Time for an Update

Today I am feeling so refreshed and happy!! I know it is because I was finally able to go to church yesterday after not being able to go for 2 weeks. Going to church is something I think I sometimes take for granted. Nurses never get days off..... weekends, nights, holidays.... there will always be sick people and that was something I knew I would have to face going into the career I chose. I have been very fortunate to not have to work a lot of weekends, but somehow this month I was scheduled 3 Sundays in a row.... and man did I notice how not being able to go to church affected my mood and spirit.

The other day the week had just caught up to me with working overtime, no sleep, and having to move. I lucked out and was able to just be on call Sunday so I was fortunate enough to get to go to church. I'm so grateful for the spirit that filled my soul and the opportunity to partake of the sacrament. My testimony has been strengthened so much and I know without a doubt that God is mindful of me and my needs.

As I was having some heart to heart conversation last night with some friends something struck me that my friend mentioned. At times we struggle with letting go of people or things because it is something that is familiar and comfortable for us. We tend to overlook the bigger picture and spend too much time focusing on things that really don't matter in the long run. Lately I've been thinking a lot about my faith and how my actions are a reflection of what I truly believe. Life can be a bit overwhelming at times with many wonderful opportunities and not knowing which path to take. It is so so important to remember our divine worth and that God will literally take our hand and lead us to where He needs us. That brings so much strength and comfort to me and I know He has our best interests in mind.

With that being said, my heart is so full of gratitude today as it is missionary Monday and I've gotten so many emails from such valiant servants of our Heavenly Father! I'm so grateful for such wonderful friends and family. They are truly such blessings in my life. I cannot wait for Mother's day and to be able to skype with my brother!!! I miss my wingman and best friend, but he is having so much fun and I am so proud of him!!

So I have officially been graduated for a year now from college!! So so crazy. That year flew by. I am still amazed at how far I have come. A year ago I didn't know where I would be living and if I would be able to find a job. I'm now working in Logan, have a wonderful job in the hospital, and am working hard to move up to a full time position. Right now I am just PRN (as needed) nurse, but I work 2-3 shifts a week and sometimes am even the charge nurse if I work on the floor by myself. I still feel way too young to have a "grown-up" job so I try hard every day to prove that I earned the spot that I have and am competent to be working with other doctors and nurses. I get to do so many cool things and the job I have gives me experience in a lot of different areas.

I just moved from the townhouse I was living at to a three-plex on 200 east right by the mall with one of my old roomies Katie and we moved in with a couple other girls. It's super nice and we like it so far! It was very last minute, but it'll be fun to stay in Logan for the summer.

SUMMER is finally here!!!! Some things I'm looking forward to are Bear Lake trips, hiking, softball, fireworks, bonfires, snow cones, Seven Peaks and City Creek, NYC/DC trip, camping, parties with friends and family, turning 22, Sister Wankier coming home, and so much more!! This summer should be a good one.

Lately people think I do nothing but travel, but I tell people I just make good use of my days off :) Over the past month or so I took a couple trips to St. George; one with the roomies, and one with Katie and my family. Then I went to Park City with Kylie, Whit, and Megan for a little graduation party to celebrate them graduating with their Bachelor's in Nursing. They were all a lot of fun and it was always hard to go back to work haha.

Well that's all I can think of right now! I'll post some pics :)

Keep it real xoxo

Hawaii Part Two

Our second day in paradise we spent traveling around the island, primarily visiting all the beaches on the north side of the island. We rented a car and off we went!!! We stopped at about 4-5 beaches. Some of my favorites were Kailua, Sunset, and Turtle Bay. Each were all beautiful in their own way and we had so much fun exploring the island! We stopped at this beautiful park for lunch and also went to the Macadamia Nut Farm. DELICIOUS!!!!! We became pro's at sample tasting :):) On our way back we had a chance to drive by the gorgeous Laie Temple and stopped at a cute pizza shop for dinner in a small town on the north shore. It was a ton of driving and we were exhausted from all the traveling that day, but it was so worth it! Grateful we had Libbi as our tour guide ;)

I LOVED the mountains!!! They were so green.

Kailua Beach with Niki

Libbi and I

YUMMY!!!

Turtle Bay

Sunset Beach

Loved the Turtles!!! They were huge.

HAWAIIN SUNSETS <3

Laie, HI Temple

Hawaiian Adventures: Part One (Very Delayed Post)

So I know I have already posted a brief summary of my trip to Hawaii, but this post is more of a complete journal of the trip for me since I struggle with keeping an updated journal :) Don't feel like you have to read this because it may be one of the longest written posts known to man hahaha. I think about my time in Hawaii so much and I want to remember all of the little details and moments I experienced. It was definitely the trip of a lifetime! I hope to return there some day soon.

