shout out to my brother

Can I just say one thing?

My brother, Kevin, is one talented guy.

We went out to watch him play at Lake Afton's Big Red Barn Hoedown. And let me just say one more thing, this guy, my talented brother, can play the bass guitar like it's nobody's business.

He's going to make it big someday, someday real soon. I know it.

We had some good fun hanging out, good family time. 

You know the kind that you find yourself going in slow motion, because you know someday you'll look back and remember the great time you had. 

Flying through the air...giving you the opportunity to get your feet off the ground.

Taking a moment to listen, giving us that rare opportunity to pause,

 slowing our daily hastening pace.

Even if we don't pause for long 

because we have places to go, 

people to see, 

things to do...

...at least we took the chance to give life another look.

That's all she asks of us. 

To see her from a new perspective every once in a while. 

So we can breathe in new air, 

feel the fresh wind in our lungs,

look around ourselves at the beauty

and listen

to the wonderful new sounds.

the call came yesterday...

At about 2pm, Sasha and I were studying at the library for the board exam. I had received a call back on Monday for a list of my professional references. Though I knew this was a good sign, the fact that it had been over 3 days since I had heard anything made me nervous and full of doubts.

But it finally came.

They offered me not one, but two positions-one on their Neuroscience unit and one on their Cardiovascular unit. I decided to accept the position in the Cardiac unit because I knew my heart belonged there-no pun intended....well, kind of.

So, there you have it. It's official, we are finally moving to Georgia!

I cannot explain to you the thoughts and emotions running through my head the past 22 hours. Mark and I both have had moments where we look at each other and ask, "can you believe it?" All of those years of planning, going through the long days, the long nights. The studying, the working, the times where defeat seemed like a giant 'Easy' button waiting for us to press. We kept going on, moving forward, because we had a dream...one that could not be shattered, because we were driven to better ourselves.

And I'll tell you, once you have a vision of who you can be. Who you want to be. There's no going back. Through all the trials that people, and things, and life, give you-because they will, whether you want it or not-you are able to press on, because it's that vision of yourself keeping you safe from all of the outside distractions.

I'll keep you posted on exactly when we will be moving. We know it will be either mid- or late- June, depending on when I take my board exam.

Thank you to everyone, for your love and support. I will, of course, continue to keep up this blog, if nothing else, to let everyone have a view of our new grand adventure that lay ahead. And we know that this move may be bittersweet for many, but just know that we'll be thinking of you in that warmer weather :)

last day of school and a tortuous waiting game...

Amazing what a school year does to your child. All of a sudden he's reading everything in sight. He's picking up a pencil on his own and writing stories. He's telling me facts about Benjamin Franklin and outer space. Why, oh why do they take our kids and transform them in ways where we can't even recognize them?

first day of 1st grade

last day of 1st grade

So, today he has officially started calling himself a "2nd grader" and my heart aches because it has begun. That period in time where I'll look back and say, "I remember when..." and I'll have the realization that it all went so fast. Because today he may just be finishing the 1st grade, but it's starting to hit me that really he's making giant leaps toward learning multiplication, writing in cursive, attending middle school dances, receiving 8th grade recognition, the thrill of drivers ed and that dreaded high school graduation. Where does the time go??


Another question about time...I seem to be learning a lot about patience lately. Specifically my lack of, waiting to hear back from hospitals about employment in Georgia. I'm trying to be a sane person, yet I find myself walking around with my phone attached to my hip, checking neurotically in case I missed a call, and looking for any excuse to fine tune my online applications. I keep crossing my fingers that the madness will end someday soon, when in reality I probably should be focusing on boards. Easier said than done. We're not perfect, right?

Happy Wednesday!

And God Bless the families that were exposed the recent destruction in Missouri, Oklahoma and Kansas. 

Home

You know that feeling that you get when you're away. You miss all elements of home. The ease of wearing your favorite slippers. The soft sheets on your perfectly cushioned bed. The smell of mixed fragrances from old candles and homemade breakfasts. And then there's the people. The wonderful little people that make coming home a whole wonderful feeling all its own. Home.

