Overworked!

I have never been SO tired after a weekend on call. Apparently everyone in the hospital is completely incapable of doing the work on their own. So many stupid questions were posed to me this weekend! On top of that, I got chewed out by an angry and frustrated parent (not at me, but the situation he's in). I just sat there and validated his feelings and directed him to the person who could actually do something about it. I've also had NO sleep in the last 36 hours because we've had FOUR really good heart offers that I've spent an average of 6 hours each on, and then they all fell through because of various stupid reasons. It's frustrating to work that hard and have NO ONE get a heart because of it. I think I talked to the surgeon about every hour since last night at 7pm. I'm just thankful it was her, and not the other surgeon because he would have come even more unglued than Kris and I did. Thank goodness for small blessings.

I went to a wine tasting last night, which was completely interrupted by the first of the four heart calls. I did get to enjoy a good part of it, although not the wine. Darn being on call! :( Today, I went to a goodbye brunch for a good friend of mine. I was only called away to the phone twice during that! Hooray!

I'm all alone this week as my counterpart has taken vacation. It should be pretty busy, especially since we're going to be discharging our newest transplant (out in less than a WEEK after transplant!) tomorrow. Aside from that, we'll see what madness develops! I am praying for uninterrupted sleep tonight! Please? PLEASE? :)

Oliver's mission

For Christmas, my dad bought Oliver what he believed to be an undestroyable toy. He did not realize the great power and toy shredding capacity that Oliver has. It did take him 48 hours to break into the toy, but the end result is always the same. Shreds abounding....squeakers out....fluff everywhere! Here are some pictures...

Before he is given the toy....

He looks kinda crazy here, but he's really just excited to have a new toy!

The shredding begins. Note the pieces of the toy strewn about.

Fluff EVERYWHERE!!

Squeaker out!

Now he's tired and needs to sleep!

It's an exciting life we lead here in Dallas...

FREEDOM!

I am SO happy right now! I'm OFF call and I don't go back to work until Friday the 28th! Ta DA! :) I am going to spend the day tomorrow trying to finish my Christmas shopping and getting my car fixed. There's a CD that's been stuck in my car for about three months, and I just CAN'T get it out! So, I'm gonna have them attempt to fix it while the radio is still under warranty! I also have to take the puppies to the vet for shots and the like. What a fun time for them!

I think I finally got all the presents mailed off to those who won't be there. It took some last minute stress and work-lateness (oh, I made that word up!), but it's finally done! I just wish those people could be at my Grandma's too, but they have other committments. I think I have just one more person to buy for and then the wrapping begins.

Last week was so FUN! I got to go to my very first Mavericks game! I went with a few girls from work. We sat ALL the way on the very top row, but we still had a great time! On Saturday, I had the opportunity to go to the main CT surgeon's Christmas party. It was SO fancy! They had a cello player, a singer, servers, and the most amazing food! They had this wonderously fabulous avocado bar! You got a half of an avocado and then there were all sorts of wonderous things to fill it with! Bacon, sour cream, pico de gallo, cheese....so good!



Today was a really good clinic day! I got to see so many of my sweet babies (I call them ALL babies...even the teenagers!) including "Mr 100". He finally gets to go back to his home town after being in Dallas since August 10! He was so excited today. He gave me a big goodbye hug. I am really gonna miss seeing him every week!

I'm headed out to my Grandma's house either Saturday or Sunday. Liberty will be with me, no doubt to enjoy the four hours on the road. Oliver will be living it up at Becca's with her family. It's been wonderful having him back this week. He's such a snuggle bug. I think I have some great pics of him from this week....




I won't be blogging until I get back from my grandma's house next week. I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas. Here's a picture of my beautifully self-chopped (or actually, Michael chopped) Christmas tree. Enjoy!

A plethora of technology

I am back on call until the 20th. Back to sleeping with all my electronics next to my night stand. We have 2 kiddos on the list right now, so anything is possible. On a better note, my sweet little guy is improving every day. It's slow, but it is progress. Keep him in your prayers, he is very in need of them!

My house is decorated for Christmas! I've got my beautiful live tree all decorated! My favorite piece, my Willow Tree nativity, is all assembled. I've actually started Christmas shopping, but I haven't really accomplished much. I am hoping to do some tomorrow since I only have a massage and an open house to attend. Hooray for massages! I absolutely need one as my entire body is crampy and hurting.

I've also got to buy some sort of Christmas fancy outfit. I was invited to the main surgeon's Christmas party and my date is my favorite transplant surgeon! :) She always dresses fabulously, so I guess I'd better look good as well! I already have shoes, so I think I just need a party dress. That's not necessarily an easy task!

There is SOMETHING going on outside tonight. I have been hearing sirens and firetrucks for about 15 minutes, and several helicopters have quickly flown over. I have no idea what it's all about...but it is kinda scary!

Well, I guess that's just about it that's going on here. Busy busy busy.

Answered prayers!

Two weeks ago, I experienced the worst transplant I had ever been in on. It was long, drawn out, complicated, and disheartening. It didn't end well and the next 2 weeks were an absolute stress-filled disaster. This sweet little boy ended up having to be re-listed, with no idea if we were even going to get any offers. Time was running out...

Until 10:59 last night, when someone made the decision to offer the gift of life. I can NOT stress enough how much organ donation affects people. Honestly people, you do NOT need your organs after you're gone...so why keep them? There are so many myths about organ donation....and so MANY REWARDS! To see the face of someone change after you've just told them "We have a heart for your son/daughter" is a look I'll never be able to erase from my mind. Why would someone want to hold that back or not allow it to happen? Did you know there are 90,000 people waiting for organs and only about 35,000 organs being donated? Ridiculous!

Anyways....off the soap box and back to reality....

I am anxiously awaiting the results of this newest transplant, but I DO know that the new heart is beating...something that couldn't be said for the last one. :) Please keep the prayers going for this sweet boy and his family. Seeing as the last thing he said to me was "I love you Stephanie!", I really REALLY want a good outcome! Pray hard! AND BECOME AN ORGAN DONOR!

A week gone by...

WOW. I can't believe it's almost December already! Where on EARTH has the time gone? I sat down yesterday to scratch out some thougnts for a Christmas letter and thought of all the things that had gone on this year. Now I am sitting watching Charlie Brown Christmas, still amazed that it's time for this again!

Thankgiving was SUCH a nice break from work, especially since it has been so absolutely crazy the last few days before. My sister flew in from Virginia and didn't leave until yesterday, so we had a FUN time together. Lots of shopping, lots of eating, lots of talking...and lots of bed hogging, according to Kimberly. I do not believe the last one, but she swears by it. HEY. It's my bed, I do not have to share. :)

Things at the hospital are so-so. My sweet transplant from last week is stable at the moment. He needs a new heart and LOTS of prayers. The annual Children's Christmas parade is this Saturday, and I have FOUR transplanted kiddos in it! I'm excited to see them be able to take part! It will be on 350 stations nationwide, so make sure to watch it! It's SUCH a quality parade and the kids LOVE it! Not sure if I'll be walking in the parade this year or not, but you'll have to watch to find out! :)

www.childrensparade.com has all the syndication listings.

I think I am trying to acquire a cold at the moment. I've been taking lots of zinc and echinecia and other things to ward it off, but I think it's coming anyways. Stupid cold.

I'm sending out Christmas cards this week and would LOVE to send you one! Email me your address if you read this...I'd love to get my address list more complete!

HAVE A GREAT DAY! :)

Fighting for his life.

A sweet little boy received the gift of a new heart yesterday. I've really bonded with this family (I know that it seems like I ALWAYS do, but this family is a special one!) and was so thrilled to be a part of his experience. Unfortunately, there were complications and he is SO sick right now. This boy is a FIGHTER and does not give up easily, so I know he is fighting with all his might right now. Please lift up prayers for him, his parents, and his sisters. Just a really quick story about how sweet he is. When we brought him to the OR, he looked at me and said "Oh don't worry Stephanie, I won't harass you now!". I laughed and said he could harass me all he wanted. When we got him on the table, he asked for me and then told me he loved me (he was completely on calm down meds at this point!). Then he asked if we would pray before he went to sleep. We all stopped and the anesthesiologist prayed out loud for him and the surgery. AFter that, he just calmed right down and went right to sleep. So sweet.

I'm exhausted after the longest heart transplant surgery in my hospital's history. I got there at 11AM yesterday and got home at 8AM today. YAWN. Need sleep! Please PRAY HARD!

Patience is a virtue I need HELP with.

Let's just work through some scenes from my life. Imagine that you are working in your office on a project for a parent. You're on a website for this family, doing research. Your extremely nosy coworker looks OVER your shoulder and says "What are you looking up?".

Scene #2: Instead of preparing materials for a meeting as previously discussed, certain co-worker spends three hours doing nothing and then leaves the office with the meeting materials incomplete.

Does anyone have a nice and tactful way of confronting situation #1? I already handled situation #2. I don't know how to nicely say "GET OUT OF MY BUSINESS!!!" Suggestions? Comments? Encouragement? Because situations like that make me want to quit my job. I'm completely afraid I'm going to SNAP and say something rude and I'm normally not RUDE!

