Christmas is Here

Well, I have 1 more test left before I get to come home. Anna is already in Houston with Pierce, and I am sure the grandparents are perfectly happy =)

This shall be short since I should be studying, but we have a few cute pics of Pierce in a Santa hat - couldn't resist!

It's Finally Getting COLD!

And by cold, we mean...COLD. Hi Guys! It's Anna! Kyle and I are having a disagreement about the "amount" of coldness that we are feeling here in the Cumberland Gap. According to Kyle, it's not that cold or in his words "barely freezing". However, my opinion differs; When you have to chip the ice off your windshield every morning and the night air burns you as you walk out the door, That's Cold! I left my make up bag in the car last night and when I went to use my lip gloss this morning it was frozen. We were told by "the locals" that it would get cold about late September, but here in the beginning of November we are starting to see the first signs of winter.

All in all, everything is going pretty well. We had a fun first Halloween with Pierce. He dressed up as the cutest honey pot that there ever was. We even took him trick-or-treating in the LMU-DCOM apartments (it's inside). Lucky for us as the pictures can prove, he was more interested in eating the honey from his pot that his trick-or-treat candy. While we were there we saw a lot of our friends dressed as: cupids, angels, geisha's, Cleopatra, and our favorite "the locals". The most amusing part of "the locals" costumes was that they were true to real life. The only exaggeration was Aaron's teeth. Usually people around here usually have better looking teeth, but just fewer of them. Even though there were many costumes, everyone agreed that Pierce's was the cutest. OH! Kyle was pretty cute too. He was an authentic Rubix Cube. He was realistic with one side all finished except for one square. It was a very well received costume in the apartments.

We spent a while with the newlyweds Walter & Crystal yesterday. We had so much fun. It's nice to be reminded of home. They had an amazing cabin as Starr Crest Resorts (if anyone ever wants to come visit us). It was nice to see them and just be able to relax around friends. Well, it's Pierce's bedtime and daddy just isn't cutting it tonight so I have to go. I hope ya'll have a blessed week and we will post again whenever we can! Bye!

P.S. I am not an English major so I apologize for the improper punctuation and spelling. I try.

New Happenings

Well, Kyle's (my) Mom, Dad & Kevman visited last weekend for my White Coat Ceremony. It was wonderful getting to see them! The ceremony went great as well. I will post a link to some pictures from their trip!

Then, Anna and Pierce went home to Houston this last week. They had a blast seeing family and friends. They visited for our friend Crystals wedding. Pierce was the ring bearer and got to wear a tux! He did a great job and didn't even drop the rings. They were sad to leave, but I was so hapy to see them!

Anna and I are both half way through the semester, and it is hard to believe since time is flying by so fast! Pierce is jumping in his bouncer, so I think this will be it for now. I will try to post more whenever I can. Pics on the right!

It's Getting Closer...

Hi Guys, it's finally me, Anna!

On the Eve of Kyle's second block test I am finally learning how to post a blog. A new link is on the right to see how much Pierce has grown. We've been trying this new church for about 3-4 weeks now and this morning one of the women in the nursery told me that Pierce was so big compared to the first time we went there. I was shocked because I know he's grown: just not that much.

Anyways, everything around here is pretty chaotic, but Pierce takes it all in stride. As you can tell he's a pretty happy little fellow. He such charmer! He's on his way to rolling over and is beginning to realize that he has these funny things on the end of his legs that move...feet. As you will notice in most of the new pics his hands taste really good. He got a new jumping exersaucer and he absolutel loves it. We miss you all and we cannot wait to get to Houston and see everybody (with the exclusion of Gigi, Pops & Uncle Kevin who will be here before that).

School is totally kicking my tail. The amount of work is endless, but I'm slowly learning how to work with it. Kyle's schoolworl is endless as well, but he's slowly but surely learning how to study at home which is so nice.

We hope all of you are doing well. Please let us know if there is any way we can pray for you. We love you all and Pierce and I are counting down the days...21 from tommorow. It's OH SO CLOSE!!

New Pictures

Yay! Pictures are up, and maybe videos will be next. Click on the picture to the left, or follow the link on the right.

Hmmmm....a lot to cover

So, we apologize for the long time between posts. Clearly school has taken up both Anna and my time more so than anticipated. Much has happened in the last few weeks.

Pierce - Well, he went to his doctor's appointment last Friday, and he had his 2 months shots =( Of course, that night and the following night he ran his first fever! This was terribly sad for me and his mom, b ut he did not really show he noticed. Another big note from the visit is how much he has grown! Pierce now weighs 12# 9 ounces. He has doubled since we took him home for the hospital. He also grew 3 inches. He is becoming that cute chubby baby we always wanted! I do apologize for not posting pics or movies. I will try to get those up soon, but the movie file is in the incorrect format.

