Still alive … I think!
Oh, man, it’s been a year. I seriously doubt anyone comes here anymore, but I guess I’ll update at least in the interest of preserving a record for posterity. Not that posterity will care to have a record saved for it! 
So, all of last year (Jan.-Dec. 2010), I worked in a full-time clerical position in the neonatal intensive care (NICU) of a major regional hospital. I learned a lot about medical terminology, lab tests, HIPAA (privacy rules) and much more. At the same time, I finished up my prerequisites for nursing school and applied to Texas Tech’s Second-Degree web-based BS-to-BSN program. It’s a yearlong accelerated program with classes online, a one-on-one clinical coach here locally, and periodic clinical training sessions at a local hospital in Austin. I was fortunate (blessed!) enough to get in, and I started the program Jan. 2011.
It’s CRAZY. I am eating, sleeping & breathing nursing school, but I’ll have my BSN in a year (Lord willin’ and creek don’t rise!). It’s been hard on me emotionally, physically and spiritually. Jay has pretty much been doing all the cleaning and the lion’s share of the parenting. Thank God he’s such an amazing dad and husband … I could have NEVER done this program without him.
My typical week, if there is such a thing, is 3 days of 8-hour clinicals and 4 days of studying dawn ’till dusk. Rinse and repeat weekly until Dec. 17.
My kids are growing like weeds. Gabriel’s lost something like 8 baby teeth now and all but 1 of them have been replaced by permanent teeth. Gabriel is now 7 and doing very well in school. He’s a little behind on problem solving and abstract thought but doing exceptionally well in reading and math. His speech is coming along well. Just this week he learned to ride his bike with the training wheels off. He’s going through a bit of a difficult stage and can give us some attitude sometimes … but I’ve had to give him (and Mikaela as well) some grace considering how crazy busy we all are this year. It was inevitable that we’d frequently be stressed and grumpy.
Mikaela has recently lost a tooth of her own, and I think a second one is soon to follow. She just turned 6 a month ago. She’s still really small for her age. She’s doing really well in kindergarten; her teacher told me recently that she’s in her top reading group.
My kids are at a funny age. They say things that make us laugh every day. The sibling rivalry is about to drive us nuts, though. Oh, man … it’s constant! Gabriel got into trouble in the very short half-mile drive from school to home the other day, for telling Mikaela to “shut up.” Ugh! She’s the same way, though.
I’m having to remind myself frequently in all my craziness to stop and pray, to stop and listen to my kids, to stop and tell my husband how much I appreciate him. This is so hard for all of us, but I’m trusting that God wouldn’t have led me down this path if He wasn’t going to get me across the finish line.
Changes and ruts
So I’m midway through my fall semester at the college I go to. I’m taking microbiology, statistics and lifespan/human growth and development (a psychology course). I have A’s in micro and psych … let’s not talk about statistics. Well, I’m doing okay … just not quite at an “A” level. :/
I’ve been busy with that and my part-time anatomy lab aide job at the school; I’ve also been desperately looking for another job, to no avail. I can’t understand why I can’t seem to find work; I’ve been looking for a long, long time. I get an interview here or there, and even second interviews, but I can’t seem to close the deal. I think I interview really well, too … but I just apparently keep coming in second. Can I even tell you how frustrated I am?
I can’t even find work at Wal-mart or Target. I’ve applied all over the place. Please, if you’re the praying type, pray something turns up soon.
Anyway, unfortunately, my lack-of-a-job forced me to pull Gabriel out of the private school he was going to and put him back in public. At least he’ll get free speech therapy there, and I’ve heard really good things about his teacher. But it’s still a bit heartbreaking to have to make a decision like that.
After this first week, Gabriel really seems to like it, so I’m feeling somewhat better. Mikaela is still at a private school because she is still too young to attend public. She is doing really well and keeping up with her classmates, who are a year older than her.
We are wading into the homework years with both kids, so our afternoons and evenings are abuzz with their homework, my homework, and getting things ready for the next day. How do people fit in lessons and other activities?!?
Sorry I don’t have anything more interesting to say. My days are long and I’m tired and more than a little emotionally weary. Hopefully things will look up soon …
I’m still alive
I don’t know why I’ve been blogging so sporadically lately. Probably b/c I’m on Facebook a lot more. The one-sentence status updates are so much quicker & easier than publishing a blog. But I miss being able to write something more than just a brief sentence …
So, I got a treadmill this weekend. Found it on craigslist, after looking for a LONG time for a nicer one at a decent price. I did 1 mile yesterday and a little over a mile today. And since I keep thinking to myself “why do I want to eat junk and un-do any good I just did by working out?” – I’m eating a lot better too.
