What's Match Day Really Like?

I have a love/hate relationship with Match Day. The parts of it leading up to the day...the pressure and  anxiety and how everything is kept in the dark and the complete lack of answers...I hate that part. A lot. But the actual Match Day? I loved it. Best day ever. And I think I would have felt that way even if the envelope hadn't said what I wanted it to say.

We woke up that day at the crack of dawn...because really, who can sleep when they're about to find out their future?! We were excited and jittery and anxious, but (speaking for myself) waaaay less nervous that I was expecting. I think it was just that feeling of...it's here. 



We got ready and then started the day at some of our close friends' house, where we toasted the day we've been talking about forever. It's been really cool to have friends that are going through the exact same journey you are, but on this day-where we were all about to find out what was going to happen to our futures-it was especially sweet.



After a mimosa or two it was time to head to the school, and when we got in the car is when I finally started feeling a little anxious. So we did what any two rational adults would do...I turned on my favorite rap music entirely too loud and we danced it out.

We got to the school, which was all decked out for Match Day. All the pictures I have of us from the first few minutes we were there look like this:



Nerves, nerves, nerves. But after walking around for a minute, seeing our friends and family, and just seeing the whole atmosphere, we loosened up and starting having some fun.

There were over 100 students there to find out their fate, and their friends and families were there, and it was just such a cool experience. The energy was so high, everyone was excited, and it was an amazing thing to get to share with our families.



The whole ceremony took place in an outdoor courtyard. They had everyone's name on a star, all in a circle around the yard. After hellos and nervous chatter and mingling, it was time for everyone to grab their little black boxes and go find their stars.




You got to request who to stand by, so we were between our two best friends from med-school. It was so sweet to get to experience this moment with them, and since I had to stand behind Chris (you know, since I'm not actually in med-school myself, so I didn't get a star), it was perfect to get to stand with another student's partner, someone who has walked through the same thing I had and who was just as nervous as me. You can explain this process to whoever will listen, but there's nothing like having someone who knows what it's like first-hand.



Once everyone got in the giant circle is when I started crying (for the first time that day, so hey, I call that a win.) It was just such an amazing moment that was so many years in the making. There were a few speeches, one in particular that referenced the first day of school four years ago where they all received their white coats. I remember sitting in that ceremony and thinking how Match Day didn't even seem real, it was so far away. It was emotional to think of all that's happened since then.

Then, the countdown. Everyone across the country opens their envelopes at the exact same time. So the whole courtyard counted down from 10, and in a moment that I'll never, ever forget as long as I live, Chris opened his box and pulled out a golden envelope.



A little side note here: The match letters did not have the names of the cities, they had the names of the hospitals. I did not memorize the names of the hospitals, so for a solid ten seconds I was so confused. 

Seeing those words, "Congratulations-you matched!" while standing outside with 100 other people finding out the same thing was an incredible moment.

We spent the rest of the day laughing and crying and celebrating and sharing our good news.

It was a day I will never, ever forget. A once-in-a-lifetime experience that I'm so glad we got to have together, with baby Jack right there with us.

And now...I'm so glad it's over. Onto the next adventure!

We Made It.

Today is going to be wonderful. Or awful. Or maybe both, I'm not sure.

At 12:00 today, Christopher is going to open an envelope, and inside that envelope will be the name of the hospital that has hired him for his first job as a doctor. The name of our new city.

So what city is on the inside of the envelope?

We. Have. No. Idea.

As much as we've spent this week talking and thinking and guessing, we just don't know.

But here's what I do know.

I know that today is a huge accomplishment. It is an honor. One that has been four years (more, really!) in the making.

I know that Chris is the most hardworking person I know, and today is the day he gets to see that pay off.

I know that when I met him 8 years ago, he talked about wanting to be a surgeon, and he hasn't stopped talking about it since. Today is truly a dream come true for him.



