weekend @ gmas

Just made it back from a nice relaxing weekend @ gmas in Hutch. Drove in Friday night after work, and gma made me a nice dinner of tuna salad. Hit up Target Friday night for some heavenly angora socks (75% off!) and then Walmart for some not-so- heavenly but 100% necessary support hose. I saw 3 patients last week with horrible twisty varicose veins and decided the baby varicosity I already have is all I ever need 0r want. Other great bargains I found this weekend include:

-new pillows: sorry Felipe but yours have to go - they are lumpy, bumpy, and lets just say they are not the brilliant white of their more youthful days

-new sheets (2 sets!): a man-friendly navy and then a lovely white eyelet (lets hope they do not have the same dingy fate as the aforementioned pillow)

-lunch at Dutch Kitchen: 2 pieces of crispy home-fried chicken, creamy mashed potatoes with white gravy, fresh green beans, and a home-made dinner roll = heaven.

-large pearl tapioca - yummy!

McP update

Well, can't say I'm loving McP as much as the first day. Dr. Overholt is great, and while I enjoy many aspects of her practice (keeping on time, decent hours, lots of procedures, confidence) I've decided her EXACT practice is not for me. She focuses on women's health and over 1/2 of her visits are well woman exams, ob appointments, sonos, or deliveries (regular + c-section.) She does not accept male patients over the age of 40. Actually I don't believe I have seen a single patient over the age of 40, except for a few she was covering in the hospital. Personally I ADORE the geriatric population and would like to have lots of them as patients. Not such a fan of all the women's health and definitely not a fan of the OR.

Here's a glimpse into what my other 2/3rds have been doign while I'm away. Looks like trouble!

Melissa in McP

Just finished my first day of Family Medicine in McPherson. I am working with Dr. Overholt, a Houston medschool grad, who did her residency in Arkansas. I really love her style, she practices the way I feel family medicine should be and the way I see myself practicing in the future. Instead of only treating colds and referring the more complicated conditions, she does it all. She emphasizes in Ob/Gyn doing everything from ultrasounds, to c-sections, to colposcopies. She's comfortable doing a lot of different procedures, which breaks up the monotomy of back to back to back clinic patients. She's confident in her abilities, efficient, and doesn't seem to work excessive hours - all things VERY important to me! We'll see how the rest of the 2.5 weeks goes, but so far this looks like it will be a very educational experience.

fresh-baked apple pie pocket

I had 3 beginning to wrinkle apples I wanted to use up before I went down to McPherson. What better way to use up apples than with a homemade apple pie? I poured me a nice glass of wine and got to baking. I decided I wasn't really in the mood to make a traditional 2-crust apple pie (too much work), and I'm not really a fan of the crumble top pie (too much like apple crisp), so I settled on a pie-pocket which turned out nice and yummy. Plus my house smelled AMAZING!

Here's a shot of the apples before they were slipped into the pocket.
Between dessert last night and breakfast this morning, the ENTIRE pie pocket is in our tummies! I highly recommend this wine, it is called a "soft red" from Italy and has just a hint of carbonation. Not large bubbles like champagne but a bit of fizz. I think I picked it up at World Market.
Speaking of wine, I picked up a little wine rack today on my unintentional shopping spree. It all started with a trip to Bed Bath & Beyond to get a wedding gift for Noor and Jiten. By the time it was through I had made 4 trips to my car dropping things off! Goodies include:

• Pier 1: wine rack, rattan tray
• Old Navy: pj pants, hoodie, 2 shirts, 2 pairs of socks for baby Mason
• Bed Bath & Beyond: decanter (wedding gift from their registry) - they have FREE wrapping which is a lifesaver
• Kohls: black leather vera wang boots with a bow, 2 dresses for spring (maybe I can wear one to the wedding!), brown leather peep-toe pumps, black sweats
• Forever 21: AWESOME sunglasses remnicent of the Golden Girls
  

get it while it's hot!

