Last Lecture...

Yesterday, I officially sat through my last college lecture....EVER!! Isn't that great?! Now only an eight page paper, three exams, and shopping for a new dress sits between me and graduation. HOORAY!!

post grad dreaming....

After this....

I'm dreaming about this....

running a marathon (but more realistically a half)

taking ballroom classes with my honey

starting and finishing P90X

reading for fun

learning how to sew and actually doing it

being more invested in my blog

having time to go to lunch with friends/family

perfecting my cooking skills (or at least being a good follower of recipes)

finding a job

helping my sister with her TWO babies

becoming a parent (no rush on that though)

being a better wife, daughter, sister, member, and friend

working on who I'm going to be rather than what I'm going to be

learning Swedish

doing whatever I want when I get home from work at night

ETC.

I'm sure more will come but that's all my fried brain can think of at the

moment.

ONLY 16 DAYS LEFT TIL GRADUATION!

Steel Magnolias

So today, while at work, I decided to turn on a little netflix and began browsing through the movies. After a short few seconds of looking, my eyes fell upon this classic show. One I used to watch multiple times while growing up (while April and I hung out with Grandma Lucille) and never really knew what it was all about. I thought I would give it a try.....WOW!

Such a classic....it begins with the wedding day of Shelby (wonderfully played by Julia Roberts). And it starts to tell the story of a regular family. A mother and daughter who don't get along, a husband who goes into deep measures to carry out what his wife says (even shooting blanks to get the birds out of the trees). Two brothers who don't want to do anything anybody tells them, and a love story that you know will fight anything. As they prepare for the wedding, Shelby and her mother, M'lynn go to Truvy's to get their hair done. There, we are introduced to four new characters who later, we find, play a big part (in my opinion) in this story. They are the classic group of friends coupled with M'lynn, the one who holds everything together - always carrying on....there is the one who finds herself and is happy with who she is, the sweet one who likes to know everything about everyone, the happy-go-lucky one who tells it like it is, and the grumpy one who secretly has a sense of humor.

For those of who don't know or remember what happens, here it is in a nutshell...Shelby has diabetes. The doctors have told her that she SHOULDN'T have children. However, through not being able to adopt due to her medical history, she and her husband decide to go through with it. She gets pregnant. And she lives. Life goes on; she lives in a different town with her family but she comes back every once in awhile (which is where the story catches on). They meet back at Truvy's do get some new do and it is told that having her son meant her kidneys were shot. She needs a kidney transplant and she's going to get it from her mother (don't they always come to our rescue?!) They go through with it the next day and things turn out well....for a little while. Shelby knows that there is something up but continues to live life. One day, things don't turn out so well. Her husband comes home to dinner cooking on the stove, chairs toppled over, and a crying baby. He looks for Shelby and finds her unconscious after falling down a few steps with the phone by her side (she attempted to call him). The next few scenes are of her in the hospital on life support. Her mother never leaving her side. She never wakes back up. Her husband decides to withdraw support and she dies fairly instantly. Then it's the funeral. It's a beautiful funeral with many attendees but it's after the funeral that gets to me. These five friends meet up once again in the gardens. The four characters come to M'lynn's rescue. As she sobs and sobs and finally lets out her true feelings, each friend uses their unique personality to help her through it.

As I sobbed and sobbed through this part and for a little while after (good thing I was alone) I realized how much I truly do love this show! It has a great meaning. You know what?! Life is hard, really hard and sometimes in downright sucks! There are hard times, rough times, and times that you are surprised that things actually got worse when you didn't think it possible. That's what friends are for....whether they be husbands, wives, parents, siblings, extended family, a loving Heavenly Father and brother Jesus Christ, people you grew up with, those you went to school with, those you just met...friends are friends and they help you through these rough times. So this is to all of you out there who are my friends; those I've known forever, those I've known a long time, those I've known for a short time, those I've just met, and those I will continue meet throughout my life - to those who have helped me through rough times....I LOVE YOU!! I'm so grateful we know each other and hope that I can help you in a way that you have helped me. I'm happy we keep in contact and hope to reconnect with those I have lost contact with. Life is too precious to not be grateful for what you have. Things can change in an instant. This is my time to be happy and show gratitude. THANK YOU!

Thankful Thursday (2)

Happy Thursday everybody!

Here is my little list of thanks for the last little bit (since my last post at least).

finishing capstone

starting and almost completing psych clinical

people who are willing to share their whole lives with you just to have a few minutes to talk to someone

completing the kitchen remodel (besides painting)

the Relief Society social and how smoothly it went

my husband....for who he is and what he does

a good friend's wedding shower

potlucks at work

ward temple night

SPRING BREAK!

a friend's most welcome invitation to their cabin for a weekend getaway

general conference and for all the messages shared there

bunco

redo in the hair department to keep me lookin so good ;)

registering for the NCLEX and actually applying for licensure

field trips to the 4th street clinic, alliance house, CTP, and the jail to help realize how grateful i am for my life

PASSING THE COMPREHENSIVE PREDICTOR....TWICE

scratching all things off of my list of things to do each week

and last but not least, I must give a shout out to my daddy since it's his birthday today....the big 50! Love you tons and I'm thankful for you in my life each and every day.

I encourage you all to try this....it makes even the gloomiest, snowiest, cold days like today bright. Be thankful for what's in your life. Who knows?! You might find something new that you've never thought of before.

