Oh Yeah, WHAT IS GOING ON???

P.S. Miranda and Corey and the girls spent the night with us Friday night and around midnight Miranda decided she needed some Claritin for sneezing, etc. So we drive to Walmart to procure said Claritin and on the way home guess who gets pulled over for no right tail light? That'd be me!!! Needless to say I had a full blown anxiety/anger attack. I'd really like to be left alone...just sayin' :(

What's Going On?

Today it is official...I am now a day shift person, having completed my orientation at Bethany and worked my first 7A-7P yesterday.  I will be working 7A-7P on Saturdays and Sundays and 3P-11P on Wednesdays for now but I hope that changes to 3-11 on Mondays soon so I can go to church on Wednesday nights, so be praying that happens for me quickly :) I am off today but I woke up at 5:15AM this morning and then immediately went back to sleep!  Getting up at 5AM for work has not been easy on this night shift girl who has always been a night owl but I KNOW being off nights is going to be much easier on my body and I am soooo blessed for that! But going to bed at 9PM just makes me angry! LOL But I like my new job a lot and hope I continue to enjoy it.  I tend to like most new jobs during the learning curve (i.e., the Ambulatory job) but then kinda drop off and start to miss the ER. 

My new job is very fast paced with a 3 1/2 hour medication pass as soon as the shift starts.  That entails giving a multitude of medications, nutritional supplements, eye drops and everything else they need to 22 elderly patients who have just woke up and want to get up in the chair or go to the bathroom or eat right now! That has been quite the challenge for me but that is good because I seem to enjoy the challenges of the work world.  Guess that is what drew me to the ER for so long and I must admit I am already looking back at the ER with misty-eyed nostalgia.  But not to worry, I recognize those days are gone forever and will look for the best in my new job, which includes being easier on my body, better hours, and the opportunity to take care of some very sweet elderly people who deserve highly skilled, experienced nurses to care for them.

I have had some trouble admitting to others that I now work in a nursing home.  Nursing snobbery, I suppose, but it is a grieving process that I must work through.  My body has let me down (translate: I am too old to work in the ER anymore) and I have left a career that I did well for many years plus I have finally figured out one reason I loved the ER so much.  I am a very manic person at times and working in the ER burned a lot of that mania off.  Without that outlet to burn off some of the energy, I am a little wild right now (AND I have not smoked since 8/4)  but I am working hard to make the trade offs work in my head and recognize how blessed I am to be alive and to be physically and mentally complete, although some might argue with that! LOL 

So other than work what else is going on?  Let's see...Tracy got a job at Bethany, too!  Yay, we can ride to work together some.   Autumn is starting to work its magic around middle Tennessee.  My container gardens have made a huge comeback after I completely cut most of them back to nubs and fertilized them, which is kinda sad because now winter is gonna end them again.  Miranda and Corey went to Vegas and now are home safe and sound.  I started and hope to complete a crocheting project. The Jones sissers came and stayed a few days with us.  I got new tennis shoes, a new sewing machine, and new Hello Kitty mirror from my awesome husband and...well, surely some pictures are worth 1000's of my words :)

Autumn leaves that have fallen on the Greenway path.

The Greenway is in full bloom with beautiful autumn wild flowers.

My mums are thriving!

Here is a plant that was "dead" when we got back from Illinois and I cut it way back and added some fertilizer and in a few days it was just beautiful!

I just love this picture of Miranda and Corey...aren't they cute???

Two Jones sissers on the kid crack known as Netflix and Cheetos...I am such a bad Granmama LOL

The youngest Jones sisser having a sink bath :) She is the sweetest little baby ever!

The yarn I bought for my "crochet along" project I am doing with Miranda...but I have gotten a bit intimidated by it because I have discovered I really don't know how to crochet and I am having some trouble ridding myself of some old habits but I am gonna try to get back in it and complete the project because I just LOVE this yarn!!

New walking shoes...

New sewing machine (!!!!!, isn't it awesome!)

