The Miraculous Power of God

Dec. 28, 2008
Part of my reason for this trip to the Philippines was to volunteer for a week at a birthing clinic for the poorest of the poor. It is run by a British midwife and four Filipina midwives who are all superheroes in my book! I didn't have internet access there, so I'll spread these posts out, but I wrote them while at the clinic...They are detailed, but a very certain someone told me to make them as detailed as I could. ;-)

Day 1, 2, & 3 at birthing clinic (Shalom Christian Bahay Pa-anakan)It’s a known fact for all doctors, nurses, and midwives: when the day is slow, the night will be chaotic. Yesterday I had lots of opportunities to nap, read, study, and laze around. We had one delivery at 7am, about 15 post-natal check-ups with absolutely adorable kiddos, but for the most part things were quiet. We did have one 24 year-old (let’s call her Marilou), who started true labor at 1:30pm. She was here with her boyfriend. Her story is so very sad. She is the mistress of a 40 year-old construction worker and lives with his wife and their five kids. She is pregnant with her first. We knew this would be a very long labor.

Then it all broke loose. The day midwife left at 5pm and the night midwife arrived at 7pm. Immediately 4 women showed up at the door. One was in active labor, two had urinary tract infections (UTIs), which can cause contraction-like pain, and one was in very early labor. We sent the two suspected patients w/ UTIs to the lab to verify our suspicions, we sent the early laboring mom home, and admitted the active laborer. As soon as we got her situated on a cot on the floor, we had two more show up in active labor. They were also admitted and placed on two more cots. This was all before 8pm. The night midwife and I placed our guesses on the time of deliveries and we prepared ourselves for a very busy night ahead. Good thing I’d had my naps!

The two UTIs came back positive so they were given meds and sent home. I went into our room to take a nap while I still could. Right around 10pm, I was awakened by the midwife yelling for me. I ran out just in time to see the baby slip out and grabbed the bulb to begin suctioning the goop out of its mouth. I placed the baby on the mom’s skin to keep the temp steady (we call this skin-to-skin) and continued to monitor the baby and assist the midwife with the placenta removal and inspection. While the midwife was cleaning up the mom, I took the baby, replaced the Kelly clamps with the umbilical clamp, gave it a bath, and dressed and bundled it up. We got the Mom and baby settled back on the cot on the floor. Both the midwife and I went back to bed. (picture to left is of a new family. Lady in orange is another of the midwives)

At 11:30 I heard a frantic, “Ma’am! Ma’am!” I woke up the midwife and she ran out to see what was up. Minutes later I heard my name again. The mom was up in the stirrups and a baby was slipping out. We didn’t even have our instruments yet. I ran and got them out of the sterile water and did the same thing all over again with Mom #2. I started giving the baby a bath while the midwife gave Baby #1 it’s Vitamin K shot. Right as I was lathering up Baby #2’s hair, the Mom #3 and dad on the cot less than two feet from me started yelping. I looked down and saw the dad pulling down the underwear with the baby slipping out. This was her second kid…but she had been 2cm just 2 hours before!!! The baby had the cord TIGHTLY wrapped around its neck two times. I placed Baby #1 in his dad’s arms and called the midwife urgently and she came over. The baby was very, very blue and not breathing at all because of asphyxiation. I grabbed the sterile suction, clamps, and scissors and we went to work. After 60 seconds the baby took a breath but held it. I grabbed the ambu-bag and we started manually breathing for it, but we couldn’t get the mouth open. After three minutes we called the head midwife (a British midwife who runs the clinic) from her bed. We grabbed the oxygen tank and transferred the baby to the counter under a lamp. I knew there were enough people working on the kid and the most important thing I could do was pray. I sat on my bed, bowed my head, and just started pleading. Seven minutes passed with no breaths – the longest a baby can go with no brain damage. Finally after ten minutes I heard the sweetest sound I have ever heard…the tiniest little squeak. I got up and went out to help if I could. I took over for the midwife and held the little simple mask with 7L oxygen flowing over the nose and mouth while rubbing the baby’s back. Slowly, the baby pinked up. After 20 minutes it gave it’s first real cry. PRAISE GOD! (picture of me above is with the baby and parents)

