Traveling home! After a 12 hour car ride, two 12 hour flights (with a much needed fix of chocolate, cheese, and delicious baked goods during our layover in Amsterdam!), LAX customs, and the ride to Burbank, we were excited to be with my mom and Dennis's parents for an amazing home cooked meal.
There wasn't much time to settle in, as the next day I was off to San Francisco to visit the sis and interview in a few places in the Bay Area. It was wonderful to catch up with Rebecca and the amazing Natalie Shanks over a delicious and much craved-after sushi dinner, followed the next day by a lovely sister lunch-date of falafel salad while visiting Rebecca's office. While I was enjoying the raw diet in SF, Dennis trekked south to San Diego to see friends and surprise his former co-workers at the annual holiday party. They were beyond thrilled and excited with the unexpected guest.
The weekend was a whirlwind of caffeine and studying back in Burbank at BLVD Cafecito for me, while Dennis went on a gastronomic tour of LA with Neil and Ziva, Jen and Randy, along with their lovely daughter Eleanor. On Monday we were off again, this time to Dallas for the ABOG Oral Board examination. While I was maximizing the little time left to study, Dennis was scouring the town for the best BBQ. Our first taste of Dallas BBQ, Lakewood Smokehouse, was fantastic and incredibly delicious, and the first red meat we had enjoyed in over four months. Wednesday morning, December 7th, was an early start for the exam. It was a huge relief to walk out of the ABOG testing center and know that a year and a half worth of collecting cases, studying, and anxiety was DONE. The only thing that was better was the amazing BBQ and beer that we enjoyed at the Pecan Lodge. MmmmmMmmmMmmmm. We had the chance to explore the area a bit, wandering around Deep Ellum and discovering coffee shops, book shops, and the incredible Emporium Pies shop where we were a very charismatic employee instantly sold us on every single pie in the place.
That evening we were off to Portland, Oregon for more interviews. And with that, we interrupt for some big news...***WE ARE MOVING TO PORTLAND, OREGON!
I am thrilled to accept a position at Northwest Permanente, joining the Salmon Creek Obstetrics and Gynecology team.***
In addition to meeting the new co-workers and exploring what will become our home, we loved catching up with Carol Chiu, my former chief resident and soon-to-be coworker over a delicious breakfast at Tasty and Sons. The feasting continued at the restaurant's sister location, Tasty and Alder, where we met up with my fabulous Aunt Carolyn, Uncle Drew, and cousins Daniel and Philip who had a surprise day off due to the snow and ice storms in the city. And yes, we are very much looking forward to the rain and snow that comes along with living in the Pacific Northwest :)
Friday evening we were back in Burbank, being picked up at the airport and whisked away to enjoy delicious cocktails with Jen and Randy. On Saturday the Frey-Lovell-Hess household celebrated Thankschrismukkah, enjoying wine and tasty treats at Marche Wine Bar, strolling through vintage shops, and topping-off the family festivities with take-away Mexican food from Cascabel for dinner.
Sunday was our day to relax, enjoying some down time before heading to one last sushi dinner with our families along with close friends Robert, Crystal, Natalie Moniaga, Neil and Ziva. We were so grateful to have the time to catch up with friends, and a huge thank you to everyone that traveled near and far to see us!
Monday morning offered an incredible surprise: the board examination results were posted almost five hours early, with the best results possible: PASS!! I'm officially a board certified obstetrician and gynecologist! As anyone who has taken the exam can tell you, soon after walking out of the exam the relief of being done is soon overtaken by an intense anxiety and PTSD, reliving every single question asked and reviewing every minute detail of your answer given, wondering if you said all of the right things or adequately conveyed your management of a situation. Even with the results, the worry didn't fully wear off until over a month after the exam. Until I again realized: I'M DONE.
We, along with Dennis's parents, celebrated the good news with some morning bubbly before heading to the airport once more to begin our trip back to the African continent, starting with the beautiful country of South Africa.
Cheers!
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