Farewell, Senior Care

Tomorrow marks my last day at Senior Care in Nevada.

13 months. It seems as if I just started and now it's ending.

I'm glad to have gotten my nursing start there. I learned a lot about myself. I learned a lot about the elderly/geriatric population.

I truly will miss it. I will miss some really GREAT co-workers. CNA's work HARD and are so under-appreciated.  Never having worked as a CNA, it truly opened my eyes. Thanks to all the great ladies (and the few brave guys) that work so hard to take care of the residents. Thank you for helping me along my way.

We lost residents along the way. Some were there just a day or two, others for years. You get to know them, care about them, want them to do well. You know the family and grieve with them when their loved one passes away. You remember them fondly when flowers come from the funeral and the family drops off the funeral program.

I will miss the residents. Some have taught me more than I thought I could learn from a resident in a nursing home. I would like to say I have more patience with the general population based on my experience. Some residents absolutely drove me bonkers. But they worm themselves into your heart and makes you sad when they take a turn for the worse or pass away.

Relationships between married people is a different dynamic when one or both is placed in a nursing home. They drive each other crazy being confined to such a small space together, but it absolutely tears you apart to watch them grieve for a spouse of over 60 years. The smiles, the friendly name-calling, the ones that grab your hand just for a little more reassurance......

If I ever end up in a nursing home, I hope it's similar to Story County Senior Care. The CNA's and nurses truly care about each and every single resident.

Thank you, Story County Senior Care.
I'm glad to have known you.

I'm still here!!

Many days I thought I should write a post, but then never did. A lot has happened...

March 4, 2013 I started as an RN at Mary Greeley Medical Center here in Ames. I am working on the behavioral health unit. I was hired mostly for the adolescent side, but will be trained to work the adult side as well. It's so different than what I am used to at the nursing home. I am enjoying every minute of it so far! I'm working nights, 3-1130, which is a definite shock to my body! Once I am done with orientation, I will be part-time and work about 24-32 hours/week.
April 13 is my last day at the nursing home in Nevada. I'm sad, yet excited for this new opportunity where I can grow in my profession.

Isaac starts soccer tonight. He's been talking about it for a while so we took the plunge and here we go! They will have games on Saturdays and in 2 weeks, I can go!
He is still enjoying Tae Kwan Do. He now has 3 stripes on his white belt and we plan to let him test for his next belt at the end of the month. Last week, he was moved up to the older kids class, so that is encouraging!

The weather has been whacky lately. For like 3 weekends in a row, we had snow. This past weekend, rain. I am hoping spring comes soon since I am itching to be outside!

We went to Blue Man Group last week. My sister and I took Isaac and he loved it! He laughed a lot and was just amazed by the show.

Over spring break, Isaac and I went to the Science Center down in Des Moines. We saw the giant T-Rex and also went to an I-Max movie about dolphins. We also went to my parents for a day. And then I worked 2 of the days and was sick another.

I am still reading and trying to keep books out of Scout's mouth. He's eaten 2 movie cases and now a book from the public library. He also ate a book from Isaac's school library. Crazy dog is 11 months old today and so darn big!

Both Sophie and Scout have decided if you are going in the car, so are they. Only, Scout can't or won't jump up into a vehicle. You have to give him a boost and he is already 60+ pounds!

Today, I went and bought our summer pool pass. Can't wait for summer and lazier days!