Finally, some pictures!

How can anyone not love San Antonio?? It's just so darn pretty.

The recent depressing activity of the economy has got me a little concerned. One of our 2 banks in which we... bank at, have folded. We are now Citibank-ers I guess. I assume that knowing little to nothing about finances makes me more nervous about when all this is going to end and how much worse things will get before they begin the turn upward.  We will soon be in the market for a house (soon as in, within the next year or so.). I cant help but worry about what the economy will mean for us when it comes time to purchase a house. I am thankful that we recently re-vamped our budget and are actively trying to save more & more each month. I appreciate my newly acquired affinity for penny-pinching- it makes me feel accomplished to know that for the past week, we've eaten off of $25 :) (the rest of our budget was spent in San Antonio!) We're hoping that we can save every available penny towards a fat down payment on a house (and a new bedroom! ... and a new tv... and you get the point.). 

I've got to stop talking about money. 

Can you believe Christmas is right around the corner!?!??? Yikes!!!

One thing I'm quite proud of is my new almost-habit of running. My mama is an avid runner and has even completed a 1/2 marathon already. I guess she kind of rubbed off on me a little bit while here- the stinker got up at like 6 in the morning while we were in San Antonio and ran around the city before getting ready for the day. Sure, I'd been running/walking on and off prior to the visit, but it was more leisurely than anything. I am proud to say I've run 2 miles today and I did 2 miles yesterday too! Like, as in I ran the entire 2 miles. I dont know that I've ever run this far before (outside of high school gym class, that is, where we were required to run 2 miles to pass. yuck. highschool.). It's not really a pretty run; by about the last little stretch, I am either ready to pass out or puke (neither of which happen), but shortly after finishing, I assure myself that one of these days I'll look fab enough to fit into those cute jeans again. I look forward to being able to finish both miles without feeling like ground beef. Of course, then it'll be time to tack on a third. 

Current song stuck in my head: Over the Sun by Shane & Shane

Eh, well.

Strange.

It took (again) FOREVER to attempt to load pictures from our trip to San Antonio. So, (again) in the next few entries, hopefully I'll have some fun pictures up from our great trip! I dont know what the deal is with those pictures specifically, but it's darn frustrating. Urgh.

I'm in one of those moods. In preparing the apartment for my mom's visit, I came across dozens of things that have just turned into JUNK. Things we havent touched since moving in. Things collecting dust in corners. Things I have long since forgotten. Things I am NOT going to miss. Therefore, I am in a purging mood. It's so cathartic, getting rid of junk, isnt it? It doesnt help that my husband is a #1 pack rat. Also, I just happen to have a hobby that includes millions of little doo-dads that somehow end up strewn from one end of our apartment to the other. Alas, everyonceinawhile, I enjoy going through all (well maybe not all) our stuff and getting rid of things. Maybe I'll find some ebay worthy items while I'm looking/trashing.

If you're reading this, check out my dearest's jewelry. And my other dearest's jewelry!! I've got dibbs on the turquoise/brown cross necklace. 

I'd better get back to trashing. :) 

Current song stuck in my head: Hold On by Nichole Nordeman

Catch up already!!!

SO much is happening here and I'm falling so far behind on updating my blog! I sat for 45 minutes last night trying to load pictures from our San Antonio trip with NO success. Stupid blog. Still planning on having some cute pics of myself and J and my mommy from this past weekend! (If I can gain the patience to upload pics again!!!)

Work has been wild & crazy and super tiring. We're pushing 500 deliveries for the month of September which is unbelievable.

My family is being shaken up and I dont know whether or not I'm ready to say anything about what's going on. I dont quite know what to think or feel or make of what's happening, so I think I'll wait until my feelings get sorted out before blabbing. That and I want to make sure word doesnt get out before it can come straight from "the horse's mouth." Probably more so the latter than the former. Regardless, I'm confused and disappointed and guilty for feeling disappointed. It's just a jumble of emotions. 

I'm going to bed. 

Current song stuck in my head: Bad Days Better by Shane & Shane

Ode to Sprinkles Cupcakes

Oh Sprinkles Cupcakes. 

While my mom was here in town (see next post for pics of our fab time!) we spent a day in Dallas. We hit Sam Moon, of course. And we also spent some considerable time @ the Galleria. It was my first trip to the Galleria, and I have to say that NorthPark is a much better mall. I digress. The highlight of the day was making a trip to Sprinkles. All the hype is true. I had never had a Sprinkles until that day and it was well worth the hour drive there and home. It was perfection. And so, in honor of the Sprinkles cupcakes that we devoured, here's a poem. (dont make fun of my poetry skills!)

Oh Sprinkles cupcakes, you are so fair.

I gobble you down without a care

Flavors so delicious, you are easy to eat

Such rich cake and icing, you're hard to beat.

Strawberry, coconut, chocolate marshmallow

Cinnamon sugar is easy to swallow

Lemon, vanilla and red velvet cake,

two, no three, no FOUR I'll take!

Oh, why, dear Dallas are you so far?