I went to the beautiful island of O'ahu to stay with my cousin Libbi for 2 weeks. I was so fortunate to have the BEST travel buddy anyone could ask for Nikita Krebs!! I grew up with this girl dancing and eventually becoming roomates with her. Our families are both very close and we have so much fun together! Our trip was from April 22-May 6. 2 WHOLE WEEKS IN PARADISE!!! I owe so much to my family for allowing me to go on this trip as a graduation present. It really was surreal.

So Nikita and I started our trip with 2 really long plane rides.... we traveled from SLC-Vegas and then from there Vegas-Honolulu. I am really proud to say that I got super cheap tickets, but with that came the price of traveling at really strange hours of the day. We flew into Vegas around 9 p.m. and then our next flight didn't leave till 1:40 a.m. (Vegas time) To be honest, I was really nervous to travel. I hadn't been on a plane since I was like 9 and most certainly have never gone through an airport by myself. Me and Nikita are officially pro's now :) We tackled the SLC airport easy and had so much fun exploring it as you can tell ;)

Vegas..... well that was another story! We got so lost and by the time we got there, there were no places to buy food or drinks. They also happened to break the handle on my luggage so I couldn't pull the lever out to wheel it around so that not only made me look silly, but really was a workout to haul my luggage around! (a little side note, but a huge accomplishment of the trip was fitting 2 weeks worth of clothes in one suitcase! not only that, but having enough room to bring home souvenirs was also a miracle!)

Enough with the sad story, but we survived! Me and Nikita laughed so hard waiting for our flight to Hawaii.... while trying to board the plane, the workers were trying to clear a pathway and would get on the intercom and be like "Please move, Mahalo!" like every 20 seconds because no one would listen. Too funny.... what happens late at night ;)

The plane ride was one of the longest things ever! 6 hours long... we were both exhausted and could hardly sleep because it was freezing cold, the seats were uncomfortable, Nikita was motion sick, and my ears were killing me with the altitude change. It was the best feeling ever to hear them say we had landed! We flew into Hawaii at about 5 am their time. The shuttle that was supposed to pick us up didn't show so we ended up getting in this random guy's van.... oh we are naive! haha jk but this guy was very nice and gave us a great deal! Libbi was so excited to see us, but we were so tired we had to get a couple hours of sleep in first before we began all the fun! So yes the first thing we did was sleep! It was raining when we got there so we didn't miss too much :)

The view from Libbi's apartment

After we got all settled, we all went out to lunch and Libbi showed us around so when she had to work, we didn't get too lost ;) ha. Libbi lives in an apartment right downtown in Waikiki! It's about a ten minute walk from the beach and all the shopping centers. I loved the atmosphere of Hawaii! It had the city life that I love, but also had such beautiful sites with the ocean and the green luscious trees and mountains. Definitely the best of both worlds! There was always something going on when you would walk down the street and everyone was so friendly and nice. By the end of our trip some people thought Nikita and I were locals :) The cool thing about Hawaii was that all the beaches were public. There were so many hotels along the beach and the hotels seemed like shopping centers! They were so open to everyone that you could browse the stores in them as well as sneak into the hot tubs haha. It was so fun! And everything was so beautiful there. I was just blown away by how nice and clean it was there. I always joke that if I was every going to be homeless that that would be the place! Libbi would say that some of the things on her daily to do list would be to go to the beach, hang by the hot tub, and go out to eat and watch the sunset.... like how unreal and awesome is that????? We definitely had the time of our lives doing things she does on a daily basis!

HAPPY

As I look back on the past year, I am just in awe.... SO MUCH HAS CHANGED!!!!! And I am definitely a better and stronger person because of it. I had a patient at work today ask when I graduated school and I told him last April and he's like so almost a year now? And I thought to myself, "HAS IT ALREADY BEEN A YEAR?!"

In about a years time I went from being a nursing student, bottom of the totem pole, being told I wasn't good enough, to proving I could do anything I set my mind to.... I now am a Registered Nurse working at a HOSPITAL in LOGAN, UT and I actually have worked as the charge nurse on the floor that I work a few times. All in just a year's time. I definitely have worked very hard to get where I am, but I know without a doubt that God was with me every step of the way providing a way for me to accomplish my dreams. Of course this is not what I had originally planned, but I know that my Heavenly Father knew what was best for me and helped change and shape the desires of my heart. I have learned and grown so much and I wouldn't change my trials and hardships. I have so much to be grateful for!!!

One of my latest life lessons I've learned is to let go of some of my perfectionist ways.... I had just envisioned college to prepare me to be an expert in the career I wanted to go to. I expected that when I started working at a "big girl job" that I would just be a master at everything and would be all knowing. Boy was I wrong!! Yeah school helps prepare you, but I have learned so much more actually being in the workforce and actually doing it!! Yes, it has been extremely difficult and challenging having to learn it at a job full of long hours, a heavy workload, and a stressful environment, but I have learned so much about time and stress management and how to prioritze so much better! I also am learning to not overdue it. Afterall, nurses have to take breaks sometime :) What can I say... the hospital has been very good to me. I'm grateful for great co-workers who are so patient and willing to help me learn!

