Easter +

Wow, I thought I hadn't been keeping up with the blog because nothing interesting has happened. But after reading the last post I realize that monumental things have happened that I haven't written about. I guess it was just laziness then. Anyway, found out that he will be able to graduate this semester with a degree in general studies. Although we were hoping that he would be able to get his degree in secondary education English teaching, that would have taken another semester's worth of work and might not have made a difference. To be a teacher in California you have to have a bachelor's degree (any bachelor's degree) and then take a year's worth of masters level courses. So regardless of what your degree is in, the process is the same. We felt like it was a good move for us. Especially since I was accepted into UC Davis medical school in Sacramento! I decided to go ahead and enter the 5 year program (instead of the 4 year program), which will include another masters degree. It is the Rural-PRIME program which has an emphasis on practicing medicine in rural, underserved areas. I could work in a place like Loyalton or Gridley where there are few specialists, and primary care doctors tend to do a lot more specialized work than they would in larger cities. I think it will be a great program. This was our first choice of medical schools since it is so close to Derek's family and Gridley. Also we just had a feeling that this was where we needed to end up. I was also accepted to the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, but neither one of us is that keen on Utah. The bad news is that I was not accepted to the Air Force scholarship this year. I went for the Air Force physical back in January (that was the soonest I could do it since you have to wait for 6 months after giving birth) and was temporarily disqualified because I was underweight and because I had had gestational diabetes during pregnancy. (I hadn't realized I was underweight because we don't own a weighing scale, but apparently all that breast pumping had been depleting my calories without me knowing it). After to their standards they had to disqualify me, but I was told that all I needed was a waiver, which shouldn't be hard to get since I was so healthy. Unfortunately, they had to send my paperwork to the surgeon general to get a waiver - a two month process. By the time all my paperwork came back, it was too late. All the scholarships had been given out. Fortunately, I am in a five year program and the scholarship is only four years. In other words, I am reapplying for the scholarship for next year, and according to the recruiter I have a very good chance of getting it because I'll be one of the only ones to have my application in by October. So that's when I'll find out - October. In the meantime, we'll be surviving on financial aid and odd jobs. It won't be fun, but we've got to do what we've got to do. The good news is that I won't be spending five weeks away for Air Force training this summer. I was not looking forward to that. UC Davis starts on July 26, and we've got a busy summer planned in the meantime. Derek graduates May 15. Bindi has cleft palate surgery May 18. We need to find a job to earn some money for the summer, and then at the end of June we'll be going to visit my family in Texas. On July 6, there is a pre-matriculation program for UC Davis that lasts for 2 weeks. You have to apply to get into it, but if you get it, they'll pay you $500 for expenses and teach you all about how to be successful in medical school. A good deal no matter how you look at it. We may or may not be able to go to the coast this year for Derek's family reunion up in the red woods. But we've got a busy time ahead of us and a lot of worries before we get settled into med school. But we have faith that everything will turn out according to God's plan.

PS Bindi's the cutest baby in the world. Check out her Easter pictures.