Falling into...

FALL!!!      My favorite season! And yes, I have pumpkins on my porch & all over my house!!

And I'm sorry I've been slacking on the blog but time has literally gotten away from me and studying has become the taker of that time. It's been a little over a month since I've wrote and I probably cannot tell you what I last wrote about but here I am! I have some time this week and I'm going to take advantage of it!

The semester is halfway passed and we took our Pathophysiology final last Monday. I rocked it! I was super nervous about it but it turned out great. I learned a lot in 7 short weeks and I think it was a great trial run for the College of Nursing. We are the "guinea pigs" in which they are trying different strategies on us. So instead of taking all 4 classes at one time, we are taking 2 classes the entire semester then Patho was the 1st 7 weeks and now we're in Pharmocology for the last 8 weeks. It was rough but I think it was worth it. There was some things they missed in teaching for Pharm but they can't cover everything!

This week will be my 4th week in the hospital. On Wednesday's, I have to go pick up patient info at the hospital then go home and do some homework on their meds, history, medical diagnosis and a few other things. Thursday, I go to the hospital for 6 hours and take care of him or her. I take vitals, give meds when allowed (with supervision, of course!), provide hygienic care if they cannot do it themselves, assist them with activities and many other small tasks. I still have not given a shot but hopefully this week!

My patient this past week was an Angel. Literally! I was fumbling around with the lancet to prick her finger to check her blood glucose and she was so patient with me. After apologizing a zillion times, she said it wasn't her role to get angry with me because I'm learning. She was the sweetest lady I've ever met and had so much faith, compassion, and knowledge to share. We walked around the hospital floor for a little bit of exercise and she told me about her family. They were from New Orleans and came here after Katrina. Her grandmother outlived her own children to pass away at 95. My patient said she hoped the Lord would bless her with an amazing life like her grandmother had. I replied that I'm sure the Lord has amazing plans for her. And that's when I teared up... I felt something from this woman. She was amazing. I believe she is an angel and she shared her faith with me. So I asked if I could pray for her. We bowed our heads, lifted her up in prayer, said amen and exchanged hugs.

Because of her, I want to be a better person for everyone, not just my patients. The little things can make a big difference. The little prayers can change someone's life even if you do it out loud or the silence of your heart. I may not be the best Christian and I am a sinner. But that lady made me even more compassionate about what I'm training for. I cannot wait to fully care for God's people. It may be stressful sometimes but I am here to serve for Him. I am here to do something special in my life someway, somehow.

School sucks sometimes but with the Lord, all things are possible.

with love,
A

Double Whammy

I used to love that show - Whammy - but that's when I went through my Game Show Network phase. Now I look forward to my precious 1-2 hours a TV each day! I'm very conservative with what I watch & when I watch it. My TV gets turned on every morning so I can watch the news & the weather while I eat breakfast & get ready and gets turned on once or twice in the evenings for a short breather from school and studying.

Today though...I treated myself with several TV shows and am about to watch a few more because I had a Patho exam Monday and a Fundamentals exam today and my brain is shot! If any of my 50 classmates are doing school work, they're nerds. Unfortunately, I am going to fall into that category because I would like to start studying for my Medication Administration check off on Thursday.

I made an 82 on both exams. I was very excited I made that grade on Patho because the exam had A LOT of material but wasn't too thrilled about the B for Fundamentals. But you get whatcha get and I deserved what I got for both exams. This week is slowing down which is great because I have a lot to catch up on and things I want to accomplish like fill in my little 3"x 5" Memo Pad with skills, techniques, stats and extra tidbits for when I start going to my hospital clinicals on October 3rd! I also need to make electronic flashcards for Medical Terminology. On top of it all, I have to make a "pathology tree" for a group project that is being presented on my birthday, the 25th, and my group is meeting Sunday to finish everything and film our little skit. I have various other tasks I can't think of right now but I don't have the capacity to think about them because I'm brain dead.

But it's going to start all over again next week and the week after that and continue until the 2nd week in December...argh...Don't get me wrong, I love nursing school. I love my professors. I like most of my classmates but it is difficult and strenuous and time-consuming and I feel scatter-brained every single day of the week! They say this is the hardest semester and hopefully it gets better because I hate being scatter-brained. I hate how my anxiety has worsened. I hate how I barely have time to talk to Justin on the phone or my other friends...sorry girls & guys...I love y'all though!!!

