Always grow. Grow all ways. All ways, always.

Yesterday I bought the January edition of Oprah’s magazine, which I wouldn’t normally do because I think it’s expensive for a magazine. But the reason I did was because I saw in the top right corner the words ‘Eat, Pray, Love…and Then What? An exclusive excerpt from Elizabeth Gilbert’s inspiring new book’. And BOY was I excited. I have been waiting for her next book for so long! I loved her last book; it really spoke to me and opened me up to an idea of what God can be that I was comfortable with. So I’ve been very eager to hear about her thoughts of marriage and how her and her husband are making theirs work.


When I read the excerpt there were two ideas that really stood out for me the first was that she actually made an honest list of her top 5 faults, I found this inspirational! How can you possible work on improving yourself if you aren’t honest about your faults and if you haven’t faced them? Just based on my nursing background and how much we need to reflect on your practice in order to develop further, and provide better patient care. I think in order to continue to grow as a person, once must also reflect upon themselves and their life. Always grow. Grow all ways. Always, all ways. This is something I feel I should do too. Then she shared it with her then fiancée, which I think was brave and open. What a great way to start a marriage, with a conversation about who you are, both the good and the bad, and not to hide anything. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a relationship that is beyond the point of deal breakers?

The second point in the excerpt that really struck me and actually made me sit back and think WHOA. It’s so simple, yet I’ve NEVER thought of a relationship being like that before! What a great way to clearly look at a person and know whether they are a match for you or not. In the book it states that Elizabeth asked her husband Felipe how he could still love her after sharing her list of faults with him. To which he explained that anyone can fall in love with the best parts of someone, it’s by looking at the not-so-great parts of a person that you see whether those flaws are something you can ‘work with’. I think when we don’t do this we can easily fall into the habit of creating a partner in your head that only has these great qualities, rather than actually seeing them as a whole and accepting that. A great quote from the book states that “there is hardly a more gracious gift that we can offer somebody than to accept them fully, to love them almost despite themselves”. After all, nobody’s perfect! God knows I’m a prime example of what a hot mess can look like :)

I hope to reflect upon myself and make a list of my faults in order to learn from it to improve myself. And I want to share that list with Mike so we can communicate about it and so he can encourage me too. I also want to be able to truly reflect and put into organized thought why I love Mike, I’d like to have a better answer than ‘I do because you’re wonderful’. So that’s what I’ll be working on, along with studying for my exam that I have tomorrow night – wish me luck!

Thought I'd add some wintery photos, just for fun! In case anyone doesn't get to see this out their back door.

Some things from my life right now

• when I left my moms I forgot Brady's food there (he eats raw) and I have to drive an hour (one way) to the store to get it, so I'm just making extra fish and rice tonight and he can eat with us ;) Which I'm sure will make him gassy
• every time I cook rice I spill it all over the counter and floor
• my wiper blades decided to stop working for some reason during my drive, which gave me some rage
• getting prescriptions filled annoys me - just give me like a year's worth because I don't want to keep coming back
• I have a laundry pile taller than I am
• I got to see my step neice or nephew in a sonogram pic last night
• we didn't eat at the dining room table tonight because it's coverd in folded laundry, my laptop, textbooks and papers
• I'm drinking wine while I write my paper, hoping that helps me - verdict is still out
• I'm sick of school
• aaaand I need something chocolate

What's YOUR day been like??

*Tree of Enchantment*

This year is my and Mike's first year living together, therefore our first Christmas together and I'm quite excited for it! I think it's going to be a great year filled with visiting family and some friends. We got an artificial tree because...well I wanted one!

My brother is allergic and so growing up we always had a fake tree and I have such happy memories of 'putting together the Christmas tree'. On ours growing up it was basically a metal pole and all the branches were colour coded so you just had to match up the colours. I loved doing this with my brothers.

