Catching Up

Winter has almost come and gone, so it’s time to update the blog on some of the happenings in the Morris family over these last few months.

Ice Skating:

Henry and Elise started ice skating lessons in February.  Elise grew up skating and was eager to get Henry started after they experimented on the rink at the Ice! exhibit (see Christmas 2010).  By happy coincidence, a nearby recreation center offers skating lessons for preschoolers.  Elise reports that Henry has done really well: after just a few sessions, he was able to march on the ice with only minimal support. He’s also learned how to safely fall and stand up – two important skills!  Below are some pictures of Henry and Elise in action at the rink.

 

Job Search:

For the past year, Elise has been working at a teaching clinic for Georgetown University’s Department of Family Medicine in Ft. Lincoln, MD.  She had the opportunity to continue working with the department in a new clinic in Northwest DC but, after much soul searching, decided to look for something closer to home.  Eventually, she interviewed and accepted a position with Alexandria Neighborhood Health Services, Inc. (ANHSI).  ANHSI is a community health center, similar to Unity Health Care, where Elise worked previously.  The new job will allow Elise to return to her roots in underserved medicine.  It also will allow her to be closer to our home in Alexandria, VA and, eventually, the kids’ school.  Her new clinical site is only five minutes from our house, adjacent to the INOVA Alexandria Hospital where Vivian was born.  It was a hard decision for Elise: balancing her love for teaching/academic medicine with a commitment to underserved medicine and a desire to be nearer her family.  She starts her new job on May 1st.

Visitors and Visits

Elise’s cousin Stokes Baker visited us in January, and a few weeks later, his wife Dawn and daughter Emily came to DC.  Emily’s church choir was performing at the National Cathedral in Washington, and Elise was able to join them for the concert and some shopping in Georgetown.  Over MLK weekend, Bryant flew to Las Vegas for his friend David Bain’s bachelor’s party.  It was strange traveling without a stroller/backpack/diaper bag—Bryant kept checking that he hadn’t left something behind. A month later, Bryant flew to Atlanta for David’s wedding. Both times, Elise graciously (and bravely) agreed to watch the kids by herself.  We also managed to do some family activities over the winter months: we visited our neighbors, the Mates, at their vacation home in Lake Anna, VA and took a day trip to the Port Discovery children’s museum in Baltimore.

 

“D” is for Doctor

Elise visited Henry’s preschool class in January and talked to the children about what it's like to be a doctor.  She brought along her stethoscope, otoscope (one of those lights they use to look in ears) and some other instruments for the children to experiment with.  She also read them a story about the Berenstain Bears visiting the doctor.  As you can see from the pictures below, the kids had a great time, especially when they got to practice giving a check-up to their friends.  Bryant is still waiting for his invitation to talk about what it’s like to be a lawyer…