Updates from the C Family

Spirit of Nursing

2012-01-24T21:15:00.003-05:00

This week has helped me remember why I love nursing.

Patients and their family members remembered me (and my name) even when I'd been off for a day or two. They were glad to see me. They vented to me. They reached out for hugs. They called me their angel.

One of the aides told another aide she liked working with me.

Good days at work make it easier to leave the girls in the care of near-strangers at the crack of dawn.

No Wonder I'm Tired

2011-11-28T23:03:00.002-05:00

The beginning of my shift went something like this.

0715- Get report from offgoing RN. Find out Patient A will need two units of blood. Blood isn't ready yet.

0720- Start to look at charts. Make it through one.

0730- Call light goes off. Patient B needs to use the bedpan, and is very particular (read: slow) about it.

0740- Go back to charts. Make it halfway through a second one.

0745- Another call light goes off. Patient C needs to get up to the commode, and though she moves steadily, she certainly does not earn any prizes for speed.

0755- Back to the charts.

0800- Another call light. Confused Patient D engages me in conversation for a while before I can politely excuse myself.

0820- Finally finish with charts and make it to the med room to start pulling up morning meds.

0840- Lab calls and lets me know about a critical hemoglobin on one of my patients.

0842- Discharge planning.

0845- Spy doctor at a nearby computer. Notify him of aforementioned hemoglobin. Receive orders to transfuse two units.

...You get the idea, no?

The rest of the day went something like this:
Start a unit of blood, put someone on a commode, take a set of vitals, take someone off a commode, receive a call from somebody's family member, pass some pain medicine, page a doctor to clarify an order, start another unit of blood, receive call back from doctor, remind confused patient how to use call light, call report to ECF, check on blood again, discharge patient, grab some saltines to tide me over, sit down for approximately 7 minutes to chart a couple things, finish a unit of blood, head to lab to get another, start another unit, give a suppository..

Lather.
Rinse.
Repeat.

Thanks, I think.

2011-11-15T21:31:00.002-05:00

One of my more demanding patients recently told me that I was "one of the better ones."

I think it was meant as a compliment.

During my initial assessment of a new (elderly) patient, I asked her why she was here. Her response: "I just had a baby downstairs. Have you seen my baby?"

Our Family Has Grown!

2011-10-03T16:19:00.005-04:00

I realize it has been a while since the blog has been updated, but I promise there is a legitimate reason for that.

I'm on leave, so I don't have new work stories.

And this is the reason for leave:

Brighteyes made her grand entrance last month, and we are thrilled to be a family of four!

Sweet Pea (who recently turned four) has had some moments of jealousy, and demands snuggles more often than usual, but she is doing really well in her new role as a big sister. In fact, we often need to rein in her enthusiasm a bit.

I look forward to seeing these girls interact as Brighteyes gets a little older.

I'm so blessed to be a momma to these two girls!

Nurses = Detectives

2011-08-12T22:26:00.002-04:00

Please, for the sake of your healthcare providers, keep a current list of your medications with you. Otherwise something like the following may happen.

Nurse: So what medications are you taking?
Patient: I don't know what they're called. I'm taking about 28 of them, I think. I don't know what they are for.
Nurse: ...Ok, let's figure this out. Where do you get your prescriptions filled?

(Later)
Nurse: Hello, Goldman's Pharmacy? I'm trying to figure out John Smith's home medications. Would you be able to fax over a list of his active prescriptions?
Goldman's: No, we can't do that, but we can read them to you over the phone.

(Later)
Nurse: Hello, Dr. Jones? You are listed as John Smith's primary physician. Can you fax over a list of his active prescriptions?
Dr. Jones: This patient has never been seen here.

(Later)
Nurse: Hi, Goldman's, it's the nurse again. Can you tell me who prescribed each of those medications you read to me earlier?
Goldman's: Sure, it was Dr. Seuss, Dr. Who, Dr. Carter, and Dr. Strangelove.

(Later, after some googling to find phone numbers)
Nurse: Hello, Dr. Seuss' office? Please tell me John Smith is an active patient with you.
Dr. Seuss' office: Oh, Dr. Seuss retired earlier this year.

Nurse: Please, for the love of all that is holy, let Dr. Who be John Smith's doctor..
Dr. Who's office: Oh yes, but that patient has not been in for about 6 months.
Nurse: So you have a list of active medications to fax me?
Dr. Who's office: I can't do that, but I can fax you the list that the patient provided to us on a crumpled, faded piece of notebook paper.
Nurse: And those are current medications?
Dr. Who's office: I have no idea. I'll just fax it and you can sort that out yourself.

(Later)
Nurse: This is the nurse, leaving a message for the specialist, Dr. Strangelove. Pretty please call me back.

(An hour later)
Dr. Strangelove's office: Yes, we saw that patient less than a month ago. We can't fax you a list either, but here, I'll read it to you.

(Later)
John Smith's family: Hey nurse, we are here to visit John, and we brought a current list of medications on a crumpled, faded piece of notebook paper. Want it?
Nurse: AHHH WHERE WERE YOU EIGHT HOURS AGO?

Double Check That

2011-06-30T20:49:00.004-04:00

Sweet Pea and I came back home from running errands, only to find a couple cars parked behind our garage.

As I started to unbuckle Sweet Pea, a 20-something young woman got out of one of the cars and cheerily said, "Hi! I'm here to buy your couch!"

"Excuse me?"

"We talked on the phone, and I'm here to buy the couch you're selling."

"..Yeah we don't have a couch for sale. You talked to someone here?"

"Yep! This is 123 Main St., right?"

"It is, but I don't think you want our couch."

20-something young woman makes a phone call, then hangs up and looks sheepishly at me. "I guess the couch is at 1234 Main St. Whoops."

Honesty

2011-06-27T09:15:00.002-04:00

At the end of my shift, I walked by the room of one of my (older, confused) patients and saw she had her legs scooted to the edge of the bed.

I walked in and asked what she was doing.

She looked up at me and replied, "Oh, trying to escape again."

Letters

2011-06-05T08:57:00.002-04:00

We enjoy watching Wheel of Fortune together as a family, and I suppose I may get a little animated once I've figured out the puzzle.

The other day, a new puzzle came up on the screen, and Sweet Pea leaned forward and hollered, "Cheese and butter! Cheese and butter! CHEESE AND BUTTER!"

We went out to dinner with friends, and in the middle of our conversation, Sweet Pea piped up with, "Hey! Do you like cheese sticks?"

Pain Scale

2011-06-01T12:40:00.002-04:00

Me: So how are those pain pills treating you? Helping with the pain at all?

Patient: Oh yes, they are definitely helping.

Me: You rated your pain at a 10 out of 10 earlier. How would you rate your pain now, after the pills?

Patient: Oh, still at a 10. My pain will be a 10 as long as I'm here.

Me: ?

Recognition

2011-04-26T09:49:00.003-04:00

Checked in a patient who had been on our unit several months ago, and before I could introduce myself, he called me by name and asked how I was!

Delegating

2011-03-30T13:03:00.003-04:00

"Mama, mama! Oh, my baby is calling for me. I'm the mommy." (walks over to baby doll and picks it up, then hands it to me) "She says she's sick. You're the daddy. You take care of it." (walks back over to rocking chair, grabs a book, and puts her feet up) "I'm busy right now!"

Cooties

2011-03-29T20:35:00.002-04:00

What did you play with your friends this morning? "We played Cooties." Oh that sounds like fun. How do you play? "Well, first you pick the winner, who picks all the cards. And then they SMASH the bug. And then you give the player a high-five. And then the player goes to a different center. And everybody gets a turn."

Fun with Delirium

2011-03-23T21:27:00.003-04:00

You know it's going to be a fun day at work when you assess your patients and realize that only one out the five can tell you where he/she is.

Some of my favorite exchanges:
Me: Do you know where you are right now?
Patient 1: I have no idea.

Patient 2: Did you work on the highway last summer, too?
Me: No, last summer I worked here as a nurse, just like I am right now.

Me: Your dressing is off again. That needs to stay on so your wound can heal.
Patient 3: Are you saying I'm doing that?

I come in to find Patient 4 out of bed, standing sans-gown in the corner of the room.
Me: Why are you out of bed? No weight on that leg, remember?
Pt 4: You need to call my parole officer.

Pt 2 again: How long have you worked at (local grocery store)?

Her First To-Do List

2011-03-17T18:21:00.003-04:00

We had a limited amount of time this morning before a scheduled activity, and numerous things to do to get ready.

I reminded Sweet Pea of all the steps, but she was just not in the right mindset and we weren't clicking.

I decided to try something new for us: A pictoral to-do list.

It's not a brand-new concept; many people use it in various settings, but this was the first time we had tried it.

So she and I brainstormed the steps to getting ready, and I drew a picture to represent each step.

Then she could see what her options were, pick one off the list, and then check it off when she was done and see what was left.

Still needed a little redirection at times, but she took more ownership over getting ready.

Here's our list, midway through completion.

In case it is not abundantly clear (I am not the greatest artist), the pictures are of a book (gather library books to return), a toilet (go potty), cup/bowl/spoon/placemat (eat breakfast), clothes (get dressed), and then a car and the library.

Fairly successful! We will likely repeat this strategy in the near future.

Pewshing

2011-03-05T20:49:00.003-05:00

This afternoon, Sweet Pea decided to play dressup. With her Cinderella dress, flip flops, and long white gloves on, she picked up a parasol, leveled it, and jerked it back and forth a couple times.

What are you doing, Sweet Pea?
"It's a gum."
That's not a good game to play. What do you know about gums?
"All my friends at daycare pewsh the gums at all the girls, and we run away."
Pewsh? What is that?
"Yeah, the pewshing game. When you pewsh."
..How do you do that?
Sweet Pea makes two fists in front of her, sticks her thumbs up, and makes a sound effect like "psh".

Crud. Time to sit down and have a chat! Amazing how much a kid can learn from peers, eh?

Watch out for those wild animals.

2011-01-31T22:01:00.003-05:00

(I have several pictures to upload, but that will have to wait for another day.)