Also, an artificial tree ends up costing less because you only buy it once. It doesn't have any mess. Nobody will have a reaction to it. AND most importantly you can have it up WAY longer! Its an all around winning situation :)

We started out not having any Christmas tree decorations at all, just the lights which come already on the tree. And I was okay with that - I knew that throughout our years together (hopefully there are many) we would gather decorations that mean something to us, lots of memories and keepsakes from our lives. One night we had Mike's parents over for dinner and his mom suggested that I put up the extra (and old) candy canes that I had from baking on to the tree. I loved this idea! It looks great and it was free - I love free and thrifty  :)

Then Mike and I decided to go to Hallmark to pick up an ornament that celebrated our first Christmas together. I have a slight obsession with Hallmark :)

I also remembered that my very best friend gave me a beautiful glass ornament (this photo does not do it justice AT ALL). It sparkles and shines off the lights and is so pretty - I want about a hundred of these! The colours on the globe are all fall colours and it comes with a little tag that explains it all:

Enjoy the magic of the seasons with this beautiful

glass ornament. Like the trees in a forest, no two

are the same, and each is a symbol of growth,

strength and the cycle of life. As the seasons

change so does nature's colour palette.

How nice eh? The ball she gave me is autum which says:

The fiery ambers of Fall bring to mind a magical

sunset on a cool Autumn night. The trees explode

with colour just before a Winter Slumber. 'Look

too closely and you may just fall into your own

fairy tale'.

AH! I just LOVE this ornament. And I'm happy to have a symbol of the wonderful friendship I have been so lucky to recieve.

The last ornament that we have Mike's sister bought for us. She saw it at the hospital she is doing her placement at and thought of us and bought it. She brushed off my thanks saying that it was just a cheap one, but it means so much to me that she was so thoughtful - it doesn't matter to me how much it costs. I will always treasure the gift of thought from his lovely sister! Who I am thanful to call a friend as well :)

Believe me, Brady is not as tortured as he looks in this photo! He hates having his picture taken. Too bad for him that he's just so stinkin cute :)  (Lastly, I could not find spell check for this post for some reason so please excuse my mistakes. It's probably right in front of me and I can't see it for lookin!)

School has taken over my life, and I want it back!

Only 5 more weeks of classes and clinical, then I go into my exams!! I can't believe it! It still doesn't feel real. I think I'm trying to not get myself too excited, just in case something comes up or I fail a class and won't finish school this year. So far, everything is okay though! Hopefully it stays that way :)

My mom sent me this quote in an email the other night. You know when you hear the EXACT thing you need to hear at the EXACT moment you need to hear it? Well this quote was that for me. I was knee-deep in completing my assignments and was feeling quite overwhelmed with it all and didn't think I would get it all done. I love how moms just know sometimes :) They are amazing!

Do not be impatient with your seemingly slow progress. Do not try to run faster than you presently can. If you are studying, reflecting and trying, you are making progress whether you are aware of it or not. A traveler walking the road in the darkness of night is still going forward. Someday, some way, everything will break open, like the natural unfolding of a rosebud.



Vernon Howard, 1918-1992

Don't Ya Just Love The New Look??!

Cause I sure do! Yay! I think it looks fantastic! I am totally loving the colours too. OH and that adorable little owl divider - I'm melting over the cuteness! And I feel quite proud that I was able to pull off even putting that in there successfully  :)

Today is POURING rain here. Along with occaisonal hail and thunder. Oh its also FREEZING!

We've been putting off turning on the heat, because well its only the first week in October, but alas we could not fight it any longer. Well I could have, I'm happy to bury myself underneath blankets and layers. But Mike had enough and turned it on. I really think Brady appreciates it, he's actually laying on top of blankets today rather than underneath them. It's nice to see his sweet smooshy face some more  :)

A sort of embarassing tour of our bedroom

I have a HUGE list of things I want. If only I had the time and money! I can't wait until next year when I'll actually be working and will actually get to stroke some things off of my list :D

So, one of the things that I think we need is a bedroom set, art, and decorations for our bedroom. It is seriously pathetic and looks like a high school boy lives there. We are still using Mike's set that he had in high school, which explains the teenage boy look. Not sexy or romantic at all. I did splurge on some new bedding, which I LOVE! So that is exciting!

Just look at this depressing sight!!

Everything looks empty in our room because of the lack of art and nice decor.

Empty right? And yes the room's a mess, and yup that's Brady in bed. Also, excuse the bra sitting there. Ahem. Moving on!

