A day in the life of Kyle

Hey! So, as Andrea promised, it's time for me to make my first appearance on the blog. She's done such a great job with this, I've pretty much just been a spectator like you all. But, I've never completely appreciated all the work she puts in and how hard it is until I sat down to write. The formatting alone almost got me frustrated enough to drop it!

Anyways, I thought there would be no better way to use my blog space than to give you a little tour of the place where I spent most of my time these days. Last Friday, Andrea came down to Roseau with me since I was going to be finishing my radiology rotation early. She went and shopped for the 3 hours while I was at the clinic.

Afterwards, we met up and went to lunch with some of my friends at a place called the Garage. While it is completely "car" themed, it's actually one of the nicer places to go to lunch in Roseau.

Then, of course, our trip to Roseau couldn't be complete without a trip to the infamous Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH). I was really wanting to give Andrea a tour since it was the place where I spent most days during this 5th semester. She had already been to the "Accident and Emergency" department with me for the whole clavicle fiasco, but there is definitely a lot more to see! Here are some pictures from the tour! Enjoy!

Welcome!

A view of a few of the "wards" from the front gates

Apparently this map will tell you where you need to go. I don't buy it.

Me at the front entrance of PMH (sans tie)

Just inside the main entrance

One of the intra-hospital corridors (note the traditional nurses outfit!)

Ross' part of the hospital

One of the 5th semester exam rooms

Ross' other part of the hospital. The 2nd floor is the "theatre" (aka operating room) while the bottom floor is the 5th semester classroom.

5th semester classroom

Again

If you're going in for surgery, you have to have people donate blood on your behalf "just in case."

Inside one of the wards.

The emergency department....I've been there both as a student and as a patient.

The entrance to the psych ward....yes, it is as scary as it looks.

Kyle's 24!!

We had a great time celebrating Kyle's 24th birthday - Dominica style! His birthday is July 14th, and it just happened to fall on the day after we got back from San Juan. I was so caught up in thinking about the Step that I neglected planning for his big day! I had some ideas, but at about 10pm the night before, I decided I was going to plan a dinner and invite our friends to celebrate!

I know, I'm crazy. But I woke up early the next day and went to all three grocery stores, as well as the shacks to get fruits and veggies. As I started preparing the food, I was a little impressed at how smoothly things were going. And of course that never lasts long...

Kyle had classes that day and wouldn't be home until 5:30, so I had plenty of time to get everything together before he got home so I could surprise him. Well, the surprise was on me because he sent me a text message saying they finished early and he would be home around 3! Ashley just stopped by, and I had just started to make icing to decorate his cake. And to top it all off, the kitchen was a disaster area! So we came up with the solution to clean up and move everything to Ashley's house.... well, we were so flustered, we forgot that it would make a little more sense to move just 3 doors down to Katy's apartment. So Ashley and Katy began work on the cake as I quickly cleaned up the evidence of any surprise dinner party so Kyle wouldn't see!

The next few hours were a big blur! I can't stop thanking Ashley and Katy for all their help - I don't think there would have been a dinner without them! Ashley hurried home to get ready, and also make pasta salad and corn on the cob. I finished the cake and put together chicken skewers with veggies, and Katy grilled them while I took a shower. All the while, Kyle was just a few doors down with no clue what was going on!

I planned to have the dinner on a deck on campus that is right by the sea. So once we had everything prepared, Ashley & Ryan came and we loaded up the car. I don't even know how many bags we ended up having!! But somehow it all fit and we got it all safely to the deck. We frantically set up, as 6:30 kept creeping closer. With Ashley making the finishing touches, and Chris, Katy, and Ryan on their way, I left to meet Kyle.

I met Kyle at the front gates, and he had no idea where we were going. We walked along the beach, and finally came to where the deck is. He got a little suspicious when he started hearing whispers, but everyone popped out and yelled, "Surprise!!"

Surprise!!

