Meet the Members Monday- Courtney C

Hi!  I’m Courtney Christensen and my husband Dan is a 4^th year med student here at USUHS.  We’re prior service Navy – Dan was on submarines before making the transition to medicine.  We have two boys with another on the way!  Cayden is 4 and Colton is almost 2 and they’re excited to have another brother to wrestle around with – baby boy #3 is due in late January.  Dan and I are both from south Jersey – we were good friends all through high school and even went to our senior prom together, though we didn’t start dating until after we both graduated from college.  However, all through high school my best girlfriends used to say “you’re going to end up marrying him one day!” and I would shake my head and say “no, we’re just good friends!”  He went to the Naval Academy and I went to James Madison University and after we graduated we ended up living in the DC area at the same time and started hanging out a lot.  Sure enough, something “clicked” and we were soon engaged.  My best friend had a lot of fun saying “I told you so!” in her toast at our wedding.  Since getting married, we’ve been stationed at Norfolk, VA and Charleston SC before coming to USU.  Before having kids, I used to work as a pharmaceutical sales representative for Pfizer.  It was an awesome job, but once I had my first son, I decided to become a stay at home mom and I’m so happy with that decision.  USU has been a great experience for us!  We currently live in the Glen Haven military community and love it.  I love living mere steps away from about a dozen other USU families and my boys love that they get to have a playdate every day with the other kids in the community!  As for my hobbies, I love to read (I read about 3-4 books a week) and I have a passion for photography!  I have my own photography business, Courtney Christensen Photography, and I specialize in newborns and families.  I’ve had the privilege of working with a lot of USU families and you can check out some examples of my work at www.ccfamilyphotography.com  or come follow my page on Facebook.  I’ve loved my time so far as a Navy wife and USU has been a great place for our family.  Your time here will fly by – I still remember attending Orientation at the start of Dan’s MS1 year and I can’t believe that we’re now the “seniors” and in just a few weeks we’ll be “matched” and in a few months, graduating!  I urge all of you to take advantage of your time here – get involved and make sure you have a strong support system.  The SSC and my neighborhood have been lifesavers for my family and me as we’ve navigated the highs and lows of med school.  It’s strange to be approaching the end of our time at USU and we’re so thankful for all the great friends we’ve made and memories we’ve experienced here.  It goes by so fast, so make the most of every moment!