Gretchen wisdom, and more new Work info

Gretchen says to me, "If I make my eyes like this (she is squinting) I can see all the way to another country!"

So I worked my first shift Wednesday night. It was really different from my last job, I guess I assumed L & D's would be more alike. For those of you that know, here are some of the differences.
1. They are amazingly well staffed - and they think they are short.
2. They have a anesthesiologist and a CRNA on 24/7, a minimum of 2 scrub techs (and they are not cross over housekeepers) even at night - so nurses are not even required to scrub! If you WANT to, you can.
3. The delivery tables are set up by the scrub techs and have about six drawers underneath full of various supplies.
4. The room has virtually no supplies.
5. The charting is a nightmare - the strip and the charting are two different programs, and you have to use the mouse to click everything. Although one bonus is that the VS automatically chart.
6. The NICU team comes with an NNP to all C section deliveries, and then they take the baby and the dad to the recovery room to wait for you to come out from the section (and they stay and supervise!). However, they don't do anything like baby meds, or measurements.
7. Recoveries are TWO hours - this is really lame 'cause I had perfected the one hour recovery. Of course since I have to do all of the baby stuff, I may need it.

That's about it so far. It was super overwhelming and annoying because I feel like I should know what I am doing and I feel like a new grad! I was hoping to avoid the new grad feeling forever! I'll keep ya'll updated on the invigorating new experience (this is said with my eyes rolling).

What I have learned today. . .

Gretchen's feet actually do grow faster than her hair! (We are continually accepting donations for new shoes, which can of course be made out to me in check form, or cash!)

If you are as coordinated as me and can manage to toss shredded cheddar all over the kitchen, vacuuming it up will then cause your vacuum to smell nasty with each subsequent usage. (If, however, you are priviledged enough to have the awesomest vacuum ever - a DYSON - a quick solution was found after I made a brief phone call to the company!)

Vacuuming is indeed difficult with a 2 year old hanging on your clothes.

It's amazing what one can learn on any random Monday.

New job! Welcome to the rest of the world. . .

So we came home from Cali on Sunday night, picked up my mom from the airport on the way back into town, and I started the new job Monday morning. Gratefully Grandma was here - she has been an awesome nanny/maid/cook during the past week. Orientation sucks! Let me say that again, ORIENTATION SUCKS!!! It is so dumb, they could make it at most one day and still get all of the necessary info in.
Anyway, it will be nice to have a second income again, and I am Jonesin' to start an iv. Wierd, I know - only you nurses will understand!

One thing that has been a big shocker is the variety of folks that are orienting with me. Probably only half of the group of 40 are from Arizona. They are from all over the country, and one from India. I had no idea Phoenix was such a melting pot! It is interesting to get to know all of them.

One thing I have been immediately grateful for is the gospel. I hear them talk about their lives and their stresses and I know that if they had the gospel it would change things greatly. This is such a difference from working in Utah, where it seems like 90% of the staff were LDS. It's a change in life that I am trying to adjust to - it brings a different set of challenges. I appreciate the diversity, but I also worry about my kids and the environment they will be growing up in. It is hard to describe the situation while also being politically correct - dont' any of you take offense! There are loads and loads of fabulous people who are not LDS and many LDS folks who are not fabulous! I am just still working on the adjustment. I miss Utah and all my family and friends. More than I thought I would . . . .

LAGUNA '08!!

We had sooooo much fun at the beach! We met up with some family and spent 8 days just kicked back. I'm pretty sure heaven is just about like that! Sleeping with the sound of waves crashing, spending the day sun tanning and swimming and frolicking in the sand and ocean (mostly only Chris in the ocean - it was only 57 degrees!) and very little cooking and cleaning! And of course surrounded by some of the best company around! The weather was darn near perfect. We were quite blessed on this trip. And did I mention that the drive from our house is about 5 1/2 hours? I'm pretty sure that might make the move down here worth it!


The amazing view from our hotel room - I think Superman made it to our hotel!


We rented bikes and rode along the Newport Beach boardwalk. It was so fun! We got some tandem bikes and I thoroughly enjoyed making some "brrring" bike bell sounds, and then Spencer's fog horn. Oh man, I haven't laughed that hard in ages!
I think this was my best 'action' shot from the trip. This is my nephew Spencer - if anybody wants his number I think we could work somethin' out!

Our hotel room deck at sunset.