So, yes. I can't wait to cross a nice dark wood sleigh bed set off of our list of things we need. Hope you enjoyed the tour of our messy boudoir!

Changes!

New blog name - my nickname(mostly when I'm grumpy). And a header, that is huge. Excuse it for a while until I figure out something better :)

Growing Up Is Hard To Do!

Now that I'm living with my Man-Friend life has gotten so busy. I miss the days when I was younger and summer meant that I was free.

To do whatever I wanted. I could sleep in. Watch as much TV as my heart desired. Play outside. Run through the sprinkler. Go swimming. Play inside. Eat as much as I wanted(and not gain a pound). Eat homemade Popsicles.

My summer this year has been filled with working at a job that I do not find fulfilling or challenging in a good way. I do it for the money, which is nearly impossible to have not show up in my work.

Every weekend has plans. Weddings, showers, camping, bachelorette gatherings, work, vet, school.

I have found that there is never enough time.

Time for dishes and cleaning and cooking. Quality time with my Man-Friend. Spending much needed time with friends. Visiting with my family. Giggling with my niece and watching her change and grow. Time to focus on school. Soul searching. Learning to take better photos. Doing crafts, knitting and sewing which fill me with happiness and satisfaction.

When did it all get so busy?

Part of me wants to embrace this life I've got and appreciate that I have so many things to do and so many people in my life that I should really be thankful. And I am. But another part of me wants to run and hide and go back in time to when I was truly carefree and acted on a whim.

I'm ready for fall to come. For order to be restored. Life to slow down. Have more time for the things I want to do rather than have my time filled with things I have to do. Fall means new beginnings and old routines. Which makes me happy...

Just a Couple of Pictures of Brady

Cause He's so stinkin' cute! :)

Feeling rather cheeky

I Just love this picture of him!But this cannot possibly be comfortable for sleeping!

Random Updates, Again.

Wow. Has it really been since May 24th since I last posted? Guess so. Anyways, lots has happened since that time:

I have finished my third year of nursing (AKA the worst year of my life) and I'm happy to report that I passed all my classes! I'm taking two summer courses, one online and one in class. The end of school is getting closer, I can actually see the light now and I'm getting really excited about that.

I moved! Yes, I moved away from home (1hr and 15min away to be exact) and into the small town that my Fella lives in. I am loving this change for many reasons, getting to be around him much more without having to pack bags and travel, Brady gets walked about 4 times a day here since the yard isn't fenced in so he's happy, and I love the small town community here and getting to know people better because I can see them more. Mostly, I'm quite happy to have the opportunity to get to know the Fella's mom better. I've spent a lot of time together with her and have enjoyed it so much. I was so nervous around her still after almost two years, but now I feel so much more relaxed and I'm so happy about that, as is the Fella.

I haven't gotten a job here yet, I've been putting out resumes all over town, and the one next to it and the one next to that(to total 20 min apart HA!). I finally got a call-back and have an interview tomorrow morning!! Wish me luck, I'm super nervous.

Today, as the Fella was cutting the grass I noticed that it looked like it was snowing outside. We don't know exactly what this is, but there is tons of fluff out there! I thought it looked funny that he was cutting grass while it appeared to be snowing so I tried to take some pics of it, but failed. Here are my sad attempts, you need to look closely to see what I'm talking about. Seriously, when I have the money photography class here I come!

Also, I'm going to try a running clinic in the fall! I'm nervous and excited about this as well. My friend is going to join with me, which makes me feel better about it. I know I'm going to be the worst one there and probably won't even be able to run for 10sec, but I'll still try it and hope that I learn to love running. I'm hoping that I can tone myself up and perhaps lose about 15 pounds. We shall see how that goes!

Do You Ever Think?

Today I was looking through the shed at Mom's house at the bookshelf full of books that I used to love. I have always been and will always be a reader, I love to read. I also love to reminisce about the stories and the pictures in them. And for some reason it makes me really excited to have my own children that I can read my favorite stories to.
I found this book and had to laugh out loud because of the poem I loved and memorized as a child. I swear I was a happy kid, but this sounds morbid to me now LOL.

