It's been quite a while since I've blogged. I mentioned a while ago that I wanted to create a new blog once I got married to document my new life with my new family. I've started that new blog and would LOVE if you all would follow me there. I am going to continue to follow all of my blog friends (you!) from over at my new blog and hope you will join me over there!

It has just been started so I'm still working on decorating it :)

http://www.thebellswillberinging.blogspot.com

Fast Approaching

First of all, can I just give a shout-out to my Clemson Tigers??!! We ended Auburn's 17 game winning streak in the REAL Death Valley!!! So beautiful, haha! A GREAT way to start my wedding week!

My September work schedule has been completely messed up because of my wedding and my preceptor :) So I've had little time to blog between work and my one day off of cleaning up the house! But...we are now into single digits before the wedding! I can't believe how fast it's coming.

I'm so excited and I can't wait to marry my best friend on Saturday. We have a few more things to finish up for the wedding, so on my 2 days off (today and tomorrow) I've come home to help. I have to work Wednesday and Thursday, though. I have THE best preceptor in the world though. When I came in to work yesterday she said, "Erin you are NOT staying here all day on Thursday. You're leaving at three." Long story short, she's not making me stay until 7...or 8...or 9 as some days call for! She's letting me work half a day!! So thankful for her!

I can't wait for the wedding festivities to begin! And I really can't wait for my honeymoon! Two weeks in Hawaii...it's going to be amazing. Truth be told, this is our first vacation "together". We've gone on family vacays, but not just the 2 of us so I'm really ready!

I don't know if I'll have time to blog before then, but if not, here is a sneak peak of what's to come after the festivities are over!

Happy Wedding Week!

Remembering 9/11

Like a lot of you, I have found myself thinking back to 10 years ago today and where I was when I first found out about the terrorist attacks. I was sitting in my first period class in high school about to take a test. My teacher's cell phone rang and her husband told her to turn on the tv, that something was going on we needed to see. She told him we were about to take a test and it would have to wait. He argued with her and she finally turned it on. She told us we could have the tv on as long as we continued to take our exam. When she turned it on, we saw one of the world trade towers on fire and reports that a plane had hit it. We had been watching for about 5 minutes when the second plane hit the second tower. The newscasters were saying, "I think another plane just hit the second tower. This cannot be an accident." I will never forget that moment, knowing that I saw the unfolding of a terrorist attack on my home soil. I still can't believe we watched that happen live. We never finished our exams. I finished my day at school, hearing little pieces here and there about the Pentagon, how the towers collapsed, and the heroic efforts of Flight 93.

I sat glued to my tv all afternoon and for days after. I tried to find some way to comprehend what had happened to our country. I ended up drawing a picture and writing a poem. Maybe one day I'll be brave enough to share it on here. :) I was 15 and at a time where most 15 year olds have trouble figuring out who they are, we had the added job of figuring out what this attack meant for us and for our nation. Like most of you, I have found it very hard to believe that 10 years have passed since 9/11. It seems like just yesterday and the emotions, for me, are still just as raw today as they were 10 years ago. Post 9/11 continues to be our reality a decade later. I've watched many shows over the last few days and mourned all over again the loss of so much life. I've also reveled in the fact that we are a stronger nation today because of that heinous act and just as I did 10 years ago, I'll go to bed tonight praying for those who were affected (and still are) by 9/11.

A Day to Catch Up

I just finished my four days in a row and am loving just laying around on the couch today! I have to work again tomorrow and Thursday so I'm not doing much of anything today except relaxing :) I've been catching up on the blogs I read and I'll probably clean the bathroom and I already have laundry going so I'm not being completely stationary. ;)

The start of my four days was really tough. I know it was inevitable in the field that I work in, but I had my first infant pass away. It was one of the hardest things to have to do. The situation was really difficult. This baby was so sick and the parents were no where to be found. They kept calling and saying they would be there soon and would never show. I am NOT passing judgment at all. I have never had a child, let alone one who was sick or one who was dying, so I have no idea how I would handle that. But this baby was all alone and in pain and we could do nothing until the parents showed up. It made me so angry that they just left their to suffer all alone. At one point I just went into the room and prayed for the baby, rubbed the baby's head, and told the baby it was loved and beautiful and would be ok. It was so sad to watch. My preceptor told me later that most deaths aren't like this one. Most of the time, the parents are always there even though it's so hard, so this was different. Either way it was hard.

It was a tough evening, but the best thing was getting back in there the next day and working hard for all of the other babies in the NICU right now. And I worked 3 more days in a row!