The menu was comprised of some of Kyle's favorite foods. To start off we had deviled eggs, veggies & dip, and pasta salad. Then we had sweet honey & Italian chicken skewers with veggies, and corn on the cob. For dessert we had Kyle's mom's infamous fruit salad and also the Cubs birthday cake! I also was able to make little favor bags to go along with the Cubs theme - they has Cracker Jacks and Wrigley's gum in them!

Kyle was impressed that all the dinner plans happened without him knowing! (And I was just thankful we were able to pull it off!) Dinner was great, and it was fun to be able to spend the night with friends, with the sunset and water as our backdrop!

The whole gang: Ashley, me & Katy. Ryan, the birthday boy & Chris

Kyle & his Cubs Cake! Even though he's 24, he's not too old for a baseball-themed party!

Go Cubs Go!!

What's The Big Rush?

Have you ever woke up in the morning, already scrolling through your to-do list before your eyes ever open? How often does your day turn into a blur flying from one task to the next? And how many days have you tiredly crawled to your bed, pulling the covers up in exhaustion, wondering to yourself, Where did my day just go?

I am completely guilty. I have always been one to make to-do lists, or even put "make a to-do list" on my list of things to do! I stress out way too easily, which you only need to ask Kyle for proof, turns me into an absolutely crazy person. I've always been like this since I can remember, and it's even evident in my life today.

Now I know you're asking yourself, Andrea, you live in Paradise with no job except to keep a clean apartment, stocked kitchen, and a happy hubby. How can you of all people be stressed? Trust me, I know. I ask myself that a million times a day. But I can make the biggest deal out of the smallest things. And, might I add, being a "housewife" is a job, and not always an easy one. I know some of you may picture me eating bon bons on the couch, watching my "stories" all day. Well, I may have days like that, but they don't happen often. But I do have to agree, I'm down here in Dominica on - what Kyle likes to remind me of often - vacation, or my extended honeymoon. And I'm "hurrying" it all away.

I wanted to share this on the blog because I think it's something God has been continuously teaching me, and something I hope others can relate to. God has once again pointed it out to me, so I thought I better do something about it this time around.

First, I got a devotional emailed to me from Proverbs 31 Ministries (if you're looking for a quick daily devotional or something to hold you accountable to having quiet times, I would highly recommend signing up for them at http://proverbs31.gospelcom.net/). I've posted the entire devotional, titled An Unhurried Life by Glynis Whitwer, at the end of this post. With that simple email, I felt God challenging my heart and convicting my hurried way of life.

Slow Down. It's a pretty easy concept to think about and hope for, but for me, to put it into action is a lot harder. But as I read those words in the devotional, I realized there's nothing wrong with having a big appetite to get things done during the day. It has become a problem because focusing on how much I have to do has taken me away from who I want to be, and who God truly created me to be. I want to be the friend who takes the time to make that call or write that email, instead of wishing I would. I want to be the wife who truly listens to her husband retell his day instead of letting my mind drift on to doing the dishes or baking more bread. I want to be the woman who knows where her strength comes from, who doesn't need to prove who she is or let her actions dictate her worth, but instead lean on my God for that strength and look to him for my worth and his loving approval. I now realize my rush was making me miss out on so much of not only who I was created to me, but also it was taking away the love I long to share with others.

Two of my very good friends and I started studying Luke together through email as a way not only to catch up on each other's lives, but to also pray for one another and grow in our relationship with the Lord together. I have absolutely loved it, and God has used both of them to speak to me so many times. Last week, it was one of those times where I knew God was using his words in the Bible to speak directly to me. Luke 8:42-44 states:

As Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him. And a woman was there who has been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her. She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.

I tried to picture this scene in my head. And as I picture the mob of people surrounding Jesus to the point where he is almost crushed within them, my first instinct is, How did he act so calm? How did he not push through the people to get out of the crowd? Because that would be what I would do. I imagine a celebrity, lets say Reese Witherspoon because she's one of my favorites. :) I see her surrounded by throngs of paparazzi, bulbs flashing, people shouting, elbows pushing a shoving. And next I see her b-line to her car or a store for safety, while men with cameras chase her to get the best shot. But unlike me, and unlike celebrities, Jesus slowed down. And he didn't just slow down, he stopped. Right in the middle of the chaos.