If the mom hadn’t delivered the baby so fast, the baby would have been stillborn. The baby was supposedly overdue and had an extremely small amount of amniotic fluid. Even still, it only weighed 4lbs 10oz.! Later when the two midwives and I talked about it, we all agreed that we had thought the baby wouldn’t make it. We were already thinking how to deal with a dead baby. Without a doubt this was a miracle of God! Here we are, at a rather primitive birthing clinic for the poor…we don’t have a crash cart, means to intubate the baby and such, but it still lived. The baby didn’t breath for at least 10 minutes! Please pray with me that this little boy does not have any lasting brain damage. We didn’t see any signs of it when we sent the family home today, but sometimes it takes a while to manifest. (Picture to right is with the baby, midwife on left, older sister of baby on right)

We had one more normal delivery at around 4am and had two more laboring women. Remember Marilou? It’s now 12:30pm the next day and she’s just started pushing… (to the left)

Merry Christmas!

When you get older, Christmas is always different. One sibling might be with his wife's family, my parents are probably overseas, and if I go overseas, NO siblings are there... Traditions are just memories and giving really becomes more blessed than receiving. But this is a good thing...it's a phase of life.I had a wonderful 2008 Christmas! It was Mom, Dad, Adam (short-termer working on video productions), and me. I was so excited for everyone else's gifts! The family and I got my folks a brand-spanking new digital camera, something they asked for. Adam's parents had sent over his childhood stocking with me (see vid), as well as some cards and other goodies while my parents loaded him with inside joke gifts. I got a lovely wooden salad bowl set (which I asked for) and some kids books by one of my favorite authors. Love it.


In about an hour I'm heading out for 6 days to the midwife's clinic. I'm absolutely stoked! It will be fun to help out now that I'm a nurse! (nearly.) I'm not sure what my internet connection will be (probably nil), so I will blog off-line and post a ton when I have access again.

Hope you all have a wonderful Christmas, full of God's peace that passes all understanding. May your hearts be filled with joy and delight no matter where you are.

Merry Christmas!

I am a nurse!

Last Saturday was the Pinning Ceremony for my school...which means that according to the school, I am now a nurse! All I need is the "registered" part in front of my title, which means taking that lovely little test.
The ceremony was beautiful. I had been voted by my class to be one of the two student speakers, which was a huge honor. I woke up early Saturday morning and wrote my speech while lying on the couch with a cup of coffee. I reread it and thought, "It's ok, but it's the best I can do under the circumstances." Well, to my utter shock and surprise, I started weeping during the speech! How embarrassing!!! I had no idea I'd get so emotional. I felt better when I finished and looked at my class behind me and a good number of them were also weepy and wiping tears off their faces. Whew!
Afterwards my family and friends took me out to a lovely Mexican restaurant to celebrate. Then it was a race to get home and pack for my flight in less than 12 hours! I managed to finish and get 6 hours of sleep... Next morning we took off for the airport.
As soon as I arrived I was asked if I was going to Tokyo and was then herded into a long line. THREE HOURS later I was finally at the ticket desk. I have never seen such appalling human behavior than I did during those three hours. There were people literally yelling at each other. A man in business class was irate that he had to wait 45 minutes in line. "I PAID more money than these people so that I could skip the line and wait for my flight in the lounge! I am going to sue!" The problem was that because the flight to Japan was delayed for 3 hours, we were all going to miss our connecting flights in Tokyo, so the agents were having to rebook every single passenger with a continuing flight. I thought I wouldn't have a problem because my flight continued on to Manila, the flight number and aircraft were the same. Think again. They were switching planes in Tokyo and they were not holding our flight. So I was told I would be put up in a hotel in Tokyo and fly to Manila the next day. My luggage was labeled and marked.
When we got to Tokyo, they HAD held our flight so we rushed to the next gate. I talked with the agent because my ticket had already been rebooked and I did not have a seat on the flight. After much confusion, they got me on the flight and I asked many, many time for them to make sure my luggage followed. When I got to Manila, it wasn't there. So I'm still waiting for my luggage that was on the next flight. Hopefully they'll deliver it today! It has everything in it!
It has been so lovely being back here. I walked into one of my favorite malls after 4 years and while some stores have changed or been remodeled, it's still the same. I automatically switched into this language. When I approach a Filipino, I don't even think to speak English, even though they most likely understand it. I am so excited to be spending a month here. God is good.
So, please pray I'll get my luggage today. I'd really like to be able to wear more than just my pajamas and flight clothes...not to mention all the Christmas presents that are in the suitcases...and Christmas is tomorrow!