ARG.

Outta here!

The Phoenix Sky Harbor airport has my undying gratitude and thanks. First of all, the absolute QUICKEST check in/security screen I've ever enountered. Second, and most important, they have FREE wireless internet! What a delight! I can waste my hour of sitting time playing around on the internet and not have to pay the bothersome 6-10 dollars that the companies airports contract with like to steal from me. I am very grateful.

I am VERY sad the conference is over! What a great experience! It's one thing to be with coordinators all day at work, but this conference allowed me to meet with coordinators from all over the country and see what works for them in their programs! I was able to network and have fun with people who do EXACTLY what I do, and that's always a great time! My hospital paid for my hotel/meals/airfare so it was nice to not be stressed about money for once. My hotel room was beautiful, the conference kept feeding us, and the weather was hot but NOT humid. The only thing that could have made it better was for me to have taken a friend with me. Next time, I'll certainly know better. It's nice to wander a new city alone, but I'm such a talker that I'm sure some people thought I was homeless and talking to myself!

Here's my latest conundrum. Suitcases. I'm telling you, I really only bought 2 votive holders and 2 things of soap while in Arizona. Before I left, my suitcase was easily close-able. I practically had to LAY on it, even in the most stretched out setting to get it to close before I left! Do dirty clothes take up more space? It was so frustrating because I KNOW my suitcase weighed less than 40lbs when I left. Upon check in today, I discovered it weighed a hefty 47. What the heck? Such a mystery...

I am happy to see my sweet puppies this evening! I'm sure Liberty has forgotten all about me...fickle baby.

There are A LOT of people who want to go to DFW today. Our flight here was packed, and I'm sure that this one will be as well. I really despise long flights. I have too much need to wiggle and move and the people around me start to stare me down. I can't help it! I've never been able to sit still!

Tomorrow, it's back to work, but thankfully only a three day week! And I am NOT on call! Okay, I take it back. Apparently, my co-worker has messed with the schedule and I am on call for donors starting on Friday. CRAP. I can't catch a break. Thankfully, after that, she is on call for a full two weeks, none of this one week business. So I'll end up two weeks on, one week off, one week on? This makes no sense. I give UP trying to figure out her thought processes. I'm just going to have to REALLY take advantage of my three nights with my phone out of my room. It's been really odd this week to not have my pager on...I've enjoyed it! :)

Well, the plane is gonna take off soon. Guess I'd better shut this down. In a few hours, PUPPIES! :)

So stinkin' confused!

Hello from Tempe, Arizona! I arrived here yesterday afternoon and will not be leaving until Tuesday night! Such a long conference! I'm actually really enjoying the conference. It's so applicable to my job that I am not bored! (well, most of the time anyway!) My room is beautiful and has a patio that overlooks the courtyard which is full of fountains! If I had my cable thingy, I'd upload pics I took, but that will have to wait. I went to the pool today and was surrounded by palm trees, cacti, and a HUGE butte/mesa thing. I'll have to take pictures of that tomorrow! The weather here is beautiful this time of year. It's always pleasant outside, but not humid. Probably the most interesting thing this conference has to offer is the snack stations. I'm serious, it feels like they want us to eat ALL the time! If I am really bold, I'll try to take a picture of this wonderland. It's constant food...and all kinds! Fruits, juice, water, sodas, pastries, trail mix, cookies, crackers, candy, cereal, granola bars, and ice cream abound! It's INSANE! So far, there are only 2 things I have found that I don't like. #1: This is a Pepsi drinking hotel. EW and ICK. When faced with the soda choice, those people who know me know my serious addiction to Diet Dr Pepper. When that's not available, I'll go for Diet Coke. If all else fails and the sky has fallen, I'll drink Diet Pepsi. I'm dying for DDP right about now. #2: I can NOT understand the time zone here. I am 2 hours off central time because Arizona doesn't use daylight savings time. Tomorrow, I'll be 3 hours off. As if that wasn't weird enough, I can't figure out the times my TV shows are on! I just looked on Yahoo TV in the Arizona section to see what was on TV now...all I could recognize was Liar Liar. When I checked the schedule, it said that was supposed to be on at midnight...but it's only 9! I'm so puzzled.

It absolutely floors me that by the time I get home, I will be three hours off in time zones. SO weird. I love that the hotel even provides a little paper on "The history of Daylight Savings Time". So educational!

Well, since my body thinks it's nearly midnight, I'm off to bed. I roamed around Tempe tonight and actually went to a movie alone! I've never done that before! Perhaps it was the freedom of a new city.

I do miss my puppies. It's weird to go to bed by myself. :)

I wanna DANCE!

I have always wanted to take dance lessons...ever since I was a little wild child. For some reason, I was never allowed to. Perhaps it was that we had not a lot of extra money or time when I was growing up. Perhaps my mother thought it brazen. Who knows? What I DO know is that every time I watch Dancing with the Stars, I suddenly start browsing the web for dancing schools. I just wish that some dashing dancer would teach me the Mamba and the Samba and the Passa Doble...and all those fancy moves they do! Ah well, perhaps I will find someone who will want to teach me to dance.

Work has been basically okay. My sweet little transplant boy came home from the World Series game absolutely GLOWING! He DID get to throw out the first pitch, although that part wasn't televised...much to the chagrin of the entire DFW cheering section. He sat up in the president of the Red Sox box, did TWO press conferences, met all the Red Sox team, and just basically felt like the sweet star he is! He was thrilled and thankful today, even though he had to spend the day at the hospital, that he got to experience all that. Our surgeon was equally excited, practically running around her office telling every single detail of the trip without stopping for breath! I think that's one of the reasons I just love her! What an amazing woman! Here's a link to one of the MANY news stories done about him. He was in 176 news stories, including TV/radio/print!
http://www.myfoxdfw.com/myfox/MyFox/pages/sidebar_video.jsp?contentId=4745572&version=1&locale=EN-US


The best part of the week was getting to spend time with my precious friend Jennifer. After losing her daughter two weeks ago, she's been back in Odessa and I have missed her! I've seen her almost every day for 4 months, and I'm going through withdrawls! She brought her son to Boo at the Dallas Zoo this past weekend and we ate lunch together on Saturday and then went to the mall for fun shopping on Sunday! I really miss her.



Friday I am leaving for Arizona. The conference I went to three weeks ago was only slightly coordinator focused. It was really more focused on donors. This conference is JUST FOR coordinators! NEW coordinators! I'm very excited about it! Hopefully, I'll learn enough about the other organs to be able to ace my certification test that I must take next spring. I am hoping to find lots of people to network with. I am staying in a big hotel room all alone, but I've been told there's lots of fun to be had in the area, so perhaps I'll investigate! The weirdest thing is that Daylight Savings time starts while I'm gone. Arizona doesn't participate, so when I come back, my internal clock will be TWO hours off! Odd!

Well, puppies are calling. They are displaying attention seeking behaviors. Sweet things!

Sometimes, I'm amazed.....

There's so many bad things in this world. It's not getting any better...and it's not going to! It's really great when people are kind just because they can be, but it doesn't happen very often. It's happening alot at my hospital lately!

Our sweet little transplant kiddo who was "Mr 100" is a HUGE Red Sox fan. The surgeon promised him that if they made it to the World Series, she'd find a way to take him. Well, thanks to the kindness of Grace Flights of America and the president of the Red Sox, Andrew will be sitting in the Red Sox president's box seats tomorrow night for the game! There's even talk that he may get to throw out the first pitch! WOW!

We've had a few frustrating heart outcomes lately, and not necessarily just transplant kids but heart kids in general, and that's SO hard! Thankfully, many of our transplant kids who were SO sick, are doing well right now! This weather change hasn't seemed to affect anyone yet, and we're very thankful for that! It's nice to catch a break every once in awhile, right?

Tomorrow, Michael and I are going to Washington Mutual to see if they will give me the almost $400 they charged me in late fees for something that was not my fault (unauthorized transaction took the money I had in my account and I had written checks using some of that money!). I don't know if they will do anything, but I'm prepared to take my business elsewhere if they don't. I'm taking Michael for moral support, and it doesn't hurt that he's a finance lawyer! :) SO, pray I don't lose my temper...or cry!

Liberty and Oliver are happily playing. They've just finished a wild romp around the house and now Oliver is shredding toys. I am having a Grey's Anatomy party here tomorrow (well, not party...just gathering!) and I was trying to clean the house so my friend's aren't shocked and disgusted. Oh well. There's string and toy carcasses everywhere!

K. I'm out. Hope your week is going well...and it's almost the WEEKEND! :) I'm going to Arizona next week so I'll have a 4 day week! Excitement! :)

Random stuff and some Shakespeare...

