Iceman Cometh Challenge 2007

Earlier this month, Justin competed for the second time in the Iceman Cometh Challenge... an annual 27-mile mountain bike race in Traverse City, Michigan.

Justin went with a group of friends who are also avid mountain bikers. They rented a house in Traverse City and had a great time!

From left to right: Glen (an ENT attending who Justin works / windsurfs / mountain bikes with), Karen and John (our good friends who are moving to Oregon in February- Yay!), and of course, Justin!

Justin finished the race in two hours, sixteen minutes, and twenty-seven seconds... almost twenty minutes faster than his time last year!

Chris and Alice's Wedding Day- October 20, 2007

The ceremony was held on a beautiful lawn behind the Administration Building at Balboa Park.

Waiting for the ceremony to start!

Me walking with Prashant (one of the groomsmen).

The officiant of the ceremony was Shannon, Alice's childhood friend.

Congratulations, Chris and Alice!

The bridal party-- me, Alice, Tammy (Alice's sister), and Grace (Alice's other sister).

The reception was held at a nearby ballroom next to the Prado Restaurant. We had a fabulous time!

Pre-Wedding Festivities!

Alice and I met during our internal medicine internship year and we have been friends ever since! She lives in North Carolina now so it was really great to meet up in San Diego for a few days of fun before her wedding.


The day before the wedding we went out for afternoon tea!


The food was almost too pretty to eat! My favorite was the powdered sugar covered scones which were served with a pink ambrosia cream.

The rehearsal dinner was held at a restaurant in La Jolla called Azul. The ocean views from the restaurant were incredible!

Justin pointed out that there were swimmers in the water who were probably training for a triathlon as San Diego is a popular city among triathletes.

Stone Brewing Company

After spending the day in Laguna Beach, we stopped in Escondido for dinner at the Stone Brewing Company. The food was delicious! (Justin had the Chicken Tikka Masala and I had the Wood-Grilled Rainbow Trout.) Before dinner, we were able to join in on a brewery tour to learn about the beer brewing process.

Relaxing in Laguna Beach

After flying into San Diego, we jumped into our rental car and drove north to Laguna Beach, a small coastal resort town and artistic community.

The homes were beautiful but VERY expensive!

We spent the day enjoying the beach and visiting many of the unique shops and boutiques in the area.

Yay! Another Trip to Portland!

Last week we had a week of vacation which we planned quite a while ago so we could fly to San Diego to attend the wedding of our good friends Alice and Chris. (Stay tuned for pictures!) Since we were flying to the west coast anyways, we decided to spend the first half of the week in Portland. Work has been busy so it was a great opportunity to spend time with our families and relax!


Evergreen trees are my favorite! Unfortunately, they are not as abundant in Michigan.

This is a picture of us on the Terwilliger Trail... we used to go running on this trail when we were medical students living in Hillsdale.

Stumptown Coffee Roasters is our favorite place to get coffee in Portland. The vanilla lattes are not only delicious, but pretty too!

Beautiful fall colors in the Pacific Northwest!

Dinner With the Radiology Girls!

On saturday night, the girls in my residency class (except Colleen who unfortunately couldn't make it) went out for dinner at Ajishin for udon noodles and sushi. Our schedules are all really busy so it's great when we can actually find a time to get together!


Carolyn (left) and me on the right. We are often mistaken for one another and are still trying to figure out a way to use this to our advantage at work.


Jessica (left) and Timnit (right). Timnit looks amazingly happy and energetic considering that she came straight to the restaurant after working a long day in the ER!

Accenture Chicago Triathlon- August 2007

Justin participated in the Accenture Chicago Triathlon, the largest triathlon in the world! This is the view from our room at the Chicago Hilton, the official hotel for the triathlon. Justin started doing triathlons a couple years ago and has competed in eight so far, including the Whirlpool Steelhead 70.3 Half-Ironman Triathlon 2007 which was held in Benton Harbor, Michigan.

A beautiful sunrise from our hotel window.

Race day! Justin in his wetsuit, ready for a swim in Lake Michigan!

Justin's swimming wave was assigned pink caps... it's hard to tell which pink cap is Justin!

Even with the zoom lens, I still couldn't tell where Justin was.

Ready, set, go!

Again, it's difficult to know which pink cap is Justin.

Justin biking...

Justin running...

Justin finishing! He completed the race in 2 hours, 47 minutes, and 12 seconds and finished 1097 out of 4268 competitors... impressive!

Even after competing in an exhausting triathlon, Justin found the energy to take Stephanie shopping on Michigan Avenue!



Here is a video of Justin finishing the race... he runs by towards the end of the clip and is wearing a blue shirt and white hat. (He raises his hands in the air about 23 seconds into the clip.)

Chad's Wedding- August 2007

During the summer of 2007, we drove to the western highlands of the Mt. Hood region to attend the wedding of Kari and Chad. Chad is an old friend of ours from medical school. He's a urology resident and Kari is a nurse... they met while working together at OHSU!


The wedding was held at the Resort at the Mountain in Welches, Oregon.

The scenery was amazing!

A picture from the wedding rehearsal... practice makes perfect!

We had a wonderful time!

Chad and Justin getting ready before the ceremony.


Justin looking sharp in his tuxedo!


Justin escorted Chad's grandmother down the aisle.


The newlyweds walk down the aisle together.

Time to cut the cake!