Quirks, Oddities and Random Facts: Part I

Everyone is weird in their own way. I love that we're all unique individuals. Someday, I'll be long gone. I don't want my posterity to only know me as a name. I want them to know about my oddities and random life events. This list is a work in progress... but it's a start.

-- After I have a cough attack, I have one giant sneeze. Then it's over.
-- I talk in my sleep all the time.
-- I don't like drinking "old" water. I'm convinced that it makes me sick. So each morning Paul has to dump out the water from the night before and get me fresh water while I nurse.
-- I love high heels. I don't wear them for very long because they start to hurt, but I love them. I even wore them when I took my drivers license test when I was 16.
-- Planning is a must. I plan out everything.
-- I hate losing. It's not my fault. I'm pretty sure it's genetic because everyone in my family is a sore loser. I've gotten better since marrying Paul... but I'm still really bad at it.
-- At night I always run into the bedroom, jump on the bed and jumble up the sheets until I get beneath them.
-- Cuddling is my favorite. Paul knows that if I lay down and face my back to him that he is expected to snuggle up.
-- I've been hand washing dishes for the past few years (I can't wait to have a dishwasher...) so I have perfected the art of using the minimum number of dishes.
-- My feet are always frozen. For this reason, I LOVE wearing thick, fuzzy socks in the winter.
-- I only like ballpoint pens. Those glidey gel pens are terrible!
-- My clothes are hung in color order and the DVDs are in alphabetical order.
-- Bargain shopping is my forte. I love a good deal.
-- I start listening to Christmas music in September. Don't judge me! I usually only do it when I'm studying or stressed out because he makes me feel so happy.
--  When I get hot I get really grumpy and won't let anyone touch me.
-- My short AND long showers are 20 minutes. It doesn't matter how hard I try. It's always 20 whole minutes.
-- I'll eat anything Pumpkin. It' so yummy!
-- I won't go into the ocean unless I have swim shoes on. Crabs and living things creeping around in the ocean scare me.


And now a few about Paul:

-- Without fail, he takes at least 65 minutes to get ready! We are working on this...
-- Talk about ticklish. I can't even give him a foot rub without reducing him to spasms.
--  He is a morning person. Like, wake up and be to work at 6 am, kind of morning person.
-- Paul is very particular about the way cords are wrapped up.
--  He refuses to sleep with socks on.
-- Paul bought a 54" TV when he was single because "He knew his wife would never let him"
-- Even though he stopped gymnastics 12 years ago, he can still do a back flip. It scares me every time.
-- When Paul is toasting a bunch of bread, he'll go back through and flip over all of the pieces of toast to keep them from condensing on the plate and getting soggy (Weirdo).
-- He is really good at cutting up large amounts of fruit and he can cut REALLY thin pieces of cheese. These talents frequently come in hand.
-- Cell phone belongs in the left pocket, keys in the right. Always.
-- Paul has an uncanny ability to remember numbers. Whether it's an address or a telephone number he can retain it til he's done with it.
-- If he's been somewhere once, he can probably get there again without directions.
-- He has always wanted long hair but knows he never will.
-- Paul is a deep sleeper; I practically have to yell to wake him up. Vince, on the other hand, can wake Paul up with the smallest peep.

Hilton Head & 4 Months

At the end of August Paul and I went to Hilton Head Island, SC with my family.

2 parents, 6 of 7 children and their spouses (minus 1) and 15 of 16 grandchildren. That comes out to a grand total of 28 people-- two of which are pregnant. 28 of 32 family members. I can hardly believe there is a house that fits all of us! We used up every square inch of that bad boy.

Hilton Head is very different than the Outer Banks of NC, which is where we usually go. In OBX, the ocean drops off and gets deep fairly quickly. Whereas HH stays shallow for a LONG time. It wasn't as fun to play in the ocean because waves barely existed-- but the trade off was seeing a ton of wildlife: starfish, sand dollars, horseshoe crab, string ray, a (dead) shark, alligators, frogs, turtles, snakes and a lot of freaky bugs.

We also rented bikes for the week. The sand is packed down and hard so you can bike right on the beach. Paul and I also biked around one of the bazillion golf courses. Paul, my dad and my brother Hans made it out to one of the courses to actually golf. They got turned away because Paul wasn't wearing a collared shirt! He had to change before they let him play. They are serious about their golf at HH!

My favorite part of the week was the very last night. A majority of us gathered around to sing hymns and talk. I surely do love my family.

 

A few days after we got back home, Vince hit 4 months of age. This has been my favorite age so far. He is happy on his own but still loves to cuddle. He talks, laughs and barely cries. He sleeps through the night and eats like a champ. He isn't a fragile baby any more... but he isn't a toddler that is getting into everything. Life is bliss right now. 

We recently started a bedtime routine. It concludes with us singing a song to Vince. Sometimes he is so tired that he just screams til you put the paci in... but some nights he'll "sing" along. Cutest thing EVER. I can't explain just how much we love this little boy. 

 

 

M.I.A.

I apologize for my disappearance during the month of September. 

