These Words WIll Be Written On My Stone

On Facebook the month of November is notorious for two very obnoxious themes. #1 women complaining about the significant men in their lives growing beards and mustaches for Noshember, Moshember, No shave November, or whatever else you choose to call it. Who really cares though? Facial hair is downright manly and super sexy if you ask me (as long as it's not all year round of course)!

Then there's the 30 days of thankfulness that oh so many women participate in. I'd be lying if I told you I loved these posts-or even if I told you I liked them at all. But I don't. I actually kind of hate them and I'm not really sure why because I truly am glad everyone has so many reasons to be thankful. Maybe it's because from my perspective most people use Facebook as a place to complain about their everyday lives ALL THE TIME until November comes around where they spend one solid month stating the positives before becoming Negative Nellies all over again.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying I'm a model citizen for positivity. HA! A lot of times I'm so far from it's ridiculous but I'm working on balancing that out just a smidgen. Actually a big smidgen, and today is the day I have decided to vomit my thankfulness all over my blog :)

First off- I have a crazy family that keeps on growing. Family drama? Oh we have plenty of that. Death? Divorce? Breakups? Ours has our share of all that too. On the up side though-we are still adding to our family. Melissa brought home her boyfriend Mitch for the first time, our little nephew Ben celebrated his first thanksgiving and met his second cousin Parker. Then there was Derek's side of Thanksgiving. So many little ones running around playing with Derek and his brothers' old toys! We ate SO much great food, played cards, told stories, and laughed. And family and laughter, my friends, is the best reason to be thankful any and EVERY day of the year!

                   

Next chapter for thankfulness --have you noticed it's getting a little chilly outside? 'Tis the season to be thankful for a roof over your head, and walls, and warm clothes, and most of all HEAT! I personally HATE being cold so I say a little prayer of thanks that I am not homeless (especially this time of year).

Did I mention my friends? Most of my friends and I are so busy with our own lives, work, and other agendas that we don't always keep up with each other that well outside of social media. It goes without saying though that they are amazing. Sooo much comedy and just generally great people. Always there for me when I need them. They may not be the best (who is right?), but the best that I could ever ask for :)

I will complain until I am blue in the face about not wanting to go to work, or about a terribly rude/mean/crazy patient, or getting yelled at by doctors, patients, or family members. A lot of times I feel so over worked and under appreciated-crap this week I was so overwhelmed at work I literally went into the bathroom and cried midmorning! Regardless, this job makes me over-the-moon thankful. For my health (and that of my family's), a career that I am able to support/provide for myself and others, and for my coworkers. I may not always like being one, but nurses make THE BEST coworkers!! When you are overwhelmed they are right there to pick up your slack when you get behind, to give you words of encouragement during  difficult times, offer a hug when you are deeply affected by a patient's death or anything else that brings you to tears, and allow you to vent your anger that comes from a patient or doctor's words or decisions. For all this I am truly thankful.

On that note-I'm also SO so SO thankful for the patients that come along and touch my heart. The patients that are fiercely fighting for their health as well as their life. These patients seem to be the ones that are thankful, understanding, and extremely appreciative of everything you are capable of doing for them. One came along just this week and I can guarantee I will take her memory with me for years to come.

I'll end my "thankful" gab-fest with Derek. I'm thankful that he has chosen to spend forever with me and continues to put up with my crazy antics. He's supportive of any idea I come up with (and I do come up with a lot!), he listens as I vent about my day, he encourages me when I did something well, and he even joins in on my kitchen dance parties! Gosh I love him and am SO so SO thankful:)

If You're Not Laughing...Who Is Laughing Now?

While every one was out enjoying their Halloween party weekend I had the pleasure of working night shift. Now I'm not mad about it because to  be honest I'm not very big into Halloween and dressing up anyway. Call me a fuddy duddy if you want to but I just kind of suck at coming up with costume ideas. Oh- and it's always cold at Halloween time and I can't bring myself to wear a costume at the expense of my warmth. I think the last time I actually dressed up was some time in college. I wore a big warm man's flannel shirt, hot glued popsicle sticks together and held it in front of my face saying "Hi-dee ho neighbor!" every time someone came up to me......No one got it. Have you ever dressed up and no one got who you were? Embarrassing.

