Quite the day

Today was my last day of work and my first three patients turned out to be exciting. Patient number one had to go to the bathroom and naturally the smell in the room was potent. Patient number two had a wound that had a potent and overbearing smell. Patient number three, right as we walked into the room, threw up. Needless to say, I needed a break from all the aromas. I leaned up against a sink, just a regular hospital faucet, not one of those Delta fauctes, and I took a breather. It's hard to see people in those situations, having to go through what they do in front of strangers. But we always try to make it as easy on them as possible and we never make them feel bad about the situation. I wouldn't want anyone to do that to me if I was in that position. My day went really well though, I'm not complaining. Just had an exciting start!

Love this

We just bought the movie Ratatouille for the girls and they have this short on it. This one is one of my favorites and since we watched it today, I wanted to share it with everyone else in case you haven't seen it. My favorite part is when the little alien gets mad. Totally cracks me up. :D

A house, someday

We all know how hard the real estate market is right now. A pretty good time to buy, but so many people aren't in a position to. I often think about the time when we'll be able to buy a house, after school of course. I know people who know exactly what they want in their first home, everything from the type of kitchen to the carpet. Me? I don't really know. I've thought do I want granite countertops? Hardwood floors or carpet? Would I like glass tile in my home somewhere? Do I need a basement? There are a million questions! I figure when the time comes and we're out looking, I'll know which house is the best for us. I just haven't seen it yet so I don't know what I want lol!

A lot on my mind

Do you ever have those days where you're thinking about everything absolutely possible and you feel if you were given even one bit more of information, your head would explode? That's how I've been feeling. My brain is so full of physical therapy information on top of family information on top of life information, I don't think I have room left for anything else! I received a paper in the mail the other day about looking into auto insurance quotes and I wanted to throw up. Seriously, I don't want to do one more thing that involves using my brain. It needs a break!!

Thankful this week

This past week has been the roughest of all the weeks thus far into my clinical for school. I've been really sick and stressed which is a messy combination. I did start to feel a little better then I think I over did it Wednesday when my family came to see me. It was so nice to see my girls and my husband! But we took the girls to the park and let them run around which meant we ran around too. They were so cute going back and forth and it was hard not to join in their fun. We went out to eat after the park and then headed back to where I stay and enjoyed some down time. That's when it hit me. Wednesday night was the worst and Thursday wasn't any better.

I ended up calling in sick to work Thursday because I was so dizzy it wouldn't have been safe for me to be working with patients. I upped my fluids and rested all day, hoping to feel better. But I didn't and knew I needed something else to help me function. That's where the topic of this post comes in. Being LDS, anyone has the opportunity to receive a priesthood blessing from men who are worthy to hold the priesthood and that's exactly what I needed.

Priesthood blessings are an amazing and wonderful gift given to God's children. It's sometimes hard to describe exactly how I feel afterward, but usually it's with peace and love. That's how I felt after my blessing on Thursday and I'm so grateful to the men who were willing to help me (it would have been my husband, but I was out of town). I may have had a rough week, but I know that I can get through anything with the Lord's help. I couldn't be more grateful. :)

Leaning, learning

I have learned so much on this rotation I'm doing for school. I'm thankful to have ended up where I did because I couldn't have asked for a better site. I'm learning about how to handle different situations, people, and illnesses. I recently did a PowerPoint presentation on two rare genetic disorders, FG Syndrome and Chromosome 3, Trisomy 3p. Never heard of them before until I met the children with the disorders. Pretty interesting to learn about! I know there are so many other diseases and illnesses I don't know about, like mesothelioma. Although I do know it's a cancer, but I couldn't tell you the signs, symptoms, or outcome of it. But, I'm always trying to learn more. That's what I love about the medical field, learning about new things!

Summertime is coming

We've had so much rain the past few weeks that it hasn't felt much like summer. I haven't minded too much considering all of the reasons people look forward to summer are not particularly the same reasons I look forward to summer. For instance, most people can't wait to go swimming and get back into their bathing suit. Me, not so much. Most people can't wait to pull out their shorts and cool off. Me, I prefer capri's. Maybe if I had the perfect summer body things would be different. Add that to getting rid of my acne, which has flared up this past week (no, I haven't tried Acnetix but maybe a prayer will help lol) and well, you have a un-summery combination. :D But that's ok, I still like summer and love the warm weather!