School - Anna has been going to school for a bit now, and the material is certainly graduate level work. Since I am always at the school studying, her study time is limited. Luckily she is absolutely brilliant and will do great! She is enjoying most of her classes and professors.
I am studying all of the time, except for Tuesdays - those are family days. I have my first test on Tuesday, so wish me luck! I have my Gross Anatomy Practical on Thursday.

Thanks for all of the birthday wishes/cards/gifts etc. I appreciate every one of them. Although now I am the same age as Anna. I am off to study some more, then join Anna at home. Remember, we love it whenever you post comments!

P.S. Bug me about pictures and movies, and I will get them up faster!

The 1st Week of School

Hello to our readers! =)

So sorry for the time between posts, but we are surprisingly busy around here. Pierce is becoming more energetic and awake every day - which is a blessing, but he requires more attention than before!

Speaking of the little guy, he is doing great. HE has had a tummy ache the past few days, but I think he is OK, and he loves to smile and laugh. I will hopefully get to a Best Buy and be able to buy a cable to put our videos on the computer - then you can all see them! And new pics will be here soon, I just have not downloaded them yet.

So, for those who don't know, and a lot do not, Anna decided to attend LMU for graduate school to pursue her teaching certificate, and more importantly, her Masters degree. It will take a year and a half. She has classes Saturday mornings, and Monday and Wed. nights. So, she can still stay at home with Pierce, and then I can take over whenever she is gone. Hopefully she will start babysitting for a woman at my school soon to bring in some cash flow.

School is going great. I have studied like it was finals week - except it was just the first and easy week. I have a class I have not even had a lecture on yet! But I think I am caught up and feel good about it. We (students) have decided that learning all of these medical terms is beginning to replace our normal English vocabulary. I give directions using anatomical landmarks and such - it is pretty silly. Working with the cadavers is a lot of fun. The human body is absolutely amazing. and luckily the parts make sense. For example, a nerve running medial (close to the inside of the body) is called a medial nerve, or the supinator muscle supinates,etc. - it helps a ton with memorization. I sing "Head, shoulders, knees and toes" to Pierce using anatomical terms! Our professors taught to take the utmost respect when working with cadavers. These people led normal lives just like you and me, and they were gracious enough to donate their body so I could learn - there is a lot of respect when working with the dead.

Overall, it has been fun.I did in fact survive my 1st week in school, as did all 159 of my classmates. I will post back soon with pictures! We love those comments!

Kyle's First Day, and other firsts...

Well, I suppose I am officially a medical student. Today was orientation, and Anna was able to join me for this amazing experience. The excitement was in the air, and all 160 students who were accepted and put the deposit down! As the 1st class of the med school, the aura that filled the room was exhilarating. As all of the students counted the seconds down with the online countdown, it really hit me - I am in TN and I will be a doctor in less than 4 years! I will post some pics of the new school when I can, but you can follow the link on the right to the official site for pictures. Some interesting facts about our 10 clinical faculty members(practicing physicians) not even including the Basic Science Faculty members:

-167 total years in Medical Education
- 1,352 Residents trained
- 5 Faculty members are former Residency Program Directors
- Over 625,000 pts seen
- 1,850 students advised
- Over 101,800 hours working in the ER
- Only 5 Total Malpractice suits (the average is 3 per doctor)
- 4,832 babies delivered
- 181 total years in practice

It is estimated that the 160 students in our class will see 93,699,000 patients before we retire! It is incredible the impact 1 medical school class can have! The next 4 years will be an amazing experience!

Oh, our other 1st of the day! Pierce stayed with a non-family member for the first time. A sweet grandmother named Connie took care of Pierce while we at orientation. Anna was a little apprehensive, but she did great! And so did Pierce. This has been a great day for our family. Actual classes start Friday, so wish us luck!

Hey from TN

Hey everyone! We are finally starting to move in here in TN! The house is really cute, and really old! There are some minor repairs and major repairs we are trying to work on! The boxes are almost unpacked, and it finally feels like a home. We have met a lot of friends here from DCOM - everyone is great. Every professor I have met has been so nice! Anna and I cannot wait for orientation Wed. She gets to come too, and can meet spouses and significant others - a perfect time for her to meet some new friends! We are praying we can find a babysitter by Wed though! I think thats about it. Post some comments so we know you have visited! WE will try to get some new pics of the house and Pierce soon!


P.S. I have spent the last week in the cadaver lab, and it has been a blast!

The Gonzales Family

Welcome to our Blog. This is our first post. We are moving in 2 weeks to Harrogate, TN and we are very excited...and frightened! Check back here often for updates, pictures, etc.