Well, isn't that just great?!

So, my oldest daughter chipped her front tooth several years ago. The bottom half of that tooth is made up of the same stuff as fillings. It's a temporary fix. Eventually she will have to have it capped. Once that happens, it won't be noticable that it is not her real tooth. However, as of now, until her teeth are fully grown in and braces are done, she will have to deal with the filling.

A couple of years ago, she bit into a sucker, and popped that filling off her tooth and it had to be redone. Tonight, my younger daughter was...wait for it, wait for iiiitt...twirling around a metal baseball bat (seriously? yes.) and hit her sister in the mouth. Well, guess what happened. Yep, it came off again. Sigh.

Blah

Feeling :'(

The hills are alive...

My oldest daughter was in The Sound of Music at school last night and tonight. The kids all did a very good job. Of course, there were a few kids that could have done better :o but for the most part, it went well. Here is a picture of her in costume after the performance tonight:



And a short video my SIL took of her singing with the other nuns:

Untitled from Lora S on Vimeo.

Emails and IM

I am really frustrated with my email/IM situation right now. I am attempting to move all of my emails to 1 main email account and completely ditch my old email address that I've had since 1999. I wanted to switch to something easier to tell people, that does not require a long explanation each time I give out my email, and perhaps looks a little more professional.

Well, this has seemed to cause me more stress than I think it was really worth. The new email does not work the same way with my IM client of choice. Before, my email and chat were all connected. If I signed into IM, I was also signed into my email and could have notifications of new emails pop up if I chose. I could click an icon and immediately get to my inbox. It was all so easy and all in one place.

After switching over, I now have to have two different IM clients open in order to have all of this available to me at the same time. On top of that, when I first signed up with the new email on my old IM, I left out the . in the middle of the email address, thinking it was not that big of a deal. Well, for some reason, even though I received the verification email and verified it, it still kept saying that my email was not verified. Very annoying.

So, I signed up, once again. This time using the dot. I only sent out requests to a couple of my contacts, because I am still trying to decide if I'm going to stick with this, or just go back and use the old email, at least for IM purposes.

Early day

Tomorrow is going to suck! I am on to my L&D clinicals now, and I have to drive 40 minutes, park in a lot across from the hospital, ride a shuttle to the hospital, and meet in the lobby at 6:30 am. So, I guess that puts me leaving the house by around 5:30 am. :( UGH! Hate me some early days!

On a side note, on my way out from dinner at Red Robin with my grandma tonight, she says: "Well, I enjoyed that, but it was a big one". Yeeeah, I had to bite my tongue...

Yuck

So, a friend told me today to try a home remedy for my cough that I've had for the past few days. It's called a hot toddy. It is hot tea, honey, lemon juice and a shot of bourbon whiskey. I am drinking it right now because, at this point, I'm willing to try almost anything. I am so sore whenever I cough! It makes my whole body hurt. I can tell you one thing...this is some nasty crap. I sure hope it helps!

Siiick!

I have been miserable all weekend. I have been coughing crazy hard. My head and chest both hurt every time. I've been chugging cough syrup, but it doesn't really seem to help. I woke myself up coughing several times last night too. :( Ugh,I just want to feel better! On top of that, I already had to go pick up my oldest daughter from school because apparently she was "swallowing puke on the bus" because she "didn't have a bag". Nice.

Hello Weekend!

Well, I finished up my pediatric rotation at Children's Hospital today. Next week, I'll be in labor and delivery. Hopefully I'll get more experience than I did in the LPN L&D rotation. I am so glad this week is over! I am starting my weekend now because the reflection journal paper I thought was due tomorrow for psych nursing is actually not due until next week! Bonus!

Wellll....

It wasn't really what I was hoping for tonight with the adolescent group, though I would say it wasn't anything unexpected. They are definitely a group of troubled kids.

The fun part of working with the kids was that we got gym time. There were only 5 on the unit, and pretty much all but one basically just sat around talking the whole hour instead of playing basketball or kicking a soccer ball around. So, there was an LPN, another student from my school (who is in his 6th quarter and working in the psych hospital with his preceptor), my clinical partner, and myself playing...and one kid. Something was wrong with that picture, but whatever. I only got hit in the face with a basketball once and hit in the stomach with a soccer ball once. :/

The other end...

Well I'm on my way to clinical for the evening. I'll be working on the adolescent unit of the psychiatric hospital tonight. Last week I was on the geriatric unit which was very similar to being at a nursing home. Hopefully seeing the other end of the spectrum will be interesting! We shall see.

Colored for Fall!

Welp, the color is done. It is actually not as dark as I remembered. I thought it was more brown that this, whereas this seems to have more of a red tint. But it is supposedly the same as she used last December. She keeps all that stuff written down. Maybe I just remembered wrong. I looked at pictures from right after having it done last time and it seemed darker in the pics. But, maybe it was the lighting of the pictures, and that is why I thought it was darker. I dunno. It's ok though, I still like it. And my hair smells wicked awesome right now, too. I have got to buy some of the stuff she uses!!

It's time!

I have put it off long enough. It is time to get my hurr did! Last December, I got it colored dark brown and I really liked it. I got highlights sometime last spring, and as of now, it has basically faded back to my natural hair color. So, since it is Fall, I'm thinking it is time to go dark again. So, now, I just need to decide if I want to get a cut too, or just a trim. Hmm, decisions, decisions!

For the lack of something better...

Here are some Bella videos from today. She gets super excited when she sees we're at the dog park...

