees! How fun. My kids have been begging for me to take them to the art museum, but I really did enjoy my solo trip there.

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