Do You Ever Think?
Do you ever think when a hearse goes by
That you may be the next to die?
An undertaker tall and thin
Digs a hole and puts you in.
All goes well for about a week,
And then the coffin begins to leak.
The worms crawl in. The worms crawl out.
The worms play pinochle on your snout!
They use your bones for telephones
And call you up when you're not home.
Traditional American

(Photo from Amazon.ca)

Quick update

Ahh Things have been so busy and I have failed at blogging again. School is starting to end for the semester so there is lots due.

Today I had the first bridal shower for my friend. I'm a bridesmaid in her wedding. It was so much fun! I took pics with my camera and I'm surprised and happy with how they turned out. There are actually more good ones than grainy/dark/crappy/out-of-focus ones. Success! I will post them soon.

I'm moving in with my Fella next weekend. WHAT! That came up so fast, I can hardly believe it! I'm feeling super excited and super nervous. Although, I know I truly don't have anything to worry about, I still do it. I'll make another whole post about that soon too!

Oh, and my tummy is feeling much flatter, I've lost 11 pounds, and my pants are baggy right now. VICTORY IS MINE!

LC Braid FAIL.

I am so not skilled in doing my hair all pretty. I need a live-in hair dresser, and eyebrow waxer. That would be amazing. I can't do anything with my eyebrows either, and I swear they grow so darn fast!

I basically can put my hair in a messy bun, make it curly using gel, mousse, and hair spray(which I don't like doing because it's far too much product and it goes all stiff and wet looking, which only confuses the residents at my placement), and I can blow-dry and straighten it. I wish I could have hippy hair that just naturally looks amazing without any styling. You know, the long hair with the loose wavy curls in it. I'm growing my hair out right now, maybe it will magically turn into hippy hair when its long!

I used a new product in my hair today, and so far I'm liking it. It's Bb Bumble and Bumble, some sort of curling lotion or something and its quite nice. My hair is so soft and light feeling while still being curly. I borrowed my moms and I might have to purchase some of my own after I get a job this summer when this semester of university is over, among all the other things on my ever-growing shopping list.

To Clarify...

I am NOT having a baby!
The pictures from my last post were just of me bloated from IBS.
I've been noticing that certain foods cause this reaction, so far:
-red meat
-nuts(as seen in the pics)
-cheese or dairy(I think, not quite certain yet)

I have a secret....

...nuts make me bloat!

A Very Special Piscean

I found this today on Wishcake's twitter and I thought I would try it. My description is SO accurate its scary. Apparently I'm a true-blue Pisces!

Emily will never grow up, and nor would we ever want her to. It is Emily's ability to be innocently fun-loving and childlike that makes her so endearing. Emily last name is extremely clever and sophisticated. There is, after all, a very big difference between being childlike and being childish. Emily is open minded, unselfish and able somehow to approach each new day with a spirit of real, fresh inspiration. That explains why Emily enjoys life so much and it also explains why other people, looking at Emily's life from a distance, cannot understand why she enjoys it so much. Those of us who know and love Emily find her enigmatic, mysterious or even downright baffling. We can't help liking her, but nor can we quite manage to work out where she is at, where she is coming from, what she is up to or what she is in to. Emily's tastes and preferences are what some people would call eclectic, others would term unusual and most folk would classify as 'just plain weird.' Emily, though, is consistent in her inconsistency. There is method to her madness. Emily is interested in - even fascinated by - so many strange, different topics and subjects because Emily is such a natural experimenter.

Emily doesn't need to travel the world in search of variety. Emily can wake up one morning feeling quite sure that she is one particular kind of person. By the afternoon she will be someone else. Her personality will not change, her loyalty will not waver but her mood will evolve allowing her to explore, enthusiastically, ways of behaviour which only a few hours ago seemed unattractive. Thus Emily last name creates a world in which there is constant variety and excitement. Boring people, who like to follow life's laws to the letter and stick rigidly to one fixed plan find Emily hard to handle or even to relate to. People with a sense of adventure, a sense of imagination and, most importantly of all a sense of humour, cannot get enough of Emily's company.
Here is the website its from - website.

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Sunday!

My long lost blog...

