Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Posts Tagged ‘family-time’

Jeffrey’s family flew up from Texas this past weekend for a quick visit.  Because we only had 3.5 days to enjoy with them, we had a “fairly regimented” activity list to make the most of our time (even though we still spent most of our Saturday lounging around the house, baking cookies, and watching TV… because “doing nothing” is an activity that I highly value these days).

At this point, I know my mom is asking herself: “Why did she post these pictures before posting pictures of our trip to the Mayan Riviera?!” And to that I respond: “My Mayan Riviera pictures amounted to nearly one-thousand, so it’s taking me a while to pick out the good ones.  PATIENCE!” :)

Ok?  Ok.  So here are the highlights of the weekend:

1. Girlie brunch at Stephanie’s prior to some Newbury Street shopping

rhodes1

2. Perusing Anthro for cool home-decor ideas (like fish-tank pebbles between dinner plates!)

rhodes2

3. Quick pit-stop to pick up a six-pack… of GEORGETOWN CUPCAKES!!!

rhodes3

rhodes16

4. Assembling Jeffrey’s new bike in preparation for the 2013 JDRF Lake Tahoe Ride to cure diabetes (support Jeffrey as he rides for team Tyler+Jeff HERE!)

rhodes13

5. In-laws being all lovie-dovie as they shared the back seat with our new stand-up freezer… HAHAHA!!

rhodes10

6.  Prepping to host a delish family lunch-party

rhodes5

7. R family reunion!

rhodes9

rhodes6

8. Guests doing the dishes.  How rude of me!

rhodes15

9. Nature hike

rhodes7

10. …..and dinner at Tenoch Mexican Taqueria!  It’s the real deal.  Best Mexican food in Boston.  At Mexican prices.  Because you can get the girl out of Mexico, but you can’t get Mexico out of the girl.  And the girl puts Mexico into anyone around her.  AY AY AY!

rhodes4

Thank you for a great weekend to the whole R Family!

It’s lovely to hear from you. Comments and “likes” make my day, so don’t be shy! Subscribe for email post notifications on the right-hand sidebar, and follow DoctorOnTheSide on Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest!

Read Full Post »

For a person used to constant >100 degree weather, there is something magically surreal about the idea of a White Christmas.  Couple that to a childhood in the interminable flatlands of northern Mexico/southern Texas, mesquite trees, and ranches full of cacti, and the thought of a Winter Wonderland naturally becomes an impossibility achievable only through the magic of Hollywood.

And then the mom-and-dad-in-law decided to buy a house in Colorado, and my fabled White Winter Wonderland Christmas magically became real.

IMG_8008

IMG_8038

IMG_7982

IMG_8394

IMG_8179

We spent our 4 days there relaxing by the wood-burning stove, reading novels on the window seat overlooking the snowy Rockies, and going through Jeffrey’s mom’s long list of “Minute to Win It” games…

IMG_8125

IMG_8098

IMG_8102

We also made an extensive assortment of astronomically calorie-rich treats, including cupcakes, cake pops, pecan pie, puppy chow, sugar cookies, almond bark pretzels, etc., etc.

IMG_8285

IMG_8422

And did you know that snow-shoeing the silent, peaceful, uninhabited Rocky Mountains is pretty much the coolest thing you could ever do in your life?  It’s just you, the snow-covered baby pine trees, a squirrel or two trying to keep warm, the sound of the wind, and the majestic mountainside.  (And your brother-in-law whacking you with snowballs.)

IMG_8327

We also all had matching PJ’s.  Yes.

IMG_8145

IMG_8316

And because we don’t have kids, we get to be the kids.  And go on a sleigh ride!  OMG!

IMG_8333

IMG_8379

The beauty of the whole thing was no joke.  And no, of course I didn’t make the sleigh stop in the middle of nowhere so I could jump out, mount the camera on the tripod, and set up The Perfect Shot.  No!  That would be ridiculous and irrational and embarrassing to all involved………

Also, I coulda’ chosen a smaller hat.

IMG_7920

So it turns out White Christmases in Winter Wonderlands exist!  Nice move, in-laws.  Nice move, indeed.

I hope your holidays were marvelous and that you were able to spend them with your loved ones.  Happy New Year to all, and thank you for continuing to read my ramblings and enjoy my photos!  You’ve made this blog one of my favorite things in the world!!!!!!!!

Comments and “likes” make me happy. So if you’re reading, please share your thoughts! Also, subscribe for email post notifications on the right-hand sidebar, and follow DoctorOnTheSide on Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram.