We also got to do some visiting with Bella and Hannah, accompanied by the Adler grandparents and Jayme!
Pretty sure Thatcher's favorite activity was throwing rocks in the tide pools! That and anything that had to do with Katie!
Awwwww. So sweet.

While the trip was soooo awesome, it had to end, and I of course left in tears. It was so fun to have people to hang out with! I miss my sisters and lunch companions! The 5 1/2 hours seemed a lot longer going home than going there.

Welcome Back!

So we spent a FABULOUS week in Laguna Beach with some family and friends and have now returned back to the ho-hum. I will share some beach photos and stories later, but for now a quick update on the home front.

My mom was kind enough to fly down Sunday night for me to start my new hospital orientation - this whole week 8-5. It's so amazingly exciting I can't stand it (my eyes are rolling as I say this in a really bored voice). So Gretchen had 3 full weeks off of school - fall break followed by the vacation - and the first morning back was with Grandma instead of the usual, yours truly. So apparently they get about half way there, Grandma pushing Thatcher in the stroller and Gretchen riding her scooter, and Gretchen decides she doesn't want to go and drops her scooter and starts to run home screaming. As Grandma tries to catch her! I couldn't help but giggle as I heard this! She ran back home and after many threats and pleads, Chris had to be called. He gave her a 'talking to' over the phone and she promptly was driven to school. Chris now gets to take her for the rest of the week! This might be heart breaking as a mother if she hadn't already exhausted all of my sympathy!

Today Thatcher apparently spent a fair amount of time crying at the window looking for mom. That's sad - I hate this stupid hospital orientation. They manage to make you feel like a complete idiot - I had to guide a blindfolded man around the halls for 5 MINUTES without using any words, and without him knowing what I was doing. Honestly people.

After eating out for dinner tonight, Grandma asked me, "Do you think you'll ever have an easy child?" That's a good question. What am I raising here? Hopefully we haven't worn her down entirely at the weeks end. She may be ready to say farewell to us until next month!

Circle K doesn't suck

I have to take back everything I said about Circle K. They opened a new one up the street and had a grand opening. They had blow up bouncy things and free hot dogs and drinks and treats. The kids loved it! Not only that, they have a drink and slushy selection that rivals the QT. Not to mention they always seem to have cups!

After the morning of fun at the Circle K, we went to a Safety Fair at the QC Marketplace. They had old cars and an old fire engine and new stuff as well. The kids got to sit in a rescue helicopter, and we watched as they lit a car on fire and then put it out. They also did a demonstration of the K-9 unit and how the dogs attack a "bad guy". That was pretty fun, and Thatche was in absolute heaven with all of the "Woooo, woooo" (that's how he refers to fire trucks, you know, the siren sound) and the "gco, gco" (his helicopter sound). Here are a few pics




I keep laughing at Gretchen. Today she asked me, "Did you come home before you went to bed?"

So it's a good thing I laugh, cause she and the boy are fighting like cats and dogs. I keep yelling and yelling, but they just keep yelling. What's the problem here? I just don't get it.

Oh, and by the way, I was gone last night for about 2 hours playing volleyball with the Relief Society and Chris once again chopped off my little boy's curls! He insists his hair was too crazy, but I have an inkling he doesn't enjoy all of the women ooohing and ahhing over his beautiful hair!

More Funnies.

So today Gretchen said, "My eyes are kinda allergic to sun today."

Yesterday Thatcher was sitting at the table yelling at me, this usually involves, "MOM! MOM! MO!" - aka more with a very loud voice. So I looked at him after about 5 yells and said, "What, Thatcher? You want some dip?" cause he is always requesting "dip" with everything, like ranch on tacos, ketchup, italian dressing on enchiladas, you know, the usual. And he says, "Mo hice" - aka more rice! He speaks! It is still typically grunts, especially to get Gretchen's attention, but let's face it, Gretchen is pretty hard to say. Maybe he is a Canadian at heart, spewing forth, "Eh? Eeeehhh?" with increasing volume and exaggerated pointing.

Again. . .

Honestly, who is in charge of this child?

Sunbeams?

This is courtesy of Aunt Trudy:

A new intern, who had never lived in Utah and knew nothing about
Mormons, was struggling to understand the cultural climate.
He was interviewing a new patient and stumbled upon what he
thought was a raging psychosis.

Doctor: "Well, Mrs. Olsen, we've talked about your high blood pressure
and your medications. Are you experiencing any particular stress in
your life?"

