MCATs and other Violent Felines

The count down has started, Austin is taking his MCAT in T-minus two in a half days! Thursday, USU, at 8:00 am, Austin will be taking his first steps to becoming Dr. Beck. We'll be sending his applications in a day or so after and then we'll wait....and wait. Because everyone knows it takes at least a year for a computerized test to be graded and returned.

I will admit, I am more nervous for this moment than he is. Which, once again, presents another difference between husband and I. Consider the following scenario. You have six months to prepare for a test which will determine a large part of your life and will affect you, your spouse, and your children for years to come:

Austin: I love the challenge. Please wait a moment while I rip my shirt off, revealing my true Superman identity.
Heidi: I just wet my pants....again.

The MCAT Prep Saga started back in May-ish when we decided to take the Kaplan courses to aid in the preparation. This cost an arm, leg, and our first born child. But hey, we looked at it as an investment. And it has paid off. For anyone wondering if it's worth the money, I'm telling you now IT IS. Austin is a great studier, but everyone understands the black hole of not being in school and having to study for an exam months and months down the road...the temptation of hulu and netflix sucks you in. Kaplan helped motivate the studying. Despite the annoying nasally voice of his online professor, I enjoyed listening in to his online class. I learned a lot about writing a convincing argument, physics, chemistry (though I have successfully blocked that wretched information out of my mind), english, and other subjects. I was so proud of myself when I actually got to help him with his physics homework (because that is the science worth understanding).

Austin is going to be a wonderful doctor, no bias attached...no unnecessary bias...okay some bias attached. He is caring, wicked smart, has top notch people skills, and superstar nerdy. He's the kind of doctor that will make your kids laugh when they come in to his office, he'll answer your questions (silly or not) with out making you feel stupid, he's always curious about everything so he'll stay up to date with his practice, and in all honesty Austin cannot be deceptive. You'll never wonder if he's really telling you the whole story because it's truely his nature to have integrity. Yes, I am the luckiest.

But because he is such a jack of all trades, I do have this fear of him developing the all knowing God complex many doctors develop over the years of studying and...becoming all knowing.

So, as a faithful spouse I am dedicating myself to supporting him fully...and gently reminding him of his wonderfully flawed human status. Let's take a walk down memory lane...

Sometimes skiing is harder than it should be

That crazy face I see more often then not

Too much studying

Drool Happens

Evil Russian Scientist Austin

We feel ready to begin our "big kid" life of med school. It's wonderful how this confidence has grown between us and within myself over the past couple of months, because it took a little bit of time for me to get there. To be okay with the years of debt that will be accumulating. To be okay with the fact that we will be dirt poor when my friends and family will be purchasing cute houses and settling down. To understand that I will need to be strong at times when I need to handle the kids and the bills by myself. To be okay with sitting by myself in church when he is on shift. There is a lot to come to terms with when you realize you will be a medical students wife.

This confidence has come with not only experiencing life together, but by experiencing life with our Heavenly Father. Life can be scary. It rises up and threatens to swallow you up, but through Him there is hope.  And because He is our Rock, we are solid.

Oh life is wonderful. We're learning to work together, to take time for each other, to overcome our weaknesses and short comings together, and to not aim our anger at each other when life just stinks. How fulfilling it is to know that we are in this together, not against each other. Don't get me wrong...we've got a loooooong way to go. Like when I see that he left his oatmeal bowl out so that the sticky substance becomes glue to the bowl I want to lovingly smack the back of his head and look at him with that black momma "Excuuuuuuse me? Have you been with your head all day?" look on my face. Yes, we're a work in progress...

But, now more than ever I wouldn't want to go through it all with anyone else. So, in the words of John Adams to his beloved Abigail, "Come my dear Partner in all the Joys and Sorrows, Prosperity and Adversity of my Life, come take a Part with me in the Struggle" (Spirit of America)

We love you Dr. Beck