Untitled from Lora Shearer on Vimeo.

And then she gets her face slobbered by another dog (EW!)...

Untitled from Lora Shearer on Vimeo.

Crazy puppy!

I just got back in from walking Bella. We would have walked longer, but I had to cut it short because she couldn't tell the difference between a small animal and a leaf blowing down the street. This wouldn't normally be a big issue, but tonight, it is particularly windy out and there are about a million leaves blowing around in the wind. She lunged at all of them and almost got away from me several times. She is so freakin' strong!

Week 1 done!

Well, I got through my 2 clinical orientations and my one day of classes. While I only have 2 classes (one is 2 hours, one is 4 hours), it seems like I will still have quite a bit of work to do. There will be more writing assignments this quarter, which is a bummer because I suck at writing papers! A lot of work will be required in these 2 classes. Might not be as "light" of a term as I'd hoped, but at least I have 4 days a week at home to work on it all.

GAH!

Break is over! Back at it tomorrow. It's kind of bittersweet. I don't want to go back to school, however, it means I'm that much closer to being finished. Plus, I get to see my friends.

Also...I cannot seem to keep myself motivated to work out! It is very frustrating. I know I have no one to blame it on but myself. I simply don't have the willpower to make myself stick with it. So, I'll go for a little while and do well and then I just get tired of it and give up. Even though I know that I need to do it to lose weight, to feel better, to look better, to be more confident, to decrease my chances of developing health problems...I still just can't stick to it alone! Yep, I'm pathetic.

So, I guess on that note, I will go downstairs and visit my treadmill. Maybe this will be the time I stick to it? Who knows. What I *do* know is that even off and on is better than none at all. So, I will try to keep it up. I will try to motivate myself. I will try to not let temptation get the best of me. All I can do is try. If I fail, then I will just try again. I think it's time to start using my weight loss blog again. Maybe, just maybe, it can help.

One more week

I can't believe that over half of my break is up already! It has gone by way too fast! At least I'm going into what I hope will be an easier quarter. It will be a lot less time at school, at least. I haven't done a whole lot on break, mostly cleaning or relaxing, or running errands.

I've got some errands to run this morning as well. :( I have to take Bella to the vet because I think she might have pink eye. She woke up Saturday morning with a bunch of green goop in her eye. Yuck. Should be fun trying to hold her still to put drops in her eye! Then, my grandma wants me to drive her to the bank and two stores. I imagine we will get lunch while we're out, and then I *hope* to have the afternoon at home.

Blah!

I woke up with a bit of a headache this morning. I went back to sleep in hopes that it would help, however, it has now turned into a monster headache that is making me feel nauseous. :( Ick!

UGH!

I am seriously about to scream right now! I have not been feeling too great the past few days (physically or emotionally), and tonight I am just feeling really down, and my kids are driving me insane! I think it's time for a nice hot bath and to call it a night!

SO Close!

Just 1 more final and then a break! I have totally been studying what seems like non-stop lately. As a result, I am slacking in other departments like working out and laundry. I haaaate being surrounded by a mess! It stresses me out. It's hard(er) to concentrate on studying (this is one of the things going through my head keeping me from focusing).

I have made it through 2 finals (passed both of those classes) now just have to pass pharm tomorrow. I feel like a huge weight will be lifted off my shoulders as soon as it is over. I am actually looking forward to getting back on my treadmill and having a chance to begin operation clean this pig sty! ;)

Studying, studying, and...oh yeah, more studying!

Well, I managed to make it through the rest of the chapters for A&P (which my final for is tomorrow). Tuesday is my med/surg final, then Wednesday is my pharm final. I think I'm most worried about pharm. Though, my A&P teacher always makes his tests very difficult. Med/surg I am actually doing quite well in. I always think I miss more than I end up actually missing on her tests. Just 3 more days til I get a break!

Now I'm off to study group to get my study on!!

ADD?

I am giving myself a diagnosis of ADD. I cannot seem to pay attention for *anything*! I try to pay attention in my lectures, but I just can't seem to do it. I try to listen, but nothing sinks in. I end up "teaching" the material to myself before the tests. This is why it takes me so long to study for tests. The mixture of my having to teach the stuff to myself and the fact that I cannot stay focused. I will read an entire page and realize I have no idea what I just read because my mind has been on other things and I've been skimming the words, but not actually paying attention enough to comprehend what I just read. Ugh! I just don't get it. I wish this came easy to me. I wish I were one of those people that could just listen in class and not even have to study because merely listening to the lecture was enough.

I spent hours last night and only got through about half of a chapter in one subject. I need to get to it again today. Tomorrow I am going to a study group and hopefully that will help. I always seem to get more out of studying with other people than on my own.

For some reason, I don't have any problems sitting and reading a book, for leisure, for hours! I guess it has to do with how interested I am in the subject at hand. For example, I can read a made up story about vampires and werewolves, or a romance or suspense novel, and become completely enthralled in what I'm reading. But, reading about electrolytes and acid/base buffer systems somehow doesn't hold my interest the same way.

Gotta love wasted trips!

So, yeah, I took Bella back to get her staples removed today. Apparently she had some issues with bleeding and the doctor had to open her back up after the surgery because of it. As a result, her scar is twice as long as it normally would have been. Anyway, when I picked her up the evening of her surgery, they gave me some pain meds for her, some reading material on what I should be looking out for, and a paper stating that I should go back (today) on the 9th for her staple removal.