I know that for me, the worst case scenario today is that the envelope holds the name of a city where I don't want to live. And even in that scenario, I get to move there with the love of my life, our precious little babe, and our fox. We'll all start an adventure somewhere new where Chris will be working a job he absolutely loves. If that's the worst that could happen, then man, my life is good.

As we head off to this intense NFL draft of medicine, I'm so anxious, so excited, so nervous, so ready, and a million other emotions. But my heart is bursting with pride.

I'm so proud of Chris. I'm so proud that he's getting to see his dream come true today.

I'm so proud of us. I'm proud that we've pressed through the hard times (because med school is hard) and lived every moment of the good times. I'm so proud that we've stuck together through it all.

I can't believe that today is here. That we finally made it today.

We made it. 

So, yeah. Today is going to be wonderful. 

Christopher, 

Congratulations on making it this far. I can't wait to spend all my years laughing with you, no matter where that may be. 

Home is wherever I'm with you. xo

Hello to The Most Stressful Seven Days Ever.

One week from today, Christopher will open a box that will determine where the next chapter of our lives will be taking place.

If you're wondering how I'm handling that stress and uncertainty and such a big change hovering, I'll just go ahead and tell you: NOT WELL.

Since we turned the list in, I've tried handling this a few different ways.

First: Pretend it's not happening. If I don't think about it, I won't stress about it. Wrong. 

Next: Think about it too much. Question everything. Rethink the entire last year of my life. Not a good strategy. 

Third: Back to ignoring it. Still not working. 

Up next: Look at houses in every single town that's even a remote possibility on the list. Become instantly overwhelmed at all the options. Pass. 

Fifth: Talk to Gatsby and Jack about this for entirely too long before realizing that neither one of them is ever going to talk back and I am, in fact, going crazy.

Back to ignoring it. 

If you need me at any point over the next seven days, I'll be somewhere in between pretending I'm fine and carefree and stress eating my way through Orlando.

Happy Friday, everybody.

Four More Weeks.

Four weeks. That's how long lies between us and finding out what the rest of our life looks like.

That sounds a bit dramatic, and really, it is. There will be a ceremony and someone will hand Chris a box, and inside of that box will be an envelope with one of 18 cities listed inside of it-the city where we will be relocating and starting the next big part of our life. Chris will stand in a circle with all 100+ of the other med-school students in his class, and with everyone's family and friends looking on, they will all open their boxes at the exact same time.

So yeah, a little bit dramatic.

Match Day. Everything has been leading up to this. Chris' undergrad, applying to and choosing where to go for med-school, away rotations, long shifts at the hospital, applying and traveling and interviewing for residency spots...the last 7+ years have all come down to this. A moment that I will share with approximately 400 other people as I find out what that little box has to say about our future.

A big part of me is excited-a new city, a new house, new adventures. I'm so proud of Chris, who has worked SO hard to get here. I'm so excited for him to get to start his journey has a doctor. For him to truly get to begin his career. I'm excited to see what life will look like in our new place.

A smaller (but perhaps louder) part of me is absolutely terrified. Knowing that I could end up in a town a few hours away or a town across the whole country and not having any indication which one it's going to be doesn't do much to relax me, you know?

Until we find out, I'm taking comfort in the fact that the things about me that I love are moveable. I'm a wife and a blogger and a mom and a writer, and I can be those things from anywhere. There isn't a corner of the whole world I could move to that my parents wouldn't come visit, because I'll have their grandchild with me. I'm trying to have tender roots (a concept I learned from my friend Yelle) that can be picked up and planted anywhere. I'm trying to remember all that stuff I said last year about learning to love the unknown.

The bottom line is this: I'm excited and I'm terrified and I'm proud and I'm sad, and in four weeks, none of that will matter, because the piece of paper on the inside of that envelope on the inside of that box is going to say what it's going to say. To me, that is equal parts freeing and maddening.

