Last stretch!

The semester is almost over! In fact, in 15 days I will be done with it. 6 tests left.. And I'm choosing to attend an extra labor and delivery clinical because I really, really love labor and delivery. It's my calling. I just know it. I love that clinical. I have dreaded all of my other clinical days, but I love labor and delivery.

And I found out today that I have a group project to do. We have to watch a movie (fun) and answer questions. I hope this whole group thing goes ok. I usually get frustrated by group projects, but how bad could it be? Watch the movie, answer the questions, done! :)

I'm getting so excited about this wedding stuff!! My boss is getting married on May 22nd! And my brother Levi is getting married on May 28th! And my cousin Colt is getting married on June 25th!! WEDDINGS! They're so beautiful! I'm excited! Seth called and popped the question to the preacher that we are going to use, so that's done! It's my youth minister from my early teen years (I can't remember exactly how old I was). Seth hasn't met him yet. We're going to meet him and his family (his wife, Kirstin, is one of my favorite people EVER) in May! They live in North Carolina and we've never been there so that in and of itself is exciting! Not to mention the fact that I get to introduce Seth to two of the most influential people in my life! I'm nervous but Kirstin has reassured me that they have no intentions of torturing Seth. Phew....

C'mon semester. Hurry up and be over. It's Summer's turn!

And breathe....

So I have to admit that I came off of my test Wednesday with a huge sigh of relief and mental exhaustion. In fact, I remember saying the words "I'm emotionally drained" even before finding out how the test went. God is so amazing at meeting me halfway when I ask for his help with tests. Tuesday night before the Adult test I read Matthew 6:25-34 to my roommate, Grace, who needed it more than I did at that time. My favorite verse from that passage, verse 34, says "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." I know Jesus was talking about deeper things than nursing school, but boy does this hit home. It was a wonderful comfort to have this passage on my mind Tuesday night/Wednesday morning as I was doing some last minute cramming.

My 21st birthday was last Monday before my Women's test. Grace and I were inducted into Phi Kappa Phi, an honors society, that evening. My parents came to see me, which made the day even more special!!
Then, we went to Razzoo's with Sarah and I got to have my birthday drink. The night was cut short because we had a 12 hour clinical the next day and then a test to study for on Wednesday, but it was a great night and I'm so thankful to have those two wonderful girls in my life!

The get-up my Mom gave me for my birthday!

Two of my favorite girls and my first legal drink!!

This past weekend was when I got to go see Seth fight for a national championship. My flight from Philadelphia to Newburgh, NY was delayed and we pulled in to the parking lot at the fights to find that Seth had just finished his fight. He won his semifinal fight and advanced on to the finals on Saturday night. He was so pumped and excited and it made it hard to be sad that I missed seeing him fight Friday. So Saturday came around. We slept in and took a really long nap and then headed to the fights so that he could get ready and focused. We got there at 3:30 and he didn't end up fighting until 10.. WHOA! It was good because I studied and then played with a 7 year old sister of one of the boxers on Seth's team. She was so fun to talk to! I was afraid that I would be afraid to see him fight, but it wasn't scary. Sorry that picture is blurry. Action shots are hard. I'm sure my camera has a setting for that...

I couldn't yell for the other boxers because it made me hold my breath to watch them fight. But when it was Seth in the ring I yelled constantly. The guy he fought was 35 lbs heavier than Seth and a lot slower. Seth ended up coming in 2nd. But 2nd in the nation in heavyweight boxing when weighing in at 208 isn't bad at all! I'm insanely proud of him and feel so honored that I was able to take part in that moment with him.

After he got his medal! Look how bloody the tape on his hand is!

Sunday we went and ate breakfast at Cracker Barrel. I'm not sure if everyone knows this, but Cracker Barrel has the best breakfast EVER! And then we hung out a little bit and spent some quality time together. Then got some Chinese food and headed to West Point for a picnic by the Hudson River. It was so fantastic!

Then we had to head up to Seth's room so that he could get ready for formation (to make sure no one had escaped over the weekend). We got to spend a little more time together that night and then a couple of hours before I had to fly away. It was a very relaxing weekend and just what I needed before the next 2 days of studying hardcore. I wish Seth and I didn't enjoy each other so much... Not really. I freaking love that man. But it would make being apart a lot easier.

There are a lot of things I should be doing instead of blogging. Like writing my care plan from my clinical yesterday. Or getting ready for Day 2 of our 3 days of hosting the nationals meet for gymnastics. Or possibly catching up on online class work. That seems to be happening a lot lately. However, I feel that blogging is soothing to the soul and right now, that's more important.

I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend. I hope that Springtime shows out for you, wherever you are.

And an exciting update: 1 clinical, 6 tests, and 26 days until the semester is over!!!!!!