Wilson-Home Improvement

Anyway- this weekend of work was a regular old shit show anyway. I mean-not LITERALLY but it definitely put me in the holiday spirit. One patient would be sleeping but when I would tip toe into his room to give him medications with the lights off he would wake up and scream bloody murder followed by yelling some garble that made him sound like a pirate. My heart would stop and I would almost shit my pants. EVERY TIME! So, naturally I would bribe co-workers to go into his room to give him medications so they wouldn't miss out on such a spook-tacular opportunity. I'm pleased to say, he didn't disappoint. Meanwhile, patient B was threatening to spiral in a panic attack for no reason whatsoever. While trying to calm him down and telling him to think happy thoughts he very seriously claimed that if he did that he would "turn into Peter Pan and fly away and that's NOT something that I would want him to do!" Actually-I wouldn't hate seeing Peter Pan in person, and really at that point in the night, I would had given anything to escape to Neverland and get in a fake food fight with a bunch of the lost boys. Seriously. Bangerang!!

I can't say that Sunday night was one of the craziest nights I've ever had as a nurse but after hanging out with Peter Pan and a pirate it left me feeling pretty snarky. So after our morning huddle up with the day shift and our manager reprimanding us for swearing too much in the break room I had to get the F$%K outta there and hit the hay ;)  

On the positive: One of my favorite bands was playing a small show downtown. NEEDTOBREATHE is an amazingly talented band that definitely didn't disappoint last night! After I woke up and got ready my sister B and I headed downtown where we were able to enjoy a few de-stressing beers and dance our butts off to some great music! I only wish every Monday could end that well! #iheartmusic

We are the outsiders ;)

Very much so, thank you :)

                                                               

                                                         

Follow Your Arrow Wherever it Points

This entire week I've known that I need to write a new post because lets be honest...I'm well overdue. So lets see..where do I start? I should probably start by talking about my riveting weekend off that started with a shopping day with some of my favorite co-workers last Friday. Our co-worker Lia is a born and raised Californian that moved to Iowa last February with nothing more than a light jacket. With the weather drastically dropping in temperature, she was in DIRE need of some winter clothes ASAP. I would have to say the day was a success! Lia stocked up on long sleeve tees, sweaters, hats, and even the  mittens with "the cute little hats on them" --->

I got a few more long sleeve tees to fill my oh so exciting closet as well as a new brand new shiny pair of spanks for the winter while my glitzy glamorous co worker Melissa picked up a adorable sparkly cocktail dress with matching hand bag. From there it was on to happy hour at the newly opened Cheddars (throwback to the Oklahoma days) where we hashed over work drama, crazy coworkers, and general nursing stories filled with pure comedy before continuing to drink the night away.

Saturday was a pretty important day in terms of wedding planning. I drove to Des Moines to meet with my beautifully talented designer friend Amber to discuss my wedding dress. Yes- that's right. I'm not doing the big "Say Yes to the Dress" extravaganza. I'm doing one better (in my opinion anyway). My wonderful friend Amber over at AV Clothing Design  will be designing my wedding gown. After spending the day with her looking through wedding gowns and giving her the likes and don't likes as well as checking out fabrics that we like I couldn't be more excited for my wedding gown!

After stopping by the mall to meet up with our friend Kalli and her little one year old cutie, Amber and I went back to her place and made a duck tape bust in place of her just taking my measurements....to an onlooker it pry looked like she was kidnapping me but at the same time I felt like I was being fitted for my superhero outfit :)

My new super hero costume!

All it needs now is to be stuffed!

The great weekend quickly came to a screeching halt when I woke up Sunday morning with a running faucet for a nose, knives in my throat and a terrible cough. The first terrible cold of the winter is officially upon me. And let me tell ya, its a doozy.  Oh well, I digress---

You've got to take the good with the bad, smile with the sad, love what you've got, and remember what you had. Always forgive, but never forget. Learn from mistakes, but never regret.

