Summer...

At least for the day!  It was in the 70's today and an absolutely amazing day to live at the beach.  We spent the better part of the day at Hug Point playing in the sand, relaxing and this year's first attempt at surfing.  The water was great and I totally loved being back in my wet-suit for some wave fun.  I took Sebastian out in the waves and he had a blast.  We played with the boogie board and just jumped around.  After he was done in the water, I took out my surfboard.  It was fun .. but the undertow was too much and the break between the waves very short, so I only got on the board a couple of times .. still it was lots of fun.

We came home from the beach, took a quick break, reloaded the car with firewood, dinner stuff and sand-toys ... and back to the beach again.  This time we went to the local beach and met up with some great friends for a beach fire and hotdog roast.  Yummy!!!!  The weather was just amazing.  The fire was keeping us nice and toasty as we watched a glorious sunset and as the stars came out. 

I am totally beat as I write this ..  but boy this was just a perfect day.

Winter term is over...

Grades are in and I am a happy girl.  Two more classes crossed of my list ... just one more term of Anatomy and Physiology and I will be officially done with all the prerequisites for nursing school. 

This week is spring break for both the kids and myself.  Rio took the week off too and we are all enjoying family time without many plans or things that we need to do. 

I have been at the hospital the last two days in a row.  Yesterday I went for some lab work in the morning .. then it was off to volunteer in the emergency room for the afternoon, and finally to a NODA meeting in the evening.  NODA stands for No One Dies Alone and is a volunteer program at the hospital and is a program where trained volunteers sit with patients during the final days or hours of life especially when family members or friends are not near.  It is truly a special program and while I have not yet had the opportunity to sit at a vigil, I think the idea behind it is wonderful.  Oprah wrote an article about here: http://www.oprah.com/omagazine/Kindness-of-Strangers-How-One-Nurse-Made-Sure-No-One-Dies-Alone. 

Then today I went for an all day training and it was interesting to participate in a structured corporate style training again but this time in a healthcare environment.  I am truly excited about the path that my life is taking ... 

"Sorry you did not make it through this round"...

Today I read an online posting about the accelerated nursing program that I have applied to.  Apparently they have sent out the first round of e-mail notifications to those that have not made it through first round selections...and guess what????

I did NOT get one!!!  Woohoo I really hope this means good news .. reading that posting this evening totally gave me little butterflies in my stomach.  The possibility that either I am in or potentially on the waiting list is great.....more waiting here we go :-)

...tapping my fingers impatiently!

My baby is 8...

As I sit here and write, I am watching my sweet little boy sleep.  He is not so little anymore but the sweetness lingers and I love him more than words can describe.  I cannot believe that he is so big already.  Speaking about big and grown, my oldest just realized he is taller than me!  I know I know ... I am not tall by any means but still - I have officially been outgrown!!  ... and my kid is happy as a clam about it!  Really it does not seem like that long ago when I held snuggly little babies in my arms and now one is 8, my girlie is 12 and my bigger boy is soon to be 14 - if time could just stand still for just a moment.  I know how lucky I am to have my three beautiful children ... they are my world!

I am totally stuffed with birthday cake as we celebrate with cake for a second night in a row.  Since Daddy was not home on Sebastian's actual birthday, we had to celebrate his "fake" birthday yesterday!  Boy who does not love getting presents a day early!!!  So we did the whole celebration last night with cake, presents and goodies.  But there was enough cake leftover that we sang to him again tonight and he got to make another wish and blow out candles again ... he loved every minute of it too!

This week is finals week and I am up to my eyeballs in my A&P notes and trying to get my genetics final completed.  There is so much stuff to know and it is overwhelming knowing just how much I still have to review before feeling ready to take my final on Wednesday and turn in my paper on Thursday .... I will be happy to have two more classes behind me especially when I think about the  mountains of stuff I have yet to learn in nursing school.  But man - I am just so excited about it!  Each time I volunteer at the hospital, I try to just take it all in.  I really am lucky that I am able to volunteer in the emergency room.  It is a great way to listen and observe and now that I am almost through the second (of three) anatomy courses, the "details" are beginning to come together and make sense in a whole new way.