It takes an hour at least if not more

I guess it's best for me to be so far away

Otherwise, 25 more pounds I'd weigh!!!

tadaaaaaaa  :)

I would totally suggest making a trip to Sprinkles if there is one nearby. What a well spent $13. 

Now, onto books. Doing so much driving back & forth to San Antonio has given me ample time to read and enjoy some new books; check them out!!!

Just Finished:

Turned out to be pretty good; I am enjoying this author more and more. It's a lighthearted read with some funny moments, some serious moments, and a few unexpected twists! A little crude in places, similar to Swapping Lives. The story is much deeper than simply what you can read on the cover, which was unexpected, but happily received. There are some other books by this author that catch my interest and may make the list in the near future!

Now reading:

I started this book at the recommendation of my mom. She'd brought it with her to read on the plane and enjoyed it. I loaned her My Sister's Keeper, and she loaned me 5 people. So far, it's been enjoyable. The author is very descriptive, painting mental pictures of what's going on in the story. I wouldnt classify it as a Christian Fiction novel, regardless of what the subject matter is. 

Up Next: ???????

It's time to throw in a non-fiction, build me up, make me smarter, harder-to-get-through book! I dont know what it'll be yet, but we've got every book John Piper has written (or so it seems.), several John MacArthur, some Stanley, a little of this and a little of that. Any suggestions for a good, Christian non-fiction read? I have some ideas for the next few fiction books- those are always so much easier to make time for, it seems. I told Jordan when we started here @ SWBTS, that I'd be reading lots right along with him. With a huge library right at my fingertips, i've been very bad at reading the things I should be reading, and very good at reading the things I shouldn't.  Alas, I am a sucker for chick-lit. I can hardly turn down a good page-turner. 

Current song stuck in my head: Way back into Love (from the Music & Lyrics soundtrack!)

Open for business!!!

I had a pretty good response from people regarding a labor & delivery blog; so it's now open to the public!!!

Check me out & leave comments about what you think!!!

www.hollieinlabor.blogspot.com

Snot Factory

I am in the throes of a nasty allergy attack. The nasty kind with fatigue, body aches, low-grade fevers, sneezes, snotty noses and raw throats.  One of those where you're tired like you've pulled an all-nighter but cannot sleep. Ick-o. 

So, needless to say, I was pretty disappointed when I got a phone call at 5:11 this morning asking me to work today (I was on call).  I think I actually cursed under my breath when the phone rang. And for what? To take over care of a 23-week-er who delivered shortly after lunch. Since 24 weeks is the "cutoff" of viability, the baby died shortly after birth.  Definitely not what I had in mind first thing this morning; although I'm sure this was not what my patient had in mind first thing this morning either. Very sad.

Ike's on the way and I think we'll be feeling the effects in the early morning and all day tomorrow. I am not really worried about being here and having any issues; however Jordan's parents & sister/brotherinlaw/niece/nephew are in Southwest Houston and have boarded up their house and are preparing to "hunker down" and ride out the storm. We just got word that they've already lost power. We're praying for their safety and hope they have little more than a bad thunderstorm to endure. 

Current song stuck in my head: none. too tired. :P

What's in there???

I took a cue from another friend's blog- what does this huge new purse of mine hold???

The answer?

-Black Sunglasses

-Brown Sunglasses

-Cell Phone

-Keys

-Lipstick

-Lipgloss

-Chapstick

-My ever-loved and needed planner

-My ID badge for work

-Several pens

-A wristlet that holds my cash & change

-Earplugs (a necessity when traveling!!!)

-Eyedrops

-Bottle of advil/tylenol/meclizine/aleve

-Wallet

With room to spare.

Current song stuck in my head: The Huggies commercial jingle.

pisssssssssed.

I am so frustrated!!!!

Recently, I was diagnosed with GPC... Giant Papillary Conjunctivitis. (do not google it. It's not pretty.) Basically, my eyelids have developed an allergy to the protein that my eye creates that gets stuck to the front of my contact lenses. When I have my contacts in, these rough bumps form on the insides of my eyelids and cause my eyes to be itchy, watery and painful when blinking. Also, the bumps get so big that they pull my contacts out of my field of vision when I blink. So, everytime I blink, it hurts, itches, waters and I cant see. If I take my contacts out, there's nothing between these rough bumps and my bare eyeball, so it's incredibly painful!!!! Dont ask me if I can get Lasik. I cant; my corneas are too thin. (I can, however, get a more expensive, painful, long recovery form of refractive surgery. No thanks.) Back to GPC. It will never go away. The longer I wear my lenses, the worse it gets. Unfortunately,  it seems like the length of time it takes now for my eyes to get itchy, watery and painful is a few hours. Thats with being incredibly judicious with my eye care... prescription eye drops ($70/bottle which has approx 20 drops inside.), contact care, lots of glasses time; an entirely too long process just to prevent something that comes 2-3 hours down the road anyway. This morning; on the way home from work, I could hardly see to drive. I've already been to the opthamologist about this (hence the diagnosis) and there's not much more I can do besides changing contact lenses again. I just started a new brand and paid for a year's supply. I HATE this. HATE IT. It's one of the most frustrating things ever; to not be able to see comfortably. And what's more? It'll never go away. What's the solution? Glasses? I have a pair that's probably 5 years old now and no longer the right prescription (not to mention badly scratched) Too bad I've already used up this year's insurance $$ on multiple opthamology visits and a year's supply of contacts that aren't working for me. Right now, scratching my eyeballs out sounds like a pretty good solution to my problem. 

