too...exhausted... to... write...

We made it to our hotel in Wyoming- we are safe and sound, but completely exhausted.

It was an amazing day. I feel so blessed to be able to share my love for Wyoming with Brandon. He saw 3 bald eagles, several moose, a herd of antelope, 5 tumbleweeds, and THE ROCKIES. He now understands why I beg constantly for him to take me West.

1200 miles down... 950 to go.

Crazy ER Stories: Chapstick Emergency

We've decided to start a weekly post: craziest ER story of the week.

Last week, Brandon got a call that he was receiving a patient by ambulance. Diagnosis: lip laceration. Brandon, the trauma junkie, immediately had visions of a horrible facial trauma.

His patient arrived in her ambulance, holding a tissue to her lips.

"What seems to be the problem?" Brandon asked her.

"Well, my lips have been really chapped, and they started cracking and bleeding. I couldn't get the bleeding to stop, so I called an ambulance."

Brandon stared at her, unsure if she was joking. After examining her lips, he realized she was serious. She had called an ambulance for chapped lips.

Her ER visit cost approximately $1,000 dollars. Her treatment: one tube of chapstick.

Road Trip Day 1- WI, IA, NE

Hello from Nebraska!

We left this morning from Madison. Overall, the drive went really well. We only had to drive through snow for an hour or so.

We drove through western Wisconsin, which was absolutely beautiful. We had miles of snow covered hills dotted with bright red barns, horses, and frozen ponds. It really was stunning. I tried to snap pictures for painting inspiration, but unfortunately it was still too dark for them to turn out well.

Then we drove through Iowa. We had some time in the middle of nowhere...




followed by a lot more time in the middle of nowhere.




We crossed into Nebraska and drove to my old hometown, Hastings! It was the perfect way to spend my birthday. We drove by my old house and the college I attended for two years.

Then we went by my old Taekwondo school to visit my instructors, Mr. and Mrs. Neiman. It was so great to see them! I have missed them so much, and spending time with them was wonderful. Brandon got to meet them for the first time, and we got to congratulate them on achieving 7th Dan (7th degree blackbelt, an outstanding achievement).




We ended the night with my birthday meal- Joe's China Express. Yes, it's fast food. Yes, it comes from a gas station. But it is the BEST Chinese food ever and I have been missing it for almost 4 years!!

Tomorrow we're going to start with Baristas, the coffee shop where I used to work and then drive to Wyoming. I will post more pics from the trip on facebook- Mom, I promise to post pics of the house as soon as we get to California and have reliable internet access.

600 miles down... 1550 to go!

Wow.

I came across this heartwarming story today. It brought tears to my eyes, and I just had to share it. =)

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,482843,00.html

Uh-oh

Brandon was doing some research on the area we are headed to. We found out some great things... for example, we will be very close to the famous Napa Valley.

But there is one very big negative:




The first was from January 21, the second is from today. Apparently, the area is highly active! We will be living on the very southern tip of the lake... the lake that is only a few miles from the epicenter of daily earthquakes.

Those of you who know me well know that I have a few mild phobias... snakes, spiders, bugs of all types, water, heights, bridges... I have a feeling earthquakes will soon be added to that list.

we got "THE CALL"

It's official- we are going to California. :)

We had given up on that particular job. They wanted someone for a week earlier than we could start. Our company tried to get Brandon's current hospital to let him out of his contract early, but the hospital really wanted him to stay. So we gave it up, and decided to take the Arizona job if they offered it.

But California decided they really wanted Brandon and were willing to wait for him. So Brandon accepted the contract today (without talking to me. What did I tell you?) and we leave next week.

I was shocked when Brandon called to give me the news. California had been my first choice, but I knew Brandon was less than thrilled about driving 2100 miles to get there, through the mountains, during winter.

So we're headed there for 8-10 weeks. We are going to live in a cottage at a fishing resort. We'll have fishing, boating, hiking, bird-watching, and horse-backing riding within walking distance. It's currently a beautiful 68 degrees there- a far cry from the sub zero temperatures we've been experiencing here.

So I'm trading my ski pants and snow boots for a swimsuit and a pedicure! Woohoo!

Limbo makes me crazy... and unproductive

It is very likely that by the end of business hours today, my husband will have accepted a contract with a hospital.

And it's driving me crazy. He is at work, which means he's unavailable to me. For all I know, he could have already accepted a new position, and I won't know about it until midnight tonight.

While I have a LOT of work I need to be doing, I can't get anything done until I know something. My mind is too frazzled to do any kind of quality work for my class. I'm too nervous to sit and read for more than a few minutes. My housecleaning is pitiful, because I can't focus on it. I'll start doing something important, like scrubbing the toilet, and have a thought about one of our possible locations. I'll immediately scrub my hands and race off to the computer to research it on the internet, completely forgetting that the scrubber is still propped in the toilet bowl, and that it certainly isn't cleaning itself.

I'm really not sure why I get so stressed about the limbo period. I think it is partially because I know that I have a lot of work ahead of me to get us ready for wherever is next, and I really can't start on that work until I know. For example, if we go to California, we will leave in less than a week. My top priorities will be packing, cleaning, shipping our snowsuits and heavy coats to Arkansas, getting Brandon's paperwork started, planning our driving route, booking hotels, etc. Oh, and to add to the stress, we'll be responsible for setting up our own housing- another one of my duties as Brandon's assistant.

