The Best Birthday Cake Ever and Taco Tuesday

It's official.  I have finally tasted the best Birthday Cake of my life.  Oreos, chocolate, creamy topping... how can one go wrong?  My coworker, Leyshla, had a birthday on Tuesday and I decided that a birthday cake must be part of the celebration!  I had seen a recipe on Pinterest that I've been dying to try, so I quickly whipped up this little gem on Monday night:

Feliz Cumpleanos! 

Introducing: Oreo Poke Cake.  Processed, boxed-cake goodness.  I usually bake from scratch and try to avoid using boxed products. But let's be serious, I had approximately 15 minutes total to whip this bad boy up, put it in the oven, and complete the finishing touches - all of which was done between packing boxes for the big move.  And the end result?  Better than any cake I've ever tasted.  I was told I was welcome to bake the same cake and bring it every day until the end of time.

Happy Birthday, Leyshla! Funnest 22 year old I know!
(Please note the choice of healthy snacks in the background.  Clearly I work with a bunch of health freaks.) 

"Died and Gone to Oreo Heaven" Poke Cake

Ingredients:

1 Box Chocolate or Vanilla Cake Mix

Ingredients needed to make cake (usually eggs, oil and water) 

2 (4 oz.) packages of Instant Oreo pudding

4 cups milk (2% or higher - unfortunately low-fat won't set up well)

Cool Whip or Fresh Whipped Cream

Crushed Oreo Cookies (I used around 10 oreos)

Directions:

1.) Mix cake mix and bake according to box instructions

2.) When cake has ~ 5 minutes left to bake, combine the oreo pudding mix and milk.  Allow to sit for 2 minutes to thicken slightly.

3.) As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, poke holes in the cake with the back of a wooden spoon as shown below

4.) Pour the pudding goodness on the cake

5.) Using a spoon/spatula, spread the pudding evenly and push gently to ensure it fills the holes

6.) Lick the pudding bowl and spatula clean. YUM.

7.) Allow cake to cool 15 mins on counter, then place in the fridge to cool completely

8.) Remove from fridge, spread cool whip over pudding mixture

9.) Top with crushed oreos.

10.) Share with others, or keep for yourself.  It's up to you.  :)

(Keep Refrigerated!)

Time for the filling!

In the future, I'm going to try making this from scratch - or at least the cake part.  Although I'm not going to lie, this was the fastest, easiest and most delicious cake ever.

If you aren't drooling, you may have a problem. 

In addition to the cake festivities, it is a tradition on birthdays to go to Mi Guadalajara for lunch.  We took a 3 hour break and enjoyed delicious Taco Tuesday!  It was my last field trip with the CDMC crew.  I am really going to miss this group. :(

Tomorrow is my last clinic day as a student ever. EVER! I can't believe this part of my journey has come to an end.  I have spent the last 13 months getting to know the clinical world of medicine and attempting to make a difference in my patient's lives.  Centro Medico del Carmen has provided the best, most supportive environment to learn in and I'm so grateful I was placed there!  I would definitely give anything to be able to work for a Doctor like Dr. Watson!  I may cry like a little baby tomorrow when I have to say goodbye to my favorite clinic in the world.  No bueno.  Luckily I am coming back to San Diego in April for a wedding, so I don't really have to say goodbye.... right?

Time Flies...

Busy much?  I have been just slightly preoccupied with life lately, so I apologize that you haven't been able to hear my silly stories of my daily life.  Here's the cliff notes version of what you've missed:

1.) Surgery Rotation: I finished the rotation which was an accomplishment in itself.  As much as I loved being in the OR, one can only work 12-16 hour days and survive on 4 hours of sleep for so long... It was a good experience overall, but I value my sleep and evening study time!  Let's face it, I don't remember anything without sleep and I think the surgeon thought I was a complete idiot because I couldn't remember the simplest medical details.  I am happy to spend my FINAL week of clinical rotations at my "home" clinic with Dr. Watson.

2.) Running:  Guess who ran 12 miles on Sunday?!  This girl!!  Physical Therapy has worked wonders!  I'm still being VERY conservative and running only 4-5 days per week and cross-training on my friend, the elliptical.  The key to my successful healing has been to do my stretches and exercises EVERY day.  No slacking.  It's amazing what you can accomplish when you want something bad enough.  47 days until Boston... !

3.) My last week in San Diego:  Picture my face with tears and smudged mascara.  I'm in denial that  I'm actually leaving so it's been a pretty effective way of coping.  I don't need to move my stuff, right?  I can just keep renting my apartment until the end of time, right?  It'd be perfect! A house in Alaska AND San Diego.  Problem solved.  According to Jake, that's not the most realistic solution, Shoot.  I'll have to just come back and visit a few times per year!  I've been so grateful to be back running in the few weeks because I've been able to spend lots of quality time with my favorite people.  AND I've been able to see my favorite places like these:

This past year has been an amazing ride and San Diego will forever be the place I call my second home.  I will miss all of the amazing friends I've made like these:

Love Her!