Lots of things have transpired this week! I got back from Nashville last Wednesday after 2 days of doing nothing but sitting in meetings and eating! I think it was a very worthwhile conference, and I hope to be able to implement some of them in my practice. I had Thursday all to myself (well, Liberty and I!) and ran errands and things that can't be done when you work M-F. Friday, my parents came into town! My brother/sister in law, my parents, and I traipsed off to the fair for afternoon delights! Saturday, we got up and went back to the fair! I was absolutely faired out by the end of the day, but it was fun! Saturday night, I kidnapped my favoritest transplant baby's mom and my family took her out to dinner! She and I have become friends during the six months she's been in Dallas. (She's from Odessa)

Sunday was an absolutely wretched day. I got a phone call that my favoritest transplant baby (the one whose mom I had kidnapped the night before!) had coded multiple times and the family had decided that the baby had enough and was withdrawing support. This baby is an absolute angel. She has the most beautiful blue eyes and adorable smile. I have grown so attached to her over the last few months! Needless to say, I didn't have full control of the tears at that moment. I drove up to the hospital to spend time with the mom and her recently passed baby. I helped mom give her precious angel a bath and dress her in her finest while she waited for her husband to arrive from Odessa. Everyone who had ever cared for this sweet diva was absolutely crushed and it's gonna take me a long time to recover from this one. It never EVER gets easier to lose patients, but it's especially hard when you've gotten attached. Monday, I was able to help this baby's mom grieve by going to the scrapbook store and helping her pick stuff out for the last scrapbook. Again, mothers and fathers should NOT have to bury their own children, but what a blessing it is when they know that they will see them again someday! This precious mom told me Sunday she could never have gone through all this without her faith!

I really love one of the last quotes from Hamlet, and I thought it absolutely fitting for this little angel...
"Good night, sweet princess, and flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!"





Rest in the arms of Jesus, my precious baby. You've earned it!

Nashville romping!

Hello from Nashville! Apart from the very small viewing of the GORGEOUS mountains outside, I have mostly been stuck in meetings all day! I am staying at the Gaylord Opryland, which is POSH and FREE (to me! SO glad my hospital pays!). I've got a beautiful king size room with windows overlooking the atrium to this horrifically gaudy hotel! I would have been happy with mountain views, but I get views of the beautiful waterfalls INSIDE the building! :) Guess I better be careful what I romp around in!

Conferences always leave me INSPIRED to do my job better and more effectively! I always learn so much! I am very excited to share my knowledge, even though most of the people I work with on a day to day basis are resistant to change! I get to go to another conference in Arizona in three weeks, and that will be even BETTER!

Okay, guess I should go frolic in my fabulous room. I mean, really, wouldn't you? This place is AMAZING! I'll post pics if I figure out how to send them to my email! :)

A time for celebration!

Oh, I am so sublimely happy right now! :) I'm off call! After an absolutely horrible week last week, I finally have started sleeping through the night. This week hasn't been so bad. I've hated my job a lot less this week, too! After being so exhausted at the beginning of the week (from lack of sleep either for reasons of weird insomnia or busy with transplanting kiddos), I've gone OFF call and HOPE to have more sleep! Not quite sure what I'm planning to do the rest of the week, but I know tonight I'm doing absolutely nothing!

Next week is going to very interesting! I'm actually going to Tennessee next week for some transplant conference. I kinda got pulled in at the last minute! I'd already taken some time off next week so I could go to the fair with my parents when they come to town, so I won't be at work from Tuesday to the following Tuesday! HOORAY! I absolutely need a break! Ta DA!

This week, the hospital has been overtaken by the Joint Commission, a group that audits hospitals to make sure we are following rules and regulations. This means a bunch of people who know nothing about our hospital are traipsing about examining everything. They're pulling people into every nook and cranny to explain all rules and stuff we do on a daily basis. It's quite nervewracking. Thankfully, all reports we've received so far say we're doing a good job, and they haven't found anything big.

So, now I eagerly await my pizza delivery (hooray for pay day!) and watch House. It's a grand life I lead!

The One Hundreth.

WOW. What a fabulous job I have. I was present today for the 100th pediatric heart transplant at Children's Medical Center. It was an AMAZING experience. There were TV cameras EVERYWHERE and I just couldn't seem to get away from the cameras. This precious family were such good sports, too! Sweet boy just gave interviews like he'd been doing it his whole life!

www.cbs11tv.com

Here's the site to the story. It's in the right hand column under videos. Just look for the sweet little boy!

How blessed am I to be a part of this program!

Dumping ground.

I don't like to use this blog as a dumping ground. I enjoy sharing all the little nuances about my mostly boring life...and try to keep things light and cheery. My life is normally wonderful, and I don't usually have much to complain about.

BUT...that's not the case right now. If you're not interested in hearing how my life truly is this week, this might be the point where you click over to one of my lovely friends blogs. BUT, if you're fully prepared to experience the week of disaster, please read on..especially since I'm needing support from my friends!

These are in no particular order, except the order they come into my warped and crazy stressed out brain.

1. My manager is taking another job. For most people, this may seem like a wee thing, but my manager literally keeps me from killing people. Well, I guess people is not accurate. PERSON is accurate. I'm extremely worried that the new manager is going to let the person in question get her way all the time. I'm not asking for much in life...just for some equality and organization. I have until November 2 (when I leave for a conference) to convince her to stay. I don't think I'll be successful in that one.

2. I had to take a sweet patient off the transplant list because she's too sick to be transplanted. I held her mother in my arms while she was absolutely losing it over this daughter. To see how much she has done for this child, and to still hear her say "I wonder if I did everything I could and if I am a good mother" broke MY heart. She told me that she has been praying that God would keep letting her know what she needed to do about her daughter, and today before she even knew what was going on, she thought God had told her it was time for her to come be with Him. What do you even SAY to that?

3. I walked by a room today that was undergoing full code. Compressions, intubating, bagging, tons of drugs, you name it. Seeing that stopped and a baby that can't be saved being placed into its mother's arms is a sight people should not ever have to see. Watching that mother weep into the wild head of her child's hair will absolutely mess you up.

4. I opened my mail yesterday and got a stupid red light citation. How retarded. They have all these stupid pictures with the red light blown up so you can't possibly refute the charge. They do give you an option of disputing it in court. How retarded. Who would POSSIBLY do that? There's $75 I'll never see again...

5. Another precious transplant baby had a really hard day after a procedure yesterday. She's very special to me, as is her family, and it was very sketchy for awhile as to how she was going to do. She's doing better today, but there's no telling. I wish she'd behave.

6. I feel like garbage. Let's just say, I'm really wishing God had decided to place the child bearing duties on men. Enough said.

7. I can't sleep. I not only have problems falling asleep, but I wake up between 1-2AM every night and can't go back to sleep for another couple of hours. My REM cycle is completely off, and I have no idea how to fix it. I've tried making it hotter in my bedroom, making it cooler, sleeping in shorts vs pants, no caffeine vs caffeine. All of it doesn't seem to make a difference. A very easy way to fix this would be taking something to help me sleep...BUT the big kink in that plan is that I am on call this week. I'm afraid I wouldn't wake up if I got paged, and that would not be acceptable. The lack of sleep combined with my increased stress and very increased hormone levels is not making me not a nice person.

Okay, the complaining session is done. Please pray for my spirits to lift. It's getting really old...

Whirlwind.

Last week at work was a BREEZE! I had taken off Monday and Tuesday for birthday fun so I only worked three days last week! The last three days were still VERY busy, so I guess I kinda made up for the shortness!

Oliver came back to the house yesterday. He and Liberty are curled up in a ball on the couch. Every once in a while, I hear some sort of noise to let me know they are still alive. I have just awakened them, and Liberty's angry growls have made Oliver scamper off to sleep in the very wee dog bed across the room. They are pathetic.

This week, I'll be alone in the office! My very annoying co-worker has decided to scamper off for another vacation, her THIRD set of time off this month. Oh no, I am not bitter at all, I just find it ironic. I've been off all call for 2 weeks, so it was my turn to go back on starting Friday morning. So far, it's been fine. I can't complain!

Many exciting things happen this week! First of all, THE FAIR STARTS! I do love the fair! I need to go get my season pass from Kroger this week so I'm ready! I know my parents are coming up later in October to play at the fair! Michael and Jennifer and I are already working on our plan of attack for the wonders of the fair! This weekend? BoysIIMen is playing! Does that not bring you back to high school? I have very fond memories of trips to district competitions listening to someone's borrowed tape on my Walkman. Such great times...

Anyways...guess I could go do something productive before the day goes completely away..

Birthday fiesta.

Ah yes, the dreaded thirtieth birthday has come and gone. It was NOT as bad as I had anticipated, which I guess is a great thing, right?

SO, I started my birthday weekend at Grapefest in downtown Grapevine. Tammy, Whitney, and Whit's boyfriend Will wandered the streets enjoying wine and corn dogs. Isn't that a CLASSY combination? We listened to some great music, ate great street fair food, and enjoyed the great weather!

I got up yesterday and went over to Michael and Jen's to see my parents. Mom, Jen, and I got pedicures and then we all met up for lunch. The rest of my DFW family members met us for dinner (LOVE CANTINA LAREDO!). We had this adorable waiter who didn't seem to mind our botched up Spanish! Afterwards, I went with a bunch of girls from work to this beautiful nightclub at the Gaylord Texas. SO new and pretty and clean! We had a great time hanging out and dancing the night away! :) I think someone might have taken some fun pictures of us....but I have yet to see these! :)

This morning, I got up and went back to Michael's house to hang out some more...I think my parents just really wanted to see Liberty. Isn't that always how it goes? Right about now, I'm gonna take a nap! :) Hooray for naps! I have the next two days off of work as well, so hooray for days off!