Little old lady, confused as all get out, has recently had surgery and persists in climbing out of bed and attempting to leave the room/floor/building. Because wild animals are about to come in, and she is going to bleed to death, and everyone is trying to kill her.

We discuss safety. We discuss a need to heal. Reorienting only helps for about 20 seconds at a time, and then she is hollering my name again.

I redirect little old lady back to bed. Again.

She looks up at me and says, "What happened? I thought you were my friend!"

"I'm not your friend. I am your nurse. Those two don't always overlap."

11/365

2011-01-12T09:51:00.001-05:00

Our little leftie?

7/365

2011-01-12T09:48:00.002-05:00

A glimpse into the future? Hopefully she'll have better vision than I do.

4/365

2011-01-12T09:26:00.001-05:00

Sweet Pea's "cheese" face

(After this is where I skip a few days in the 365 project. Surprised?)

3/365

2011-01-03T17:10:00.002-05:00

Thanks, Dr. Google.

2011-01-02T18:57:00.002-05:00

"You know that pain medicine button? Is it true that there isn't really pain medicine in there? That it's all in the patient's head? My friend told me it's actually an antibiotic. That's not very nice to trick the patient like that."

*facepalm*

1/365, 2/365

2011-01-02T18:34:00.004-05:00

I make no promises that I will update daily, nor that I will get all 365 in by the end of the year.

However, I am going to attempt to record daily some aspect of our life through 2011. I'm sure the majority will be of Sweet Pea, but there may be other subjects thrown in there from time to time. I suppose it depends on what is going on.

Here is January 1. Sweet Pea, reading a new book and eating peanut butter off a spoon to get rid of hiccups.

January 2 saw Sweet Pea using her workbook (a Christmas gift to familiarize her more with letters). We're nowhere near proficiency, but she seems to enjoy it. Here's a sample page from the day.

Spelling 101

2010-12-01T21:07:00.002-05:00

"I can spell your name. M-O-M-O-M spells Mommy!"
Ooh very close, honey, M-O-M-M-Y. Good job!
"No, M-O-M-O-M-O!"

1st Quarter

2010-11-22T16:51:00.004-05:00

We had our first ever Parent-Teacher Conference today! Surreal to see a "report card" with your child's name on it, and to discuss crazy things like kindergarten readiness. Wasn't she just born??

Despite Sweet Pea informing us about knocking people over, her teachers say she has a good balance of assertiveness and listening. She's demonstrating a lot of pre-writing skills, gets along with the rest of her classmates, and participates readily in class activities. Because of her birthdate, she is one of the kids who can switch back and forth between the "Early Preschool" and "Preschool" rooms (depending on numbers), and apparently she does well in both rooms. Some of the others hang back when they are with the older kids, but she jumps right in, and often tells me about specific friends from each room.

I looked ahead to some of the objectives they'll be assessing later in the year, and Sweet Pea is definitely already working on some of them, but I know I'll be amazed at how far she's come by the end of the year!

Misheard Lyrics

2010-11-21T14:03:00.002-05:00

Sweet Pea is more musically inclined than either of her parents, and can often be heard humming or singing something. My current favorite goes like this:

Ring around the rosey,
hoppa pole laposey
Ashton, Ashton
We all fall DOWN!

She also does a pretty priceless rendition of "Bringing home a baby bumblebee", but doesn't sing it often enough for me to catch all the words.

The Shoe Game

2010-11-19T20:56:00.003-05:00

Me: So what did you do at daycare today?
Sweet Pea: "I played the shoe game with my friends."
Me: How do you play the shoe game?
Sweet Pea: "You knock people over."

Are We There Yet?

2010-11-18T21:46:00.004-05:00

While driving across town:
Sweet Pea: "Are we there yet?"
Me: No, honey, not yet.
[slight pause]
Sweet Pea: "Are we there yet?"
Me: ..No.
Sweet Pea: "Oh. Just checking."

Right there!

2010-10-22T00:38:00.003-04:00

Adorable, pleasantly confused patient: "I'm hurting!"
EC: "Oh? Tell me more."
APCP reaches around EC with both hands and grabs just below the hips. "Right there! That's where I hurt!"

Direction

2010-10-19T20:30:00.003-04:00

Wondering what direction to take this blog.

A lot of funny things happen at work, but there is that whole HIPAA thing, so I don't want to get too specific, and when I take out the necessary amount of details, the stories lose their humor.

Perhaps we'll stick to toddler stories?

Like how the other day, when I was scolding Sweet Pea for something or other, she said, "Stop looking at me like that!" Nice to know my Mom Look packs a bit of a punch.

At a youth group meeting, as I was tickling Sweet Pea, the director asked her if he could do some tickling. She said, "Yeah, sure! You can tickle my mom!" What a helpful suggestion, thank you.

I have been amazed the last few weeks at how big she is getting. She can reach things I remember lifting her to before (certain sinks, water fountains, etc), and can climb up parts of the playground that I would have guessed she would need help with.

...And she is awake, for the first of her many nightly trips to the bathroom.. Better go help.

RN

2010-09-05T20:45:00.002-04:00

I'm sorry for neglecting the blog.

Since my last post, I have passed boards to become a registered nurse, and am off orientation on my unit.

Exciting and intimidating all in one!

Graduated

2010-07-26T22:14:00.002-04:00

It is official. I am done with nursing school! Still waiting to take boards.

I have started my new job, orienting on my unit as a graduate nurse. I have had a couple days with patients now.

Day 1:
-Three patients to start
-One patient with out of control pain, worked with my clinical coach to address her pain. Worked through all the options we had available, then called the doctor to obtain more options. One hectic hour later and the patient was resting comfortably, finally. Rewarding to see the results.
-Overall, felt like I had forgotten everything I had ever learned. Points that were strong in nursing school or even as an aide? Fled my mind when it came to day 1 as a nurse. Overwhelming. But at the end of the day, all my patients were alive, pain was under control, and they were all happy (relatively speaking).

Day 2:
-Three patients
-First 4 hours of the shift FLEW by. The rest went pretty quickly too.
-Got surgery consents signed for one patient who was going to OR the next day. (The next shift can thank me later. ;) )
-Finished up nearly all of my charting on time.
-Kept everyone medicated.
-Stayed mostly on the good side of one cranky patient.
-Got a lot of practice with skin assessment, staging pressure ulcers. Discovered a stage I.
-Survived my first physician call (called to clarify conflicting orders).
-Overall, day 2 was much smoother than day 1. I was able to work more independently (though my clinical coach was always close at hand). I had a better sense of the big picture.

I had been worried about the transition from aide to nurse, but so far it seems to be going well. I have a good sense of what the aides do, and how their work fits into that big picture, and I can appreciate it even more.
-----------
In completely unrelated news, Sweet Pea is suddenly making great strides in potty training. I'm very proud of her! She wears diapers only at night now, and even so, is waking up dry sometimes. Woot!

Big Girl Bed!

2010-04-12T23:40:00.002-04:00

The time has come. Today, I took one side off of Sweet Pea's crib, converting it into a toddler bed.

She LOVES that she can climb into it all by herself now!

I took the railing off just before naptime, and let her explore her "new" bed for a while before proceeding with our normal naptime routine.

Naptime went fantastically, and getting her down at bedtime wasn't too tricky either.. but we haven't made it through the whole night yet! Time will tell whether she stays in bed or ends up elsewhere by morning. We will definitely be putting up the gate at the top of the stairs.

She and I had a conversation about her new big girl bed ("big girl" is a phrase we've all been using quite a bit lately), and how big girls stay in their beds all night, and that when she is ready to get up, she can call for us and we will come get her.

*fingers crossed*

Potent Quotables

2010-03-30T16:35:00.004-04:00

As we drove by a river, Sweet Pea told me she was a fish. I asked her questions about what kind of fish she was (color, size, etc), then asked if she was the kind of fish I could catch and eat. She responded in a "duh, Mom" kind of voice, saying, "No, I'm for swimming!"

Rocking before bed, she was asking me questions about my glasses and whether I wear them when I go to bed. I told her they were to help me see her, and that at night time when I was sleeping, my eyes were closed and I could take them off.
"You love seeing me?"
Yes, I love seeing you.
"I love screaming at you."

"Don't hold my hand, Mommy."
But Sweet Pea, I love you!
"No, I'm busy!"

"I need to take my shoes off."
Oh, do you have something in them?
"Yeah, I have dirt and chipmunks in my shoes!"

(As R was tickling her)
"No, Dad, it's not funny."

Life After Graduation

2010-03-02T23:28:00.002-05:00

Things are looking promising for an RN job on my unit as soon as I'm done with school. They can hire me even before I take the boards.

Ah, weight off my shoulders!

Countdown to graduation: <5 months!

So Quotable

2010-02-11T16:14:00.004-05:00

Sweet Pea wanted to call Mamaw. As soon as the voicemail picked up, she said, "Hang up, call again!"

She told me she needed groceries. When I asked what she needed, she said, "Meat, cheese, noodles, oranges, and bananas. That's all I need. And milk!" Sounds like a pretty complete list to me..

Me: Did you have a good time at Grandma's, honey?
Her: I not no honey! I Sweet Pea!

"I need to exercise!" is usually followed by her climbing onto the couch and jumping up and down.

Recent dinner prayers have often included blessings for our daycare, our cots, our cubbies, our naptime buddies, and baby Jesus.

She loves to dance and sing, and there is a Veggie Tales singalong cd in the car that both of us have memorized.

Another popular activity is playing the drums. Her drumsticks consist of pencils, spoons, crayons, and whatever else is handy and looks remotely drumstick-like.

A Non-Kid Story!

2010-02-05T15:23:00.003-05:00

I had been warned about my patient by the previous shift, who had butted heads with him and thrown up their hands. They offered me a sarcastic "Good luck!" as I prepared to collect his vital signs.

Tentatively, I knocked and walked in, introducing myself and telling my standard joke to break the ice. He was nothing but cooperative.