I rock

I'm going to brag about myself, so feel free to move along to a more humbling post. ;) This past weekend I ran my first 10k and I was awesome. No, I didn't place, but I did shave ten minutes off of my usual running time. That's pretty awesome in my book! How did I do it? Well, I didn't use diet pills and I didn't use any of those "shots" they give runners before a race. The only thing I did was stay positive and focused. Some parts of the course was pretty hard but positive thinking helped me the most. It was so much fun and I'm glad I met my goal of running a 10k this year. Maybe next year I'll do it again, or the half marathon. ;)

Hee, hee

So true, so true. I'll get around to my blog sooner or later. :) I love when I get emails like this that make me laugh out loud. Who ever comes up with these sure does a good job!

Heavy scale

You know, the last few months I haven't been doing very well when it comes to my health. Yes, I exercise but my eating habits have not been great. This past month though, things were getting better and I was more conscious of what I ate. But surprisingly, when I stepped on the scale recently, my weight had shot up more than I expected, yikes! Some people saying using the best diet pill will help you lose weight, but I've never wanted to go that way. I'm going to keep up my exercising and keep trying to not overeat, especially when I'm feeling stressed. Thought two combination's will really benefit me!

Trying to de-stress

A month ago, when I started my clinical I was really worried about not doing well. Isn't that how it usually goes when you get a new job? Needless to say, I was pretty stressed those first few weeks getting into the swing of things. Stress is never a good thing for me, or anyone, usually my acne gets worse and I make myself sick. Rather than look for the best acne treatment, I try to find ways to manage my stress levels and relax. Running usually helps along with taking a nap or reading a good book. Besides, those are more fun than being stressed and uptight all day!

I miss my bed

It's been a blessing to have a place to stay during the week while I'm on my clinical rotation. I have my own room and bed and it's been really nice. I was worried that I would find a place to stay, but I would be sleeping on the floor in a sleeping bag. Thankfully not! But I do miss home and my own bed. No, it's not a sleep number bed, which would be really nice, but it is larger and my feet don't hang off. The bed I have here is a twin and a little too short for me. But, considering the alternative, I'm pretty happy to just be off the floor!

Raspberry Salad

Cami brought this over to me one time and I instantly loved it so I asked her for the recipe. It's easy and delicious! Everyone I know who tries it really likes it so I wanted to post it here. If you try it and love it (or don't love it) let me know!

Raspberry Salad

1 container Cool Whip
1 large box vanilla pudding
1 large container vanilla yogurt
Frozen raspberries (you can use thawed too)

Mix first three ingredients together. When ready to serve, add in the raspberries for a delicious, and cool, dessert! Mmm!!

Crap, I forgot again

For the past two days I've been meaning to go buy some milk so I can eat my cold cereal for breakfast. Needless to say, I keep forgetting! Not even tonight, when I went to buy gas and there was a barcode scanner right in front of me, I still didn't remember to go to the store. It's still early enough I could go, but I've been gone for almost 12 hours today, so I'd rather stay put. Some days, it would be nice if I could remember everything I needed to, instead of certain things here and there!

Swine Flu Celebrity Death

We all know who did it...

This email was hilarious! Poor Kermit! I knew she wasn't right for him. ;)

Stress lines

This past month has been filled with nothing but stress for me. You can tell by looking at my face. Yikes! I'm still in my 20's and I look older just because of stress. Maybe I should get some anti-aging wrinkle cream to make my face look younger. Or maybe, I should stop being so stressed lol. It's just been one of those months, everything piling up on each other. I think I'm getting to the end though and that's always a good thing in my book.

BBQ Cups - Recipe

Beth has come through again for me! She posted this BBQ Cups recipe on her blog and naturally, I had to bookmark it. :-) What hooked me? Three ingredients and three ingredients I had on hand! Well, three ingredients my husband had on hand since he was the one to make them! I came home from work and he had these ready and they were pretty darn delicious. Now, a few days later, I ate a couple for dinner and they were still just as good. Thanks Beth for always posting yummy, and easy, recipes for me! (Well, you probably do it for everyone, but I really appreciate it!)