He stopped because he wasn't thinking of himself, or trying to protect himself from any danger. He stopped because of one simple touch. Because of one person who needed help. As you read further on in, it describes how Jesus stops and asks who touched him, and actually speaks to the woman, healing her physically and spiritually. It amazes me that in the middle of all the shoving and shouting, Jesus even noticed the woman. But he did. Because he wasn't in a hurry. Stopping to help and heal that woman was the heart of his mission, the backbone of the Gospel displayed in one simple moment.

I realized, that's how I want to live. That's the woman I want to be. One who in the middle of all the "hecticness," doesn't race toward the finish line, but slowly walks through each day, taking it all in. By giving into my stress and counting all the things I should do before Kyle gets home, I am missing out on so many opportunities to love and serve others. How many people have I passed who simply needed a second of my time, yet I trucked on down the trail? How many times have I missed the opportunity to truly help or share a moment with a friend by not taking the time to really listen and care for what they were saying? Because in the end, it's those things that make a difference in not only other's lives, but also your own.

And I know I may not have the supernatural powers that Jesus had to completely heal others, and I'm not saying I'm going on strike from cleaning the apartment or cooking dinner (I know you were worried, Kyle). But I do have a love that God has poured out to me with the hopes that it would overflow to others. I do have the ability to listen and talk through things, to email or call that friend. To pray for that person instead of just saying I'm going to.

But most importantly, no matter how busy I think I am, I truly do have the time. Just like Jesus, I have to slow down, one step at a time. And of course, realize the promise that for now, I am a work in progress, but one day, I will be complete. Until then, I'm still learning.

An Unhurried Life

by Glynnis Whitwer

"Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was going by, they shouted, ‘Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!’ The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet, but they shouted all the louder, ‘Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!’ Jesus stopped and called them. ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ he asked.” Matthew 20:30-32 (NIV)

I am drawn to un-hurried people. I'm pretty sure it's because I'm the opposite - and wish I was more like them.
Unhurried moms take the time to explain to their kids where they are going. Hurried moms tell their children to get in the car and they'll find out soon. I think the children of the unhurried mom learned a bit more about their city, streets and addresses.

Unhurried women take time to chat with a tired sales clerk, and brighten her day. Hurried women rush in and out, glancing at their watches, and tapping their nails on the counter if there's a delay. I think the sales clerk got a touch of Jesus from that unhurried woman.

Unhurried women think about how to show love to others - whether it's picking out the right gift, a hand-written note of encouragement, or a phone call. Hurried women wish they had picked out the right gift, written a note, or made that phone call.

Although Jesus was busy, the Bible never mentions Him being in a hurry. Others around Jesus tried to hurry Him up, but Jesus refused to be rushed. He always made time to hold a child, touch a sick man or talk to a woman whose wrong choices ostracized her from others. Jesus could have hurried – He had more to accomplish in three years than we can imagine accomplishing in a lifetime. But He chose to put people over His schedule.

The solutions to a hurried life are simple, yet difficult to incorporate into a life that is addicted to rushing. For those of us who hurry out of habit, we must choose to slow down. We might choose to speak slowly, to walk slowly, or to eat slowly. We might get up 30 minutes earlier so that we aren't rushing our kids in the morning. We might have dinner in the crockpot so we can sit and read a book with a child, or chat with our husbands on the patio. We might not schedule business appointments so close together that we don't have time to ask a co-worker how his or her family is doing.

Some of us must address the issue of hurry if we are to live the grace-filled lives Jesus calls us to live. So take a deep breath, let it out slowly, pause to pray, and enjoy an un-hurried day.

Andrea & Kyle's San Juan Adventure Part 2

We're back!!! And Kyle is done with STEP ONE! We always saw that as such a big milestone, and thought it was far off. We can't believe it's over now, but we couldn't be more excited. I LOVE that Kyle doesn't have to study all the time, and we'll have more quality time to enjoy the island together. Before we know it, we'll be packing up to leave!