I really hope this is the permanent solution to getting this weight off. I’m so, so, so tired of false starts and yo-yo dieting. I know it has to be done. But staying “on the wagon” for the long-haul … gosh, why does it have to be so dang hard?!? Maybe I should join an online support group or something. Know of a good one?
Anyway, in other news, my baby is turning 4 on Wednesday. I can’t believe it. She cracks me up daily, using big words mostly in the correct context. Her reading lessons are going well … she’s getting a little more fluid with it.
Well, I’ve got mountains of laundry to do, so gotta get to it …
Nursing
So, I’ve been thinking of going back and getting a second degree, in nursing. It’s been rumbling around in my head for years, and I keep coming back to it and saying, “why NOT?”
Specifically, I am looking into Texas Tech’s “One-Year, Web-Based BS-to-BSN.” Or in English, I will be building on my previous bachelor’s degree, going through a one-year nursing program, and winding up with a 4-year nursing degree, the preferred way to get your RN license. I do have 7 prerequisite classes I have to take before I can enroll in the program, though: Anatomy & Physiology I and II, Microbiology, Pathophysology, Statistics, The Science of Nutrition and Human Development (Psych class). I’ve already confirmed with Tech that those are the only classes I’d have to have before entering the nursing program. I’ll probably wind up taking most at a local community college.
My reasons for going into nursing are many. I always felt like that’s something I would have loved to do, but I was formerly led to believe it required you to be a near-genius in math. I love helping people, and I love the thought of making a difference in the world. I really love that the job outlook for nursing is good, and that I could potentially work only part-time on weekends (or whatever would be best for our family) and still make a decent wage. If we wind up home-schooling our kids long-term, which I would love, this might be a perfect solution.
I know in the past the timing hasn’t been right. But I think things may just be working out for me to start the process soon. I’ve really been trying hard to discern God’s will in all of this … I asked that He would show me clearly what I was supposed to do by letting the doors slam shut in my face if it wasn’t meant to be. Specifically, I had two hurdles: passing an entrance exam and getting a student loan. I passed my Anatomy entrance exam (after trying to resuscitate 10-plus-year-old biology knowledge), and from everything I can tell, the loan is going to work out as well. So, it appears the doors are open to this new career path …
But for some reason I’m nervous, or even hesitant, about it. Probably because I know it’s going to be a lot of really hard work, and I’m going to be asking my family to make a lot of sacrifices while I’m in school. During that one-year nursing program, I’m definitely going to have to have the kids in school full-time, and probably in day-care after school. Honestly, that may not be such a bad thing for me for a very selfish reason … I don’t want to do the dirty work of teaching them the finer points of handwriting and reading. I mean, we’ve already started on both … but I certainly don’t relish it. I want to get to the good part, where I can wow them with tales from history and cool science projects. Isn’t that terrible of me?
So, anyway .. that’s where I’m at. Since December, I’ve been looking into the nursing thing, but I was holding off mentioning it until it seemed like it was really going to happen … Lord willing. 
I’ll keep you updated.
Don’t call it a midlife crisis
My lovely hairstylist friend Becky called me a few days ago and said that she was going to be putting highlights in her hair and in her friend Kristin’s hair, so did I want their leftovers for free? IS THE POPE A CATHOLIC? I’ve not been able to afford – well, justify, anyway – highlights since I’ve had kids. So I was excited at the prospect.
So they came over yesterday and turned my kitchen into a mini salon. It was fun. Then she pulled out some bright purple dye for Kristin’s hair – and asked if I wanted some of that too. My inner 15-year-old whose father would never let her do anything wild and crazy jumped at that chance, too. 
Seriously, I thought it would be fun, so I let her give me a purple highlight on each side of my part. Mikaela likes it … Gabriel said my hair was “orange” and it looked “terrible.” Jay thinks I’m trying to look like a teenager. Hmph. Well, I like it!
At the bottom, Gabriel’s version (notice that my hair appears to be hovering above my head):
I’m still alive
Contrary to what it seemed to look like on national weather maps, we did not get anything from Ike here in the Austin area. Well, not much more than a March breeze and a few sprinkles. I was looking forward to a nice long rain and some storms. Hmph. Oh, well … I’m sure I should watch what I wish for.
