Start of 3rd Year

We're about a month into Robbie's 3rd year of Dental School and I just have to say... 3rd year rocks! It's still hard work, but what makes 3rd year so awesome is that you are in clinic the majority of the time. Robbie still has some classes this semester (oral surgery, pediatric dentisrty, and implant dentistry to name a few) but now he's getting to do actual dentistry on real patients between classes. The work load is definitely lighter than previous semesters. On our drive home the other day I asked him if he needed to study and he said something like, "I feel guilty like I should be studying, but I just don't need to right now. I only have one test and it's in two weeks." Sweet! Let's go home and play Mario on the WiiU.

While the stress of huge class loads has eased, new challenges are definitely coming up. I know a lot of schools have one treatment room assigned to each student and that's where they see all of their patients. Or other schools just have the students go through different rotations and they see whatever patient is scheduled that day. At CU, however, you manage all of your patient scheduling and you have to fight to get whatever chair is available. Sometimes a chair will open up and you'll call your patient to see if they can come in on that day/time but by the time they call you back someone else has already filled that chair. What's even more frustrating is when you are all ready to go and the patient doesn't show up. Entire. Afternoon. Wasted. Still, I feel like he is learning valuable lessons about patient management that will come in handy if/when he decides to open up a practice of his own someday.

That's all I have time to write about today. I'm throwing a friend a baby shower tomorrow and I've got lots to get done before then! I'll post some cute pictures of that as soon as I can.

Something Personal

I've been going back and forth about whether to write about this on my blog, but I really feel the need to share something about what's been going on in my family.

Several weeks ago, we found out that my mom has stage 2 breast cancer. There has been a lot of cancer in my family tree (skin, ovarian, lung, breast, etc.) so I don't feel like the concept is foreign to any of us; however, what really makes it hit home on a personal level is that my mom's mom passed away from breast cancer 15 years ago. I was still pretty young so I only have sheltered memories of what my family went through at that time, but I'm observant enough to know that facing the same disease has stirred up a lot of old questions and emotions

My mom and I are very different people. She thinks out loud; I'm more of an internal processor. She's an extrovert; I'm an introvert. She wears her emotions on her sleeve; I tend to bottle things up inside. She's an amazing cook; I'm good at making sandwiches. She's infinitely servant-hearted; I have a lot of selfish tendencies. But in spite of all our differences, I absolutely love being around her. I love seeing how crazy she'll act in public just to get her grandchildren to laugh. I love when Robbie acts like I starve him to death so my mom will make him a gluten-free feast to make up for my (alleged) neglect. She is one of those people who gets all her satisfaction out of seeing the needs of other people met.

And that is exactly why it is so hard to be up here in Denver working full time while she goes through all of her treatments. I long to return some of her kindness in a small way by giving her shoulder and foot rubs. I want to be there to clean her house for her because she doesn't have the energy. I want to bring her drinks and snacks and read her books to keep her mind off things. It kills me to think of her being in any pain.

I'm not sure what most people do when they feel helpless to help someone they love. The feeling would completely overwhelm me if it weren't for the unshakable peace that comes from knowing that God loves her even more than I do. God has proven over and over to me in personal ways that He is the very definition of faithful, just, and good.

Not only that, but he knows how all the pieces are meant to fit together. While I have the limited perspective of this moment, He has eternal perspective and is able to see our lives from beginning to end. Psalm 139 says:

You have enclosed me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is too high, I cannot attain to it...

Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;
And in Your book were all written
The days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them.

I don't know all the plans He has for my mom, but I am convinced that whatever happens, He is able to make it glorious.