Life in iPhone Snaps: Images of This Fast and Furious American Life.

Life moves so quickly sometimes. Capturing it in images slows it down for me and helps me savor it. Here are a few random iPhone snaps from the last few weeks in this little life of mine.

Like to see 'em? Here they go!

My boys are getting big. Fast. Sometimes I walk behind them listening to their conversations and they morph into 16 and 17 year old young men. I shake my head and wipe my eyes and they go back to this size. It's crazy. But in this bittersweet and beautiful way.

The "baby god brothers" are now kindergarten aged. Look how protective my boys look of them. I remember posting their births on this very blog. Dang.

My nephew is now a freshman at Emory. What's super awesome is that his dorm is literally across the path from where I teach and right along where I walk in and out to the med school. This was from a day that I ran into him. It made my week.

Fortunately my nephew wasn't present for these dorky photos that I talked the family into taking on move in day.

Ha.

I love it that we get to see so much of David now. This was yesterday when he popped by our house. He was Zachary's age when he was the ring bearer in our wedding.

Le sigh.

Went to L.A. for JoLai and Joe's big post wedding soiree last weekend. Because JoLai is the friend hoarder, there were friends representing every single phase of our lives. It was awesome.

We were all so awkward in middle school. I love seeing how much we've all come into our own.

My best friend, Lisa D., joined me for the trip. We had a blast.

LOL how awesome is this? This woman, Sandra V., graduated from high school with me. We tied for 6th in our high school class down to like 5 decimal points. I'd forgotten that until she reminded me. I told her, "Oh well. It just means we were both smart girls."

Road trip to Savannah for Zachary's football tournament. It was hot as FISH GREASE, do you hear me?

I am in love with these two boys.

He asked me if we were close to the equator. I told him, "That or hell."

I love when the BHE helps get Zachary situated. It really is quite appealing in a strange way.

If my skin looks like it is melting off it's because it probably was.

I bought this big ass umbrella on Amazon. They laughed at me. Until it rained cats and dogs in Savannah. Mmmm hmmm.

Awesome day with Small Group Epsilon. We had lunch then took a field trip to look at social determinants of health in two neighborhoods. We visited two different grocery stores and it was really eye opening to see how poverty can affect access.

This store had 17 different types of apples. And they all looked amazing.

Have you ever heard of a "Rockit" apple? I hadn't.

When your grocery store is this affluent, you run out of organic apples.

I had to ask two different people to help me find the organic apples in the other store. This was from the lonely pile they had. The kind man in produce told me, "They cost a lot so they don't sell."

This affordable display, however, was more affordable. And also prominently situated at the very front of the store when I walked in.

The first store had a Starbucks. This one had beauty supply, pawn shop, and a number of predatory lenders. What did they learn? That achieving your full health potential is some complicated shit.

Especially if you have limited income and uninspired surroundings.

Anyways.

This was cool:

My former Small Group Alpha advisee, Alanna S., is now on the Grady faculty with me. How crazy is that? This was taken on the first time we ever precepts residents in the clinic together. So awesome.

Speaking of Small Group Alpha:

Antoinette N. was in town last week for her Family Planning fellowship interview. She's finishing up her Ob/Gyn residency and is ready to take her next step. It's like no time passed at all since I've seen her last.

Our goofiness immediately comes out. 

Same day, different learner. This was from an awesome lunch pow wow with Robbie G. She's not in one of my small groups but I've secretly adopted her. (Don't tell her advisor.) Love her.

Might as well keep my "selfies with med students" thing going, right? This is Mike E. I took him out to breakfast to celebrate him winning the Medical Student Teaching Competition. He is such a talented and enthusiastic teacher!

Hmmm. What else? Oh. This:

I keep this in my office. It is pretty much the main rule of my office. And my life. Yeah. Pretty much.

Visited my godson at his preschool the other day. He was so happy to see me. I love when little kids that I love show love back. Everyone knows how fickle preschoolers can be.

Mmm hmmm.

I run a race every August now in Deanna's memory. I call August the "Deanna month." Now it's the JoLai month, too. She got married in August so I REALLY needed to get a race in. I just made the cut with this 10K on August 29. Woke up early and did it alone but it was good.

Very.

I pass this sign every day when driving from Decatur (where the kids are in school) back into my neighborhood. On this day I was in traffic so rolled down my window and snapped a photo of it.

I saw this sign below hanging on a wall while walking into my friend's loft apartment. It names all the intown Atlanta neighborhoods. Atlanta has the interstate 285 going in a circle around it and is intersected by interstate 85 vertically and interstate 20 horizontally. Everything inside of the circle we affectionately refer to as "ITP"--that is INSIDE THE PERIMETER.

I think an ITP snob is responsible for this sign.

This was from a lovely evening stroll with some of my Small Group Delta advisees. I truly love them.

Man. Have y'all peeped the five dollar movies at Target?

Our latest acquisitions are "Goonies" and "The Princess Bride." Two of my favorite movies that have now become two of my kids' favorites, too.

I think this green grill shows the level of dedication I have to my son's team. I'm just sayin'.

Had an awesome brunch at my favorite brunch spot with my best friend. I love that when it's just us two we can speak so freely. Our twenty three year old friendship just gets better with time.

More Prosecco?

Yes, please!

And then today:

Started it off with a 10K for breakfast with two great friends, Stephanie M. and Ishan M.

It was a merciful course and the weather was equally kind to us.

Yeah. So that was a cool way to start my day.

Especially since it was my birthday.

I spent the whole day lazing around with my three favorite guys. The big one wasn't feeling my camera so kept hiding.

Zachary detests cake but Isaiah happily polished off my complimentary flourless chocolate cake the minute the candle was blown out.

Harry and I both had on white pants. You know they have all these rules about white below the waist in the south (after Labor Day.) That wasn't a thing in California. But when in Rome.. . . . 

And lastly this photo taken by the BHE after the guys took me to dinner. Nope. It wasn't a rager of a birthday for me at all. But it was perfect.

Truly perfect indeed.

Yeah.

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