I can hardly believe . . .

That it is almost Thanksgiving! At the beginning of the semester it felt like forever but now that it is almost over it seems that time has flown by. I am looking forward to heading back to Seattle on Tuesday . . . I am just one paper away!

Happy Holidays!

Aww Poop . . .

I thought when I had my rotation in Psych Mental Health I would have a break from bodily fluids and the sort but alas it isn't so. Apparently all fields of nursing have an equal opportunity for exposure to poop. Yes I know that feces is a more polite term but to me it will always be poo. Apparently I look like just the gal to assign the older adult with bowel incontinence. Now don't get me wrong my patient was a sweetheart, I enjoyed my TWO days of working with him and I learned a ton but alas I was once again reminded that adult feces are not my forte. Fortunately the patient had lovingly supplied air freshener so I could mask the odor quite nicely with the smell of flowers but not before gagging just a little bit. Give me blood, wounds, needles, even vomit and NO problem but throw in some poop or even worse a colostomy (patient from the summer) and I crumble just a little bit. They have told us throughout nursing school that every nurse has SOMETHING they have trouble with and it was confirmed once again for me that adult poop is mine . . . I guess that is why I see pediatrics in my future.

I am sorry for the very graphic nature of this post but if I can't share it here my friends then where exactly CAN I share it. Enjoy the rest of your week!

Steve's Visit

I was SO happy to get to see Steve this past weekend. Here is what we did on his visit to Baltimore . . . it was jam packed!

Friday Steve got to Baltimore at about 5 and after I picked him up we headed to Iggie's, my favorite pizza place in Baltimore. Afterward we went to a Halloween party at a friend's house. I was a rabbit and Steve was a pumpkin.


Saturday morning we drove to Gettysburg and did the two hour auto tour around the battlefields. It was a very interesting experience and I definitely recommend it! Fall is definitely here and the trees were gorgeous! Below are pictures. That evening, after getting back to Baltimore, we went to Little Italy for dinner and ate at Sabatino's. It was delicious but if you go be sure to share or expect leftovers for at least two meals!




Sunday we went to Max's in Fells Point. They have about 15 TV's and delicious pulled pork nachos. Steve watched football and I studied for my pharmacology test.

Steve left Monday morning but I am happy to report that I am heading home in just three weeks for Thanksgiving and then just two weeks after that for my Christmas break!! Classes are going well, I had test three of four in pharmacology today and a psychology test tomorrow . . . wish me luck!

Thought for the Day

The problem with having a studio is that after you make dinner the whole place smells. It permeates everything! One dinner of teriyaki chicken cooked on a grill pan and the whole place smells for days. I even opened the window to let in the gale force winds that Baltimore is currently blowing but all I ended up with was a stinky windy apartment. Now I suppose that there are worse smells than cooked chicken but still . . .

From Babies to Psych

I finished my labor and delivery rotation today and next week I am moving on to psychiatric nursing. I will be working at a hospital in an inpatient unit where they have a wide range of disorders (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, etc). I can't wait for my first post after that! I have heard from the group that did psych the first part of the semester that basically I will be solidifying my ability to ask questions!

Anyway, a final update on how my labor and delivery rotation finished up. I did finally get to see a vaginal delivery! It was an amazing experience but honestly not all that different looking than the videos! My patient received an epidural so even my doula skills were not that useful since she couldn't feel anything. I put in her catheter so more experience there. My patient was particularly lucky because she only pushed for about 15 minutes and had no complications at all! It was a baby girl, 6lbs 1oz and she was adorable. I again got to do eyes and thighs on the baby and vitals every 30 minutes.

I am happy to be another step closer to graduating! I can't believe that half the semester is already done and it is getting close to Thanksgiving! Thank goodness time seems to fly by!