A few more developments...

Jared was just chosen by his fellow residents to be senior chief resident for the next 12 months. It is a lot of extra work, but something that he'd be great at. So, he'll be doing all of their scheduling and act as a liaison between the attendings and residents. In my opinion, the perfect man for the job.

My personal training adventures have been fantastic! I've had many opportunities to train people, many of which have signed up to train with me long term. I also have been teaching some group fitness classes, which is a bit more challenging for me (since I like to train solo), but nevertheless fun. Honestly, I could be at the gym working, talking, and teaching fitness all day (good thing I have 3 kids to keep me grounded!). I LOVE IT!

The next step is...

And we know where we'll be in 18 months -- the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, AZ. YAHOO! This was Jared's #1 choice: it is exactly what he wants to be doing (MRI) and where he wants to be doing it (AZ). So, yet again, we've been blessed beyond belief. This entire process of medical school has been fantastic and we've always gone where we needed to. Congrats to Jared, my own personal genius!

Christmas photo 2008

So, this is as good as it gets! We did 2 early morning photo shoots over Thanksgiving... Wow, those are getting more painful by the year. But, this one is just fine -- Whew!

Brian's Thanksgiving solo at Preschool

 

November 2008

Jared is busy with working and traveling for fellowship interviews. His Mayo Clinic interview went well and he will hear from them within a few weeks. He has two different Harvard interviews this month (I get to join him in Boston for one of them – YIPEE!). Jared is also completing a few more applications for the UofA fellowship and Johns Hopkins (in honor of Mike and Carley’s favorite doctor). There is also a program here in San Antonio that just might be the best fit for him, but that is still in the works.



I am officially a Certified Personal Trainer and am working a few hours every morning at the Jewish Community Center as a trainer. I genuinely am having a ball meeting new people, getting new clients, designing workouts, doing fitness assessments, and basically kicking people’s rear ends. I have been smiling for a month now – I’m having that much fun!



Tressa is losing teeth like its going out of style (the Tooth Fairy is having a hard time keeping up!). She has a slight break from her gymnastic competitions for a few more weeks. She did end her swimming season last week with a meet and I was so impressed with that girl’s strokes!



Brian is still racking in the goals at his soccer games, and has learned to keep his elbows to himself (instead of in the other kids’ faces). He loves school and even more his bike!



Johnny Scott is 20 months and just starting to talk more which leads to making us laugh even more. He keep me running all day – but he can win my heart in an instant! His new dancing moves have been a huge hit!



Every morning the kids and I pack everything up and ride our bikes 3 miles to and from school. We’ve been keeping track and yesterday we hit the 100 mile mark! We celebrated by dancing in the school parking lot, setting of poppers with streamers, and Jared took us all our and bought us desperately needed new bike helmets! It was so rewarding to see the kids so excited to reach our goal as a family.

Jared

And now for the king of the house: JARED! We love this guy who always is cracking us up with a new joke or a random chimpanzee yell. Jared was primarily raised in Gilbert, AZ, went on a mission to Brazil, then graduated in microbiology from ASU. Along the way, he persuaded me to marry him in 1995. Jared went to U of A for medical school and graduated in 2005. He did his internship year in Phoenix, and is now doing his residency in Radiology here in San Antonio, TX at University Health Science Center. He just applied to fellowships around the country and we are waiting to hear where he will bring us in 2010 for his 1 year of fellowship. Jared works ALL THE TIME, but does have outside interests. He is remarkably musical and in high school and college played the french horn and cello. He is loves to burn of steam at the shooting range, watch any movie, go to his kids' sporting events, read science fiction books, dream about his future cars, and talk on the phone to any of his brothers or sister every day.

Mandi

Well a bit about me. I am originally from the hot small border town of Yuma, AZ. I went to BYU for two years, and served a summer mission in Nauvoo, IL as a singing missionary. I ended up graduating from ASU in early childhood education, then went on to get my Masters Degree in Education. I taught kindergarten for 3 years in AZ. I married Jared in 1995, have 3 kids, and am living in San Antonio, TX right now. Besides my family, I do actually have other interests. I danced for years, then realized that I needed to broaden my interests then started singing. To this day, I still love to dance and sing. Which leads me to my deep affinity for Broadway shows. I am a gym rat to the core and am two weeks away from being a Certified Personal Trainer. I am a sucker for a good book. I live for my annual vacation to Mexico and being on and in the ocean. I am far too busy and over committed and have finally admitted that I like it that way.

