Traveling to Seattle for Family Residency interviews

[timba]

Hey folks,

I’m looking for a bit of advice on traveling to Seattle for a week with a 23 month old as my wife interviews for family medicine residencies there (Cherry, First Hill, Group Health, U of Wash). Here’s a couple topics that I’m curious about for whoever feels like weighing in:

1. Traveling solo with a 23 month old: Somehow my wife convinced me that this would be a good idea (despite the fact that I can’t neutralize him with nursing like she can). Any ideas for keeping a 31lb lap infant occupied for 6 hours as I fly in from Boston? He’s currently dealing with an ear infection, so that’s made him cuddly and lethargic but I’m afraid that won’t last until Wednesday (not that I want him to be sick, but… you know, sleeping kid on a 6 hour flight isn’t the worst thing in the world.).
   I’m planning on bringing my ipad with a few games (Press Here, Petting Zoo, Candy Crush), as well as a couple different types of snacks (yogurt, crackers, grapes, etc). He’s travelled a bunch in the past (California, Ohio, Ireland, etc.) but not without mom until this point.
2. Killing time in Seattle with a 23 month old: I know that there are a couple of museums to check out in Seattle, (Museum of Flight, EMP, etc) – are there any that people remember positively or negatively? Any good parks for a toddler? Other activities on which one could take a toddler? I had been thinking just going for a boat ride on the Bainbridge island ferry might entertain him a bit...
3. Pre-interview dinners: I haven’t done one before. What is it like to be the +1 at one of these? Any tips? I'm not always great at long meals with well informed and opinionated strangers discussing medicine...
4. Neighborhoods to explore for potential living situations: Does anyone know where that magical place is that has decently priced homes (IE: in the 300-450k range for 1700 square feet/3 bedroom) with a fair amount of green space (IE: at least a car’s width between homes/buildings, maybe a backyard or a park nearby) that are within a 30 minute commute from the hospitals or downtown?
5. Commentary on the non-medical work situation in Seattle: I work as an IT business analyst/Project Manager for a small beverage company and am optimistic about job prospects there. At the same time, I have heard that there’s a major brain drain happening at Microsoft, potentially flooding the market with talented IT refugees. Anyone have any experience with this?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

-Timba

[diggitydot]

Traveling to Seattle for Family Residency interviews

Being the +1 at the dinners isn't a rough gig. You get a free dinner and nothing is expected of you. Helping keep the conversation going is about as tough as it gets.

I never attended any of the candidate dinners prior to residency, but they're not awful. Probably more stressful for candidate spouses than resident spouses, but still not awful.

As for neighborhoods, unless you have a ton of time to roam around, I'd wait until you match before trying to check shit out. You'll make yourself crazy researching multiple cities in anything other than a very superficial manner. I'd recommend checking out the forums on City Data if you want to get a rundown of any specific location.

[alotofyarn]

Do you have someone to watch the 23 month old during the dinners, or were children specifically invited?

[timba]

Do you have someone to watch the 23 month old during the dinners, or were children specifically invited?

I don't know if the child was specifically invited (since i don't see the materials) but the general practice has been that he is invited (others have brought kids to the dinners she has attended).

[diggitydot]

Traveling to Seattle for Family Residency interviews

Do you have someone to watch the 23 month old during the dinners, or were children specifically invited?

Some programs offer babysitting. At least ours did and we were FM.

FM is a completely different beast from most specialties. Many programs are SUPER family friendly and go out of their way to invite or accommodate residents with spouses and kids.

[medpedspouse]

Hi! Do not know how the ear infection and altitude will pan out. That was my first concern reading your post. However, I do not have kids so I really may be worried about nothing.

Having said that, if the kiddo is ok to fly, Seattle has several neat places for a 2yo...we visit friends often and there are several indoor places to go. I can ask for the specific names if you'd like but I found this after a quick search http://www.parentmap.com/article/rai...playing-inside.

[diggitydot]

Ear infection + flying = miserable experience for everyone. Including the other passengers.

[Flynn]

#1 -- Why exactly are you going? This sounds like torture to me but mainly for dad and child. You are going to be on kid duty and unless he's sleeping you won't catch much of the conversation at any dinners.

#2 -- The Children's Museum and Pacific Science Center would be my first two choices for a kid under 3. The EMP is NOT great for toddlers. I'd skip that. The Woodland Zoo is fun but nothing is covered. Dress for rain and bring a stroller. There is a lot of ground to cover for a toddler but it is a good zoo.

As far as where to live I'd wait until the match which is a cruel and fickle creature. That being said yards are difficult to find in suburban Seattle. A small yard with 2000 square feet (no garage) on a street not too far from the highway will start at 450,000 and that's likely a bit of a "project."

I have no idea about job opportunities. Sorry.

[metroguy]

1. baby and a plan--generally not a good idea if you are not the primary caretaker. not sure why you would travel ALONE with a baby.. i would not. just the diaper changing would be a pain..
3. not sure why you would go to a pre interview dinner unless they ask specifically for spouse. to me, it's not worth the trouble or stress. i rather eat dinner in the hotel room alone. this way, i don't affect her chances or her questions. also, she's free to roam to various people without worrying about me.
5. isn't amazon there.. i know they were hiring..

[diggitydot]

Traveling to Seattle for Family Residency interviews

It's super common in FM for spouses to be invited to the pre-interview dinners. So much so that some programs (certainly not all, though) judge candidate commitment to matching there by whether their SO and/or kids tag along. It's actually weirder in FM for spouses to NOT attend the dinners than for them to attend.

Seriously, FM is on a completely different planet compared to a lot of other specialities. Programs recruit the shit out of good candidates. I'm talking gift baskets, swag bags, etc.

I have a friend who works in IT for Amazon in Seattle. I can ask him if they're hiring if you match there.

[spotty_dog]

I know a family who moved to Seattle on a whim this spring, and the breadwinner was in IT and just sort of put his resume out there. They decided to move in mid-March, moved at the beginning of April, and he'd completed the hiring process by the end of April at one of the big tech companies -- I think M$ but I'm not sure. I was pretty impressed.

I wouldn't advise buying just for a 3 year residency. And I really wouldn't advise doing any housing searches until the Match. You'll go crazy. (I did pretty intense real estate research for our top 2-3 choices. Yeah, we matched at #8.)

Traveling with a recent ear infection sounds really miserable. Add that he's a big toddler flying as a lap baby? Aiyaiyai. :\ Good luck.