Coming soon.....an Ode to my Mom's Retirement!

XALTGOD!

THIS WAS A LICENSE I NOTICED TODAY!



I THOUGHT IT PARTICULARLY APPROPRIATE SINCE THANKSGIVING IS TOMORROW.



I WOULDN'T HAVE ANYTHING TO BE THANKFUL FOR IF IT WASN'T FOR GOD, SO I'M GOING TO GIVE HIM A PRAISE AND THANKS!!!!!!!

WITHOUT HIM, I WOULDN'T BE BLESSED AND GRATEFUL FOR

• My wonderful husband whom I'm very proud of because he just got a promotion and will be supervisor on ICU! Who doesn't complain while doing the dishes and a load of laundry. Who is my best friend, listens with intent, and loves me for who I am.
• My beautiful children; who both have a budding personality of their own. Who keeps me on my toes and lets me know the real important things in life are not material but simple cuddles, "love you's", smiles and belly laughs.
• Of course my parents; for without them I wouldn't be who I am today. Who support and guide me and love me unconditionally.
• My brothers and sisters; for without them I wouldn't be who I am today. Who are great friends now as adults and even with distance it does not pull us apart.....we can start up where we left off......whom I know will always love me, tease me, and support me.
• My family.period. Extended as well as the family I married into and have grown very attached to these past five years! I come from a large family and I say the more the merrier and that's what it has been. Thanks to my "in-laws" whom without them Paul wouldn't be who he is today. Thanks to their support and their unconditional love.
• Great friends that are close in proximity and in distance. With listening ears, wet shoulders from me crying on them and bonds that have formed strong.
• Our house that provides shelter.
• Our jobs that provide us security.
• The food that nurtures our bodies.....(it would be okay for food not to nurture mine soooo much!)
• Our health; extra shout out for the NP that gave me some antibiotics for this sinus infection yesterday and now has given me a little extra energy that I've been missing for the last two weeks! another shout out for the RN who is calling in O's eye ointment for conjunctivitis! (pink eye to the lay-people)

So there's my list....we all have a list in our heads and in our hearts and I know it's so cliche' to talk about what you're thankful for; but tis' the season!

From C-man's point of view he is thankful for family, friends and God! Gotta love my little man!

So with that, Happy Thanksgiving to all! May God bless you on this Holiday! May you be surrounded by family and friends that you love.

Confession!

I have to confess....I went shopping today, but not Christmas shopping......(gasp here)

I've been watching the news about gift cards and how like only 20 or 30% of the gift cards are used and I thought....I've got some birthday gift cards I've been stashing and I better take care of them......and so I did!

I went to my favorite store ever; New York & Company!

I bought 11 articles of clothing and only paid $100! that is less than $10 for each article of clothing and they were all priced higher than that....woo-hoo!

BUNCH O' BIRTHDAYS!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BURDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BURDAY DEAR PAPA, AUSTIN, GRAMA MEHMEN, ALEXANDRA, AUNT TERRI, & MRS. DAHL..........HAPPY BURDAY TO YOU!!!!!

PAPA N' THE KIDDO'S
MISS-O HELPING PAPA OPEN THE CARDS!

MARIN TOOK A GIFT HOSTAGE FOR AWHILE BUT IS WILLING TO GIVE IT BACK TO PAPA!

PAPA GETTING ALL KINDS OF HELP OPENING HIS GIFTS.

I LIKE YOU AND I LOVE YOU AUSTIN! LOVE, AUNT JANA-BANANA!

THIS BOY GETS EXCITED ABOUT AN EMPTY ROLL OF TOILET PAPER! AUNT PAULA HAD WRAPPED BATTERIES IN IT! hEE-hEE!

SINGING HAPPY BIRTHDAY WHILE AUSTIN DOES A LITTLE HAPPY DANCE! REMINDS ME A BIT OF HIS FATHER!

OPENING GIFTS ALWAYS ATTRACTS THE KIDS; HERE'S COUSINS; JACOB, EMMA, AND O WATCHING ON WITH SUSPENSE!

COOL COUSINS!

Burnt Out!

I think I hit the teacher low!

Ugh! I need a break!

I can not look at another single medication. I can not quiz about another single medication. I can not wait for another student scrambling through their papers to tell me about the medications. (especially when in my head I'm thinking; IT"S A BETA-BLOCKER! COME ON! but smiling politely and patiently as they tell me.)

Correcting careplans after careplans and evaluations after evaluations on my own time, not on the clock......working more time than I need to and spending valuable family time on work that I have to take home........now I'm on the other side of the fence.....maybe I'll be just fine as a cardiac nurse.