Home sweet home.

Tonight, I am happy to sleep in my own bed. I am unhappy to have crappy cable again, but maybe it all evens out. It's strange to be in such a small space again...going from over 1200 sq. feet to about 600...but that's also okay.

I am hoping to sleep uninterrupted for greater than 6 hours. Pray for LONG and RESTFUL sleep!

Here's some pics from the week. Hilarious!

I do love to sleep.

Oliver, Liberty, and I are still hanging out in the wonderful land of good cable. The puppies are behaving themselves quite nicely. Oliver spends most of him time either staring out the window into the courtyard or curled up in Sam's dog bed. It's funny because Oliver and Liberty have never had dog beds. They've always just curled up on the couch or in a blanket. After this week, I'm seriously considering getting them one. Who knows.

Work is going well. I've got one of my three recent transplants out the door and the next one is on the launching pad to go out early next week. The third is having a little more trouble, in fact, she landed herself a trip to the ICU this afternoon. Poor sweet baby.

I am NOT ON CALL! :) Not on outpatient call. Not on donor call. There is NO reason for me to be interrupted in the middle of the night! Hooray! We do have some sweet babies on the list right now, and I would love to be there for their life changing experiences, but I do need my peace and quiet! I'm already not sleeping well here, so I'm thankful to get back to my house where everything's the same...that is, except for the fabulous cable. :( I do have to spend much of the evening tomorrow cleaning. Oliver has shredded toys EVERYWHERE and it looks pitiful. I'm sure Jennifer would never let it get this messy, but I have priorities! :)

Anyways. I'll post pics of the puppy frolics once I get my camera cable. So sweet!

Housesitting...

While Michael and Jennifer are in San Francisco, I am happily house sitting. I mean, really, what's not to love? There's FABULOUS cable (any would be an improvement over what I have now!), another sweet puppy (the emotionally scarred one is being boarded, poor thing), and lots of room for my other two puppies to run around! I've already watched Food Network and moved on to Hallmark for old people mystery shows like Matlock and Murder, She Wrote.

At the moment, Oliver is trying desperately to get a bone out of this treat toy Jennifer and Michael have. He is licking it in the hopes of success, but he's not succeeding so far! Liberty is perched on the couch, watching him in case he happens to drop said bone. Sam is circling him and mostly looking for his mom and dad. Silly sad boy.

I'm on call today, both for donors and outpatients. I've mostly been left alone, but have occasionally received weird calls that can TOTALLY wait until Tuesday. I guess I should be thankful I am not receiving them in the middle of the night! I completely expected to have a heart offer on one of our kids this weekend, especially since it seems that all the key players are on call that have been doing all the hearts this year! AND it doesn't help that I've done ALL of the last 5 transplants, and our other coordinator keeps catching a break! Oh well, those sweet kiddos needed new hearts and I wouldn't have traded being there with them for anything!

I am completely exhausted right now, and really tried to take a nap, if I hadn't kept getting called by patient families. I got up at 4:45AM to take my friend Dana and her precious daughter Zosia to the airport. I've got some sweet pictures of the adorable baby, but of course, they are on my camera which is at home. I'll be picking her up tomorrow afternoon, but her plane doesn't get in until 1PMish.

Oliver is still trying to get that treat. I'll say this, he is QUITE determined. I thought he would have given up by now. AH! I am happy to report that he has NOW obtained the treat and is quite done playing with the holder. Silly boy.

Not much else is going on. Guess I'll sign off. Hope your weekend is great!

Puppy craziness

Here's some pictures of the wildness I am currently experiencing...

Weekend warrior...

Okay, so perhaps I'm just a WEE bit overzealous on my title. I would imagine being a warrior meant lots of work, lots of effort, and many things accomplished...none of which has occured this weekend! :) That's okay, the longer I work 8-5, the more I realize how much I need to cherish my weekends! If I am running around wildly all week, I absolutely need to relax! Today, Liberty and I have just hung around the house. I have been reading most of the day, a pastime I dearly love and do not get to do enough of. I still have to finish the Harry Potter book, but today, my goal was to finish out the Shopaholic series. (It's absolutely as classy as it sounds!) I've got about three more books waiting to be read, so I don't know if I'll delve into those anytime soon. I seem to go on spurts with the reading. Some weeks, all I want to do is read. For the last couple of weeks, I haven't wanted to do any! ODD!

Next week, I am completely by myself at work, which is always interesting. It's usually very busy, which is GREAT! I don't mind being busy, and it usually makes the time go faster! I don't end up sitting around going "I am so BORED!". My manager is back in town this week, which is also fabulous. I've got lots of things to talk with her about....

I think that's all that's going on. Have a beautiful week!

Excitement abounding...

After four days of doing practically nothing and having Liberty follow me EVERYWHERE, one would think I'd be more than ready to go back to work....but NO WAY. I'd take another week of this lovely lounging around in a heartbeat. I have no desire to go back. The only thing luring me back to work is the knowledge that I am doing the inpatient side this week. I always enjoy this side more, only because I get to play with all the very sweet inpatients. Hopefully, in my two weeks of inpatient, I'll get to send most of the babies home.

Today, I'm going to find lots of things NOT to do to pass the time of my last day off. I'm NOT going to clean. I'm NOT going to do laundry. I'm NOT going to think about how little I want to go to work tomorrow. Instead, I'm going go to lunch with Jennifer, I'm going to read nonsense books, and sadly, I'm not going to spend any money.

This week should be a good one, especially since I'm only working four days! Shorter weeks always make for happier people. It's also pay week, which is absolutely the way to make people happy! :) The bad part of this week is that Liberty is already being absolutely pathetic. She follows me everywhere, and I'm afraid she's going to be a pile of pitiful doxie after having me her all the time. Oh well, I guess I can undo all the damage I've done the last five days! :)

Such is my very exciting life. I redesigned my blog while I've been off....hope you like it! :)

My maniac baby.

SO, with all my free time, I've been playing on YouTube a lot. I found a video of a baby dachshund, right after it was born. Liberty was so intrigued by it! She kept cocking her head and roaming around the computer, looking for the baby. I never thought she had any mothering instincts, but I guess that's not the case! I actually got it on video...so thought I'd share it with you!




I'm sad that these people named that doxie baby "bruno"...and I wish they wouldn't breathe so heavily on the video....BUT it's really all about Grace's hilarious reaction!


Isn't she crazy?

VACATION! :)

Sometimes the best vacations are the ones where you do nothing but sit and relax. That's the kind of lovely vacation I am currently experiencing. I have not had the chance to do this in several months...more than 6 I think. I know it may seem low-key to most, but oh well.

Yesterday, there were two highlights to my preciously pitiful day. #1: I went to Michael and Jen's and played with their puppies while their mom is away. I watched food network for the first time in MONTHS! :) It was such a happy time. #2: I rearranged my living room and bought a wireless router for my internet.

Doesn't that excitement make you wish you were me? :) Liverty is getting very VERY spoiled with all this attention and mommy time. I'm sure I'll have to undo that next week!

Guess I'll go back to my pitifully boring and perfectly relaxing day!

Donate Life

I have always been a fan of organ donation, even before I took a job in transplant. I think that if you can give life to someone after you are no longer around, that should be your final gift! What an amazing gift it is! Texas has recently started a registry that will let you tell your family exactly which organs and tissues you'd rather not take to the grave with you! :)


www.donatelifetexas.org


The website's really great...it even goes through the myths and facts about organ donation. AND I'm always available to tell you what an AMAZING impact your donation can make.

FINALLY!

I'm OFF CALL! :) Okay, so it's a short lived excitement....but it's all I have. To sleep with my pager and phone in the other room is a lovely concept. I've been having a grand time. Staying out late, sleeping late....all things I haven't had the chance to do while I've been tied to the pager. Again, let me say that I don't HATE being on call, but doing three transplants in 2 weeks really tires one out. I just wish I wasn't the heart good luck charm :)

Oliver's gone back to Becca's this week, and Liberty's quite the mournful creature. I even bought her these bones she LOVES, but she won't touch them. It's probably because Oliver's not here to chew them first. She noses them around, but seems uninterested. Pitiful. Ungrateful beastie.

Other than being off call, there's really nothing interesting happening. I have had a chance to play with an old friend the last couple of weekends, and that's always fun. Last night, we went to the rodeo...oh yes, the RODEO. We saw the most interesting people, and most interesting of all...Whiplash the cowboy monkey. It was hilarious!

Anyways, that's all the fun over here in the grand land o' Dallas. I've got next Thursday through Monday off for what I like to call "relax time". I'm thinking of doing the massage thing, and probably a host of other relaxation things! I'm still sore from taking a flying leap down the OR corridor, so it might be good to relax! :) My manager is very dedicated to me taking my time off, especially since I have more than 200 hours saved up! I've got five day weekends throughout August and September, which will be SO SO nice! I haven't taken any time off since February! :)

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend. Continue to pray for my babies who are all recovering from their transplants....and some still waiting! :)

Job woes.

I love my job. I love my job. I love my job.

