Sandy diapers and a Medical Degree

Ah, life.  Life is wild and WE, my friends, are certifiably crazy.  So, here's what's happening in our world: My husband Rhett has decided, after over a decade in finance, that his calling in life is to be a doctor.  So guess who is starting medical school in the Caribbean in TEN days?  That's right, Rhett Buttars.  In other news, I am 8.473 months pregnant and having our third child in TWENTY days (or less, as my babies historically come 2-3 weeks early!).  However, I will NOT be delivering a child in the Caribbean.  I'll hang back here and have her on American soil, and then join my husband in a month or two, whenever I feel ready to move our 3 children across the ocean to a tiny - though beautiful - island.  So there's our newsflash.  For a Q & A, keep reading...

Typically, when we tell people, the same questions arise:

1.  So is he going to be there for the birth?

   - Possibly.

2.  So is he going to miss the birth?

     - Probably.  I'm not above Skyping it.  So if you'd like to watch also (you perv), then just call your old hacker buddy, and figure that out, mmmkay?

3.  Why the Caribbean?

     - So Rhett can start immediately.  He started his college career pre-med, so he's got the pre-reqs done.  But they are all about 15 years old.  And US Med Schools put an expiration date on their pre-reqs, typically 5-7 years.  Carribean Med Schools accept Rhett's old dusty pre-reqs.  So he can start now!  

4.  How long will you live in the Caribbean, and which island?

Anguilla, circled in RED.  Tiny little dot, right middle.

     - Only 16 months on the island of Anguilla (across from St. Martin, just east of Puerto Rico), followed by 2 years of clinicals in Chicago.  So we will be back to the US before my oldest even starts Kindergarten.

5.  Can he practice in the United States when he's done? 

     - Absolutely.  This Caribbean School only takes US and Canadian students, and their education is geared to pass all US Boards.  He will have to pass all American tests.  The more people we talk to, the more I learn that far more doctors went to Caribbean schools than I realized.  

6.  Are you excited?  

     - Mostly.  Rhett is happier than he has ever been, and so that makes me happy.  I'm always up for an adventure.  The timing is truly horrible, which obviously complicates things.  So I'm a little nervous, a little overwhelmed, and mostly excited.