Patient: "Oh, yes! It's the Sunbeams. They're driving me crazy."

Doctor: (Very surprised) "The sunbeams."

Patient: "Yes. I've never had trouble with them before, but this group
won't sit still. They bounce all over the room, and run out the door and down the hall."

Doctor: (Reaching for a pen) "Have you told anyone about this?"

Patient: "Of course. I told the president."

Doctor: "Really! What did the President tell you?

Patient: "She said Sunbeams are like that. I'm just going to have to
learn to deal with them."

Doctor: (Concerned that he may be missing something) "I know people
who are sensitive to sunbeams. Do they cause you to rash or anything?"

Patient: (Confused) "A rash? No."

Doctor: "What's the biggest problem they're creating?"

Patient: "It's the noise. They just won't quit talking."

Doctor: (Astonished) "The sunbeams are talking to you?"

Patient: "Well, yes. But mostly to each other."

Doctor (Scribbling furiously in the chart) "I see. Can anyone else
hear them talking?"

Patient: (After a moment of stunned silence) "You're not LDS, are you?"

Gretchen funnys

So the other day we are driving and Gretchen asks me about those blinking arrows telling you to merge and change lanes. I explain that they are telling you to scoot over because people are working on the road. She replies, "Cause if you don't follow Jesus, that's breaking the rules."

She is trying to carry toys from one room to another (because she can't play anything if she is more than 3 feet from me) and she says, "I wish I had three arms!" Amen to that! I could do wonders with another arm.

As we are making brownie mix, she states, "We can't lick that, huh, cause it has rotten eggs in it!"

Lotion, lotion, and more lotion

I don't know where this child's mother is, but maybe she should pay more attention!


Yes, two separate occasions, two separate days. And yes, both times it was Gretchen who discovered him and yells, "Mom! Mom! Come look at what Thatcher is doing!" His hair is still greasy. But I at least have learned how to make an awesome faux hawk! You just need 2 cups of heavy lotion in your hair and it will stand straight up!

Fall Break, Day 3

Day 3? That's it? Wow. Fall Break is feeling really long. I can't seem to remember what I did with Gretchen before she was in school all day. We've already cleaned, done laundry, gone to the store, the playground, what else? I can only be nice for so long. I need a break, before I break. And of course Chris worked late last night. Oh man.

Today we went swimming at our gracious neighbor's house. It was fun. She is probably the kindest soul I know, and I don't know her very much. She and her husband brought us a pizza on the day we moved in, and invited us to swim. She has said we can swim anytime! So that's fabulous, and we took her some brownies as a small token. She and her husband are empty nesters, and her elderly parents AND her handicap brother live with them. And her husband just had open heart surgery in the summer. So she pretty much takes care of them all. Wow. Maybe I should stop whining about my two little monsters?

Fall Break, Day One

Work Cinderellie work!

No playin' for these kids! Fall Break is about workin'!

Actually, after our party last night (another b day party for Thatcher) our floor needed some serious help. I gave these two their own sponges and a bucket and they went to town! I think it was the best fun they had all day!

Here are a few pics of the birthday boy enjoying his party. And by the way, he did AWESOME blowing out his candles! Yeah, he's pretty advanced for his age.

He LOVES motorcycles, and he hasn't been many places without them since.

Stickers rule! Man, that curly hair is the cutest thing I've ever seen.

Saturday's Relief Society Conference

I went to the Stake Center on Saturday night for the General Relief Society Conference. It was really nice. They had a dinner afterwards and every ward talked about their summer humanitarian projects. I felt a little retarded cause I'm a LONER. Luckily a kind soul made space for me and invited me to join her. As often as is the case, I can't remember most of the talks, just that I felt the spirit. And that there are plenty of pregnant women and new babies in the stake that I wished I could hold! I have discovered people don't very often like handing their babies off to strange new women(me)! It's really too bad, cause I'm a great baby holder.

What I can recall from the meeting is from President Uchtdorf. He is a fabulous speaker and I feel like he honestly cares about me, even though we have never met! Creation and Compassion. Creation - basically improving upon anything I have been given. Beautifying my space, cleaning, planting gardens and plants. And compassion. One thing I know for certain is that as I wallow in my self pity of loneliness and 700 miles from my bestest friends and family, if I instead focus on doing something for others, I feel so much better. Wallowing doesn't really help much, although I seem to do it a lot! I'm grateful for the church and kind souls helping me to find my place!