Maybe I'm just burnt out or maybe I'm finally coming off of my teacher high.......but my patience is running thin, thin, thin....

I wonder if there is a Nursing Diagnosis for that? Ineffective Instructor Coping related to reduction of patience as evidenced by; headaches after every clinical, rise of blood pressure when there is a list of medications and a student in sight, and complaining about it on the blog! I better get a hold of the NANDA corporation to give them my new NANDA......yes, this may be over your head; it's nurse language...but I feel much better!

Little Gobblers

Saturday was make and take a craft at the library. The whole fam went and C-man and Miss-O made turkey crafts, we also like to read books and play with their cool toys there.

Gobble, Gobble!
Miss-O's turkey.....she first said that a turkey says cockadoodle-doo, but we've got her saying gobble now!

Cut, Paste, and Color!

Doing the finishing touches!

We had to take a picture of Miss-O in her cousin Jaydin's outfit......I remember when Jady was this small and wearing this outfit and now she's all grown up.....

Moments like these.......

It's moments like the one that I had tonight that is rewarding as a nurse. This moment that I had tonight takes away all the stressors that nursing may bring, or all the ungrateful patients that I care for....it just swipes everything away and makes it the reason why nursing is the career I choose.

A sweet lady patient of mine, tonight was surrounded with family. They took a little break and her sweet husband (of probably 50+ years) said that he was heading home and he felt like she was in good hands.....aaahh, that was sweet of him to say.

I went into check on her during my hourly rounds to see if she was having any pain....so far nothing.....but she was restless.......I did my IV clearing and then situated her nasal cannula back on her nose and then held her hand.......I told her that she seemed restless........she nodded.....I asked if I could do anything for her and she answered in her post-status stroke, garbled speech, "pray for me." I asked her if I could do the universal "Our Father" and she nodded.....through it all she nodded and embraced every word that came out of my mouth and then I added that may the Lord embrace her in his arms and provide her peace and comfort.

She nodded. It's not very frequent that I get this intimate spiritual help for my patients....a simple prayer is all she needed and I was ready to give her anything she needed.......you know we take care of body and mind quite a bit and in that order....only rarely do we care for spirit and I was so honored to help my sweet patient.

Oh, how I do pray that the Lord will be with her all the way during her journey. And oh, how I'm so grateful that the Lord pointed me towards the career of Nursing. I've always had a big heart and now I can practice my compassion as much as I want.......

Excitement in the Air!

There is some excitement in the air....it all started yesterday when we found out that something is on the loose. C-man has identified it as a small, white, hard thing. It wiggles and jiggles and feels funny when he touches it. Now this small, white thing has been around for 5 years but only yesterday C-man noticed it is on the loose.......have you guessed what it is?????????

His tooth!

He is so ecstatic about this, he even talked to the cross-guard yesterday about it! He has called up people on the phone and is excited to tell his gym and music teachers today.....Mrs. Dahl already knows about it. (It happened in math yesterday!)

He can't stop wiggling it with his finger or his tongue or even his teeth! He ate apple slices this morning and was sure his tooth was coming out.......not yet!

Well, we'll keep you updated.....because there is much excitement yet to come when it does come out! I'm hoping he'll lose it before his dentist appt. on the 24th......that'll be a fun dentist visit!




(He was five months when the bottom front right tooth erupted, and now he is 5yrs and 5 months and that same tooth is the one that is loose......interesting!)

The Winner is.......

Honey Medium Blonde!

Do you see it?the blonde? I don't....it doesn't look like the woman's hair on the box! I'm a red head! I've always wanted to be since my kids are.....but their hair is beautiful strawberry blonde......mine....well, it looks like hydrogen peroxide induced red!!! It'll wash away.....Paul is being so nice and supporting and says he doesn't see any red....C-man is at least honest....Mom, I see orange in your hair! I'm okay with it and know that it is semi-permanent and will wash out in time........

what I've learned from home coloring

• I'm not allergic to the chemicals because I took the test
• the strand test does not matter
• this is a fast way to color your hair
• where was my beverage, my scalp massage and my fun talk with my stylist?
• your hair color will not look like the box's picture
• thank goodness I used a semi-permanent
• I do have resistant grays who will not color no matter what (stinkers!)
• vaseline around the scalp does help with it not to stain.
• I may go to cost cutters next time
• or I will work extra hours for some extra spending on my hair next time......
  

