A Tired Nurse's Daybook

outside my window. . .
it's nearly pitch black and rainy. Every now and then I can see a flash of lightning.

I am listening to. . .
the sound of the TV in the background. Tuned in to FOX, of course. For the So You Think You Can Dance results show. Duh...

I am thinking. . .
that I want some more edamame hummus and crackers. So yummy!

I am thankful. . .
to have an amazing job that I love, especially in the midst of a tough economy. Today I came home with a beautiful piece of art created just for me by one of my favorite 7-year-olds at the hospital. Who can beat that?!?

from the kitchen. . .
it's hard to have any kitchen creations when you haven't been to the grocery store in... let's just say it's been a little while. But, you can bet that when I go there will be some fish tacos on the menu like the ones that Erin and I made at her house the other day! Grilled mahi, cabbage shreds, avocado, tomato, and a "special sauce" - so YUMMY!

I am wearing. . .
my scrubs that I wore to work today. Yeah, I should go change clothes...

I am hoping. . .
that my computer battery lasts through the end of this post. (It's not looking good.)

I am creating. . .
umm - still need to work on this one. But, I would love to create some cute homemade cards to send to some fun friends.

I am praying. . .
that the Lord sends complete healing for my sweet friend, Sarah.

around the house. . .
It's pretty darn clean! I went on a quick little rampage before I left town last weekend, and I haven't been back long enough to mess it up!

I am reading. . .
Simple Spirituality (still). I also came back from FL with a new novel to read. Don't remember what it's called, though...

one of my favorite things. . .
this week is edamame hummus. I may have mentioned that one already... And dark chocolate covered espresso beans. Can you tell that I really like to eat??

a few plans for the rest of the week. . .
work day shift tomorrow and then a 16-hour night shift on Saturday night. I was feeling ambitious (or something like that...) when I signed up for that one... Hopefully I will get to hang out with Lacey on Saturday morning before work.

a picture thought I am sharing...

Meet my kitty, Bella. He doesn't live with me anymore. He happily rules my parents' house in FL, and I saw him this week while I was there. He loves people and loves to be right in the middle of whatever you are doing. He also likes to shed his hair all over the place, and lay on the floor like a frog (above.) He is quite the smarty-pants and knows how to open all of the doors in my parents house. He has been known to open the door to outside and let the other animals out while staying inside to have the whole house to himself.

Eww.

Thoughts as I clean out the shower drain (while I am waiting for the Tilex to work...clearly, I have not left for FL yet)

Thought #1: EWW.

Thought #2: No wonder water couldn't pass through here...

Thought #3: I think I am going to throw up (as I gag)...

Thought #4: How do I possibly have any hair left on my head?? (especially since I cleaned out my brush today, too)

Thought #5: EWWW.

While I thought for a second about taking a picture of the mass quantity of grossness that came out of the drain, I decided to spare you. It would not have quite the effect without the accompanying odor anyways.

EWWWW.

Florida-bound

Headed to FL to spend a couple of days with the fam and hopefully see a couple of friends! Maybe I will even get to check number 9 off of my list of things to do this summer! Now I just need to pick up my house and pack a bag so I can get on the road...

This is my life...

So, I am on a roll today as far as posting gut-wrenching videos (sorry!), but here's another one... CURE is an organization that does amazing things for the kids and families that I help to take care of. They help fund tons of vital research. They also feed us dinner on Thursday nights :-) This video shows a couple of kiddos that I know and a couple of the doctors that I work with. So, check it out...

I Am...

This morning, I am...

a coffee drinking,

bill paying,

pajama (still) wearing,

barefoot,

curly-haired,

apple sauce eating,

email sending,

blog updating,

To-Do list crossing,

lover of all things mint.
(like the mint truffle Hershey kiss I am about to eat...
...because some things never change.)

Who are you today?

procrastination

procrastinate -

–verb (used without object)

1.	to defer action; delay: to procrastinate until an opportunity is lost.

–verb (used with object)

2.	to put off till another day or time; defer; delay.

Of course, they could've just put a picture of me next to the word. It seems I am quite the expert (as evidenced by this post).

(definition courtesy of www.dictionary.com)

Sarah

Today I am praying for my sweet friend, Sarah. She lives in Lima and serves the youth on the street there with the Word Made Flesh community. She hasn't been feeling well for some time now, and this week had to have emergency surgery. Would you please join me in praying for her recovery? Pray that she might be completed healed and that the Lord would bring abundant peace and rest for her during this time of recovery. Pray for my other friends on staff in Lima that Jesus would strengthen and encourage them as they serve Sarah during this time. Pray also for Sarah's family - I am sure that it is difficult for them to be so far away during this time. Thanks, friends! I love that we can join together and intercede for brothers and sisters in Christ all over the world! Thanks for praying for this dear friend.

