Christmas with the Family- Dec 24-27, 2009

One of my biggest breaks of the year 2009 was landing Christmas off and the weekend after to spend with my family. It was good quality time, just relaxed by the fireside, ate lots of food, and enjoyed the people who matter most to me. :)

Secret Santas, Goodwill, and Ugly Holiday Sweaters- Dec 20, 2009

Somehow, despite the fact that it's year 3 of our goodwill festivities, people are still pulling out some ridiculous prank gifts from their attics. The Nyes definitely won this year's ugly Christmas sweater award. The most memorable part of the evening, though, was Dave freaking out when Jess "gifted" him with a dog, Roger.

WashU, St. Louis, and Sheila- Dec 18, 2009

Planned on short notice, I went on my first fellowship interview at WashU. It was driveable from Cincy so I left Thursday after clinic, interviewed Friday, and spent the weekend with Sheils in her new stomping ground. We ate at a greek restaurant with belly dancers, stood in line in the freezing cold for Ted Drewes frozen custard, and watched the KU game. It's good to spend time with friends.

Peds Holiday Party- Dec 11, 2009

The peds holiday party is definitely a highlight in the year. A good chance to see everybody all cleaned up and in a dancing spirit...maybe it's just the open bar. This year was no exception and red was definitely the color of the year. We had fun with a dollar bill, Kim and I took a billion "smies-ing" photos, and we hit up FB, the new bar in town, to finish out the night.

A Batcave Christmas- December 2009

Since we were hosting the alphabet club x-mas party this year, Kim and I went all out with not one, but two trees. Kim got us some matching personalized ornaments and spent the rest of the month writing out her jillions of christmas cards.

Grand Plan- Dec 3, 2009

So Kim's grand plan of suckering more people into staying in Cincinnati as she's on the 5-year-plan is starting to work. This week both Tara and Patty matched in their first choices here at Children's--signing up for 3 more years of being spoiled at CCHMC. I couldn't be happier.

Thanksgiving...Alphabet Club Style- Nov 28, 2009

Abby graciously hosted this year's med-peds thanksgiving and made a delicious turkey amongst other delectable treats. Missy brought her delicious sweet potato dish (girl knows her sweet potatoes) and I stuffed myself with multiple helpings. As you'll notice from this point forward there will be less photos of me as I'm gaining a bit of a belly friend.

Quadruple Baby Shower!- Nov 21, 2009

Cincinnati Children's is definitely the place to have a baby...I'm actually feeling a little left out. Not really. So it's not surprising that 4 of our illustrious class members are having a baby. To commemorate we had one big baby shower. Hillary came up with some pretty fun games- scooping out cotton-balls (babies) blindfolded, diapering up babies, coming up with song names. Above all, it's always fun getting a big group of our class together. It doesn't happen enough.

Dim Sum Dim- Nov 14, 2009

Asian people unite! When there's dim sum to be had, we can stuff ourselves silly. Check out the volume of food 2 tiny girls, JT, and I can eat.

Jeff Ruby's- Nov 4, 2009

So fancy pants! Tara won a gift certificate in a raffle at Bootsy's so she invited Kim and I to partake in the luxe Jeff Ruby's experience. It literally smells like steak when you walk in. Despite being a weeknight (and running into current attendings :), it was a really good time. Must've been the company.

Halloween- Oct 31, 2009

Since I had to be in bed early for my call the next day, Halloween wasn't as late night, all night as last year. It actually ended up being a last minute costume decision, tennis player complete with trophy and tennis ball underwear. Kim was even more ridiculous with her Ohio State fan gear (crazy for a Michigan fan). The rest of the crew gathered at Angie's place in plainclothes, but it was a good time. Besides, I'd have been really surprised to see Missy or Elizabeth in a costume. :)

Friday Evening- Oct 30, 2009

Life in the batcave is a rowdy, singles delight. Just kidding, here is a sample of a lively Friday night for Kim and I. Wine and TV in our pj's. I think I fell asleep in the middle of the Office.

Rent- Oct 29, 2009

One great thing about Cincinnati is the Broadway Across America series. Cathy and Marian are always down with the theatre scene so I was really excited to see Rent. Somehow I forgot most of it from the movie, so it was like watching it for the first time...again.

Day Off, Biking the Loveland Trail- Oct 26, 2009

I was a beautiful, brisk cold day in Cincinnati, so there was nowhere I wanted to be more than on the trail, soaking in the sunshine. The leaves are changing, making for a soothing wondrous path. While my legs are confused right now since they haven't seen so much activity in a while, it feels good.

T for Tostadas- Oct 17, 2009

Tostados was a delicious choice for T. Ali and Quatro were in rare form, cute, cute, cute. Too bad I had to go to work afterwards because the margaritas looked delicious.

Savannah, GA- Sept 27-28, 2009

My mom could not stop going on about Savannah's charm and it's rare ability to have maintained it through all these years. I must admit, I really enjoyed seeing all the architecture and hearing about all the history.