We came back from Georgia yesterday. The 16.5 hour drive makes me have an appreciation for airplanes. Although it gives you time to think. Driving through the flatlands of Kansas made me appreciate sunrises and sunsets. Driving the distances in Missouri gave me an appreciation for patience and good company to pass the time. Driving on the rough roads of Illinois and Kentucky made me appreciate our tires and the fragility of our brakes when coming up on deer. Driving on the weaving roads of Tennessee at night gave me an appreciation for the mountains, those dark silent giants that greet and hug you close. Driving into Georgia gave me a plethora of appreciation. But mostly of trees. They really do know how to grow them some trees down there.

I wanted to take many, many more pictures than I was able to during our stay. But with all of the interviewing I did -three days, including one day lasting from 9am to 5pm- I wasn't able to capture our trip in photos this time. But, hopefully we'll be back there soon :) I'll keep you posted.

One thing is for certain, we can't wait to call this place home.

While we were there, we did get the opportunity to see Jess. She came in from Charlotte to stay with us for a day.

We were able to take a stroll around the UGA campus

and found our own little treasure, a secret garden:

Grow Old Along With Me The Best Is Yet To Be

We walked around famous downtown Athens

And as many of those interviewing me could tell you, I am most thankful for the opportunity to have made it this far. For getting through the past few years and being where we are now. And we have all of you to appreciate for helping us get here.

party time

The past few days have one word of description: celebration. 

Celebrating the milestones.

honoring our heros...

basking in fame...

and leaving our marks...oh how do we know our place in this world

we may be merely discoverers on this brave journey in life....

perhaps better known as explorers...

funny thing about exploration though...it never gets old

And just a glimpse of more celebrations this weekend...

we were the BEST singers in the house ladies-"bohemian rhapsody" was ours that night

One thing is certain, we had a wonderful time being reminded of our blessings. Thank you to all! Please keep us in your thoughts this week as we are embarking on another journey...to Georgia for more interviewing :)

the end of a journey

Yesterday marked the end of a little journey I've had called nursing school.

I'll never forget asking a 'seasoned' nurse in the halls of a hospital if she had any advice on getting through nursing school. She asked with a smile, "Are you staying up til 2am studying only to get up at 5am for clinicals?" With a big sigh I replied, "yes". She placed a hand on my shoulder and said, "you're going to do just fine."

Some other things I'll never forget...

~that first patient I had, and hoping to God I didn't look as scared as I was

~the feel of putting on surgical scrubs and blending in

~hoping that my inexperienced eyes wouldn't give me away

~passing tests, putting projects together, and those dreaded CPE's

1st semester clinical group

~holding the hand of a dying man, holding the head of a newborn

2nd semester clinical group

~finding out how to ask questions

last day on the psych unit

~how to live with the answers

last day of 3rd semester

~laughing, crying, and not being ashamed because in this profession you can care

last day of clinicals

~my fellow classmates, and all that we have shared together

presenting the graduating class of Butler Nursing Spring 2011

~and having the most incredible person with me this entire journey.

Thank you Sasha. I have no words to describe how much you have enhanced my life. You're such an inspiration and I'm thankful for our wonderful friendship.
(PS-I see a beach and margarita's in our near future)

And last night's graduation...thank you everybody for coming and helping me celebrate. Because of your continued love and support I felt so proud to have you all there. You all have been wonderful and I appreciate each and every one of you!

Jess, you're supposed to photo-shopped in here...I guess you and your twin

And now to give a very special thanks to my family. You saw me at my worst and very infrequent best. I could not be here today without your unconditional love and support.  

Thank you for sending me your love the countless hours that I was away. For giving me the ability to be strong when I felt weak, for keeping my head up whenever my heart was discouraged...I was able to because of your unwavering love. 

This day is as much a gift for you as it is for me. 

A day that has been long-anticipated; that we have worked so hard for.

We did it baby!