Read Full Post »

As I spend this holiday away from mine and Jeffrey’s family—working back-to-back overnight shifts in the pediatric emergency room instead of stuffing my face with Nani’s pure de papas—I find that the best way to feel close to family is through photographs.  So I will take this opportunity to be thankful for priceless family moments by sharing my favorite pictures from my favorite thing that happened this year: that time when 14 of my aunts, uncles, and cousins (you know, about 1/5 of my family on my mom’s side) came to visit us in Boston!

I am thankful for…

little cousins!

help in the kitchen

picnics in the back yard

dance parties in the sunroom (they turned my star in to a disco-ball…)

sailing off to find whales

taking over public spaces. sorry, everybody else, the stairs are OURS.

silly soda breaks

and giant cupcakes

ice cream for dinner (energy fuel)

private tours because our group was bigger than anyone else’s

infinite photo-ops

PILGRIMS!

filling the entire center table at Mr. Bartley’s

serious conversations (in English, of course. my little cousins are very mindful.)

more ice cream

And last but not least, I am thankful for…

a family that travels in packs

¡GRACIAS!

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!  And stay away from the emergency room!

List of things that are not emergencies:

  1. the sore throat you had last week
  2. the rash that sometimes itches that you noticed 3 weeks ago
  3. that cough that hasn’t cleared
  4. sleepiness after eating too much turkey

List of things that are emergencies:

  1. new-onset seizure
  2. your arm fell off
  3. baby turned blue
  4. asthma attack
  5. chest pain
  6. dehydration
  7. car crash
  8. full-body hives, swollen lips, and wheezing
  9. sudden testicular pain
  10. rectal temperature > 100.4 in a less-than-2-month-old
Comments and “likes” make a blogger’s heart happy! So if you’re reading, share your thoughts! Also, subscribe for email post notifications on the right-hand sidebar, and follow DoctorOnTheSide on Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram.

Read Full Post »

8dJ5lS on Make A Gif, Animated Gifs

Jeffrey’s family is from the US.  Mine is from Mexico.

He has 3 first cousins.  I have 45.

His parents have dinner at 5:30.  Mine at 9:30 (if they’re lucky).

His family plans trips a year in advance.  My parents tossed a coin once to decide between mountains and beach, and drove off for their vacation the next day.

When flying, his parents get to the airport several hours early, to be first in line and ensure seats together.  Mine wait to go through security only after “G****, PARTY OF FIVE, YOUR PLANE IS ABOUT TO TAKE OFF” is heard over the intercom.  (Then it happened again with their connecting flight.  True story.)

But both our families sit at the dinner table together.  We speak with our parents almost daily over the phone, and we can spend days upon days hanging out with our siblings.  We get surprise care packages in the mail from our moms, and sometimes even frozen homemade food.  We have 6 grandparents between the two of us, whom we cherish and enjoy margaritas with several times a year.  And whenever possible, we choose spending time with our families to pretty much anything else.

So when Jeffrey’s Papaw decided to turn 80 this year, the fam didn’t hesitate to celebrate together and go BIG with a week at a beach-house in Destin, Florida.

Day 1: the day everybody got roasted.

yours truly, and Jeffrey

in-laws being silly during our walk on the beach

deep-sea fishing with all the boys...

...and showing them up by catching a HUGE (but useless) shark-sucker (which we threw back in the water because they taste bad)... but it was HUGE! and lives on a SHARK!

66 white snappers and 1 mingo snapper = dinner

hilarious pelican begging for fish scraps

delicious lunch at "Dewey Destin's"

Jeffrey and I with bro-in-law and his "handsome new facial hair"

BEST FROZEN CUSTARD EVEEEEEEER!!!

enjoying seaside margaritas


mom making sure her boys boogie-board safely...

Papaw's birthday dinner: filet mignon, baked potatoes, salad, moscato d'asti, margaritas, cinnamon pound cake with ice cream, presents, picture session, card games, and puzzles :)

my favorite part about this photo? the spit on his chin. perfect!

brotherly love... healing each others battle wounds (aka: lack of sunblock use)

bye bye awesome house, and bye bye Destin!

So when it comes to the things that really matter, our families are actually pretty much identical.  And that is how we managed to fit right into each others lives and embrace both families as our very own… as if we both came from a place where dinner is served at 7:30 (a happy medium!).

Remember, comments and “likes” make a blogger’s heart happy.  Subscribe for email post notifications on the right-hand sidebar, and follow me @DoctorOnTheSide!