Thankful Thursdays

So I got this great new idea from my friend Jarah's blog and I thought I would carry it on. I have wanted to start this for quite some time but have never had the time on a Thursday. I know it's only Monday night but I thought it would be better than never. I feel so grateful that I need to write some of the things down. So, here goes...

my husband

capstone being over (after tomorrow)

Elizabeth Rhondeau's mission experience that she so eloquently described

the paper chain on my floor that is a nightly reminder that I'm about to graduate

how good my niece makes me feel when i get to her house and she is waiting for me on the bottom step

the Gospel

my job

sleepovers at the in laws so i can sleep in an extra hour

the kids at PCMC

my mom saying 'this is your mother' when she leaves me voice messages

phone calls from my dad

how amidst all this chaos my house is actually coming together

the bachelor to keep me company while Jonny is out workin late

bunco night

good chats with old friends

how after a late night of work Jon wakes me up at 3 in the morning to kiss and hug me goodnight just because i asked him to

rice bags

my blanket

cute headbands to jazz up my hairstyle when i haven't showered

Jarah's blog

Hobby Lobby

how the laundry magically is done by the time i get home

Books, Books, and more Books (which I will again be aquainted with in a very short amount of time)

amazing support from a loving family

And those are just a few. I could go on and on but I should probably get some rest before my last and final shift of capstone. Feel free to follow along and continue on this tradition of what they call project: cultivate thankfulness. It really does make you feel better even during the worst of days.

And you thought 13 was unlucky

Yes ladies and gentleman....13 is the number of weeks I have left of school and that is the luckiest number I could get (until, of course, it becomes 12 and so on). Can you even believe it?! I most certainly cannot wait until these 13 weeks are over and I will be home free. Never to return to school again. HOORAY!!!!

I guess I should give an update on my life since I can't stand looking at blogs that haven't been updated. Christmas was fantastic! Jon and I enjoyed every minute we had together most of which was spent with the fam (both sides). It was great to see everyone and feel of the holiday spirit. Next was New Years which we spent with some good friends. It was fun to just kick back and have a good time. I enjoyed a full three and a half weeks of working full time and then school started again for me. BUMMER! Now I have to fit in 225 hours of Capstone, 6 weeks of psych, 8 hours/wk lecture classes, and an online class, not to mention my full time job in the next couple of months! Hopefully I survive. Jon has begun an internship with Ernst & Young. It took him away from me for about a week and a half for training but he is back now and enjoying the clients he has. He works overtime so we don't get to see each other a bunch but at least it's nice when the bills come around. ;) Among all the craziness that we call life we have decided to remodel a little bit of or house. It's time consuming and kind of hard to live among dust, holes in the wall, and a huge sheet hanging in our room but we're really excited for it to be over and see the finished touches.

Another thing that I have been a part of is a bunco night!! We meet once a month so we've only gotten together once but it was so so fun. Thanks to Sarah for setting it up!! It was so good to see everyone after such a long period of time and I can't wait to see them again. Sorry there are no pictures...I came straight from work so I forgot my camera earlier that morning and I haven't received any pics from those who had their cameras that night....cough, cough!

One more thing that I want to talk about is my Capstone (as mentioned above). For those of you who don't know what that is, I can explain. It's a lot like a residency. As nursing students, we picked our top three choices of where we would like to be and were placed on a unit with a specific preceptor. We have to work the shifts of this preceptor and basically learn from them one-to-one. I have the opportunity to be placed in the float pool at Primary Children's Medical Center. I am excited for this placement because after spending my pediatric rotation there, I couldn't even begin to decide on just one unit I would like to go. I think I got the best placement though because we really do go everywhere. My preceptor is the best thing ever! She is such a good teacher and person. We really get along and I have already learned so much from her. We've spent a lot of time together since I'm trying to get it done as soon as I can. 36 hours/wk of capstone + 30 hours/wk of work don't leave too much time for anything else but I am managing to get through it. Three weeks down already, right?! It also helps that I have the best husband in the world who is always there for me and knows how to make me feel better. He truly is the greatest and I don't know what I'd do without him.

I guess that's all for now. I better get back to studying so I don't fall too behind. ;) I will try to be better at posting more frequently. I have some ideas of what to post about from some friends. Even if it's a short post, it's still a post. Thanks for listening.

Let Freedom Ring!!

At least until January 10 when school starts again. Yes ladies and gents, I have officially completed my third semester of nursing school and am one step closer to graduation. Although I will still be working full time and figuring out what my schedule will be like during my fourth and final semester, life is going to be so so good for the next three and a half weeks. I have already been so productive. After my last final I went to lunch today in celebration of living through the last sixteen weeks! I have never felt like I had earned Cafe Rio so much before. Then the Christmas shopping started. After several hours I have almost completed that huge task. I was able to spend some quality time with my sister and cute neice and still had time to stop by the library to grab some reading materials. I had forgotten what the inside of a real book looked like - too much time reading textbooks, I guess. Now, I feel like I can fully enjoy the Christmas season and look forward to the holiday while listening to the beautiful ring of these bells...




For those of you still enduring the dread of the rest of this week...GOOD LUCK!!!! The end is in sight and at some point, you too, will feel just like I do at this time. Happy studies!!