The White Coat Ceremony

I was so proud of Jason.  I AM so proud of Jason.  He has worked so hard to get here.  It is crazy to think that we are really doing this.  Really in med school.  My husband is really going to be a doctor.  Jason is really going to do what he wants, help people, save lives, make a difference.  I know it is going to be long, and everyone has warned me that it is going to be hard.  We made it through the first week of just orientation classes, and we really missed him, I guess I'm not sure what to expect when real classes start on Monday.  But he will be incredible as always.

The White Coat Ceremony is when all of the first year med students receive their first "white coat" which signifies the beginning of their medical career.  They talked about how hard everyone has worked to get to be where they are at.  They talked about how everyone one of them was the top of their class and that they were all chosen to come to this school for a reason.  "There were over 3,000 applicants for the 230 spots for the class of 2018.  Feel special!"  and we definitely do.  Out of all the interview opportunities we had Jason knew this was where he wanted to be.  They only accept 8-10% of the incoming class to be from out of state, and the majority of those students come from BYU.  Jason even received a scholarship on top of that!  Ok, done bragging...

 

I think there was only one other person there more proud and excited than I was. 

So glad she was able to see her son follow his dreams today too.

Grandma and Grandpa Beckstrand come to Texas

We were lucky to have Grandma and Grandpa Beckstrand come out for Jason's White Coat Ceremony.  It was so nice to have them here with us in Texas and make things feel a little more like home.  It was a quick trip but we had so much fun with them.  

Friday after Jason picked them up from the airport with a very excited Ashton we got to go to a BBQ that the school was putting on for all of the first years and their families.  It was so much fun and just what I needed.  They had an amazing balloon artist and other fun games and activities set up outside and yummy food.  

Yes, that is most definitely an octopus backpack.

We also got to see where Jason will be spending most of his time for the next two years.  The lecture hall was really impressive, everything is very hi-tech and new.  We also got to see the rest of the building where they get to practice being doctors.  You really feel like you are in a hospital, it is all set up just like it would be with a bunch of exam rooms that they will get to practice in.  I was really impressed and it was really good for me to see and understand a little bit more what Jason is going to be doing.  It also felt good and a little bit more normal to be all together having fun as a family.

Saturday was the big day, the White Coat Ceremony, but I will save that for another post, because it really was that cool and special.  After the ceremony at the school Grandma and Grandpa took us out for lunch, then we came home and all relaxed together, Grandpa Beckstrand loaded us up with all of our favorite treats and we rented a movie and just enjoyed being together.

 Sunday was church, then naps, then we went downtown and explored the Water Gardens in Fort Worth.  I'm sure we will be back, it was a really beautiful area and the different fountains are pretty incredible.  Ashton especially loved running around and exploring with his Dad.  He has really missed not having him around as much.  

Sadly we had to say goodbye Sunday night, as they left really early Monday morning.  It was another really hard goodbye.  This was the end of our visitors, we are on our own now.  It made things feel like more of a reality and that just made it too hard to say goodbye.  It especially breaks my heart that Ashton and Julian are going to miss out on such amazing grandparents.  I know we will still see them, but I'm just not sure when, and that's a hard thought.  I am so grateful they got to come out though.  I know it meant a lot to Jason to have them here as well.  It was also a huge help to me to have them at the White Coat Ceremony,  I was actually able to enjoy it and pay attention to things more than I think I would have if I had the two boys by myself.  I feel so blessed to have such amazing parents and in-laws, and I feel extra blessed that my boys get to have so many amazing Grandparents in their lives as well.