Geeze Luigi I'm bad at blogging! I read blogs and twitters daily, if I have time. But I appear to be super lazy about writing a blog post. I'm going to try to be better at this! Here's an update on things I've been up to.

***

School. Its been very busy and frustrating. Murphy's Law continues, I don't understand why. But every little thing that can, has gone wrong. Or at least been a huge pain. This week coming up is mid-term week so its extra hectic. I commute two hours to school and just over an hour to clinical for four days each week and its getting really tiring on me. I don't have anyone to commute with, so its expensive and exhausting. Also, OSAP angers me beyond words, only tears. I hate you OSAP.

***

The boyfriend and I have decided to move in together. Which means I'm moving over an hour away to the country! I'm so excited for this. I think it will be great for me to have a new beginning in a fresh town and learning all about how they do things up there. I'm also excited to move out from home. I love my mom so much, and I probably couldn't do anything without her love and support, but I'm so ready to be out on my own!

***

I've been battling stomach issues for years. I constantly have an upset stomach and is always worse when I'm stressed out or anxious. I have IBS. It got so bad for me since I've started school. Every day I come home and my stomach is so bloated that I look about 7 months pregnant, I'm not even exaggerating one bit. My stomach will be rock hard and hurt so much. Then on top of that I started getting daily, all day, nausea and heartburn. So I finally broke down and asked my doctor for something. She gave me ranitidine, which helped for a bit then all my symptoms came back and now she gave me prevacid, which I think after about a week may actually be working. I am so thankful for this. My stomach has gone almost flat(except for my chub of course) and is pain-free. HALLELUJAH! I seriously will not miss the old ladies from the nursing home at my clinical coming up and rubbing my belly because they think I'm pregnant. Not at all. It is so embarrassing.

***

I'm about to become an AUNTIE EM for the first time! And I could not be more excited. Hopefully the little one(I know the sex but its a surprise) will be here tonight or tomorrow! Mom and I held a baby shower for her(my SIL) and I think it went well. I took some pics, but of course I'm still attempting to learn my camera and I had it on the wrong setting and didn't adjust it, so they are all grainy. I was mega disappointed. So I only got a few that turned out from my camera, and they are not really of the baby shower at all! My eleven year old cousin came over early because she wanted to help. Yes she is tall, taller than me.

***

So, these are some of the things that I've been doing. Hopefully I will update and create blog posts much more regularly in the future! Off to have a blissful(really not, I'm doing homework and studying for mid-terms) Saturday night alone watching movies, eating chips and drinking root beer(these things are all true though).

PS. I find posting and moving around pictures so annoying on this thing, it never works the way I want it to, that's why the pics are in weird places, I just couldn't get them to move and gave up. But I thought they were cute. I don't know if its because I have a laptop without a mouse or if I'm not doing it wrong or am just plain bad at it. But I find this blogging thing difficult. I need to take a class or something.

You motor-boatin son-of-a-b****!

Movie trivia anyone?




This is Jake. He is a cat. He is black and white. He is also annoying. He comes to sleep with me when I'm having trouble sleeping. He probably thinks this is nice of him. He's wrong. He licks himself a lot(which is loud in the middle of the night). He has the LOUDEST purr - ever(again, probably amplified during the night). I call him purring a motorboat. Jake runs his motorboat a lot. Like all night.



Its a good thing he's cute.

Brady's Love For The Boyfriend.

During the strike from school(three months long in total), I spend about 2.5 weeks at the boyfriends house. I absolutly love being there, it feels like home. The town, the people, his family, and of course him! He lives over an hour away from me right now(which will be changing in the summer!!! can't wait) so any opportunity to spend more than 2 days together we jump at.

Brady is another reason I love going there. He also loves it there and seems so happy and content. Probably becuase there is no fenced in yard like at home here so he gets walked 3-4 times per day rather than just once a day at home. Also I think Brady prefers to play and wrestle with any man over me. I think I'm too gentle for his liking or something.