Lift-Off!

I'm DONE!!! Now all that is left is the formality of the Pinning Ceremony (...oops, I still need to write my speech for that). But all the papers, exams, projects, etc..., are turned in and done with. I've washed my hands of them. I have survived nursing school!

To be honest, it felt weird to be going through finals. Here I am, 3 years out of undergrad, and I'm STILL taking finals. Everyone else who is taking finals is on average 5 years younger than me. I should be done...oh well, embrace the "young" feeling while I can. I'm sure that someday soon I'll be begging for this feeling!

All that stands between me and that title of Registered Nurse is a pesky little test called (Jaw soundtrack, please) the National Certification and Licensure Examination, aka: the Boards. I've heard that it's actually not that bad and the school has paid for all of us to go through a review course. Luckily, I will be doing mine online in shorts, a tank top, flip-flops, while munching on fresh mangoes.

The next two days are going to be crazy busy: buying all the items on my folks' wishlist (which involves going to 3-4 stores), picking up items from church for missionaries, last minute shopping for stuff I can't get over there, getting my TB test read, packing as lightly as possible, celebrating our graduations with Melissa, Prayer Brunch, Pinning Ceremony, and take-off. Oh, and I have to sleep somewhere in that mix.

Thank you all for your prayers to get me through thus far! WE did it!

(for this season) "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." - 2 Tim 4:7

What I Love About Christmas

I made this list a long time ago...and it still holds true.What I love about Christmas:

100. trimming our tree
99. drinking hot cocoa (even when sweating in the Philippines)
98. Typhoon Season
97. No school
96. Candlelight 11pm communion service on Christmas Eve
95. then coming home and eating eggnog pie with friends
94. sleeping in
93. ham
92. scalloped potatos
91. crazy uncles
90. crazy brothers
89. unbuttoning pants after the meal
88. decorating hundreds of cookies with paintbrushes
87. giving them away
86. eating the leftovers
85. eating the raw dough
84. making the other 100 types of cookies
83. the fact you're still reading this
82. candy canes that I never eat but always admire
81. Christmas concerts
80. Christmas music
79. Handel's Messiah
78. a time when everyone loves classical music
77. mom's candy cane bread
76. vacations at the beach on Puerto Galera
75. advent on Sunday nights as a family
74. dad reading the Christmas story
73. are you still reading this?
72. singing "All I Want For Christmas Is You" with the roommies at the top of our lungs
71. Christmas parties with 'the gang'
70. shopping for others
69. watching people open carefully thought-out gifts
68. secret santas
67. hiding presents before Christmas
66. trying to find where mom hid mine
65. While You Were Sleeping
64. White Christmas
63. bending pine needles and breathing the scent in
62. hugs
61. wrapping presents
60. lighting candles
59. untangleing twinkle lights
58. stringing garland on the banisters
57. stockings hung with care
56. opening the stocking on Christmas morning
55. laughing at last year's christmas morning bed-head pix
54. laughing at any pictures from the past
53. crazy malls with the decorations
52. driving around looking at all the lights
51. hearing the fireworks start going off on Dec. 1st by the neighborhood drunks
50. then realizing it was a coup attempt by the rebels to overthrow the government
49. which meant no school for a week
48. nativity scenes
47. 4 hours of daylight in Sweden
46. fika in Sweden
45. crazy cousins in Sweden
44. those occassional Christmases spent with Mom and Dad now that I'm grown
43. realizing I'm over half-way done with this list!!
42. Why-oh-why did I start at 100?
41. snuggling up in blankets
40. making snow angels
39. playing in the mounds of wrapping paper after opening our gifts
38. realizing that was more fun that half the presents I got
37. but still loving what I got
36. unwrapping the melted gum balls GrandE sent me from the US
35. finding that the ants beat me to the gum balls
34. learning how to braid on My Little Ponies
33. getting my pet mice from my brothers
32. learning how to torture the poor things
31. then saying, "But they LIKE it, mom!"
30. going around to other people in our mission and carolling as a family
29. those awkward mission Christmas parties
28. Uncle Doug terrifying me by saying all little girls grow up to be boys and vice versa
27. watching Dad break his tail bone while showing us how to REALLY sled
26. yup, we didn't try it after that...
25. freezing by the fireplace while my cousins tried to convince me that skiing is fun
24. fruitcake...I know, I'm weird
23. getting sick from all the sugar
22. singing Christmas hymns in church with the organ
21. I'm almost done!
20. shouting so my grandparents can hear me
19. babysitting my cousins
18. hearing my grandfather ask when I'll ever get a boyfriend
17. and promising to introduce him when I find 'the one'
16. the smell of grandma's house before they moved
15. city decorations up in September
14. down in August
13. coming home from church at midnight on Cmas Eve and realizing it really does only take 15 minutes to get home when there's no traffic...instead of the usual hour and a half
12. tying bells around the poor dog's neck
11. and throw on that santa hat, too
10. tasting snowflakes
9. stepping into a warm house from the cold
8. fireplaces that roar
7. and burning my butt from standing too close
6. peppermint mochas at Starbucks
5. homemade gingerbread cake
4. gingerbread houses that never get built because we eat it first
3. Christmas ornaments
2. laughing out loud
1. you...because you read the whole thing!