Anyway- go check out Amber on Facebook and like her page! She has some really cool project in the works (I mean, aside from my fab wedding dress ;))


                                    Peace and *cough cough* blessings ;)

   

Ozzie Oswald

Today is a great day because today is my little nugget Oswald's BIRTHDAY!! Today my fur baby turns a whopping 3 years old, or in doggy years the BIG 2-1!!  

First ever cup of vanilla ice cream

Now I've never been very good at keeping plants or goldfish alive so today is not only the Oz-man's birthday, its very much a personal victory for ME! I've managed to feed and water a living creature nearly every day for almost 3 years, and have always left him in the hands of trusted friends and family every time I've had to/wanted to leave town and couldn't take him with me.

Isn't he freakin' adorable?!!

"Nugs" as he sometimes goes by, is by far my most prized possessions. Raising this little one has been a true adventure. Through all of the potty training woes, chewing up all his stuffed toys and cute doggy beds, as well as spilling the bathroom garbage and dragging it all over my apartments, and using my kitchen cupboards as his teething toy--he's always kept me on my toes and drove me to my limits. I don't know how many times I've been so frustrated with him I wanted to just chuck him over the balcony and be done with him!

 Even so, he's always been with me through every move I've made, he's been my comfort through the sad times, someone to get excited with during the happy, and been one of my favorite partners for my day time dance parties (he's got moves like jagger ;)). This little dude has been able to warm so many hearts with his quarky personality and I can NOT imagine life without him!!

...except when he farts.

birthday present collage

Oz and his new dog-car seat

Mini photo real:

Playing wore the boys out!

Attention whore-can't let mom work out without playing tug of war at the same time!

Loves spending time in Aunt B's room

Birthday morning sleepy eyes

             Peace and blessings ;)

So Wake Me Up When It's All Over; When I'm Wiser and I'm Older

This week I've had several things weighing on my mind and it may get kind of rant-ish. I've noticed since Derek and I moved into our new place in August that I've been losing a crazy amount of hair. I'm talking clog my drains, decorate the bathroom floor, wadded up in my comb, pulls out in clumps...disgustingly amounts of hair falls out. I've been through this hair falling out phase before...in college...when I was stressed to the max in nursing school. Stress apparently = major hair fall out.

So what's causing my hair to fall out? Why am I so stressed? I mean-We are all moved in to our new place, I've been at my job for over 8 months now and completely have the swing of things, and wedding plans are coming along smoothly (is there such a thing as TOO smoothly?!). Things are going incredibly well. So I've been thinking...

Since I graduated nursing school three years ago I've worked on 4 different type of nursing units, in three different hospitals (in three different cities), and have moved to six different apartments/homes. Kind of crazy huh? I guess you could say changing it up is kind of my thing. I usually don't like to stay in one place for to long....I get the itch to change things up and try new things...and looking back at it (and forwards), I think its because I haven't quite found the right fit. Nursing adds a level of stress all its own, but knowing in the back of my mind that it isn't quite it for me, yet I don't know what is goes above and beyond the stress of nursing.

The unknown=stressful. So, I've been searching and searching. Looking high and looking low. Spending any free Derek-less, Rebecca-less time looking and contemplating things I'd be good at. Whatever it is that I decide to do next I'm sure it will involve more schooling (school=stress). And maybe that's why I'm losing my hair. Or maybe its the fear of going to school to be something/do something and I end up liking even less than what I'm doing now?  AAAAAHHHH!!!! Decisions decisions....anyone reading this blog have any ideas for me? thoughts? comments? I mean-c'mon. Help a girl out before she loses all her hair!!