Now that I've said that to convince myself, let me further deliberate. I love most aspects of my job. As much as I HATE getting calls/pages in the middle of the night, I don't mind going in to help a child have a new chance at life. In fact, I LOVE it! I absolutely love being there for those families. It is an experience I could never EVER explain. Walking out to those families to tell them "Your child's new heart is beating" is a phenomenal experience. I literally have goosebumps the entire time I am walking out to tell them. I love being able to TEACH all day long...and have it be something worthwhile! I LOVE making connections with the kids and their families. I love having so much responsibility, and having people trust what I say. That's very important to me. I love that I have a great secretary who keeps me on track. I am SO blessed to have great doctors to work with, including one I am quickly becoming kindred spirits with! (Only Anne lovers will get that one!)

Now that I've spoken all the wonderful parts of my job, let's delve into what I don't like. I really don't have much to complain about. Sure, the long hours get tiring. It's very hard on my body physcially to be up for so many hours at a time, but I don't mind doing it. I DO mind my main co-worker. The fact that she gets in my business every minute of every single day is thoroughly bothersome to me. I can't seem to do anything without her having some question "What are you doing? Who are you talking to? When did you pee last?" Does it matter? If I could get JUST a wee bit of praise from her, I'd be absolutely shocked. I've learned never to expect it from her because all I am going to get is criticism. BUT, in the grand scheme of things, it really does NOT matter what she thinks of me. What matters is what the doctors and patients think. Do they trust me to make good judgements and decisions? Does my manager think I'm doing a good job? These are the important things. SO, I'll let her play her passive agressive game, even though I hate it. I'll just continue to see the good in my job, and hopefully, she'll either cut that crap OUT, or quit! :)

Have I told you how excited I am to be off donor call this Friday? The fact that we have done FIVE transplants since June 26, all on my watch, should speak for itself. I was off for two weeks, and of course we didn't do a single one while my co-worker was on call. Let's hope that our two remaining babies on the list get their hearts soon....but only after I go off call! :)

Wow. This has gone on for awhile. I guess I should get to bed. I'm SO ready for Friday. I fixate on it... :)

A klutz to the core....

Never let it be said that I am not dedicated to my job. This weekend, I took a flying crash down the operating room hallways en route to the room where a precious angel was getting a new heart. Aren't I retarded? I've got a wonderfully swollen left leg now, but a new heart is happily beating inside its new owner! :)

Oliver is currently 3 inches from my face, staring creepily. He's very upset that I won't speak to him right now, but would you speak to him if he'd peed outside his crate on your carpet? I didn't think so. Now he's sniffing my hair. Rude! :)

So, let's think of things I want to do this week.....

1. I'd like to have uninterrupted sleep. Uninterrupted by parents going crazy over weird things (Yes, transplants can have diaper rash, you don't HAVE to call me at 2AM to inform me).

2. I'd like to finish the new Harry Potter book. I read the first 6 in less than 24 hours each. This one is taking awhile because I've been so busy doing other stuff, I haven't wanted to do anything but sleep when I can!

3. I want to get a massage at the massage school...anyone in?

4. I'd like to have a moment to play with my friends....and not have to work!

Okay. That's it. I'm sure there's something else, but I can't think clearly right now. Hope your week goes wonderful!

On the homefront.

Is it really only Tuesday? It seems like this week is dragging on, but maybe that's because I've been on call FOREVER! Can you believe tomorrow is August? YIKES! In trying to fix the schedule so we're on call for blocks of time longer than a week, I put myself on call through August 8. I have had mostly uninterrupted sleep, with a couple of completely random calls here and there...nothing serious. I go off call for outpatient on Friday, so I'll only be on donor call after that. Ta DA! :)

We've had busy weeks at the hospital, with all the transplants going on and such. I've been on inpatient this week, and we've had some major milestones! We've had babies get off the ventilator, babies have to go back on the ventilator, and babies get ready to go home.

I have Oliver this week, and he's been a precious baby. He's hilarious. He got into a little bit of trouble on Friday when he bit the vet tech. In Oliver's defense, the guy did sneak up on him and go to put something on Oliver's neck...so it wasn't entirely his fault. Oliver is such a pansy to anyone who knows him. Two hours after he got home from the vet, he had already curled up on my friend Amanda's lap and showed her his stomach. The vicious, vicious beast! :) Now he's completely passed out on the couch with his sister. Sweet baby.




Well, nothing else is really going on around here. Hopefully things will get interesting this weekend, but since it seems everyone around me is going out of town except me, should be interesting. Have a great weekend! :)

Miracles abounding.

Being on call certainly opens up a whirlwind of emotions, which I believe I have mentioned in numerous blogs. This weekend, it was CRAZY! Of course, I hadn't been on what we call "donor call" in 2 weeks. This means I am the one the surgeon calls if there's a transplant. Starting last Friday, I've been on both donor call and outpatient call (when the post-transplants have questions). At 9AM Friday morning, after only being on call 2 hours, I already had a transplant to plan! All went well, and I was able to go home around 1AM. Saturday, I had planned to spend the day reading the new Harry Potter book. Well, our hospital transferred in a patient to be evaluated for transplant, so I spent the day giving orders and getting financial approval. That night, I went to the movies and saw both Harry Potter and Ratatoiulle. SUCH good movies! I got home about 2AM (it was a late movie!) and happily went to sleep....excited to spend Sunday afternoon reading my book. Well, that happy sleep was interrupted by a phone call at 4AM regarding ANOTHER transplant! That's 2 in less than 36 hours! YIKES! :) The second transplant was my precious little angel that missed out on a heart earlier in the week....we had miracles all OVER the place!

Needless to say, I've been spending my week getting caught up on the sleep I missed over the weekend. I'm on call again this weekend, but I am NOT on outpatient call too...so hopefully I'll just get to hang out and SLEEP! Liberty is VERY excited to have me actually sleep in my own bed...so I know she's going to be glad I'm home. I also get Oliver back tomorrow...so there will be PLENTY of fun around here! It's always a little quiet without Oliver. I think Liberty will be happy to see him.

I need so badly to go on vacation! I checked my time off today and I have 200 hours saved up! That is WAY too much vacation to keep to myself! I am planning a trip to Mexico this fall with some friends, but I just need to get it set in stone. I've also gotten a lot more fiesty about my time on call. I was going to have to be on call my birthday weekend, but thankfully, I am not because I said NO WAY and now I'll be free for partying!

No other news to report. Puppies are happy. Babies are getting new hearts. I am finally well rested again. Life goes on.

The pros and cons.

Last night, we received a heart offer for my favorite little baby. I've been there for this family since they were told she needed a transplant. There's just some families that you bond with more than others...and this family is so special to me! I got to be the one to tell them we had a heart for their baby, which is absolutely one of the most exciting things I have been able to do. This mom is absolutely amazing to me. After her initial excitement about her daughter's life being saved, her thoughts went straight to the donor family and started lifting up prayers for them in their time of need.

I also had to turn around 12 hours later and tell them the heart wasn't good anymore and their daughter would not be getting her life-saving transplant that night. I have begun to despise that conversation. Please keep this precious family in your prayers. It's an absolutely emotional roller coaster, and I know they would be so thankful for these prayers. I am just so thankful we discovered the heart was unacceptable before it was placed in this precious little girl.

I go back on call Friday. Nights spent with two phones and a pager. YIPPEE! Should be interesting when we have 2 kids sitting right at the top of the list! :) We tend to get heart offers almost every other day...so I'm sure sleepless nights are in order! I took a nap this afternoon after being up all night, and I feel so much better, but nothing prepares you for the adrenaline rushes of this job!

Well, guess I should find something for dinner...and Liberty is begging!

The calm...

Well, I've been off call for a week now...and I can't say I haven't enjoyed it! How nice is it to go to sleep uninterrupted, and sleep with NO phone/computer/pager next to my bed! It's weird to think how comforting that is! :) I have almost remembered what it is to have a normal existance! :) Of course, I go back on call in a week or so, but I think it will be different this time. Hopefully, it will be for the better.

I have had one of my favorite babies admitted this week. Her mom and I have formed such a bond, and I absolutely LOVE their family. She's sitting at the top of the transplant list right now, and I pray EVERY DAY that an offer comes through for her. She's such a little angel and I absolutely LOVE her parents.

Not much else is going on. I have been very bored at work this week, mostly because my counterpart wont' let me help her...but that's okay. I don't know if I would want to have her help me! It's such DRAMA in the heart transplant office!

Oliver went back to Becca's this week. I think Liberty really misses him! Her grandma was here earlier in the week, and now she's just mourning the loss of both of them. She's currently curled up in a little ball next to me...she's so insane.

Oliver ALSO learned to climb trees this week! At Grandma's house, he was obsessed with finding squirrels...any way he could! If that meant climbing trees, he was all for it! I'll have to post the picture of him climbing the trees...he's so funny!



That's pretty much the week! Working. Bored. That's IT! Pray for heart offers on my three waiting babies!

Only one more day....