I promise that Vince still turned 4 months old-- even if I didn't post about it. 

(Don't freak out, I WILL post pictures soon)

We also went on a trip to Hilton Head at the end of August. 

Pictures to come on that as well.

So where have I been?

The hospital.

No, I'm not sick.

(Well, that's sort of a lie)

I have been busy racking up clinical hours at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center.

UVRMC has been good to me.

I'm working on the 6th floor-- aka Med-Surg.

My preceptor is an adorable pregnant lady.

She grants me a lot of freedom, which makes me feel legitimate.

Her baby is due in early December, but her first baby was early.

Thus, I'll be done with clinical in early November.

Can you believe that?!

Basically, in ONE month I'm going to be finished.

I can almost taste the freedom of being done with packed 12-13 hour clinicals.

Now, don't get me wrong--

I love the nursing program.

I love learning and improving my nursing skills.

I love working with loads of different people and helping them recover

...

but I miss my baby all day.

During my pregnancy I would constantly fret about how I was going to be a mom AND be a nurse.

I hated the though of "throwing away" my education.

Oh man, things have drastically changed since Vince came along.

There is nothing more fulfilling than being a Mother.

I come home from those long days and can't wait to scoop up my baby and shower him with all of the kisses and love that were put on hold while I was gone.

As much as I love helping my patients during some of their greatest challenges,

nothing is better than nurturing my son and watching him grow.

I would have loved to quit the program when Vince was born,

but I couldn't justify it.

My life was too blessed and circumstances were too perfect for me to quit.

Paul's job is extremely flexible so he can watch Vince when I'm gone.

My Mom came out for 3 weeks when he was born to get me through Spring term and she is here again for an additional 3 weeks to help me through Fall Semester.

Vince is an angel baby. 

He sleeps well, eats well and is a happy camper.

With all of these blessings and my belief that getting an education is important...

yeah, there is no way I could have quit.

It isn't easy, but it will be worth it.

Although it is possible that I will never work, I will always keep my license up to date.

I no longer view this as throwing away my education.

Instead of caring for patients, I will care for my children.

I will use my skills to patch up scrapped knees.

My empathy to heal broken hearts.

My focus on safety to prevent broken bones.

My priority planning to fit 28 hours of stuff into a 24 hour day.

My disaster preparedness to stay calm in times of trouble.

My leadership skills to uphold decisions and discipline even when my kids talk back.

My teamwork skills to teach them how to implement ideas, solve problems and take turns.

The list goes on and on.

The blessing of a child has increased my understanding of the importance of Mothers.

Life moves at a different pace and my priorities have changed.

As I strive to be a better mom, Vince changes me into a better person.

I had no idea that life would be so different.

At first, it was tough to accept.

Now, I wouldn't have it any other way.

My Ramblings.

-- Dreams are so weird and can feel so real. Let's just say I was glad to wake up this morning and have hair on my head.

-- Speaking of hair, the dreaded "all of your hair falls out after pregnancy" started happening. It took almost 4 months to start...I thought I had dodged the bullet. Looks like I thought wrong. Darn.

-- When Paul and I leave Utah, I am going to miss seeing Ruth, Ben and their sweet families. It has been wonderful having siblings close by during my college years.

-- Last night my fortune cookie said, "If you want something, you must earn it." After I read it I complained and said I didn't want to have to work hard this semester. Later, when I thought about it again, I was ashamed of myself for having an aversion to hard work. Work is what shapes people and allows them to grow and reach their potential. I am determined earn my BS in Nursing instead of using motherhood as a crutch to blame when I'm too cowardly to try.

-- I watched way too much TV this summer. I blamed it on having nothing to do while nursing, but then I didn't turn it off when I was done feeding Vince. Basically, I wasted a lot of time and I regret it. Now I'm trying to leave the TV off when my Little Man is awake.

-- Going back to school seems so have knocked me out of my lazy rut. Slowly, I can feel motivation returning to my body. I'm setting new goals and moving forward.

-- We're in the process of moving Vince to a 4 hour feeding schedule. Holy moly. I LOVE IT. Who knew that dropping one feeding could be such a life changer? I feel like I have time again. Vince stays awake long enough that I can go out and run errands if I need to. Then he sleeps longer so I can be productive and get my schoolwork done before he wakes up.

-- Last night was the first time a thunderstorm scared me. It was loud and I was too drowsy to think straight. But by some miracle, Vince slept through the entire thing. Man, I love that kid.

-- Paul is so giving. This semester is crazy; it's full of 12 hour clinicals, class, random nursing conferences, test, etc. All while trying to manage a baby. I feel selfish, but Paul's work schedule is now revolved around my little world. I am amazed by the love and support he shows me. He watches Vince and goes to work at odd hours and never mumbles a single complaint.

-- There was a spider in Vincent's crib and it freaked me out. Now I'm scared to put him to sleep in his own bed! Stay away from my son, you nasty spiders!!

-- Calorie counting got a lot harder when school started. Uh oh...

-- I really enjoy reading the Ensign and watching past devotionals.