Four weeks. Twenty-eight days. Until then, I'll be haphazardly balancing somewhere between relaxing and enjoying the moment and wildly panicking about the upcoming news.

Stay tuned.

Stopping to Take it All In: Med School Update.

As of a few week ago, we turned in all of Chris' residency applications. After so long (years, really!) of talking about what he wanted to specialize in and where we wanted to live and a million other details, it seemed so weird and amazing and final.

Christopher has started to get interview offers, and it seems so surreal. Each time he gets an offer, I feel like my heart just might explode with pride and happiness and all sorts of emotions (even the ones that are in the freezing cold lands of Wisconsin). For every email I see come through (the offers come via email), I just think, we did that. All of our work up to this point has been for this. 

Small side note: Yes, I do realize Chris is the one working hard in med-school and not me, no need to be rude and bring that to my attention. But like I said, we're a team. The past four years has included a heck of a lot of teamwork, and it's all been for this. 

Every night shift where Chris didn't get to sleep and I stayed awake trying to convince myself there wasn't a serial killer hiding in my closet, that was for this. Every time his alarm went off at 3:00 AM and he had to get dressed in the dark because he wanted me to sleep. Every time he had to miss out on something fun. Every time he would come home to take me on a date, only to get called back in to work. It's like every interview that comes in is saying, hey, you did it. It was worth it. And I am so proud of us. I'm proud of Chris, I'm proud of myself, I'm proud of our marriage. We did it, and it was worth it. 

There's plenty more to look forward to. Match Day (March 18th), graduation (May 20th), and starting a job (Job! Not School! YES!) in a new city with a new house and a tiny new family. But for now, I'm just savoring this season. A season of anticipation and hope, a season of seeing how all of our hard work is starting to pay off, a season having so many big things hovering, but just enjoying the now. 

I'm a part of this online group of Doctors' wives, and it has members from wives of med-students all the way to wives of doctors who have been working for decades. The ones who have med-school and residency long behind them use the hashtag #itgetsbetter when they post about certain things, and it's like a reminder to those who are still early on in their journey to hang in there, it gets better. 

I totally believe it gets better. I know there will be a day when Chris has a work schedule that includes a normal amount of hours and a much larger paycheck. I know there will be a day where I won't have to work if I don't want to. Where we'll be able to buy a house. Where dinner together won't seem like a luxury. So yeah, I know, it will get better. 

But you know, it's also pretty good now. All of those things will be wonderful whenever they happen, but I don't need them to be happy. I'm happy now, in this season we're in. So I'm going to savor it, every last second.

Today is Big.

This weekend was magical. I spent it with Christopher in Birmingham, Alabama, and had the best time ever. Now, Alabama isn't really somewhere that comes to mind when I think about what the best weekend ever looks like, but because of who I got to spend it with, it really was the best.

Today is a big day. It's the day that all of the applications for residency programs are due. As of 9:00 this morning, all of our choices will be in. All of our research and trying to decide where to apply and where we might want to live is over. All of Chris' hard work over the past 4 years has been for this. And once he submits his applications, he's done all he can do. It now moves into hands off and pray like crazy that you get some interviews.

The trip to Birmingham was because it's a potential place to live next year. Again, not really at the top of my list, but at this point, I'm trying to have an open mind. Since, apparently, I am not in charge of how everything turns out for everyone. If only.

When I got to Alabama, I had the best time. The weather was perfect, the parks were perfect, the food was perfect, hanging out with Christopher and dreaming/freaking out/discussing our future was perfect. 

And most of all, the timing was perfect. Because on a day like today--one that holds so much significance and finality--it would be easy to freak out (of course I will) and worry that we didn't apply to the right places and start making a list of the only places I will be happy living. 

But instead, I'm just going to think of Alabama. And how no, I don't really want to live there. But if I had to, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. It wouldn't even be close. It would be the best, because of who I get to live there with. 