After three weeks, three heart offers that didn't go through (but still kept me up all night!), two transplants (one of which I am getting ready to go to right now!), I AM READY TO BE DONE WITH CALL! At least for this one, I got a 1/2 hour of sleep instead of NONE! Hooray for small blessings! Let's just say I will be more than happy to return the stupid transplant phone and not wear my pager ALL DAY! :)

I do love my job. It's just hard to like it at 3:01AM when I know I'll be busy all day...on minimal sleep. Poor puppies. They will be pitiful, I am sure. Ah, there goes the alarm clock. I set FOUR alarms to make sure I woke up. Of course, I got paged an hour before I was supposed to wake up, and wasn't able to go back to sleep. Ah, the 2nd alarm goes...perhaps I should turn them off!

The cry of the unable...

Before anyone gets any wild ideas about me reproducing, let me be the first to tell you I have NO current plans for this. I just have a few friends who are battling infertility and this video was especially moving to me. There are so many people having children who shouldn't be....and so many trying that can't.

Caught up!

You never EVER realize how much value sleep has until you don't get it! Since I didn't sleep a wink on Monday night, I spent the rest of the week catching up! I am happy to say that I am now caught up! :) I've got only a few more days on my own, and then I'm going on a mini-vacation! I leave Thursday morning for my grandma's house in Central Texas and I'll be back Sunday night with my mother in tow! She's gonna spend a few days visiting up here. Liberty and Oliver are very excited to go visit the country...they mostly just like the yard! My grandma says there are lots of foxes and deer out this year...I'm sure that will absolutely torture Oliver. He does love to chase things...

I had an appointment with my cardiologist on Friday. He was mildly concerned that my resting heart rate is usually over 100. It should be 60-80. He gave me a medication to take when I feel it racing. The ironic thing is that since my co-worker has left town, I haven't had one single palpitation! He told me he would write a letter asking for her to be fired if I wanted! :) He also let me look at my echo. It was basically normal with a touch of mitral valve regurgitation. This isn't a problem right now, but we'll see what it does later on. That's why I have a murmur. Overall a good visit! I haven't filled the prescription yet...I'm such a bad nurse! :)

This weekend I got most of my house clean! I even dusted! I attempted vacuuming, which lasted a good hour before Oliver started shredding his toy carcasses all over the house. I gave up on the clean floor. At least I attempted. I still need to finish cleaning the bathroom, but that shouldn't take too long. I HATE cleaning and I really despise spending my long awaited weekends doing it.

Anyways. This should be a nice short week, especially since I'll only be working TWO days! I'm going to be on my first call this week....which means I'll get all the calls from our post-transplants at any hour of the day. I'm sure someone will have a wonderful 4th of July and try to injure themselves and need to call me. That will be LOADS of fun! I don't even know if I'll be able to go see fireworks! I'd never be able to hear a call over those!

Well, I'd better continue cleaning...or at least attempting to avoid it. Liberty is currently being punished in the bathroom for peeing on the floor. She's been in there almost an hour. She's normally decided she's done by now and barked...but no such barking.

Ah, I went and saw Ratatouille this weekend! I HIGHLY recommend it! It was SO SO cute! Pixar does such a great job!

Have a great week!

Can't see straight...

Well, let's see. I think in my last post, I was saying how TIRED I was...well, that's NOTHING compared to what I feel like now! I have been awake since 5AM YESTERDAY morning. Ah, the life of a transplant coordinator. I had no sooner walked in my door at 6:30PM yesterday evening when I got a call from the transplant surgeon saying we had an organ offer for one of our kiddos. That started a long night of endless phone calls and traipsing around the OR which finally finished around 11:00AM today! :) I finished up pressing matters at work, and then scooted on home to SLEEP! Hooray! :) I'd love to take off tomorrow, but I have clinic, so I'll be bright and shiny at 8:30AM! :)

Okay. It's time for sleep.

I long for uninterrupted sleep....

I've been on call for a week. It's been mostly okay, with the exception of a few sleepless nights for transplants that haven't happened. All I can say, it will be very nice to not sleep with a 2 phones, my computer, and my pager next to my bed! I've got a week and half to go. This week should be more structured, especially with the transplant doctor back in town and on call. Hooray for structure!

Other than that, there's not much else going on. Oliver met Max today with no serious issues. He mostly just sniffed him and tried to get him to play, but Max was more interested in hiding.

I've been trying to plan vacations so I'm not stuck here in Dallas all summer, but so far it's not working out. Everyone's schedules are crazy, and it looks like it will be after my birthday before I can go have fun! Ah well, everyone needs a break at some point! :) I'll just save up my fun until then!

The thing I need to learn about being on call is how to LIVE while on call. Ever since I got a call last night, I've been staying close to home, almost afraid to do anything because I might miss a phone call. I even entertained the idea of sleeping in my living room last night so I would be sure to wake up if I was paged! I guess the newness will wear off eventually....I just hope it is sooner than later!

Puppies need love...gotta go!

All alone....

Well, the time has come. I am all by my self at work. Of course, I've always got back-up in case I need it....but I'm essentially alone. I've got the fancy palm phone, just waiting for it to ring and say "Hey, we've got a heart, call in the family". Now, just my luck, we'll get all the kids transplanted while I'm alone and I'll be busier than I know what to do with. BUT, that hasn't happened this weekend. It takes me longer to get ready to go now, there's not an option of leaving my cellphone at home. I have to have my pager, cell phone, and palm phone at all times...even in church! Today, I got paged in church, and I was rather surprised that my heart didn't jump the way I thought it would. Thankfully, it was only the floor saying hello, but it was still weird to get paged in church! :)

The next couple of weeks aren't as busy as usual, mostly because the transplant doctor is gone as well, but I'm okay with that. So, aside from going everywhere (including bed) with a host of phones, I'll be learning how to do the job alone. Then, when I'm not alone anymore, we can split up the tasks and not have someone in my business at all times! HOORAY!

Well, I'm sure there's a puppy around here that would like some attention. Guess I'll go find them. :)

Heart Update

I got a call from the cardiologist's office today. My stress test was NORMAL! :) My echo looked beautiful! NO Mitral valve prolapse! :) All the tranmissions I have sent them with my event monitor have been basically normal! I've got a lot of periods of tachycardia, but no premature beats out of my atriums or the ventricles. ALWAYS a good thing! So far, so good! I still have two weeks of monitoring. I DO know that I have a murmur, which at this point is innocent. I'm sure I'll be back at the cardiologist after everything is over, but at this point, my worry level is much less!

All is well here at the ranch. Hooray!

Birthday Girl

No, It's not my birthday yet. I've got three more months to play in my 20's! It's Liberty's birthday! I know all of you who have children and mortgages are probably rolling your eyes at the celebration of my dog's birthday, but hey...I don't have any of those things. I can take a moment to celebrate the being that's lived with me for almost 5 years!

SO, Liberty Grace is 5 years old today! She is still one of the most bright spots of my day! We did a lot of travelling today! We went to buy her some special food for her birthday dinner and ended up buying a birthday shirt as well. A little girl wanted to pet her in Petsmart, and when she was told it was Liberty's birthday, she said "Hey! It's my recital today, so that's TWO special things in ONE day!" How hilarious is that!? Kids are so fun!

After the shopping trip, we went to visit Sam and Max. Lib had never met Max until today, mostly because I didn't want her catching the neverending cold Max has had. ICK! So, today they met, and I'll say that Max was much more interested in Liberty than she was in him!

Liberty and I also went and visited her sister and brother. They shared birthday greetings, and then commenced with the sister attacks. After the bonding, we went to Home Depot to buy a curtain rod. A Home Depot employee followed us out to the car, asked me if he could hold her, and then carried her to the car for me. Of course, I was juggling a purse and a very large curtain rod, but whatever buddy! Just carry the dog! :)

Anyways. It's the end of a very long day, and I am looking forward to sleeping tonight. YAWN! Here's a picture of Liberty in her birthday shirt! Isn't it perfect?

Rainbow day!

Beautiful disaster....

Three years ago, it rained every single day in June. I had just moved into the duplex, and I was convinced it would never stop raining. This is pretty much how I have felt the last couple of weeks. It seems to not only rain, but bring large sheets of torrential downpour onto my house/car. I know that North Texas is getting out of a drought, but PLEASE! We've had ENOUGH! :) I did end up getting the most beautiful pictures of rainbows, but my computer is being evil at the moment. If it finally lets me, I'll post them. As a result of the rain, the mosquitoes are out of control because it never seems to dry out. It seems to be a festering ball of mosquito births. EW.

I had my appointment at the cardiologist today. I had an echocardiogram (sonogram of the heart), a stress test (lots of running on a treadmill), and placement of a 30 day event monitor. It was a busy day! It really made me feel for our kids who are poked and prodded with all kinds of monitors day in and day out. I don't know about our echo techs, but mine today was ready to HURT me! She poked that stupid wand into me so hard I have bruises. Ah well, if it helped her get better pictures, I'll just keep quiet. She said everything looked "Basically okay", but I'll take what the doctor says over her. The nurse who did my stress test was pleased with how I did. My heart rate got up to 191, but that's completely in range for someone my age. The event monitor is for me to be able to tell the doctor's office when I am having my weird fluttering/beat skipping episodes. I just press this little guy up to my chest and hit record! I don't even have to wear anything! HOORAY! No stickers! After I hit record, I just have to use a land line phone (of course, which I don't have) and transmit the recording. I asked the nurse and it's okay to use my work phone.