Later, he put his call light on to have me take his dinner tray out. I was stuck in another patient's room, so his nurse answered the light instead. When I finally made it out of the other room to see if she needed any help, she was walking out with his tray. I thanked her, then noticed his call light was still on. I walked in to turn it off myself, joking that the nurse was quick and had beat me to his room, and his reaction was strong and immediate. "I don't need anything from you! GET OUT! GO!!" as he pointed at the door with fury.

Near the end of my shift, I entered his room to empty his trash and change out the Intake/Output sheet on his door. He looked me up and down and asked if I'd been working on the menu yet for the lunch we'd be having together. I must have given him a puzzled look, because his next question was whether I was married. When I answered in the affirmative, he said he was barking up the wrong tree, and told me to call him if anything changed.

Who needs to go into psychiatric nursing? You can have plenty of exposure no matter where you work!

Being Two = Being Funny

2010-01-15T14:22:00.003-05:00

Whenever we go out to the garage and she sees the new (to us) car there: "New car time!"

From the backseat while ordering at a drive-thru: "And a free toy? And a free toy PLEASE?"

When I told her this place was different and didn't have toys: "Oh no. Shoot!"

As we passed a high school: "When I big, I play football! Throw the ball, and catch it, and run run run fast!"

If she doesn't understand what I'm saying: "What your talking about, Mommy? What your mean?"

Randomly: "What?"

What that noise?

2010-01-10T13:46:00.003-05:00

This morning at church there was a baptism. During the baptism, the priest asks the congregation to renew their own baptismal vows by responding, "I do" to several statements of belief. With Sweet Pea in my arms, I say, "I do" after the first statement. Sweet Pea looks at me and repeats, "I do." After the next statement, I again say, "I do." Emphatically, Sweet Pea shouts, "I DO! No, Mommy, ME!"

Later in the service, Sweet Pea hears a baby squawk a little. She turns to me and asks, "What that noise?" Not getting an immediate enough response, she yells, "WHAT that NOISE?" Well, honey, right now the noise is you!

She loved Christmas. We opened stockings on Christmas Eve. My favorite part was when she unwrapped one stocking stuffer and said, "Oh! Cute socks!" and carried them around for awhile. She also had her first Hershey kiss, of which she was a fan!

On Christmas day we spent some time as a family, opening gifts from each other and from grandparents who are out of town. Sweet Pea opened one from Mamaw and said, "Oh, I love it!"

That afternoon we had my parents and some of my siblings over. It was great to spend time with them, and Sweet Pea got to play with some of her cousins.

We took down the tree this week, but Sweet Pea is still talking about Christmas, and has asked to open more presents almost every day.

My new semester starts tomorrow. I've been working through break, but haven't had any shareable stories. Maybe the start of clinicals will change that!

Oh, I know!

2009-12-23T21:55:00.004-05:00

Upon hearing that we were out of cereal one morning, Sweet Pea proclaimed, "Oh! I know! Stir stir stir!" and pointed to the pancake mix.

When looking unsuccessfully for something, she'll say, "Ummm, nope!" with each place she looks.

As we drive past houses with lights up, I hear an excited, "Oh! Oh! Ah ah more merry Christmas lights!" as she points to each and every display (no matter how small).

She randomly inserts specific parts of Little Einstein episodes into conversation. "Baby chimp ah down down down down, waterfall!" as she wiggles her fingers like the chimp does.

When she's picking up her toys, she sings, "Keen up, keen up, keen up, keen up, body keen up.." I can't stand that purple dinosaur, but her version of the song is pretty darn cute.

We've had a grand total of maybe two inches of snow so far this winter, but she's enjoyed it. We got out the snowpants from last winter (which fit perfectly this year, yay) and went outside to "dig in the snow". Throwing snowballs was her favorite, I think.

Traditions

2009-12-03T22:57:00.003-05:00

We did more tree decorating tonight. We finished putting up the garland, then we got out some ornaments (mostly R's from his childhood, and a good handful that Sweet Pea has somehow accumulated.. I have misplaced the box of my old ornaments).

It was nothing fancy, but just sitting by the tree hanging those ornaments, seeing Sweet Pea's excitement at all the new things as she touched them (mostly) with one finger (new rule ala MckMama), hearing some of the stories behind my husband's ornaments.. It warmed my heart.

Maybe in future years, we'll make it more of a defined tradition, by playing Christmas music or drinking sparkling grape juice or something, but for this year, it was enough.

There is something special about breaking from your past (no matter how wonderful) and establishing your own new present. Tonight I felt FAMILY.

November gone already?

2009-12-01T20:22:00.003-05:00

Busy busy month; time for more bullet points:

-Sweet Pea pointed to the tv during a random commercial (maybe even about the health care reform) and said "I want that!"

-1st time doing post-mortem care on a patient, almost had another opportunity to do so

-applying knowledge from psych (current clinical) to my job

-traveled for Thanksgiving, Sweet Pea thoroughly enjoyed herself there. She spent much of her time wrestling with her cousins (11 and 7 year old boys) and "playing" the Wii with them (she had her own steering wheel that was not hooked up to anything). She also loved the quality time with her grandparents, who she doesn't see as often as we'd all like.

-put up the "Merry Christmas tree" (Sweet Pea's label), added some garland. Will gather the ornaments and hang those up eventually. The tree is a little Charlie Brown-ish, but is sufficient for now.

..There's probably more I meant to write about, but I'll have to save that for another time.

Study Buddy

2009-11-23T11:34:00.002-05:00

Attempting to motivate myself to study on a more regular basis, I now get out my notes to review them even while Sweet Pea is still awake.

The other day she "helped me study".. She climbed up on the couch next to me and I gave her her own piece of paper and a highlighter. I highlighted my notes and she highlighted hers. Worked fairly well! Kept her occupied for a while anyway, and she's generally a fan of "helping".

Sorry for the lack of regular updates. School and work is certainly keeping me busy!

H1N1

2009-11-07T00:30:00.004-05:00

There was a clinic at my university this week, and I was able to get the H1N1 vaccine for Sweet Pea and myself (from one of my classmates, no less). Both of us had already gotten the seasonal flu vac a month or two ago.

I didn't warn Sweet Pea ahead of time because 1) I didn't know if they'd run out, so didn't want to work her up for nothing, and 2) she freaks out at the sight of medical personnel anyway..

She started crying as soon as we walked in the door, and I had to hold HER arms down to get MY shot, so she wouldn't slug my poor classmate.

After getting her shot, she was ticked, of course, but thankfully she calmed down pretty quickly. ("Sweet Pea, do you want a sucker?" "*Big sniffle* ..yeaaaah *sniff*")

She and I have compared "stickers" (bandaids) many times since then. She likes that we both have the same one, and likes to feel mine and hers, but heaven help you if you even mention touching her sticker!

Another random development is that she is FINALLY letting me put pigtails in her hair! It is a battle I had given up on for a while, and it took a lot of sweet-talking, distraction, and mirrors, but she now asks for "tangles" most mornings.

How could you ever say no to this face?

Parking Spots

2009-11-03T21:16:00.003-05:00

Sweet Pea and I went grocery shopping the other day.

We waited several minutes to park, as the driver in front of us slooowwwwly pulled halfway into a spot, backed partially out, pulled back in, backed out again, etc.

Once we had finally taken the open spot two spots away, I looked a little more closely.

Our friend, a gentleman pushing 60, was parked in the "Reserved for Expectant Mothers" spot. Would it have been rude to congratulate him and ask when he was due?

Here and there

2009-10-28T23:00:00.000-04:00

Poor baby threw up a couple weeks ago. I took a half day and stayed home with her to keep an eye on her. She seemed to recover quickly, but when I gave her some Pedialyte to drink, she took a few sips then handed it back to me, saying, "Sweet Pea no yike(like) it."

Patient tossed her cookies at me. No, literally, she picked up the cookie from her dinner tray and threw it toward the door while calling me and the nurse liars and cheats. Dementia is fun for everyone..

Clinical is going well. Instructor told me on our second day that my charting was excellent, I'm efficient, and wanted me to take two patients right away (rather than one). That clinical ends next week, and then it is on to Psychiatric Nursing. Should be fun. ;)

I am learning tons, from each patient I have. I am developing more of my nursing confidence and personality. I'm getting better (though still not a pro) at assessing. I love looking up meds and figuring out why a patient is on them and how they might interact. I love chatting with patients and getting more of a total picture on them. I love being able to do a little education, whether it is on how a med works, or an aspect of self-care, or nutrition, or even lifestyle changes.

Even when I head into work on the weekends, I find myself applying what I've learned during the week. I wish I could sit down and do a more complete assessment on some of my patients, because I see needs and just want to be able to meet them..

My first degree was in Education (Special, then Elementary, then Junior High), and while that wasn't quite the right fit for me, I can see what drew me to it. I do enjoy connecting with people, teaching them, giving them tools to be healthier/happier. The difference maker for me seems to be "class size", so to speak. I do fabulously individually and in small groups (<10), but stick me in front of 30 kids and I panic.

I just got my schedule for next semester, and it is looking good. Critical care and community nursing, plus a research class with a prof who is brilliant, has high expectations, and teaches well. Can't think of anyone better to teach it.

Sweet Pea is forever asserting her independence and testing her boundaries. She almost always wants to climb up into the car/carseat by herself, no help, rather than having me put her in. At bedtime, she likes to pull up her little rocking chair (handed down through my family from over 100 years ago) next to my glider and hold my hand as we rock, rather than sitting on my lap the whole time like she used to. She tries almost everything first on her own before asking for help if needed. She is a car-radio dictator, protesting loudly if she does not like whatever song is playing, but declaring her approval if she does. It has now become necessary to channel some of her toddler bursts of emotion.. The word "MINE!" has entered her vocabulary. She is learning to say something like "I'm playing with that right now" instead.

Though we've weaned (as of her 2nd birthday), Sweet Pea sometimes still asks to nurse. The other night as we rocked side by side, she pointed and said, "Mommy boops?" Yes, those are Mommy's boops. "Sweet Pea eat Mommy's boops?" No, no you are not going to eat my boops. Thank you for asking.