(*Just had to share this picture of Jovie, she LOVES bags, so when I opened the pantry door, she bee-lined it for the almost empty paper towel bag...)

I had to work over labor day weekend, but David enjoyed going to the Clemson game on Saturday! We got season tickets this year and we are about 20 rows from the field! Talk about nice seats :) Unfortunately, I won't be able to go to any of the games until at least after our honeymoon...bummer! But David and his friends will enjoy using the tickets so I'm happy about that!

David and I also decided that we want to try a new meal every week. It may not work too well until we get back from our honeymoon and get settled, but we did try something new last week! It was SO good! It's called, "Sour Cream Noodle Bake" and it's a PW recipe. The name sounds gross, but the picture looked so delicious, so we tried it and decided it's a keeper! I made a side of buttered french bread and salad. Definitely good the next day for lunch, too. :)

David and I are going to dinner tonight with some friends, so I'm looking forward to that. This weekend, we are headed back to Charlotte for Vanessa and Dave's wedding! I'm also having my last shower! Bittersweet, but I'm going to enjoy it! I hope everyone has a great rest of the week!

Weekend Fun

I've had the last 3 days off from work....I needed them! Monday was crazy. Now I'm gearing up for a 4 day stretch with one day of break and then a day and a half. It's making me hyperventilate just thinking about it!! ;)

(The girls ready for bachelorette night!)

This past weekend, David and I drove to my hometown for a fun-filled weekend. Well, fun for me :) Saturday morning, we had the taste testing at the place we decided on for our rehearsal dinner. I am extremely excited about our rehearsal dinner! I took the leftovers home and had them for lunch on Monday--that's how good it's going to be!! We got a lot accomplished at that meeting and I'm glad because we are down to the wire, people! 24 more days and then I'm a married woman!

(Amy, me, and Jess on our side of the table at dinner...)

Saturday afternoon/evening/night was my bachelorette stuff. I don't know if I've ever mentioned this or not, but my bachelorette weekend was supposed to be at the beginning of August, but was canceled because I had to work. (There was no way I could get off for that when I'm taking 2 weeks for my honeymoon...so I was okay with that!) But luckily, my friends got together for me on Saturday and we had a blast :) We laid out by the pool and went shopping during the day, had dinner (and dancing!!) at Cosmo's that evening, and then opened presents (lingerie!!) and got through some of Father of the Bride before we all passed out :)

(Erin and Susan on their side of the table!)

My presents are so cute!! I am so excited to get to wear them on my honeymoon! None of them are raunchy, they are very tasteful and some of them are just downright adorable.

(My wonderful hostesses!)

Sunday, my Aunt Diane and cousin Amy held a bridal shower for me. Y'all, it was perfect! The food was absolutely delicious. My aunt made some chicken salad that I've already gotten the recipe for...and made. That's how good it was. This party was mostly for my mom's friends and she has some of the sweetest friends around. Everyone was so thoughtful and we all just had a really wonderful time.

(Mrs. Libby and me...she is the reason I went to Clemson!)

I ended up going back to Charlotte on Tuesday for a meeting with a cake decorator. I'm in charge of David's groom's cake and all I'm going to say is that thing is going to be awesome. I can't give away any hints, but I know he is just going to love it. He better love it, too, for what I'm paying for it!! ;) I know I already said this, but I can't believe I'm 3 short weeks from being married....what in the world?!

(Enjoying the party! :) )

And those 3 weeks are going to go by fast with the 20 bajillion workdays I have coming up! :)

What Did I Get Myself In To?

I just finished a weekend of work and let me tell you, it was LONG. I was so exhausted last night, I went to bed at 10 and didn't get up until 10 this morning! I probably could have slept longer, too, but I didn't want to feel like I wasted a whole day ;)

Typically, each nurse gets 3 babies to care for. As an intensive unit, nurses can't have 6 patients like they do on basic nursing floors because the care level required is extensive. (Not taking a dig on floor nurses, they are the bomb.com because they CAN handle a 6 patient load. There is no way that even with all of my organizational skills that I would be able to handle 6 patients! They are AWESOME.) My orientation nurse (We'll call her JD for Jane Doe :) I don't want to be giving out too much info!) is awesome, so awesome that they constantly give her the hardest assignments because they know she can handle it and still give quality care to all of the babies. I don't mind it at all because I get to learn a lot about really sick kids. I also think that's why I leave everyday feeling totally overwhelmed :) On Friday, we had 2 of the same kids we'd been having, plus one new one. When I walked in, she asked me if I'd like to take all 3 today. Sooo, I took care of one chronic (has been there a few months), one gastroschesis baby (intestines outside the body), and one vented baby. I am proud to say I handled all of them, stayed on time with my care, and even helped re-intubate the vented baby! JD was impressed as well :)

