match day.

CASPR MATCH ANNOUNCEMENT:

the ultimate day for any medical student is to see where they match for residency. or if they match for residency.

there has been so much happening in the davidson household over the past two months. between figuring out how to take care of our little ella rose and trying to predict and plan where residency is going to take us, there is no time for the computer.

match is SO stressful. 

after jumping over the hurdle of passing three sets of boards & surviving interview week, then there is match. 

if you don't match, you have to wait a whole year to try again - with no job & student loan payments on a couple hundred grand. and then you enter the match pool with next year's class, trying to explain to programs why you didn't succeed in the prior year, which snowballs the shortage. basically there is a shortage of residency positions. in round numbers, about half of those 100 students who scramble this year in the US will not get a residency. there are about 500 students total trying to match. with those odds, it is imperative that the students choose the right programs in their "league" in which to pursue so that they have the best chance of being chosen by that program for an open position. each program has between one and four open spots.

this was jack's greatest question mark: what were the right programs for him? where would he be the best fit? 

his number one choice, was of course, scripps mercy in san diego. the only problem for us was that it is an extremely competitive program. just a few of the reasons everyone wants it is because it's:

• on the west coast {better chance of getting a job on the west coast after residency}
• at a high powered hospital with a stellar reputation
• has an amazing residency director and team
• three of the four positions offer their third year at a kaiser {top training and networking}
• ...and let's be honest... is in san diego.

something that sweetened the deal even further for us is that jack is born and raised in san diego. all of his family is there. it's where we met and fell in love.

we basically accepted that we wouldn't get this spot because it is so sought after by the top students in the country. we figured out that the stars didn't align to be matched in washington state near my family {sob}, and the chances of him getting a place in san diego were just way too competitive to get excited about. instead of being picky & spoiled by counting on the perfect program near family in a place we wanted to live, we shifted our focus to getting the best program we could with great training - location aside. it was just three years, right?

fast forward to the morning of match. we decided to make a morning of it and head to our little pinecone cafe up the street to log in and see where we were going. of course it's like a clown car to get all of us out of the house in the morning. had to time changing & feeding ella with her morning nap, get myself ready, and her carseat & bag together...well, we finally got to the cafe at 8am {match announcements are at 8...we planned to be there a half hour earlier to get settled and connected to internet}. of course, we sit down and get no cell reception on the ipad. then our phones weren't getting bars of service either and the wifi was down. ughhhH! we were about to leave and finally we got enough cell phone bars on my iphone and logged in. our hearts were pounding in our chests. jack made me click on the match tab and there it was:

ahhhhh!!! tears of joy. jack had me log in and out a few times to make sure it wasn't a mistake. suddenly all the worries of a cross country move to a place with no network melted away. it started sinking in that jack got matched at one of the most coveted residencies in the country! we are still pinching ourselves two days later!! GOD IS SO GOOD you guys!

{family portrait right after we read the results. we were too crazy excited to get out of the house for makeup or to get dressed! ella was so excited, she fell asleep haha.}

we are going back to san diego!! ella and i will have jack's family while jack is sooo busy at the hospital. we have a church with a network of new christian moms and their babies. our third year will be at the kaiser in ontario/fontana. we will move about two hours northeast of san diego and that will be a super fun adventure, too!

we are so thankful for our supportive friends and family through this process. i'm really sad to be leaving my wa family, but i know this is God's plan for us. we did a lot of praying for His will and plan for our family and this is where He lead us. He opened doors that we thought could never be opened.

ok, ella is awake! gotta go feed my little biscuit!

my handsome is coming home.

in 4 days, 17 hours, 26 minutes, + 53 seconds,

my partner in crime, best friend, and husband will be home after five long months of being a hard-working, transient extern around the country. my baby daddy is finally coming back to me!

i cannot contain myself.

denver.

{photo by jack while we were driving through the rocky mountain national forest}

i visited jack in denver, colorado at his externship during october. fall was in full force. leaves were changing and the air was crisp. pretty much my love affair with autumn grew exponentially.

during my few days there, we spent time in denver, vail, & the rocky mountain national forest. 

needless to say, i'm obsessed. i had heard this part of the country was beautiful, but what i found there surpassed expectations. 

the city was clean, brand new & sparkling. 

the people were lovely and happy. healthy lifestyles seemed to be a top priority.

the women walked around in their spandex workout pants, big sunglasses & cute starbucks cups. 

pretty much this is my favorite externship location that i have been to, and i'm in love.

{baby davidson is 22 weeks on this trip}

  

 

we could totally be colorado people.

twenty weeks.

halfway bump date!

 20 weeks {five months}.

i had my 20 week ultrasound this morning and everything looks perfect. they scanned all of her major organs and measured her growth and everything appears exactly as it should. i cannot express my gratitude to the Lord and also my happiness!

S T A T S :

baby: she is the size of a banana {?}...or 13 oz according to my ultrasound tech. this week, she's putting on "brown fat" which surrounds and protects her organs.

weight gain: fifteen lbs {eeeek}. i went so long without gaining much, but this last month has been...what shall we call it...a period of "growth." BUT they weighed me at the doctor's office with my boots and jacket on after breakfast...and I swear their scale is possessed by the devil. so, that makes me feel better. in all seriousness, doc is happy with where i'm at. I'm eating healthily and working out  3 + / - days per week {i could definitely be working out more}, so I'm just letting my bod do what it wants. my wedding rings still fit and that's all that matters. heh.

sleep: ugh, horrible. i've always been a good sleeper, but come the hours between 2-5am...i just lay there. wide. awake. then i'm too tired to get up at 6, so i end up sleeping until 7 or 8. so depressing. and boring. thank goodness i'm not commuting. next question.

