Christmas was great! I was able to take 4 days off work, so we went to Oklahoma and had a very nice holiday with our families.





Work has gotten better. Much, much better! It's kind of funny to go back and read about how overwhelmed and stressed I was back in October. In just a few months I feel like I have done a 180. I know what I am doing almost all of the time. I find myself showing others that have been there much longer than I have how to do something. :) My new shift is so much better on me as well. I get tired, but not like before. I am able to get 8 hours of sleep per night, which is so wonderful. I am growing to truly love my job and my coworkers. I work in a pretty small OR, so we are a very close team.

We have booked a trip to Europe in May! I am so excited about this! I have never been. Brent has been twice. We plan on going to Belgium, Holland, Germany, Austria, and possibly Italy. We don't have a definite itinerary, we want to figure it out as we go. We want the flexibility of being able to stay somewhere longer or shorter if we choose. And finding bed and breakfasts or hotels to stay in will be part of the adventure!

I have been doing lots of redecorating around the house. Every so often I get the itch. And I've definitely got it pretty bad right now. I have redone the guest bedroom, and changed some things in the living room as well. My next project is the master bedroom.


I recently painted the tiles around the fireplace brown. I'm really happy with how it turned out. I will take a picture and post it soon. I will also take some pictures of the guest bedroom. I'm thinking about making an "inspiration board" for home decorating. I'll let you know how that turns out.

New Year's resolution?

Maybe my resolution for 2009 will be to be a better blogger. I will try to at least post small blurbs and/or pics more often. Here are some pics of our Christmas tree. I am very happy with it! I did a black/silver/white theme.

I am looking forward to going home for a few days for Christmas. We've been able to go home for Christmas every year since we've lived in Austin. But now that I'm out of school and a regular full-time employee, I will probably have to work on Christmas every once in a while. Work is getting much better. I am getting more comfortable with everything and I'm actually able to enjoy myself some of the time. It's nice! I also started a new shift. I was not much of an early morning person. So I now work Monday-Friday 10am-6:30pm. And let me tell you...it's GREAT!!!

And lastly, here are our adorable sleepy kitties:

OR Nursing

So, what is new with me? I work. And I work some more. I am exhausted! My job is very physical and it wears me out! I still love what I am doing, but it is very overwhelming. I am supposed to be on "orientation" for 6 months. Meaning I will not be "on my own" for 6 months. Well, let me tell you...that is not the case! I am constantly being used as an extra staff member, running my own operating rooms, without another nurse. I am capable of this a lot of the time, but sometimes I don't feel comfortable on my own. When it's a big surgery that I haven't done before, I need some guidance. I am able to get that guidance most of the time if I ask for it, but it really shouldn't be this way. I am learning...A LOT! But I feel that being thrown into a situation that I'm not comfortable in isn't always the best way. But that's just how it's going to be. And I keep being told that you have to have "tough skin" to work in the OR. I have to deal with cranky surgeons that take their frustration out on me. I have to take criticism from my peers when I do something the wrong way. It isn't always truly the wrong way, it just isn't their way. There is a saying that "nurses eat their young." And I am finding that to be oh-so-true!

Anyways, sorry for ranting. I do still love my job. And it will get better in time. I hear it takes about 2 years to feel comfortable as a new nurse in the OR. I am looking forward to that day. I have had some really good days where I am on my own and everything goes extremely smoothly and it boosts my confidence like crazy. And then I have days like today, where it felt like nothing was going my way. So far, it has always worked out in the end. The surgery is completed, the patient is safe, and I go on to the next case.

So, I work Monday through Friday 6:30am-3:00pm. This is part of the reason I am so exhausted. I am not a morning person. I despise getting up at 5:30am! I come home from work and feel like a zombie. I don't get anything productive done during the week. Luckily I have weekends off...for now. Until I have to be on call one weekend a month. I don't know how these other nurses do it. I am hoping that once I am off orientation, I can change my shift around a little so I don't have to be there so early every day.

Most people don't have a clue what the circulating nurse does in the operating room. And let me tell ya, it's nothing like on TV. I know I talked about it briefly in my last post, but I will go into a little more detail today.