She's starting to understand if.. then.. statements. One morning she refused to put on her jacket on our way out the door, but when I explained that it was cold outside and we could only go to Grandma's if she put her jacket on, she said "ok" and calmly walked over.

I know they call these the Terrible Twos, and we have moments where I want to pull my hair out, but overall I am loving this stage (as I have enjoyed each stage so far).

October 15

2009-10-15T00:14:00.002-04:00

is Pregnancy & Infant Loss Remembrance Day.

I think more people have been affected by a loss than most of us realize.

Know someone who is going through a loss and don't know what to say?

Don't say:

-You can have another. (I don't want another. I wanted that one.)

-It was God's will.

-There was probably something wrong with the baby.

-nothing. (Loss is isolating. Thinking no one else remembers/cares is an awful feeling.)

Do say:

-I'm sorry.

-I'm here for you. (Hugs, someone to talk it out with, and a shoulder to cry on go a long way.)

-How are you doing today? (And listen to the answer.)

Every person grieves differently. What helped me most was writing out my thoughts in a journal, having a tangible object (for me, a Willow Tree figurine) to hold/touch as a physical reminder, and talking about it.

I have more to say about nursing school and a sick toddler and work, but today those take a back burner.

A couple more stories

2009-10-12T14:17:00.002-04:00

1. This morning as I was getting her dressed, she was requesting songs. She'd say "A C O song?" and we would sing the alphabet.. she'd say "1 2 Jesus song?" and we'd sing the 1-2-3 Jesus Loves Me song. Then she grins and says "Doo dah song?" I cannot recall any song she calls that, so I question her.. "What is the doo dah song?" She cracks up. She asks again. I say "I don't know a doo dah song." She cracks up again. Did my kid just tell a joke?

2. This weekend we did some shopping. As we are walking out of the mall through the department store, we pass a lingerie display. She points to a large picture and says "Boop!" Yes, that is a boop. Then she looks at me, leans back, and points to my chest with both hands. "Boops! Same!"

Sweet Pea-isms

2009-10-08T16:37:00.004-04:00

Some funny things and new phrases the kid has said in the last several weeks (some of these may be repeats from Facebook):

-When she wants something- "Mommy get it" or "Mommy reach"
-When she wants to do something independently, like climb into her carseat- "Sweet Pea do it"
-If she's standing on something she shouldn't- "Careful"
-When she falls down or knocks something over- "Oopa" (Opa)
-"first down" while watching her favorite sport
-When it's time to comb her hair after a bath, she requests to watch football
-There's a statue of a pirate (Captain Morgan) on top of a local bar we pass a few times a week.. she has called it "Jesus" on more than one occasion. Most priests are also Jesus.
-A phrase she hears often at daycare, she'll walk around saying "Shh, friends sleeping."
-"big hug" (love those!)
-She wanted to play catch with a friend at daycare, but the friend wasn't paying attention and Sweet Pea couldn't remember her name. She yelled, "Catch.. honey!" and threw the ball.
-When putting dolls to bed, she says "potty first" and sits them on the potty for a few seconds before covering them with a blanket.
-I put her to bed, and lingered for a minute telling her things like "I love you, night night". She responded with "Door?" I said "Yes, I'll close the door". She said "Mommy, go!" Ok fine, so much for ooshy gooshy sentimentals.

Sentences are getting more complex: "Daddy waffle all gone" "Grandma's house tomorrow"

Formula for fun game:
Cover knees with washcloth/blanket/wipe.
Proclaim "knee hiding"
Repeat till caregiver acknowledges that yes, your knees are hiding
Pull washcloth/blanket/wipe off and yell "Boo"
Repeat process with other body parts and/or any nearby object.

Other fascinations:
-comparing "big" and "little"
-playing catch
-running (and proclaiming that she is running)
-biting things (darn those 2 year molars.. they had better show up soon- she's also drooling like a 6 month old and has her tongue hanging out 80% of the time while awake)
-voicing an opinion on whatever outfit Mommy has picked out for her for the day
-pointing out body parts on pictures, other people, animals
-finding things that are the same
-dancing

Happy birthday!

2009-09-13T13:38:00.003-04:00

My sweet baby girl turned two this week!

We had a low key celebration; nothing like her first birthday bash. The night before, we took her out for dinner and let her have ice cream for dessert. The day of, she opened presents (her grandparents and aunt came over for a few minutes), then the three of us headed to the zoo before I had to go in to work.

So much has changed in the last two years!

Happy birthday, sweet pea!

Body Awareness

2009-09-03T23:05:00.004-04:00

I thought for sure the public embarassment didn't happen till a little later. The other day, Sweet Pea was in the bathroom with me. I didn't think she was really paying attention to what I was doing (she was messing with the towel rack), but then she proclaimed loudly, "Ewww Mommy, stinky!" It was loud enough that I heard Grandma chuckle from the other room.
-----
Tonight as I was rocking with her before bed, she was rocking her doll. She was singing and talking to it. Then I hear her say "nurse?" and she lifted her pajama shirt and held the baby up to her belly for half a minute. Cutest.thing.ever.
-----
I also started my OB rotation. Love.it. Two days in and I'm already considering making this my specialty. It is that awesome. This week I get to spend time on the childbirth unit- hopefully I'll get some good experiences down there and see some exciting laboring/delivering.

Two stories

2009-08-26T19:14:00.005-04:00

Story One:
I come on shift and find that Susie Q Patient is one of my assignments for the evening. Susie has a history of some mental health issues. Susie is a little impulsive and sporadic in conversation, so I set her bed alarm before I leave the room after taking her initial vital signs. I'm afraid she will try to get out of bed on her own and end up falling.

Within a few minutes I hear the bed alarm go off. I come in to find Susie on her way out of bed, and there is a strange smell. "Are you smoking?" I ask. "You can't smoke in here, this is a hospital."

"Oh, I didn't know that, just help me out and show me where I can go to smoke."

"No, it is a hospital wide policy, you cannot smoke anywhere on the grounds of the hospital." At this point I am still trying to locate the dang cigarette. Finally I find it, IN BETWEEN THE BED AND THE RAIL. Yes, please do what you can to burn down the hospital.

I dispose of the cigarette, then as I am pulling her pack out of her bag (charge nurse told me to confiscate them), she offers me her lighter, too. Well alright, I will take that too!

Story two: (Less funny, more warm-and-fuzzy)
Mildred P. Oldlady has just had surgery that day. She is anxious about recovery, and Mr. Oldlady is not doing much to relieve her anxiety.

I do what I can to be reassuring, anticipate needs, etc. Standard plan of care on my part.

Toward the end of my shift, it's clear that Mildred will be needing a catheter inserted. I go to let her know, and she starts freaking out. Completely unexpected response. Come to find out, she's never personally had a catheter, and the only bystander experience she's had was extremely negative. Just the mention of catheters brings up all sorts of emotional memories for her.

Holy smokes, looks like I'm going to need to do a little bit of holistic care here.

When I come in to do the actual procedure, I do a whole lot of explanation. I tell her just about everything I'm doing and why. I tell her what she can expect in the following few days related to the catheter. I have her tell me a little more about her fears. I teach her a simple breathing exercise (4x4 breathing) to help focus her energy.

When I have finished, she says she hardly even felt the catheter go in. She is visibly more relaxed than she was when I had first given her the news about needing a catheter.

I come in a little later to check on her, and she says she has been doing the 4x4 breathing ever since I had left the room, and she loves it. I make sure to come say goodnight before I clock out, and she says she will not forget me, and that I have made a difference for her.

Ah, patients like Mildred and situations like this are why I am becoming a nurse!

Attention span?

2009-08-26T18:13:00.002-04:00

Wait a minute, when did MY child get the beginnings of an attention span?

The other day I decided to check on her, since she had been playing in another room and I hadn't heard anything from her in a while. I walk in to find her lying on her belly looking at one of her books. When she saw me, she jumped up, grabbed a stack, and asked me to read ("Mook?").

Wouldn't you know it, she sat on my lap and we read three whole books and the first half of another before she got bored and wanted to do something else!

This is the kid who flips to her favorite pages and will spend a few minutes on those, but rarely does an entire book start to finish.

She also had her 2 year well child appointment this week, and it almost went more smoothly than usual. :)

She hates being at the doctor's office, no matter who the patient is, and screams and hollers till we leave.

This time I tried to prepare her a bit, talking about what they were going to do. We even practiced stepping up on our scale at home so she could see the numbers and see how big she was getting.

That part worked beautifully! She stepped up and stood still long enough for the nurse to get a reading. (Usually we have to weigh me with and without her and subtract, cause she throws such a fit.)

But then it kinda went downhill from there. Even though we talked about how the doctor would listen to her tummy with the stethoscope, she wanted no part of it. She was ok with the doctor listening to ME, but not to her.

And the shot? Oh goodness.

And here's one: Doctor wanted her to get blood drawn to do an H/H and lead test. They did not stick her foot like I expected. Nope, they busted out a tourniquet and actually drew blood from a vein in her arm! Holy smokes, she was not a fan. We had to hold her down hardcore to keep her still enough to get poked in the right spot. Technician commented on how strong she was, lol.

Anyway, she's doing well. She's back up to the 75th percentile for height and weight, and her head is off the charts again.

I have a few work stories, but I'll save them for a separate post.

Break

2009-08-17T13:18:00.003-04:00

I am officially on break now (for about a week and a half), and I have every intention of fulling enjoying it.

Last night after work, instead of staying up insanely late working on homework, I went to bed at a reasonable hour. This morning, I slept in past 8! Heavenly.

On the docket for today:
-make a couple doctor's appointments (DONE)
-freecycle our couch (DONE)
-vaccuum where couch used to be (DONE)
-get new-to-us couch from R's aunt (Call made, will be here later today)
-put away clean laundry
-wash and dry at least one load of dirty laundry
-take a walk if the weather clears
-turn in papers for Sweet Pea's new daycare
-spend quality time with Sweet Pea (IN PROCESS)

This is so doable.