feeling: this week was rough. my body is getting to be the biggest it's ever stretched...and i've only just begun. my poor cute organs are moving to places they've never been. my bladder is getting constantly kicked by two cute little feet. this all equals constant pulling + stretching + cramping sensations. i get shooting pains if i cough or get up too fast. so bizarre. people who say pregnancy doesn't hurt are liars. but let me tell you, when i saw my little sunshine's face in my ultrasound today, it made all the poopy days worth it. 

also, i'm suuuuper emotional. last night on the phone with jack, i was laughing so hard at something, i had tears streaming down my face. and then i realized, "i might actually be crying right now. i don't even know." and then i started laughing again. or was i already laughing? 

maternity clothes: yiiiip. i can still fit into almost everything except my jeans & workout pants. my poor middle is too thick. if my face wore clothes, they would be in maternity. it's way rounder than usual.

favorite moments of the week:

1. anatomy scan. my dad & di got to come with me, which was sooo wonderful. with jack being gone, these huge milestone appointments are filled with anxiety for me. i need to be prepared to hear the worst and the best, and it was amazing to have my people there with me to help keep my mind off all the possible scenarios before hearing the outcome.

{on my way to my anatomy scan this morning!}

2. talking with jack about his denver externship. he's staying in his 3rd year resident's house for the month and he's loving it. they have so many fun animals filling their property. i mean, how cute is this of him and their chicken?! 

3. i ordered nursery furniture!!! 

this is our crib. it's hard to tell from the picture, but it's a beautiful off-white, creamy gray color. rustic and modern....perfect for "her" woodland chic nursery!

...and we ordered the short dresser here that can also be used as the changing table...and this is the crib converted to a toddler bed {for later on}. then the conversion kit {not yet available, ugh} will allow this bed to also become a full sized bed! it is the heidi klum truly scrumptious mist collection from babies r us. since i went into the store, the girl ordering it for me gave me 40% off one piece and 35% off the other! and they are delivering it to my house! the crib will probably be put aside until jack can build it when he gets home in january, but still happy i found something affordable that i like that is in stock and in budget. i have learned that any cute, reasonably priced nursery furniture flies off the shelves like hot cakes...so if you like something, you best order it. now. check that off the list! yay!! 

4. fall. it finally feels cold and cozy enough to build a fire here at night. this is the first time the kitties have ever had a fireplace. it's been hilarious watching them enjoy it. 

 i think it's safe to say sushi will never live in a place without her own fireplace ever again.

miso is still learning not to be totally terrified of it. now instead of running under the bed as soon as i open the glass, he will watch from the couch or by sush's side. he's learned that it's warm... and it's not going to eat him.

literally sush just stays here for hours. so cozy.

ok, this turned into sort of a long post. so much happening this week!

eighteen weeks.

and surprise!!! it's a darling, precious, itzy baby :

g  i  r  l  !!!!!

i visited jack at his miami externship for my 17th & 18th weeks of pregnancy. i got to spend 9 glorious days with him.
man, i sure do miss my best friend.

i just couldn't stand the thought of finding out the gender of our baby without him at my 20 week anatomy scan at the doctor's office from a grumpy, rushed ultrasound tech {yes, we've met her and she stole all the magic of our 8 week ultrasound scan when we saw our little frog baby for the first time to confirm the pregnancy}.

soooo...i decided to google private 4D ultrasound clinics in miami and i made an appointment at a cute little place for an hour after he picked me up at the airport {after my awesome red-eye from seattle, ugh}. we stopped and had a bagel for breakfast and i got a decaf coffee to create the illusion of getting some extra energy after all that traveling. to be honest, i was so excited to see jack and the baby, it didn't matter.

naturally, when we got there, i was really nervous that we were going to find that baby didn't have any arms or legs or something crazy. i guess the worrying will never stop from this point forward!

let me tell you...SHE looked perfect!!! of course, we will find more details at the anatomy scan in a few weeks, but she was so active and joyful looking...with all ten fingers and all ten toes! she was flipping and drinking and stretching and even showed us her smile:

are you absolutely melting yet?!?! you guys, she did this the whole TIME we saw her. the tech said that we got some of the best shots she's ever captured of a 17 week fetus. 

it. was. magical.

i cried tears of joy and you can't imagine our surprise when we learned baby was a she. everyone totally thought we were going to have a boy...but deep down inside i just had this weird raw gut feeling i was going to have a girl.

and ps: don't judge her fontanel. it's not closed yet and that is totally normal. she still looks completely underdeveloped, but remember she isn't even halfway done baking. 

we are absolutely in love.

{we celebrated news of our daughter at this cute little beach front restaurant on the patio. we split the restaurant week 3 course meal for one...gazpacho, swordfish on mashed sweet potatoes, and key lime cheesecake. food is all i have now, so yes, i remember what we had. it was delish.}

the last weekend i was there, we hopped in the car and drove 3.5 hours south to the southern tippy tip of key west. we stayed two nights at a hotel that not only had a fabulous beach out front to lounge on under umbrellas, but also complimentary virgin mojitos {of course i opted for the non-complimentary virgin pina coladas the whole time i was there oops}, and a complimentary shuttle to duval street in town where all the shops and bars are. it was a magical weekend, especially after not seeing jack for two months in such a relaxed setting. of course i was the palest one at the beach, and also the roundest fe-whale {i mean female}, but i didn't care. ok, maybe i did a little.

{i had to document my 18 week belly...this is what i wore that day to the beach, so this is the outfit i went with}

{our key west beach spot in front of our cute hotel. the ocean is right in front of us.}

{...and we will finish with my handsome husband in the miami operating room}

only a few more weeks until i visit him in denver!! i already can't wait. good thing i have a few weeks between these trips so i can "try" and recover some of my energy...phew!