Countdown: 5 Weeks

So there are officially only 5 weeks of school left in this semester!! It feels so amazing to type that out! 5 WEEKS! Next week, I'm going to NY to watch Seth fight for a National Championship! He won his Regional fight and fights on Thursday night, the 8th, and if he advances he'll fight Friday night and Saturday night, too! I'm so excited for him! I will get there at 3:14 on Friday, so he pretty much has to win his Thursday fight so I can see him box! So if you just happen to have a random moment on Thursday, April 8th and think of Seth, say a prayer that he does his best!!

Lots of wedding planning happened on Monday (the 29th). My mom, sister, and I went to Fort Worth and booked the Marquis on Magnolia and the Celebration Community Church for Friday, June 3, 2011!! It's official now! Seth and I couldn't be more excited! Then, we went over to a flower market off of 7th street in Fort Worth and picked out the most beautiful roses. They are called blush roses. They are a red-pink color and fade down to cream at the bottom. I once thought I hated fading roses, but my mother picked these out and they take my breath away. So we went and picked up a mock vase from the Dollar Tree and made up a trial centerpiece and a trial bouquet. The only problem is that the flower people said that they don't see this rose very often, even though two of their growers are offering it right now. They don't know if it will be there next year at this time and said that we'll pretty much have to wait and see. However, I'm pretty sure that if they don't have this one, they'll have something between a pink and a red that I can live with!Oh and I got to assist with a birth! The mother did so well and it ended with a beautiful, healthy baby! Maybe labor and delivery could be my thing? I'll keep my mind open!

The next two weeks are busy: Phi Kappa Phi Initiation, 21st Birthday, labor & delivery clinical, Women's Health test, Simulation (which means fake patient + skills), NY to see Seth win Nationals, Adult Health test, and 4 gymnastic meets in 3 days!! Whoa.. I should sleep now while I can!

I hope everyone has a great Easter!!

:( Spring Break

Spring Break is officially over. :( At this point, I can't think of anything more depressing.

So, back to life. My Spring Break was pretty great! Seth got to come home, we found our wedding venues, and I got to visit with my family a little bit. I was planning on knocking out my Capstone (25 page honor's graduation requirement) over Spring Break but called a truce by calling my faculty member and asking if we could extend the deadline to August. I was a little gutsy by thinking I could get it done this semester. It's not due for over a year and I have an entire summer that may include ONE class. It will all be ok! That took a lot of stress off of my Spring Break and allowed me to go home for Saturday night and Sunday. I guess those were the only days I got to really be at home. I miss it a lot. I wish Seth's family lived in Blum, too so that we could visit both families without having the hassle of driving back and forth.

Seth won his fight!! He is a Regional Champion! I'm so stinkin' proud of him. Friday night he saw his opponent a 6'5" 257 lb giant. Seth is 6'4" and weighs 212lbs soaking wet. Friday night (after seeing the guy) he told me "I'm going to beat him tomorrow." This was a big confident statement for Seth. He hasn't REALLY wanted to win a fight this year until this massive guy stepped in his path. And he pulled through! I'm so proud of him and so excited because it means that I get to go to West Point April 8th-11th to see him fight for a NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!!! I've only seen him fight once. It was at Plebe Parent Weekend 2 and a half years ago. It was a demonstration for a required boxing class at West Point. He has gotten so much better since then and I'm so excited (and a little nervous) to get to see him fight for a National Title belt!

Over the weekend, my mom help me settle on the choice of using silk florals instead of real ones. I'm pretty sure I'm going with White Daisies and I know that we will save a lot of money going with silk flowers. PLUS they won't all die the next day and we can put the centerpieces together before the day of the wedding and take that much stress off of everyone! Now, I need some help deciding something.... I have to set up the scene:

White table linens, white napkins (or they could be blue, what do you think?), white china.. With a centerpiece of:
Cobalt blue vases with white daisies
or
Clear vases with a blue ribbon tied around the center and white daisies

I know it shouldn't be that big of a decision, but it seems so stinkin' important. The reception wedding coordinator said that if we buy cobalt blue vases, they will buy them back from us. But they already have clear vases and blue ribbon would be very cheap. If I go with clear vases, should I also get blue silk doilies to go under the vase? Or should I use the mirror that the reception place provides to put under the centerpiece? Should I try to get blue napkins? Or should I find out how much extra it would be to get them to do blue table cloths? I bet that would be pretty.....

So many decisions that probably don't matter a lick but seem so important right now. I should probably just go buy a cobalt blue vase, a clear vase, some blue ribbon, and some daisies and see it for my self. Goodness.....

PLEASE, please help me decide this. I'm terrible at making decisions.

Thank you in advance. :)

WEDDING

So I just dropped Seth off at the airport. He had to go back halfway through Spring Break because he made it to Regionals in boxing and he is fighting this weekend. We were both sad that he had to leave but I'm so happy that he has gotten this far this year! He loves boxing and I can't wait for him to win Regionals so I can go up to New York in April to watch him fight for a National Championship!