The Staff Assist button is NOT a toy!

2009-08-17T12:16:00.003-04:00

Three times this weekend, someone visiting a patient on my floor has hit the Staff Assist button, when all they wanted was a glass of water or some pain meds.

Hey, Einsteins.. that is what the call button on the remote is for. Can you see it? The button is red and has a picture of a nurse on it. The patient knows how to use it; he's been using it all day.

The Staff Assist button (which is located completely out of the way, behind the bed, next to the CODE BLUE button) is intended for use when a Staff member needs immediate assistance from other staff, like if a patient has fallen or has become violent.

We don't mess around with the Staff Assist button. If you push the button, you will get several nurses and aides in the room within 10 seconds.

Don't waste our time by hitting it unnecessarily.

23 months

2009-08-13T16:24:00.004-04:00

First clinical is over, and hurray, I passed! It got better and better as the weeks went on, and though I have a long way to go, I feel that I learned a lot and grew in confidence.

Sweet Pea (23 months) is undeniably no longer a baby. I am amazed at all she can do, how quickly she picks up on concepts, how much she knows! She knows most of the basic colors (green sometimes gives her trouble) including gray and brown and black, counts to 4 on her own and to 10 with help, recognizes some letters and shapes, and has been talking more and more. It's hard to believe three short months ago is when she really started saying words!

She likes to sing (I catch her singing to herself in her crib in the mornings), taking walks and pointing out evvvverything she sees. ("Car. Red!" "You see a red car?" "Yeah! Bike. Helmet, no!" "Yeah, he isn't wearing a helmet, is he?" "No! Inside?" "Sure, maybe he left his helmet inside today." "Ball! Boy! Green car! Kitty, eow!"), scooting around on her ride-on toy, toting her baby doll around (changing her diaper, taking her to the door and pointing out all the colors of cars to HER), and coloring. Oh how we love coloring!

She is a sweet girl, sleeps well, can sometimes entertain herself, and even picks up and puts away toys when she is done with them!

She starts daycare this fall, which I'm sure will be a tougher adjustment for Momma than for her!

Weeks 2 and 3

2009-07-27T22:05:00.003-04:00

I still have a long way to go. But I feel much better going into Week 4 than I did coming out of Week 1.

Last week I administered medications for the first time. I got a lot of practice on my patient! He had meds in just about every form you can think of- oral, subcutaneous injections (like insulin), IV push, and IV piggyback. It was a good week to test my skills!

The week before that, I got to observe surgeries. One day was in the outpatient surgery center, the other was in major surgery. That was really interesting! I enjoyed it a lot. Will I become an OR nurse right off the bat? Maybe not, but I certainly wouldn't rule it out now.

And just a random side note: This week I found my very first varicose vein! Pregnancy didn't give them to me, nope. Nursing school did!

Alright, back to working on my pharm paper.

Day One

2009-07-08T22:41:00.002-04:00

Today was our first clinical day, and I wanted to get some thoughts down while they are fresh in my mind. I want to be able to go back to this post in a year and see how far I've come.

We partnered up and picked a patient yesterday when we were touring the floor. We looked through his chart, noted his treatment plan, researched the medications he was on.

This morning, we talked to his nurse to determine the plan for the day, then went to the patient's room.

We did a quick head to toe assessment, took vital signs, and helped him up to the bathroom to get cleaned up for the day.

Not too much later, the nurse went in to do her assessment, and we gladly observed. I watched as she palpated his pedal pulses, got an interesting look on her face, then asked us to go get the doppler (which can help find "hard to find" pulses). She used the doppler and stated that the pulse in the operative leg was clearly stronger than the pulse in the not-yet-operated-on leg.

And here's where I feel like a useless tool.. When I palpated those pedal pulses, I felt the opposite. The pulse in the operative leg was less bounding than the other. Did I assess incorrectly? How did she know to get the doppler? What kind of inconsistency is acceptable given the patient's medical history? Is it possible that a pulse would feel stronger but sound weaker?

I did fine with our tasks for the rest of the day, but I'm thrown off by that assessment.

I know that some of these skills come with time and practice. I've seen that in my job as an aide. I just don't like being at the beginning stage of it.

I want to fast-forward several months, to a place where I will feel more confident in my skills and judgment.

Stretched

2009-07-07T00:15:00.002-04:00

Encountered some potentially challenging things in the last few weeks.
-First transgender person I've ever met
-Youngish patient with new diagnosis of probable metastasized cancer

..Thought there were more, but can't think of them at the moment.

We took a vacation down to see R's family; I will have to post more about that (with pics, promise!) another time.

I start my first clinical this week. I'm on a Med/Surg floor, similar to the one on which I work. I'm excited and nervous, all rolled up into one!

God bless..

2009-07-04T00:27:00.003-04:00

During bedtime prayers the other week, Sweet Pea asked God to bless Daddy, Kitty (at Grandma's house), and her 6 year old cousin. Those were the only three she could think of. :)

Words words

2009-06-23T23:06:00.003-04:00

Little miss Sweet Pea has had a language explosion here lately! The other day I was writing in her journal and started to list the words she knows. Off the top of my head I came up with over 40! Amazing to me. I had started to worry at 18 months when she was only saying "hi" and "bye", though she was signing several words.

In the last month she figured out the connection between me and the word "mommy" (though before that I had heard occasional "mamamamama"), and now I hear it all day. :D

Running on Empty

2009-06-08T17:26:00.002-04:00

Saturday, after a trip to the zoo with friends, I headed to work.

For whatever reason, we are extremely short staffed right now, on nearly every shift. After working my normal 8 hour shift, I got mandated, meaning I had to work the next shift as well. That meant I was working from 3pm Sat until 7:30am Sunday, and then guess what? I had to work Sunday evening too.

Then today (Monday) I had class 8:30-4:30.

I am so looking forward to getting a full night of sleep tonight!

School

2009-06-05T21:32:00.003-04:00

Nursing school began three weeks ago. Um, when they say "accelerated", they aren't kidding!

I'm in class M-F from about 8:30-5:00, not including any extra time before/after to study/write up/practice skills.

Today we finished up our first class- Assessment. Part of the final was validating on a head to toe assessment of our lab partners. It went even better than I thought it would, which is exciting. The next three weeks, we'll be doing Science & Technology- more of the how-to of nursing, like inserting catheters and trach tubes.

Meanwhile, we're taking an Intro to Nursing class, and Pharmacology is online and runs the entire summer. Our first clinical (Med/Surg) begins in July.

I have 13 classmates who I will see daily for the next year. What a fun group! I knew a few of them from previous classes (A&P, chemistry, microbiology), but I haven't met anyone I don't like. :)

----------
One thing I like about this schedule is that I'm home for dinner every night during the week, and I have some time to snuggle/play with the kid before putting her to bed and diving into homework. It has been nice!

I am still working every weekend, in order to keep my part-time status, but weekends generally aren't awful, so it's not so bad.

The Giggle Shirt

2009-05-28T23:01:00.003-04:00

One of my projects this week was boxing up Sweet Pea's 12 month clothes (overdue) and sorting out/washing her 24 month clothes. In amongst the clothes I washed was a shirt that I had worn and loved as a tyke. It most likely passed down through a few of my siblings as well.

I put Sweet Pea in it this morning and dropped her off at Grandma's on the way to class. Grandma recognized the shirt right away. :)

I hunted down a picture of me in the shirt, so without further ado, here is a comparison shot.

(No date on the back of the photo, but I think I'm about 3 years old here.. Sweet Pea is 20 months. Slightly different builds, you think?)

FYI

2009-05-10T12:37:00.002-04:00

This one goes out to all the druggies.

If you're consistently all coked up on various illegal substances, and you come to the hospital with some broken bones, chances are we're going to have some pain management issues.

Yes, I believe you when you say you're in pain, but no we can't give you six Percocet at a time. Sorry.

bullet points

2009-05-04T22:24:00.003-04:00

Another bullet point kind of day:

-ended up with an A in Anatomy & Physiology II
-found out I'm in the running for a significant scholarship through my employer, should find out in a few days
-vacation with my whole extended family- wonderful to be around fun, supportive people.. I really needed it this week
-two weeks till I start nursing school!

The Crazy Ones Make Me Laugh

2009-04-24T13:56:00.002-04:00

Recently I cared for a young man we'll call Fred. He had one of those patient-controlled pain pumps, where the patient can push the button and get pain meds through the IV whenever they want.

Well, there are limitations on the pumps. The nurses set a timed lockout on it per doctor protocol. So if the limit is one dose per 10 minutes, the patient can push the button a billion times and the pump will only deliver one dose in that 10 minutes.

Ok so back to Fred.

Nurses discovered that Fred was going through a syringe of pain medication in just a few hours. That is awfully quick for the rate he was supposed to be at.

They watch Fred a little more carefully and see that Fred has figured out the code to get into the settings menu on the pump, and has taken the liberty of allowing himself a dose every minute or so.

Tsk tsk Fred.. That is NOT the way to get on the good side of your nurses!

Rash update, and a little story

2009-03-31T17:25:00.003-04:00

Doctor agreed that the rash looks bad. He said sometimes bacterial infection and yeast infection look awfully similar, so we're trying a new regimen of creams.

The nursing committee met last Friday, so when I got to class today, I sought out a couple of the people I knew who had applied. Both of them said, oh yeah! They called me up on Friday afternoon! Didn't they call you?

No. Hmm. Uh-oh..

The rest of the afternoon, I silently freaked the heck out. I pondered whether that was a bad sign that they hadn't called. They said they'd let us know either way.. Did that mean it was a definite no? Or maybe I was on a B list and they were waiting to see if the whole A list said yes? What the heck do I do if I don't get in? Do I still go with the traditional program? But if I wait a year and apply for the accelerated program again, I'd still graduate sooner than with the traditional. But if I do that, I'm out of school for a whole year and I'd probably forget everything I've just learned. Do I take classes in the meantime? But they wouldn't be toward my degree, and I don't think I can afford that.

Yes, my mind went through a zillion thoughts.