But here's some funnies to laugh with me so we can all breathe a little easier, sleep a little lighter and think about the light at the end of the tunnel!



This was me the past 3 days...translation: Caffeine, by mouth, every 4 hours, as necessary or when needed.







My personal favorite because this will be me one day...inevitably...

Love y'all!
A

When I thought...

...I had it all organized and in control...the following happens:

1. Football season starts...and of course, I went to last weekend's game v. Sam Houston. Glad to see a win and non-starters to get playing time but I slightly worried about all the school work I could've been working on at home. Oh well! I had a great time with my family and Justin. We got to go on the field while the teams warmed up. Pretty amazing to see Kyle Field from a different perspective on a game day!

But what makes me more nervous is that I had opted out of going to the 'bama game this coming weekend because I have exams Monday & Tuesday of next week but after much contemplation, a few tears, and hearing that "it's going to the most important & historical game played on Kyle Field EVER" ...I thought...eh, probably need to experience this... and this is where I go into my 2nd point...

2. My nose is in a book every night... for at least 3-5 hours. So far, school has not been tough. But give it a 2 weeks and I'll be waist-deep in EVERYTHING that I'll be drinking Pumpkin Spice Lattes with double the espresso for every meal. I haven't really kept up with most of the readings assigned. The professor for Health Assessment said don't worry about reading the book. Fundamentals is just WAY TOO MUCH reading. And I didn't get my Patho book in via the mail until last Wednesday afternoon so as soon as I get done reading for my Dosage Calculation exams, Patho will be my go-to book for the week. 

3. Professors add more to your calendar! This does not make anyone happy and adds extra stress to my daily life. I made my own weekly planner and have everything from readings, assignments, exams, what color scrubs to wear, and other helpful things that I use daily to help me study the important stuff first and keeps me in line for the week. What upset me the most is that our course coordinator for Fundamentals exclaimed we could have "Medicine Administration" skill check-offs this week and half of us would have our first Simulation this week or next. Thanks Professor for the heads up! I thought our skill check-offs were going to be over nasogastric tubes and catheters?!?!? ...errr... 

4. Balancing school, relationships, extracurricular & chores is really tough. I am very blessed to be back in a very familiar atmosphere (i.e. College Station Home) and have an amazing support system (i.e. Steve, Kim, Shelby, Justin and various others). Yet I'm still figuring out how this balance system is suppose to work. I am now considering working out with my trainer at Gold's Gym fun because I do not have the time to go ride horses with Aubrey. I sit at school all day so when I come home, I try to find tiny things to do while standing = let me do the laundry or dishes = love/hate relationship with chores. 

I really can't think of why I need to jot down a couple more numbers because I've summed up my life tale, for now. I could go into great detail about my daily activities and/or thoughts but I'll spare you the misery. It can be pretty boring. 

Don't get me wrong, I love learning the new things I need to know to become a successful nurse but it's a hard road ahead. I have a million thoughts swirling through my head many times a day of topics I can't even remember because I'm thinking of medical terminology, the pathology tree I have to create for a group project, the argument I had with Justin (now resolved, thank cheesus), the stupid, confusing dosage problems, making sure I remember to wear my ID badge to school and so many other things I can and cannot control.

Please just say a short prayer for me - please and thank you - I'll say a prayer for you.

Forever and Ever! ....lol....My Best's Friends Wedding...

Man, I need to watch some old movies soon! Any suggestions?

Anyways...

With love always,

A

A New Chapter

I'm sorry I was not in the mood to blog the past month but I am going to try and keep up with it as the new semester begins. I went to EC for my 2 week break and did not take my computer and did not want to hog Mom's computer for such an amount of time so I just kept putting this off. But I did pass with A's in my first semester!! Anyways, on to a new chapter...

Last week, I started my 2nd semester of nursing school. I am taking Fundamentals, Health Assessment, Pathophysiology for the 1st 7 weeks and Pharmacology for the last 8 weeks. My schedule is very interesting and busy. I attend class Monday-Wednesday and have labs Tuesday, Thursday & Fridays. What is going to be the challenge is keeping up with all of the studying, reading, and assignment when we have to be in lab from 8-5 on Thursday & Friday for the next 4-5 weeks. After that, they will assign us clinical rotations, in which we will attend once a week and possibly have supplemental mandatory lab once every other week. The professors were pretty easy on us this week. Not much reading, only 1 assignment and very short days in the lab Thursday & Friday. But I do not expect that from here-on-out...

