We are settling in nicely to sixth semester. Eric has completed his first week of class, and hasn't been too busy thus far with studying. So Blaine and I have taken advantage of his non-studious situation and spent a lot of "vacation" time with him while we can!
Sixth semester curriculum brings many new opportunities and challenges for Eric. This is the semester where students really begin to feel like veterinarians. He will be assigned one sheep and one donkey in a week or so, and he and a partner will be responsible for 'SOAP'ing these animals morning and afternoon, everyday, for the entire semester. (and yes, that includes Saturdays and Sundays, and no, this does NOT mean he will be bathing a sheep and a donkey every day). Basically, for you non-health care working followers, SOAP is an acronym used to asses the 'patient', 'client', or in Eric's case, 'animal', each time they are initially evaluated or treated. In my field, we also use the SOAP format for daily documentation of our patients. The S is for Subjective info, O is for Objective information gathered in the tx session (such as respiratory rate, HR, measurements of wounds, etc. , A is for Assessment (the student's interpretation of the objective info. gathered in an effort to devise a P-Plan for that animal...i.e. goals/treatment options/time frame of tx/etc. So Eric will have to split his time with a partner to spend morning (around 6:30 am) and evening with these specimens. This task keeps 6th semester students really busy, considering they do this on top of surgeries, studying, and clinical skills. Here are the classes that will consume most of Eric's time and energy for the next 13 weeks.
Small Animal Medicine
Large Animal Medicine
Small Animal Surgery
Practice Management
Clinical Skills Lab
Eric is really looking forward to diving in to this semester and actually begin applying all of the knowledge and skills that the last 5 semesters have taught him. I am excited for him too, as I know he will love to finally be hands-on with these four-legged creatures and become an excellent, meticulous surgeon.
Our last week of play together has been so much fun. Because Blaine is getting older, it took her no time to get acclimated to the island again. She is constantly changing and developing new skills every day, and it is so fun for us to witness. Stay tuned for developmental updates. Here are some pictures of what this last week had in store for us and our island baby.
Our Chubbers
Immersed in it's Beauty
I
I've said it once, and I will say it again! "CLONES!"
Our home is your vacation. We must not take for granted.
Semester Olympics are always held the first week of classes. The VIPs get a team of our own, and our color is yellow. Eric's class color is orange. Each night we dressed Blaine in colors supporting our teams. The first night, she donned her VIP onesie and an orange headband for Eric's cause. Wednesday night was ultimate frisbee and I had the pleasure of partaking in this peculiar sport for the first time. It was fun to say the least!
Watching Momma from the Sidelines
Thursday and Friday night, Eric and I were just spectators. Neither one of us play soccer, and I didn't want to play flag football and risk the chance of getting hurt (we have witnessed 3 different students tearing their ACL, MCL, and LCL playing on these very fields). Eric enthusiastically helped coach orange for football and they played a nail biting second game against 7th semesters. Unfortunately, they lost in OT.
Blaine and I departed a little early that night, secondary to fussiness...but no worries. She was a happy camper when we arrived home and I fed her some yummy sweet potatoes and pears. (Pureed of course!) All week, we have called her our little trooper, as she has behaved nicely through all of our adult, yet baby friendly, shenanigans.
Football Friday
Today, we both played beach volleyball, at the same time, for our respective colors. Thanks again Louisa for holding Blaine while we played!!
Last Tuesday we took Blaine to Shipwreck beach on an overcast afternoon. She LOVED being in the Caribbean Sea. She no longer screams when her toes hit cold water, which is such a big bonus for me, considering that the beach and pool are our main occupational outlets while Eric is in school.
On Saturday morning, we decided to take a dip in our pool. It has been sooo hot and humid here already, and it is only May. When Blaine is held in the airplane position in the water, she will sporadically kick her feet and try and stick her tongue in the water. I was showing her how to blow bubbles and when she attempted, she got a big dose of water up her nose. But that didn't deter her from trying again. That's my water baby!
YES FOLKS! We did it. We dunked Blaine under the water for the first time at a mere 4 months and 3 quarters old. When she came back up, she of course was startled, but shed no tears. I wanted to do it again, but the protective Daddy said that was enough for one day.
Blaine horsing around in her play area.
So Innocent, So Sweet.
We never knew of this type of love one holds for their child.
We are two lucky parents.