After my lab, I went up to the nursing office.

"Hey.. Do you know when I'll hear if I got into the accelerated program?"
"She called you Friday!"
"No... No call."
"Hmm, she said she called everyone Friday."
"Ok. No call though. Do you know? Can you tell me?"
"Let me see, here's the list of rejections, [my last name], nope, you're not on here. Ah, here's the list, yep there you are! You're in."
"Ahhhhhhhhh thank goodness!"

So there you have it. I've been accepted! Provisional, of course, upon me passing A&P2.

2010 graduation, here we come!

Take II

2009-03-31T00:02:00.002-04:00

I wrote out a whole post Sunday afternoon, and SOMEBODY wandered over and managed to replace it with a bunch of jibberish. Sigh.

I have a test in the morning. I've done quite a bit of studying (actually, more than the other tests I've had this semester), so hopefully I'll do well. It would be nice to be able to keep my A!

Before my test, though, I'm taking the kid in to see the doctor. Poor girl has a bad diaper rash that made the doc think she had a bacterial infection. We've been using the special cream on it, but it's not getting much better, so I'm taking her back in. She's hating diaper changes lately (understandably), so hopefully we can get this issue resolved so it's not so painful for her, and less of a struggle for me!

With that, it is time to go to bed. We have an early morning tomorrow!

Performance Evaluation

2009-03-20T20:53:00.002-04:00

I had my annual performance evaluation yesterday, and it went well. Boss says I'm right where I need to be. She says she rounds on patients in the mornings, and they all speak highly of "the little redhead" who took care of them the night before. :) Some highlights from my review form- "nice mastery of the skills required at the bedside", "take direction well", "eagerness to learn and assimilate information", "proactive", "unconditional positive regard for others", "calming effect on your patients". Good start! She also said that the folks on the nursing program committee would be crazy not to take me. :)

He's good, but not THAT good.

2009-03-20T12:22:00.003-04:00

While I was at work last night, R had Sweet Pea. He said that while he was making dinner, she was whining at him, and he kept telling her she had to wait until he was done. Finally she looked up at him and signed "nurse please".

NCYCD

2009-03-13T11:15:00.003-04:00

Did I miss a memo? Was yesterday National Cleanse Your Colon Day? Several of my patients were celebrating the occasion.

Even when I went to answer other people's call lights, yep, you guessed it, more celebrating.

....I was going to give some examples, but I think we'll just leave it at that.

Work Work Work

2009-03-09T12:36:00.002-04:00

I picked up a couple extra shifts last week (one of my coworkers has been put on bedrest), and switched weekends with another girl, since I needed next weekend off, so this is what my week looked like:
Tuesday- class all day, last minute errands
Wednesday- work double shift (7am-11:30pm)
Thursday- class in the morning, then work evening shift
Friday- work morning shift, then to an overnight with our high schoolers
Saturday- rest of the overnight, then work evening shift
Sunday- (on one less hour of sleep) cantor at church, then work evening shift

By Sunday's shift, I was exhausted, so I was pulling up a chair and sitting down when I went into rooms to do accuchecks. (testing blood sugar)

I did get about 9 hours of sleep last night before the little darling decided it was time to be up, yay!

I really do enjoy my job, and it is a great fit for me, but it is nice today to just sit around and not have to rush anywhere.

Little Socialite

2009-03-02T14:07:00.003-05:00

Last week we went to a fundraiser dinner at our church. After she was finished eating, Sweet Pea opted to wander around in search of entertainment. She quickly spotted a little boy (her interest sure is piqued by the male 2-4 demographic) and ventured closer to see what he was up to. Soon they were passing a plastic dixie cup back and forth, and were joined by another little girl.

Later she integrated herself into a group of bigger kids (ages 3-8ish) and sat in a circle with them while they played Duck Duck Goose. I don't think she ever got Goosed, but she let them Duck her several times without protesting, and watched as they chased each other around!

Our budding hippie even walked around giving hugs to anyone under 4 feet. Some of the kids ignored her, but some reached down to hug her back.

I'm so proud of my baby, seeking out social interaction without prompting!

Interview

2009-02-24T19:52:00.004-05:00

Yesterday afternoon, I was hanging out with the kid in the living room, playing with her Little People or something. I become aware of faint music. What is that? Oh, it's my phone! Um, where is it? *search search search* Finally I locate the phone, underneath the couch, just as it stops ringing.

Flip it open, see a number that I recognize as being from the local university. Shoot! Wait for the caller to leave a message, listen and then call back.

The secretary of the nursing department says that the committee for the accelerated program met Friday and would like to bring me in for an interview!

Interviews aren't until the second week of March.

Whole new meaning to the term "Two Week Wait"!

Bullet Points

2009-02-16T23:23:00.002-05:00

Today is a bullet point kind of day.

Took my first lab test Friday, results posted today. Another A! :D
So far, doing a little better than I did at this time last semester.
Worked at the hospital over the weekend.
Nothing particularly noteworthy, except that I witnessed just how quickly an enema can work. (And I'll leave it at that.)
R's birthday is rapidly approaching, and I have no idea what to get the man.

Ok, that's it for tonight.

Non-Work Update

2009-02-11T11:24:00.005-05:00

Sweet Pea (almost 17 months old now) just learned a new sign! Though I've been signing to/with her for the last year, so far the only sign she has been using is "more" to mean "I want something". Yesterday she started signing "milk" when she wants to nurse, and I thought I caught a "please" once.

Though she isn't saying any whole words (beyond "hi", "bye", and sometimes "no no no no no"), I'm hearing the beginning sounds of more words now.

She also has picked up some extra inflection when she babbles, and seems to be including me more in her conversations, if that makes any sense.

I do believe we are on the cusp of a communication breakthrough!

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In non-kid news, I got the results of my first exam in Anatomy & Physiology II, and got an A! This is the same professor I had last semester, and this is the highest score I've gotten on one of his tests. Woot!

Poseys

2009-02-02T13:02:00.002-05:00

This is a little story about something called a Posey.

A Posey is restraining device. It is a cloth band that goes around the waist and has strings that are tied (quick release) to the bed, or chair, wherever the patient is. It is used on patients who are confused and who have shown that they are likely to try to get out of bed on their own.

One of my little old ladies (LOL from here on out) the other day had just had surgery on her left hip that day, and had dementia, among other issues. Sweet as could be, but very confused as to where she was, why she was there, who was with her.

The nurse went in to give her medicine and saw that LOL had her feet hanging off the bad and was trying to get up. We quickly conferred and decided to put a Posey on her.

Later, I was sitting at the nurses' station charting when I heard chirping from a machine in LOL's room. I'm familiar with the sound by now- it meant that her foot pumps were either disconnected or off. I went in there to fix them and saw something I was NOT expecting. LOL was naked, on the floor, several feet away from her bed (and yes, one of the foot pumps had fallen off in the process). Holy crap!

I hit the staff assist button, and with the help of the others who came dashing into the room, got her gowned and onto the commode (which is where she said she was going), then into bed. We got vital signs, and I put a new dressing on her hip (she had pulled that off too). And yes, I got the foot pumps adjusted.

Looked like she had managed to undo one side of the Posey. So I retied it, put wrist restraints on as well, made sure the bed alarm was on, and stressed to her the importance of letting us know if she needed anything.

Every time I went in there for anything, I triple checked to be sure the restraints were all on and the bed alarm was set. And I passed along in my report to do the same.

One thing that struck me that night (and other times I've worked) is how smoothly things go when you work as a team. Within seconds of me hitting the staff assist button, I had three nurses and another aide in there, all pitching in and doing something that needed to be done.

If I know another aide is on her lunch, I will watch her lights. If she's busy in another room, I'll watch lights. If someone needs help moving a patient, I will gladly help, because what goes around comes around. If I help them, they are more likely to help me.

I am still new and know I have to earn the respect of my coworkers. They have seen many come and go, and until I prove otherwise, there's no indication to them that I'll stick around, or be dependable. What I do is being noticed, though. Another aide took a family member down to the main entrance (too much construction for simple directions), and I helped with one of her patients while she was off the floor. Her nurse relayed that to her, and later she thanked me for all my help.

In other news, I had a good conversation with one of the float aides who is applying for the same nursing program. He was told that though 20ish people took applications, 5 have decided not to do the program. Hello, better odds! He and I seem to have similar philosophies when it comes to balancing priorities, and it was encouraging to talk with someone else about it. Applications were due today- hopefully I'll hear soon about an interview!

One more and we could field a baseball team

2009-01-30T14:50:00.005-05:00

Yesterday was a little insane.

R found out at the last minute (Tuesday!) he had to travel for work Thursday-Friday. We did some scrambling, and with the help of Grandma and Fairy Godmother, it all worked out.

Thursday morning I dropped Sweet Pea off at Grandma's and went to class. After class I stopped by, ate some lunch, played with Sweet Pea a bit, and nursed her, then changed and left for work. Sweet Pea was very confused.. She saw me put my coat on, so she ran over to the door so she could go out with me. I waved bye to her, and she turned around and waved at Grandma.

Eventually I made it out the door, sans baby, and headed off to possibly the most hectic shift I've worked yet.

I had eight patients (the most I've had), and though none of them were hard persay, quite a few were pretty needy. I enjoyed interacting with each one, but it was hard to cut conversations short and move on to the next room. I went to answer one call light, and asked what I could do for the patient. He said "Tell me goodnight." ....Is there anything else I can do for you to help you be ready to sleep? "Nope." Ok... goodnight..

I did have one patient discharged, so I was down to seven. As I was finally sitting down an hour later to start charting, I see a patient being rolled into one of my rooms. ...Um, hello, who is this? Is he one of mine? I know nothing about him. I don't even know if he's a post-op or a transfer, or what.

Yes, he's mine (so much for seven). Transfer from ER. Learned his name but still didn't have a chart or diagnosis. Surprise! He needs a catheter inserted. And vitals done. And blood sugar checked. And a urinalysis down to the lab. Now. Oy.