That's IT! Nothing else exciting happening. I'll try to post that picture again...nope. Not letting me. I'll have to try it tomorrow. Until then... :)

Beautiful lazy day!

I forgot what it's like to have weekends off. I have worked weekends since December 2000. I was teaching school at the time, and wanted some extra money. I worked all week at school, then every weekend at a hospital. It's been THAT long that I haven't been working weekends! They are so wonderful! I still despise working 5 days a week...I'd love to just work three again....but that's not in the job description.

I've been busy at work lately. We've been doing a lot of new evaluations. I just think this year is going to be one for the record books! Last year, we only did 10 transplants. We've already done 8, with three more on the list and 2 more in the evaluation process. CRAZY busy!

Today, It was just nice to do some things around the house and play with the puppies! I was supposed to go to the movies, but that didn't work out. Instead, I went over to Amanda's and hung out on her patio and ate brownies :). In talking with her, we discussed the medical mission trip to Honduras she went on in February. I think I'm actually in a job now where it's pretty easy for me to take off and go...so I am considering going with her next year. It's 10 days of HARD work, but I'm definitely not afraid of hard work!

Monday, I go back to the cardiologist. I'll let you know what happens...

And the beat goes on....

After spending a very relaxing weekend at my parents house in Houston, I got up bright and early yesterday and turned in my monitor at the cardiologist's office. I didn't expect to hear from them so soon, but I got a call yesterday afternoon saying it mostly looked normal, but there was some ectopy (extra beats, not normal!) noted. The doctor wanted me to go ahead and do the 30 day monitor to see if it shows up there. He also wanted me to have it while I am working to see if work is responsible for these beats. SO, I go back to the doctor on Monday for my echo, stress test, and placement of this monitor. Should be interesting.....

Oliver and Liberty are absolutely traumatized right now. They are both hiding from me because I just clipped nails. I literally had to lay on both of them to do it. Babies. Now Oliver is happily sitting on the porch watching birds and planes. Liberty is curled up and licking the couch. All is well in their lives...

The next few weeks should be very interesting at work. In a week, the transplant cardiologist goes on vacation for 2 weeks. In 2 weeks, the other coordinator goes...so it'll just be me. Right now, it looks like I'll be on call and everything. I'm sure it will be just the most interesting couple of weeks!

Okay. I'm off...YAWN.

Heart happenings.

Well, my visit with the cardiologist was somewhat helpful. In looking at my EKG, he saw there were things that could really just be attributed to my age. He said many times, these things have already gone away by the time someone is almost 30. He did say I have a heart murmur, which isn't normal is someone my age. It's normal in children, as many of them just go away with time. He thinks mine is a mitral valve prolapse, which just means the mitral valve doesn't close properly after the blood drains from the atrium into the ventricle. He also thinks I may have some kind of funky heart rhythm, but it wasn't showing up on the EKG. So, I got to wear a monitor for 24 hours and I'll take it back Tuesday to have it read. If nothing shows up, I may end up having to wear one for 30 days in order to catch it. I also get to have a stress echocardiogram in a week or so, just to get a better look at my heart and to see what's going on. I'm still kind-of in limbo, which I HATE. I also discovered I'm allergic to plastic tape. In an effort to keep the leads on for 24 hours, the tech taped the LIFE out of them. Well, now I have big red welts all over my chest. It's so attractive...and ITCHY! I'm sure those will be there for awhile!

I'm currently in Houston, enjoying my time away from Dallas. Liberty and Oliver are with me, running around the yard like hooligans. It's like Oliver has NEVER been outside before! He's still chasing birds and imaginary bugs, but now he has no constraints! He LOVES it! He did NOT like it today when I pulled out the garden hose and gave all puppies baths. There were some angry looks and he very purposefully writhed around in the grass while I was putting soap on him. Punk.

Anyways, that's my story. I'll let you know more as it happens. BYE!

Dangerous

I've very recently discovered it is extremely dangerous to be a cardiac nurse. It makes me have a wharped sense of what is and what is not normal in kids! When I see a healthy newborn, I am always amazed how PINK they are! To me, it's absolutely acceptable to be a nice shade of grey...especially when they cry.

The most interesting update to my life also relates to my dangerous profession. For the last couple of weeks, I've been having really odd palpitations and racing heart rates. I've kinda blown it off and attributed it to stress. I've also noticed that I am really tired all the time and my ankles are swelling...not so good. So, I made a doctor's appointment and went yesterday. She sent some labs, did an xray and an ekg. When EKG's are done, the machine usually prints out a little interpretation of what it thinks it sees. Those who run EKG's usually don't listen to that because it most of the time isn't correct. Well, mine said that it appeared as if I'd had ichemic changes...in normal people terms it looks like part of the heart wasn't responding as well to the electricity because it had areas where there was not enough oxygen. LOVELY! SO, does this mean I've had a heart attack and didn't even know? Does it mean my heart is dead? Who knows anything. I do know that I'm scheduled to see the cardiologist on Friday and hopefully find out some answers. But, until then, I just get to wonder!

Everything else is pretty stable. I'm still getting used to my new job...some days I really like it and some days I don't. It's all a process. I hate orientations because I don't like people breathing down my neck. I'm going to visit my parents this weekend, so hopefully I'll be able to get rid of some of the stress....AND I am going to see Pirates 3 on Thursday! HOORAY!:)

That's pretty much it. Any questions? :)

Happy Saturday!

For the last two years, Saturdays have just been routine, run of the mill days. Since I was working random days throughout the week, the specialness of the weekend was lost. It was just like any other day. Now that I am a Monday-Friday slave, my weekends are precious! I guess I just didn't realize that until last Sunday, when I had to sleep a lot of the day to recover from the transplant! I had all these plans...house cleaning and straightening, laundry, errands...and they just didn't get done because I was sleeping/exhausted! Today has been different, though! I've folded the frighteningly large pile of laundry that has been accumulating for several weeks. I've cleaned the kitchen and done all the dishes. I've even moved around furniture and have plans to move around more!

Wednesday I was inducted in the Nursing honor society (Sigma Theta Tau). Thursday was graduation...which I didn't attend. I'm now officially done and all graduated. It was so weird last week to receive my degree plan from UTA with the words "second baccalaureate" on the top. I now have the most degrees in my family...and I don't know what to think of that! Am I that person who just wants to accumulate degrees? No, I don't think so. I really don't like school at all...so why then do I have all these? I think part of it arises from my constant desire to be the best at what I do. While I was teaching, I knew I really enjoyed it, but also knew that was not what I would excel in. After getting my associates in nursing, I was very happy to have that degree, yet knew that at some point, I would need to finish it. Many nurses keep their associates forever, with no need to go on to bachelor's. I don't really know, at this point, why I went on...but I know it was for a reason. I DO know I won't be going back to school any time soon. I don't think I need to put my friends or family through that...apparently I'm not a nice person when I'm in school!

SO, THANK YOU to my friends and family. Thanks for listening to me whine and moan about how much I despised school. Thanks for continuing to tell me to push on through..and that I didn't have that much more to go. Thanks for celebrating with the good grades and awards.

There won't be a third bachelors for me...I don't need to garner up a collection! I may eventually go on to masters, but I won't do it just to prove to myself that I can. Having an advanced degree isn't going to make me a better person...I know people with even higher degrees that were just as happy with their first. Some people are completely happy without a degree...and that's perfectly fine too. Having higher education doesn't necessarily make you a better person. It all depends on what you choose to do with your life!

WOW. This has really turned out to be an excruciatingly long blog...and I'm starting to think I'm quite rambly!

Strangly enough, it is pouring outside. The sun is shining...and it's raining! ODD! Nessie can't be in her garage right now, so she's having to endure the lovely rain. I know Dallas was in a drought last year, but does it have to pour every other day? Can we just get a break? :) At least things will be nice and green this summer!

Okay. El fin. No mas. Es todo.

Sleep deprived.

Tired. Sleepy. Crabby. Angry to be awake. Mournful. Overwhelmed. Ecstatic. Euphoric. Amazed.

Being heart transplant coordinator is a world of emotions. It's SO exciting to be there for that experience. Last night, I got to call a precious mother and tell her we had a heart for her son. I got to be there when his old sickly heart was removed and the new one was sewn in. I saw, with my own eyes, the very instant the new heart started beating.

But it's also an overwhelming experience. We don't normally get to be on the donor side of things, but last night I was given the opportunity since I am new. I flew on the plane with the surgeon to help obtain the new heart. With one life with this new heart, meant one peaceful death for another. I pray I never stop seeing the child whose life has ended as an amazing individual.

Being up for 24+ hours is something I don't love at ALL. But, I guess if a child gets a new chance at life, it's completely worth it. I am going to be HAPPY that this happened over the weekend when I have a chance to get back on somewhat of a normal schedule. I took a nap this afternoon....and I am pretty sure I'll be tired enough to sleep well tonight.