Speaking of school though---an Upworthy.com video that popped up on my newsfeed this week spotlighting the people who mold our minds into the educated people we are~>
Thank a Teacher

Which teachers would you thank? Several teachers that come to mind. But the one that sits at the top of my list is my high school Chemistry/Physics teacher Mr. Dralle. It's not the chemistry or physics lessons that I remember the most from him though. It's the life lessons that he took the time to teach us. His most valuable life lesson? "The world doesn't owe you anything." Are you broke? Get a job. Even if that means flipping burgers or cleaning dishes in a kitchen. You are not above it nor better than the people who do those jobs for a living. You deserve what you earn. Its your responsibility to make your way through life. No one else's.

I'm thankful for that lesson and do my best to live by it. I'm also thankful for every single bit of help I've been blessed with along the way. Sometimes I catch myself taking things for granted and getting angry that I don't have something someone else has and have to remind myself of this lesson. It's pretty amusing working in the service industry and how many people you meet that don't understand that concept. So, thank you Mr. Dralle~ you'll probably never realize the impact you've had on my life and I hope you're still teaching this lesson to your students!

Well that was fun....but my blogging partner looks  a little on the bored side so I best wrap it up for the day~

                                     Peace and blessings :)

Ladadadee We Like to Partee

When you graduated from college and entered the "real world" what did you start doing with your free time? I mean, if you had any free time here in the real world. 3 years ago I graduated college and entered the real world and found out without having any homework and study sessions how much free time shows up. Well thank God for Pinterest y'all!

Now I can't say I'm the most crafty or creative person; I'm probably not even that good of a cook or a home decorator, but that has never stopped me from trying my new recipe, or craft, or do it yourself-home-made this or that. And to be completely honest- lots of times they are total flops. Most recently, I found a recipe that I wanted to make for a sugar wax to remove body hair. This interested me because my eyebrows grow into caterpillars behind my big rimmed glasses without me realizing it, I can't stand tweezing my eyebrows because it hurts, makes my eyes water, and sneeze like crazy (I'm a big baby). I prefer getting them waxed but I'm always so embarrassed how hairy those creatures above my eyes are that I procrastinate and put it off....oh- and I swear a lot when I get them waxed which is SUPER embarrassing when it comes to being around new people and public (my cosmetologist friend Loren can attest-I swear like a sailor).

So-sugar wax it was...it's a pretty simple recipe (found here). Being my first time it took me a little longer than the recipe calls for to get the right color and it was pretty late by the time I wrapped the "making it" part up and opted for bed before it cooled. No worries though--with my rotating shift sleep schedule I was wide awake circa 3 AM and took it upon myself to try this sweet little gem of a recipe out....

Proof:Late night wax sesh:with myself.

Yummay!

An absolute sticky mess.

Who's the hottie with the caterpillar eyebrows and sugary stache?! Yowza ;)

Long story short? #pinterestfail, and my sugar waxing skills need work...and I still have caterpillar eyebrows....and Lo Lo Jones would probably be ashamed. Oh welp! On to the next Pinterest disaster...*sigh* I'm a mess.

                                                           Peace and blessings and happy weekend ;)

KaKaKaKatie

Yesterday was one of my very best friend's birthday. I would like to be able to tell you about how we spent the whole weekend together hanging out, going mini golfing or hiking, out to eat at a fancy restaurant, and finishing the night with drinks of champagne while filling the day with lots of laughter and great memories. Instead, I was 12 hours away sitting in my sweatpants all day thinking about her, how great of a person she is inside and out, how much she means to me, and how I miss her so so much (even though I just got back from visiting her a few weeks ago). 

Katie and I met in college. The summer before my junior year I applied to work at a slightly sketchy bar and grill that one of my high school classmates worked at at the time. There were some interesting characters that worked there and I always felt a little out of place every time I showed up. I can’t say it was the best life move I’ve ever made but it surely wasn’t the worst....because it’s where I met Katie. We became friends slowly over the summer and when I decided to apply to a more popular mainstream eating place she applied there as well and our friendship grew even stronger. 