I love my job and even though it's overwhelming, I love it for reasons like this: On Saturday, we admitted a baby who was too young. So young that it's eyes were still fused together. Can you imagine how tiny that is? On Sunday, JD and I were assigned to care for this baby. It wasn't on a ventilator so it was having to breathe for itself. Unfortunately, it was having a hard time doing that and spent most of the morning with many apneic episodes. (Note: lungs are the last thing to develop..there is no way this baby's lungs were developed enough to be breathing on its own...) JD decided that because this baby was so sick, I would care only for this one baby today and she would take the other two. I literally spent all morning keeping this baby breathing. The baby would do okay for a few minutes but then just got tired. Finally, the doctors decided to intubate. Thank goodness:) This tiny little baby could breathe now! Once on the vent, you could see the little eyes trying to open up and finally they did! They blinked a little bit and it was the coolest experience to know that you were there the first time a baby sees the world.

I will say though, that I was so nervous to be caring for this baby before it was put on the vent! I haven't had my neonatal resuscitation course yet and JD was like, "just keep the baby alive! I'll be back in a few!" I looked at her and said, "JD! Are you serious? Okay this is making me too nervous!" JD has a lot of confidence in me and I did in fact keep the baby alive :)

JD did pull me to the side later in the day though to tell me that I'm doing a great job. She said that she knows they give her hard assignments because she can handle them, but that they are hard for an orientee, let alone a new grad! A lot of the times, other orientees are sitting around doing nothing because they have one baby to care for and then nothing to do. All of our babies are so sick that we are constantly doing something and never get to sit down. JD sees all of this but also said that she's glad I was put with her because I'm smart and a hard worker and I am handling the assignments great and she doesn't know that any of the other orientees could do it!

I'm not bragging on myself, but it is really, really nice to hear that. I do leave work some days things "what in the world did I get myself in to?" but knowing that I'm doing a good job, even when I feel like I'm not makes me feel a little better. And being an advocate for these tiny little things makes it all worth it!

One last thing: we had a normal newborn come in for simple monitoring and I looked at that thing and thought, "gosh that's a big baby!" In reality, it was only 6 lbs. which is almost on the low side of healthy newborns! I've been hanging out with too many little ones lately that the normal size ones seem huge! ;)

Randoms!

Well, I don't know about y'all, but I am more than ready for fall to be here! I know you aren't supposed to wish the time away, but I literally stood in my closet this morning for like 10 minutes looking longingly at the cute sweaters I can't wear yet! Our A/C has been acting up ever since David went to Germany (when it actually broke and they came and "fixed" it) so we are currently getting a new one installed. Marley loves people and he thinks everyone is here to play with him so I had to tell you this story.

There are 2 guys here putting in the new A/C unit. Marley was at the bottom of the stairs and one of the guys wanted to come down and Marley was sitting there barking at him and wagging his little nub...cute little boy just wanted to play! Well, I heard the guy stop on the stairs and Marley kept barking so I called his name. The guy on the stairs said, "does he bite???" Umm...no sir, he's about 5 pounds soaking wet but it sounds like you are a little afraid of him.

It just cracked me up that this huge guy was scared of my 5 lb. rat ;)

*My first day of work! Although, now I have a few pediatric scrub tops so I'll have to take pictures of those later! They are soooo darn cute!*

In other news, I am still loving my job. I still leave everyday feeling completely overwhelmed, but I love what I do so I'm pushing through it. :) All of the nurses assure me that it is completely normal to feel that way and they would be concerned if I didn't feel overwhelmed.

I had my first poop attack yesterday :) There is one sweet, sweet little baby who is just so sick that I have been taking care of. He's been sedated since he was born and they just took him completely off sedation this week so now he's one whole pound of attitude ;) They've also started increasing his feedings so mix his attitude with his bowel habits and you've got a potential mess on your hands! Because he's so sick, we try not to touch him too much and usually change his diaper when we do vital signs/assessments. Well, I went to change him and he'd pooped a little in his diaper..."good boy!" I said to him. I usually put the clean diaper underneath the dirty diaper so if they do start pottying, there is something else there to keep the bed clean. So I had everything in place and I lifted his legs to clean his bottom and....he SHOT a LINE of poop all the way across his isolette!! I was just stunned. How could someone so little create such a force that it shot out like that?! It was so funny and we ended up having to change all of his sheets. So much for my diaper theory :)

I also had the brilliant thought that once I was out of school I wouldn't have anymore books to read or tests to do. Wrong. Our nurse educator has delivered 2 new books for me to read and one of them belongs to a set of like 3 that I have to read. Each chapter had a test that I have to do and turn in! Yay....