The puppies spent the night at Becca's house. I hope they were good for her. They were SO pitiful when I left them last night! All they wanted to do was play! I feel bad they missed out on weekend playtime. At least Becca had them. She's going to bring them over later.

So YAWN. I sit here and watch TV, happily knowing I have nothing to study and NO homework to do! What a wonderful feeling! :) I just hope I can stay awake until it's actually alright for me to go to sleep!

Another time, another place....

Well, I'm not in Dallas...but I didnt' know that would happen when I woke up this morning. I've had the opportunity to go out on an organ recovery for a precious baby of ours who is getting a heart. So, I sit here and wait for them to let us in the OR so we can take this life giving organ and give it to a very deserving family. On the plane ride here, all I could do was pray for the family who is saying goodbye to their child. What a hard, yet lifegiving decision. I only hope that if I were to pass away, my family is able to know without a shadow of a doubt what my wishes are.

And so, while a family makes a selfless decision, I think of completely selfish things....like.... I am HUNGRY. I had sushi for dinner with Mom and Jen. If you know anything about sushi, it fills you up and doesn't leave you stuffed, but it tends to be like chinese food...it doesn't keep you full for long. SO. Now I am hungry. I'm also tired. It's 1:13AM and I won't be going into the OR until 1:30. YAWN. I'd like nothing better than to curl up and sleep, but I am VERY happy that I got to take a nap this afternoon. I thought it would hamper my ability to sleep tonight, but it turns out that this will not be a problem! I'm ALSO sad because my friend's baby is being dedicated tomorrow, and I think my lack of sleep will cause me to miss this. BLAST! Hopefully, I'll be alive for the after party. I'd also love a big GIANT diet Dr Pepper....but I'm seriously doubting that will happen considering I barely got here with my hosptial ID badge and my cell phone. I do feel fancy though...calling the surgeon...sneaking around OR's. And wouldn't you know it, my cell phone battery is dying. THat's just lovely. I've turned it off so it can recharge and hopefully it will last long enough for me to call from the airport once we touch down in Dallas. Then I don't really care if it is dead or not! :)

Well, it's almost time, so I guess I should get all signed out so I can leave quickly. Yawning again but SO thankful at the opportunity!

Step into the future....

Well, after spending the day at the funeral of my grandma's best friend, my parents gave me my graduation presents! My mom has been working on a T-shirt quilt for me for about a year. She finished it last month and brought it to me today! It's beautiful! :)

They also brought me my newest step into the 21st century....and IPOD! I keep borrowing my friend's ipods for when I'm at work and I absolutely need to listen to something other than my secretary's (oh yeah, I have a secretary! CRAZY!) oldies music! So now, I am attempting to place all my CD's on it. It's quite the process. I think I've been doing it forever...and it's only been a couple of hours. I've probably only have about 15 cd's left, and that doesn't count the complilation CD's that don't transfer!

SO, that's all that's been going on. Keep praying for my grandma. She also found out this afternoon that her brother passed away this morning. She's going through a lot right now!

YAWN. Guess I should go to bed. I'm awfully sleepy.

Four weeks later....

SO, now that four weeks have passed....let's just see!

I AM DONE WITH SCHOOL! Hooray! We finished off today with a fabulous party in the classroom, one that was very much deserved. Our clinical advisor gave us all presents and it was a very lovely ending. The last week, I haven't had any school work to do, and it's been a very odd feeling. I've been reading non school books and LOVING it!

I have a new job! I'm still trying very hard to get used to it, and I think it will take awhile. I really miss taking care of my kids on the floor, but am loving seeing all these kids every week. I have an office, which I share with 2 other women, but I have my very own section with a LOT of room to decorate! Ideas anyone? I've got business cards coming, along with my very own lab coat! Aren't I official? I've had to jump into my job a little faster than I'd like, seeing everyone in heart transplant but me is at conference this week! We still have a baby on the waiting list for a heart, and part of me just hopes it doesn't happen quite yet!

NESSIE IS HEALED! If you don't know who Nessie is, you absolutely need to spend more time with me. Nessie's my car...and she had a nice big dent in her bumper...but no more! She's beautiful and shiny! I did have to drive a piece of junk Sentra for a week (it's horrid to go back to a car after having a SUV!), but now I have her back and am HAPPY!

Wardrobe? Well, we're getting there. I really despise shopping for clothes, although I find it less and less annoying the smaller I get. I've got some clothes. Thankfully, I can wear scrubs on Wednesdays (clinic day), so I've got less days I have to plan for. I'm now always going to be on the hunt for a bargain. Anyone know any?

RETREAT! What a blessing! Jennifer, Tammy, and I stayed at the Gaylord Texan and learned all about JOY! I desperately needed this soul "makeover" as I know I've been a crabby and not so nice person this semester. We also got to hear Joy Williams's beautiful voice, and I'm now so addicted to her music! What an amazing message she has to share!

Four weeks ago, I was hoping more would be different in a month. Now, I'm kinda glad there's nothing else! I need some normalcy in my life! I'm not sure that's going to ever come!

Friendships are forever.

I was all prepared to write how crazy my week was going. My new job is tiring, but I haven't completely decided what I think about it yet! I'm sure I'll enjoy it once I figure out what's going on!

My grandma (dad's mom) experienced a great loss tonight, her best friend of 60+ years. Grandma and Katie met in nursing school...and dated cousins. They eventually married cousins and both moved from the midwest to Texas. They shared the births of their children, the empty nest, the passing away of their husbands...and remained friends through it all. They vacationed together, shopped together, grew old together. Pray for my grandma...and for Katie's family...which is my family since we're all cousins! I think the funeral is on Saturday, which is a rotten excuse to see my family, but oh well. I need to be there to support my grandma. What a wonderful example of friendship I have in front of me!

Let's see....aside from being at work, I've pretty much been doing a LOT of non school reading and watching Dancing with the Stars/The Bachelor. Doesn't that sound productive? I just have to give a presentation on Thursday and then I'm done!!!

I saw one of my most favorite kiddos today in the clinic. She was here for a well check up...and she looks amazing! I've really bonded with her family and it's wonderful to see how far she's come! She was my first very VERY sick baby when I was just off orientation. I took care of her when I was on night shift and her mom and I spent MANY sleepless nights worried about her! And now she's almost 2! Her mom always brings me pictures to put on my name badge! She's such a miracle baby!

Well, must be going...I've got lots of kids to see in clinic tomorrow, so today should be faster than today! I forgot to explain that ALL the heart transplant people are in conference in San Francisco this week...and I mean all! The transplant doctor, the surgeons, the other coordinator! So, I get to see all these kids by myself...but thankfully I have a really great manager who has promised to see them with me! Today, I didn't see ANY kids and was so freaked out by the quiet I had to go steal a friend's IPOD (I'd love one, by the way!) so I had SOMETHING to listen to!

Okay. Now I am gone. Adios!

Prayers lifted

Well, I've started my new job...and it's going fine.

But all seems small to the burden that is heavy on my heart...for a precious 16 year old patient of mine. He's very VERY sick right now, and really needs your prayers. Thanks to our ridiculous government, I can't say much about him...but I can say that he is a SWEET boy that loves the LORD and is very very sick. I visited him in the ICU yesterday after his surgery and he was SO sleepy, but tried to still do his secret handshake with me. And now he's sick and we're not even sure how bad the damage is. He needs a miracle.

So pray for him. He's such a sweetie.

The countdown.

Don't you hate when something exciting is about to happen and time just almost stands still? Then, when the exciting thing occurs, it goes by SO quickly that you don't even have time to stop and think? This is how it is seeming to go for me! I am starting my new job on Monday, and the time is just CRAWLING by. I really want to just get it over with...the anticipation, the nervousness, all those crazy emotions are killing me!

I've got busy weeks ahead of me...and I'm not sure how to handle all the excitement! Of course, my new job starts Monday...and then the following Friday, Tammy, Jennifer, and I are going to a Women's retreat! Hooray! I also just found out that I'm being inducted into the nursing honor society for school, so I have that induction coming up in a few weeks, as well as the end of school!

I've been thinking lately about the possibility of buying a house. I'd like to see my rent money go somewhere more significant than a rental, so I'd really like your prayers on that. I know I'm getting a pay raise in my new job, but I don't know if it is the most financially responsible choice. Any suggestions? Advice?

Oliver and Liberty are doing well, and currently curled up in a big pile on/next to my leg. With the weather being nicer, I am sad they don't have a yard to play in, but they get to be outside a lot as I keep the patio door open most of the time. They spend a lot of time curled up in the sun out there. Oliver really loves to bark at people outside, but I'm making headway with that nasty habit by squirting him with a water bottle each time he does it. He hates it.




Other than all that mess, things are going well. I'm preparing myself to start a "regular person" job...and don't even know how to do that. I've always had odd hours...School teachers are there from 7:30-whenever they are done! For me it was always past 6 or so because I was coaching. Unit Secretary? 3-11. Not really hours conducive to any sort of life! Nurse? 7a-7p 3 days a week. Killer hours, but nice to be there only 3 days. Now..I have no idea what my hours will turn out to be. I'm sure during orientation they won't be idea, but I think they will settle out once I'm done and the 2 person job is actually being done by 2 people.

Enjoy your day!