By the next fall we became roommates and the Adventures of Sarah and Katie officially began. We’ve had our share of ups and downs--late night study dates that led to hours of youtubing funny videos instead, quizzing me on my notecards, the occasional “what am I going to DO with my life?!” conversations followed by the “You can do this Sar!” pep talk, running around the house screaming/trying to kill the centipedes we found crawling all over our beds/rooms, drinkscapades that ended in utterly embarrassing moments (i.e. chasing her around the house throwing anything I could find in my purse at her for talking on the phone/inviting an asshole of a man over after the bar), drunken cry fests, girls nights watching a marathon of chick flicks wondering if we will ever find someone to love us like the guys in the movies....you know the down right tragic lifestyles of single college girls. 

Since college this lady has remained my rock through all my terrible life decisions. She has always been my go to person with all my personal drama and without judgement she has been there to listen and give her amazing advice. I don’t know how many times I’d call her crying because I was home sick in Oklahoma and within a couple days I’d have a care package of things I love (kit kats, inspirational/funny books) with a card motivating me to keep going. Sometimes she’d go as far as driving the 9 hours to surprise me even if did result in a shattered window and stolen gps.

KTV (as we call her) is one of the most caring, understanding, compassionate people a person will ever meet in their entire life. Regardless of what she has going on in her life, she will drop EVERYTHING to be there for her friends and any one else in need. Last summer her golden heart pointed her towards Africa where she was able to spend 4 weeks touching the lives of (I’m sure of it) everyone she met. When she got back she went about selling almost everything she owned for enough money to move to Colorado where she finished her schooling with an internship in social work working with troubled youth. Now she devotes almost ALL her time to helping children through case work. Case work is not a job for the faint of heart. It takes someone with a ginormous heart--of which KTV surely has.

So what did this magnificent person do on her birthday you ask? Well she took it as an opportunity to recruit people to help the flood victims from a week ago. Duh-why would her birthday be about her? Of course she would spend her day/weekend helping others in need! My only regret is that I wasn't able to spend her weekend with her helping her celebrate it the way she wanted...do what she does best!

I have sooooo many KTV stories I could share on the blog (and some day I just might), but the one thing I wanted to share today was her incredible spirit and heart of gold. I am thankful every day (and twice on Sundays) for her friendship and that she chooses to keep me around because I’m the first to admit, I am far from worth it. If you read my blog and know Katie I think you will wholeheartedly agree, and if you haven’t met this amazing individual I recommend that you do. You will not regret it or be sorry.

                                                             Peace and blessings :)

Here's to the Good Times 🎶

How is it September already? I blame our crappy/cold spring, most notably the month of May for shortening the number of summer days we could enjoy to the fullest. BUT enjoy summer I sure did! It was full slightly stressful at times while filled with adventure, celebration, family, friends, country music, happy and sad moments, and of course, a little wedding planning! 

I feel like summer really started with our trip to Nebraska for my cousin's wedding at the beginning of June. Like I said before..it was a great weekend with family. I love weddings. I also love country music. Like- a lot. Oh, and beer! Summer nights drinking nice cold beer with people you love really puts me in my happy place. So imagine how I felt back in June when we had tickets to a weeks worth of country music concerts! 

Steamboat days is a town celebration of sorts where they have carnival rides and other events going on during the day ending every night with a concert. My older sister is relatively new to town so she invited us and my younger sister B down to participate in the festivities! Schedule permitting, Derek and I were able to make it to 3 of them (well, kind of). The weather was gorgeous the first day...until it wasn't and we got caught in a giant freezing downpour! We were soaked to the bone but that didn't stop us from getting our drink on when Florida Georgia Line came out and it. Was. AMAZING! I drank,danced, and sang my butt off! 

I recommend everyone buy tickets to FLGAL. Those boys really know how to put on a show! They will have you singing at the top of your lungs and dancing your tails off. Guaranteed. 