New Hello Kitty mirror...I have the sweetest husband on earth.  I have admired this mirror for over a year and he got it for me "just because" :)

I know, I know, this picture is sideways but I couldn't resist posting it because Lexie and Harper picked peppers and flowers from my garden and decorated this chair for me and Tracy :)  How beautiful, just like they are!  Life is good, God is good and love to all!

Time Flies

Well, once again it's been awhile since I've posted. I have been working and sleeping, all the stuff I did on night shift but now I'm with the majority of the world instead of constantly out of sync :)

We got some crazy rain over the past weekend, close to 4 inches, and Honey Run Creek is absolutely gorgeous! The temps have cooled down tremendously and it feels like fall has arrived. Tracy bought me some mums today and they are another good indicator!

I made my first chili of the season a few days ago and it was tasty. Love those earthy, warm fall flavors. Can't wait to make a pot of soup or stew!

Here's a picture I took during last weekend's rain...the picture doesn't do the scene justice because the camera had no zoom (iPhone!) but the foreground was dark, dark, dark and the trees in the background were catching the golden glow of the setting sun and they looked as if the were on fire. Remember those trees are still green...but they look golden yellow in the picture! Amazing!

Going to sleep now. I'm a day shift person now and midnight seems VERY late! Lol. Love to all :)

P.S. Using a new ipad app to post and it's got my pictures out of order and they aren't with the text they belong to but hopefully they will work out the bugs because I love my iPad! Sorry!

Writers SHOULD Write...

Wow, a week since I last posted but it seems like yesterday!  My body and mind are in a bit of shock from all the recent changes...I am now on day shift doing orientation for my new job so I have been getting up at 455AM, which used to be a good time to go to bed.  My morning routine has been pared down to bare essentials and I have about 35-40 minutes to get out of the house and out on the road.  So I am a little frazzled in the mornings and then get to drive to Nashville! YAY! (not) But I must admit my drive is not that bad because Tracy picked me out a wonderful route and the traffic isn't bad and I have not had one panic attack...oh yeah, except for the speeding ticket I got on the way home my first day!  Apparently the speed limit on Briley Parkway from I-24 to I-40 is 45 mph!  On a four lane divided highway the speed limit is 45 mph!  Who knew?  So as everyone flew past me, I get pulled over.  Oh my gosh!  I didn't really have an anxiety attack, more like an anger attack!  I just could NOT believe he was going to give me a ticket! But he did and he sucks!

Another change I am going through is the total shift of gears from ER to a nursing home.  Don't get me wrong:  I am loving it so far but I have gone from acute care microwave cooking to long term crock pot cooking and I have some adjusting to do!  But so far so good and I think this could be the perfect mix for me...it is fast paced but no constant "life and death" and there is time, lots of time to get things done.  Tracy has applied for a job there so pray he will get hired there and we can work together!  Also my schedule did not work out like I hoped and I will be working every Sunday and Wednesday for the time being, so pray that changes real soon so I don't have to miss much church!  I love our church and want to go there often :)

Latest cooking updates:

Carrot bread with dates, raisins, and walnuts!  Awesome!

Homemade healthy pretzels!  (Unless you eat the whole batch in one sitting)

(I didn't but I was tempted!)

Once again homemade and yes, healthy Egg McMuffins!  Yummy, cheap, and easy to eat on the go in the mornings! 

I haven't sat down and worked on my book in a LONG time.  My own mottos are "Writers should write" and "Just write."  After deciding the other day I needed to write for awhile,  I thought of a few things I needed to do first:

*  Wash the sheets

*  Go to Sonic for some tea

*  Go to Kroger for PAM cooking spray

*  Wash dishes

*  Clean the kitchen cabinet

*  Start a Christmas project

*  Make the bed with the clean sheets

*  Do Pilates

*  Make my lunch for work

*  Work on a Mod Podge project

*  Fix supper

*  Wash dishes again

*  Water the garden

*  Take a crummy picture of a little frog with my crummy phone

See his cute little feet...

AND...(back to my list)

* Color this yak...

Hmmmm, I never did write but I got a lot of other things done and made a lovely page in my 

Smash Book!

 Oh well, love to all!