Moving on.... to other chapters

In the most important news...

Hans and Rachel are married!!!
I had the most wonderful opportunity to have this past weekend off to fly back to Rochester for Hans and Rachel's wedding festivities! Post-night call, I was able (with the assistance/planning of Shomir, my personal travel agent) to finagle the Sacramento public bus system to the airport, and flew Thursday to the polar north, where, after the Roch direct shuttle ride, Lesley whittled me back from St. Mary's to her and David's lovely house. It was so great to be able to catch up with my great old friends from medical school! While Rochester holds some extremely haunting (and frozen) memories for me, I realized that, although I miss my friends dearly, I have moved onto another chapter of my life, and I am, emotionally, in a much better place now than I ever was while living there!

Anyway, Friday afternoon was the rehearsal and then afterwards was the bbq @ the Sviggums' farm, with wonderful food and fun and games (I'm glad I was on Hans' winning volleyball team, for if we'd have lost, I'd have never heard the end of it... :)). Loved the way the "shed" was decorated! :

Saturday a.m., we caught up w/ some more classmates and friends (the Cronks, Schiefers, and Ronnie) @ a brunch Lesley held for us (the Kitsteiners FINALLY arriving in town, albeit sans luggage). Pre-wedding, it was a rush to TJ Maxx to find Wen an outfit to wear!

Lesley w/ the options! Wendi tries on clothes like a madwoman. We had great success!

The wedding was Saturday afternoon at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Rochester. Thanks to Kristen for taking all the pictures that I stole! The wedding was perfect. I felt privileged to have been a part of the ceremony-- in reading a scripture from Isaiah. The music was lovely, and Rachel looked stunning (as did Hans :)). The reception, equally beautiful, was at a country club in Stewartville, complete with cute cakes (go, Kristen!), cupcakes, great toasts, and dancing. If you have time and are as much a photo nut as am I, check out Matt Addington's photos which are perhaps the most breathtaking shots I have seen in a very long time.

Les and me in churchJoneses- fabulous hosts!

Post-ceremony hugs

Happy newlyweds (with Kristen's Groom's cake!)

Old buds! (David, Les, me, Kristen, Brandon and, in front, the Kit family)

We got to do a bit more catching up at a brunch at Rachel's parents' house on Sunday, as well as some great Indian food on Broadway, before we had to part ways again.
In any case, blessings and congratulations to the new Sviggum couple as they start their new life chapter together!

New parents
It was so great to see John, Wendi, and little Isaac!! Here's to them being parents, especially on this past Sunday, Fathers' Day!!! Can you tell how much everyone enjoyed holding the new miracle baby? (I'm so proud of the Kits for traveling across the country with a 5-week-old so that we could meet him!)

Wendi, proud mommy

Kristen and little Isaac

Les takes a turn

Scary picture!!!
Mr. Sviggum, looking very at ease!

Bride and Baby (can't decide who's more beautiful!!!

Back to CA

As mentioned, MN was a chapter. We actually had great weather this weekend, leading us to near-forget how COLD it can get up there (can you believe this car thermometer?). However, I'm thrilled to be back in the warmth of Sacramento.....

and, with June in Sacramento brings (in addition to 90 degree temps).....

NEW INTERNS!!!!!!!
Near-end of intern year

Yes! In approximately 6 days (but who's counting, right?!), I will NO LONGER be an intern (by name that is, although I do still have two intern peds rotations to complete in the fall)!!!! This is really striking me right about now! Yesterday, we had a dinner @ Ernesto's for the new OB interns who, to my delight, will be largely replacing my responsibilities as a slave to triage (with the disaster that is current EMR, or electronic medical records), tower-3 postpartum calls, and gyn-onc post op checks/cross-cover (as well as, on other rotations, the scut work and painful discharge summaries!). I am nearly jumping with joy, except that I am near-terrified to commence as a second year with all of those responsibilities. I hope I can step up to the challenge.

and, to explain why I may not blog for a while....

Upcoming events:

Wednesday 6/18: Team building with the upcoming OB interns for a.m. conference, OB L and D in the p.m.

Wednesday night: FP/OB dinner

Thursday night 6/19: recuperate after another day on L and D

Friday 6/20: OB L and D, followed by p.m. FP clinic, and, at night, OB graduation

Saturday-Sunday 6/21-6/22: 24+ hour weekend OB call

Monday 6/23: second-to-last-day of intern year (OB L and D)!
Tuesday 6/24: LAST DAY of intern year (OB L and D, then likely celebrating w/ OB no-longer-interns!)

Wednesday: Rafting with FP friends
Thursday-Sunday: trip to SoCAL with FP classmates

Tuesday 7/1 (remember! Don't get appendicitis in July! New interns starting!!!)- SECOND YEAR STARTS (I'm back on OB).

Pretty exciting stuff!

Oh, and just for good measure, although I can't tie it to the whole "chapters" theme, I wanted to mention two awesome records that Elizabeth, a second year OB resident, now has on the WALL OF FAME in the OB board room (I'm so jealous):

1. Largest recent NSVD (vaginal delivery) baby: 4860g (that's 10#10 oz!-- like a toddler! [certainly bigger than Isaac]!!!) (no dystocias)

2. Most recent undiagnosed twin BOA (birth on arrival) delivery... 6/11. WILD!

Okay, with that, it's bedtime!

Since this post was like a novel, a new chapter won't be due for a long time...