Fix it up, Wear it out, Make it do, Or do without

We've found multiple uses for almost everything we own... here are just a few examples:

1) Plastic storage bin/ trace's bathtub/ temporary duck cage
2) Couch cover/ curtains/ quilt squares
3) Couch/ trace's bed
4) Blue foam insulation/ trailer skirt/ race car track/ kids play patio
5) Whiffle ball bat/ stick horse/ rifle/ microphone
6) Camping trailer/ house/ ant farm

Memphis Zoo

Welcome to Booneville

Over a month ago we hitched up our home and moved to Booneville Mississippi, named after R.H. Boone... yes, a relative of Daniel Boone.Our branch president and his wife were nice enough to let us squat on their acreage for as long as we like. We hope we don't wear out our welcome.
I finished up my 2nd rotation this past weekend, and while I was taking my end of rotation test Shayna was at the 'ol Rural King buying some ducks. So the 3hr drive home was serenaded by our noisy new little friends. Come to find out the weather took a turn for the colder later that night... so we've had 5 ducks in our kitchen for a few days. Today we finished their shelter outside, and are happy to announce that we are no longer those trailer people with farm animals where they prepare their food. I think after both our missions we vowed never to be those people... how cruel life is when you make ultimatums.
On top of our duck madness, we have slowly been trying to get Trace interested in ditching his diapers. The same night we had ducks in our kitchen, Trace put his new (not used) toilet seat on his head and it slid around his neck. It took a few minutes of trying to manipulate it over his ears before we could free him... we were worried for a few split seconds that he would grow up to be a potty mouth... or worse yet, a butt head.
My next rotation (Mental Health, yes I have been dreading this one) will start tomorrow and is only Tuesdays through Fridays 8-5pm. Thank goodness. Couldn't have been better timing with baby #2 on the way. Shayna keeps telling me I have multiple personalities (mainly when I don't agree with her), so I think she's afraid I'll be admitted while I'm there.
Shayna is due April first but we are banking on it being here sometime a week later (Trace was 10 days late). She's been a trooper, and is so ready to be done with pregnancy forever (if history repeats itself, ask her in a few months and she'll say she cant wait to have another one).

The Clampetts go to New Orleans

Monday morning while we were all recovering from a little case of viral nasopharyngitis (the common cold) Shayna got the idea to head down to New Orleans for a couple days... seeing as how Shayna will be ready to pop in a few weeks we decided it was as good a time as any with my weird work schedule (swing shift). We waited a day so we could drive the 5.5 hrs in the early morning... Trace traveled surprisingly better than most adults. Upon arriving in what is appropriately termed "the dirty south", we were a little worried we had set out on a family adventure, and ended up in Hades. After dropping our car off at the hotel and checking into our room, it seemed a little less derelict. Beignets and local musicians on Royal Street, constantly averting our eyes on our walk down Bourbon Ave, riverboat watching at the waterfront, taking a historic saloon themed family portrait... we did it all! Trace was in rare form as he constantly pointed at trash on the street saying "ewww" and at smokers, saying "na no".
During our dinner at Huck Finns the chef and manager were being interviewed on camera... so our festive Jambalaya meal was free... of course with that kind of luck we had to order desserts.
Besides chasing every pigeon on the street, the hotel was the highlight for Trace. He loved riding the trashcan while saying "yee-haw", and getting to take a bath in a real tub (at home we have have a plastic storage bin he baths in). Shay and I took advantage of having TV and watched 4 or 5 episodes of chopped on the food network. It was a great trip! The drive home was smooth, and we feel very blessed to have not gotten mugged by gypsies or bitten by an alligator while visiting the city with the motto "A lazy current... The seductive howl of an accordion...A splash too loud to be a fish...Pick your passion". We may never return, but it was lots of fun.

 

One Rotation Down..

The first rotation is over and we are all still alive. I spent over 200hrs with Dr Christopher Cummins in Ripley MS (home of the souths oldest flea market) and almost 40 hrs driving to and from his clinic. My first rotation was awesome! Dr Cummins is a southerner to the core and gave me opportunities to stretch beyond my comfort zone daily. Speckled throughout the 5 week rotation period were experiences including: being sung to by a geriatric that had fallen asleep during an exam and woke melodically; getting to guest star on the "Ask Dr Cummins Show" on Ripley's very own TV station; and getting to wear mardi gras beads all day on the 12th. We are indebted to his wife for serving us shrimp and grits, Paula Deane style... It was amazing. Since I don't have an Iphone, packing light each day of clinic was not an option. I always have my little worthless phone on me (worst trivial decision of 2011 was buying that thing), my laptop in the car for studying (listening to podcasts), and our halfway reliable tablet in clinic for drug referencing. I consider this set-up the caveman Iphone.

