April was such a fun month and I think that it was pretty balanced in the different areas of my life. We also had some really great weather, so I tried to spend as much time outside as possible. It was quite comical because we had snow one week and then 80-degree weather the next, and I think that was a perfect representation of Chicago's iconic mercurial weather. Regardless, it has been wonderful and semi-packed with great things. So, let's see what I've been up to!
Week One
The first major event of the month was meeting the Chicago Squad up at my Alma Mater for a girl's morning. My best friend Gianna still attends there (She's graduating this upcoming month! Woo hoo!), so I met up with her and Meg for brunch and nails. I didn't get to see much of G last month, so it felt really nice to just catch up with her and just have some time with the girls. I had gone dancing with some of the girls from work the night before, so I was a bit sleepy. But, nothing can keep me away from a good brunch and time with my girls.
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| It's not a StripesandStethoscope monthly recap without brunch. Right? |
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| G and me! I brought out my stripes;) |
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| My girls:) I'm sure the smiles say it all. |
Week Two
The highlight of week two was that I got to do something that I had been wanting to do for a while. One of the best parts of living in Chicago is that we have so many great museums. One of my favorites has to be the Art Institute. Back in February, they announced that they were going to have a special Van Gogh exhibit. I love Van Gogh ( I actually have framed prints of Sunflowers and The Starry Night hanging in my bedroom), so I had been super excited to go check it out. Elida and I had been trying to coordinate our days off in order to make a trip to the art institute, but It hadn't panned out until finally the stars aligned and we both had the day off. We spent the majority of the day roaming through the Art Institute and then followed up with a trip to Giordano's (One of the best places for deep dish. A must if you are in Chicago) for a late lunch/early dinner. It's safe to say I was stuffed with happiness and deep dish that day (haha). Otherwise, the weekend was rather tame.
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| Us pretending that the weather wasn't terrible outside (lol) |
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| A picture from the museum's miniatures room. Also, me pretending I was in Paris. A girl can dream, right? |
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| Advertisement for the exhibit. I'm pretty sure they thought I was creeping on them. Sorry peeps, you're not that special (lol) |
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| A photo of the "Ancient Bae's". In all seriousness, I do love me some Greco-Roman Art. |
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| A lovely painting by Georgia O'Keeffe. We share a birthday, so she's naturally one of my faves. |
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| Monet is another must-have. His work is so gorgeous. The Art Institute has a whole room of his work, and we spent quite a bit of time admiring it. |
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| This was one of our attempts at getting a glamour shot on the museum's beautiful staircase. I caught her off guard. |
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| This was pre-deep dish food coma. It was worth every cheesy, delicious bite. |
Week Three
The two major highlights of week three were going blonde and going back to my future medical school for second look day. I know I've talked about my hair before on this blog, so you know that up until last October, I had never dyed my hair. In October, I had my sister do a bit of highlighty balayage and I really liked that. Over the following months, it grew out a bit. We re-toned it, but I was feeling like I was ready for something new. I had seen some really beautiful pictures on Instagram of balayage, and for some reason, blonde was calling my name. For weeks, I was enamoured with the idea but scared that I would hate it. Until one day, I decided that I wanted to go for it. I must've sent Em a thousand different pictures because I had many different styles that I really liked. In the end, I told her to just do whatever. She knows me very well, so I trusted that I would love it no matter what. Well, I surely wasn't wrong. She went with a more ombre, rooted blonde, and I absolutely love it! The first few days, I was in utter shock. I had never changed my hair so drastically, and it felt so different. As the days went by, I fell more in love with it, and I have gotten soo many compliments. The whole concept went with my idea of being daring and going for things, so I am very happy that I went through with it. Afterwards, we went out for dinner. We checked out this cute little sushi place in Wicker Park, and I have to say it was awesome.
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| Right after getting it done. The lighting made it look a little darker. |
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| About a week and a half after. You can see it's much lighter than the picture above. |
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| We were super stuffed after this. So worth it, though! |
A couple days later was second look day. My medical school invited back the admitted students, so the could get another look at the campus and they could also hear about all the great things the program has to offer before making final decisions. I brought my parents along because I wanted them to see where I would be attending and see what I am excited about. I am so glad that I did because they really liked the school. If it is even possible, I fell even more in love with the school. After walking around and hearing what will be coming, I cannot wait to be there and to finally say that I am a medical student. I feel like I'll fit in with the atmosphere of the school and my makes me really happy that I'll be attending there. Following the second look day program, the current MS1s hosted a mixer at a local bar for the potential MS1s to meet. It was a great opportunity to ask the current students questions as well as meet some of my future classmates. I connected with a couple girls that were super nice, and we added each other on Facebook. Overall, it was a really great day. Unfortunately, I didn't really get a chance to take pics as the day was super busy and I didn't want to be that girl.
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| Our breakfast spot! This place has always been a fave. We used to come here when I was little and we would visit my Dad at work. |
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| The folders they handed out. I made a joke about this being a sign that I was meant to be the future Meredith Grey lol |
Sunday, we had really great weather, so my sister and I decided to go out for a hike. I absolutely love being outdoors, so it felt super relaxing to get outside. We hiked about 4.0 miles and then decided we were getting hungry and needed coffee. Which meant we followed up with a Starbucks trip. Em is usually pretty busy, so it was great to get to spend some time with her.
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| Em makes hiking look glamourous |
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| The trail |
Week Four
This past week, not a lot was going on. I was rather content with that as the past couple weeks had been rather busy. I did meet my work friends for a hike both Saturday and Sunday morning. Both days we met up at 8 A.M. It was a bit of a struggle, but getting up early really helps me feel productive, and getting in my workout at the start of the day is always great. Besides that, I spent a lot of time at home and with my family. I've been trying to spend time with them as I know that I'll soon be in the city, and it'll be much easier to see my friends, but will take a little more effort to see my parents. Em works downtown, so I can easily catch up with her for lunch or dinner, so I'm not too worried there.
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| The hiking trail starts with some super steep stairs. Trust me, they'll prove whether you are in shape or not. |
Looking Forward
For me, it's crazy to think that as the weeks go by, I am getting closer to medical school. As I am typing this, I have about three weeks before my pre-mat program begins. Last week, I had to do some online training for working with formaldehyde, and I think that it's a sign that we will be doing some cadaver lab in our six-week program. Ah! For the next coming weeks, I am trying to get myself together to begin this next portion of my life but also, trying to enjoy all the free time that I have left. I am incredibly excited and slightly nervous about what is about to come, but I know that it'll be incredible. If anything, I am feeling a bit anxious to just get started and as the weeks go by, that feeling is building. I also can't wait to share the whole journey with you guys! I really want to get started, so that I have more to share with you guys, rather than being limited to the "thought" pieces that I've been doing lately. Alas, all of that will happen soon enough:)
I hope you guys had an incredible month. As always, I hope you guys enjoyed getting a peek into what I've been up to as I really love writing it. I'll talk to you guys soon!
~Genesis<3
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