Oh hey...

...long time no blog. Shows how exciting I am, huh? Ready for the randomness?

Happy New Year! 2013 should be an exciting year. :)

My New Year's resolution this year is to buy a house. And I think I'm ready for it.

My other New Year's resolution is to not die during the Zombie 5K this September. We'll see about that one.

I started watching Friday Night Lights. Which is AMAZING. I love, love, love it. It's so much more than just a show about high school football. And the theme song pumps me up. (Weird? Maybe. Oh well.) Oh, and Zach Gilford is my new favorite.

And If you haven't seen it, the show Nashville is really good. And I don't even like country music. And Hayden Panettiere only slightly bothers me. But really, the music from the show is awesome.

I'm kinda stressed out. About numerous things. And stress makes me angry. And I hate it when I'm angry. And I hate complaining about it. Sigh. #strugs

Work has been work. Lots of flu. And not just stomach flu, like legit influenza. (Ick.) All I can say is I'm glad I got my flu shot.


And...that's all I've got.  Told you I was exciting!

Break!

I wanted to take some time off for Easter, and I had some PTO to burn, so I took 3 nights off of work. And in doing so, I ended up with eight nights in a row off. (I know! The perks of working 3 days a week.)  So during my personal Spring Break of sorts, I made a list of things I wanted to get accomplished.  And I think I did a pretty good job!

- I got through Season 2 of The Walking Dead.  It was great...but I also had zombie apocalypse dreams for like 3 nights afterward.

- I got my hair cut and re-highlighted (and I think it looks super cute!)

- I got my nails done with Melli (in anticipation of her engagement :) )

- I bought new capris and new scrubs

- I got my car washed and vacuumed out (and then it rained 30 minutes later...classic Liz)

- I bought tickets to see Jason Mraz TWICE in September! (And got legit seats! I'm sooo excited!!)

- I made these peanut butter bars (which taste EXACTLY like Reeses...aka deliciousness)

-  I love Holy Week.  And since I was off I was able to go to mass on Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil, and Easter Sunday.  They're my favorite masses of the year and I'm glad I was able to go!

- I got to see some of my favorite people that I haven't seen in forever!

 - I was able to celebrate Easter Sunday with my family.  We dyed 18x3 eggs and had a lot of fun!

Overall, I think it was a very relaxing, much needed vacation.  I think I'm ready to go back to work though...maybe. :)

Favorites

I'm currently in the middle of two TV shows, both of which are completely different yet still totally awesome.  First: The Walking Dead. I've had it in my Netflix queue for a while, and then almost all of the 2nd season has been sitting in my DVR since New Year's.  And being that space getting a little limited on the DVR (how sad is that), I decided I should get started on it.  Basic summary: it's a zombie show.  And that is normally NOT my type of thing at all.  But it's sooo good.  I've decided that AMC has the best shows ever (see: Mad Men, The Killing (eh, kinda)), and after I'm done with this I'll probably start on Breaking Bad (because I've heard nothing but good things about that show too).  So anyway - Walking Dead = awesome. (And did I mention that Andrew Lincoln is a studmuffin? Yes, I just said studmuffin.)

TV show #2 I've been working on is Downton Abbey.  I really didn't think I'd be a fan, but I was hooked after the first episode.  I just started the second season and it keeps getting better.  It's basically about an aristocratic family and their servants set in early 1900s Britain.  I just love all of the characters.  I want Matthew and Mary to be together even though she's kind of a jerk sometimes.  And I love Anna and Bates. And Sybil is just awesome. And I want OBrien to die. And the Dowager Countess (aka Professor McGonagall) is hilarious.  It's just legit.

I've kind of fallen in love with this song. What can I say, I love me a good boy band.

Oh, and this comes out on Wednesday.  So I'll just leave this here...

Oh Pinterest...

Who doesn't love Pinterest, right? On my days off (if I'm feeling motivated) I'll try to actually make something from one of my boards.  It makes me feel rather accomplished.  Today I made 3 things! And they were rather tasty. Success!

First, I made French Dip Croissants.  Except I didn't make the dip part so it was kinda just roast beef croissants. They're just crescent rolls, horseradish, provolone cheese, and roast beef.  So easy! And they were delish.

Then I made kale chips.  Every time I read about them online, I saw two things: 1) People think they're delicious 2) Kids LOVE them.  Like seriously, every time I see something about kale chips online someone is raving about how their kids will beg for more.  Weird, I know. But anyway, even though I have no children, I made them.  When I was at Meijer staring at the kale because I had no idea what I was looking for, another woman came up and started looking at it too.  Seeing me awkwardly staring at it, she asked if it was bad.  I told her no, I just had no idea what I was looking for.  She helped me out and told me it would be really good if I baked it.  I told her that's what I was planning on doing and she told me it was kind of an acquired taste and to add lots of salt.  Oh, and she usually has to buy two bunches because her kids love eating them so much. (No joke. I told you!) So anyway, I added lots of salt.  Too much, actually.  But they were still good, and I would definitely make them again (with less seasoning).

And then I made Nutella cookies.  These had four ingredients: Nutella, flour, sugar, and an egg.  Super easy.  My mom made different Nutella cookies last week and I think I liked those better.  These are good, but these are pretty much all Nutella, whereas the ones my mom made were less so.

So there we go.  Three recipes completed in an hour and a half. Woo!

I Love My Job.