Shayna and Trace spent their days at the toyota plant RV "park" and going on "adventures". One of these consisted of RV lusting, and they later included me in this covetous practice. The Sherman RV dealer is just 10 miles from where we stay, and is filled with residencies that are considered trailer but far from trash. We felt a little guilty knowing that ruby (not getting any younger or any less wrinkles) was faithfully waiting for our return.

Norma, Shayna's classy black southern midwife, has been up to visit a few times. She has been delivering babies for 18 years and we are so happy we found her (there is only one other well established midwife in MS and she is down on the gulf 6hrs away). Shayna is a champ with this pregnancy and we are so excited for this baby to get here (its quite the little gymnast, I wouldn't be surprised if there were twins in there).

Mississippi

Here we are in the dirty sipp (as it's called by the locals). We've been here a little over a week, and it has been a bit of an adjustment for all 3 of us. Shayna is home alone with Trace from about 7am until 6pm every day... her belly is getting bigger (for a good reason) and Trace takes good care of her. I drive 40min each way to my clinical rotation, spend as much time on my feet now as I did on my rear last year, and am trying to find time to study at the end of each day. We are adjusting! Our new "RV Park" is a bit muddy since it rained most of last week (we are finding out slowly why its called the dirty sipp). Our home started to sink so we had to repark it a few times, but I think we've finally got it so that we wont find ourselves submerged in the middle of the night. We've made some new friends: The Kimbroughs, natives to the south, have had us over a few times (their son Kyle is a friend from school) and have proven that they have mastered the art of southern hospitality (we feel very blessed to live so close to them). It was a relief to finally meet Shayna's midwife, Norma Clark, yesterday for the first time. We are totally confident in her abilities to be a part of the birth of baby #2- she's been delivering babies for 18 years now in 3 states. The town we are in is officially considered to be a village (population 229). It does have a gas station/convenience store/pizza buffet... what more could we hope for. The branch, only 15 minutes away, is even smaller than our last, but still a very friendly group of southerners. The weather is finally warming up and we are thankful for it.

 Gentry RV Park

Tiny New Albany Branch

The Holidays

The 2 weeks we spent in Wallsburg went by too fast! There was hardly any snow on the ground but at least enough to go sledding behind the 4 wheeler and take a quick snowmobiling run. The nightly temperatures ranged from just above 0 degrees to below 15 degrees. So so cold. Trace got sick for half the trip... so we didn't really sleep for half of the nights. Good thing our time consisted of eating, playing, and catching up... needless to say we slept in a lot. Christmas eve we all slept over at Sarah's and some brave souls stayed up quite late watching random Christmas movies... again we are thankful that it is the season for sleeping in.  Christmas day was really fun! This was the first Christmas we have had together with my family. We received so many meaningful presents that we are grateful for. The giving didn't end after Christmas either... my mom gave us our long awaited wedding quilt... It is a work of art... she does some really nice work. Kenyn, Jenny, and Lawson came up for new years eve which ended up being an eclectic combination of food, watching the boys play, and not really doing anything. We're so grateful that the Koops aren't hard to please- we had fun just being with them! We also got a traditional bite of sushi thanks to Megan and Cory... thanks for keeping the tradition alive. It all ended, though, at 3:30am on the 4th of January when we headed to the airport. Thanks for driving Dad! We used desperate traveling parent tactics to make sure the seat next to us was empty on the plane... boarding the plane is the only time a parent really hopes that their child has a stinky diaper or is throwing a fit, because it means that the seat next to that child will remain empty unless the flight is full (in that case we have pity on the poor soul who boards last). So many things went right... up until we got home after the sun was already down... something had gone wrong with our trailers electricity. So from about 5 until 11pm I worked on figuring it out while Shayna and Trace slept over a heater vent in the kitchen powered by our battery. We went to bed before we had the power back on, hoping that the battery would power the furnace through the night. Somewhere during the night the battery ran out, but the 3 of us stayed perfectly warm under our covers. In the morning we were greeted by a reading of 38 degrees on the thermostat... a few hours later my dad and I had the power back on. Thank goodness for cell phones and amazing dads! My dad talked me through the trouble shooting process... and now a day and a half later we think we have it figured out. I wonder if my mom knows that she married a trailer repairman in disguise? At least now we have electricity and are done camping. Tomorrow I start a week of classes before we venture to Mississippi. Can't wait to get up and go!

p.s. Shayna got the news towards the end of the trip that her sister's house caught on fire. We were so sad to be far away and unable to help. We are so sorry for the loss, but thankful that everyone was safe. Summer, Sunde, and their families have such good attitudes and just keep going. Thanks to God that they are all safe.