It can be very intense and very exciting. It is a challenge, and I need to be challenged in life. There is so much variety in the OR. There are so many different surgical specialties that I need to know about (general, orthopedics, neurosurgery, gynecology, vascular...). I have gotten to "scrub in" on a few surgeries now. Meaning that I am gowned and gloved, in the sterile field, handing instruments, retracting body parts, cutting sutures. And it's SO EXCITING!!! I love every minute of it!

As a circulating nurse, after making sure all of the necessary equipment is in the room, I go see the patient in the holding area, conduct a pre-op interview, check their chart for the consent, labs, etc, answer their questions, and then bring the patient to the OR. I then assist the anesthesiologist or nurse anethesist (CRNA) with induction (putting the patient to sleep). Next I help the surgeon with positioning the patient for surgery, "prep" (or clean) the surgical site (abdomen, knee, hand, etc.), put in a Foley catheter if ordered, connect all the necessary equipment (cords get "thrown off" the sterile field and I plug stuff in), do the computer charting, and make sure that the surgical team has everything they need for the procedure. It is a lot of responsibility! And aside from all of that, my primary focus is ensuring the patient's safety.

I have a wide range of types of patients. Some are extremely healthy, but fell and broke a bone in their ankle and need to have it fixed by putting a plate on it. And some are really sick, in renal failure, with acute respiratory failure and diabetes, and need a catheter placed in their chest so they can have dialysis.

One thing I really like about working in the OR is the teamwork aspect. I work in extremely close proximity with surgeons, anesthesiologists/CRNAs, scrub techs, and other RNs. I am stuck in a small room (with no windows to the outside) with the same people, sometime for hours at a time. We really get to know each other well!

I love the feeling of making a difference in my patient's lives. I learn MANY new things, every single day! I am challenged more than I ever have been before. And I work alongside with some of the most educated, talented, caring, compassionate people I have ever known!

So it may be hard. It may be exhausting. It may sometimes feel like I am never going to "get it". But I will keep going back to it. Because I am a nurse. And I love my job! :)

I will try to come back soon with some non-work updates. But I just had to get all of that out!

It's official...Laura B, RN!!!

Wow. I'm not a student anymore. It's a very strange feeling. Things got a little crazy for a little while, but I think things are finally calming down. I graduated on May 16. Had family in town visiting most of that week. Here are Brent's parents, Brent, myself, my mom, and Doug after graduation.


I took my NCLEX (nursing state boards) on Tuesday the 20th and started working on Wednesday the 21st! I have not had a break at all! I found out on Thursday the 22nd that I passed the NCLEX (making me an official RN)!!! And I had my license in the mail by Saturday. It's all very surreal. Most of my friends are taking their boards sometime this month and start working in late June. I just wanted to get it all over with. No use in dragging it out. People made it sound like the NCLEX was going to be ridiculously hard and I would leave the testing center feeling like I had failed. Luckily, that was not the case for me. I felt pretty confident going into the exam, and pretty confident coming out. UT's nursing program has a 98% pass rate, so I had a pretty strong feeling I would not be one of the 2% to fail. That's just not what I do...I don't fail!!!

Work so far has been GREAT! I did some boring classroom orientation stuff 2 weeks ago. And last week I worked in the operating room with another nurse all week. I did a lot of watching what she was doing and I helped with doing things as I felt comfortable doing them. I am so excited to be an OR nurse! It gives me a rush of excitement and it truly feels like this is what I should be doing. It is unlike any other area of nursing. It is a very technical job. Making sure everything is in the room and ready before the surgeon gets there. Making sure everyone in the room is doing what they are supposed to be doing during the surgery. Because as a nurse, my number one job is to be an advocate for the patient. And while a patient is under anesthesia, it is extremely important! They are unable to do anything for themselves, so it is my job to make sure they are given the proper care and treatment while in that operating room. There are multiple other duties of an OR nurse. There's also a lot of boring charting that has to be done. Definitely my least favorite part about nursing. But I absolutely LOVE my job!!!

I am pretty much still in shock. I'm a nurse...a Registered Nurse!!! That thing I had been working so hard to achieve...is finally here! It feels so good!

Happy Mother's Day!

BEING A MOTHER...

