One Month

One month from today I graduate! I'm very excited about this but also a little scared because then I'll have to study on my own for the NCLEX and hope that I do a good enough job. I also do not have a job lined up yet. I really really hope that I can have that in place in the next month. I would feel much more at peace if I did.
Until then, I have a group project to do this week, and then 4 tests and 2 finals left. That's it! That's so doable even if I play outside in the sunshine every now and then ;)

Recap on Last Week

• I now have only 6 weeks left of school!!!
• I am still applying for jobs but haven't heard anything about them yet (it's still pretty early )
• I have high hopes at getting a job before I graduate
• Last week was not discouraging on the floor; I got to work with a great RN who was very nice and helpful
• I have gotten much better at the cardiac rhythms (by going over and over them) and hope to ace that portion of my cardiac test on Monday
• Friday is my last Sim Lab ever! (I hate Sim Lab)
• The only thing that I'm having a hard time focusing on right now is doing my clinical paperwork- really tired of that!
• I finally took my NCLEX review book off the bookshelf and started reading it...maybe now I'll stop having nightmares about failing the NCLEX
• For those of you who don't know, I post a recipe on this blog: http://nlcfdowntownwomen.blogspot.com/ every Thursday

7 weeks Left!

7 weeks left and I feel this last part is going to be the worst. I have 3 big nursing tests left on the hardest stuff: cardiac, neuro, and respiratory and lots of other things to get done (like applying for jobs!) I've also been feeling very discouraged this past week because sometimes in the hospital, people don't do things the way you think they should, or the way that maybe they are supposed to. It was a disappointment to my future profession. I started thinking, is this how everyone is going to act? Well probably not, but you always have a few... Also, I really am having a hard time with a few of these cardiac dysrhythmias. So if anyone understands them and would like to explain them to me, I would really appreciate it!
All of my classmate's senioritis is kicking in but I can't give in because there is too much at stake! I just keep reminding myself, only 7 weeks left, you can anything for 7 weeks( including studying things that you don't understand ;) !)

Trust Part II

So before I started this semester, I was really excited- excited that it's my last semester and I will have no more school soon. But then I go to class yesterday and the nursing director for my school really puts a damper on my spirits. Now, she usually does every semester because she talks about how hard the semester will be and how nobody's going to make it. Meanwhile I chew off all my nails and am in pain for a couple days...a nice reminder of whatever she told us. Yesterday, she talked about the NCLEX and getting jobs. Both bad news. Apparently no one will pass the NCLEX and this is the worst nursing job market in all her years. Awesome! The thing I was most excited about (getting a job) is now the thing I'm most worried about! I'm thinking, should I apply other places than this area and commute back on my days off, will I have to drive like an hour to work, will I have to work at Target??? Then I have to think back to last year, when I had days and weeks where I wasn't sure if I would make it through the semester. During that time, all I knew was that I was in the place that I thought God wanted me to be, and if He wanted me to be a nurse, He would make a way for me to get through the semester. And I did. At the end of that semester, I knew I was supposed to be a nurse. Now I just have to trust that God will enable me to pass the NCLEX and find a job. Thanks for all your prayers and support through this journey I've been on and continue to keep me in your prayers.

Why Do I Blog?

A year ago I began blogging. My first post was a summary of the year 2009. This year I don't think I really need to do that summary because I posted 37 times in 2010! My goal was 2 times a month and some months that's really all I had to talk about and other months I had more to say. 2011 will bring lots of changes with finishing up school and looking for a new job so I hope that I will be able to blog more than last years goal! I don't really feel that I can publicly blog about many of my experiences at the hospital, but if you just ask me in person, I have plenty of funny/gross/interesting stories with lots more to come!

As the year has begun to come to a close, I've asked myself, why do I blog and why should I continue to blog. I don't have a huge following and writing is really not my thing. I think the answer to that is because it's a like a picture I get to look back over and over to remember my experiences, where they took me,  and see how far I've come. To be able to look back at a time when I was having a hard time and see how God led me through it. To look back over all the wonderful times I had and see all the many blessing in my life, no matter how small. In summary, I blog to give myself hope. Hope that better days are ahead or hope that my life is already filled with blessings. I look forward to 2011 and may God bless your coming year!

End of Another Semester and a Few Random Things

• A week ago, I took my finals, concluding the end of another semester. Last week I was feeling two things. First, excited because I'm done with another semester and that means there's only one left! Second, scared because I only have one semester left. Scared to start applying for jobs, interviewing, and taking the NCLEX.  Lots of things are passing through my mind right now. Will I get the kind of job I want? Will I have to travel far? Will I get a job at all? Will I pass the NCLEX? However, the excitement is still a pretty strong feeling!

• I'm also excited for the cruise we're going on that is coming up very quickly! We leave in two and half weeks and that is pretty much the only reason why I'm not severely depressed about the winter and snow that started ridiculously early this year.

• Friday my parents and brother are coming to my house for Christmas for the 3rd year. It's really nice not to have to travel and wake up in your own bed on Christmas morning. So I have to cook, but I don't really mind that.

• I am also coming up on a year of blogging! Wow- never thought I'd be able to keep up my quota of at least 2 blogs a month. But I think it's really been great for my friends far away to be able to keep up with my life (Niki and Amanda)!

• Merry Christmas ya'll and thanks for reading!

Back to School Eeek!

So Monday I go back to school. I've been dreading this day for the past 4 weeks not only because it's another year filled with work, but because it means that my favorite season is coming to an end. I've had a change in attitude the past couple of days about going to school. I think I'm ready to do some more learning and I'm excited to go back to finally having a job soon. I guess summer being over is what makes me the most sad. As I watched my neighbor take his window air conditioning unit out of his house today I was like, no, it's going to be cold again soon! No more fun summer trips, reading by the pool, or just enjoying being outside in shorts and a tank top.

I did a lot of walking this summer for my exercise routine and hopefully I can stick it out outside as it gets colder. Maybe I can learn to enjoy the beauty of the outdoors even though it won't warm. Let me know if any of you runners ever want to do some cross training by walking with me!