My brother is currently on a mission in Tampa, Florida and has been out a little over a month now!!! SO CRAZY!!!! I am so happy for him even though I miss him like crazy. I can't wait to see the man he grows into. The people of Florida are lucky to have him :)

Other than that, I finally was lucky enough to move out to Logan into a townhouse right by campus and am loving it!! I didn't know any of my roomates when I moved in, which I was kind of nervous about, but last time I did that, I met one of my best friends so I figured it was worth a shot! So far all of my roomates are really great!! We all are very different, but we connect very well and I can tell we are going to have a lot of fun! I hope to be very active in my singles ward and well as hanging out with my roomates and meeting new people! I need to work on that anyway because people are stressing the whole marriage thing on me.... hahaha I've got 2 bouquets now at weddings and people think that's a sign..... :) We shall see hahaha. At work people either ask me if I'm old enough to be their nurse or how many kids I have so I just don't know which area of life I am in ;)

For now I am just living day to day happy with all that I am blessed with and looking for new adventures that may come my way!

Putting on the big girl pants, cutting the cord, reality check.... you get what I mean ;)

Today I worked my first official shift at the hospital by myself with a whole team of patients. I really am getting old.... it is so weird to have an actual "grownup" job. I am loving my job, but man it can be brutal sometimes. 12 hour shifts with a huge workload really makes you have to manage your time, prioritize, and try to keep your stress under control or else you pretty much get run over. I am learning so much and feel like I'm picking things up really fast. It's helping me grow and change in a good way. Of course the inevitable is experience will be key, which is hard because I just want to be perfect now, but you definitely learn from your mistakes. A couple things I've been thinking back to today....

1) The body is seriously amazing. I worked from 5 am to 5:30 pm on a little over an hour asleep. I honestly don't know how I was functioning. I literally was running on adrenaline.

2) The highlight of my day was one of my patients finally peed! I seriously did a happy dance and almost burst into tears I was so relieved.

3) Caffeine gets you through anything.


Whelp.... there's my little thought of the day. Gotta love life! Can't wait for Thanksgiving :)

I guess it's time for an update......

So last the blog world heard from me I was unsure of if I could find a job, if I would have to move..... basically where my life was headed :) Well I am pleased to announce that LOGAN is where I'm supposed to stay. After a long search, many prayers, and job application after job application, I found not one, but TWO nursing jobs!!! At the end of August I got hired on at Access Home Care and Hospice as a pediatric nurse and a couple weeks after that I got hired on at Cache Valley Hospital on their MED/SURG, inpatient floor!!! The fact I got hired on at the hospital as a new RN is just unreal to me!!! Words can't express how grateful I am to have gotten that position.

The last couple months have definitely been a blur :) Most if not all of my time has been spent training or working.... at least the pay is worth it right? It has been very hard, challenging, and kind of scary starting into a new job, let alone my career, but I have learned so much and gained a lot of experience from it. At the end of this month I will just be switching down to one job, which I am so grateful for. Coordinating schedules for both jobs has been a bit of a challenge. I will just be working at the hospital. I'm technically just hired as a PRN nurse, but they have me scheduled full time for the next little while which I am excited for so hopefully I can move into a more secure position when the opportunity comes up!

I loved working home care when I was a CNA, but I have found that as a nurse it's just not for me. I've gotten to work with some very sweet kids, but I have found that the hospital setting is just a better fit for me and what I'm looking for in a lifetime career. I also get more of an opportunity to use more of my nursing skills and surgery has always been so fascinating to me. I have adored all of the people I work with at CVSH. I have been amazed at all the wonderful people that work there and how everything runs. I did my internship there while I was still in school and I was so fortunate to be able to keep working there and improving my skills. God was definitely looking out for me! I wouldn't be where I am without his guidance. I never pictured this is where I would have ended up, but I'm so glad he pushed me in the right direction :)

So now that I know I'll be staying in Logan for the next long while.... I'm hoping to move out ASAP to somewhere in north logan area with some good roomies so if anyone is interested... hit me up ;) I'm ready to move out again!

As if the whole new job change wasn't enough...... I also got a new car!!!!!! My old car just decided it was time to retire so on a whim I had to go find a new car and I'm very happy with my 2010 Mazda 3!!!!! I love love LOVE it!!!! I was hoping to wait another year to get a new car because I wanted something with all-wheel drive, but this car will suite me just fine for now at this stage of life :)

Oh and then I decided that wasn't enough change in my life so I dyed my hair!!!! hahaha I am now a brunette and I love it!!! It's been fun to change it up :) Some people don't recognize me anymore so I find that entertaining.