Tressa's Floor Routine

Here's Tressa's floor routine she did on Sept. 19, 2008. She got an 8.7! Go Tressa!

Where's the rain people?

Oh my gosh! Where the heck is the rain?! We have completely cleared our calendar today due to the massive amounts of rain that was forecast due to Hurricane Ike down south. Now, I'm not saying that Ike didn't do some serious damage, but we were bracing for some serious thunder and rain storms today. It is completely calm and sunny out there. And we have nothing to do. Grrrr. Not my idea of fun! So, my kids are thrilled to watch another Barbie movie and I'll fiddle around with this new blog thang.

Heeeeere's Johnny Scott!

Yes, we call him by both names in honor of two fantastic uncles Johnny and Scott Reading. This boy is 18 months and ON THE MOVE. He gives me a run for my money most days and when bedtime rolls around I am one happy momma! He loves to EAT things that aren't good for him, run the street, pick up dead cockroaches, throw glass dishes on the ground, pick only the knives out of the dishwasher, and climb on top of any table or over any wall. The fact that he is still alive is frankly a miracle. He is one smart cookie. He loves for Dad to read him books, to brush his teeth, go outside, dump water, sing songs with mom, cuddle before bedtime, laugh along when his older siblings are laughing, and dance when there's a good beat. He's got the bluest eyes in the family next to Jared and definitely the largest belly in the family (well, maybe next to Buddy). I can't get enough of this boy, yet am always trying to steal a moment away from him to get something done!

Brian

And this is my Brian! What a guy! He keeps me laughing all day and I can't believe I only have one more year with him at home! First and foremost, the boy can dance. He has some seriously great moves that he has come up with on his own. If he hears music, he HAS to dance (he's just like his mom!). He also has great pitch and I love to hear him belt out his favorite song, "Books of the Book of Mormon". He is very conscious of being "cool", and he is just sooo C-O-O-L. He loves any sport from soccer, basketball, golfing, hockey, to water wrestling with Tressa (he made that one up to all the lifeguards' dismay). He is in preschool at CHUMS with Mrs. Ginn as his beloved teacher. Brian is constantly looking for friends (again, just like his mom). He wakes up early (like his mom) and gets ridiculously unreasonable when tired (uummm... like his mom). He loves to read books about the ocean and the current loves of his life are Grandpa's speedy fast boat, drawing cranes, and any animal that is dead and smashed on the road. He loves his Primary teacher who is basically a celebrity in his little life: she's a dolphin trainer at Sea World! Enough said. Brian's had glasses since age 2 when he woke up one day and his eyes were totally crossed.

Tressa

This is my first and only gal, Tressa Hope. She is 7 years old and in 1st grade at Oak Meadow Elementary. She is quite a reader, writer, artist, and all around loves school. She is also quite an athlete, typically smashing any sport she tries. Right now she is heavily involved in gymnastics. She competes for Alamo Gymnastics on Level 4. She also is an awesome swimmer and has a very mean backstroke. Basically, I'm a big fan of Tressa! She is an amazing help at home and has unending patience with her brothers. She gets scared easily by movies, can be found hiding in a corner reading another book, loves to draw, and has a charming laugh. The girl is very daring and has joined her parents on many a waterslide and hiked to higher peaks than all of us. She loves going to church, seeing her friends and memorizing her monthly scriptures. She's the first to remind us to pray and read scriptures each morning. What's not to like?

My GREAT kids!

These are my beautiful kids! Tressa is 7, Brian is 4 1/2, and Johnny Scott is 18 months.

And I'm on the blogger bandwagon!

OK, I've resisted for years to do a blog. But I do not feel like doing anything on my "to-do" list this afternoon and decided to join all you veteran bloggers and start my own! The Readings are a family living in San Antonio,TX. We consist of: Jared (dad), Mandi (mom and blogger), Tressa (7), Brian (4 1/2), Johnny Scott (18 months), Buddy (5).