Well, when I showed up for that, the lady asked me if it had been 10 days. I told her that her surgery had been last Thursday. So, she then told me that they generally need to be in for at least 10 days and after checking with the doctor, tells me to bring her back in next Thursday to have them taken out. Oh well, at least it wasn't that far of a drive and Bella got to go for a ride, so that made her happy.

So much for my morning off!

I got up this morning and drove my middle daughter to school since everyone somehow overslept this morning, I have a homework assignment that is due this afternoon that I completely forgot about and haven't even started on (oops!), I still have to study for today's quiz, I need to take Bella to get her staples removed from her spay, and I also have some paperwork to fill out for school.

That last thing kind of pisses me off. I got an email from my financial aid director saying that she needs these things filled out and turned in immediately because they are holding up my financial aid for next quarter. It's just this lady's tone that gets me. She is such a beyotch in person and in her emails. I am in my 3rd quarter of the RN program and all of a sudden you need these forms filled out immediately because it's holding up my financial aid? So...what you're telling me is *you* lost something that I have previously filled out and you have had for previous quarters as needed, and now it is somehow *my* fault that this is being held up? Hmmm...

So, I guess I better get to it. Sigh.

Can we just call it a night?

Well, one quiz down, 2 more to go this week. Then, next week is finals! So, it's pretty much straight up studying this week (and weekend) and next week. Seriously, I can't wait to have a couple of weeks that I don't have to spend all of my time studying! Especially since I can't seem to get a moment's peace to study without one kid or another coming and knocking on my door!

I am something of a mess today. For some reason my left eye started burning this afternoon. Most likely from my contact. It is probably time to change them out. Even after taking it out when I got home, it still hurts and is watering. Prolly gonna be rockin' the glasses for a couple of days. On top of that, my stomach has been killing me all afternoon. My lunch must not have liked me as much as I liked it. :(

To leave or not to leave?

I really don't feel like being at school today. I'm really thinking about just leaving after this class. Hmmm....

Poor baby!

My poor little puppy got spayed today. They said she bled quite a bit. She has basically done nothing but sleep since getting home this evening. She didn't even want to drink any water. :(

Last day of Summer break

Tomorrow is the first day of school for the kiddos! I know they are excited and sad at the same time. I know how they feel. In a way I'm glad for them to be back in school, and yet, I feel bad for them too. It does seem like the summer flew by for them and they didn't really get to do too much. No vacations, amusement park or water park trips, etc. Oh well. Hopefully next summer. It's difficult to do those things when I don't get the summer off of school too.

This year they will all be in different schools, too. Which is fine for the girls. I just hope my son does ok knowing his sister isn't in the same building as him this year. I know that was somewhat comforting to him last year. The younger two will, however, be riding the same bus to and from their schools. So, hopefully that will help.

I've got to move it, move it!

Well, I finally got my treadmill set up and I used it for the first time today! It felt good, too! I just need to figure out how to use the settings. I didn't take the time to read the manual before hand, I just went for it. And I don't know how to make it just go at the settings I put in. It kept changing speeds and inclines on me, which was not cool! Oh well.

I didn't do anything drastic today, since unfortunately, it's been a while since I've worked out. I just went back and forth between a medium-paced walk and a slight jog for about 25 minutes. But, at least it was something!

No joke!

Well, my teacher wasn't lying. That test was very difficult! :( He usually throws a few questions out when most of the class misses them. I'm hoping most of the class missed a lot! :o I seriously spent at least 4 solid hours studying for this test last night and I still wasn't sure of a lot of the answers. Sigh.

Anyway, now I am home and ready to relax a bit. I just found out that the pool we go to has been reopened! So, the kids and I will definitely be spending some time there this weekend!

Ready for the weekend!

I so, completely do not want to study tonight! I have an exam in A&P tomorrow that the instructor says will be really difficult. Great. But, since that is my last class of the day tomorrow, perhaps I will get to leave a little early! Hopefully, if the weather is nice this weekend, I can get in some more pool time too!

HECK YEAH!!

Water thief!

So, I just go and get myself a big cup of ice water, bring it back upstairs with me and set it on my bedside table. I then go into the bathroom for all of 30 seconds before I hear the lapping. Why does Bella always think that she can drink my water *every* time I set down my cup? hhhhhh. Silly puppy!

Of course now that I've replaced said cup and water she's come back to try to steal more!

My day

Had a long day of appointments and shopping today with my kiddos. My oldest got new glasses, all 3 got new shoes, and we got a few things from Bath and Body Works too! Now I need to take back a dvd that I forgot in my laptop when I went to the library yesterday (apparently it doesn't count if you just return the case :/), make dinner, then force myself to study for my upcoming tests!! Blah!

Pool Time!

I am getting ready to take my kiddies to the pool. We haven't been in a few weeks because the pool we've been going to has been closed. Apparently some people jumped the fence and there ended up being broken glass in the pool, which lead to it needing to be drained, worked on, then refilled. So, it has been out of order for at least 3 weeks now. So, if that pool is not yet reopened, we will go to the community pool. In fact, we may just go there either way. We haven't been yet this summer, and I know my kids really want to go on the slides. Besides, I've pretty much lost all of my tan already. :/ So, it's pool time!

Phew!

Took my med/surg midterm today and totally thought I bombed it. It was way more difficult than her quizzes have been. However, I ended up with a B, so I'm happy with that! I am glad it is finally Friday so I can have a couple of days of not spending all of my time at home studying! But, of course, next week will be back to the same old routine again and I'll be studying for a pharm quiz, a math test for pharm, and an A & P exam.