Friday nights entertainment was the magnificent Eli Young Band with the Saturday show being Kid Rock. Eli Young was as great as I expected, obvi. I want to be able to tell you Kid Rock rocked my socks off as well but we let the rain, thunder, and lightening get the best of us as we had already sat through a downpour once that week and were (at least I was) still slightly hungover from Eli Young. So, when the storm started while we were waiting we stuck it out for a solid hour and half before we decided the concert would be canceled for sure so we bailed. Soaked, freezing, and tired we headed to Walmart to find food to make and a movie to watch instead only to find out circa 11pm Kid Rock actually hit the stage. Ya know what though? I wouldn't trade any of it for anything! Every moment of that weekend was incredible and filled my happy tank!

Before the rain fell...

During a clearing in the storm and already soaked to the core...

Rain or shine NOTHING beats a summer country concert with some of your favorite people...so... Until next summer I guess ;) 

Peace and blessings ;)

Alright? Ok....Alright, ok.

I truly believe there is such a thing as the night shift blues....and I have caught the bug. Don't get me wrong- I LOVE working nights, for several reasons.

A. The work flow is MUCH more laid back (85% of the time anyway).

B. The co-workers have MUCH sassier attitudes--making for more entertaining conversations/stories/jokes

C. If you're lucky, the patients will be sleeping.

D. If you're patients have trouble sleeping, you actually have time to converse with them and hear their life stories, life lessons, etc.

E. The shift differential is SO worth it ($$$$$).

The problem is that sleeping during the day is never quality sleep no matter how many hours you are able to log in a day. This leaves a person feeling sluggish and very VERY caffeine dependent. Absolutely NO motivation for any extra activity other than sleeping, eating, and working.....leaving me feeling exhausted, chubby, gross, and honestly, kind of sad. BLAAH.

Don't worry--I work hard to kick these night shift blues on the daily. How you ask? haha Well...

1. I'm a huge quote freak. Quotes are so honest, inspiring, and easy to relate to. Here's a few favorites right now off the top of my head....or rather the easiest to get to from my computer chair :)

2. I LIVE for funny--

 Stand-ups such as Kevin Hart, Dane Cook, or Daniel Tosh on Netflix. We were lucky enough to get to see Daniel Tosh live in Cedar Rapids at the beginning of the month and I haven't laughed so hard in a LONG time. His pessimistic attitude towards humanity is disgustingly refreshing and right up my ally. 

Comedic sitcoms -Derek and I have been on a Modern Family marathon lately and I will be completely bummed when we finish Season 4. Sometimes in my mind I pretend I'm part of that hilariously crazy family and its comforting in a weird, maybe I should see a shrink about it? kind of way. I'm going to have to find a new sitcom to dive into here soon...any suggestions?!

Movies--I don't know what kind of funny you get into but right now I'm big on Melissa McCarthy, Vince Vaughn, Paul Rudd, Kristin Weig....I think that sums it up. It's always been a thing for me to dive into the world of a comedy when I'm feeling a little crummy. I am a full believer laughter is the best medicine. About a week ago we checked out the Internship in theaters and really really liked it. What are your suggestions?

3. Dance parties. Please tell me that I'm not the only one who partakes in my own dance parties? Well--I KNOW I'm not the only one because several of my friends partake in dance parties with me *cough cough, REBECCA, cough*!! Blaring dance music and dance like a complete and total fool cannot NOT make a person feel better if even for an hour or two. I freakin' LOVE dancing around the house like a fool....I've even gotten Derek to participate in mini dance parties with me...its priceless! 

Gun to my head-favorite person/band/group to dance off the wall to right now: Macklemore: The Heist. Download it and fall in love if you know what's good for ya. What's your favorite jam?

4. Therapy shopping. Usually either at Target or Hobby Lobby. Pretty self explanatory.

5. An old favorite would be day drinking with my besties. To be fair though this has happened less and less since college. Mostly because all of my besties live far away *sad face*

6. If all else fails....I nap it out!

Even though I'm rocking the night shift blues-life is pretty great. Work can be pretty stressful and hold a dark cloud over life but even though today may be a craptastic day doesn't mean tomorrow may not be the best day of your life so live it up, drink it down, and DANCE it out! I mean...AMIRITE or amirite?!