Sunday = Fun-Day

Happy Sunday Fun-Day Everyone!! 

I hope you all have had a great weekend! 

I bet you all have been studying your bootays off! 

While studying IS important, it is also very important to cut out some "me time" and enjoy life every now and then.  My grandmother used to call it "stopping to smell the roses" :) 

What did you do recently that was tons-of-fun? 

This weekend was my husband's birthday.  We had a little get together and I made some treats for him.  

BEWARE: IT'S PICTURE TIME!!!! 

These are the "sushi" appetizers I made for our cook out this evening- They were a hit!

This is his Swedish Fish flavored cake.  Swedish Fish are his FAVE!! He was so excited! :) 

In my free time I love to unwind by doing some of my favorite things: baking/cooking, crocheting, and reading.... OH! And of course doing this blog ;) 

Here are some samples of my most recent projects:

I made this mommy owl cake for my cousin's work function.  She is a preschool teacher for an "owl" themed class 

I made these cake pops for my Gram 6 days before she passed away.  I wanted to make her birthday as special as possible and I knew she would get a kick out of cake lollipops! 

CROCHET:

Here is my most recent crochet project.  I made this cupcake hat for my husband's sisters 1st birthday!  Everyone though it was a boob, so I guess it wasn't THAT great! I was proud regardless.
(They are obviously weird to let their kid wear a boob hat- tehehe)

I made this bear hat for my cousin's photography business (Virginia Moon Photography) to use during her newborn photo sessions. It made some adorable pictures!

AND of course my NAILS are always something I like to do... and THIS is what you get when you are extremely bored.  YES- That IS sperm rushing towards an egg painted on my nails!  Not my greatest work of art- but they are still pretty fun!!

LAST ONE THERE'S A ROTTEN.... SPERM!

I hope you all have some hobbies that you like to keep busy with! While, most of the time, I like to relate my hobbies (like reading) to nursing- sometimes you just need to step back and enjoy living your life! 

What do you do to enjoy yourself? It is very important to your HEALTH to make time for yourselves. I know I don't have to tell you that- you're NURSES! 

The FINAL Final

The count down has begun folks!

I'm certain that each of you all have been counting down for your final exams of nursing school WELL before today... but since I've taken it already, I am not as on-top-of-my-game (hopefully) as you are. 

I remember my FINAL final was a thing dreams were made of- and I felt SO CLOSE to the finish line I could taste it! I am hoping to share some tips that I used to tackle this beast! 

First and most obviously- STUDY! I made a study schedule (YES, I'm that kind of OCD) for my last week of school to make sure that I covered each topic equally and I made time on the second to last day before the final so that I could review things I was still "if-y" on (or things I needed more time to memorize- like lab values, math, etc.) 

Second, I didn't listen to ANYONE about what they THOUGHT would be on the test.  Some how in nursing school rumors fly about what teachers may have mentioned this or that... blah blah blah... 90% of it, I GUARANTEE, is not true.  As my mom always used to tell me... "if it isn't from the horses mouth it probably isn't true." Talk to your horses- Ahem- I mean professors and get a feel for what they think is important.  

Third. I use acronyms like nobodies business to remember certain things- like All People Eat Taco Meat... know what that stands for? Your in sad shape if you don't! Yep! You guessed it (I knew you would!) It is an acronym for heart sound landmarks (Aortic, pulmonic, Erbs, Tricuspid, Mitral).

FINALLY- the day before the exam I did not study AT ALL! Cramming never worked for me and this gave me time to clear my thoughts and practice things from my memory. In fact, the day before my final exam I went to the spa to get my nails done- and today I did my own just to send you all good vibes! Ladies, treat yourself to something fancy.  Gentleman, play call of duty (or whatever it is boys do!) 

The night before make SURE that you get enough sleep... no one likes a grumpy test taker! 

The morning of, wake up earlier to make sure you have enough time to gobble down something delicioso for breakfast and still get there on time! The sound of bellies rumbling is not ideal for testing ambiance! 

All I can do is pass along these simple tips and hope that you do amazing! 

Make sure you let me know how it goes!!!! Good LUCK to all!!! 

Graduation!!!

It's almost that time....

Graduation time, of course! With graduation comes a surge of emotions for nurses across the board.  When I graduated I felt this amazing sense of accomplishment and pride.  All was well.

After graduation was a WHOLE other story. 

At first, I felt a bit of disbelief knowing that my former professors would now be considered my colleagues in the nursing field- I felt all grown up!!! 

The next thing I remembered I was in a panic wondering if I had learned everything that I wanted to learn or NEEDED to learn to do my future job effectively.  I felt as if there was a whole world of nursing out there that I had NO idea about.  After a while I found some resources that really helped me feel as though I could assimilate into my new profession well.  

One of the greatest resources I have found is The Nurse's Guide to Hospitals.  Here you can read about the best places to work as they have been reviewed by the current employees- Nurses like you! Scrubs Magazine has made this hospital resource guide as well as  The Nurse’s Guide to Nursing Schools for those who decide they want to continue their education! Very informative resources.  

In addition to these online resources, I have recently read a book called "From Learning to Earning" by Dan Finnigan and Marc Karasu.  Not only did this book contain DOZENS of helpful resources for the job search process, it also helps you to understand the interview process.  The best part is that it was written by REAL people who have experienced all of the jitters and emotions that a new grads feel when spreading their wings.  I felt as if they were speaking directly to me- like they already knew how I felt and they made me feel COMPLETELY NORMAL and gave some perspective to the hiring process that I had never even thought of!  I wish this had been required reading for nursing school- rather than a teacher pointing to a smart board showing us all how to write a resume in that same ol' monotoned voice that we've all come to know and hate love ;) I really recommend this one ya'll! 

Finally, for those of you shy guys and gals who need help with their communication skills I would like to recommend a book called "Communication for Nurses: Talking with Patients" by Lisa Kennedy Sheldon.  This book really helps you understand patient perspectives and communication techniques for difficult situations.  As I always do, I MUST critique nursing programs and say that there ought to be an ENTIRE class on nursing communication- After all it is our MAIN job to communicated with patients, families, doctors, educational groups, and our nursing peers.  This book really has it all! 

I know, I know- now you're thinking "I am already about to graduate- I've already learned everything I needed to learn"..... REALITY CHECK: Nursing is a never ending learning and adapting process.  I hope this wasn't the first time you've heard that ;) Good luck to everyone on their FINALS!!!!! 

Patience is a Virtue... I Have Yet to Master...

So I know you all have heard the saying "Patience is a virtue"- This is something I have yet to wrap my head around.  

Especially this past month I am EXTREMELY anxious and nervous.  If you saw me in public I would be dancing around like there were ants in my pants- and while its proven effective in the burning of calories, as a way of life, waiting ain't my thang.  

I have started applying for nursing jobs in the past few weeks and I have been HOPING and PRAYING that a certain one will pull through because I would be incredibly good at this particular job.  (I think a job that your heart is really invested in is super important to your job satisfaction!) 

While waiting to apply for these jobs I have been poking and prodding at my resume and have written exquisite cover letters that are quite impressive, if I do say so myself!

So for now-I'll be sitting here, researching for the job I HOPE comes through for me! 

Any tips on resume or cover letter writing? I think new graduates will find it helpful! Especially since the class that you learn all of that stuff in is a SNOOZE! ;)