And my tongue is still numb. 

And I just had a root canal too. I hate the dentist. 

Ugh. I'm taking a nap.

Current song stuck in my head: the Safe Auto jingle. (and I thought things couldnt get any worse.)

Reads

Just finished: 

Was good: Relatively predictable, with some dialogue issues. Picked up where Even Now left off, which in my opinion was a better book, but Ever After was still well worth the time & effort. It mostly kept my attention, which isn't easy to accomplish.

Currently reading:

This book came as a recommendation from a friend who also loves to read. I'm probably about 1/3 of the way into the story and I've enjoyed it very much. Some would argue that the composition is very broken, that the train of thought or conversation lasts for a few paragraphs and then the subject or the narrator changes, but, being that I very often have a hard time staying interested in books, it helps to keep my interest high. The dialogue is not insulting to its reader. 

Next to come:

Prior to Ever After, I read Swapping Lives by the same author. It was an enjoyable read, and I look forward to seeing what The Other Woman has to offer.

Current song stuck in my head: Hella Good by No Doubt

Meanderings...

I am content right now living vicariously through my nieces & nephew. (For those of you wandering about the ubiquitous "when are YOU having a baby??" question.)

I have recently been thinking about starting a 2nd blog that only talks about work. It seems like most everyone who reads my random thoughts on a regular basis seem to enjoy learning about L&D from an insider's point of view. Recently, at work,  we started a little book titled "Labor Laughs" and it's a journal of the funny/stupid things our patients say and do. Evil? only a little. I think if I did start a 2nd blog all about L&D, it'd also be called Labor Laughs. Would anyone read it????

I had one of those unfair days Tuesday. One of those, 'why?' days. It was also probably the first time I almost passed out during a delivery. Wild, I know. One of my patients had a 4th degree tear- I saw it happen and it took my breath away. For those of you who are privileged enough to be unaware of perineal tears and their differing degrees.... well.... in the case of a 4th degree tear, your bottom is never the same again. It's referred to as a "vaginal c-section" by cynical old labor nurses. It's bad. It was the first time I called Jordan on the way home and said 'I dont ever want to have a baby.'

Anyway. Back to the unfair part. I had 2 patients. One was 15 (recently turned 15) on her 2nd pregnancy. She labored for approx 4 hours, delivered after 3 pushes. No pitocin, had an epidural. Was a pretty ideal/easy delivery. And then my other patient was 39. First pregnancy. Married. Responsible. Labored for 15+ hours, with pitocin, pushed for 2 hours. Had an epidural which ran out midway through pushing. 4th degree tear. What about that makes sense???? There are a lot of things that I dont understand and this example is one of those things. You've got an unemployed, cracked-out mom who's pregnant with her 7th child; the other 6 are in CPS custody. And in the next room, you have the married couple who have finally resorted to in-vitro to get pregnant and are losing their baby @ 20 weeks. How does that make sense? Saying this would probably label me as a cruel person and unfit nurse, but I wish I didnt have to give my patient an epidural (the teenager); I wish she could have understood the pain of labor to hopefully keep her from getting pregnant again in 2-3 months. Because it will happen. 

But, because I am a prudent, responsible nurse, I am obligated to give all my patients equal care, regardless of how my conscience feels. 

My newest obsession: Bounce Pure Essentials Chamomile & Lemon Verbena scented dryer sheets. They're like smelling heaven in your clothes/sheets/towels. We have the box in our closet and it covers all odors; shoes, dirty socks, old seminary housing carpet. It's wonderful.

My other newest obsession: My new purse. I looooooove it.

Isnt it wonderful? Isnt my husband wonderful for giving me the go-ahead to spend an exorbitant amount of money on yet another new purse? I lurve it.

Too bad I dont have a picture of another current obsession: my hair & it's new auburn/copper fabulosity. 

My mommy is coming to visit in a couple of weeks & I am so excited!!! I love love love love getting company out here in Texas! It is so refreshing to have visitors, especially my mama. We've already decided to go to San Antonio while she's here and spend the majority of the day in San Marcos!!! Wooo!!! For those of you Georgians who dont know what San Marcos is, you'll just have to come visit and I'd be happy to make the trip down there with you too!!! 

Other plans (so far):

-Sam Moon (delicious.)

-Dallas Galleria (yummy.)

-Sprinkles Cupcakes (seriously. yummy.)

-Tex Mex 

I hate hearing about how upset people are that we dont visit Georgia more often, when it's just as easy (which, in fact, it isnt that easy) to hop on a plane to DFW. Anytime I phone my family, they're always upset that we cant come visit for so-&-so's birthday, but what's keeping them from visiting us??? Ok, now I'm just running my mouth. Enough.

Current song stuck in my head: All We Are by One Republic