So anyways, when I met the boyfriend, he was not a dog person. My first thought to this was Oh Dear, this isn't going to work. But he tried SO hard to become a dog lover, I was sooo impressed and touched with his effort. Not only to accept Brady, but also accept the little ways that I spoil Brady - he will even pick him up when he takes him out because Bradys little feet get too cold. Ah! My heart melts. Brady has also weasled his way the boyfriends bed, under the covers. And the cutest thing of all is that when he doesn't think I'm listening I can hear him baby-talking to Brady! Adorable.

While we were staying there during the strike Brady began to wait for Mike at the door everyday starting at 5:15. I think Mike really got to love seeing his excited little face every night. Here are some photos I took of him. Sorry for the quality, I'm still learning how to use my camera!

Random Thoughts for Today

Most days I wish that I could focus all my time and attention on loved ones and on doing nice things for others. It always feels so good to do a little something, even as small as a nice compliment for someone to help brighten their day! I hate having the feeling that there is never enough time to devote to this, although I guess its something that we should always strive to be better at.

Every day, I wish that I could spend all of my time with Brady. I love being so close to him that I see so many sweet tiny moments and mannerisms and goofiness and frito-smelling feet that I know nobody else will ever get to experience. Although at the same time, it also makes me kind of sad that the whole world doesn't get to see all of his wonderfulness. Not sure if that's a word, but it is today.

Here are a couple of completely embarrassing photos of me and Brady. I'll share them, even though I look so terrible and they are dork as all get out.

Teaching him to 'kiss' is by far the cutest thing I've taught him. He just presses his lips up to yours, no tongue. haha Adorable. I love my boy!

Slacker.

So I've been super lazy in posting anything lately, but I can blame school! After three months of strike we were finally allowed to go back. Which means tons of homework. Luckily I had a couple things completed during the strike, so that helped. And may I just say that group work stinks. I wish they didn't make us do it. So here is my homework list for the next two and a half weeks:

-ethics presentation(just need to email all the info due to lack of time)

-statistics assignment(seriously the hardest thing I've ever attempted doing. Makes me feel so stupid)

-ethics paper

-theory of nursing paper

-study for stats exam

-study for lab test and for an exam

I was supposed to go away this weekend with Mike and his friends to his parents cottage, but I had to cancel due to this huge workload. Which stinks. We don't really do anything for valentines, but I'd rather be with him for it than with my textbooks and computer. I feel like we are the only people who don't do anything for valentines. People act so shocked to hear that we don't and some even say 'oh you should make him do stuff anyways!'. My friends don't always give the best advice! I mean I certainly do enjoy the treats and chocolates and such, but I just can't get into it. MM I'm craving valentines treats like nobody's business now. Darn.

So yes, that is what's new with me. Off to type until my fingers bleed! Oh and a pic, because every post needs a pic!

Winter Woes and Spring Wishes...

I’m a winter person. I love winter. I prefer to be cold than hot. I like being able to layer clothes on and feel cozy. Somehow winter reminds me of being a child, and I love anything that makes me feel that way. Nostalgic. I love to curl up on the couch to watch a movie with a hot tea (my absolute favourite beverage, I drink entirely too much of it) or a hot chocolate, with a big warm blanket on my and Brady at my side, curled up under the blanket of course. I think this is a Boston Terrier trait. He can sleep all night long under my duvet, I have no idea how. I hate having my head or face under the covers, but apparently he loves it. Also Christmas is my favourite time of year. I just love the feeling of it. My sweet boy enjoying some sun that we finally got last week.

I do not ski or snowboard. I do love skating (haven’t been out this year once even, pitiful). And I do love to go for walks. I love being outside in the winter and coming in with pink cheeks. I love coming in and smelling something cooking, dinner or cookies or cake, something like that. I can’t go for long walks with Brady this time of year because he has what I call, and ‘fair-weather feet’. We cannot make it very far before the poor fella is lifting his feet and wanting to be picked up. Let me tell you, it's tricky when he is a large 30 pound guy. It doesn’t really sound that heavy, but he really feels it. I think I need to take up a winter activity, like snowshoeing. I think I’d really enjoy it. To be honest I’m afraid to even try it because I think it would be extremely difficult due to my out-of-shapeness.
I’m ready for spring. This is not usually me. But I am. Everyone that I talk to feels this way. Maybe it’s because there will be some changes in my life come spring. I should be finishing my third year of university(strike depending), which means I’m finally in my last year, which means I’m so close to being finished school. I will become an Aunt for the first time! Auntie Em. I can’t wait. The thought of a sweet little baby coming into our lives excites me so much, but at the same time makes me wish that I lived much closer to my siblings. I should be lucky that I live 1.5 hours away from them, but it feels far and plans must be made in advance to get together. I wish I lived across town from them and could just stop in or have them come over for dinner without having to plan a month prior. I suppose that’s just the way life goes. I feel fortunate that I'm still close with each of them, despite the distance and can talk with them about anything. So that is certainly something to be thankful for.

