Turkey Day & the flu

Luckily Thanksgiving and the flu did not fall on the same day... I was lucky enough to get the flu on Saturday after we were home from our awesome trip down to Saint George! 

It was warm. Very warm :). I think I need a winter house in Saint George.

We had an amazing few days of delicious food, hanging out with family, and four-wheeling at the sand dunes! It was so nice to get out of Provo.... and Brian's aunts, uncles, and cousins are so much fun! We drove down on Thursday morning (after we got up at five) with Rebecca and Chris, got there pretty early and started peeling potatoes (we weighed them after they were all mashed and we had 35 pounds of mashed potatoes in one pot and about the same in another. Ca-razy.). Rebecca and I made the yams and everyone else helped with the rest! It was super yummy and there were about 40 people there! We played soccer, kickball, football, and had some good chats. 

We were planning on camping out in the backyard because of the large volume of people... but once we got there they let us know that we'd be staying in the neighbor's guest house... which was super nice! I was a little sad that I didn't get to camp, but relieved that I wouldn't freeze my buns off. Added bonus: the neighbors had a giant dog named George and he was SO cute and friendly! I miss my dog :/

Chris & Rebecca

Isn't this thing sweet? It's a "RZR". The kids complained of bonking their heads too much when they caught air though....

Grandpa Buzz!

Yep, I got awesome red goggles :)

check out the dirt on my collar! We were soooo dirty after.

Back to the real world on Friday evening I got down to working on my 20 page research paper about proper bottle-feeding techniques. Saturday we prostituted our plasma and then Saturday night... dun dun duunnnnnnnnnnn.... I got struck with the flu. Ew.

And guess what...

I still have it! It has now turned into a violent cold flu thing, but man oh man I'm ready to feel better. Nothing like a flu to make you want to lay in bed all day long and watch Gilmore Girls (which I have - thanks mom for letting me borrow your season). I have also watched Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., Walk the Line (which I did not like), the Italian Job, and plenty of YouTube videos. 

Oh, and somehow I finished my paper! Yaaay!

Brian has been an excellent help - always there to fluff my pillow, feed me some soup, grab some medicine, set up movies, and make me laugh. That's all you need when you're sick! I think I'm finally on the mend, however. I just need to make sure I'm completely better before Tuesday so I can go and do my last shift as a student nurse at clinicals! Ay carumba!

Who wants to hear what the nurse manager wrote me in her email? ... I wrote her to ask her "how hard" she thought I should look for another job as a back up. You know, feeling out the situation. 

Jeanne,

This is Rachael Pearce, the Capstone student currently working with Becca Derouin in your unit. I just wanted to say thank you so much for receiving my resume and discussing possible future employment with me! I have had an excellent experience in the NICU and have learned so much. I am actually sad to see the semester come to an end next week but I am so excited at the prospect of becoming part of the NICU team. I feel that I can be a great asset to an already exceptional staff. I graduate at the beginning of December and plan to take the NCLEX as soon as possible (end of January or early February). What will be the best way to keep in contact with you between now and when I pass my boards? I have a portfolio containing information about my project and certifications and am planning on bringing it on Friday for your review.

Because I know nothing is for certain, I was wondering what your advice is on applying for positions elsewhere. Should I spend a lot of time and energy doing that or do you feel that I have a great chance at getting a job with your staff? I plan to apply to at least a few other hospitals for the experience, but I know the place I want to work is at University Hospital.  

I look forward to seeing you sometime soon! Thank you again,

Rachael Pearce

rachael.l.nielsen@gmail.com

This is what she wrote back:

Jeanne Thornton	Nov 30 (3 days ago)
to me

Rachel:

You can keep in touch with me through this email.  That will be the best.  We plan to post positions the first part of January, and I will definitely put you on the list.  You will need to go through the interview process with me and the staff, but your chances are very,  very high as I have already had such great recommendations from the staff regarding your performance.  I will contact you the minute we put the jobs on the board.  You can apply even if you haven’t taken boards, as we will look to hire everyone together.  We mostly hire new grads, so you may all be in the same boat.  I think we will look to hire about 4 new RNs.  I will be here in the morning on Friday, so make sure I see you that morning.  I’m only here until about 11:00 that day.  I would never discourage you from making other applications as you never know maybe your dream job is elsewhere and you just don’t know it.  It is good experience to go through the process.  Thanks for your interest in our unit.  It is a great place to work. JT

Jeanne Thornton, RN, BSN

Nurse Manager

Newborn Intensive Care Unit

University of Utah Hospital

Cha-ching!

So, as you can see, it is not for certain, but my chances are "very, very high." Oh yeah! Just gott make sure I don't screw anything up to ruin those chances!

Brian and I took a field trip to Salt Lake and got me all registered for the NCLEX and my Nursing RN license (don't worry, just $300 - aaaah! I better pass it the first time!). We were going to go to the temple but it was CLOSED. So sad. So we took pictures with the animals instead :)

Ok, things I still need to blog about (this is a reminder to myself!)

1. 11.11.11 date
2. the Help
3. Amanda taking our blood!
4. Holiday plans

Well, it's back to homework! Hope everyone is doing grrreat :)