Patho is interesting so far. I've learned about cancer and some mental health issues. I'm waiting on my book to come in so I can study the power points and read the book to reinforce what I'm learning. My friend, Kerry, said that she did that the other night and it was very helpful.

Health Assessment has been boring thus far. Our professors for that class are very intellectual and have AMAZING examples but we've gone over the basics so yeah...can't really put that picture into view for y'all.

Fundamentals has been good. I love learning hands-on so I will probably give y'all more experiences from lab than anything else! Last week, we learned sterile technique and enemas. Great fun!

I'm looking forward to learning but I know everything is going to be challenging. Hearing the phrase "check-offs" makes my blood pressure and adrenaline rise immediately. I have to read 1,000 pages a week it seems like and to make it a little more difficult. I'm learning how to use my new computer because my red Toshiba decided to die last Wednesday. I'm very lucky and blessed to have gotten a new one on Friday afternoon per delivery of my parents. Thank y'all very much!!!

I did get a small treat before I hit the books hard - GIRLS WEEKEND - Austin Edition!!! It was great to visit and have fun with some amazing girls this weekend. The highlight was our trip to Painting with a Twist, where we painted a beautiful picture while drinking wine. I'm trying to find a place to hang it now...and sorry for no pictures, I haven't plugged my phone into my computer yet since I'm still downloading files from my external hard drive.

So as I'm typing, my mind is going super crazy with all of the things I need to accomplish on my day off tomorrow. I'm glad I got to sit down for a short while and send out a little tidbit but if you don't get a post for 2 or 3 weeks from me, I'm going to crazy hardcore to accomplish an important goal - to serve God by taking care of His people.

God Bless,
A

Time Flies when...

You're pumping up Blood Pressure cuffs several times a day!!

And the reason for the previous statement is because I have skill check-offs TOMORROW!!! Ahh! No worries...well, slightly...I went to a classmate's apartment tonight to practice with some other girls. We each ran through a scenario and took a patient's vital signs. Other important points to remember is that I must wash my hands upon entering and leaving the room, introduce myself, identify the patient by name & DOB, explain what I'm going to do, raise & lower the bed and hopefully ensure safety the entire time! The professors are not setting us up for failure but they want to make sure we are instilling all of the little things before they release us into the wild hospital halls this fall!

So I ask please say a short prayer that I remember all of the key things to pass tomorrow!

On Tuesday, we take our lecture exam. Dr. Livingston went over some of the exam and it seemed pretty common knowledge yet I'm sure there are some trick questions. Example:

What is the most important part of giving perineal care?
A. hand hygiene
B. gloves
C. keeping the patient covered
D. raising the bed to a working height

Yeah...confusing, right?! Well, they answer is B although all of the answers are important. Dr. Livingston said that we're nursing students now so we need to be able to decipher the BEST possible answer, not just a good answer.

This past week wasn't terrible. I turned my paper in early and did pretty well on the quizzes. We had the PTA students from Blinn come to our lab to teach us about ambulation and transfers. It was very helpful and glad I was able to learn very important tips on saving my back. Some of our professors even learned new things!!

The only downfall to my week was the allergic reaction I had to a night cream on my eyes. I'd post a picture but I think it would blind y'all because it's scary. I didn't even show Justin... I sent pictures to Dr. Goerig & Dr. Erwin - GOD BLESS THEM!!! - and with some hydrocortisone, Benadryl and 3 days of wearing glasses, my eyes are back to normal. I'm still worried I'll have a flare up because I have sensitive skin but never again will I use a cream that I don't know what's in it beforehand!!!

The countdown to completing my 1st semester of Nursing school is on = 4 days

Skills check-off, exam, discussion board, a project and 2 classes stand between me but perseverance and coffee is key :)

Wish me luck!
A

Blessedly Stressed

It was a good week until I felt like all of my stressors caught up with me on Thursday and ugh............