So, all day Saturday I aimlessly wandered around Plaza Las Americas, the largest mall in the Caribbean. Imagine my reaction to the Super Max, times 100! It felt so bizarre to be surrounded by stores and food courts. But once again, I realized everyone who surrounded me spoke Spanish. Each time I checked out somewhere, my conversation with the salesperson began and ended when I said, "hello." It's like as soon as they heard English, they remained silent the whole time I was there!

I was so thrilled when Kyle called me around 4pm to tell me he was done and was on his way to meet me at the mall. When I saw him, he had a huge smile of relief on his face. We were ready to celebrate. Most of you know that Kyle's favorite thing to do is bowl, and the mall had this really cool bowling alley inside called Galaxy Lanes. It's really big and modern, and is more of a bar and bowling alley combined. We had a blast bowling three games, one of which I actually beat Kyle!

Kyle made a friend who worked there, and as soon as Kyle mentioned his interest in going to a casino, this guy was on the phone calling one of his buddies to drive us there. Well, William was there in 10 minutes and we were on our way. Now I should say, I really dislike casinos. I'd rather go spend my money on something where I know I'll have a good time - like more bowling! - but Kyle loves it. So, being his night of celebration, we headed to the casino. We ended up losing $25, but that didn't stop our fun!

We headed to the Super Max, and bought their finest bottle of champagne - for $12 and did a cheers in honor of Kyle being done! Then we went down to the hotel's pool and hot tub since Kyle never got to enjoy them, being the study machine he is. Finally, we called it a night at 2am, exhausted from such a big day!

We want to thank you for all yours prayers for Kyle as he prepared and took the Step. We have to praise God for being so faithful to Kyle ever since he started here at Ross - he has blessed Kyle in so many ways, and I am so excited to see how God's going to use Kyle as a doctor in the future

Below is a slide show of pictures from our trip. Enjoy!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

What we've been up to...

This is somewhat of a random post, but I wanted to share some of the things we've been up to lately. And I apologize for things being so out of order as I try to get you all up to date on our life down here is "paradise." :)

Fourth of July: Dominica-Style

I know I mentioned seeing the fireworks in San Juan, but we really did get to do more than that to celebrate the fourth of July! First off, holidays down here just down feel as special as they do back home. I don't really know what July 4th "feels like" but it definitely didn't feel like a special day down here. (Even though I was wearing an all red, white and blue outfit - hey, it's was patriotic and fashionable!) Nevertheless, we still celebrated. RCF held a cookout for the whole campus. While Kyle was coaching the 1st semester football team (sadly, not to victory), Ashley and I were working the condiment table at the cookout. By the end out the night, the table turned into one big mess of ketchup, mustard and pickles. But hey, we had fun and the students really appreciate having a great dinner and being served!

My Husband: The Smarty Pants

We also recently attended the Dean's Reception to celebrate Kyle's grades last semester. Since most of the people who are in 5th semester went to Miami, barely any people were there to accept their awards from Kyle's class. Actually there were only three! The taller of the three is also named Kyle, and when they played football together, he was Big Kyle and my Kyle was Small Kyle.

I got to meet a few of Kyle's professors, who inquired if I was also planning on attending medical school. I tried my best not to laugh. I don't know if they would appreciate my dreams to open up a cake business or bakery as much. But hey, they wouldn't be laughing when they tasted our delicious bread or cakes....

My Latest Creations

I really am going to miss all the time I have down here once we move home. We may have to -gasp - buy our bread from the store instead of making it! But I have really enjoyed baking and decorating cakes and would love to take cake classes at some point. The cake below is one we made for our friend Krista. She planned a surprise birthday party for her husband Josh, so we made the cake for her. It was my first attempt at fondant, which wasn't as hard to work with as I thought! (Though I only did a small part of the cake with the fondant, and not the whole thing!)

Also, Ashley and Ryan's 2nd Anniversary was on July 8th. After making Courtney and Andy's cake, Ashley mentioned it would be fun to try to replicate their wedding cake. Well, with all the the baking and cooking she did for my birthday, I don't think she had time to do much else! So I got out Grandmere's Roll Cookie recipe, and decide to duplicate their cake design on the cookies. They turned out really cute and I was happy Ryan and Ashley liked them, too!