I always hesitate to say things like that because I feel like every time I do the next time I work is horrible.  So we’ll see how tonight goes. :)

It’s kind of hard to believe I’ve worked at Eureka for almost 8 months now.  It’s even harder to believe that I’ve been a nurse for almost a YEAR. (What?!?)  Looking back I can see how far I’ve come, but at the same time I feel like I still have so. much. to learn. (But that’s for another time.)

A year ago today I started applying for jobs and interviewing.  I had everything all planned out.  I received a scholarship my senior year, where Advocate paid for my last year of classes and I signed a two year work agreement at Advocate (so I was required to work somewhere in the Advocate system). So, I was going to get a job at BroMenn, in either in the CVCU or the ER. I would NOT work on IMCU (I hate IMCU).  Or Rehab.  I would consider the Surgical floor.  If all went well, I’d get some med-surg experience then work in the ER (which is what I really wanted to do). I interviewed in both the CVCU and the ER.  They decided to hire more experienced nurses for both positions.  I won’t lie, I was a little crushed when I didn’t get either position.  It turns out, at the time, there were only 4 positions open for new grad nurses: 1) In the OR 2) Mental Health 3) Mother Baby Unit 4) On the Inpatient Unit at Eureka.  The problem with the first three (at least that I have) is that these areas are so specialized that once you get into them you start to forget everything else.  And it’s fine if those are the areas you want to work in, but I wasn’t necessarily passionate about any of them.  Oh, and the problem with #4 is that it’s in Eureka.  And the entire hospital is like, 20 beds (for comparison, BroMenn has like 200).  And there’s no way I could get any experience at a hospital that small. There’s no way I was going to work there. NO WAY.  I started to change my mind. I would work on the Surgical floor. Or Rehab. Or even IMCU (that's how you know I was desperate).

So, under much protest, I interviewed at Eureka.  It went well (despite the fact that I’m pretty sure I still reeked of cigars and scotch from the night before, but I digress).  But I wasn’t going to work there.  They were going to find a position for me at BroMenn.  I was not. Working. At. Eureka.  (You can see where this is going.) So, about 2 weeks later, they told me I would be working in Eureka.  And I cried (and these were not tears of joy, mind you).  It was official. I would be working in the 20 bed hospital. I would get no experience.  I decided I’d be transferring to BroMenn the first chance I got.

You know that saying “Men plan, God laughs?” Yeah, this would be my life.  I was so dead set on working at BroMenn and having my entire career planned out the way I wanted it to that I refused to look at any other options.  In my stubbornness I didn’t see the fact that there could be better opportunities out there.  And let me tell you, a bigger plan was definitely at work here.

  

Fast forward to now, and I’ve realized just how blessed I’ve been.  I just have to say: I have AMAZING coworkers.  Like seriously, they’re awesome.  And they’re definitely a major part of the reason why I love my job.  When I started I don’t think they’d had a new grad at Eureka in a while, but everyone – the nurses, techs, lab, registration, just everyone - was so, so helpful and nice and just awesome.  There have been a couple of people in particular that have really helped me out and I suppose you could say have become mentors of sorts.  They’re amazing nurses and I really look up to them, and I really appreciate how much they’ve helped me get to the point I’m at.  They help when I need it, answer my questions, give me words of encouragement, and are wonderful to talk to.

Also, when I was on orientation I expressed my interest in wanting to work in the ER someday.  My preceptor at the time let me go down to the ER for the last few weeks of my orientation, and now I get to pick up shifts in the ER when I can.  I think being able to do this has really helped to increase my skill set.  I’ve seen two patients intubated.  I’ve had a ton of practice starting IVs.  I got to freaking cardiovert someone. I would have never had this opportunity had I worked at BroMenn.  I think it’s helped to solidify that I really like working in the ER and is what I would definitely like to work toward in the future.

So, moral of the story?  I love being a nurse.  I love taking care of people and knowing that I’m helping them in some way.  And even though it feels like sometimes I’m working in a glorified nursing home, I do love the patients.  And honestly? I’m happy at Eureka.  I’ve had experiences here that I wouldn’t have had other places. I think it’s become pretty obvious that I was put here for a reason, and I see those reasons every time I work (well…pretty much).

Besides, how else would I see crazy clouds like this on my ride home?

 

Or where else could we waste time by filling a sink with hand sanitizer?

 Yep...I love my job. :)

Toes!

Me: Being Crafty

So, when I moved back home and unpacked my very small amount of clothes, I realized how many t-shirts I had from over the years. And then I realized that I never even wore 3/4 of them anymore.  Making a t-shirt quilt is something I've always wanted to do, so I decided to go for it. This was back in September, when I was still working days and had absolutely nothing to do with my free time.  And it did keep me occupied! But then I started working nights in October, and the free time I once had turned into sleeping. 

It also turned out being a lot more work than I thought it was going to be.  Thankfully, being the crafty, crafty person she is, my mom has helped me out A TON.  One thing that I've come to learn about myself is that I. Hate. Sewing.  Or at least sewing the material for this quilt.  I can be perfectionist when it comes to projects like this and it's incredibly frustrating when it doesn't work the way you want it to.  And I won't lie, the frustration may have also caused the nearly 3 month break.

But anyway, the project has resumed (once I realized that a quilt is probably best for the winter time) and the 4 rows below (that are separate in the picture) are now completely sewn together.  And I only slightly injured myself once. (Success!) I also realized that this thing is going to be HUGE when it's done (it still has 4 more rows to be added).  I'm really excited to finish it!