On the bright side, I am over half way through this quarter! Five more weeks until I'll get a couple of weeks off (and my kids will be in school all day by then)! After that, I only have 3 more quarters and I will be done with school for a bit.

I'm actually looking forward to next quarter. It will hopefully be much less stressful. I will only have 2 classes: maternal nursing and psych nursing. Each of which has clinicals attached, so I will have 2 half days/week of clinicals instead of one long day (one day for psych, the other day split between pediatrics and maternal nursing). So, basically one full day of classes, two half days of clinicals and 4 days off every week! I can deal with that!

hhhhhhh...

Why is it that the things you try the hardest to put out of your mind are always the very things you can't stop thinking about? :(

I wanna go home!

I have got a wicked headache right now! Sitting in a small, closed-off classroom with twenty-plus other people and the thermostat set in the high seventies, listening to a boring ass monotone lecture is not helping! Can't wait to get home where my house is a comfortable 68 degrees! :)

On another note, I am SO close to being completely done with back to school shopping! I think all that is left is shoes.

More shopping!

Did some more school supply shopping with the kiddos today. Man, this gets so expensive! I did find some good deals though, including a buy one backpack get one for a dollar at Meijer! Woot! Now if I could find a deal like that on shoes for them, I'd be good. :)

Sick & Stressed

I had my little man to the doctor's this morning because he has been running a fever and has been complaining of headaches and a sore throat for a couple of days and was vomiting last night. Come to find out, he has a sinus infection. Poor little guy. He is taking his second nap of the day right now, and usually he doesn't nap at all anymore, so I know he feels crappy. :(

On top of that, I am not feeling well either. I can't breathe very well out of my nose (even though I have nothing to blow out of it), my head hurts, my throat hurts, and my stomach is upset. I'm just a hot mess!

I have been attempting to study for my pharm midterm that I have on Wednesday but, I am not sure how much is sinking in. I just feel so icky right now it is hard to concentrate. I also have a lab practical on Thursday and a med/surg quiz on Friday that I need to study for. Then, next week are 2 other midterms (and possibly another quiz in pharm). And let's not forget 12 hours of clinicals tomorrow! All kinds of fun to look forward to...

Crazy frustrated!

I meant to bring my camera with me to school today. I even made myself a note on my phone so that I would remember to grab it. However, in my rush out the door, I forgot it afterall. :( To top it off, I just found out that my children likely just broke said camera. Are you effing kidding me?! They know they are not even supposed to be touching my camera! Especially after the last incident! That's just great! Why is it that no matter how many times you tell kids not to touch something, they do it anyway? Sigh

Breakfast, yum!

I enjoyed my morning with my oldest and youngest babies today. The middle one was having a little hissy fit and decided she didn't want to go anywhere, so, whatev! The other 2 and I went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast. They have this breakfast that includes 2 eggs, bacon, a big blueberry muffin, and a cup of yogurt with fruit and granola that is super yummy! At least now I don't have to worry about eating lunch. :)

Now, I am just chillin' a little before heading to school for a couple of labs this afternoon.

Tuesdays suck!

Crazy long day at clinicals yesterday. Not much time to even sit down, much less get any studying in for today's exam that I'd hoped to get if there was any free time (pshha!). I did look over the powerpoints after I got home last night though. I wasn't feeling very well and I was wicked tired, so I didn't study as much as I should have and went to bed early instead. I'm pretty sure it showed on today's exam, too. :o Oh well, I think I may have still passed it at least.

Must. Find. Motivation.

I have laundry that needs folded and put away, bed sheets that need changed, vacuuming that needs done, and an exam to study for. I must resist the urge to lay down and take a nap instead!

Lunch

I had lunch with a friend today that I hadn't seen in 7 months. It was nice to catch up with her. Then I took the kids to the pool for a little while this afternoon, since we got rained on while there yesterday. The new suit, btw, is nice, except that when I go under water and then come up, the top wants to, uh, stay under water... Oh well. I still like it better than my old one. Now, I really need to start studying for my Pharm quiz that I will have on Wednesday and the Med/Surg quiz I'll have on Friday.

Slacking

I should probably be studying for my quizzes that are coming up this week, but instead, I'ma go test out my new swimsuit at the pool with my kiddies! :)

School and More School!

As much as I am hating school and life at this point, I have decided that I am going to continue on and get my BSN after getting my ADN (hopefully) next June. I must be some sort of masochist. :/

Anyway, I know I want to do online schooling so that I can work while taking classes. I have taken online classes in the past and I do well with them. Actually, I prefer them. Honestly, sitting in lectures often feels like a waste of my time. I really feel like I don't get a whole lot out of lectures, and I end up teaching myself the material anyway, much as one would do in an online course. I tend to have a short attention span.

So, now I need to find a good RN to BSN program that I can do entirely online. There are lots of options, actually. Ohio University, Kent State, Chamberlain, etc . So I need to do some research and decide which one will be best one for me to do. I'll also need to decide how long I want to work before I start a BSN program. I'm sure I'll at least want to get out of orientation first. The good news is that having my bachelor's degree won't make a difference in my pay as an RN, so I can really just take my time getting it. The bad news is, well, it won't make a diffence in my pay as an RN once I have it...

A fan?

I stopped in Walmart on my way home from school today to look for a small fan to take with me to school. No luck with that, though. They didn't have anything small enough to carry with me each day. I did, however find a new swimsuit (in black). I have been looking all season for one that looks half-way decent on me and haven't had any luck. I also got a new dress (in white) to wear over it as well as a couple new pairs of work out shorts. :)

Um...