Dirtiest Jobs

This was the first weekend of November, as you can tell the weather was wonderful. C-man insisted on going over to G&G Roberts' House to help them pick up rocks out of their landscaping. He dressed in some old clothes, grabbed his "i-pod" (an AM/FM radio that he won through fund-raising), sunglasses and away he went. Paul dropped him off and picked him back up when the work was done.

Grandma says that he kept on talking about that this is one of the dirtiest jobs and that this would definitely make the show for Dirtiest Jobs.! Hee-hee!

Taking a break from the dirty job.
Sweeping is pretty dirty.

Helping Grandma with the rocks.......Ellie has a nice job! She's basking in the sun!

Dirty job continues and Hailey makes sure that Grandma and C-man are herded and doing their job.

When he came home, he made a few bucks and was excited to add some money to his piggy bank!

SILLY GIRL!

PLAY-DOH IS SO FUN!

MISS-O NOSE THIS!

The Bald Egg

Aunt Jolyn do you remember this? One morning C-man wanted fried bologna and eggs (which sent me back to our fried bologna and fried spam for breakfast days!) and all of a sudden I remembered from yesteryear the "bald egg!"

If I had it my way I wouldn't let bologna step foot on our property....agh! I can't stand the salty, processed meat and what really is in it? But the hubby likes it and he's introduced it to the kids, and now it is one of our staples. I just hope they don't have hypertension, hydrocephalus and hyperlipidemia at the young age of 5 and 2.

The "bald egg" is a frequent request from C-man these days. I still have to hunt up the recipe in the 1980's Church cookbook under the microwave section! There it is, the infamous bald egg named and created by Aunt Jolyn who was in elementary school.

5 more days to vote!

no, no.....not the Presidential election that is done with......by the way, you would think we were watching the superbowl last night while viewing CNN. The kids really got into it and since we had a split decision household.....we cheered for the new votes coming in for both candidates.......we heard "yeah, go Barrack OMOBAMMA!" "Yeah, Go John Cain." too cute!

Now the new poll is in and we're voting whether I should color my hair a dark blonde or a medium blonde........I know, I know....this is HUGE ....and may even make history! Well, in fact it will be making history. I'm actually going to do self-coloring......*wince*

I've usually trust my stylist in doing this but to cut a few corners and the budget, I decided to do self coloring. This should save me at least $150.....I know! I have been known to pay over $200 for a cut, high-light, low-light, and style along with scalp massage and beverages and internet access while I'm drying....I love being pampered............so due to self-sacrifice, I'm doing something new. (and praying that my hair doesn't turn orange or green!)

I need your input, would I be a better dark blonde or medium blonde?...so far there is 100% polling for medium blonde.....so 5 more days to vote and then, this gal with dishwater blonde hair, roots showing, and grays intruding will have a new color with your input.....I'll consider you my consultation!

Next in the near future...style!

C-Note dated 10/30/08

Im g u to be anakin fo holuwen ilik holuwen
Mi holuwen jok is nonohoostharashashooblesyoo
Imgoeshrikrshete fo holuwen
Im goeng to get lots of cande
Mi favorit cade is bublgum

(Use your phonics and you'll be able to read it just fine!)

He makes us so proud, he came home with his progress report and he got all O's! That means outstanding and some of the O's had exclamation marks! Like listening carefully O! (are you sure, this never happens at home?) Does his best work O! (this I do know, he's always been a perfectionist, even as an infant, he made sure he perfected the skill before implementation....)

Way to go Kiddo!

Tricksters and lots of Treats!

Our pumpkins....decorated for the festivities.

The mom-n-me tricksters!

Treats with Batman!

Playing baby dollies.

Halloween was a fun night. We had a nice dinner at G&G Roberts, then off we went to trick or treat in their neighborhood. This being the first time authentic outside t-or-t'ng was great. C-man was running door to door and hollering out, "there's one with lights on!" Miss-O was running after and trying to catch up. C-man did his joke to everyone who gave him candy.

knock knock

who's there?

ach.

Ach who?

Bless you!

This was favored by all the givers of treats. Miss O would say Happy Hawoween! Have a good night! and Tank You!

A beautiful night indeed! Some people were just hanging outside in their chairs enjoying the night. Couldn't have planned the weather and holiday any better! We always plan for snow and then have to de-layer for the 60 degree weather!

Last Wednesday night. We went to a Fall party at our Friends; Karen's and Emory's church. There was a pizza party, trick or treating, we went up to the sanctuary and with the campfire burning on the movie screen, we sang songs, shared jokes and had a parade. The last thing the kids did was do a pumpkin prayer in which the pumpkin magically became a Jack o' lantern. Yeah for Karen and her sister planning a fun night for the kids!