I have this weekend off so today I cleaned the whole downstairs. I mopped all of the floors, vacuumed, cleaned the bathroom, kitchen counters. The upstairs needs to be done, but I'm not sure if I'll do it tomorrow or wait until next week. I don't get to spend too much time with David these days so I think we will do something fun tomorrow :) One thing that I hate is clutter. Two of our rooms downstairs (our future office and my future craft room...yes!) are just full of junk that we have no place to store right now. A lot of papers need to be filed, but I think it's pointless to do it when we'll just have to re-do it later! We have a "desk" and an old dining room hutch so I think when Dave gets home I'm going to get him to help me set up a make-shift office so we can start organizing some of the papers. We'll need to make a run to Target to get some filing cabinets. And I'm sure we'll find some other things at Target because I can never go in there without buying more than what I came for! :)

My friend Ashley got hooked on iced coffee from her sister-in-law and now she's got me hooked on it, too! So I've got myself a cup and I'm going to start tackling those NICU books :) I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

NICU

*I would love to post pictures on this blog about things I've seen and done over the last 4 weeks, but I obviously can't do that :) I don't even feel right google searching NICU stuff and using pictures I've seen there. So that being said, I'm sorry this post is picture-less!*

Life has been so busy now that I have a J-O-B. 12 hour days can kick your butt pretty quickly :) I have to get up at 4:50 in the morning in order to make it to work by 6:45. And recently I haven't been leaving work until around 7:45pm! That is a loooonnngg day. By the time I get home, all I do is eat dinner and go to bed, haha! :)

But I wouldn't trade it...I absolutely LOVE my job. So I wanted to post a little about it.

I just started week 4 of orientation yesterday, so I'll back up to weeks 1-3.

Week 1-3.5: I was stationed in the NICU 2 for these couple of weeks. NICU 2 is where the "almost ready to go home" babies go. Obviously there are exceptions as some of the babies are there for >6 mo. depending on their needs and some babies end up back in NICU 1 if something goes wrong. But for the most part, this is where the "grower/feeders" stay. Grower/feeders are just the babies who have overcome their more serious obstacles and are just working on feeding through bottles or breast, keeping their weight up, making sure they can keep a good temp, etc. All the things they need to be able to do to go home and stay healthy. The first day I started, there were 80 babies in the NICU...that's a lot of babies! But my preceptor was amazing and showed me a good routine in order to get everything accomplished in a timely manner. Some days, we would have 2 hour "breaks" between feedings and assessments! We actually stayed caught up on charting. In NICU 2 I did assessments, changed diapers, held babies, fed babies, bathed babies, and helped teach parents how to do all of that as well. It may be one of the greatest places on earth! It is so cool to see a parents who are terrified to hold their infant slowly learn that they can actually take care of this tiny human.

During the beginning of my third week, I got called to the nurse manager's office and both NM's were in there. I thought, "Oh Lord, I'm already in trouble!" Haha :) But they just wanted me to know that I had already received a recognition from a parent during my second week of orientation. The mom wanted me to know that I am a great nurse and she was so glad that I took the time to explain things to her, was so gentle with her baby, and helped her learn certain things to do. One of the NM's said that parents in the NICU don't say positive things about nurses unless they absolutely mean them, so I was pleased that someone thought enough of me to say something. It definitely gave me hope that I will learn how to be a good nurse soon, ha!

Week 3.5-4: Halfway through my third week, I started in NICU 1. This is where all of the really, really sick babies are. A completely different experience. I worked 3 days in a row and left feeling completely overwhelmed each day. How in the WORLD am I going to learn everything I need to know in order to care for these babies?? Luckily, my NICU 1 preceptor is amazing (30+ years in NICU) and knows her stuff. I am learning so much from her. She taught me how to put in an IV my first day and I got it on my first stick. She was so proud of me...you can imagine how small baby veins are, it would be pretty difficult to stick those tiny things! But I'm pushing through the nerves and being overwhelmed and doing everything I can to become a good nurse. I know it has to be frightening for some parents to know someone so inexperienced is caring for their baby (with supervision...). So far in NICU 1 I've given a vaccine, cared for a ventilated baby, put in an IV, calculated meds on IV pumps, cleaned up lots of spit up ;), gotten an extremely dusky/purple, apneic baby to "come back" and breathe again, cared for 1 lb babies, full-term babies with respiratory issues, cared for babies on CPAP and HFNC, started phototherapy on bili babies, and have seen lots of crazy family dynamics.

