Summer Bliss

I've been on summer break for two weeks. Enjoying the sleeping in, reading fiction and cleaning my house. We are going on vacation for a week to visit Lane's family. I am looking forward to it!

Week 3

Getting into the meat of this term. The kids are doing well, and everything is going as smoothly as I could hope for. My schedule is Mon, Tues, Wed packed full from 8-5, and Wed 6-5. Then Sim 3 times on Thursday. I have every Friday "off" to study and do other homework. This week I had to stay up late to prep for Clinical, my first day of full patient care at the hospital. So I was pretty tired and took a nap today. I had a great clinical on Wed. I picked a patient that was complex, but stable so I learned a lot without being too stressed. Next week I get to observe in the OR. We have two tests on Monday so I am going to have to study a lot over the next three days!

Spring Break

My finals are over and I did very well. I got a chance to visit with my family and it was so nice to see them. My brother came from Japan with his wife and my nephew. Boy 2 yr olds are busy :) He is just darling and so smart! My mom and stepdad came as well and we had a mini family reunion. I will post pics at a later time when I get around to getting them off my camera.

Mostly I am reading and watching movies and sleeping. It feels SOOOO good to just decompress!

It's been awhile

Almost done with winter term, but there is still a bit to go. I have to start studying for finals. Just two and a half weeks to go.

My grandmother fell and broke both of her ankles so I've been spending quite a bit of time visiting her. She will be going home on friday from the nursing home so we are all happy about that. They think she will fully recover.

I am really looking forward to spring break. My brother and mother are both coming to visit so I am happy.

23 yrs Challenger Remembered

High Flight

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air. . . .

Up, up the long, delirious burning blue
I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or ever eagle flew —
And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

— John Gillespie Magee, Jr

You are not forgotten Christa and the rest of the Challenger Crew!

Week 3 update

So far everything is going smoothly this term. I have taken two exams and aced them. No time for anything except school but I'm a good kind of busy! I did take a break yesterday to go for a walk with Nick. It was cold but nice to be outside in nature for a bit!

Winter Term

We're all back to school. I had an apt with my specialist in Portland on Monday. Everything is fine, it was just a required check in and refill prescription type apt. If everything continues to go like it is then I will be able to start tapering my other meds once I pass the one year mark on them. My labs look excellent. She was really happy with my progress.
I am taking Nursing Genetics, Pathology, Pharmacology and Nursing classes this term. I am going to be up to the tip of my head in schoolwork so may be a bit slow on the blogging. So far everything is going well. However my Patho and Pharm teacher is the same person who wrote our Contemporary Med Surg textbook that is 6 inches thick. A little intimidating LOL. He's really nice though but I can tell he really expects us to know a lot already and we have just started! Jumping in on the second day I felt a bit behind. Hopefully that won't last long. I have already read 5 chapters plus additional readings. I am excited about the new term though. I love learning so I'm going to dive right in and do it!

Merry Christmas One and All!

Our Annual Gingerbread House Decorating Party

My son Max is in the middle



My son Jake on the left and his best friend



My youngest son Nick in the red








Every year I host a party for all the kids friends and their families to come and celebrate the season with us by decorating a gingerbread house. It's a tradition I started when my daughter was about 4. I make the house and everyone brings a little something to put on the house. This year we had a big turnout with about 20 people!

You can find the recepie I use below on my last post.

Christmas 2008

Welcome! I've decided to participate in Boomama's Christmas Tour this year. It's so fun to see how everyone decorates. I'm only doing two trees this year, as I sprained my ankle last month and I am on orders to rest it. So it's just the family tree and the Harry Potter Tree. I am a huge fan. I am adding to this tree every year so it's a work in progress.

We wish you and your family a very MERRY CHRISTMAS!







My Harry Potter Tree is in the Master Bedroom






This is our family tree in the LR

Saturday is our annual Gingerbread House Decorating Party. I will post pics once it is over. Until then, here is the recepie I use

The Best Gingerbread
3 x recepie
1 ½ C. butter
7.5 C flour
1 1/2 C sugar
1 1/2 C molassas
3 egg
1 T baking soda
1 T cinnamon
1 T ginger
1 T cloves
1 T cinnamon

Cream butter and ½ the flour, then add sugar, molassas, egg, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. Beat until fully combined. Stir in remaining flour. Divide dough in half. Divide into 6 pieces, roll in waxed paper and Chill 3 hrs. Roll out each section 1/8 in thick. Cut into cookies or pieces for house. Bake 375 5-6 min for cookies, or 16 min for larger pieces for gingerbread houses. If you are going to use for a gingerbread house, bake the pieces on aluminum foil, cool and then carefully flip over and peel off the aluminum foil. If you try to bake on a cookie sheet without the foil it will stick and break into pieces. This is a really tasty recepie for cookies as well.

Welcome to the world little one!

Today some good friends of mine welcomed their youngest son into the world. I watched their older son for them, as he is Nick's best friend. I took him to the hospital to meet his baby brother and it was so sweet to see his reaction.
Baby and mom are home already. I talked to a nurse there briefly and was pleased to hear that the hospital here accepts new grads into Labor and Delivery! Since that is where I want to work I am realy excited about that option :)

Have You Ever?

