HO2-- WEEK 44

I know it's rude to discuss a woman's age.. but can you believe she is 94?!

This week..
-- we stayed busy with something fun almost every night! The most dramatic would be T helping the local Boy Scouts earn their survival merit badge. They had to complete a campout where they "roughed it" including building their own shelter (no sleeping bags, no tents, etc!) and making a fire without matches. Unfortunately, the night they chose had a windchill below freezing so they sure put their skills to the test! T reports he didn't get much sleep since he was helping boys improve their sleeping situation all night to keep warm - but he had a good time! He took it all very seriously "because they may need to know it someday!".
-- we were able to spend an evening along the Platte River in a blind and watch the Sandhill Cranes return to their roost. The Sandhill Cranes travel right through this area as they migrate from Texas (some go as far north as Siberia!) and it really is an impressive sight! There had to have been thousands of cranes that landed in the shallow water just in front of our blind right after sunset. Unfortunately, the low-light didn't lend itself well to truly capturing the impact via cellphone camera.. But we're loving seeing everything that is unique to this area as we know we are only here a couple years!
-- like you see in the picture, my Gma turned 94! I was on-call Saturday night so we were thrilled when we were able to scoot back to Omaha on Sunday afternoon and celebrate with her! T and I feel extremely blessed to have such amazing grandmas (that sure don't act or look their age!). Cheers to many more happy, healthy days together!

xo,
Krista

HO2-- WEEK 43

Because I haven't put a picture of T on the blog for a while..
(and a different view of the new house)

This week...

-- we enjoyed a local high school's musical, Sister Act! We are spoiled in Grand Island as both of the public schools have amazing arts departments and put on incredible shows (recent shows including In The Heights, Shrek, Mary Poppins, and now Bring It On will be the Fall musical!). T and I know a handful of teens at each school from church which makes it even more fun!
-- we spent less than an hour at the new house when we took a quick trip to drop off a couple pieces of furniture. The weather is gorgeous for March (75F!) so we considered driving over this afternoon to sit on the porch swing - but thought that may be a little much when we can totally sit outside at our current place. When I get 'home sick' I entertain myself by window shopping online. I bought some fancy soap + hand lotion to set on the kitchen sink but I haven't made any other purchases yet.
-- I'm still working with orthopedics through the end of the month and T is still studying for the different licenses! He's pretty fed-up with studying but he's hanging in there! And I'm trying to remember all of my studying tips that didn't involve sugar..

xo,
Krista

HO2-- WEEK 20

Master Wasp Killer

This week..
-- it was back to normal life at the Stoecker household! This month I am rotating with Neurology (strokes, seizures, dementia, movement disorders, MS, ALS, tumors, etc). Neurology (i.e. the human brain!) is a fascinating field so it's been a good month thus far.
-- we had a wasp infestation (so random!). We've had a variety of unwelcomed insects in this house - ask me how excited that makes me *eye roll*. T has eliminated 6 in the last 24 hours so hopefully that is the last of them!
-- T had a birthday! Of course, my call night fell on his birthday... but I was able to join him and his family for a homemade dinner by Grams! I spent the rest of the night/early morning at the hospital so I think he had fairly boring end of his birthday. But we did use his birthday as an excuse to try a steakhouse in town this weekend! Yum! T has been wishing we lived in a place where he could have a garden so I bought him an Aerogarden for his gift. I think he likes it -- he updates me daily on what is sprouting (so far two romaine lettuce plants!). We did have to banish it to the laundry room because the LED lights are so bright they light up the whole house over night...

xo,
Krista

HO2-- WEEK 12

Sunday Fun-day! Gotta love an after-church potluck
(and a husband who puts up with my random "stop and smile!" demands)

This week..
-- we were privileged to take T's Grandma out for her birthday! She's such a wonderful lady! Did I get a picture to capture the occasion - of course not! #fail But truly, we are having so much fun being in Grand Island and getting to see T's grandparents so frequently. T and I are both blessed with the best grandparents anyone could ask for!
-- T is recently addicted to the TV show Scrubs. Now, whenever I explain a work flow or a procedure or w/e to him in the middle of a story he'll interrupt me and say, "I know that already.. I saw it on Scrubs!".  My only complaint is that when it's on while I'm home, I always mistake their pagers for mine! #toomuchbeeping
-- we snagged a sushi dinner with a few of my co-residents! T was so excited to find good sushi in town! Thankfully, he had a meeting to be at afterwards so it limited his typical multiple courses (and subsequently our bill!). It was a beautiful fall-feeling night so we ended it with fro-yo on the patio- so perfect! On a busy month in the hospital, I crave the fresh air outdoors. We're sure going to miss having one of our friends in Grand Island when his rotation ends and he returns to Omaha!

xo,
Krista

HOI-- WEEK 45

Our next home! It will be a tight squeeze but I think we can keep the sectional!

This week..
-- we secured a place to live in Grand Island! We've been picky because we don't want to hemorrhage too much cash for the few years we are there. We will be downsizing (mostly storage space) so my mom was a trooper and went with me to measure every nook & cranny this weekend to could ensure our furniture we plan to move will fit in the space. Hopefully my mom also saw how easy it would be to come visit... just sayin'!
-- we had a dinner date with my Gma, Mom, & Dad! We are loving my 7a-5p schedule this month. Instead of saying "thanks for thinking of us, but we can't make it" we are almost universally saying "yes!" this month. This week I also got to spend an evening with one of my best friends and catch up on life. It's an exciting stage for everyone as we all start to lay down roots. We're so excited for them!
-- T volunteered at a Susan G. Comen event in town and was in charge of the raffle. When he came home he rattled off his speech he memorized all with all the brand name gear people could win. It was hilarious to hear T in sales-man mode. You would have thought he knew about Kate Spade and Vera Bradley!

xo,
Krista