and the winner is....

Jill Williams! The name 'Margo' was selected by an unbiased person!

You will be happy to know little miss Margo is doing well. Getting fat and feisty!
Thanks for your participation in the name suggestion and selection for our new addition!

Stay tuned...you never know when there will be another contest! :)

a new addition needs a name

That's right! We have a new addition to the family! A sweet little girl!

A little girl goat that is! And she needs a NAME! Our mama goat Gretel surprised us with a baby this morning! We went out to feed them and there in the middle of the pen was this sweet little baby goat! I am not a big fan of goats, my other half has them for some reason.... but I AM a fan of the babies!

So...I need help coming up with a name! I'll run a contest until Thursday, March 24. Leave a comment and a name suggestion. Winner will receive a $10 gift certificate for Mary Kay. To be used on my website or in person.

She's pretty cute!(sorry if you were looking for an announcement of my pregnancy.... no such thought of an announcement exists at this time.) :)

Friday Firsts

And another Friday Firsts posted on Saturday. Oh well. I have GREAT intentions on getting them on here on Friday...just hasn't worked out thus far!

Thursday was my first day on the hospital floor...as a NURSE! The first 6 hours are a blur! It took me sitting down and eating lunch to kind of loosen me up and reassure myself all will be OK! I CAN DO THIS! Friday I was a lot more comfortable....yet nervous. Each day will get better and I will fall into my role a little more each day.

Friday was the first time I accessed a port. If you don't know what a 'port' is... here's a link that explains it! Pretty nerve wracking experience because you can't see through skin...but one that I will do millions of times in this career with my patients. Just open a new page and copy and paste the link into your address bar at the top.
http://www.allina.com/mdex/ND2301G.HTM

Finally, I came up with my first motto for why I do what I do.... plain and simple.

"I HATE cancer....but I LOVE my cancer patients!"

Friday Firsts

I'm 24 hours late on this...but I didn't feel like staying up late to post the fun activities for Friday Firsts.

Here are a few activities which happened for the first time this week:

Tuesday I bought my first two pair of work scrubs and shoes! We have to wear navy or white. I can handle that! I look good in both! :)


Friday I rode Jake, my horse for the first time in a quite a few months. But this time was a little more relaxing...for the first time in 2 1/2 years I didn't have the constant reminder of school in the back of my brain. I wasn't constantly thinking 'get the ride over with because you have hours of studying to do!' I COULD RELAX AND ENJOY MY RIDE!

Friday night was the 'Father/Daughter banquet' at our church. It was the first one for Justin and Aubrey. My dad is visiting us for a week and just happened to be here, so I was able to take MY daddy to the banquet as well! It was a nice 'date' night for Aubrey and I with our daddies! Enjoy the pics! (My daddy isn't in the pic! He's the photographer...but we did get a 'professional' photo together at the banquet, no worries!)

Friday Firsts!

And the winner is my friend Courtney, from back home in Indiana! If you missed out on my contest below, you should keep a close eye on the blog...I throw out a contest here and there for free MK loot! Courtney won herself a yummy Brown Sugar/Vanilla hand cream! Thanks for your input Courtney!

The new name for Friday's on my blog is 'Friday Firsts'. I won't have one EVERY week, but I know I will have a lot of 'firsts' coming up in the next few months and years! Between my new job and Aubrey growing up, there are a lot of 'firsts' to come!

So to kick this thing off, we actually had a 'first' this week! I decided since I am starting my new career on Monday, Aubrey and I needed a special day together. We went to the mall, Build-A-Bear and ate at Chick-Fil-A. This was the FIRST time either of us had ever been to Build-A-Bear! I told her we were going so she could make a teddy bear to sleep with and have with her when I was at work and she missed me. We came away with an expensive, yet well worth it bear named 'Sweetie'. And they ARE best pals! Enjoy the pics!

friday's contest

Two posts in ONE day...CRAZY I know! But I need your help... some people have a 'Friday favorites', 'Friday's finds', 'Fridays ______' and they post fun things on Friday. Why Friday? I don't know, maybe it's because it's the last day of the week and Saturday gives us more time to look at the fun from Friday. Maybe we are SO excited Friday is here, we just putz around on the computer finding things. Whatever the reason....occasionally I would like to post something fun on Fridays. But I need a catchy title. This is where your help comes in. I have a yummy Satin Hands Hand cream or a flirty Lip gloss waiting for you if you can come up with the best catchy title for my Friday! Leave your comment/idea below and I will pick the winner by next Thursday, so it can appear Friday! :)

For the first 'nameless' friday _____ I want to highlight the book 'I Love You This Much' by Lynn Hodges and Sue Buchanan. It is one of Aubrey's favorite books I read to her almost every night at bedtime. We have memorized most of it and can quote it to each other, at least the main 'chorus' if you will. If you have a little one, will have a little one or know a little one, this book is great! The first year of Aubrey's life, when I sat and read it to her, I could hardly get through it without crying! Maybe it was the insane roller coaster of post pregnancy hormones, maybe it was the overwhelming love I have for her, whatever it was....it made this book my favorite to read with Aubrey.

deal is sealed!

The deal is finally SEALED! March 7th is the official day of my new job as a nurse! I will be working at one of the largest Hospitals in the area as an Oncology (Cancer) nurse, part time, nights. Nights isn't my top pick of hours, but I'm a graduate...I'm bottom of the barrel. I have to start some where and maybe nights won't feel like being 'thrown to the wolves' in my new career!

I'm excited, scared, nervous, sad and in wonder of this next new chapter....

Excited - this is something I have worked insanely hard for the last few years. FINALLY all of my time, dedication to studies, paperwork, tears, exhaustion, stress and lost time is beginning to pay off! Excited to see what lies ahead!

Scared - I am scared to death to step out into this new avenue of a career! It's not like I'm sitting at a desk filing papers and taking phone calls. I am responsible for people's LIVES! AGH!
No pressure.

Nervous - there are always a good amount of nerves that accompany each of us in any new endeavor. If there weren't nerves involved, there would be a problem and we would be WAY too confidence in ourselves.

Sad - these are my last days as 'stay at home mom'. But really? Have I ever been considered 'stay at home mom'? I think being out of school and solely focusing on being a stay at home mom would drive me to the funny farm! I need things to do and scheduled time away. What better thing than to schedule my time away to take care of people and love on them?! But sad that this cherished time is over and will cherish even more, the time I get to spend with my family.

Wonder - I am in deep, anxious wonder as to what I will experience in the next few years! I am in awe that God has brought me this far and I am actually able to carry out His plan and feel peaceful about it. I wonder what kind of mistakes I will make and learn from? I wonder what my patients will be like? I wonder where this new status will take me in life...and possible around the world?

I am so excited to begin my new journey March 7th. So stay tuned for updates!
(No, this is not me, nor anyone I know in the picture...i just love the 'old school' style!)