So for now, I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for anything. I've learned to expect the unexpected in travel nursing. I can make myself feel better by researching hotels and sorting clothes, but I know that anything could happen. Brandon could choose one of the three jobs, he could choose to stay at his current position, he could apply for and accept another position, or he could decide to go home and apply for a permanent job- and I probably won't know anything about it until it's all over. He tries to keep me in the loop, but decisions are made quickly in this industry, so he doesn't always have the luxury of calling for my opinion.

This adventure is definitely teaching me two very important lessons: to trust God, and to trust my husband. God has never let us go without. He has always provided a job, in His timing. Looking back, we can see His hand in every decision and every assignment. And while it's difficult for me to not be in control, I know that I can trust Brandon.

You vote- where should we go?

Northern California: rural town, 15,000 people, nestled in the mountains. Pros: beautiful, interesting scenery, great hiking and fishing, good living situation, amazing weather. Cons: 2100 mile drive, working all shifts, some high-stress complications regarding licensure and start date.

Southeastern Wisconsin: City on Lake Michigan, in between Milwaukee and Chicago. Pros: lots to do, only an hour drive from here, could choose our own apartment, only a day away from home, close to friends in Chicago. Cons: Still in Wisconsin, still freezing cold, even more ridiculously windy.

Northeastern Arizona: Tiny town in an Indian Reservation. Pros: wonderful weather, within driving distance from the Grand Canyon and other fantastic sights, GREAT pay, could visit my grandparents in Phoenix, good hospital, great experience. Cons: 1500 mile drive, not much to do in town, would live for three months in a hotel room with just a microwave and mini-refrigerator.

These are our top three options at the moment. Brandon has officially been offered the one in California, but hasn't talked to the other two yet. So what do you think?

Here we go again...

I could blog for hours about our trip to Arkansas, but I will limit it to this for now: we had a wonderful trip. It was busy and exhausting, but it was so great to see family and live in our house again. It's amazing how luxurious a 1600 square foot house feels after living in a cramped apartment for seven months.

We did have a traumatic experience with Ralph, but I'll save that for later.

Today I'm blogging for therapeutic purposes. Brandon and I aren't feeling very excited to be back in Wisconsin.

In Arkansas, we ran around in lightweight sweaters and left our coats at home. The weather was a beautiful 50-60 degrees every afternoon. I was able to trade in my snowboots for my favorite pair of Nine West flats... heavenly.

When we arrived in Wisconsin, it was a not-so-beautiful 0 degrees. It got down to 25 below zero with a windchill of -45. Right now, as I sit here trying to psych myself up to walk the dog, it is -14 with a windchill of -25. The high temperature for today is supposed to be around negative six degrees.

Needless to say, I'm feeling pretty depressed about being here.

Just two more weeks... I'm praying we get sent to Sunny Arizona or California next.

What is the world coming to?

Brandon and I had a long discussion today about how violent children are becoming. It seems that every day, we hear a new story about a child who shot or stabbed someone in anger. A 12 year old was just convicted of pre-meditated murder-- he shot his mother because she asked him to do some chores. I'm sure you've all heard about the 8 year old who recently confessed to killing his father and another man.

A few hours after our conversation, I checked the news online and found this story:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,476525,00.html

A four year old-- yes, a FOUR year old-- shot his babysitter with a shotgun, apparently in anger.

These stories make me sick. First of all, these deaths could have been prevented. Children should never have access to guns. I believe in the right to own a firearm. Brandon and I own one. But we keep ours locked away in a case. It is completely irresponsible to have guns/ammunition available to children who aren't capable of understanding the consequences of their actions.

I feel so strongly about this, because I happen to know young children who own their own guns and have unlimited access to them. One of these children has significant emotional problems. Should he, in his immaturity, be allowed access to a gun? Absolutely not!

I highly doubt that any of these people expected their children to commit acts such as these. We all have the mindset that "it won't happen to us" or "my kid isn't like that." But the fact is that the children growing up in our world are exposed to violence every day. Their movies and video games are filled with it. They are desensitized to violence, and cannot understand its consequences.

We have to teach our children that violence is wrong, that it is NOT OKAY to hurt someone because you are angry. We can't let them watch movies that glorify violence and play shoot-em-up video games, and just expect that at 4, 8, or 12 they will have the sense to know right from wrong.

Brandon sees the effects of violence every day in his job. It happens, everywhere, to every type of family. Don't take for granted that it won't happen to yours.

Arkansas, here we come!

We've been blessed with six days off in a row, so we are headed to Arkansas for a late Christmas with our families! It will be another whirlwind crazy trip, even shorter than last time. But hopefully we will manage to squeeze in some fun.

I'm posting the details of our trip here, to make it more simple for our families. I know we've mentioned multiple travel dates, arrival times, and schedules- we've been trying to rearrange Brandon's work schedule to give us an extra day or two, but that's not going to happen.

SO...

We will leave here Friday morning. Brandon has to work until midnight the night before, so we'll probably start late.

It is supposed to be snowing, so we're estimating 12-13 hours for the drive.

We'll eat supper on the road and go straight home to unpack and crash.

Saturday and Sunday are reserved for seeing our families.

Monday is our "get stuff done" day: We have some appointments, some errands, and Ralph has a vet visit.

We will leave on Tuesday or Wednesday. The plan is for Wednesday, but we are leaving some room for bad weather conditions.

Anyway, I know it's going to be crazy and that there is not a lot of time for visiting, but hopefully we'll be able to make another trip the last week in January (when Brandon's assignment here ends).