So today is big. It kicks off the biggest, scariest, most adventurous season yet. But after this weekend, I just have a feeling that no matter what schools call about interviews, or how many interviews he goes on, or where we actually match, life is going to be really, really beautiful. 

"Home, let me go home. Home is wherever I'm with you."

Life Updates: Match Day, I See You.

After some questions on Monday's post, I realized that while I mention bits and pieces about med-school, I don't ever really talk about it in terms that apply to me. And I thought, well that sounds like a good blog post.

While I am not in med-school, it is a huge part of my life. I met Chris when I was 15, we started dating when I was 17, we got engaged at 19 (I know, I know, it's young), and married when I was twenty. We got married on his break during his first year of school, so our entire marriage has involved med-school. Because of this I feel like I have a pretty good perspective of it. One of these days I'll blog about all the ins and outs that would have been nice to know beforehand, but until then, if you have any questions--I'm your gal.

But, about where we're at now: Medical School is four years long. Chris is in his fourth year (#PRAISES) now. He's finished all of his tests and is now just finishing out the year working different rotations in different hospitals/clinics/etc.

By September, he has to have all of his applications for residency programs in. He'll go on interviews from November-January (which I'm kind of looking at as a bunch of cross country road trips...yes please.) and then comes match day.

Match day is a cruel and unusual punishment. Everywhere that Chris goes on an interview, he ranks. 1-5 or 1-100, they all get ranked. These places also rank Chris. Instead of just saying, "Hey, we like you!" Or, "Mmmm, not gonna work out!" Everything just stays a big secret. Until match day.

Chris will "match" with the program that he ranks and that ranks him that matches up closest. And because a simple phone call informing him of this would be too painless easy, some sadist invented match day.

Everyone in the entire class finds out where they match on this day. Together. All at the same time. They're given envelopes to open in front of everyone's friends and family. All together. At. The. Same. Time.

Again, a brutal system.

Right now, life is just a big, anxious, exciting adventure. Because on March 18th, we'll find out where we'll be moving and starting the next phase of the adventure. The planning side of me says that this is unacceptable, the hippie side of me is excited for a surprise and a new place to explore.

Anyway, it's a day that's four years in the making. And whatever place is written on the inside of that envelope, it's an adventure waiting to happen.

I hope that explains a little bit better about exactly where we are in the journey. And boy, is it a journey. But, my partner's pretty cute, so I'll take it.

Have any of you ever experienced a match day, or anything like it? 

Life Doesn’t Have to be Extravagant to be an Adventure.

Today is a good, good day. 

As I type this, Chris is taking his last ever med school test. 

No. More. Studying. 

I am so excited about this that I don’t even really know how to put it into words, so I’ll just say this: If you need me tonight, I’ll just be dancing of uncontrollable happiness somewhere.

Anyway, it’s made me think. When you’re younger and summers mean breaks from school, summer is all about adventure. And that never really goes away, except now you have to work and take care of things and most likely don’t have a responsibility-free summer. 

So the adventure is planned. It's sorted into vacations that we count down to, or road trips that we use our vacation days for. Summer still makes us excited, it still makes us want adventure, but that adventure doesn’t permeate each day, because we have things to do. We don’t have time for life to be extravagant, because we’re busy. Adventure has to wait until vacation. 

But I’m learning daily…life does not have to be extravagant to be an adventure.

Today is a good day, but it’s not extravagant. 

I’m going to work. Chris is taking a test, for goodness sake. I’ll have tons left on my to-do list by the time work is over. I’ll come home to a house that needs to be cleaned and laundry that needs to be done. 

But tonight will see celebratory chick-fil-a…giant cups of sweet tea cheering to the end of studying. Going swimming under the stars. Watching a movie just because. 

None of that is extravagant. I will still wake up tomorrow and come to work. My house will still need to be cleaned. My to-do list will still be overflowing. 

But it is an adventure. And a beautiful one at that. 

How do you make everyday life adventurous?