SHE DID IT!!

 She did it! It was an uphill battle the whole way, but with all the courage and hard work and dedication she could muster, Celina kept going. She began to sound more and more like a doctor, and now she is one!

She often acknowledged that she received noticeable help from above, with a lot of fasting and prayer. Her path was guided and she knew it. She will be a wonderful doctor and will be able to do a lot of good in the world.

Three years of residency in family medicine and a lot more work and study are ahead, but this big milestone has been reached! Hurray! Congratulations, Dr. Charles! 

My father was a medical doctor, and it's touching to me that his granddaughter is now carrying on that professional tradition of science, healing and service. 

At the graduation, we all thought of her other grandpa as well, and how proud he would have been if he could have been there. He supported her and all her efforts so much.

Here she is with someone else who has always cheered her and the rest of us, on - 

 

 

 

Hazel!

Happy Birthday, Hazey! Seven years old today. I miss you so.

Another Idea

 Okay, I've changed my mind again. I think I would like to commemorate some family birthdays here, but only the grandchildren's. 

 After a lot of back and forth in my head, I've decided not to celebrate the birthdays here. It's just too hard to do justice to how special and dear and wonderful the birthday children, big and small, are. How can I express all that in a few words here? It's not possible. I feel the need to go on and on about each one, and show many pictures. My heart wants to explode in happiness and gratitude for our family today, as I remember that January day in Davis, California, when the world was new and we became the parents of our first little baby boy.