CAT!

This weekend we got a cat!

We got him from Animal Friends , one of the most beautiful animal shelters I've ever been to!

He is an 8 month, 6lb tabby cat.

Due to a busy Saturday (helping a neighbor move) we didn't get there until 4:30 (they close at 5). We figured we would just take a look and then come back the next day. However this cat was just sitting there waiting for us.

He passed all the tests:

Adorable kitten

Tabby

Let us hold him

Killed a stinkbug

He also hasn't destroyed Smorey yet.

His name is Cross but we're working on a new name...any ideas?

This is about 3 hours after he met us

And I am well on my way to becoming a crazy cat lady....

Oh yeah this was a post about nursing school huh?....

Spring Break is in 5 days woooooo!!!!

Thursday Clinical

Todays overarching theme....

Goodbye 1281 and Clinical Preparation Worksheets

On Wednesday we had our last 1281 class! (Our Foundations of Professional Nursing Practicum)

Very sad. We will miss you Alice.

We finished the class early because we frontloaded (had 2 lectures a week, moved really fast!) the course to learn all the skills we needed for clinical.

We had a lecture on sleep and how we should all be getting 7-8 hours of sleep a night, and being able to wake up without an alarm....one day that may happen...one day...(see previous post to see proof we are chronically sleep deprived)

Then we were assigned patients that we would be taking care of on Thursday and Friday, and prepared Clinical Preparation Worksheets to prove we know whats up with our patients.

We try our best to make life a little sweeter while doing this.

Go Smorey Go! (I would show you any more of my forms, but can't due to HIPPA precautions :) )

Snow and NG Tubes

Wooeee 6 inches of snow overnight.
And to think it was 68 last friday....oh the games the weather plays on us.
Unfortunately unlike Seattle we have adequate snow cleaning equipment and not as many steep hills and a higher percentage of dry snow vs ice accumulation. So no snow day for the students at Pitt, and no avoiding the pop quiz in Pharmacology (however on my HOUR long commute this morning I did come up with some really great mnemonics for the drugs we had to memorize for the quiz )

After Pharm we had Skills Lab where we practiced putting in NG (nasogastric) tubes! Thank goodness we have willing manniquins to test on.

I recommend never getting sick enough to need one of these - eat your broccoli and blueberries!

Here is Smorey supervising Laura's NG tube insertion skillz

And just to make sure the manniquin was handling this ok, we asked Smorey to listen to his lung and heart sounds.


"Vesicular sounds in the left upper lobe of the lung, no wheeezes or crackles, even heartbeat, S2 louder than S1, no additional heart sounds appreciated!"

thanks Smorey!

Monday Monday......

Today was a long day, like many Mondays this semester have been.
We learned about tube feedings (nutrition in a bag that you don't need to chewandswallow)
Here is Smorey checking out the view of the lab from atop an IV pole.


Class from 8am to 6pm makes for a tired bunch.
Between 3:30 and 4:30 we had a break, so some smart people opted for a nap.
Smorey was one of the smart ones!


Jenilee and Smorey had a nap session.


Hopefully tomorrow will be a less sleep inducing day

Another awesome day

Today we signed a lease addendum with our landlord to get a cat!!!
Stay tuned for rediculously cute kitty pictures (we haven't picked him/her out yet, so it will be a couple days)
... and for the possible destruction of Smorey...dundunduuuunnnn
(look at him, he doesn't know his life may soon be in danger, I promise I will do my best to keep him safe, but kitties are ferocious animals)



We are also making some beer!!!
Here is the type we are making today



Heres Grant, Smorey and our beer that we made 3 weeks ago, a Cream Ale, its ready for bottling!

PACU and the weekend!

Yesterday was spent observing in the PACU the Post Anesthesia Care Unit. It was a very interesting day, but my only big moments were helping to move people and help them go to the bathroom. Nothing that Smorey really feels like reproducing for me (though they are very important nursing skills!)

However today was Saturday and we went to the movies!!
We saw the Live Action short films that are Oscar nominees. All very good!
Here is smorey enjoying some popcorn.

My day in the OR!

No I didn't bring Smorey into the OR.
But when I got home I showed him a few things I saw today
Cute scrubs! I actually got to wear light blue scrubs today, but them and their germs stayed at the hospital



The oxygen mask! Time for a nap Smorey!



Today I observed a robotic ovary and fallopian tube removal (bilateral salpingoophorectomy BSO), and a normal (not robotic) ovary tubes and uterus removal (TAHBSO). The robot looks sort of like a spider, and works by just making 4 holes in the abdomen and inserting very small arms and a camera. The doctor controls the robot from a computer with joysticks n stuff. Much less invasive, so a faster recovery time.

Time for your robotic chocolate-ectomy Smorey!

Chill day

Today was a pretty chill day!
Only one class.
So we spent time hanging out and studying in the Victoria Building (the nursing school)












Then we had lunch with friends Mary and Katrina and Laura



Tomorrow we're observing a surgery at the hospital! We'll be eating a good meal tonight to save up energy for hours and hours of standing. Psyched. See you later!

Say hello to Smorey

This is Smorey
He was bought for me by my lovely boyfriend for Valentines day because I thought he was adorable.

An knit s'more-created to keep me company through the cold months that are absent of campfires and s'mores. Freakin adorable.



Then one fateful night, my friend Laura and I were up far too late studying for a Pharmacology exam (bound to make anyone go a little crazy), and decided it would be adorable to make a photo diary of s'moreys adventures.


I happen to be in nursing school right now, an accelerated, one year BSN,RN "WE OWN YOU!" kind of program. And am learning all sorts of interesting things and skills, so mine as well have s'morey help document my current life.

We'll see how long this idea lasts.....

Here he is falling asleep to the knowledgable words of Lippincotts Nursing Drug Guide


Study break!! Time for some bellydancing! Here he is in his pretty skirt






And also! We passed an IV medication competency exam today! So next week Smorey and I will be allowed to give our hospital patients their IV medications. Here he is studying hard



Until later! Time to study hard, and look adorable while doing it!