Rain and Christmas Parties

Today I am stuck at home...I got all ready to go to the hospital: iced the Christmas bread for my preceptor, printed out the final evaluation forms, the paper, dug through the closet to find my umbrella, and bundled up for the cold wetness. But see, here's the thing - I grew up driving in rain...Southern Californians do not! I don't understand it!!! Slow down, keep a light hand on the wheel, keep a good distance between you and the car in front, and you'll be fine. But NOOOOO...there were three accidents before the halfway point to my destination! I turned around and came back home. It took 20 tries to close the stupid garage door. Really? When it rains, there's a short in the system? Oh well...I'll just stay home and listen to more Christmas music and start studying for my finals. I could think of worse places to be stuck. :-)

Every year, my nearest and dearest friends get together for a Christmas gift exchange. We started in 2001 during our freshman year at Biola and haven't missed a year since! We decided to change things up a bit this year and exchange board games... Kristi was EXTREMELY proud of her game!

Bobby came this year!...and ruined my picture, again. Shocking, I know. And here's the group in 2001... ...and 8 years later! I don't know where I would be right now without you all. Life hasn't been easy, but it's never been boring! I LOVE you!

The Final Stretch...

The paper is DONE! Now it just has to be edited, and edited, and edited so it resembles nothing like the first rough draft... :-) Ahhhh, this is why I'm not a researcher.

Last night I went to Disneyland with Sara to get a bit of relaxation before the final paper writing. A great idea...but wrong night. There were 80,000 people in the park! On a normal summer day, during a very busy time of year, there are about 60,000 people in the park...so 80K is insane. After the fireworks, during the mass exodus, they were herding people out of the park "backstage"...a BIG no-no because it destroys the "magic". We weren't allowed to take pictures during Candlelight because they didn't want other people to see what "backstage" looks like.

But the fireworks were pretty, a Christmas version of "It's a Small World" was fun, and "Indiana Jones" was as jerky as normal. :-)

One week left!

Candlelight 2008!

Ever since starting nursing school, I've had very little opportunity to use my BA in music...all that changed last night. When the opportunity presented itself to sing in Disneyland's Candlelight choir, I couldn't refuse...even at the risk of getting a "B" in my classes.

Candlelight has been a tradition at Disneyland, started by Walt Disney, since the second year of opening. This was Candlelight's 50th year. It consists of an 800 voice choir, orchestra, and narrator. What makes it especially significant is that it tells the story of Christmas...the TRUE story of Christmas. The narrator (John Stamos this year) reads the account of Luke in between traditional Christmas carols such as Joy to the World, First Noel, Angels We Have Heard On High, and the Hallelujah Chorus.