I am excited and thrilled to be where I am, but this is definitely an eye-opening experience. I know feeling overwhelmed will pass once I figure out my way of getting things done, but it is scary to be the only one around when a baby starts going downhill. It would be for anyone and most of the nurses I have run in to are more than willing to help.

Luckily, I have 2 days off to catch up on my rest, then I'll be back at it again on Wednesday :) Sorry I've been MIA lately, but I'm just trying to get things settled and unfortunately it means a break from the blogging world every once in a while. Plus, I've been thinking about creating a whole new blog once David and I get married to document our life together...thoughts on that??

Bridal Shower!

Saturday, my MOH Jess hosted a bridal shower for me at my grandparent's house! A lot of my really good friends were able to come and the few who couldn't were really missed! David and I got a lot of wonderful things and we are so blessed to have the support from our family and friends!

(On a side note: I don't want to forget this. I had my first week in the NICU and didn't tell them my shower was on Saturday. I didn't think they would make me work my very first weekend...well I was wrong! They had me scheduled to work Saturday...so I had to tell them about my party! They were so kind to let me off, but oh my gosh I felt so bad!)

Here are some pictures from the party :)

I love my girls! :)

My sweet cousin Amy. She wrote me a note that made me cry...she's more like a sister though :)

The pretty set up...minus the food!

Jess' beautiful flowers and the party favors I made! I love all of the bright colors!

This picture cracks me up. I got a purple girl toolbox and a bunch of tools! The look on my face in this picture makes it seem like I'm thinking, "what in the world do I do with these tools??!"

Lauren and Vanessa :) Love these girls!

I know I already have a picture of these pretty girls in this post, but this is my ALL-TIME favorite photo from the party. I can't believe my babies are all grown up and beautiful!

The guests played a few games and there were winners and prizes! I hope everyone had just as much fun as I did :) Thank you to everyone for making it such a special day!

Checking In!

Not a long post tonight! I have to get to bed for Children's Hospital Orientation tomorrow, but I'm hoping tomorrow night to get up a post! Hopefully about my first week in the NICU (LOVE.) and my first bridal party this past weekend! :)

I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying this heat! As for me, I'm about ready for fall! ;) Not wishing away the time, but this is extreme!

Learning Curve...

Hi all!

I know it's been a while since I've posted, but life is so busy right now! Wedding planning, moving, and starting a new job have just taken over.

This is what the majority of our house looks like:

And this is what it will all look like, little by little:

Man, I just love a clean kitchen :)

This past weekend, David and I went to the lake to spend some time with his family. Scott wanted to come too, so he drove down from Raleigh! It was a packed house! David's parents were there, Pop and Valeria, me, David, and Scott, and Uncle Evan and Aunt Delane. David's parents brought their dog Georgia and cat Blackberry and we brought our cat Jovie. (Marley hates the lake, so I left him with my mom, but I have SO missed him this week :( I get him back on Friday though!) Oh, and to top it off, David's cousin Andrew and his girlfriend Katye spent all day Saturday with us! I didn't get any good pictures, but the guys thought it would be fun to swim across the cove to another dock thinking it would be quite easy for them all. Boy were they wrong :) They huffed and puffed all the way there-- and back!

I started hospital orientation on Monday and these have really seemed like the longest.days.of.my.life. I have really gotten used to sleeping in, haha! Today started a week of nursing orientation and we had to clock in this morning. Well...this girl forgot to clock out. Yes, I am that person! The very first day and I forgot to clock out. I realized half way home and it was too late to turn around and go back so I'll have to fill out a form tomorrow....it's going to be a learning curve, haha! Hopefully it will be okay since it was the first day and all...

But, on Monday, I had David take a "first day of work" picture of me :) My mom always took "first day of school" pictures so I thought I'd add one to her collection.