Really? Thermostat set on 82 degrees in the classroom today? Really?!?! GAH! Someone didn't get the memo that it is July!

Long Day

Today was the first actual day of clinicals for this quarter. I was hoping to get to rotate around to different departments of the hospital (just as I'd hoped for last quarter) however, I am, once again, in the group that is not rotating at all this quarter. I am also, once again, in the group that has an instructor that is a stickler for the rules and makes us not only get to the hospital at 6:45 for a 7:00 shift, but makes us stay the entire time! My class is not very big (sub-30 people) split into 4 or 5 clinical groups. So, I am aware of the fact that all of the other clinical groups are generally off the floor before 5pm and gone by around 5:30 each week. Seriously, how do I get all the luck? Sigh. :/

It's almost over!

I am sitting here trying to enjoy the last few hours of my time off. I took the kids to the pool for a while earlier today. Now I am sitting here playing some family feud and bejeweled on facebook. Wow, do I know how to party it up or what? Ha!

Sigh

My break was entirely too short! While I do want to get school done and out of the way, I really could use a longer break. Now I have just one more day then it's back to a crazy busy schedule. :/

Randomness

I am already a week into my break from school! It is passing way too quickly! I have less than 2 weeks left. :(

I took the kids to the pool and remembered to reapply my sunscreen, so I did not get fried again. That is always a plus! ;)

I just had me a grilled turkey burger and corn on the cob for dinner. Now, I'm off to change some bed sheets, then fold some laundry while watching a little tv.

BLAST!

I am really rather pissed off right now. I had a bunch of pictures on my camera from this weekend, with some of my family from out of town, and I go to transfer them to my computer just now and they are nowhere to be found! My younger daughter decided to play with my camera this morning to take pictures of herself and the dog and claims that there weren't any pictures on there before she started messing with it. However, I have serious doubts about that...

Ow!

I took the kids to the pool this afternoon, and ended up spending close to 3 hours there. When we left, my back was feeling a little tender, and so I suspected it got a little burnt. Other than my back, I thought I was fine. However, upon further inspection when getting into the shower after I got home, I realised I am actually pretty red all over! Not cool! It's my own fault though, I forgot to reapply sunscreen after getting in the pool for a little bit. :( I am a lobster!

Green piggies!

I've been into buying some different color nail polishes lately. I saw this green color and thought it would be pretty cute, but it wasn't quite what I was expecting. It was more of a sheer color than I was hoping for. After about 3-4 coats, I finally got it to look decent:

(ignore my ugly feet)
I found a more solid color that's similar to it today and bought it, along with 2 different shades of purple. :) Yay nailpolish!

2 more days!

I. Can't. Wait! Just 2 more days then I get a break. I have to keep repeating this to myself.

I had one final last week, and another this morning. Then today I also did my take-home final for Micro, which was 15 questions, but ended up being 5 pages long!

I also studied for my head to toe assessment check off that I will do tomorrow afternoon for nursing lab. Ten freakin' pages of crap to assess from hair and nails, to level of consciousness, to lung and heart sounds, to naming and testing the 12 cranial nerves...etc.

Tomorrow morning I need to review for my a&p lab final that I'll also take tomorrow afternoon. After that, I'll spend the evening getting my study on for my written nursing final on Wednesday. Once that's done I'm off for 2.5 weeks!! Yay!

Almost done

Yesterday, my oldest daughter turned 13! Unbelievable! It was also the last day of school for the kids. As for myself, I still have to make it through one more clinical, tomorrow, and 3 more days of finals before I get a couple of weeks off. I SO can't wait to be done with this quarter. I am very ready for a break!

Now, I need to head to Meijer to pick up a few things...which may or may not turn into me browsing the isles for a while. Then off to bed to get ready to get up early and get this last clinical over with!

My son

I love that kid SO freakin' much! He is so sweet and says some really funny stuff! My favorites of his quotes from today...

After playing with a toy screwdriver: "Wow, I really know how to screw stuff!"

And after dinner: "Mommy, you make the best dinners"...followed by a kiss. Awww!

3 Stores

I went with my grandma earlier to Big Lots and picked up a few name brands at close-out prices. ;) Then we went to Meijer where I got a couple of birthday presents for my daughter as well as some groceries. Now I'm off to do some Krogering! Too bad most of what I'm shopping for is groceries. It's much less fun!

What to do, what to do?

It has been 6 months since I last had anything done with my hair. Even a trim! So, it is time. I made an appointment for this Saturday to get a cut and some color, but I am still trying to decide what to do. Do I want to do something short-ish? Leave it long? Go darker again? Just get highlights? Dark AND highlights? I just can't decide.

It is basically summer time, so shorter and lighter make sense. However, I have come to prefer the look of my hair darker. I hate the way my hair looks in a ponytail. I just can't seem to get the cute and sloppy look with my hair, so a more slicked back look is what I end up having to do, which I don't like. Unfortunately, for clinicals, I have to have my hair off my collar, which means either the nasty ponytail, or I cut it above my collar. :o So, I guess over the next couple of days I need to make some sort of decision!

Aw, man!

I love a good thunderstorm! I find it relaxing to listen to it rain as I fall asleep. I even enjoy a little thunder. However, this storm came a bit too early because I was just about to light up some candles and take me a bubble bath! :(

Stupid chili dog!