We had a friend stay Friday night into Saturday with her son because we still weren’t sure how bad it was going to be here, and this friend lives in a 2nd-story apartment. I also had another friend and her family come over on Saturday to scrapbook. So, we had 5 adults, my kids, two 6-year-olds and one 1-year-old. It was a nice (albeit loud) time. We had sandwiches for lunch and spaghetti for dinner. I love to entertain but I don’t usually have the money to entertain like I think I should … but I had an epiphany this weekend that I just need to lower my perfectionistic standards and enjoy. I hope my friends weren’t offended by my no-frills meals. But I sure did enjoy myself.
We went to church yesterday morning and then to lunch at a friends’ house, where we also had a small group leaders’ meeting while our 9 children played together. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it here, but Jay and I are in training to be small group leaders and plans are for us to branch out from our existing small group to form our own by the end of this year.
Our lives are anything but dull these days. Between my babysitting, freelance work and trying to teach our kids – plus Jay’s two jobs that keep him gone almost all day – not to mention our church involvement and Gabriel’s soccer … we are crazy-busy. It’s a season, though, I know. And other than one of the children I babysit, things are going really well.
Argh
Well, I was late picking Gabriel up from school today becasue I was stopped by a cop who ticketed me for “running a stop sign.” Actually, I didn’t run it at all. I may have not ‘rocked all the way back’ and sat there at the stop sign for five minutes, but I stopped and looked both ways. And then he ticketed me for not getting my address changed over on my license.
I mean, technically what I did was wrong, but seriously? Get a life and go find someone committing a real crime.
Needless to say, I’m a bit grouchy. Just another complete waste of my money … never seems to end.
Mid-afternoon sleepies
I’m so exhausted. I want to go to bed right this second. I had a very hard day with the little boy I watch, who defied me at every turn and picked several fights on the playground I took he and my children to today. And I’m still not used to getting up at 6 am, neither are my children – even Mikaela, my early-bird, says: “But mama, the sun’s not on yet!”
Neither is my brain. YAWN.
This whole routine’s going to get easier … right?
Busy days
Well, I’m on my last day of a very busy week! It’s been good, though… but hard at times. But even though Jay and I are both working very hard, I am so thankful that God has provided these jobs for us. And honestly, I think I’d rather work a little more than have to watch my every single penny. I’m babysitting two different kids and still supposedly freelancing … although they’re not really sending me much work anymore. I guess it’s slow season. And Jay’s still working his two jobs (one with the State, one tutoring in the afternoons). So maybe we’ll finally have enough money to be able to go a few places and do a few things … in all our “spare” time! LOL
I keep wondering what my future holds, career-wise. I know I want to homeschool my kids, unless I can land a job swanky enough to put them in a good Christian school. I mean, I would prefer to homeschool them … but there’s pros and cons to both, of course. But I keep thinking … what am I going to do when it’s time to go back into the workforce? I’m not doing much of anything right now and I haven’t worked full-time in the office since Gabriel was born in 2003 (unless you count that 6 months I spent at the newspaper in ’05). Who is going to want to hire someone with a huge gap in their job history?
I keep having dreams of going back to school myself, so at least when I’m done raising and possibly homeschooling the kids I have something better than an old degree and a spotty work history to offer. But you know, I need to just put my worries on a shelf for now and enjoy the moment for once in my life. I waste too much of my life worrying and trying to obsessively plan for the future. It seems like every time I’ve made long-term plans for the future, they’ve never worked out anyway.
What do you mean it’s only Tuesday?
Between my work, daily chores and our auto and financial issues, I feel like this has been a long week already. Especially yesterday …
The phone rang at 6:47 am. I thought to myself ‘someone must be dead.’ Thankfully not, but Jay was in a precarious position. His car had broken down right at the I-35 upper/lower deck split in Austin. It’s the alternator. He wasn’t even able to make it all the way off onto the shoulder. His battery was dead, so he couldn’t put on his hazard lights. He had people angrily whizzing around him and honking (seriously, people, who stops on the interstate just for the heck of it?). Incidentally, Jay now admits that Austin drivers are RUDE. I’ve been saying that ever since my short-lived career at the Statesman. But, I digress.