Tomorrow is the first day we can wear scrubs since we have our badges now, so I will be all over that! I got Grey's Anatomy scrubs and oh.my.word. are they comfortable! I'll never be able to wear anything else ever again. I did order some pediatric tops today so they should be in in about a month. Hopefully they are as cute in person as they are in the pictures! No fear, I'll probably have a picture of my "first day in scrubs" too ;)

I start on the NICU unit next Wednesday and I'm so excited. This has been my dream since my sophomore year of high school and now I am actually getting to live it! I just hope I get to live it with air conditioning...

Unfortunately, our A/C has been acting up. It's about 500 degrees here and our air won't seem to cool past about 80 during the day. They've been to fix it about 3 times now and supposedly "fixed" it, but I'm thinking not. David is going to Germany for a few weeks and I just know that thing is going to poop out on me while he's gone! How in the world do you fix an A/C unit??!

Anyway, I feel kind of ridiculous about not clocking out so I'm going to go lift my spirits with a little Pinterest searching. Love that thing. :)

Happy Wednesday!

Comments!

A HUGE "thank you" to Ashley for pointing out my comments are messed up! I changed my comments to a pop-up, so hopefully that has fixed the problem! If you read this, would you mind leaving a comment just so I know the comments section is working?? Thanks! :)

What Have I Been Up To?

I haven't updated in a while! I have thoroughly been enjoying my nice break. No worrying about passing the NCLEX, no worrying about finding a job, no worrying about homework...it's been nice! So what have I been up to?

• I've been doing a lot of this: My mom and I have been watching all of the Harry Potter movies to get ready for the last movie coming out in July. I think I'm pretty lucky to have grown up in the world of Harry Potter :) (I used to dress up in my mom's black graduation gown and play with a pointer as a wand...I am not ashamed.)
• My mom and I also started working on wedding programs...I can't believe my wedding is less than 3 months away!
• I am loving Pinterest! I didn't understand it at the beginning but I can't get enough of it now! I found a very cute nail style using newspaper clippings and it didn't turn out fantastic but I think with some practice it will be very cute! I couldn't get a picture of it, though. Ugh.
• Not only am I loving pinterest, I'm loving the styles I've been finding on there! I've decided I need a huge shopping spree, haha! I loved all of the yellow and gray outfits so when I was at Target and ran across a cute yellow cardigan with rosettes...I had to buy it! This is what I wore today: I loved the white shorts and how the yellow and gray looked! I might need some cute jewelry though... :)
• Marley has been busy napping today. Doesn't he look precious? His ears stick up even when he sleeps, haha.
• I also took pictures in all of my "party" dresses so that I can match up my jewelry and also make it easy to look for jewelry when I'm out shopping. Having a picture of the neckline will hopefully make it easier to find jewelry that will match!

The power has gone off twice while I've tried to update blogger, haha! I hope everyone is having a wonderful week! :)

A Story for the Books

This is a story that I just don't ever want to forget. I have worked so hard to get where I am and everything all seemed to just come together all at once! It may not be interesting to you, so I won't be offended if you stop reading now, but it's a story I want to remember! :)

Last Friday (06-10-11), I had an interview for a position in the NICU. My dream job. I worried and prepped for that interview for days on end! I was supposed to meet the nurse manager (NM from now on) downstairs in the lobby of the hospital near the piano, so when I arrived 10 minutes early, that's where I stood. I made the mistake of standing right next to a huge sign in the shape of a teddy bear and people were asking me all about it! I had no idea what it was for, but one man in particular kept up a conversation with me and come to find out, his wife worked in the ICU unit I did my internship in last summer! She ended up coming down to meet her husband and I got talking with her and found out she was great friends with my preceptor, too! Such a small world :) I was still talking to them when the NM walked up and the man just kept saying, "Oh, she'll hire you, she'll give you a job!" I think I was mortified, ha! I had never met the NM in my life and here is this guy telling her she'll hire me! I was so embarrassed....not a great start to the interview, I'd say!

I came prepared with my resume and she asked me a bunch of questions and even though I had prepared, I was still a nervous wreck! I had some questions for her and then she gave me a tour of the unit. I could not read her at all. As she was walking me out she made the comment, "I have 5 positions, but I don't think our budget will allow 5, I will most likely only be hiring 2." I pretty much took that to mean...."don't be offended when I call you and tell you you didn't get the job!" Ha! She told me she had interviews all the next week and I could expect to hear from her either way sometime the week after that. Like I said in my last post, I rehashed every. single. thing that went on in that interview--poor David! :) He assured me I was fine and that I did great and I just convinced myself otherwise.