Finally got home after a very full 8.5 hours and was pleasantly surprised to find that Fairy Godmother had managed to get Sweet Pea pajama'ed AND asleep in her crib. Woot!

It Is Finished.

2009-01-20T18:03:00.002-05:00

Today I turned in my application for the accelerated nursing program. They are due in two weeks, then the committee will review and rank them, then make calls to set up interviews.

I saw that 21 people had taken applications. I don't know if all 21 of them will decide to turn in the application, or if they will all be eligible (baseline GPA, done with pre-reqs, etc), but I do know that only 8 (possibly up to 12, but likely only 8) will be accepted into the program.

Applications for the traditional nursing program are available February 2. I will fill out one of those, just in case I don't make it into the accelerated.

There are advantages and disadvantages to both, of course. With the accelerated, you finish in less time, so you save on tuition. With the traditional, you actually have some time to have a job, so maybe you can pay for that tuition.

Orientation Over

2009-01-10T19:05:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was my last day on orientation. I have a few days off, but my next day on, I'm flying solo! I'm not too worried- the last week has gone pretty well, and I feel prepared. I also know that the others on my shift are helpful, and glad to answer questions.

More positive feedback from patients and families. One gentleman said he wished I was his daughter or daughter-in-law, because I was so nice. Multiple others said I will make a great nurse.

I went in to check on one lady, whose husband Mr. B was there with her. When I asked if either of them needed anything, they looked at me like I had just offered to donate a kidney. I explained that I have been the family member of a patient before, and it's always nice being acknowledged. And when I came back with crackers and peanut butter and Sprite for Mr. B? Forget about it. When Mrs. B got discharged, I wheeled her down to where they had parked and helped her into the car. I got a hug and gratitude from Mr. B. Made my day!

And finally, a little PSA for y'all. If you are visiting your family member in the hospital, and the family member is getting a blood transfusion, and the pump controlling the blood flow starts beeping, please do NOT turn off the pump! I don't care if you are about to start your first semester of clinicals in your medical assistant program. Turning off pumps and then not notifying anyone tends to annoy those responsible for your family member's care.
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In child-news, Sweet Pea has finally given up her lifelong boycott of meat. Lunchmeat and chicken strips are currently popular.

And today (1.10) marks five years since R and I have been a couple, and five years since our first kiss. We are celebrating by watching football, just like that day in 2004. We may even get crazy and hold hands later, to recreate the moment. :)

New Shift

2009-01-05T14:06:00.005-05:00

Though not talking yet, Sweet Pea is now signing "more" and shaking her head no. This means we can actually have a little bit of a back and forth conversation! Kids can be interactive.. who knew?

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Yesterday was my first day working evening shift at the hospital. Evenings can get hairy, but yesterday was pretty low-key, so it was a good day to start. I had eight patients, and zero post-ops, so there weren't many surprises. It went well! If every evening were like that one, I'd prefer that shift hands down!

What's the difference between day shift and evening shift, you ask? (Pretend you asked.) What a good question!

Day shift is more structured. There are a lot of things to get done in certain time frames, so it is busy, but one day is generally similar to another. Vitals, breakfast, baths, linen changes, vitals, accuchecks, lunch, dressing changes, charting, pass on report, go home! Of course, you might have a discharge or a post-op in there, but each day you can expect some of the same things.

Evening shift is less structured. The only things you can count on are vitals when you get there, accuchecks before dinner, and another set of vitals mid-shift. A lot of post-ops are on evening shift, which means more sets of vitals. You never know how many post-ops you'll get, or what time they'll come up. Yesterday was pretty quiet, but today (I'm off) there are 13 surgeries scheduled, so it will be hectic!

Random fun fact: PG was the house float yesterday, so I got to see a familiar face every so often. :) Hi, PG!

Week Two

2008-12-31T20:35:00.003-05:00

Still getting in the groove of my job. Going pretty well. Getting lots of positive feedback from patients and families. The sister of one patient today asked me why I want to be a nurse. Two reasons came to mind immediately.

1) I love interacting with people up close and personal. I like getting to know them, having conversations, sharing stories, making them laugh, offering them a listening ear.

2) It's amazing to be able to help people in such a tangible way. Example: One of my patients this week was having bladder issues. He was not able to urinate at all, despite being well hydrated, and he was very uncomfortable. I scanned his bladder, saw that it was indeed very full, and then drained it using a straight catheter. He felt so much better, and it improved his mood.

Some of the new things I've done this week:
-put in catheters (on both males and females)
-empty colostemy bags
... Ok those are the only new things I can think of. But I have found that I'm getting more confident with my basic skills, like taking blood pressure and whatnot.

I've had several days where I worked a full shift at the hospital, then drove straight to the assisted living place and worked another three hours. Those are long days, but the jobs are different enough that they require different parts of my brain. The hardest part is being away from R and Sweet Pea for such long periods of time. I leave the house at 6:30am and get back about 13 hours later. Just enough time to feed Sweet Pea, snuggle with her for a few minutes, then put her in bed.

BUT in another week, I'll be on evening shift at the hospital and won't ever be working both jobs on the same day.

School starts up again in just under two weeks. All I have left to take is A&P2, and I'll be turning in my application for the nursing program in the next month.

The End of Week One

2008-12-25T11:37:00.003-05:00

Work at the hospital is getting better. I'm becoming more and more comfortable in my role there. I have a better idea of what needs to be done, and what I can and can't do. I was on the same section of the floor for three days in a row, so I got to know some of the patients pretty well.

One ornery old man had been pressing his call light constantly, complaining about everything, cussing up a storm, and just being a pain in everyone's rear. By day three, I think he had gotten more used to me (and vice versa), and I made sure to attend to the things I knew were important to him. Before I left his room, I checked to see that his trash can was close by, his pillows were arranged to his liking, everything on his bedside table was set up the way he wanted it, etc. That little extra effort cut waaaay down on the number of times he hit his call light, and he was more likely to agree to do the crazy things I wanted him to do, like wash up.

I had several patients and family members tell me I was doing a good job. A little positive feedback is always nice.

This week I've:
-discontinued IVs
-discharged patients
-had post-op patients (we are more vigilant with them when they are just out of surgery)
-discontinued catheters (but haven't put any in yet)

I just feel like I'm getting more of the hang of things, getting a bit of that intuition that you need in a profession like this.

Christmas 2007 vs. Christmas 2008

2008-12-21T14:28:00.003-05:00

Ahh, how much has changed in a year! Just thought I'd put up comparison pictures from Christmas 2007 (3 months old) and Christmas 2008 (15 months old).

These were both taken by BFF.

First Day

2008-12-17T20:32:00.005-05:00

Today was my first day on the floor. Well, I've been to the floor before, but this was my first day with patients.

Highlights:
-young (my age) head injury patient.. alcohol + driving at high speeds => confusion, unsteadiness, not knowing where you are, trouble with basic tasks of daily living. Don't do it. Not worth it.
-emptying catheters
-stripping/making beds
-taking vitals
-lots of bed baths and dressing changes (I just observed those- will do them on my own next time)

I learned a lot, and enjoyed my day. Yes, it's 8 hours on my feet, but I liked interacting with patients and families, and being able to DO something for people. I am able to fulfill needs, right there. What a cool profession!
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On a completely different note, one of the best parts of my day is opening up the door and hearing little footsteps pounding in my direction. Sweet Pea has begun running to greet me as soon as she hears the door, and it warms my heart! Love it.

Thanksgiving, Job Training

2008-12-14T20:06:00.004-05:00

Whoops, it has been a few weeks since we've posted. Sorry!

We drove to see R's family for Thanksgiving, and had a fabulous time. It is always good to see them, and Sweet Pea had a blast interacting with her cousins. It was also her first time being around a dog, and she did well. She quickly learned to scrunch up her face and close her eyes when the dog's tail came near to avoid getting a mouthful of hair, and eventually she initiated contact and sought out the dog to pet her.

While we were all together, we celebrated Christmas. Sweet Pea loved unwrapping presents! She would rip into each one, tear off bits of wrapping paper to hand to me, then lunge for a new present once she'd finished getting all the paper off. I suppose by next year, she'll be more interested in what's inside the paper, right?

I finished up my semester, and ended up with a B in Anatomy & Physiology 1. I really enjoyed the class, and learned tons. I can't wait for A&P2 next semester!

I've started training for my new job at the hospital. It's a lot of information (policies and procedures and whatnot), but we've also gotten to do fun stuff like take blood pressure and insert catheters. I start training on my floor this week. Hurray!

Ear Infection #2

2008-11-24T12:28:00.003-05:00

After finishing up the medicine for her ear infection, Sweet Pea was healthy for about three days before getting sickish and super cranky again. I took her in to the pediatrician, who confirmed that the ear infection had returned to one of her ears. She put Sweet Pea on a different antibiotic. We are on day five of the medicine, and so far I am not seeing an improvement in disposition. Maybe teeth are at play as well?

The other interesting thing that has happened recently is that the retreat for the high schoolers was this weekend. R stayed the whole time, while I shuttled back and forth between home, the camp, and Grandma's. The kids had a great time, so it's all worth it, right?

We'll be headed out of town this week to spend time with R's family.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

No Heat!

2008-11-09T22:00:00.004-05:00

Our furnace went out today. Brr!

We are bundling up and will be sleeping in the living room, rather than upstairs where it is colder.

We've put in a call to someone to come repair it- I will have to call back in the morning to see if they got our message, and to set up a time.

Of course, snow is in the forecast for tonight..

Maybe we can move to Arizona? :D

Edited to add (the next day): They came out today to repair it and figured out that we needed to just replace the entire furnace. The new one is a lot more efficient than the old one (92% vs. 60%), so hopefully that will help with our heating costs.

Ear Infection

2008-11-05T15:55:00.003-05:00

Sweet Pea has her third cold in about six weeks, and it seems to be hitting her hard, so I took her into the doctor this morning. No pneumonia or anything of that nature, but she does have the beginnings of an ear infection in each ear, plus a sinus infection. Poor baby!