A Nurse's Daybook

I was reading my friend Monica's blog a while back, and I loved this idea of sharing life through a "daybook." She had actually stolen the idea from a friend of hers, so I am only perpetuating the borrowing of great ideas. That's OK, right?? Here goes:

outside my window. . .
I can't see anything. That's because I just got home from work and I haven't opened the blinds yet. But, now that I've fixed that problem, I can enjoy the beautiful blue sky and big puffy clouds with a hint of gray that are reigning over an unseasonably cooler-than-normal day. Not exactly cool, mind you, but I will take 82 degrees over 95 whenever I can get it.

I am listening to. . .
The hum of my refrigerator. That's all I can hear in my quiet house right now.

I am thinking. . .
about my sweet friend Sarah who has been sick down in Lima for a while now. I am praying that the Lord would allow the doctors to know exactly what is wrong so that they can treat it and she can get feeling better soon!

I am thankful. . .
that I only had to work 8 hours today. Short days are such a nice change of pace!

from the kitchen. . .
I am still working on finishing the Peruvian-style lentils that I made last week. That's the bad thing about cooking for one - I hate to waste things so I will just keep eating the same thing over and over until it's gone. That doesn't bother me too much, though...especially when there are yummy lentils involved. I also made some banana bread this week from some bananas that were a bit overripe. So yummy!

I am wearing. . .
My scrubs that I wore to work today, which are black pants and a white scrub top that has brightly colored flowers all over it. Thinking that I should probably get up and change clothes soon.

I am hoping. . .
that my sweet sister and brother-in-law find great jobs soon!

I am creating. . .
a list of ideas of things that I would love to create! But, not doing very much actual creating. I do have an entire bag of yarn in my garage that is just begging to be turned into something creative...

I am praying. . .
that the Lord would be very present in the midst of my small group tonight, that He would speak and that we would be an encouragement to one another in that time. I am also praying for my friend Lacey and the team that she is with in Jordan - that the Lord is ordaining many moments for them to share Truth with the people that they come in contact with, and that lives might be changed because they were faithful to be obedient to God's call on their lives. And that He would bring them home safely - I miss that girl!

around the house. . .
There are odds and ends of things that I need to get done - clean out my shower drain (ew), clean out the garage, clean out the refrigerator before the trash comes tomorrow... yeah, mostly a lot of cleaning.

I am reading. . .
Simple Spirituality by Chris Heuertz, the director of Word Made Flesh. I am also reading the newest issue of The Cry that showed up in my mailbox today. Yay :-)

one of my favorite things. . .
Seeing smiles and hearing laughter from the faces of the little ones that I take care of at work. They go through so much, and I love it when the regular kid comes out in a giggle during a game of peek-a-boo like it did today.

a few plans for the rest of the week. . .
Knock out the rest of my To-Do list, enjoy some breakfast for dinner tonight at the Boden house (LOVE it!), enjoy some good time with my friend Aimee who is coming over to spend a few nights and keep me company for a little while, maybe take a quick trip down to FL (no promises, family - just a thought)

a picture thought I am sharing...

Lord, thanks for giving us the sunrise as an example of Your great faithfulness.

Top Five

Today, I decided to check out where you people that have been reading my blog are from. And here is what I was surprised to find as the top 5 cities:

1. Phoenix, AR

2. Norcross, GA

3. Jacksonville, FL

4. Decatur, GA

5. Fargo, ND

Now, I have a pretty good idea of who is reading in Norcross, Jacksonville, and Fargo. I could probably come up with a few good guesses in Decatur. But the #1?? Who would have thought that the person/people that pull up my little blog the most are ones that I don't even know?!?

So, leave me a message sometime, my blog friends. I would love to get to know who you are!

Happy Birthday, Aunt Annie!

Happy Birthday, Aunt Annie!!

You're the best! Hope that you are having a fabulously relaxing day! Here are some of my Aunt Annie memories:

**Going shopping with you and Christy. You bought me a shirt, and I loved it! I am pretty sure I wore that thing until it literally had holes in it...

**Singing in your wedding. I don't remember the actual singing part. I do remember that the song was a bit of a last minute choice. I also remember (and try to forget) my lovely lacy attire for the occasion. And the hair. That was a very unfortunate look, indeed.

**Watching you get ready for a date before you were married. I do believe there were some very tight jeans involved. I think you said that he liked them that way :-)

**Spending time with you the week that Grandma died. Even in that difficult time, I have sweet memories of getting to spend time with you - working on the quilt and the going through old pictures. You guys certainly made that time easier to walk through.

Thanks for being one of the coolest aunts ever!! I love you!

Change

Change is a funny thing. At least that's what people say. Some people love change, and others hate it. I think that I consider myself somewhere in the middle on this continuum. I try to be flexible and adaptable when changes come, but I also find comfort in my familiar little routines.