Flash forward to yesterday. I had an interview in the MS-ICU where I did my internship last summer. My granddaddy drove me down, just like he did for my interview last year. I interviewed with my NM boss and nurse educator that I worked with! I hate to admit this, but I didn't really prepare as much for this interview. I knew that they wanted me (NM had been e-mailing me quite a bit and kept saying he "couldn't wait for me to be a part of their team" and they had been "waiting a while" for me to graduate and pass etc.) and I had already prepped my answers from my last interview. They were just as friendly as I had remembered them and they asked me 2 PAGES worth of questions! And they both wrote my answers down! What?! I had my answers ready, but I couldn't believe they asked me 20 questions, haha! I figured that once they were finished, I would hear from them pretty soon.

Pretty soon turned out to be right after the questioning was over. The NM told me they already knew they wanted to hire me. I could. not. believe. it. I was being offered a job on the spot. Fortunately, the NM is a great guy and he knew I had interviewed with the NICU and basically told me he wanted me to be 100% sure if I chose to come to the ICU. In his experienced opinion, if you entered a job with any doubt in your mind that you may have wanted something else, you won't be happy. I agreed and he gave me until Monday to give him an answer.

I was ecstatic...I had a job if I wanted it! But I didn't know what to do about the NICU position. I knew I wouldn't hear about that job until the following week and I wouldn't have enough time to find out if they wanted me. I had a long talk with my granddad on the way home and we thought it would be good if I went ahead and e-mailed the NM of the NICU who I interviewed with. So when I got home, that's the first thing I did. I basically just told her that I had interviewed and received an offer from another unit in the hospital, that my passion was the NICU and I didn't know how to handle this situation, but I was wondering if I was being considered for a position in the NICU.

In my head at that moment, I really thought I would hear back from her in a few days and she would either say, " I'm sorry, I can't share that information with you" or "I'm sorry, but we are looking for someone else." (Would make my decision an easier one, though!)

In REALITY, this is what happened: I sent the e-mail. Literally 2 minutes later, I got a phone call from the NICU NM and this is how the convo went:

- NM: Can I please speak with Erin?

- me: This is her. (The period seems to serious, the exclamation point seems to excited...I was somewhere in between, haha!)

- NM: Erin, this is _____. I just received your e-mail and I was calling to tell you, you better stop interviewing for jobs, haha! I want you here in the NICU with us! I am officially asking you if you would like to accept an offer to work in the NICU.

-me: Oh my gosh! Thank you so much (smiling and jumping up and down as quietly as I could....)!!! That is wonderful!

-NM: Your interview was phenomenal, by the way.

-me: Thank you so much! This is so great!

After that, I started freaking out a little bit and asked her if I could just have the night to get my thoughts straight and I would call her tomorrow to let her know for sure. She was so kind and agreed.

This morning, at 9:30am I ACCEPTED my first ever nursing position in my dream job after having two people really, really wanting me to come work for them. I am just in shock. I have worked so hard for this and I am so excited to start this new phase in my life! When I spoke with the NM this morning, she said, "I told ____, I can't do anymore interviews until I know we have Erin! We really need her!" I guess I did better on the interview then I thought--and David loved that he had been right all along ;)

To say that I am humbled is an understatement. I just can't believe all of this happened to me in a 24 hour period! I can't wait to see what the future holds!!

Will I Get a Summer?

Things have been moving right along for me! I think it's because I spend the weekdays in Charlotte and the weekends in Greenville. I've been taking a load of my stuff down each time I go so the end trip won't be so much of a big deal! And it seems that the "big trip" may be coming sooner rather than later.

I headed down to Greenville Thursday because I had my NICU interview on Friday. I got a phone call Friday morning from the MS-ICU (where I did part of my internship last summer) and they wanted me to come in for an interview as well! I made plans for that interview for Wednesday (tomorrow).

My interview went as well as can be expected I think! I couldn't read the interviewer at all so I have no earthly idea if she liked me, wants me, or anything! Of course I rehashed everything after I left and there is nothing I would have changed about what I said so if it's not in the cards for NICU then they were just looking for someone else :) She did happen to give me a tour of the unit and oh my gosh. Those little angels! After seeing the unit, I have no doubt I would enjoy it. Hopefully I will hear from her after Monday of next week.

I got home a little before David did and when he walked in the door, he had these little pretties for me:

Isn't he amazing?! I was rehashing every little detail with him and he was so sweet to pick me up some flowers on his way home :) I am a lucky girl!

I also got my first ever mail at David's house- my official certificate that I passed the licensure exam and I really am a registered nurse! Officially official as I like to say.