I borrowed this from Fishy Girl who borrowed it from Miss Snippity's website. Copy and bold anything that you have done.




1. Started your own blog

2. Slept under the stars-in a tent

3. Played in a band

4. Visited Hawaii

5. Watched a meteor shower

6. Given more than you can afford to charity

7. Been to Disneyland/world When I was 3

8. Climbed a mountain

9. Held a praying mantis

10. Sang a solo

11. Bungee jumped

12. Visited Paris

13. Watched a lightning storm at sea

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch

15. Adopted a child

16. Had food poisoning

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty

18. Grown your own vegetables

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France

20. Slept on an overnight train When Cassie and Max were little we went on a train ride from Pullman, WA to San Diego, CA. Fun, but I don't recommend it with a toddler. He made me walk up and down the train more times than I could count LOL.

21. Had a pillow fight

22. Hitch hiked

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill

24. Built a snow fort

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping

27. Run a Marathon

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice

29. Seen a total eclipse

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset

31. Hit a home run

32. Been on a cruise

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors

35. Seen an Amish community

36. Taught yourself a new language

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied Briefly in 2000-2002

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person

39. Gone rock climbing

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David

41. Sung karaoke

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant

44. Visited Africa

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight

46. Been transported in an ambulance - with my landlady but I wasn't the patient

47. Had your portrait painted

48. Gone deep sea fishing

49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling

52. Kissed in the rain

53. Played in the mud

54. Gone to a drive-in theater When I was a little girl. First movie I remember seeing was Rocky and I couldn't figure out why we were watching a boxing match LOL.

55. Been in a movie

56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business

58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Visited Russia

60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies

62. Gone whale watching

63. Gotten flowers for no reason

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma

65. Gone sky diving

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp

67. Bounced a check Only due to a screw up at the bank when my acct closed

68. Flown in a helicopter

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial

71. Eaten Caviar

72. Pieced a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square

74. Toured the Everglades

75. Been fired from a job When I was a teenager

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London

77. Broken a bone

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person

80. Published a book

81. Visited the Vatican

82. Bought a brand new car

83. Walked in Jerusalem

84. Had your picture in the newspaper

85. Read the entire Bible

86. Visited the White House

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating Fish only. Skinned and prepared a rabbit but didn't kill it.

88. Had chickenpox

89. Saved someone’s life

90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous

92. Joined a book club

93. Lost a loved one

94. Had a baby Yep- 4 of them :)

95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake

97. Been involved in a law suit

98. Owned a cell phone

99. Been stung by a bee

If it ain't broke, don't fix it

Fun small thing for today's company coffee. Pick a cliche and make it your small thing for today. I pick "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." I chose not to worry about changing things today. I just followed my normal thursday routine, and got a lot done. My routines are working really well for me right now. Thanks to Flylady and thanks to Rachel Anne!

Haircuts are temporary.....

Well all I can say is it's a good thing my hair grows fast. I really don't like my latest haircut. I haven't had my hair this short since I was a freshman in H.S. and there is a good reason. Next time I will be 100% sure the person cutting my hair knows NO layers over the bottom of my ear line. I think this haircut aged me 10 yrs! Everyone keeps telling me they like it, but I don't so it will be grown out ASAP!

Great Week

I am enjoying the evening off after a busy and fulfilling week. Today we had the assignment to do a health screening at my son's elementary school. So I gave hearing tests, vision screenings and height/weight checks to kids from 8am-2pm. I knew almost all the kids so it was a lot of fun. This weekend I have a lighter workload so I'm going to use the opportunity to get a bit more done around the house.

This morning there was ice on my windshield so it's definately heading into Winter. A lot of the leaves are off the trees already since it rained for several days in a row. I need to rake them up so I hope tomorrow is sunny!

Fall Splendor

Company Girl Friday

O.K. I have to admit I LOVE today's small thing! Rachel Anne's small thing for today is to pamper your skin. After the year my skin has had it sure deserves it! I chose to give myself the total body once over from top to bottom with products that I love. I suggest you do the same it feels amazing!

On top of that, today I got to taper my Prednisone down to 5 mg. Which my Dr. said at my visit this morning to inspect my stitches is the same amount my body should produce on it's own. So I'm back within the normal range of the body which means the amount I'm taking won't hurt me any more. I am so happy

Flu Clinic

Today I had the opportunity to give flu shots to the community. I felt really comfortable to my surprise! I gave 6 people their flu shots and it went really well.

At home, Max is resting from another incident of passing out at school. We will see the neurologist for another apt and possibly an MRI to try to figure out what is going on. We are having quite the week between my fall on Tuesday and this! I am off my crutches just about except for longer distances, but I can put my weight on it fully now and it isn't hurting as much.

Tomorrow is Nick's 7th birthday. We are having his friend H over for a sleepover and going to see Madagascar 2 tomorrow to celebrate!

Boo

1st Shots

Today we got to give each other flu shots. It was great! I was able to complete my flu shot for my partner and felt really comfortable about it. Likewise my partner got the chance to give me mine and she did a great job. I was a little nervous ahead of time but I really felt fine about it once it came time to do it. We all cheered each other on and kept the person getting the shot distracted so they wouln't get too nervous. I really like the people I'm going to school with. All in all they are a really great bunch of people!