Finally I have found the elusive recipe for Jiffy's brownie bottom cheesecake. I have been looking all over town for awhile in search of Jiffy brownie mix. This recipe is definitely a keeper!

Brownie base:

• 1 pkg Jiffy Fudge Brownie Mix
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp. water
• 2 Tbsp. oil
• 1/2 c. chocolate chips

Topping:

• 1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 c. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a pie pan. Blend brownie base ingredients, pour into prepared pan.

Blend cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until creamy. Add eggs, mix well. Pour over brownie batter and sprinkle with chocolate chips. Bake 30-35 minutes. Let cool before serving.

Enjoy!

wedding weekend

Had a lovely road trip to Hutchinson, Hesston, and Wichita this weekend for Stan and Kelli's wedding. We drove down to Hutchinson Friday night after clinic. Ironic enough, when we stopped at Arby's in Junction City for dinner they were out of roast beef! It might be one of those stories that is only funny to the people who were there but we thought it was just hilarious! On the way there I finished up soon-to-be little Oliver's booties (they go with the yoda hat that still needs another trip through the wash.)

Saturday morning the whole family came over for an engagement brunch. It was so fun to see everyone and show off my handsome fiance and my lovely ring!

Here's some pics of the wedding cake and groom's cake from the reception. A mutual friend of ours made both. She did an AMAZING job! Not only did it look great but it was super yummy. My piece was lemon with raspberry filling and buttercream frosting. The nose of the groom's cake really lit up - so cool.

The last pic is of my knitting group - 2 of the ladies were bridesmaids and one was the lovely bride. Everyone is scattering across the country for residency next year; I don't know what I'm going to do. I will miss them bunches!

this post is dedicated to my favorite surgeon

what comes between an apartment and a house? a duplex!

We just might have a new place - a duplex! Now at first we were like, who wants a duplex? It's not an apartment, but not yet a house either. But you know, it has some really good benefits. You get a lot of the pros of a house (basement, garage, personal washer and dryer) with a few pros of an apartment (no lawn upkeep!) Plus, in an apartment you have to deal with a gaggle of potentially nosy neighboors where here you only have to deal with one. I've got my fingers crossed. Anyways, we could inhabit either the top or bottom floor. We are leaning towards the top - love the little upstairs porch! The street can't be beat. Literally mansions on everyside. The neighboorhood is called Historic Hyde Park. For those of you who have luckily missed out on the drama, after taking our security deposit for the UGLY brown house the landlord decided to rent to other people. When he told us he was holding the house for us, he forgot to mention how many other renters he was also holding the house for. GRRRRRRRR!

Anyways, I made a lovely dinner last night: cheesy turkey meatloaf with sides of asparagus, baked potato, and biscuits. It was a lovely accompanyment to a national championship! Here's the recipe: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Incredibly-Cheesy-Turkey-Meatloaf/Detail.aspx

lasagna!

Spinach Artichoke Lasagne (http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Artichoke-Spinach-Lasagna/Detail.aspx?prop31=1) - yummy! Even my picky fiance ate it:) Up next - Cheesy Turkey Meatloaf.

med school prom

Last night was A Grande Affair (aka med school prom.) This was our fourth year attending, and while the fun factor was high, the food factor was quite low. Fatty roast beef with sides of cabbage (yes, cabbage on a crowded dance floor) and scalloped potatoes from a box. Nonetheless, it was SO fun to get all dressed up and celebrate another year with all of our friends. Here's our favorite married couple - Randy & Hannah. She's due in July! They always have us over for dinner and video games. I can't wait to return the favor next year when we hve our own house!
Felipe & the guys - Brian Hollenbeck, Randy Schumacher, and Kyle Schulz.
My good friend Emily and I. She's engaged to the guy on the left (I introduced them!)
Eloise and I wedding planning. She's so precious! I went to a bridal fair today with my FMIL (future-mother-in-law). It was OVERWHELMING! I ate way too much cake and gave out my e-mail address to vendors way too many times. My favorite part was the runway show with all the gorgeous bridal dresses. Destination wedding here I come!