Best training buddy ever!

Love these girls!

10MW, I'll miss you!

Fastest girls I know!

Such a fun group!

I've been busy packing up the 239,204 pages of notes, 19,021 flash cards, and countless books that I've accumulated in the past 2 years.  It seems that I've killed 5 trees with my PA school ordeal.  I apologize Mother Nature, I promise to NEVER do it again.  Ever.  Ever.  I really don't know how I accumulated so much JUNK.  Getting it all back to Alaska should be interesting... ha!

4.) Grandma update!  It's been forever since I've updated you on how she's doing!  To refresh your memory, she was visiting me in November for Thanksgiving and fell and broke her hip while walking at Pacific Beach.  That was a horrible, horrible, horrible day.  She had a partial hip replacement here and spent almost a month in an assisted living facility in Carlsbad. She was able to go back to Salt Lake City (where she lives) on December 27th.  She's been getting better day by day and is walking with only a cane now!  When I talked to her on Sunday she said she frequently forgets to use it because she is feeling "almost normal"!   I'm so proud of her :)

Okay, that's the update for now!  I'll have plenty more to share (including some yummy recipes) in the next few days!  Have a GREAT Wednesday!

Be mine?

Ahhh.... Valentine's day. A day to eat loads of boxed chocolates and a day for people to post pictures of flower bouquets, jewelry and delicious dinners on Facebook. Oh, and a day to show how much you care about those you love. :)

I actually don't care much for Valentine's day (apart from the yummy chocolates and red velvet cupcakes) because I feel it's too commercialized and superficial. If you love someone, you shouldn't need a holiday to show them with overpriced chocolates and flowers that make single people cringe.  It should be a day to celebrate love for everyone, not just for those who are in relationships.  Sure, I may have liked it more if I wasn't 3500 miles away from Jake, but even when we are together, it's not something I go out of my way to celebrate.  Random days of love are much more special!

Even though I was the Valentines Day Grinch, I had a great day yesterday. The day started with another PAIN FREE run with Dennis the speed demon. I'm not going to count my chickens before they hatch, but I think I might be on the mend. PT is working wonders and I've been religious about my stretching, ab work, and leg exercises. I've run 4 days in the last week, and had no issues whatsoever. :) :) This makes for a happy, happy Brittany.

Best feeling ever.

My favorite run in Cali along the 101.

Stunning.

That's right, just for runners!

Wahoo!  I've missed my little Garmin companion

Yesterday also was the first day I felt more confident in the OR and got positive feedback from the surgeon. Finally!

The day ended with a wonderful girls night with my favorites Cali girls. Carrie is amazing and made homemade (garlic free!) pasta sauce so that girl who is allergic to everything (aka me) could participate in eating homemade pizzas. That, coupled with girl talk, tons of laughs, and desserts to die for, made it a great day.

Best idea ever!

Flat Bread deliciousness.  

Love this girl.

Such a fun night! (P.S. the girl in the black shirt is due on SUNDAY!  Crazy!)

The only thing missing was, of course, my Valentine. Luckily in just 11 weeks we will be able to start a life of love-filled days. Jake, you are my forever Valentine and I love you more than you'd love eating Tacos every day for the rest of your life. And then some.

True Story!

Three.

T minus 3 months until this girl is a PA-C. (Actually 2.75 months now!)

Can you believe that? Three months from last Monday and I will be walking across the stage at Stanford School of Medicine to become a PA! It's starting to become more and more real that I have very little time left in my California adventure. It's very bittersweet to think about leaving this crazy life I've learned to love. But you know what I love more? My life with my amazing husband who is waiting to, as he says, "carry me over the threshold" at our home in Alaska. It will be hard to leave the sun, sand, running races, and wonderful friends I've made. But I'm not gonna lie, there are some amazing people in Alaska that I've missed having in my life.

Alaska? Get ready. I'm coming home soon. (And by ready, I mean, "Please make this the sunniest, most beautiful summer you've ever provided to the frozen, pale Alaskans who endure your winters.")

You may be wondering why I've been MIA for the past two weeks. I'm back in my surgery rotation after the paperwork "hiccup" at the hospital. That means I'm back to 4am wake up calls, 15 hour surgery days, and being on call on weekends and during the night.  Yes, I do miss sleeping past 4:30am.  And yes, I am exhausted.  But aside from the sleep deprivation and insane pressure/stress of being a surgical assist, I love being in the OR! Tuesday I got to assist the surgeon on 8 surgeries, and most other days it's been anywhere from 3-6 surgeries. There is nothing cooler than sticking your hand in a persons abdomen, helping remove a spleen from a person's body, and suturing an incision to make it as "scarless" as possible.  Plus, surgeons are always hungry and have a room full of free snacks, coffee, and tea that are replenished all day and night. And believe me, when you have an constant adrenaline rush as a new surgical assistant, you need sustenance.

Mid-Morning Snacks

Coffee, Tea, Lattes, and Hot Cocoa.
Please note that surgeons are sloppy and don't know how to throw things away.

