The First Year Calendar...

Joe's calendar for his first year of dental school came in the mail today.

I was so excited to finally have an actual idea of what next year will be like - until I actually read it and realized how little time he's going to have off.

So little, in fact, he even has classes on Christmas Eve.

...My birthday...

Christmas Eve is a terrible day for a birthday, but one of the redeeming things about it has been that it's always free of work/school for my family and me.

Until now.

I've never NOT been home for my birthday and, unless we fly home after classes that day, I won't be home for Christmas for the first time ever either.

And that will likely be the case for the next four Christmases and birthdays.

I know I sound like (at best) a drama queen or (probably more like) a spoiled brat - plenty of people don't get to see their family on Christmas or their birthday (my husband never sees his - they live in Missouri) and plenty of people have to pack themselves like cattle through TSA on overpriced flights the day before Christmas.

Intellectually I get this.

But anyone who knows me knows I am much more emotional than intellectual.

Darn hormones and my Italian blood.

And before you think I am too melodramatic, why I think this is so upsetting is because this also has made me finally comprehend is just how little I am going to see my husband and family.

I'll be 3,000 miles (or a $350+ round trip airline ticket) from my family in a city where I know no one and my husband will be either in class, studying, or sleeping 24/7/365.

I don't know why this is a newsflash to me. I've known this all along.

And for those of you wondering when we are going to have a baby, I'm pretty sure I've also realized that won't be happening during Dental School. Heck - with this schedule we won't even have time to make a baby.

 Ugh.

Just let me feel sorry for myself for a while. I'll need to put on a brave face for Joe for the next 4 years.