I have not really felt well all day today. I was up sick during the night last night and I think it was due to what I had for dinner (the afore mentioned chili dog). Right after I ate it, I started feeling bad. My stomach has been doing flip flops all day. I am starting to feel a bit better now, and hopefully by tomorrow I will be back to normal. However, I have pretty much decided that I'm going to call off of clinicals tomorrow. :o

I am on FIRE!

Ok, maybe not literally, but it feels like it. I am pretty sure it is hotter in this classroom right now than it is outside. Newsflash: it is not winter, therefore, this should not be the case.

Boo!

Went to see my oldest daughter in her choir concert this evening. She had a solo in the very last song of the concert, and wouldn't you know it, right before they began that song, the fire alarm went off and everyone had to leave the building. So, they didn't end up doing the song. She was very disappointed, as was I. She had practiced so much and I was really looking forward to hearing her! This was their last concert of the year, too. Bummer.

So, yeah...

I'm seriously considering some major facebook cutbacks. There are just some people whose updates I am not sure I can continue to endure. Not to mention, several people I just don't care about. :o

Retail Therapy

I got to get out today and do some shopping. I ended up getting some new sunglasses, a cute new purse and checkbook/wallet in fun colors for summer:



I freaking love getting new purses! I know, I'm such a girl.

I also picked up some yummy-smelling hair stuff from Vicky's. I already took a shower and tried it out. Not only does my hair smell delicious, it's really soft too! Now I just need to schedule an appointment for a cut and some color. :)

=/

I seriously just want to cry.

Yum!

I just made stuffed peppers for the first time ever. De-freakin-licious! (if I do say so myself!)

So much to do

I just finished pulling a crap load of huge weeds out from around my bushes, and now I should really be working on my paperwork for clinicals that I have to have done for Friday. However, I have a dishwasher that needs unloaded, vacuuming that needs done, and laundry that needs folded and put away. Not to mention, I really just want to go to bed and sleep for about a week straight. :o So, why am I sitting here blogging? Ok, back to work!

Pup pics

Nothing really new to blog about, so I'll just update a couple of recent puppy pictures. :)

Going for a ride:


Laying in bed with me this morning:

(She does still stay in her crate at night, because I don't trust her to not be destructive, but she always comes in to see me once my daughter let's her out in the mornings.)

Laying with me now, while I study:

Hmm...

I'm beginning to wonder if it really is allergies that I'm dealing with right now or a cold. Perhaps both. I am starting to feel achy all over. Blah!

On top of that, I don't know what my problem is, but I have been on the verge of tears constantly recently. I find myself holding back tears several times a day over silly things. Maybe it's just a combination of hormones, stress, and feeling sick. I don't know, but it's getting old!

ACHOO!

Dear allergies,

Die in a fire!

Thanks,

Lo

Really?

Can somebody please tell me why the girls in my class like to turn the thermostat up to 78-80 degrees in the classroom with the door shut? Oh. My. GAWD. It is so stuffy in there I can barely breathe and they are sitting there freezing. Are you kidding me?

Oh joy!

Well, my oldest daughter is having leaking issues with her monthly visitor and my son won't stop throwing up. Happy Mother's day to me!

So tired!

What a long day! Clinicals were quite tiring today. Now time to get some sleep and tomorrow start working on a paper that's due on Monday. :O Maybe I'll go try to get some work done at the library tomorrow.

Craziness!

I really feel for my son's kindergarten teacher. She has 19 students in her class this year...17 of which are boys. Dude! That is crazy! I didn't realize just how rough she has it until Sunday, when half of my son's class came to his birthday party. Fortunately, the party was at a bowling alley and not at my house. Phew!

Puppy update: I had her to the vet on Saturday for her last round of vaccinations (except for one booster in a few weeks). She is up to around 30 lbs, and still has a long way to go. She will likely end up between 60-70 lbs. She will be passing my son up in weight before long! :o

I also signed her up for obedience training. The first class is tonight. For whatever reason, we aren't supposed to take the dog with us for the first class. I will, however, be taking my daughters with me to the training sessions. I think it will be beneficial for them to see how they are supposed to be reinforcing and disciplining the puppy, and hopefully help her training go more smoothly.

Then, it is home to study some more. I had an A&P practical yesterday, which I did well on. Tomorrow is the second microbiology exam. EEK!

I feel bluuuue

Srsly, I need to shake this funk! I am feeling very overwhelmed, and stressed, and, well, blue. It doesn't help that school is kicking my butt right now, either. Sigh...

Forget

I came across this poem today. It made me sad. :(

Forget

By Anonymous


Forget his name, forget his face,
Forget his kiss and warm embrace.
Forget the time you spent together.
Forget it all he is gone forever.

Forget the fact that he once cared,
Forget the love that he once shared.
Forget his love that once was true,
Remember now there is someone new.

Forget you cried all night long,
Forget him when they play your song.
Forget how close you once were.
Remember how he chose her.

Forget you memorized the way he walked.
Forget the way that he talked.
Forget the times he made you mad.
Remember how he made you feel so sad.

Forget the thrills when he said, Hi!
Forget the times he made you cry.
Forget the way he said your name.
Remember now he is not the same.

Forget you saw him yesterday.
Forget his gentle and teasing way.
Forget the things you had planned to do.
Remember now he is not with you.

Forget the times that went so fast.
Forget it all it is in the past.
Forget he said, I'll leave you never.
Remember now he is gone forever.

Forget the past that I once knew.
Forget it all leave it too.
Cause he no longer loves me...
..He loves you...

