St Louis

We went to St Louis for my interview at Washington University. I'm applying for a fellowship position there, and they were nice enough to let me come talk to them. We all drove down Wednesday after work. We were welcomed by Rocky and Jane, Katie's aunt and uncle. On Thurday we went to the zoo. I hadn't been since I was in St Louis applying for neurology residency. The girls loved it--the petting zoo, the penguins, the big cats, and the elephants were all favorites. It was beautiful outside, much nicer than Madison. We even took a picnic lunch! We went to a Vietnamese restaurant and a Gelateria that night, walking to both from the St Louis Keel's house.
On Friday I went to my interviews which went well; Katie and the girls went to the Science Center where the kids had a blast. In the afternoon we all met up at the Botanical Gardens which had most of the flowers in their prime. They also have a kid's area where the kids can run around and get in the water. Check out Rocky's pictures for some of the fun. (we'll get our pics up soon!).
On Saturday I took the kids and Rocky to the Arch where we got to see Hannah at work. Katie, the kids and Jane went to to have a tour with Abby at the Earthways Center where they saw ways to make homes more "green" and good for the environment. We drove back to Madison after lunch. The trip wasn't too bad--especially since the girls had DVDs to watch in the van!
Coming this week: Robert works Mendota on Sunday, dinner with the Beier's on Monday, neurology resident retreat on Wednesday, and then I go to Kansas City Thursday to Sunday to interview at KU Med!

New Videos

There are a bunch of new videos that we just posted. Check them out--but don't miss our recent post below either =)

Skip March...April!

So we'll just skip any March updates...

If you haven't heard about Obama's newest excitement about healthcare, check it out soon and make your voice heard! For Robert's take on it, check out the Leaven article.

Also, I just received word that I will be the next chief resident of the neurology department for the 2009-2010 academic year. So basically I'll be a supervisor, helping with scheduling of rotations and being the go-between between the staff and other residents. I might even get my own office!

Mary Ann just started swimming lessons again. She and Rose both seem fearless in the water. Which is good and bad...hopefully it doesn't promote Rose jumping out of the boat again...

We're looking at preschools for Mary Ann next year. Trying to decide between Montessori schools and "regular" preschools. We didn't know that it was so competitive to get into some of these places, so some are already booked solid. Guess you have to get your foot in the door and then other siblings get in easier. It's like little kingdoms, with the nobility getting better stuff...

Rose is getting more and more into potty training. We started a "star chart" where she gets stars for going in the potty. She's gotten about 8 stars so far. So, Mary Ann needed her own star chart; we're still working out the rules for her to get stars.

It's finally getting warmer here. Still not out of the woods yet--it very likely could still snow. But, no snow on the ground. We went sledding last weekend when there was a bit of snow. It wasn't too cold but still sled-able.

I've got interviews at Washington University and Kansas University set up so far. We're all driving to St Louis for a fun-filled few days with the St Louis Keels (not sure if they know what they're getting into...) and then I'm flying alone to KC for a few fun-filled days with KC people!

Katie's still pregnant---she's got the most important job of all!