Here are a few of the pictures I took from the night. Unfortunately I don't have one of the whole choir because we technically weren't supposed to take any pictures "Backstage". Clearly I didn't follow the rule to closely... :-)

Let the fun begin!

Here I am getting ready to process into the park from Toons Town to Town Square...and yes, that is an electric candle. boo.

The roommies with our choir conductor...the REAL celebrity of the night!

In between performances...we were pretty exhausted. It was a lot of singing!

This is where we performed in Towns' Square. You can't see it very well, but it sure was beautiful!

And lastly, some kind soul uploaded a video of us singing the Hallelujah Chorus onto Youtube...

A Birthday!

Today we celebrated my nephew's birthday at the park with the required pizza. I seriously have the cutest nephew ever...and I'm not a bit biased. Here are some pictures from the fun afternoon. (PS - did I mention I LOVE SoCal winters?? It wouldn't have been an outside party in North Dakota!)

Boy and dog, like iron and a magnet

Playing on the Swings

This is my model pose...There's a grin!Playing with my auntieOpening Presents!Oops, bigger and better things to doBirthday Pie!And last, but not least, a fun birthday video. :-)

Christmas Trees, Candles, and Nostalgia

I love Christmas. One of my favorite memories as a kid is of driving down Roxas Blvd on Christmas Eve and "ohhhing" and "ahhhing" at all the pretty lights. (...while Mom and Dad were thankful they didn't have to pay for the electric bills!) So it comes as no surprise that I LOVE attending the Christmas tree lighting at my alma mater every year. There is this huge pine tree in front of the music building (my second home for three and a half years) and every year on the first Friday of December the student body, alumni, and surrounding neighborhoods come together and listen to Luke's account of Christ's birth, sing traditional carols, light candles, and light the enormous tree.
So this year we all bundled up (as much as necessary for SoCal) and sang to our hearts' content. While there we ran into our beloved retired chaplain, Ron Hafer and took this shot...just for you, Mom!

T-18!

After a lovely week off, I have just three weeks left of nursing school. I can't wait for it to be over. But then I've said that before...it's not a new concept. The good news is all my careplans are finished. The bad news is I still have my 10-15page paper to write and my group project to finish. But it's all do-able within three weeks.

On a side note, at twilight we had the alignment of the sliver of moon with Jupiter and Venus. I was running around outside with my socks on trying to find the best view away from the city lights. (yeah, these socks will be having some bleach join them for the next round in the washing machine!) It's mind-boggling to think of how much bigger Jupiter is than Earth. 1,317 Earths could fit inside Jupiter. When viewed from our perspective, however, it's tiny.

This is how my huge, looming paper is. Right now it seems like this unattainable, horrible thing hanging over my head. But when viewed 20 years from now, way back in the distance of nursing school, it will merely be a tiny speck in the road. Perspective is everything, isn't it?

"When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?"
Ps. 8:3-4

Thanksgiving

In light of my last post, I won't go into too much detail. Suffice to say I am so very thankful for so much. I am blessed beyond description.
For Thanksgiving this year, I was on mashed potato and dessert duty. I decided on garlic red-skinned mashed potatoes and a pumpkin cheesecake, both of which turned out well. Bobby made rolls and rye bread and brought his homemade jam as well. Between the neighbors, my aunt, and us we had a ton of delicious food. Ironically, no one brought pumpkin pie!! :-)
Before we went to my aunt's, we stopped at Gramma's and said hello. Below are some videos I took of the day...just for you Mom and Dad. And Mary Ann, there's a bit with Amos in there too. I'm so glad he could come!
PS - someday I'll learn how to put these all together instead of having three separate ones. Sorry for that.



HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I also got to give some tortoises shots. I've given lots of humans some shots, but never a reptile! (my aunt's tortoises are sick)

A Grateful Person

I was sitting at a coffee shop today with my nursing classmates working on the dreaded group project. As I was sitting there I began to get a bit grumpy because I could think of a dozen other things I'd rather be doing... Not that I don't enjoy my friends...but who wants to spend Thanksgiving break sitting in a coffee shop working on a fictitious project, a project that smacks of busy-work and uselessness? I looked down at my Mac and surfed the internet, sipped on my coffee, and tugged my scarf a bit closer to my neck. All of the sudden my stomach sank and this overwhelming feeling of self-confrontation descended.

Am I truly grateful for all that I have? I have 24/7 access to the internet on a laptop I love. I was sitting in a coffee shop drinking an overpriced cup of coffee I had paid for. I was wearing a warm scarf I had gotten in Spain on my semester abroad. I have SO much! And all too often I am grateful for so little of it. I am 3.5 weeks away from finishing nursing school. God has blessed me beyond belief. I dare not say that He has blessed me more than I deserve because I deserve absolutely nothing. I have done nothing to "earn" any of this... God is so faithful and good. And the ironic and sovereign thing is that even if I were failing all my classes, had been dropped from the program, or had a tragedy suddenly happen in my life, God would still be just as faithful and good. My circumstances do not change His goodness or faithfulness. Taken a step further, my circumstances, regardless of what they may be, are simply an everlasting testimony to His greatness.

Viewed in retrospect, I am grateful for more than just the "things" I have. I am grateful for the trials, the frustrations, even for those who complain nonstop. Through these things He is teaching me perseverance, patience, discernment, and faithfulness. I fail miserably all the time at my effort to be grateful, but He sustains me and gently encourages me to keep my eyes on Him and the things that matter.

I've recently been listening to the song "Grateful People". This is my prayer, that I would be grateful to my King, surrender and give Him the praises He so righteously deserves. Take my life, O God.

A Grateful People
It is time that we give you honor
This is the day to give you
All the praise that you deserve

A Holy King, of everything
Inhabit the praises of Your people

Have we waited far too long to surrender
Forgive us, Oh God, the years
We failed to seek your face
Oh Lord, your mercy turns us into
Grateful people
We can’t seem to find the words
So take our lives that there might be enough
To tell you how grateful Lord, we are grateful

Bless the Lord, oh my soul
(He has done great things)
And all that is within me
(He had done great things)
Bless His holy name

Jerk-face

WARNING: this may be long and detailed

I learned a very important lesson in the hospital today. Granted, I knew the lesson in theory already, but today I saw it in practice. Doctors can be amazing or they can be utter jerks. I spent my day in the Critical Cardiovascular Unit. Most of the patients have just had major heart surgery or are very hemodynamically unstable. One of our patients (of two) had multiple issues going on and without being too specific, he was one day status/post major chest surgery. He had two chest tubes draining excess fluid from the sac that holds the lungs and a very large central line in his internal jugular vein. He was pretty stable, but also had Alzheimers. He was confused and just wanted to get his clothes and go home. He had been ok until his night nurse had started to mess with his foley catheter (which goes to the bladder). It is very hard to maintain a man's modesty when dealing with foleys which is unfortunate as most nurses are women. I can understand the embarassment, awkwardness, and frustration that guys must go through...but to be confused on top of it; I'd be combative too!

When we came on shift we were careful to maintain his modesty; and he made sure we knew that we were NOT to interfere with him. He was already sitting up in a chair, complete with all his tubes. We entered his room for his morning assessment and noticed his heart rate was in the 150s, when normal for him was 90-110. Not good. His blood pressure was ok, so we immediately thought pain - a logical conclusion given the circumstances. He indicated he was indeed in pain in his side, near his surgical site. We assessed the site and made sure his chest tube was draining appropriately. No problems there. He had a standing order for morphine, which we then administered via IV push.

Fifteen minutes later we came back to reassess his pain and vital signs. Uh-oh...his heart rate was still in the 150s but his BP was in the 70s/40s. Yikes! We checked his BP again and his systolic was in the 60s. The doc was supposed to be in the OR with an open heart procedure, but we paged him anyways. What a shock (sarcastic), he wasn't even at the hospital. I should have known that was a bad sign. He told us to start infusing him with tons of fluid as it seemed like he was hypovolemic (low fluid in the vascular system) and start him on Amiodorone and Digoxin, both drugs which increase blood pressure and contractility of the heart. The patient immediately improved and was ultimately fine. Side note: we had already prepped the meds before the doc called us as we knew that this is probably what would be ordered.

