Thanks Delta!

It's a Girl!

     I had been counting down the days until my 20 week ultrasound appointment especially after the let down of not being able to find out the gender early at 16 weeks like I had hoped. I kept joking with Brett that we were going to be part of the 5% who never find out the gender of their baby ahead of time simply because the baby is never in a good position.
      Our ultrasound technician was awesome! She was so thorough, explained absolutely everything, and I mentioned that Brett and I both studied life sciences so she was able to explain things in a little more detail with scientific terms which I really enjoyed. I'm always scared of coming across as a know-it-all or the stereotypical mom that has googled everything to do with babies, but I like when doctors feels comfortable talking about little things like the femur instead of just thigh bone and the atria and ventricles instead of just the heart. (She spent a ton of time on all the parts of the heart because it was it such good view)
     So the gender... right well my nightmare seemed to be coming true because our wonderful baby was curled up in a super tight fetal position. The technician kept checking and then looking at other stuff and then coming back to see if anything had changed... and it hadn't. She tried poking my belly for about 10 minutes.... nothing. Then she had me get up and do jumping jacks, dance around, and go to the bathroom. (The tech told Brett that she only asked me to go to the bathroom because she could see that my bladder was full on the ultrasound haha) - all of this... no change. The technician was so nice though, she said that we could leave for about 1/2 and hour and come back and try to look one more time so we did. We went and scarfed down some lunch and came right back. FINALLY! there was just enough space between the legs to tell that we're having a girl!!!  We don't have a name yet and won't make the final decision til we meet her, but as of now we really like the idea of naming her Elizabeth and calling her Ellie for short.

Adventures in Montana & Canada

     Our trips to Montana & Canada are always fun. I think Brett had an especially good time since he went up a little early got to spend some man time with his high school friend Scott. (lots of basketball video games were played apparently) While in Canada we stayed out at the ranch so we got to see all the animals. Cosley was happy to see us up at the house. Brett milked a cow for the first time and we got to see Justin's new rabbits. They also have a heard of cats out there since Justin leaves out the extra cream for them.
      While we were in Canada, I also experienced my first legendary grandma sleepover. We didn't actually sleepover, but Grandma & Grandpa Shaw made all the grand kids a huge turkey dinner and then we watched lots of old videos. Brett was kind of a violent child I found out; he kept hitting his cousin in the face (given he only looked about a year old at the time).
     Then we made our way down to Montana to spend some time with Rod & Joan. We had a bit of an early Christmas since we'll be in Houston for the end of December this year and Brett's parents got us a new camera. We went up to the ski resort to test it out a little and it was beautiful up there. That night they treated us to a Shaw steak dinner (if you have ever had one of Rod's steaks you know why we look forward to them so much).

Detour to Minneapolis

Lego Land

Mall of America Giant Christmas Trees

So we packed up and went to the Kalispell airport on Monday (Dec. 2) to head back home for school & work. When we checked in, they alerted us that our flight had been over-booked and they were already asking for volunteers to stay behind and accept a $400 voucher with Delta Airlines for future flights. We didn't think too much about taking the offer though because the only other flight from Kalispell to Salt Lake City that day was full and we both had commitments for Tuesday. It turns out that nobody else thought about taking the offer much either though because as others started boarding we heard "Shaw, party of 2 please come to the front desk". We were notified that even though we had tickets for this flight and did not want to accept the offer to stay behind that we would not be permitted on the plane because there were not enough seats.
     We were very frustrated with this response until the stewardess explained our compensation for the inconvenience. Apparently, when you are involuntarily removed from a flight they want to do a lot to keep you happy. They gave us twice what our plane tickets cost in cash (not just vouchers), payed for our hotel for the night, gave each of us 3 meal vouchers, and let us fly home first class.
     The odd part was that all flights from Kalispell to Salt Lake City were full for Monday, Tuesday, & Wednesday (Kalispell is a small airport and there weren't too many flights to begin with) so they sent Brett and I to Minneapolis to catch a flight for Tuesday at 5:30 PM instead (all the earlier flights from Minneapolis to Salt Lake City were full already... i'm sensing a pattern). Ironically enough, Minneapolis is known for the Mall of America, and we had an entire day to kill as well as a bunch of unexpected funds. Needless to say, we had a good time shopping that day and we just bought ourselves a new TV. Thanks Delta!!

Thanks Delta!

The Republic of Texas, Flat Tires, and Other Medical School Adventures

So, it’s Brett this week. I’ll be honest – it took some convincing to be writing on a blog. Don’t you have to be a middle aged, stay at home super-mom to write on these? Anyways, since there have been some questions on the medical school extravaganza, and I’m awful at keeping a journal (which this can double up as) here goes nothing. 

A couple weeks ago I was in San Antonio for an interview. I got there about a day and half early and was able to stay with Caryn’s brother and his family and take some extra time to see the sights. Because I was worried that they wouldn't accept me at Texas medical schools unless I’d seen the Alamo, I figured I better stop by. Everyone told me to have low expectations, but I was pleasantly surprised and really enjoyed reading about the history – although I do nerd out about that kind of stuff. The entire downtown (especially the River Walk) was beautiful. That being said, I didn't realize that there was a Comic-Con going on at the same time, and I was confused as to why the majority of people I saw downtown were dressed up as either superheroes or zombies. Also, I was probably 1 of the 5 white people in the entire area - which isn't a bad thing, but it was unique. I also felt a bit awkward being around hundreds of Mexicans at the Alamo.....I guess time heals all wounds?

Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad!

