Pretty things

Elijah's amazing preschool is having a fall fundraiser and there are some great things to choose from. I just put in an order for this pretty raffia ribbon.

They are also selling gift bags, wrapping/tissue paper, gift tags and chocolates. Please go to www.sallyfoster.com to check out all these great items. Elijah's school receives 50% on every item sold, and the proceeds are used for the school's scholarship fund. This is a great way to support the school and stock up on holiday supplies and gifts. If you would like to place an order, please email me at steuerman@yahoo.com for more info. I know that everyone is short on money these days, but every purchase helps and there are plenty of items under $10. Thank you!

Wisconsin

I am now in the midst of a glorious two week vacation, and I don't miss work one bit. Just being home is vacation enough for me, but knew prying Amiel out of the office for three consecutive days would require us to leave Chicago. As much as I complained about living there, Wisconsin makes for a perfect weekend getaway. We found a great hotel in Delafield, and spent the weekend eating, resting and being outside. Elijah thoroughly enjoyed the hotel experience. He swooned over the lobby's antique clocks and loved using the keycard to open our door.

Hiking at Lapham Peak State Park

I was so happy to be outside!

Elijah soaks up the good life. Eating cold pizza and watching cartoons in Mommy and Daddy's comfy bed.

We had a great time at Old World Wisconsin, an outdoor museum featuring restored nineteenth century homes of different Wisconsin immigrants. Here Elijah and Amiel play with a wooden top.

Wagon wheels outside the blacksmith shop

A garden outside one of the German farms.

Elijah got to feed the lambs clover flowers.

When he grows up

Me: Are you going to marry a nice girl when you grow up?
Elijah: No, I'm going to marry my brown doggy.
Me: Oh, are you and doggy going to have babies?
Elijah: Yes.
Me: What kind of babies? Boys and girls? Or doggies?
Elijah: Elephants.
Me: What kind of elephants?
Elijah: Blue and green and white elephants.

Superfood

Three cheers for meal tickets!! Upon starting my ED rotation, I was handed a fat wad of the precious white slips. I had initially planned to hoard them for future use, but have since started to indulge in Naked Juices. One of my favorites is Red Machine, an infusion of red fruits, ethically sourced bananas, flax and B vitamins. At 25mg of sugar/serving, I do have doubts about the "Superfood" claim. That said, it is chock full of vitamins and so very delicious. Yum.

Lunch love

Upon receipt of my first paycheck, I was finally able to justify the purchase of an awesome lunch sack. After much online research, I found this gorgeous neoprene bag by BUILT. It arrived yesterday, and it has already exceeded my expectations. The size is just right, and the colorful dots make me happy. It's also machine washable. I think I'm in love.

If you can't live without one, they are sold at Whole Foods, The Container Store and Amazon.com.

ED

It's 2:28 am and the ED is quiet. In 92 minutes, I will flag down a security guard and request a walk to my car. This is my fourth shift; and my feelings of utter uselessness and anxiety are steadily dissipating. The days immediately prior to a new rotation are inevitably unpleasant. As my worries mount, my brain starts to malfunction. Just last weekend, I went to the ATM and was unable to recall my PIN. After several incorrect tries, an error message informed me that I had exceeded my alotted attempts. My first shift was also a bit unnerving. I had the ill fortune of starting on a Thursday morning, the one time that ER residents are all at an educational conference. I was thus alone with the attending who pushed me to see as many patients as I could as fast as I could; he suggested that my threshold for not taking another patient would be the onset of gastritis. In other words, I could stop taking new patients if the stress of my circumstance started to make me ill.
Thankfully, I am much more settled in now. I've always been a night owl and the night shift suits me. I especially like the drive home at 4:00am. The streets are empty and still, the store fronts are dark, and the quiet soothes my ears.

Lovely lady

On Tuesday, we celebrated Gilia's Birthday with a picnic and concert at the Botanic Gardens. I won't divulge the birthday girl's age, but I will say that she looked absolutely fabulous (as usual)!! Happy Birthday, Gilia! I love you.

a

Tonight

Tonight was fun. I put our little picnic table in the salon (livingroom), and Elijah arranged the placemats, plates and silverware. When Amiel arrived, we announced that it was family picnic night. The menu? Frozen pizza; sauteed zucchini with dill; and lots of green olives. Not your typical picnic faire but no one seemed to mind.  For dessert, we had melon and raspberries. We then had a special treat, chocolate pudding!! My mom used to make JELLO chocolate pudding with sprinkles in a little picardie glass and that's exactly how we had it tonight.  Watching Elijah savor the pudding was quite entertaining.  After licking every last bit, he poured water into the pudding glass and slurped the resulting 'chocolate water.' He did this several times, repeatedly adding water to the glass and eventually dumping in some raspberries (which he drank up too).

One down

Yesterday was my last day on the stroke service. As is often the case, the end of this rotation was bittersweet. It was a huge relief to have completed my first month of residency. That said, I was just starting to develop a sense of how to manage stroke patients, and it's a little unnerving to start general neurology. Thankfully, someone is always willing to answer my questions, even those that are embarassingly elementary. Taking care of patients is not unlike raising a child. The learning curve is unavoidably steep. I'm sure I'll get up to speed... just in time to move on to my next rotation.

As for the rest of our little family, Elijah is thriving at preschool. He seems to have a crush on Claire, the woman who takes care of him after nap time. When I went to pick him up the other day, he was making green playdough pancakes with her. As it came time to say goodbye, he told me that he "likes her and loves her." When he's at home, Elijah is mostly interested in being read to, playing his keyboard and making 'pillow houses' in the couch. He arranges the pillows at one end of the couch and then hides stuffed animals beneath them. He will spend long stretches of time talking with his animals and rearranging the cushions. As for reading, Elijah loves to hear the same books over and again. His current favorites include "Make the Team, Baby Duck," by Amy Hest and "Lost" by David McPhail. He also enjoys books about using the potty, but this has yet to translate into an interest in potty training.

Amiel is also doing well. Now that I am working, he is responsible for getting Elijah fed, dressed and off to school. They have clearly bonded over the past weeks. When I pick up Elijah from school, he typically asks, "Where's Daddy!?"

Still kicking

I am very tired. The one day weekends are painfully short, and the early mornings are barely tolerable. In my view, feeding a baby and catching a plane are pretty much the only justifications for leaving bed before 7:00 am. I snack and drink cold water to stay awake. When I'm really exhausted, I have a tendency to misplace my water bottle. I recently lost my beloved SIGG. It was red and had a cool samurai motiff. One of my med students has started to keep tabs on its mauve replacement.

Despite my exhaustion, things are going well. I'm learning quite a bit, and it feels good to make some small contribution to my team. It's still strange to be addressed as a doctor, but I'm sure I'll get used to it.