<p>Congrats to your son Donna! I had a wonderful summer before my senior year studying lowcost housing in London, Paris and Berlin. I bet Berlin is even more fun now than it was back then when it was walled in.</p>
<p>I have post this because I am so proudā¦</p>
<p>D2 called last Tuesday to tell me she been named an Amgen Scholar for 2011. Amgen is an extremely competitive summer research fellowship program in biomedical science, with over 6000 applicants for 250 slots.</p>
<p>She was a first round choice. She will be working with a pathology professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine using various imaging technologies (CAT, MRI, PET) to study gliomas (a fast growing cancerous brain tumor) and trying to develop a mathematical model to predict their growth.</p>
<p>D2ās award gives her a stipend, plus covers travel, housing & meals, pays for a Kaplan prep class, and pays all her expenses for a week long trip to a national conference in her research area where she will get a chance to present her project. Amgen Scholars also get intensive mentoring and opportunities to network with peers and experienced researchers.</p>
<p>(D2 was also offered a summer research internship at NINDS in Bethesda, MD, but turned it down when she received the Amgen notification.)</p>
<p>I am thrilled for D2 who was glum about her chances at any acceptance anywhere since she is characteristically very modest about her accomplishments and tends to downplay her achievements and successes.</p>
<p>D2 is very happy to be back in the West for the summer and is already planning side trips to Vancouver and Mt. Rainier.</p>
<p>congrats to you both!</p>
<p>Thanks to all on my sonās behalf, and congratulations to WOWMās D2, too!</p>
<p>And the duck falls.
WOWM has Dās and one of them is going to be at Udub. </p>
<p>DS works at Paul Allen Computer Science Bldg, just a few minutes walk to Udub Medical.
DS knows VBC and Rainier fairly well. ;)</p>
<p>Long Prime!</p>
<p>Your DS sounds like someone D2 would be interested in meeting up with! She is an outdoor kinda kid. Hiked the entire John Muir Trail (221 miles!) in 3 weeks with a girl friend last summer. And spent the summer before working in Yellowstone. Sheās been collecting 14ers since she was literally 3 years oldā¦</p>
<p>Is your son single? <kidding!></kidding!></p>
<p>got another bite.</p>
<p>Yes, heās a bachelor. Having too much fun.
Fair warnings. This generation is in no hurry. A couple of other momās have expressed interest :)</p>
<p>Brag:
DS calls and tells us one of his gizmos was shown on a tech magazine.</p>
<p>S1, a second year at college, got a financial sector summer internship that comes with $15K compensation plus performance based bonus. He is the only second year who was offered the position - the rest of the prospective interns at this firm are third yearsā¦ I think we will retire on his income :)</p>
<p>That said, he is eying on the other internship position, where he is the only one invited for a second interview (they are looking for only one intern - itās a boutique fund run by a powerful family). Though it pays less, he believes itās a better opportunity - which I concur.</p>
<p>H, congrats on having two choices! Fantastic.</p>
<p>Iām happy for all of you proud parents.</p>
<p>More braggingā¦D1 was accepted into medical school today.</p>
<p>Iām thrilled for her. Sheās a non-traditional applicant (not straight out of college) who decided after she finished her math & physics degree 3 years ago she really wanted medicine and went back to school part time while working 2 jobs to take her pre-reqs.</p>
<p>Yay WayOutWestMom! :)</p>
<p>Way to go WayOutWestMom!!!</p>
<p>My turnā¦today S1 graduated (after the most arduous year of his life) from one of the toughest schools in the U.S. Navy. Heās been working toward this for almost four years. Today he can finally say āI made itā. He graduated from college magna cum laude but said college was nothing compared to this Navy school. Itās been a long hard road and Iām so proud of him.</p>
<p>Packmom, I remember when he was tarting college. A big congrats!!!</p>
<p>Donna and WeternMom, congrats to your son and daughter.</p>
<p>Weekly brag that I survived another week at work. Only 2 more to go before I have Spring Break and get to visit D.</p>
<p>I really love reading all the nice things about all the kids.</p>
<p>Oh, and only 12 more before I go to Spain for 2 months and get to see S.</p>
<p>Glad to see you made it another week Gloworm.</p>
<p>My bragā¦Iām retiring in June. Only 65 more days of workā¦but whoās counting?</p>
<p>Congratulations Packmom and son!</p>
<p>And congratulations to you, thumper1!</p>
<p>My daughter found out that she won a Gold Medal in the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards program for photography. She was absolutely floored when she heard the news! She was more excited about this award then when she signed her Nationa lLetter of Intent. So, it looks like we will be heading to Carnegie Hall on May 31st!</p>
<p>thumper1, </p>
<p>You know how jealous I am. </p>
<p>fishymom,</p>
<p>Wow! S last week, D this week! YAY!</p>
<p>Thanks fishymom and congrats to your D.
Thumper1ā¦we are soooo jealous here at the PackHouse. We have built our retirement home and would love to move in but DH is not quite to retirement yet.</p>
<p>PackMom - so glad for your S1! I know you are all proud. I already feel safer :)</p>
<p>Thumper1 - retirement is so far offā¦cannot even imagine</p>