Bummer!

I found out at clinicals today that we won't be allowed to rotate through the OR at the hospital I'm at this quarter. Apparently they can't accommodate any more students right now because they already have student nurses from another school in there as well as some student surgical techs. So, I am really bummed, that was what I was looking forward to the most this quarter! :( One of my classmates that is at the other hospital got to sit in on an open heart surgery yesterday. Blast!

Day off?

I have a day off of school tomorrow! However, I have to go to the dentist in the morning (for my cleaning and hopefully get my filling fixed). Then, I have told my grandma I would come out and help her do some more packing. She's been asking me when I will be able to come help her again. I was out there for a large chunk of last Saturday helping her. She has SO much stuff! Yesterday would have been her and my grandpa's 53rd anniversary, so they've had a lot of time to accumulate things. My SIL and I were throwing a lot of things away when she wasn't looking. :o But, there is still a ton of stuff to go through and pack or get rid of.

Next Thursday is her moving day, so apparently I won't have next Thursday off either. :/ Oh well, whatcha gonna do?

Btw, my phone just turned on...maybe there's hope for her!

Oh no. I. DI'INT!!!

Yeeah, soo...I dropped my iPhone in the toilet today at school. :( How? Well, I got up from the toilet and flushed and I had my phone in the waist pocket of my scrub top. My shirt was kind of flipped up as I was pulling up my pants and for whatever reason, I was standing kinda sideways in the stall. As I flip my shirt back down, the phone goes flying out of my pocket and right into the friggin' toilet! I immediately plunged my hand in there and got it out and at that point it was on. I dried it off as well as I could and it seemed still be working fine. However, after about 2 minutes, it just went dead. That's just faaaan-freakin'-tastic!

So, unless by some miracle, she dries out and starts working again, I am currently phoneless. I may or may not be able to transfer my sim chip into a crappy old phone, but I have gotten so used to having access to the internet at all times, (except during clinicals, of course) especially for getting directions! I am going to be so lost without it. Sigh!

GRRR

I have got a splitting @ss headache! I have *got* to study for my microbiology exam that is first thing in the morning. I feel like puking and I can't even concentrate, it hurts so bad! :( To top it off, the stupid dog across the street keeps barking incessantly and I seriously want to just go over there and punch it in its freaking throat!

I...

...am tired.

...am sick of sneezing and blowing my nose.

...could use a drink!

Ugh!

I do not feel well. Not sure if it's allergies or a cold but BLAH! Runny nose, constant sneezing, headache, watery eyes, fatigue. Hope I can get some good sleep tonight...long day tomorrow. :(

Today

Well, Bella was somewhere around 23 lbs this morning at the vet. It's difficult to get an accurate weight on her because she won't stay still on the scale. She absolutely *loves* people and other dogs, she gets really, super excited when anyone pets her. If I take her for a walk and someone stops to pet her she goes crazy; tail wagging, can't be still, starts peeing all over...it's comical. The peeing thing can be somewhat embarrassing, though. It happens every. time.

I also stopped at Starbucks before heading back home and got my free coffee today for taking in my own mug! Too bad it didn't taste that great to me. I didn't even finish it. Good thing it was free.

Eye doctors, and Dentists, and Vets...oh my!

I finally went to the eye doctor and got a new prescription. I'd had my previous glasses for about 3 years and my vision through them was getting pretty blurry. So, I got some new glasses and new contacts. I am not 100% sure how I feel about my new frames. I guess I'm just not used to them yet, but it is definitly nice not to have to squint to see things anymore.

Last week, I went to the dentist to get a filling that had fallen out replaced. However, right after she was done, I told her my bite didn't feel right and she checked it out and said that it appeared to her to be ok, and that perhaps after the numbness wore off it would feel better. Well, it's now been a week and it still feels off. Not only that, but it actually hurts to chew on that side of my mouth now. It's also extremely sensitive to temperature. Cold actually makes it hurt *really* badly. :( So, I go back next week for a regular cleaning, and hopefully I'll be able to get it fixed.

Tomorrow I'm taking Bella to the vet for another round of immunizations. She is getting SO big! In the 6 weeks I've had her, she's gone from 9 lbs to 19 lbs (as of her last visit). It will be interesting to see how much she weighs tomorrow.

Clinicals

It looks like my clinicals this quarter are going to be pretty interesting. At least I hope so. There are only 4 other people in my group this time, which is awesome. A smaller group means better odds of getting something interesting. We will also get to rotate to different areas. Each week one of us will get to go to the ER, one to the OR, and one to the cath lab, possibly another area too, that I don't recall, and then one or 2 will be left on the floor we're assigned to for one on one with the instructor. 12 hours will be a long day, but hopefully we will be able to get some really good experience!

I also found out on Friday, at clinical orientation, that my clinicals are going to be on Fridays instead of Saturdays! I am totally cool with that! Not only will I not have to feel like I have no weekend for the next couple of months, but there will likely be more interesting things going on at the hospital on a weekday as opposed to a weekend. Woot!

Longest. Day. Ever.

I thought my classes were never going to end today! Argh! Micro and A&P lectures are soooo boring! I have a rough time staying awake during them. Especially when the teacher dims the lights to make it easier to see the projector screen. :( The nursing class was the last one of the day, yet also the least boring. I felt the most awake during that one, oddly enough.

Looks like tomorrow might possibly be a little less busy than I had thought. My grandma has a doctor appointment in the afternoon, so it looks like I may not have to go out and help her tomorrow. Not that I don't want to help her, it's just a little bit of a drive, and it takes away from time I can actually be doing my own laundry or dishes or...nothing at all. :o

Is it the weekend yet?