After 17 years of marriage, my wife wanted me to
take another woman out to dinner and a movie. She
said, 'I love you, but I know this other woman loves
you and would love to spend some time with you.'
* * *
The other woman that my wife wanted me to visit
was my MOTHER, who has been alone for 20 years,
but the demands of my work and my two boys had
made it possible to visit her only occasionally.
* * *
That night I called to invite her to go out for
dinner and a movie.
* * *
'What's wrong, aren't you well,' she asked?
* * *
My mother is the type of woman who suspects that a
late night call or a surprise invitation is a sign
of bad news.
* * *
'I thought it would be pleasant to spend some
time with you,' I responded. 'Just the two of us.'
She thought about it for a moment, and then said,
'I would like that very much.'
* * *
That Friday after work, as I drove over to pick
her up I was a bit nervous. When I arrived at her
house, I noticed that she, too, seemed to be nervous
about our date. She waited in the door. She had curled

her hair and was wearing the dress that she had worn

to celebrate her last birthday.
* * *
She smiled from a face that was as radiant as an
angel's. "I told my friends that I was going to go
out with my son, and they were impressed," she said,
as she got into that new white van. "They can't wait to hear
about our date".
* * *
We went to a restaurant that, although not
elegant, was very nice and cozy. My mother took my
arm as if she were the First Lady. After we sat
down, I had to read the menu. Her eyes could only
read large print. Half way through the entries, I
lifted my eyes and saw Mom sitting there staring at
me. A nostalgic smile was on her lips. "It was I
who used to have to read the menu when you were
small," she said. "Then it's time that you relax and
let me return the favor," I responded.
* * *
During the dinner, we had an agreeable
conversation- -nothing extraordinary but catching up
on recent events of each other's life. We talked so
much that we missed the movie.
* * *
As we arrived at her house later, she said, 'I'll
go out with you again, but only if you let me invite
you.' I agreed.
* * *
A few days later, my mother died of a massive
heart attack. It happened so suddenly that I didn't
have a chance to do anything for her.
* * *
Some time later, I received an envelope with a
copy of a restaurant receipt from the same place
mother and I had dined. An attached note said: 'I
paid this bill in advance. I wasn't sure that I
could be there; but nevertheless, I paid for two
plates - one for you and the other for your wife.
You will never know what that night meant for me. I
love you, son.'
* * *
At that moment, I understood the importance of saying

in time: 'I LOVE YOU' and to give our loved
ones the time that they deserve. Nothing in life is
more important than your family. Give them the time
they deserve, because these things cannot be put off
till 'some other time.'
* * *

I'm DONE!!!

As of yesterday, I am officially done with nursing school! Now I just have to wait for graduation (May 16) and then take the NCLEX. And I will officially be an RN! I can't believe that the end is actually here! At times it seemed so far away. Everything is in order for my job. I will start working as an OR nurse once I have been given GN (graduate nurse) status. It takes the board of nursing a little while to do that. So it's just a waiting game. I can work as a GN until I take (and pass) the NCLEX, then I will be an RN!

A little update

Well, I got busy with school and life and haven't posted anything in a while. I knew that would happen. I graduate in less than 2 months! We took a test at school that is supposed to be an indicator of how we will do on the NCLEX, and I scored very well on it. I barely studied... So I guess some of this information actually is sinking in! Next week I am going to a NSNA (National Student Nurse Association) convention in Grapevine, TX. I will be gone from Wednesday through Saturday. It will be a nice little getaway from school madness.

I have been sick for almost a month now. I am so sick of being sick! I think I just had a cold that turned into bronchitis. I don't feel too horrible. I just have this nagging cough now. My surgery finally got authorized by the insurance company (more than 2 months later!). But I can't miss any more school to have the surgery. I missed some from being sick and I'm going to miss a few days when I go to the convention. So, it is going to have to wait until after graduation in mid-May or so. I haven't scheduled anything yet. I really wish surgery wasn't the answer. I am considering going to another doctor for a 2nd opinion. I am trying some alternative treatments for the pain in the meantime. I have gone to 2 acupuncture appointments now. I don't really think it's doing much for my jaw, but I do feel like it is helping some of my other problems. I am going to keep going and see what happens.

I took a break from studying and made this "Meez" character. I think it's cute. :)