Celebrate good times, c'mon!

My 23rd birthday was last week (July 7th) and honestly, I couldn't have felt more loved or celebrated!! I felt so blessed to have the most amazing husband and friends down here! The only thing that would have made it better is having all of you in Dominica to celebrate with us! But thank you for all the packages, cards, emails and prayers for my birthday.

First off, for those of you who don't know, I love surprises. So, any chance Kyle has to surprise me, even if it's something so small, he does it just to make me happy! The Saturday before my birthday Kyle planned my birthday dinner and wouldn't let me know where we were going. Well, me, Kyle, Chris, Katy, Ashley and Ryan and squeezed into one car and headed out to Portsmouth. Soon I figured it out (since there are just so many restaurants in Portsmouth) that we were going to a place called Big Poppa's. Kyle and I had heard good things about it, but never had a chance to go.

When Kyle was planning the dinner, he wanted to make sure we had reservations. We had seen Big Poppa's before, and it had been packed with people. He was a little nervous, that if he didn't call ahead, there wouldn't be any tables available. Well we walk in, and we're the only people there! There was only the waitress and I'm guessing her young son. But still, the atmosphere was really neat, as the restaurant was on the beach.

And it turned out to be one of the best meals we've had in Dominica! I got the garlic shrimp which was delicious. Poor Kyle is allergic to shrimp and lobster, so he ended up with pasta, which he still said was good. When we first came down, I didn't like fish at all, but I am definitely going to miss it once we leave the island!

But the BEST part of the meal was the beautiful and delicious cake Ashley made for me!! She worked days on the cake, getting it just right! We're getting pretty good, we might just have to open up a cake shop! (and while you're at it, can some of you start praying that somehow, we end up living in the same place again!! She prayed for us to stay for fifth, and that worked! :)

There's a story behind why it's a sunflower... when I was younger, my whole room was decorated in sunflowers. One day my mom and I found this really cute sunflower cake in a magazine and I loved it. But we never got a chance to make it. One day I mentioned that to Ashley as we were at the pool, and that was just the inspiration she needed for my cake! I think she ended up using about 5 boxes of powdered sugar to get the petals just right! It was so sweet and thoughtful, and to top it all of, it tasted so good!!

This was the first version of the cake, but the petals started to fall off. Well that didn't stop Ashley! She got to work, and made a whole new batch!

Then, on my actual birthday, I was spoiled even more! While Kyle was at the hospital until the afternoon, Ashley planned a birthday breakfast for me, and invited our Bible study. Honestly, it was the best breakfast I've ever had! (Sorry Greg - maybe if I liked biscuits and gravy, I'd feel differently :) She went all out, and we all commented on how we felt like we were eating breakfast at a hotel! First of all, how she set everything up was so cute. Just to have all matching plates down here is a big deal! But the best part was all the food!! We had strawberry stuffed pancakes, omelets, bacon, fruit kabobs with yogurt dipping sauce, lemon poppy seed bread, blueberry muffins, and champagne punch.

She really out-did herself! Everything was delicious, and we were all so stuffed by the time we left! She even got me flowers and my Bible study gave me a basket made by the Carib Indians. Once again, I realized how blessed I am by the friends I have made down here!

Our Bible Study! (Liz & Meg are missing): Ashley, me, Ralna, Katy & Katrina

And the celebration continues!! That night for dinner, Kyle and I went to dinner at Stabox (I'm pretty sure they were copying Starbucks, even though it's not a coffee shop). When we went to order, the waitress told us that they were missing about 75% of things on the menu. So dinner definitely wasn't as good as Saturday night, but I just enjoyed having a night alone with Kyle!

Playing checkers as we waited for our food... Kyle didn't even let me win on my b-day!

Sorry! This picture won't turn the other way, so you might have to tilt your head to the left :)

After we had dinner, we walked to get ice cream and then headed back home. I had such a great birthday and felt so loved!