It's only Tuesday night...this week is draaaaging! And tomorrow is going to be the longest day of the week. School 8:30am to 4:00pm, all lectures. :( Then a dentist appointment and possibly going to help my grandma with some packing on Thursday and clinical orientation for 4-5 hours on Friday! At least I don't have go to my 12 hour clinical this Saturday!

It's over.

My Spring break is over!! I didn't really get much time to relax over the past week, just as I had expected. Oh well. It's back to school tomorrow! :/

Done

Another quarter down! I ended up getting B's on both of my A&P finals. Phew! So, that gave me a B in that class and A's in English and Speech. Woohoo!

I have the rest of this week off and then starting next Monday, I'm back at it. Next quarter looks like it's going to keep me quite busy. Another A&P, Microbiology, and a nursing class. I'll be in classes Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays, and then clinicals all day on Saturdays. Kinda makes me tired just thinking about it.

Just 5 more quarters to go!

I could use a nap!

I have been quite busy lately. On Tuesday night around 9pm, my grandma called to let me know that my grandpa was doing worse and she was not sure if he would make it through the night. I was still studying for my 2 finals on Wednesday but, my family comes first, so I decided I needed to drive out there to be with them. Fortunately, he did make it through that night and after a few hours of sleep, I got up and went to take my first final Wednesday morning.

I left that not feeling extremely confident since I did not get to finish studying all of the material. I came home, took the pup for a walk and chilled for a few before heading back to school for my last final.

After that was out of the way, around 3:00 that afternoon, I headed back to my grandparents' house. The pauses in my grandfather's breathing were getting longer and the effort it took him to breathe seemed to be getting greater as well.

My dad, his mom, and one of her friends stopped by to visit and see how he was doing that evening. They all went in to see him (he was set up in a hospital bed in the spare bedroom). Then as we were sitting in the living room talking, my grandma had an urge to go check in on him. Less than a minute after she went in, she came back out and asked me to come back with her. I did, of course, and as I walked in the room, I noticed that he was not breathing and his face was very pale. I checked for a pulse on his neck and felt his last few heartbeats before they just stopped.

I stayed with my grandma again that night as I had planned. Thursday morning, she and my brother and I went to the funeral home to make all the arrangements. I brought my grandma back home with me last night. I didn't want her to have to be alone but, I didn't want to sleep on the love seat or recliner at her house another night. :o

This evening are the calling hours at the funeral home. We have to be there at 5:00 and that lasts until 8:00. My grandma is going to spend the night here again tonight and the funeral is in the morning.

So...I've been doing a lot of running around with my grandma...taking her to get her hair did and look at apartments and generally just trying to keep her occupied. I am hoping that I'll be able to just relax some tomorrow night, or at least Sunday, but who knows.

Just a lil stressed

Must. Study. Don't. Want. To....I have two finals on Wednesday. Both for A&P. One in lecture, one in lab. I really need to finish studying for them! After those are done, I will be off for a week and a half. However, it looks like my time off will not be as relaxing as I was hoping for. My grandfather is not doing very well and is likely not going to make it very much longer. :(

I have been spending a lot of time at my grandparents' house, trying to help my grandma out however I can. I've been doing dishes, folding laundry, getting up in every few hours during the night to give granddad his morphine and syringes of water so that my grandma can get some much needed rest.

So, I did not get much study time in over the weekend since I spent a good portion of my weekend there. I did make it to open lab today, though, and that was really helpful. He is holding another open lab in the morning, and I will be going to that too. I need as much hands-on studying as I can get!

I am just feeling really down, and really tired today. It didn't help that it was all rainy and gloomy out today or knowing that today would have been my mom's 52nd birthday...

Seriously...

I give up.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

I really just want to scream right now!!

60's = awesome weather!

I am loving the weather the past few days. Minus the rain, of course. But, I'll take some sprinkles over a foot of snow anyday! I would be completely cool with one week of snow, one month of summer, and the rest of the year being in the 60's!

I have been going for walks just about every day lately. I still need to fit in a walk today. This morning I had A&P class and then lab. (The poor puppy had to be in her crate all morning.) Now I need to run to Meijer to grab the rest of the groceries that I didn't get when I went shopping a few nights ago. Sigh. At least this time I am not taking any kids with me AND...I can wear flip flops! :)

School

This quarter is coming close to an end. Next week, I have to give my final speech in speech class and then I will be done with that one. Sunday, my final paper for English is due. Then the week after next, I'll have my last practical in A&P lab, and the final exam in my A&P class. Then Spring break. I think that is only one week, but better than nothing. After that I get to look forward to 12 hour Saturday clinicals for the next three months. But... I'll be one quarter down, and 5 more to go!

Aww!

My son is laying against me watching tv. Then out of nowhere, he turned and gave me a kiss and said "you're pretty, mommy". Awww! It's nice to hear that now and then. I love this little man SO much!!!

Puppy Love!

I got the kids a boxer puppy over the weekend. She is so cute and such a sweet girl! Housebreaking is definitely not a fun job. But, the kids have been very good about cleaning up after her. If she has an accident inside, they clean it up if they are home, they take her out for potty time and walks around the block. So far they have been asking me if they can do these things. I really hope they keep this up!!!

Here are some pictures of my new little girly, Bella:



Can't. Stay. Awake. Much...

zzzzzzzzzzz