But I'm better now! I'm enjoying my weekend...yes, it's only Friday but we don't have class...and trying to accomplish as much as possible before my lovely dinner with my boyfriend, Justin, and my favorite engaged couple, Cassey & Scott!!

I was in EC this past weekend because Dad returned home from his safari and naturally, we needed our weekly "lay-in-the-recliner-together" reunion. I didn't get much reading done last weekend because I enjoyed the day riding in the tractor with Justin. When I returned to CS Sunday evening, I got some chores and reading down before heading to HEB at 2130 (9:30). It's a very enjoyable time to go to the grocery. It's cool, dark and NOT crowded!! 

Monday was Monday. We had Professor Middlebrooks lecturing about Hygiene. She rushed through the lecture because she kept telling stories and giving examples. Don't get me wrong, I love personal experience stories but I hate when they rush through the PowerPoint slides. When I got home after class, I started making a new recipe - Chicken & Veggie Flautas. I actually put the chicken with water & stock in the crock-pot before going to school and were ready to be shred when I came home, making the prep time a lot shorter!!! The flauta making was very messy but they lasted me the entire week and were even tastier with guacamole. After I finished cooking, I put my nose in my clinical book before wanting to try another new recipe - Baked Oatmeal. It was very easy to put together and also lasted the entire week with some leftovers placed in the freezer. Very healthy & made my morning breakfast interesting and easier. 

I had to pee in a cup for the Nursing school to rule out I'm not a druggie before heading to workout with my trainer, Sean. Yes, Shelby & I share the same trainer at Gold's Gym but we don't partake in workouts together...yet. She's been so busy that I've taken her time slots to fit my schedule. Sean kicks my ass. Arms are always at the beginning of the week and he just is trying to put my shoulders out of commission. But I'm the weird kid that likes the pain before it happens, while it's happening and after it happens. Justin's afraid I'm going to get super buff and be too sexy for him to call me his girlfriend but I doubt it...I think God meant for me to be curvy and I'm totally okay with that!!

Tuesday was Hygiene Lab. The highlights of that was putting "patients" on bedpans, giving them a bed bath, changing linens on an occupied bed and having my teeth brushed by another student. That afternoon, I was asked to watch my favorite little man, G. Goerig, so that his Mommy could take his siblings and friends to a water park in CS. He was not happy his mommy left but calmed down to realize he was hungry and became a bottom-less pit to baby crackers, pureed fruit and rice cereal. And all while going back and forth from the kitchen, I WAS ABLE TO WITNESS HIS FIRST STEPS!!! I texted Abby wondering how many steps he had been taking and she informed me that he hadn't yet! Oh my gosh....proud babysitter moment yet very heart-broken I didn't get it on video for his parents! (please forgive me)

Wednesday came and went but I tried to stay as productive as possible so I would be able to go to yoga that evening. Our Informatics class is stressing me out because there are so many things to be done - read, study for quizzes, work on paper and ePortfolio, participate in online discussions and read some more. The only good thing that came from Wednesday besides Yoga was that I asked Professor Mountain about the Fall Clinical schedule and was granted the Friday off to fly out to New Orleans for Stacy & Jody's wedding!! So I got our (J & me) tickets booked for late Thursday night for a pretty damn good price = always love a bargain!

Thursday was the stress icing on the cake and I didn't want it to be but we were suppose to have a quiz and we didn't. We were instructed to buy a $180 access code. Got out of class early to be able to work on our projects, in which I got a tiny amount done out of the big piece of the puzzle. Ran around town picking up things for the Howdy Party the Wharton County Aggie Moms host, went to the ENT who gave me antibiotics and a steroid injection to help my ears and head not feel like crap and finally ended up at Gold's for my leg workout with Sean. Oh, kettle balls = sucks balls. Ask me about them later...and yes, Mother & Father, I know that's not appropriate...but it's the truth!

Now I'm just sitting at J's in Rosenberg working on my paper, writing this blog about my crazy life and waiting for his handsome booty to get home before we head to dinner. And tomorrow, Shelby & I are doing our field portion to Hunter's Safety so we can be certified to blast some ugly birds! And on top of it all, life isn't slowing down. Going, going, going is all I know and my t.v. time has cut down to almost nothing, in which I look at it in a healthier than bad way. But to slow down a little, I'm going to relax a little this evening with some great drinks and discussions and some shopping tomorrow before I put my nose back in my books. 

xo, A

1st Week Completed

Whew! I did it! I made it through my 1st official week of Nursing school and there were already some big changes!!

