my pretty bee!

Sharon is the prettiest bee around

Hide the kids at McDonalds

Yesterday and today Sharon made a point of keeping the kids outside. This meant playing at McDonalds for an hour after picking up Enoch from school. I'm studying for Step 2, so I appreciate the silence. I told Sharon I might want to study at school to be more productive, but she prefers me to be home for the occasional company and so I can be more comfortable. I appreciate her efforts and support!

last day of school

Enoch had his last day of school. Enoch's class dressed up as owls from some baby owl book. It was cute. We took Enoch out of school so it would be easier for us as we start interviews and then go on our road trip. I think it's good that we're pulling him out now, but I also think it's good Enoch got in 2 months of school, and I'm glad Sharon made it happen

michael's garage

Glad Sharon took this picture of Michael's parking garage. What a cutie!

My honey bun bought me a cinnabun

Dairy free brownies

Sharon was called out of retirement from her baking business to make some dairy-free brownies. She's realized that $10 isn't worth her time, but she was a sport and did it anyway. And we got some of the leftovers... they were actually delicious! Apparently you don't need dairy to make great browneis.

30 boxes of rasberries

Raspberries were on sale at Kroger, and Sharon bought 30 cases of them for our freezer. Love the enthusuaism

Chili

I've been asking Sharon for chili. She didn't want to make it because she was worried it wouldn't turn out well.... but she made a killer bowl! Too bad I didn't take a picture

Sharon got annoyed today...

And cleaned the whole house! Good job honey!

Quiche

The other day I wasn't home and Sharon needed help moving our treadmill that she was trying to sell. She asked our neighbor, and after helping he said Sharon could repay the favor by making a quiche for his daughters party. He got the better end of the deal...! Sharon fulfilled her end of the bargain and made him and us some amazing quiche.

My little youngin

Sharon found these old photos... love them! She's so cute

Interview prep

Sharon is running around the house trying to find something that looks professional for me to put papers in for my residency interview tomorrow. I'll get some sort of portfolio for next time... but Sharon is determined to not let me go empty handed tomorrow. I probably will anyways, out of preference, but I appreciate the effort!

Ice skating

Sharon and I went ice skating today. It was a fun date. Kinda sad that it was our first time skating together! After 6 years you would think I would have taken her out... but I was handicapped by all the babies. We had a great time and it was wonderful being out on a date together. 2 dates in 2 weeks... feels good to go on more dates with my amazing wife. Love you

getting smarter

Sharon insisted that I get a smart phone to help me in my interview travels. Got it today! I ended getting a good deal as well, $125 in store credit, free phone after rebate, and $35 a month for service. Would have been too cheap to think about getting one without Sharon pushing me. Thanks honey

glad we picked each other

I wonder how many people get married when they're 22 after only dating for 8 months and are still happy they married that person 5+ years later. I feel fortunate that I'm one of the lucky ones with no marriage remorse. I picked a good one.

Pumpkin painting

Recent photo of Sharon helping the kids paint pumpkins

She loves me for who I am

Shaved this stache off today... Sharon was disappointed! She said she had gotten used to me with it. I can tell she loves me for who I am.... Otherwise there is no way she could ever get used to something so nasty

Last karate class

Enoch's last karate class was today. He got his white belt! It was very cute to seem him so eager and serious with his bowing, getting in straight lines, getting in fighting stances, and throwing little kicks and punches. The gym didn't impress us enough to keep paying for it after our groupon ran out, but I think the 11 classes were a fun experience for Enoch and good for him. I think we might start up again when he gets older. Good job Sharon for finding the groupon and signing him up

English

We hung out with some Chinese friends today, and it was great. They are new friends for us and our families got along well. I think Sharon and the other wife got along especially well. Eventually, I realized that I was having a hard time paying attention. Speaking all Chinese in social settings is tiring mentally. I remember that fatigue from my mission. I am sure Sharon still feels that way sometimes, but I often forget this is even possible, because her English seems so good. Nonetheless, I'm sure it is still mentally draining!

Goalie

Enoch had a melt down in his soccer game today. He just has no desire to be aggressive and run into a group of kids and kick wildly. He loves to play at home with me but he just doesn't see the thrill of playing with 12 other kids on the field. During the game he started crying and said he didn't want to play anymore.

Luckily, Sharon had the brilliant idea to make him the goalie. He loved it. He even stopped a goal once, and had a giant smile.

meatloaf

Sharon makes the best meatloaf. Period.

McDonalds on the way home

Michael wanted to go to McDonalds on the way home from the gym today. He was in a poopy mood. Sharon told him if he saw a McDonalds on the way home, than we would stop. I whispered that there weren't any McDonalds on the way home, she said she knew. Michael happily got in the car and was looking and looking for a McDonalds all the way home. He eventually got sad he didn't find one. I'm not sure if he knows he was duped, but I thought it was a fun way for Sharon to avert a tantrum.

It's just money

I've been feeling a bit guilty about all the interviews I have lined up for residency. I've canceled some of them, but I still feel like I have too many. It's hard because I don't want to waste money, but I also feel like I have a chink in my application and I need to do a lot of interviews. Sharon told me not to worry about spending a few extra thousand dollars, and I know she meant it. Thanks for supporting me!

Selling our house

We found a new facebook selling group and sharon has been busy selling everything in our house... she's been spending a lot of effort in this and I appreciate getting rid of the clutter!

Dreaming of hawaii

There is an intern year in Hawaii that I am applying to. I love that Sharon is excited to try and go for it. The kids are old enough now that it feels like adventures are much more possible. It's a treat to plan adventures with my sweet heart.

Goodnight stories

It's always so fun for me to watch Sharon read the kids books. She's a great mother.

Venus vs my wife

Who is more beautiful, Venus (the God of love) or my wife?

That statue is actually pretty amazing. 2000 years old! We went to the museum of fine arts on a date and it was a lot of fun to do something like that without the kids. We really needed that. Some other fun photos

the textures in this stained glass are very interesting. made from many layers of glass

Beautiful butterfly

I remember Sharon having fun with the kids reading the hungry caterpillar at the end, and everyone would start singing "beautiful butterfly" in a funny voice over and over again. Recently, Sharon turned into a beautiful / hot butterfly.

Halloween Spirit

A while back I bought way too many costumes that were on sale, thinking we could sell them easily for a profit. It's turning out to be more work than anticipated... and Sharon is having a great time poking fun at me for it. We tried them all on to take pictures to help sell them. It was fun. Here's some fun ones of Sharon. Posting my favorite one tomorrow.

Road trip

Planning all my interviews right now is kind of a pain (not complaining of course, happy to be getting them). Sharon convinced me that it would be more fun if we drove as a family to a few of them and stopped by Chase and Cait's house, too. Glad she did, because that's going to be a fun trip, and it will probably be a similar price tag for us as a family to go compared to me flying out to 2 interviews.