As far back as I can recall- even prior to Austin being in med school- he and I have dreamed of living on the east coast...specifically in Portland, ME. About two weeks before Austin started school, we took our first trip to Maine and the fell. in. love! From that point on, we discussed how, ultimately, we wanted to land in Maine for residency. At the beginning of med school, residency was so far away that it didn't actually seem real. We talked and dreamed, but really it always just felt like some eventuality that probably wouldn't ever come to fruition.
In the blink of any eye, we found ourselves in the middle of his third year, the point in time when, as a student you must start making serious decisions regarding your speciality. If you have any residency programs of particular interest, you apply to do an externship with those programs. I was just starting my third trimester with Greer and we quickly realized that if we were serious about matching at Maine, now was the time to do something about it and that something would likely mean Austin leaving me at home with a newborn for a month.
Austin sent out just two applications for away rotations- one to Kalamazoo, MI and another to Portland, ME. Shortly after, he was offered spots at both. Ultimately, he accepted the rotation in Maine, scheduled two short months after the birth of our baby.
There were many tears and a bucket-load of anxiety leading up to his time in Maine, butn the end, the things worked out very well- as they do. I stayed with my parents for a week. Then, my parents surprised me and generously flew Greer and me out to Maine to visit Austin during my final week of maternity leave. To round out Austin's time away, mom came down and stayed with G and me for two weeks as I started back to work. Upon his return home, we found ourselves between a rock and a hard place. We were just as enamored with the east coast as we ever were, but now there was a baby to consider.
His other interviews brought surprising new geographical interests...specifically, Upstate New York. Who knew? In the end, we found ourselves with a solid top three, but no idea how to rank them.
KU in Kansas City (aka home), Rochester, NY (the dark horse), and Portland, ME (the long-time dream).
Oh, how we agonized. We changed our mind by the day, and sometimes- no exaggeration- by the hour. Our talks went a little something like this:
Staying in Kansas means moving back to our beloved Kansas City, living near all of our extended family, constant help with Greer (and any other children that should arrive during the next three years), Greer getting to know all her grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Kansas City means affordable cost of living, the possibility of buying our first home, putting down roots, finding friends that will likely last a life time. Kansas City brings with it the opportunity to start really, truly working toward our goal of moving out to my parents land and building a home. Kansas City is a virtual guaranteed match, so it takes all the stress and wonder out of the process.
Going to Maine means following a dream we've had for years. It means a chance to get out of Kansas for just a handful of years- something we've always wanted to do and likely won't have the chance to do again. Maine means ocean views, every outdoor activity imaginable, incredible scenery, a new type of independence. Maine means abandoning fear of change and really going for it. It means new friends, new adventures, and then the chance to come back home after.
Ultimately, we ranked Maine number one and KU number two. We still don't know if we made the right decision, but we felt that if we didn't at least try, we would always wonder. This means that more than likely, we will match at one of these two locations, given that Austin is basically a lock at KU KC. But we truly have no idea which place we will end up at. He has a pretty good shot at Maine, too. Either way I'll be happy and either way I'll be sad. We have one week until we find out.
And just for fun, a few photos of our week together in Portland, ME last October.
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