Petersons Never Give Up: Ensign Peak and Sean's Orientation Week

Sean started his first week of orientation with St. Marks Hospital this week. They went over lots of different things including the electronic health record, how to code and bill, and neonatal care. On Tuesday, all the residents and faculty went on a hike. There were 2 hike options, both were the same length but one had a much steeper grade. All the interns went on the hardest hike! Sean had a great time getting to know his fellow interns as well as the program director and one of the other faculty. All the families were supposed to meet up with the hikers at a campsite in Millcreek canyon for a catered picnic after the hike. We arrived at 6, but since Sean’s group took the longer hike they were really late. The kids and I enjoyed some Dickeys BBQ and lots of great conversation. Brett and Alana loved playing in the dirt with rocks and sticks and with the other kids. It was a lot of fun! On Friday night Sean and I went to the graduation of the the 3rd year residents. It was a really nice dinner held at Red Butte Gardens in Salt Lake. The food was really good and the program was nice. We sat with two of the other residents and the director of the program. We also got to walk around the gardens for a bit, they are beautiful! I really want to go back with the kids sometime! Mom and Dad Z watched Brett and Alana while we went to the graduation. They took the kids to Olive Garden and then to walmart to buy toys. The kids were perfect angels and I think they will never settle for another babysitter that doesn’t buy them toys and take them to nice restaurants =) Pics from Sean’s hike (his fitbit said he climbed 235 flights of stairs that day!)

The kids and I have been playing with lots of friends this week. On Monday we drove to Springville to play with our friends Whitney, Kirsten, and Reagan. Brett and Kirsten get along so so well. Reagan loves to follow them around, and Alana loved their dog Porter =) On Wednesday we met Rebecca, Kaden, and Alexis at the zoo. We both got zoo passes with Mom Z’s awesome connections and plan to go back often. The kids had a great time seeing all the animals, eating in the cafeteria and riding the train with Grandma, playing in the water, and eating snow cones. I always love getting to chat with Rebecca. We were longing for all our other sisters and sisters-in-law to move closer so we could hang out more.

We visited Great Grandma and made Rigatoni on Thursday. The kids love to visit her and especially Alana loves to chat and sit with Great Grandma. On Saturday morning we went and hiked Ensign Peak. We bought a new Eddie Bauer carrier for Alana but it didn’t work quite right so I think we will be taking it back. The hike was steep and hot, but really beautiful and lots of fun! We stopped at City Creek on the way home for lunch.

Sean is feeling much more calm about starting patient care now that he has been oriented to the way things work. He has two more days of training this week and will start with his first patient on Wednesday. We also get paid this week for the first time in a really long time! He is loving his new job perks like his fancy new fitbit charge and free meals whenever from the hospital cafeteria. I think he is also excited about decorating his new desk. Sean has also been called as the Choir Director in church and has been holding practices every Sunday at 8 AM. I have been trying to get back into exercise. I want to make some bread this week and we are trying out lots of new recipes from the new best bites cookbook this week. I learned how to use a string trimmer this week and taught my first lesson to the Beehives today. I am also considering buying a 50 mm lens for my camera so i can play even more and try to improve my photography skills. Brett has found a new obsession in the show Paw Patrol. He already has 2 pair pajamas, 2 shirts, socks, and fabric for a quilt all in Paw Patrol theme. He loves playing in the water lately and really loves playing with friends. He has also started to enjoy card games a lot. I love playing Go Fish and Slap Jack with him. Its a lot of fun to see his little brain working so well. He is way better at Memory than I am! He asked for a picture of his cousin Kaity this week because he misses her and told me he was thinking about marrying her. He is so independent with getting dressed and brushing his teeth now, its really nice. He has also started going to sleep between 8:30-9 and is waking up around 8 which is blissful!

Alana’s vocabulary is exploding! She says so so many words and loves to talk up a storm. She is officially 19 months old, loves the zoo, loves nursery, and is so feisty already. She yells at me and hits me when she doesn’t get her way (my favorite is when she yells owww when I do her hair) and then the next minute she is snuggling me and hugging me. She is a classic toddler and I love her! She got her first princess clipper dolls this week and is very pleased about it. She wants to be just like Brett and loves to hug and kiss him (and hit and pester him too). We have really been struggling with her sleep the last few weeks and were spending about an hour in the kids room every night while they were falling asleep. We did 1 night of crying it out with Brett in the other room, and now she is sleeping like a champion. She understands that she needs to lay down and close her eyes and go to sleep. It makes such a difference in the way I feel about motherhood when my kids just sleep! We also went swimming at the West Jordan pool last Monday night. It was a great pool and made for a great FHE about Noah =)