A look back

About eight years ago, Carl turned to me and said, "I was thinking about going into an MD/PhD program; what do you think?" "Sure", I responded. A year later, we received the fateful news that Carl was accepted into the MD/PhD program at U of Maryland. And so began our 7-year odyssey. At the time, we were living in Crystal Lake, Illinois, and I was finishing my masters degree at NIU. We were also getting ready to get married in Australia and have a reception in St. Louis, all in the same month of our move to Maryland. I called Tori and told her the news of our impending move across the country, and she was kind enough (and crazy enough) to drive to Baltimore with me that Spring so that I could find an apartment for Carl and me. We drove up and aimlessly traveled around highway 695 (with a little side trip to Hersey Park). We went to various apartment complexes where most assumed we had an "alternative arrangement", and we finally settled on a place north of the city, just minutes from where Carl and I eventually chose to buy our house.

When we moved here, I had absolutely no idea what I was going to do for a living. While I figured it out, I took a part-time job as an adjunct faculty member at a community college and eventually landed a job as the Education Coordinator of a Head Start Program. This would prove to be an incredible learning experience, supervising about 35 teachers and overseeing 5 school locations with a total of over 200 children. It was a great job...until it wasn't...until I knew that if I didn't get out, I was going to break. I called Carl one day and simply said, "I'm quitting". At 4 months pregnant, this was no minor thing - to give up a good paying job with good benefits. But, always the supportive husband, Carl simply said, "No problem. You do whatever you need to do. We'll make it work." It is an incredible thing to be able to make decisions knowing that you have that kind of support. As luck and fate would have it, I found an amazing job that was so much better for my well-being that also included free daycare (which cannot be underestimated) at 6 months pregnant. On top of that, the director waited for me (doing the job of 2 by herself) until I came back from maternity leave. I have been blessed, and I am so grateful for my good fortune.

We have certainly had a few bumps along the way, but we got through them together, stronger for the experience. And now we embark on the next chapter of our lives, with an amazingly spunky 2-year-old, a sweet (if vocal) dog, and so many incredible memories of this place. Seven years is not a minor amount of time, and so we also leave behind friends, coworkers, neighbors (even doctors) that we will miss dearly. I think that I have been reluctant to give them a final date at work because I'm still a little in denial that this is really happening.

I know that there will be more memories to make in our next town, whatever that town may be (which I will address in a later post), but it is a little daunting to once again enter into uncharted territory, not knowing where I will be working, what school Lily will attend, what our house will be like, what our neighbors will be like...so many unknowns. However, I am reassured with the confidence in knowing that we've done it before, and we can do it again. Each experience that we have allows us the opportunity to learn and grow, and Carl and I will get through it together, just as we have always done, with the support of our families and our friends. I don't want to get too caught up in the past, and I won't address it again in this format, but I just wanted to take a moment to take a look back before moving on.