I've surved the 1st two weeks out of the longest 4 week rotation of my life.  In the next two weeks, you will likely find me doing one of the following:

- surgery
- packing for my move to San Fran
- studying for boards
- more surgery
- studying for finals
- studying for practicum
- more surgery
- attempting to stay injury free and train for Boston Marathon...

Can I please have 10 extra hours in my day?  I ask one thing of you: please sleep at least 7 hours a night for me because that will be about 3 more than I'll be getting each night. Thanks!

Quick Trip to Stanford & Piriformis Syndrome

Don't be jealous, but on Friday I got to drive the 466 miles from San Diego to Stanford to stay for one night.  After 3 hours of sleep, at the unsightly hour of 4AM, my road trip buddy, Dan and I embarked on our adventure from San Diego to San Fran.  Why on EARTH would someone drive so far for such a short trip?  Good question.  The truth is we were asked to give a speech at the White Coat Ceremony for the 2014 PA class.  8 hours later (what's a speed limit again?) we arrived at Stanford, quickly printed our speech, got all "done up" and arrived at the White Coat ceremony.

Ray Bans make anyone feel professional.

Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life
as by the obstacles which s(he) has overcame white trying to succeed. 

The speech went really well, although I didn't know it was possible for my heart to beat as fast as it did for the first few minutes.  It was truly an honor to speak, and I hope I was able to impart to the 2014 class some wisdom from my one year of clinical rotations.  (Me?  Wisdom?  Don't know about that... haha).

Woo!

My amazing friend Liza and I enjoyed a delicious dinner and wine after the ceremony at TOWN restaurant in San Carlos.  If you're in the area, you must go.  Phenomenal.

The never-ending day continued with more wine, laughing, and cuddling with my two favorite Californian girls in the entire world.  Ashley and Marie Griffin.  I could think of no better way to end the longest day in history.

I got a few hours of sleep and I was up early for an enjoyable 5-hour study session.  Then Dan and I hit the road again back to San Diego.  I don't think I've ever had as much coffee as I did in the last 3 days.  One thing you must know about me is that I don't drink caffeine (Yes, I'm one of those weird people who likes coffee for the taste), but I did splurge and have a regular cup yesterday.  Living on the wild side.

~1000 miles in 36 hours.  

Today was another early morning that started in the BEST way possible.  A pain-free run!  Wahoo! I saw a Physical Therapist on Thursday after listening to the advice of my wise sister.

Diagnosis:  Strong quads/glutes with weak hamstrings leading too much extension in my low back and increased sciatic pain.  Coupled with classic Piriformis Syndrome = unhappy legs + running pain + sad, sad, Brittany.

I was given stretches & exercises to do 3 times a day.  Crossing my fingers that things are on the right track.  I'll take any pain free running I can get!

If you are ever plagued with this awful syndrome, do these exercises!

Now... back to my never-ending studying affair with my highlighter, pen, and online board prep review course.

Pay it Forward

One simple act of kindness this week changed my outlook and inspired me to get all philosophical on you.

In a culture frequently absent from selfless acts, this week I was pleasantly reminded that there are, in fact, generous people in this world.  I want to take this moment to thank the random stranger who paid for my coffee on Wednesday. You must have seen the gigantic bags under my grad student eyes and my disheveled afro curls and taken pity on me.  I am forever grateful for your random act of kindness.  May good karma come back to you ten times over.

This got me thinking about how such a simple act can make a difference in someone's day.  I find it amazing (and by amazing, I really mean tragic) how often Americans are so caught up in the day-to-day stressors and chaotic schedules that we get aggravated by that "annoying slow driver" or walk past someone struggling with a door, or are quick to judge another based on a preconceived stereotype we have. Life would be a lot more pleasant it we all just helped each other and got along.  Don't you think?

In my family practice clinic, it is easy at times to make assumptions instead of looking at the bigger picture.  Most of my patients are uninsured, unemployed Mexican Immigrants who speak only Spanish.  At times it can be frustrating to see that their medical conditions are not improving due to noncompliance, but it is important for me to step back and realize that taking a medication that costs $4-$10/month for an asymptomatic condition (high blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc) may be at the very bottom of their priority list.  It is not our job to make judgment, just to help and provide the best care we can.  Listen to people's story.  You learn a lot.

So why is it so hard to not pass a judgment?  It seems so simple:
1.) Don't judge.
2.) Be kind to everyone.
3.) Don't make assumptions.
4.) Let's all be friends

I wish I knew why it is so hard to not become jaded and adopt stereotypes towards others.  Our world has warped into a life of who has the most "likes" on their facebook status and equating our self worth with how much we weigh and how many nice _________ (fill in the blank here: cars, shoes, outfits, homes) we have.  Our culture tells us to strive to achieve the impossible - and somehow that promotes the feeling of being "better" than someone else.  I don't like it any more than you do, so let's just try to make a change.  Deal?  Good.

Last but not least, pay it forward. Give without expectations. Make someone's day. You won't regret it.