Read Full Post »

Ciao, people!  I’ve been away from the blog for almost two weeks because I went straight from working on the wards to doing back-to-back shifts at the emergency department without any breaks!  It was A LOT of fun, but my body is really appreciating its first full weekend off in 2 months :)

A lot of our family members have been asking me for pictures of our home, so I came up with an idea to show it to you—little by little (it’s more exciting that way).  It’ll be a new series of posts called “Mi casita,” and each will showcase a different room and all the things that make it “our favorite room in the house.”  With all the madness sweeping the northeastern U.S. because of Hurricane Irene (which turned out to be nothing more than a windy tropical storm here in Boston), Jeffrey and I have spent most of our Sunday enjoying the sound of wind rustling through the trees from our sunroom.  So what better way to introduce you to our casita than through our wonderful sunroom!  Welcome…

We like to affectionately refer to it as the “Gramma Maxine Sunroom,” as most of what we have in there is thanks to her!  Example: the awesome round table and chairs we inherited from her when she moved to a smaller place.  Merlin enjoys relaxing under it.

Whenever Jeffrey and I spend a morning together at home, we make it a point to have breakfast here and watch people go by as they walk their dogs.  The table also holds the peg solitaire game we inherited with it, seen here.  In the far corner is Jeffrey’s steel drum, which Gramma Maxine gave him when he graduated high school.  As I type, he is practicing on it… and people walking their dogs outside keep looking up at us to see where the unusual tropical sound is coming from!

You can also see my “The Count of Monte Cristo” book on the table.  I’m almost done with it!  Only 200 pages left!  It’s the best book ever written, and the unabridged version is even better than the abridged version I fell in love with my freshman year of high school.  I started it in January, so it’s about time I finish it!  It’s taken me an embarrassingly long time to get through it.  In my defense though, going on residency interviews and then actually starting residency sometimes gets in the way of random fun reading!

Speaking of reading, the sunroom also has a special reading corner…

Nothing like a papasan chair, a basket of warm blankets, and a bookshelf filled with art and travel books to inspire some good reading!  The best part is being surrounded by windows instead of walls, and the fact that the windows are in turn, surrounded by huge trees hundreds of years old.  I periodically sprinkle wildlife feed around the house, and enjoy watching birds, squirrels, and chipmunks fighting over the feast from the comfort of our papasan chair.


But my absolute FAVORITE part about the sunroom is my Mexican tin star hanging above the reading corner.  I had to beg Papi to buy it for me during our family trip to Chiapas, Mexico over 10 years ago.  He was reluctant to buy it for me, saying that it was going to live in a closet without ever getting hung up.  Well, he was—for the most part—correct.  But I won and got him to buy it for me anyway.

More than 10 years later, my star has made the journey from the southeasternmost tip of Mexico to the northeasternmost tip of the United States, and finally brightens my life with its colorful glass marbles.  Gracias Papi!  For buying it for me, and for hanging it up!

As Nate Berkus says: “Your home should rise up to greet you.”  Does your home do that?  Our sunroom does!

 

Enjoying what you’re reading?  Then PLEASE!  Subscribe to my blog on the right hand sidebar and be notified via email about new posts!  Thanks for reading!

Read Full Post »

❶ sunset in New Castle, NH, after visiting with family for the day ❶

My parents and little brother returned home this week after 3 weeks of visiting us, exploring Boston with us, and helping us get settled into our wonderful new house.  Their time here FLEW BY!  Today’s high fives represent things we experienced together while they were here.

❷ warm apple pie a la mode + 5 spoons (…followed by a second warm apple pie a la mode) ❷

❸ freshly-cut fragrant pink roses on my nightstand (thank you, Kate!) ❸

❹ my hand-painted birdhouse, tipped over and emptied of birdseed every day by squirrels and chipmunks! ❹

❺ Papi, trying to get into the Harvard library with his Soriana grocery store shopper’s card… HAHAHAHAHA ❺

In other news, today a seagull flew low over our car for about a minute in the middle of downtown Boston.  Only in Boston do SEAGULLS fly between skyscrapers!

Happy 4th of July, everyone!  I will enjoy my weekend by cross-covering at the neonatal intensive care unit.  Why do they let me write orders on 2-pound intubated premature babies again???  Ay ay ay.

Check out the new and improved About DotS section!  It’s been recently changed to reflect my transition from med school to residency.  Also, if you like what I write, subscribe to receive post updates under the “Get Post Updates!” section on the right-hand sidebar.  Thanks for reading!

Read Full Post »

Older Posts »

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 1,062 other followers