Just rambling.

My school has been on strike now for three months. Its extremely frustrating and makes me want to quit. I have my RPN and decided to go to university to get my RN. Many people around me suggested that this was the way to go. That school debt is good debt and don't worry, you'll have it paid off in no time. I struggled so much with the decision, because I know that I don't want to be a normal nurse. I do not want to work on the floor. The thought of having to do more 12 hour shifts scares me. Not because I can't do them, but I won't live at home forever and I don't want to leave Brady or my family(hopefully I have one) that long. I don't want to work nights either. The job I want, is something that is Mon-Fri, 9-5, desk chair me. If I could find an administrative job that is related to nursing, why I'd be the happiest girl EVER. Why did I go to school? I was looking on the job postings page on the Sickkids website and all of the admin jobs required an RN level of training. So I'm hopeful that I can find a job that I love out of school, but I'm extremely nervous about whether I will or not. I also know that I want to be a stay-at-home mom, when I eventually have children.
So ya, it already feels soooo far away that I will actually graduate(April 2010) and with the strike that day is getting farther and farther away. I want to quit because I feel like I'm not getting anywhere. I feel like my life won't truly start until I'm done school. I don't like my life while I'm in school, I'll be 25 in March and I still live at home, don't have a job, live off of my parents, have large debt, and have a bf. This could easily explain some sort of 18 year old stoner or something. I am a crumbum and I hate it.
I'm writing this to avoid writing a paper. I have three that I could have completed during this blessed strike. But when we go back, will the assignments just be thrown out? That's the tricky part, we don't know what they will throw out and what they will make us do. Or they may change the assignments altogether. I know I should just get them done, then if I do need them they are already completed and I won't need to stress, but OHHHHHH the procrastination. All I really want to do is watch movies and do crafting things. If only I had a passion for papers like I have a passion for scrapbooking, photos, knitting, and sewing....
The teachers voted yesterday and today on whether to accept the latest offer and the union has been telling them to vote NO. So it sounds as though this strike will continue. While the strike hasn't really affected me personally too badly(because I can live at home rent free and commute for 2hours) I feel for the people who it affects deeply. The people who have rented apartments or the people who travel for school will suffer from this. There is a rumor that the school is offering UP TO $100 for reimbursement. Gee thanks. Meanwhile, cheap rent is like $1000 in the city! Crazy.
Anyways, that's just whats on my mind today.

Nothing much to say.

I'm going to attempt a picture in the place that I want it to be..according to the help provided by Sohobutterfly. Thanks again for the help!!

I went to a church this morning that I have never been to before and I really loved it! I was surprised. The pastors(two of them) were both great and were able to keep it lively so that you could pay attention the whole time. A nice change from Mikes Catholic church, which I find totally scary and uncomfortable, to my moms BIC church, which has THE most boring pastor on the planet. I've had a desire to find a church that I love and start attending regularly. I've been a holidays-only church attender previously. I was never baptised and was not raised with any sort of religion. So I figure that its a great opportunity to find a religion and a church that I feel 100% comfortable with. I may have found it! But there are quite a few other churches in town that I would like to visit as well, to see how I like them.

So ya, thats about all that is new with me. My school is STILL on strike...we are at week 10 or 11, something like that. While I've been completely enjoying having nothing to do, I just want to get school over with. It needs to begin for me to do that! I'm very eager to be finished so that I can start making money. I desperatly want to SHOP. haha I miss shopping so badly. AHHHhhhhhhh The life of a crumbum student. One day....

YAAAAY I totally got that pic to move finally!!!