David works as an electrical engineer for BMW and because it's a german company, there are a lot of germans who work there. One of David's co-workers had some of his "group" over for dinner Friday night and we went! It was so much fun! They cooked out pork, had potato salad, some vegetable dish, and a delicious salad. I spent a lot of the time trying to decipher what they were saying, but they were all very kind to speak to me in english :) For dessert, we had espresso and home-made tirimisu! I wish I had some right now, it was so good! David has already decided we need to have them over for dinner once I move down--I think it sounds like a wonderful idea!

Always in some kind of soccer paraphernalia! :)

Saturday David watched the movie 300 and I learned my way around Pinterest! Y'all, I am still not 100% sure how to use it, but so far I am loving it!! We also took a trip to the mall and I found my dress I'm going to wear on the plane to Hawaii!!! I wanted a cotton maxi-dress for the plan ride and some cute wedges--found those too! The only thing left is a cute jacket to go on top in case the plane is cold :)

That evening, we went to Buffalo Wild Wings with another co-worker of David's- Phil, and his wife Emily. I had never met them before, but they are a very sweet couple. After dinner we saw Hangover 2 which in my opinion is equally just as hysterical as the first one! I don't remember the last time I laughed so hard!

This picture just cracks me up. I guess Marley hadn't had enough attention over the weekend because he came and sat right in my face when we got home!

I headed home sometime in the afternoon on Sunday and while I love coming home, I sure do miss David. I am about ready to be in one spot and not going back and forth every weekend! And hopefully, fingers crossed, one of the 2 positions I have interviewed for will want to hire me and I can make my final move to Greenville! :)

PS- Monday afternoon, we went to the graduation party of a kid mom had in 1st grade and someone I used to babysit! She had 2 of the 3 kids...crazy. How in the world are kids I babysat old enough to go to college??! His younger brother (2 years younger) couldn't wrap his mind around the fact that I was drinking a beer and said, "at my graduation party, make me a deal that you won't drink there...that's too weird!" And my mom promptly looked at him and said, "she may not be able to drink at your graduation party!" They fist-bumped that comeback and I started planning baby names, ha!

Short Post!

Hi all!

Short post today! It's been quite a busy day and it's not over yet! But I just wanted to check in:)

Today I:

• Okay'ed my wedding party favors!! They are so cute! I don't normally keep things I get at weddings...they don't really mean anything to me because they don't have any relevant info for me! (I mean, it's not my wedding date...it's yours??) So I wanted something that represented us, but that people could use. So...David and I decided on shortbread cookies in the shape of bells!! (Our last name will be Bell...well, his is already...mine will be.) The icing is cream colored with purple trim and our monogram initials in the middle! I love the way they turned out! We are going to put them in clear bags and tie them with purple ribbon :)
• I also went looking for my bridesmaid gifts! I know what I want, but the store didn't have quite what I was looking for. I looked through their catalogue and the lady was so nice! She ordered one pair of each thing I was looking at and when they come in she is going to call us to come look. Then I can choose my favorite out of those :) I am so excited that things are moving right along!
• I also received a phone call from the hospital in Greenville about an interview for the NICU!!!!! This would be a dream job for me and my interview is on Friday at 2:00pm. If you happen to think of me around that time, I would be so thankful if you would send up a prayer for me! I'm not getting my hopes up but it is still very exciting :)
• On top of that high, I also received an e-mail from the nurse manager I worked for last summer in Greenville! (MS-ICU) He told me he wanted me to apply for 3 positions he is posting so we can get that interview process moving along, too! Oh my gosh y'all, I am over the moon that in one day I have 2 potential places of work! I loved working in the ICU last summer and while NICU would be my first choice, I know I would love working in the ICU as well so I am hoping that one of these 2 will pan out for me :)
• And tonight, I am going with my mom, aunt, cousin Amy, and close family friends, Mrs. Wanda and Karen to see the movie Bridesamaids. I am so excited because I've heard it is good!!

Last, I would love it if you would say a prayer for my sweet friend Mandy. Sunday morning, her long-time boyfriend went into cardiac arrest and passed away. He was only 30 years old. I am so heartbroken for her and I can't even begin to imagine what she is feeling right now. I know it would mean a lot to her to know so many people are lifting her up in prayer! Thank you :)

Now, I hope everyone has a wonderful hump day tomorrow! Anything interesting going on in your lives?? I need to live vicariously through you now that I have nothing going on!! :)