Well that's my life the last little while in a nutshell! Life has been crazy lately with trying to balance work, being the relief society president in my ward, family, friends, social life, and sleep? yeah I don't really know what that is anymore ha I work both days and nights so my body is pretty messed up! Ha I can't complain though. I am very blessed and happy with where my life is headed! My bro leaves on his mission in like a month so I'm trying to spend as much time with him as I can before he leaves. We're going to do baptisms in the Brigham City Temple this week for about 60 family member names my brother has found so I'm excited for this unique and amazing opportunity!

One last thing..... I'm dieing to go on an adventure somewhere..... NYC, San Fran, Hawaii..... So if anyone wants to go let me know!!!! I need to get out and take a break :)

I still need to finish my post about Hawaii, but that will have to wait :) But until then here's a cute picture of my "nephew" as I like to call him! This is my friend's Jake and Sadie's baby Jack! He is so stinking adorable and I love the time I get to spend with him! He is getting so big already!

Be still, my soul...

It's amazing how well God knows me. I've had two experience within the past couple months that can testify of that which are very similiar that I would like to share.

I have a subscription to something called "Inspirational Messages" through the church's website which sends me little thoughts or scripures daily by email. It's just something I have enjoyed to keep my mind in the right place each day and think about all my many blessings.

These past couple months have been somewhat intense and have really been emotionally draining. There's been a lot of ups and downs that have kept me on my toes. It's been a very busy summer and it has just flown by!

So back to where these inspirational thoughts come in......

The day I took my licensing exam for nursing (NCLEX) was one of the hardest things of my life. I had been studying constantly for the past while, was sleep deprived, and nearly a nervous wreck going into the biggest test that would define my career. I had studied and prayed and received a blessing from my dad. After 4 hours of intense testing I came out of it not knowing if I had passed or failed. I knew I would be have a lot of anxiety knowing I wouldn't know my results until at least 48 hours later. As I got in my car to drive home from Ogden with tears ready to explode from my eyes from the draining day, I grabbed my phone to check my messages. As I checked my email, I looked at the spiritual message of the day and couldn't contain my emotions as it read Alma 26:12 "Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things;" I could swear that these messages were just written for me! This scripture has and always will be one of my favorites. It gives me so much peace and comfort to know that the Lord will be there to pick up my slack. He is right by my side to help me with all my challenges in this life.

The next experience came today as I found out my dear grandpa had passed away. It has been an emotional and heartbreaking past couple weeks as his health had increasing deteriorated and having to watch him suffer and be placed into a nursing home. As the news of his death was given to me, I read another inspirational message that proved to me that God listens and understands me personally. D&C 98: 1-3 "Fear not, let your hearts be comforted; yea, rejoice evermore, and in everything give thanks ..., for your prayers have entered into the ears of the Lord of the Sabaoth, and are recorded with this seal and testament--the Lord hath sworn and decreed that they shall be granted. Therefore, he giveth this promise unto you, with an immutable covenant that they shall be fulfilled; and all things wherewith you have been afflicted shall work together for your good, and to my name's glory, saith the Lord."


I know that God listens to me and understands what I'm going through. He is always there for me and knows what I need most. I'm grateful for His love for me that He was willing to give His son so that I may return to Him someday. I know that families are forever when we are sealed in the temple and continually renew our covenants with Him. This gospel is true. There is no other way. My life would have no meaning without it's principles. This church is inspired and has a very clear set out plan to help us achieve the greatest happiness there is; exaltation.

Reality

It's funny as I look back on my life and think about how I pictured things to turn out and how I thought things would go. Oh how wrong and naive I was! Ha here are a few realities that I have learned as I have experienced the college life and stepped into the adult world.... high school is so funny and makes you believe weird things!

1) Being 21 and single does not make you a menace to society or push you to become a cat lady! Ha I still feel so young and have so much to learn!

2) Graduating from college doesn't mean a job is just handed to you and you are set for life with your dream career... NOT TRUE!!!!

3) RM's are not scary. I used to think they were so intimidating... haha some of them come back still immature. Again, I said SOME not ALL.... :)

4) Having a missionary is not always the way to go. So glad I didn't have one. It works out for some people, but watching friends go through it has been so hard!

5) The most important opinion you should look at is YOURS and God's! No one cares! People move on from high school. You do things for you and no one else. It's not about attention anymore, it's about looking out for others and being the bigger person. It is so great :)

 Well there's my thoughts of the day! Life is great and always an adventure. I'm working on another blog update right now that is going to be awesome! Stay posted. Loves<3

P.S. I haven't posted a lot about this summer so here's one from one of my many adventures to Bear Lake with some fun, fun people!!!!