I absolutely loved the medical school at San Antonio, and overall it was my favorite school I’ve interviewed at. The curriculum, faculty, and general vibe I got from the students felt like a great match for what I was looking for. Plus, I really enjoyed the city. It’s not as nice as Houston or Dallas, but there are actually hills, and it doesn't have the “big city” feel, which coming from the metropolis of Cardston, is a relief. The only downside is that I’d have to frequently associate with San Antonio Spurs fans, but we’ll make it work if we have to.

After flying back from San Antonio, I had about 2 days to try and cram school in for the week and then was off to Milwaukee. Unfortunately, we got a flat tire on the freeway at 6 AM and by time we got the spare on and figured out what to do, I had to change my flight to a later one. Trying to change your tire on the side of the freeway in the dark is not an experience I’d like to repeat. It also goes to prove that Utah Highway Patrol only shows up when you don’t want them to. So instead of being in Milwaukee at 10:30 in the morning, I bought new front tires, went to my classes, and then got there at 10:30 at night. I have a friend going to the medical school , so I was able to stay with him and his wife, and he showed me around the school in the morning. The interview day went well, and even though one of my interviews was with a terrifying Ukrainian doctor that interrogated me, it was a great experience. The facilities are absolutely beautiful, and they have put a ton of money into the school, and it’s probably the nicest one I've interviewed at.  I was really excited to get an acceptance here, and we would be happy to go here if that’s how things worked out.

Medical College of Wisconsin

In the long run, who knows what will happen. Between the Texas schools, as well as the ones in Alberta (Calgary and Edmonton) we still don’t know our long term plans. I’m on the wait-list for the school in Dallas, and A&M hasn't decided on me yet, and I don’t think I’ll hear from them or San Antonio until early next year. However, even though where we are going to medical school is still uncertain, we are extremely lucky to know that we’re going somewhere!

Falling into Fall

The Alpine Loop

One of the things we do love about Utah is that you really get to experience all four seasons. We took advantage of the government shutting down and got free admission to the Alpine Loop. It runs all the way from Sundance to American Fork Canyon and it's beautiful this time of year. We had to stop and take some pictures of course (they might have been better if it wasn't snowing on us though!).

Canadian Thanksgiving
The second Monday in October is Canadian Thanksgiving so this year we decided to go to out to eat to celebrate. We met up with Brett's grade school friend Trisha and her husband. I was really craving some stuffing but since we couldn't think of a restaurant that serves a Thanksgiving dinner we decided to go to Station 22 for the first time instead. The deciding factor was that Station 22 has a poutine. For my American friends, below is a picture of a poutine. It's basically french fries covered in gravy and cheese curds (awful for you but incredibly yummy)

Baby Check Up

My Doctor said there was a chance we would be able to know the gender at this appointment so I was really hoping that we would find out... but it was a huge let down and we couldn't tell. The baby's legs were crossed at the knees and facing the placenta. I guess we might be having a modest child. I was starting to get a little nervous because I've only gained 1 pound so far during the pregnancy and I think about 4-5 pounds is what's normal but it turns out I'm one week less far along that I had been thinking (bummer-it feels like I've been pregnant forever). I guess I'm only 16 weeks not 17 weeks. 

Medical Schools

We still haven't heard a thing from A&M or UNT which is mostly driving Brett crazy. On October 15th he was pretty much having a panic attack every time I texted him because he thought I might be a medical school. So we continue to wait. This weekend Brett is flying to San Antonio for another interview; the process continues. Calgary & Edmonton's application deadline are finally coming up so they should start looking at his application soon too.  

BYU vs. Georgia Tech

This is probably the last time we can take a picture at a home football game when we aren't freezing. Good weather, good game, and free shirts :)

We're Prego!

Pregnancy is like a box of chocolates - you never know what you're gonna get. I had started wanting to have kids pretty bad, so when Brett and I found out I was expecting, I was pretty much bouncing off the walls. I kind of had the attitude of, bring it on mother nature and oh how I've eaten my words... here's how the story has gone so far

Weeks 4-9: This was a pretty lovely time. Besides passing out once in the kitchen and the occasional nausea not too much had changed. I was mostly just excited to be pregnant, terrified of having a miscarriage, and desperately wishing I could tell more people.

Week: 10-14: This was my hugging the toilet time of pregnancy. I can now say that I have puked in many different places including my apartment, my work office, Kemah boardwalk, and LaVell Edward's Stadium. The 3 hour block of church can not happen without snacks anymore - I would die. I have grown a recent fondness for tortilla chips in the morning. They just sound more appetizing than anything else I can think of to eat. I also miss sleeping through the night. Every single night it seems I wake up at about 3 AM and need to pee.

Funny Pregnancy Moment: We have church at 11 AM which is great because I usually get sick at 9 AM on the dot but bad because I also feel sick if I don't get lunch. One Sunday, it was about 10:40 (so we     needed to leave in 10 minutes) but I was already a little hungry and I knew it would be bad news if I didn't eat something. The problem was, the one thing I could think of that sounded good, so good, was a bacon sandwich. Needless to say, Brett came out of our bedroom and found me hacking at a pound of rock hard frozen bacon from the freezer with the biggest knife we have. I made the bacon sandwich, it was the best thing I had ever tasted, and it was a great meeting.

Latest Check Up: Went to the Dr. for a check up, and baby Shaw doesn't look like a peanut anymore! It has a cute nose, cute legs crossed Indian style, and lots of cute individual vertebrae (everything's cute when it involves your baby). My Dr. couldn't get the baby to move even with prodding so we're hoping this is a sign that it really likes to sleep (crossing fingers). We are also hoping that the baby's legs aren't crossed next time because they we will probably find out the gender!

Week 15: The sickness is finally slowing down, not gone, but slowing down for sure. I feel like I definitely look pregnant now, but that scale from the Dr. office says I haven't gained any weight yet. Either way, I thought it would be fun to start taking pictures and see how we grow.