The doctor prescribed an antibiotic. He said she should be feeling better by the weekend. Hope so!
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I also signed up for my spring classes today. A&P 2 is the only thing I have left before I start the nursing program. I'll have the same professors I have now, and the textbooks are even the same.
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My dad is having surgery tomorrow. Sounds like a fairly routine operation/procedure, but he's one of those types who is never sick, so it will be odd to see him in the hospital. Send positive thoughts his way, please!
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Big plans tonight include walking down to the local diner for an early dinner, choir practice, and watching 'America's Next Top Model' with BFF. Woot!

Making a Difference

2008-11-01T23:00:00.004-04:00

This morning, R and Sweet Pea and I got up early and joined some of the others from the youth group, working with Habitat for Humanity on a house in the next town over.

That was a BLAST!

We both ended up pretty dirty and exhausted, but it was a really good experience, and it was great to be able to see the fruits of our labor unfold in front of us. (We were mostly working on landscaping bits- evening out the yard and laying down sod.)

Sweet Pea spent the morning on my back in a Snugli. That actually worked out pretty well! I expected her to get fussy and demand freedom immediately, but she was awake and content and cheerful for a solid three hours before beginning to squirm (and eventually fall asleep). I think she enjoyed being outside and being able to watch so many people.

Edited to add one picture I snagged from our youth group director.

Job Offer

2008-10-24T23:28:00.002-04:00

Sweet.

I've been offered a job at the hospital (the job for which I interviewed last month). I will go in about a week to sign papers and get everything in order (physical, drug test, etc.), and orientation starts in early December.

Good timing, because alas, my babysitting run is soon coming to an end. My friend is quitting one of her bazillion jobs, so won't need me to watch G while she's at work. However, we are definitely going to be setting up weekly playdates so the girls can hang out (and heck, so WE can hang out, too!).

Locks of Love

2008-10-18T15:05:00.004-04:00

I've been meaning to cut my hair for a while, so that I could donate it to Locks of Love. While we were out running errands this afternoon, I got it done!

Here's some before and after pictures. Please excuse any stupid looks on my face and/or poor picture quality (they were taken on a cell phone).

Before...

After! (10-11 inches donated, plus another inch or two off in the styling process)

Happy Friday!

2008-10-17T23:50:00.005-04:00

Oops, haven't updated since early last week! Hmm, what's new here?

-I took my second lecture exam and did significantly better (an entire letter grade) than I had on the first one. That was very exciting, and encouraging! The material continues to be fascinating to me- just have to make sure I'm studying well.

-I went on a retreat through our church last weekend. It was good to meet some other women in the parish and get to know them a bit. Though I went home at night, that was the longest I had ever been away from Sweet Pea.. about nine hours. She did fine, of course.

-Sweet Pea and I went to the park this morning to play. She tried to climb up the slide at first, but then figured out how to climb the steps to get to the top, and took great joy in sliding down while on my lap. It was adorable!

I'm sure there are other things I'm forgetting, but that's all I can think of at the moment. Have a fabulous weekend!

Dead Cats

2008-10-08T14:25:00.003-04:00

In my anatomy class, we've started the muscular system. Since my school isn't quite large enough to have a ready supply of cadavers, we were given cats to dissect. And since storage space is a little scarce, we were told to take the cats home!

So I have a dead, skinned, partially dissected cat hanging out in my garage. :)

My partner and I met up outside of class a couple times to work on our muscle identification, and we actually finished this week in class. Since next week is another free lab, I'll bring the cat back so we can review, but then we'll start working on the human muscles. (There are various plastic limbs scattered around the lab room.)

I think the teacher mentioned that we'll have the opportunity to go to another local university's cadaver lab at the end of the semester. Fun!

Job Update #2,574,901

2008-10-02T14:28:00.002-04:00

Let's recap, shall we?

Job #1- babysitting my friend's daughter. Started in August, and is going smashingly.

Job #2- working part-time at the assisted living place, as a cafeteria aide. Started this last week, and is going well. Not the most skilled work ever, but it's a steady paycheck with friendly clients, so it works. The hours are great, too.

Job #3- TBA.

I have been applying at the hospital for months for a nurses' assistant type position. In July I actually interviewed with someone in Human Resources. I told her I was in school- no problem she said.

Fast forward to last week. HR contacted me and said there was a position available that I could come interview for [for which I could interview, whatever]. I interviewed with the unit director and had a job shadow. They love me and really want to make me a member of the team.

However, before I can start actually working on the floor, I have to do a 2.5 week orientation across the street to train me on IV care, CPR, etc etc. I can make it to most of it, but I do have class some mornings. Though I may be able to skip one class if necessary, this would require missing about five. Nope.

The unit director felt bad but said she just couldn't have me missing chunks of orientation like that. They can work around my class schedule once I get onto the floor, but not for orientation.

The silver lining is that she is going to keep my resume/application/information in front of her and if they still need someone in a couple months (which they probably will), she's going to call me up and have me go through orientation in December, when I don't have classes.

So that's the plan. I'm bummed, but it is a bit more hopeful than the last time I had an interview. This will give me a chance to keep focusing on this class, yada yada yada.

Also, by the time Job #3 is starting up, Job #1 will probably no longer be available. So the timing will work.

Alright, back to studying the muscular system- my partner and I are meeting tomorrow to work on dissecting our cat (which is currently in my garage!).

Busy Busy!

2008-09-26T13:48:00.002-04:00

What a week it has been! This is the first time I've had my computer on since Tuesday. Three days offline must be some sort of record for me! :)

Between babysitting, classes, job orientation and training, interviews, choir practice, and studying for exams, I just haven't had time to turn the computer on!

I started at my new job (at the assisted living place) this week. It is not difficult work, and the clients are friendly. I am working tonight, and will be on my own for the first time (the last two nights I've been training with someone).

I had an interview at the hospital yesterday. I don't want to get my hopes up too much, but I did think it went well. I will be job shadowing next week.

I had my first practical exam in anatomy this morning. Scores are not up, but I am feeling confident. There were only a few questions I wasn't 100% sure about, and even those weren't shots in the dark.

I also met with my advisor this week to make sure I'm on track to apply for the accelerated program this year. She said I'm doing great! She told me all the deadlines I need to know for the application process. I will turn in the application and essay by the beginning of February, and then they will call people for interviews. I asked if they notified people even if they hadn't been chosen for an interview, and she said, "You WILL be called for an interview. Don't even worry about it. But yes, we send them letters." I knew I liked that advisor. :)

After the interviews, they will choose eight for the program. EIGHT! Therefore, I will also be applying for the regular nursing program, just in case.

I'm sure there's more I intended to update about, but it has all escaped me.

I should start tidying up the house anyway; the in-laws will be here tomorrow!

Not Me! Monday

2008-09-22T19:18:00.002-04:00

The idea for this came from MckMama. Go check out her blog!

Here we go..

I did NOT let my one year old eat a leaf on our walk today. We did NOT spend an extra half hour outside because she refused to ride in the stroller. I did NOT let her have her way and walk on her own for the last several blocks.

I did NOT spend half an hour on WebMD yesterday looking up symptoms and convincing myself I have carpal tunnel syndrome. Furthermore, I did NOT head to the pharmacy to buy a wrist splint for each arm, and I have NOT been alternating icing each wrist all day. That would just be paranoid.

I did NOT get all excited when MckMama first mentioned the idea for this game. I did NOT immediately start thinking of what my own Not Me's could be.

What have you (not) done today?

Another Interview!

2008-09-18T14:43:00.003-04:00

Oh my goodness, another interview!

I had given up on ever getting in at the hospital. I had been applying for jobs since February with little success, and had only garnered one set of interviews in the process. I applied for another handful of jobs a few weeks ago, just to keep my name popping up, but wasn't very optimistic.

I got a call today from HR asking if I could interview for a part-time evening shift nurse's aide position. YES. Yes I can. I'll meet with the floor director next week!

Woo hoo!

(Even if I get this hospital job- which is no guarantee- I can still work at the assisted living place. The hours don't overlap much, so it shouldn't be a problem. The evening shifts work out well with my class schedule and childcare availability as well.)

AND it looks like there may be a possibility of a tutoring job in the works as well..

Cross your fingers, say a prayer, wish on a star, rub Frog Baby's nose, do whatever it is you do to send some good vibes my way, please!

Thanks!

Cake and Frosting Recipes

2008-09-15T12:40:00.003-04:00

Both of these came from this website. This is what I made for Sweet Pea's birthday cake.

Apple Swirl Cake

Ingredients:
2 c Apples
3 tb Sugar
1 ts Cinnamon

2 c Sugar
1 c Cooking oil
4 Eggs
1/4 c Orange juice
2 ts Vanilla
3 c Sifted flour
1 tb Baking powder
1/2 ts Salt

Peel, core, and chop apples into small pieces. Mix together with 3 tablespoons sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.

In large bowl, combine sugar and cooking oil; beat. Add eggs, orange juice, and vanilla. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt; add to creamed mixture. Beat until smooth. Pour one third batter into greased and floured 12 cup bundt pan alternating with one half apple mixture. Repeat.

End with layer of batter on top. Bake at 325 degrees F for 60 minutes or until cake tests done. Cool in pan 10 to 15 minutes; turn out on wire rack or serving plate to complete cooling. Sprinkle with confectioners sugar if desired or lightly frost with cream cheese frosting.

Whipped Cream Frosting
Makes 1 frosting for a 2 layer cake

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup white sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups heavy cream

Directions
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar salt and vanilla until smooth. In a small bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Fold into the cream cheese mixture.

Happy birthday!

2008-09-14T21:54:00.007-04:00

Well, it's official. My sweet baby girl has turned one. Where did the last year GO?

Here's a few pictures to sum up the last 12 months..

Brand new (9/12/07) ..............One month old.......................... Two months old

Three months old...................... Four months old...................... Five months old

Six months old.......................... Seven months old ...................Eight months old

Nine months old....................... Ten months old..................... Eleven months old

One year old!

We had a great time at her birthday party this weekend. Thank you to all those who stopped by, sent hugs, called, and showed your love!