Silver Mountain Resort

The kids were so surprised when we told them that we were going to stay at this really awesome hotel where they would be able to go swimming and ride on the waterslides in the indoor waterpark. It was so funny to hear Peter say, "Pinch me, I don't think this is real!" That just made us all smile.

Mike dropped me and the boys off so that the boys could enjoy the waterpark for the last 30 minutes that it was open. We ended up getting to the hotel later than expeccted so the rest of us didn't really get to swim but the boys had fun for the short time that they were able to explore and go on some of the rides. We had only planned on staying one night but when Mike showed me our room we both agreed that we just had to stay two nights. There was a full kitchen, washer and dryer, dining area with table and chairs, family room with pull out couch, balcony overlooking the mountains, enormous bathroom with two sinks, and a separate master bedroom. It was so inviting that we just wanted more time to enjoy it. We delayed our arrival into Glacier where we would meet my parents and played all day at the waterpark the next day. My parents were gracious to meet us a day later.

The waterpark was so fun. The boys liked going on the small waterslides attached to the big play area but really enjoyed the bigger waterslides with the innertubes. Even Abby and Emma were able to join us on the family raft ride. It was tall and fast but with Abby in a lifejacket and me holding her between my legs she was able to ride with us. We went on that at least 15 times. I was surprised that she liked it because it was a little dark inside. The coolest thing about the waterpark was the wave rider. Andrew and Peter were able to do it with boogie boards. I tried the boogie board but didn't have it in me to try the surfing. Mike did both and liked it but later told me that the surfing was really hard. There was this older man who could do it all and he was quite amazing. He let Emma ride with him and she seemed to like it but when I asked her if she wanted to do it again she said no. It was fun to watch the "pros" do lots of fun tricks.

Probably the biggest surprise of today was watching Emma go down the waterslides. She hates water in her face and eyes and at first she didn't dare go down. Eventually she went down and enjoyed it so much that the water in her face didn't seem to bother her anymore. I will count this as a blessing for swimming lessons this summer.

We all enjoyed the fast lazy river and Abby and Emma also enjoyed the baby area that had two small slides. It was nice that we stayed an extra day so we could go back to our room for lunch and a quick rest period. Mike and the older kids went back while Abby and I napped a little longer. It was such a fun day.

Riding the Spokane River

Our first stop in our long roadtrip around the Northwest was Spokane, WA. Since Mike practically spent all of his summers as a kid in Spokane it was nice to be able to go back one more time. This time he really wanted to take the boys canoeing down the Little Spokane River which was something he did every summer growing up. We rented a canoe from REI and a short drive landed us at the drop off point. The boys helped Mike carry the canoe along the short path to the river. They both struggled to lift the canoe but they somehow managed to help Mike get the canoe to the river. They had such a blast on their little water adventure. The girls and I went to get our toe nails painted and to do a little shopping while we waited for the boys. We even got to meet up with a childhood friend of mine who lives in Spokane. It was so great to see Rebecca. She and her husband even drove down to the pick up along the river so that they could meet the boys.

After packing up and returning the canoe we headed to our next destination which was a surprise for the kids. A short drive got us to Silver Mountain Resort in Kellogg, ID which is a ski resort but also houses an indoor waterpark very similar to the Great Wolf Lodge. Boy were the kids surprised!

Reflections on Residency

Ahhh, Residency. I would like to think that I will be able to look back on my five years at Madigan Army Medical Center with great fondness, and in reality, I had a lot of good times and met a lot of great people. Like any job, however, there are ups and downs, which tend to bring out the best and worst in you and those around you. I am thankful that Residency only took up a short portion of my life and that I can move on to something a little less chaotic and less juvenile. Most of all, I hope to be able to reclaim some of my life back and enjoy doing other things besides being a Resident. I am grateful for everything people taught me along the way and for the new skills and knowledge I have been given. I am grateful for the mentors I had and for the lessons learned. I am grateful for my family who suffered right along with me after long nights of call and long commutes to Seattle. I am grateful that we made it through intact and stronger for it. But most of all, I am grateful that I never have to do it again.

Mike

Graduation

The long awaited day for graduation from Residency finally arrived. We left the girls with a friend so we could all enjoy the ceremony without little ones asking for a snack every five minutes. We were lucky to have Mike's dad in attendance. I know he enjoyed being able to be there for Mike's graduation. The boys sat next to grandpa and did great drawing on their little pads of paper during most of the speeches. Mike was the second to last resident to finally get his "diploma." The real diploma was actually mailed to us the following week. The Chief of Surgey who was sitting in the audience even held out his hand to shake Mike's hand which he did for only a few of the residents. I thought that was pretty neat.

The only disappointment I had about graduation this year was the fact that the graduating residents all had to wear their ACU's instead of their really nice dress blues. It made me wonder why we ever had to purchase that expensive uniform when it has hardly ever been worn. Apparently this year some women who were expecting complained about not fitting into their dress blues. The result--the yucky brown and pretty casual uniform. I would have liked to witness all of the residents who had devoted so much of the last 10 years of their life in something a little more professional and dressy. That is just my opinion. Other than my annoyance over attire I thought the event was really nice and afterwards we were greeted by the Staff in the ENT department to wish us congratulations.

We celebrated with all of the kids afterwards by eating out at Stanley and Seaforts which is a great seafood restaurant in Tacoma. The kids were on their best behavior and did quite well for most of lunch. The restaurant sat up on a hill in Tacoma so we were able to enjoy the beautiful view of the Puget Sound. It was a great way to celebrate such a momentous occasion!