Day One.

Today is Mike's first day as a not-in-training doctor. Finishing up residency gets quite a bit of attention, with the graduation ceremony and send-offs and such. There isn't any fanfare today, but its a big day nonetheless.

Its like the first day of school. I kind of want a picture of him in his scrubs with a stethoscope around his neck standing by the front door.

At Jim and Monnie's

Wisconsin Residents Again

Its been a busy few weeks, but its starting to slow down again.

We rented our Maine house, and then we packed up our stuff.

Teresa, Claire, Milena and I hopped on a plane and flew to WI in about six hours (despite my worrying, Milena did awesome on the flights). Mike and Jim hopped in the car and made the trip in three days. After a few days staying with Jim and Teresa, our stuff arrived and we moved into an apartment, which has turned out really well. There has been a lot of house hunting going on and a LOT of last minute snags and paperwork to clean up for Mike before he starts in a few days. Not to mention all the other little things address/phone changes bring about. But like I said, its slowing down.

Last night Claire got to have a sleepover at Jim and Teresa's. Mike, Milena and I went downtown. It has been quite a while since I've been downtown, so I was happy to take pictures like a tourist. And it was such a beautiful night.

Yes, Milena actually was this happy the entire night.

This morning the wash machine broke and flooded a large portion of the apartment. I only realized it when I walked by the laundry room and the carpet had puddles under it. But someone is here fixing it now. There are definitely benefits to renting!

Packing up.

Claire has been helping me pack by decorating the inside of the boxes.

She wants to pack her stuff in this one. I'm sure she'll be playing in this same box on the other end of the move.

Graduation

Three years ago, Mike, Claire and I went to the residency graduation. We sat in a huge room full of strangers and watched a handful of people we didn't know receive their diplomas. This past Friday, Mike, Claire, Milena and I sat in the same huge room filled with familiar faces as Mike and some of our best friends accepted their diplomas. Amazing what three years can do.

It was so nice to have Jim, Monnie and Henry here for the big event. Its been a while since we've had visitors who wanted to see Maine. It was fun making the rounds one last time.

But now its back to business. You can make a lot of friends in three years, and you can also accumulate quite a pile of stuff.

My View

It wasn't that long ago.

'"Mom, do you remember a long time ago Milena's room used to be Dad's office?"

At the Park

In light of having only 18 more days left of living in Maine, I've been trying to take pictures of regular, day-to-day events. I've been bringing my camera along for things I usually wouldn't bother to take pictures of, like picking up Claire from school and stopping at the playground for a few minutes. After all, this is what I'm going to remember when I think about Claire's first year at school.

Happy Birthday, Mike!

Enjoy your jetpack.

The Beach

Milena's first visit.

So many new things to look at, hear, feel and smell. She'll be joining Claire in no time.