As of July 15th, Texas A&M Health Science Center is officially a part of the Texas A&M University system! WHOOP! I'm sure there are a lot of great things that will be happening but I think the best part of this merger is that my fellow classmates will be able to receive their Aggie Rings! Since receiving mine almost 2 years ago, many students were worried they wouldn't meet the requirements to receive one. And the impossible became possible! So excited that they will be able to participate in an amazing tradition. 

And on to the juicy details of my week...Mondays & Tuesdays I go to my Fundamentals lecture and lab. Lecture was over basics - vital signs, the nursing process, and general surveys. Lab was when we were able to get our hands on some vitals equipment and practice. Blood Pressure deemed to be the most difficult for everyone. My group of 5 practiced and practiced. Some girls had trouble palpating the brachial artery. The rest had trouble hearing the sounds through the stethoscope as we attempted to measure each other's BP. Because of this some of the professors allowed some to practice on them while advising to practice as much as possible and do not get checked off on our skills until we've measured 50 successful BPs. I hope when I start learning more, I remember to write out my acronyms or nursing lingo for y'all!  

Lab couldn't last too much longer because we were sent to attend our Scroll Ceremony. We were going to receive a scroll displaying the Nursing Code of Ethics. This year, they decided to do something a little different. Each one of my classmates and I were paired with a senior student to be our mentor. They gave us our scroll, led us to sign the "book" that will be kept forever and serves as a reminder that we signed to uphold the ethics and answered our questions during the lunch. My mentor is Chelsea. She has been married for almost 2 year and has her Bachelor's degree from A&M. I think she's smart, beautiful, funny, down-to-earth and very helpful. We've been messaging back and forth about school and other interests. Today, I asked her about the textbooks I need for Fall and gave me advice on which ones to buy or not. 

On Tuesday afternoons, the SIM lab is open for practice. So following the luncheon, my lab group went back up to get some more BP practice. It went ok but we decided to get more practice in on Wednesday so I scheduled a room. Dr. Livingston - one of the few male instructors on staff - gave some great advice. He said that we should practice and come to the SIM lab as much as possible. With that said, if he saw us in the lab other than our scheduled times, he would remember that and possibly be easier on us when we have our skill check-offs or exams. BROWNIE POINTS PLEASE!!!

Wednesday & Thursday were long...we learned about Ethics, Values and Culture and were introduced to our Librarian who lectured on how to research proficiently. Following that, we were introduced to our Health Care Issues paper, which is due August 1st. I'm pretty sure I'm writing mine on ObamaCare...hisssss... I was at Hoffer's Auto Care and Fox News had a segment that said the plan was going to increase the cost of health care for young, healthy Americans. I initially didn't know what to think about this because I'm not very political but since I'm going into the health care field, I need to learn about this and other legislation. So give me a few days and I'll have some knew knowledge... Oh, I also made a 100 on our 1st quiz...super proud of myself!

Hopefully I can get my paper done quickly and keep up with all of the reading because these 5 weeks are going to go by very quickly. I'm home this weekend. Justin needed to help his dad in the field and my Dad just returned home from an Aggie Safari. Heading upstairs to read and get some early zzz's since a train was SUPER LOUD at 0500 and I didn't really sleep after that. I'm officially in the early morning risers club...yay! No, that is sarcasm even though I've never really slept past 0930. 

Thank you for reading and prayers. I love y'all!

A

New Adventure!

Howdy! 

It's been awhile but I'm ready to keep my close family and friends updated during the newest adventure of my life - NURSING SCHOOL!!! Yet I had many other adventures in the past year - graduating from Texas A&M (Whoop!), moving to EC, substitute teaching, taking Microbiology at WCJC, babysitting, coaching 9/10 year old Little League softball, and training and competing in Triathlons. Whew! I kept myself busy but I had to because when I'm lazy.......it's bad.........so let's just not go there! But any who...