He called 911 and a nice police officer pushed him off the nearest exit, onto a side street. In the meanwhile, I was buying a new battery (he was hoping it would provide enough power for us to get home without calling a tow truck), collecting his tools, and driving to Austin. Got there and stood around while he unsuccessfully tried to get the new battery in. His car was parked right next to the Austin Chronicle building on 40th. I watched as a parade of smartly-dressed hipsters entered the building. One guy arrived to work on his skateboard. Only Austin! Digressing again, sorry.
Apparently the wires that connect the battery to the car were too short. So we made the long drive back home in my van, leaving the car stranded there. Jay and his dad went and fetched the car later, driving it very slowly to his dad’s neighbor, who is a mechanic. Hopefully he can hook us up with a good rate. God bless him, he didn’t get home until after 5 yesterday afternoon. I’m sure he slept well last night.
The monkey wrench in this whole car saga: we are waiting on a late check from my work, and we were broke. This after unexpected medical bills and the other car getting new brakes (among other things) just a week or so ago.
But you know what? We’re the happiest we’ve been in I can’t remember how long. We are really getting plugged into our church, and we absolutely love it. The messages are so applicable to our lives (and timely), the people are so friendly … and I just feel like really good things are coming. And from a bigger perspective, what do minor things like car and money problems matter, anyway? Thank God that we are all relatively healthy. My house can burn down tomorrow, but if we’re all safe and healthy, I won’t shed a tear.
Alarm clock
Gabriel wakes me every morning by saying: “Mama, the cows coming out. It’s daytime. You hafta wake up!”
The cows we can see in the field out back seem to graze in the mornings, something Gabriel has noticed. I thought that observation was funny.
At least his request is more charming than Mikaela’s “WAKE! UP! I’M! HUNGRY!”
Every life is beautiful
This is the most heart-wrenching thing that I’ve ever seen.
Recent observations
- My garbage disposal eats more fruit and vegetables than my children do.
- Want to win the Iraq war? Feed a bunch of two- and three-year-olds cake and ice cream and turn them loose. Then again, there’s probably something in the Geneva Convention about that.
- To a preschooler, the fun of a given activity is directly proportional to the “wrongness” of that activity.
- Whoever said that to get children to quiet down, you need to talk more quietly yourself is nuts. The more quietly I talk, the louder my children yell. I think they think I’ve had a sudden onset of deafness.
- No matter how much you sanitize your children’s hands, they’re going to find a way to get germs in their mouth anyway. Yesterday I sanitized the kids’ hands after every store we went in, only to find Mikaela leaning over and putting her mouth on a shopping cart handle.
- Preschoolers feel the need to announce all bodily functions to anyone in earshot.
Melanie 2.0
Sorry for the lack of posting. We’ve had a crazy last month with lots of company (including my parents, who stayed for a week), Gabriel’s 4th birthday, bad plumbing in the new house, and a long delay in getting internet hooked up. It’s been a good busy, though (well, I could’ve done without the bad plumbing).
We are feeling a lot more settled in, but we still have things that we want to do, like paint the kids’ rooms. We wanted to paint the kids rooms before we even moved in, but with a week-long delay in closing on the house, we wound up not doing it (we’d already reserved a U-haul).
All in all, the house is great. It has a lot more elbow room than our last place (about 300 sq. ft. more) and a view in the back that I never get tired of looking at. True, we’re over 40 miles from where Jay drives to work every day, but so far, I think it’s worth it.
Speaking of Jay’s commute, he got a Nissan Altima last week, so now we have two cars again! Not surprisingly, It gets twice the miles per gallon as the minivan. It’s silver with a black leather interior. It’s cute but I can’t imagine that anyone over 5’6″ could drive it. I’m only 5’4″ and my head almost hits the ceiling. It’s been a very long 6 months since our Ford bit the dust, and I’m very glad to have the van back to myself.
Re: the title of this post, I am trying to turn over a new leaf in lots of areas of my life. I wanted this move to be a fresh start, and now that we’re starting to get settled in, I am starting on my leaf-turning. My main things are time management and sticking to a good schedule…. I always start these things out but slack off after a couple of weeks. I think we’d all be a lot more sane if I could just stick with it.
I’m also going to try to be a lot more … well, Suzy homemaker. Cooking and ironing and homeschooling the kids and such. I am excited about the homeschooling, but I can’t say I’m really excited about the rest. But I know if that’s my “job” I need to do it. Don’t get all women’s lib on me now, it’s only fair for me to “work” at home if my husband is working, bringing home the bacon. And it’s not like I haven’t been doing some of the housework, but I’m trying to start treating it more like a job.
I’ll let you know how it goes!