When the doc showed up 15 minutes later, he proceeded to chew the nurse out because the morphine had caused the drop in blood pressure and she should know that. He never even gave her an opportunity to explain the patient had complained of pain and was showing other physical symptoms of pain beyond tachycardia (fast heart rate). He was belligerant, berating, and demeaning.

I was impressed by the nurse who later explained the situation to me in detail...including that this doc is known to be difficult with nurses. I appreciated her statement that she would stand by her decision to administer morphine, given the symptoms and circumstances. As nurses, we all too often get trampled on by the doctors who hold so much power. Nurses need to stand by their guns as they are the ones assessing their patients and stay them for 12 hours a shift. Patients don't go to the hospital for the doctor, they go for the nurses.

This is NOT to say I don't appreciate doctors. Like I said, this was my first experience with a truly difficult doctor, which says an awful lot considering I only have 4 weeks left of nursing school! I am very thankful for docs and what they have done in my own health and life. And just like there are bad doctors there are just as many bad nurses.

So how do you come off an experience like the one I had today? Why, go to the "happiest place on earth!" Disneyland! :-) Nothing like a little "Soarin" to calm the indignant spirit. (Thank goodness for annual passes!)

And if you made it to the end of this post...wow, you deserve an award. :-)

What Do I Value?

Last night the evacuations had come within 2.5-3 miles (as the crow flies) of us, but knowing that we're in the middle of a bunch of concrete, I knew that we were going to be fine. Just in case, Mel got her stuff files together in case we had to leave in a hurry...the only smart one of the group. This morning I woke up to snow falling...I mean, is that ASH? Wow! Ash covered the ground and continued to fall all through the day.

As I got to watching the news, it made me sad to see all the homes that burned. If I had to suddenly leave, what would I be most upset about leaving? Being that I'm still young, it's amazing how much junk I've accumulated in my life. But that's all it really is: junk. I'd grab my files, my laptop, some clothes, maybe a few old books, my Bible, but that's about it. Everything else is replaceable. When I was little, our family lost everything we had in our storage unit: Mom's wedding dress, Grandad's baby clothes, antique china, heirlooms, etc... Do I store up for myself treasures on earth where fires can destroy? (Matt 6:19-20) It's easy for me to say that when I'm all warm, dry, and protected but I would imagine it would be an awful lot harder for me to say if I had just lost just about every earthly possession I own. I know several people who lost their homes yesterday and my heart continues to go out to them.

Here are some photos that I got from various news sources that tell a bit more of the story.

The day the sky turned orange

First of all, I am very safe...

But my heart is going out to the thousands of people displaced from their homes and the hundreds who have already lost their homes. This fire came so fast and furious that there was no time to grab the wedding albums, the family Bible, the family heirlooms, or anything but their kids and pets. So sad. Please pray for them. Many more will loose their homes before the day is over.

Here's a view of what I woke up to this morning:

40 days of temptation

I've started to call the rest of nursing school as my "40 days of Temptation." Not that I think my situation is similar to Jesus', not at all. But, the temptations during these next 40 days are going to be intense. I like to think of myself as the queen of procrastination. Why do it today if I can do it tomorrow? right? So, why should I work on all my papers, projects, and exams if I can read a fun book, take a nap, watch an episode of my favorite TV show, or just veg?I've had to start going somewhere to study... a place without so many distractions. So rather than procrastinate a little more with my blog, I'm going to get back to Subdural bleeds. :-( Let the 40 days begin...the sooner they're done, the sooner I'M done!!!

Annual Camping Trip

What camping with the girls means to me:
Laughter. Dough Boys. Rain. Waves. Pancakes, Eggs, Bacon. Apples to Apples. Friends. Greasy Hair. Biola Stories. Air Mattresses. Huge Tents. Sunsets. Beach. Dirt. Sweat. Bailey's. Hammock. Love.