Mom helped me move back to College Station last Friday and it took 2 days to unpack and organize all the things I took home. What was terrible is that I only wore half the clothes I took home and used about 1/3 of the other things. Ridiculous, I know. Then on Monday, I had a Balloon Sinuplasty done to open my sinus passages. I thought I was allergic to other things besides mosquitoes - well I am - mold, dogs and pecan trees - but I kept getting sinus infections and felt like I couldn't breathe deep enough. It was successful and I'm just waiting for the after-effects to subside so I can get going again with staying in shape to do the next tri with Emily in October. 

Wednesday was the big day! I was nervous yet ready to get the ball rolling. We had a reading assignment posted the night before and I made sure to read it all just in case they bombarded us with a quiz or something. I had my lunch packed and my outfit picked out the night before. We have a dress code for class and for clinicals. They want us to look nice in case guests drop-in during class = no shorts. And if you know me, I was very upset with this. I live in athletic shorts and t-shirts! So I wore a comfy dress to appease them. The class we attend on Wed & Thursday's is Informatics and it runs from 0800 - 1330, with an hour lunch break at 1100.  Oh yes, the joy of learning military time! It covers technology and Electronic Health Records to prepare us for the evolving tech-savvy nature of our career field. It's boring. The 6 CHAPTERS we had to read for Thursday were so terrible that I couldn't remember what I read at the top of the page when I got to the bottom. We'll have a big online project and research paper to write but this class has no final - Whoop! 

Today, I have the day off. Mom had the electrician scheduled to install a light in our kitchen and he has come and gone. So I'm all by my lonesome, typing out my blog, re-arranging my Google calendar, reading for Monday's class and making sure I'm packed, ready and know where I'm going for the All-Star tourney in Seguin. By the way, I was coaching the 9/10 year old All-Star softball team before I moved to CS. I was enjoying it a lot even though my life was revolving around the practices. I really do love coaching and love those girls. That's why I'm going to pick up Justin and head to Seguin to make it to the 2000 (8 pm) game tonight. Wish us luck!!!

On Monday, I will go to my Fundamentals class lecture from 0830 to 1015. Just a basic class to learn how to take vitals, do assessments, bathing, transfers, etc. I was assigned to Tuesday morning's lab (0800-1200) which will take place in the Stimulation Lab or SIM lab or CLRC. So many names!!! And for this first two days of this class, we have to read about 200 pages from 3 different books and watch about 20 videos on vital signs and asepsis. Last night, I got started with marking all of the pages in the books and watching all of the vitals videos. Today, I started reading from one book. Upon completing those pages, I'll probably read from the HUGE fundamentals book - I swear it's 5 inches thick! - and wash some laundry. 

I've come to the conclusion they're going to keep up on our toes for these first 5 weeks. Yes, it's a lot of reading and we're in the classroom about 15 hours a week. One of the projects in Info has already been introduced and I will start working on that today also but time management will become my friend and enemy. Yes, I want to go workout with my trainer at Gold's. Yes, I want to be lazy and watch some of my favorite shows...cough, cough, Big Bang Theory. Yes, I want to go take riding lessons and play with ponies. Yes, I want to sit on Pinterest for hours and try the new recipes or crafts I find but I am on a mission. A mission to one day do what the Lord has set out for me to accomplish - care for His people. And in order to get to that point, I need to become successful every day by becoming a better student, staying on top of assignments and chores and balancing all of it in the short amount of time I have between everything! 

Of course, I'm nervous. It's going to be a tough 2 years. I have things I want to do but they have to be placed on the back burner so that I can get through this. Hopefully, the Lord hears my prayers and guides me to do my best, spend my time purposefully and fulfill His will for me. So if you don't mind, please say a little prayer for me. I will be so appreciative for that and cannot wait to share many stories and knowledge with y'all in the future!

The picture above is my goal. At orientation, the Dean told us to write it down and put it where we would see it every day. One rough days, seeing it could possibly make those hard days a little less stressful, knowing that we're working towards something amazing. 

Y'all come back now, ya hear?! 
Alexis

P.S. And yes, I know it's been a year since I last posted on this site. My excuses are that I was very overwhelmed with school, graduating, forgetting about this blog and la-ti-da whatever else!

P.S.S. Justin and I started dating in November. He's my man and I'm very, very blessed to be called his other half. It may not be the best situation (living 2 hours apart) but we have a concrete relationship and understand each other's goals so that one day, hopefully, we will be able to live & work in the same vicinity.