I made a small change in my life this weekend. You will probably laugh that I just called it a change in my life at all. What did I do, you ask? Well, while I was cleaning my kitchen in this fit of productivity, I decided to move the trashcan from its old home under the sink to a new home in the bottom of the pantry. I bought a new trashcan in the process (which was easier said than done, but that's another story...) Insignificant, right? I mean, who cares where the trashcan is, as long as it's there somewhere?? Well, apparently I care. Since I moved it on Friday, I have opened the cabinet under the sink to throw something away no less than 50 times. Seriously. It's getting ridiculous. I guess that says something about how patterns get ingrained in my head. I probably should have taken a hint from the fact that I still look for the silverware in the drawer where it used to be, even though I moved it months ago. Hopefully it doesn't take me that long to figure out where the trashcan is! If it does, the trash may just end up back where it started...

Seriously, though, it is funny how even little changes affect our lives and our routine. I am in the process of taking some steps forward with plans for big changes in my life. While I am not ready to divulge those plans to the world quite yet, I am wondering how I am going to handle such big changes in my life if it all works out. Let's just hope that it goes better than my ability to find the trashcan!

So Productive...

Don't you think??

When the Saints

My sister and brother-in-law introduced me to this song, and I really love it, so I thought I would share it with you. I don't necessarily love the video that goes along with it here, but I don't know how to upload just music, so the video was the only option. Here you go:

Seriously??

I love my job.

I really do.

I love getting to walk with families through this difficult cancer journey and help support them along the way. I love joking around with teenagers and helping them cope with this new battle that they are facing. I love holding sweet babies in my arms and praying over them that God would intervene and kill the nasty disease that is raging within them. I love watching little bald kids ride around on tricycles and laugh and just be kids. But, unfortunately, sometimes the treatments that we have are just not strong enough to beat the diseases.

Sometimes kids die.

That's a part of my job, too. I hate that part. But, sometimes, there are circumstances even in the process of dealing with a death that help to lighten the moment a bit.

Recently, one of our end-stage patients died on a night shift. For some reason, kids often die at night. I don't know why. Because I work at a teaching hospital, night shifts are staffed by interns and residents. So, when this child died, the nurse called the on-call doctor to let him know. The conversation went something like this:

Nurse: Dr. Second-Year Resident (note that he was not even a first year), I am calling to let you know that our sweet little friend in room 123 is no longer breathing.

Dr Second-Year: Well, how does he look?

SERIOUSLY??

Nurse: (not sure how to respond) Ummm...he looks dead.

Again I say...SERIOUSLY??

What do you think he looks like?? I mean...I guess he's nonresponsive, cool, vital signs are not-so-stellar, cap refill not-so-great...

You may think the whole conversation a bit disturbing, but we laughed and laughed about it. Sometimes you just have to. It's a little scary to think that Dr Second-Year is responsible for the lives of children. But don't worry...that's what the great nurses on my floor are for :-)

Top Ten Tuesday - an update

I know, I know...

I haven't been very good at keeping up with the Top Ten Tuesday posts. But, in my defense, I told you that I wouldn't be. Remember??

Speaking of remembering...do you remember this list from about a month ago? Well, I thought that I'd give you an update on how my list of things to accomplish this summer is going. And, I'm a little sad to report that it's not going so well...

But, let's start on a positive note, shall we??

So far this summer, I have managed successfully fulfill #4, #6, and am well on my way to #8! That is, my flowers are still living (well, most of them and the majority rules, right?), I visited Pam and Jeremy in North Dakota (SO fun), and have consumed a very large quantity of watermelon. I won't say that I've eaten my weight exactly, but we'll say that I have successfully enjoyed the watermelon-eating season. In fact, I have some in the fridge right now! And yesterday, I made watermelon lemonade with a hint of mint, and it was quite yummy!




So, I guess that leaves seven things on the list that are not going so well...

We'll start with #3, since there is no hope for that one. I killed my tomato plant. Sad day. There will be no home-grown tomatoes to enjoy. But, that is not all that tragic since I don't actually really like tomatoes anyway :-)

Pathetic, I know.

I am still holding out hope for the other six! I have a couple of book options in mind (#1 on the list), though I haven't started anything yet. I was thinking of busting out a classic. Maybe even something that I was forced to read in high school and for such reasons automatically hated. Who knows? I might actually like them. I am definitely still in the mood for a little hiking escapade (#2) and a Braves game (#5). Anybody want to join me?? I need a little motivation to get moving in order to fulfill #10! It's so hot outside! That fact alone often stomps on my motivation to go outside and exercise. I am working on some plans for a visit to Florida to fulfill #9 - maybe in August? I am anxious to meet sweet baby Anna! As for #7, I'm just waiting for the Lord to send someone my way who will fall in love with my house and want to buy it! Feel free to pray along with me for that one!

And Monica - as for your addition to the list, I would definitely love to make a Lima visit soon! I miss you friends! I looked at plane ticket prices today, and they were not so pretty. So, we'll have to see. But, I am working on a certain little something due at the end of July :-)

What about you, friends? Have any summer To-Dos that you are working on? How's it going? And if you have any requests for Top Ten Tuesday topics, send them my way. Maybe I'll just have to oblige.

Home from Fargo

And here's how we feel about it:

(Please ignore the hair)