For those of you playing along at home, we will be leaving Germany today and heading to Switzerland. Tonight we stay at a hotel in Bern, and tomorrow we hopefully move into our permanent home for the next year. Tomorrow is Switzerland’s national day so we will be greeted with parades and fireworks.
Unfortunately it does mean that for the next few days, at least, we will likely be without reliable Internet access. For those of you who have been kind enough to email or Skype us with your comments, we will be hard to reach over the next few days. We’ll post an update as soon as one is available.
[singlepic id=139 w=200 h=150 float=left]So residency has come and gone. It feels like just yesterday that we were gathering in the orthopaedic library at the hospital and learning about ACGME competencies, and how to log hours. So five years of studying, rounding, operating, dictating, splinting, and hardly sleeping have finally come to an end. I said it about medical school, and I’ll say it about residency: “The days are long, but the years are short.”
[singlepic id=135 w=200 h=150 float=right]This past weekend we had our graduation celebration and picnic (including resident roasts, and the always anticipated Skits). Unfortunately my camera was out of batteries for the graduation dinner night, but we got plenty of pictures of the picnic on Saturday (see the gallery below). Saturday started with a golf tournament that was a lot of fun (thanks to Joe M, Kelly and Kathy).
[singlepic id=133 w=200 h=150 float=left]Alas all celebrations must end. Right now my time is filled with studying for step 1 of the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery exam. We take the exam on July 7th. It’s around 350 questions and we have 9 hours to do it. Whew! It’s the kind of test you only want to take once, trust me on that. I’m a little concerned about how to decompress from that once the test is done.
After that we get ready to fly out to Switzerland, on July 13th. We have a few family get togethers before we leave, but within less than two weeks we will be in Europe, hopefully with all of our children. And hopefully with our Swiss Visas. Keep your fingers crossed!
Well, I should get back to studying… See you in Switzerland!
It’s that time of year again when we send words of wisdom to our friends and family. We have been very blessed this year, well, except for Henry’s case of the chicken pox, oh, and James’s broken arm. Thankfully, Emily, ever graceful, survived the year without any physical calamities, save for three lost teeth.
[singlepic id=76 w=200 h=150 float=right]Joe celebrated his film debut this spring directing, producing, and starring in the Skits film for the Orthopaedic Department’s graduation party. He has been looking forward to this for decades, literally. For a while, he was spending more time filming and editing than doing surgery, and pretty much no time sleeping. Reluctantly, he has put his Hollywood dreams on hold, and is now in the fifth and final year of his residency. We’re really looking forward to the next graduation party!
Joe and Sarah traveled to Switzerland in February for a conference, and to prepare for our yearlong stay there starting in 2011. Despite what you may have heard, there are no “Swiss Cake Rolls” to be found in that country. Deceitful Little Debbie!
Among several trips to Door County and Minnesota, Emily and James made their inaugural trip to the Boundary Waters, where they were four lakes and over 500 rods away from any TVs, video games, electricity or running water… and they loved it!! They showed their true spirit on the last day as we canoed out in pouring rain, at 50 degrees, singing and laughing.
Henry turned 1 in June, and passed all of the typical 1-year-old milestones: crawling, walking, first words (“Dada’s at work”). With a 1-year-old, our family travel was somewhat limited, so we decided to bring the world to us.
Fishing for Walleye
In conjunction with James and Emily’s school, the Milwaukee German Immersion School, we hosted two teaching interns, one from Switzerland in the spring and one from Germany this fall. Both Isabel and Kristina have been great to have in our home, playing with the kids and helping us with our German language (Könnten Sie bitte Ohrfeige dass Fisch für mich?).
We wish you all a most Joyous and Blessed Christmas, and all the best for 2011!