We got SOOO much done this week. We went and visited with the Marquis on Magnolia in Fort Worth on Monday (which was our unofficial 3 year anniversary). We absolutely loved the facility there. We have our day, Friday, June 3, 2011, on their calendar (unbooked) and have dibs on it if someone else comes looking at that day. Olivia, the wedding coordinator there, was absolutely sweet and extremely helpful! I can't wait!

Then, we got in the car and started toward our next destination, Broadway Baptist Church. We started down Henderson Street, past Harris Methodist Downtown, and turned on Pennsylvania Avenue only to find the most beautiful church EVER staring at us only 3 blocks from our proposed reception facility! It is called Celebration Community Church and it is a historical marker! It has stained glass windows that are beautiful! Also, the interior of the church is made up of Austin stone and this dark brown wood. There are Gothic arches. There's a rose garden outside as well as an Angel garden to pray in. It's just absolutely perfect. The carpet is red, which created a brief set back. However, I'm going to change the colors to dark blue and rusty red. We'll see what happens. Anyways, this was such a pleasant surprise that we weren't expecting! Hopefully, my mom and I will go sometime soon and book both places and officially have a wedding to plan!


I'm so glad we found Celebration Community Church because all of the other places we saw that day were not great. We went to Broadway Baptist Church next. They had a beautiful chapel and sanctuary. However, the chapel was overpriced and plain and the sanctuary had a massive organ, which was beautiful, but overpowering. Then we went to University Christian Church which is stunning on the outside. It has a hacienda feel to it and we were very hopeful to find a beautiful interior as well. It was gorgeous inside, but neither of us were feeling a wedding vibe from it. Then we went to University Baptist Church, just down the street. It had a gorgeous chapel, but paled in comparison to the love that we had for Celebration Community Church.

I'm so excited and can't wait to get even deeper into the planning process! You have to love great days!

Chew Toys and Trolls

I just have to share these cute pictures that my roommate, Grace, sent to me in a forward. They are adorable!!!

"I don't know. Maybe it's a chew toy?"

"Call 911! I'm being attacked by a Troll!!"

I hope they make your day a little bit brighter. I know they did mine!
3 days and 13 hours until Seth's plane lands.. :)
Oh and did I mention I need this Spring Break???

I love Fridays!

So my Fridays this semester are amazing! Really, my schedule this semester is pretty amazing! I NEVER have class related things on Fridays and, with the exception of two weeks, I do not have class related things on Monday! I have lots of things due on Monday, but never anything that I have to actually do on Monday. I love this semester. I'm pretty sure next semester is 2 days of school and 3 clinical days each week, so I'm going to enjoy today and not think about August 2010...

A little excitement about me. You can skip this part if you'd like! I finally was proud of myself running yesterday. Starting last Spring Break I ran 4 miles 3-6 times a week, depending on the week. During the summer I ran 4 miles 6 days a week!! I was in crazy shape and loved the way I felt AND the way I looked. Then nursing school started and I was only able to run about 3 days a week, 4 if I was lucky. Then during finals week, something went very wrong with my foot and it brought me tears to run on it. I guess I'm just a big baby because the X-ray showed nothing and they called it a sprain but gave me some antiarthritis drugs! My foot stopped hurting as bad and, in the middle of February, I decided I was going to start running again. I've ran about a mile and a half probably 2 times a week since then and yesterday I ran 3 miles!! I was so excited! I know that none of you care about this, but I had to type it out because I'm so glad that I am capable of running again!

I went and say the Phantom of the Opera last night with the Leadership Institute! It was AMAZING! Before last night, I had never even seen a movie, play, or read the plot line of the story! My roommate Grace is a crazy fan and plays the piano/keyboard, so I had heard the music a lot, but never knew the story! I adored it! It made me laugh and even made me cry! I was scared at times and overjoyed at others. The perfect kind of story! I would highly recommend it if you get a chance to go!

Now on to wedding updates... We're having a lot of difficulty finding a church/chapel to have the wedding in. We keep running into brick walls. We're going to go look at University Baptist Church for sure next Monday when we go look at the Marquis on Magnolia. UBC has a chapel that seats 250 and seems pretty perfect because you have to get on McPherson Avenue to get to the Marquis on Magnolia (I always look for signs that something is right). However, they won't put our names on their calendar until 6 months before. Members and family of members can put their names on the calendar 12 months before. We're planning a wedding for the first weekend of June, which is usually a high volume wedding time. AND the church will only book one wedding a weekend. SO I'm afraid to go look at it and love it and then someone take our weekend.

However, I think we should go ahead and look and have it as our first choice if we love it and default to something else if the worst happens. Broadway Baptist church has a pretty sanctuary that seats 800 that we might go and look at, just to see and I think we need to go look at the Robert Carr Chapel, too. I'm pretty sure we could get all of that done in one Monday.... Right?

I just wish all of this would just fold together perfectly. I guess if I didn't have to work for it, it wouldn't be as rewarding.

Now I have to go do school work.. JOY. Big test next week and a 10 page paper before Spring Break can actually start! I'm so ready to be out of college!!!!!