BBQ Cups

1 lb browned ground beef
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1 roll refrigerated biscuit dough
Grated Colby-Jack cheese

Mix browned ground beef with barbecue sauce; set aside. Place biscuit dough in ungreased muffin tin, pressing dough against the sides of the cup. Spoon meat mixture into cups. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 12 minutes.

So much more

I was working a few days ago in a hospital and I was reading a dr's note for one of the patients I was about to see. Mostly the note contained a list of medication the patient was on. Did I recognize any of the meds listed? Nope. We've learned about a few different kinds in class but as a whole, I don't know what is what when it comes to medicines. The same thing goes for knowing about the different types of diet pills. But, if I have any questions about let's say, Patentrim, I could look up Patentrim reviews online. The internet can be a great tool in finding out answer to tough questions.

Comes with the territory

Working in a medical related field, I'm always hearing about different types of medicines or exercise programs that will help keep people healthy. Well, I just heard about Stemulite and I wanted to take a minute and tell you about it. Stemulite is a fitness supplement that is supposed to help you lose weight, build muscle, and help keep your energy up. This supplement can be taken by men who actively workout or by women on an everyday basis. It is all natural and shows promise to help you feel better than ever before. If you have any questions or concerns, take a look at their website truehealthyproducts.com for more information and even a telephone number you can call.

Thank you!

My brother told me about this clip and because I liked it, I want to share it with you. :)

Almost done

Tomorrow (actually, it's 1am right now so I guess it would be today) I have my last final. I'm trying to stay positive and optimistic, but it's been a struggle. This is by far my hardest and most challenging final and I don't feel ready for it. I've been studying as much as I can despite being sick and having my kids sick. I haven't done anything other than eat, sleep, and study. I've been wanting to read something other than a textbook but haven't. I haven't even watched that much TV. There's a few shows I like but I don't miss seeing all the commercials and ads for Anoretix or get into better shape for the summer infomercials, between the shows I like. Hopefully my hard works pays off and I pass my last final because then, it would all be worth it!

Running break

Gah! I'm too busy to run and it's killing me! I know I could go, but I have so much to do. I might take an hour break this weekend if I can, but I'm not sure if even that will happen. I'm going to try though, running is a great way for me to alleviate some stress. We runners, well some of us, like to listen to our MP3 players and bound to the beat. You listen to good songs, run a few miles, and life is good! Thankfully, finals are next week and I can get back into my normal running regime. Woohoo!

There are so many!

You've seen the commercials and you've probably seen pop ads. All trying to help you find the right online college. Maybe you've browsed through the different schools but have you heard about ST. Xavier's and their MS Instruction? ST. Xavier's is a great place for getting a online Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction degree. So what does this program do? Its focus is to further educate individuals on literacy, diversity, interdisciplinary perspective in education, and integration of technology. This type of program will benefit anyone who wishes to continue their development and learning as a teacher in schools or other instructional type settings. If this sounds perfect for what you need, I'd take the time right now to learn more about ST. Xavier's.

Sugar Cookies - Recipe

My husband found the absolute best sugar cookie recipe that he found from All Recipes! I've never been a big fan of sugar cookies until now. They were such a pain to make, rolling out the dough, cutting the shapes out, rolling out more dough, cutting out more shapes. More time consuming than I wanted and they never tasted very good, so I rarely made them. But these cookies are a breeze and totally delicious! I even like the dough and I don't like sugar cookie dough! My wonderful husband made these again today and I'm in heaven. Yes, I know it won't help me with my running, but I need fuel to study for finals. ;) Here's the recipe if anyone else would like to try them:

Sugar Cookies

• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually blend in the dry ingredients. Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls, and place onto ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden. Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.

More running

Since I've signed up for a 10k this summer, I've been working on running more. Instead of one to two days a week, I'm trying to get in at least three to four runs a week. So far, I've only tried to run the full 6.2 miles once. It went fairly well, I walked a lot, but it gave me a good time frame to stay under come race day. The other thing it gave me was a big blister, ouch! I was asked if the blister was because of new shoes and it wasn't. I don't have Dansko, I have Saucony, and they've been great. I think the problem was my body. I've never gone that far and my body wasn't too happy. But hey, it's good for me and soon my body will love it! :-)