New Job!

Today I start my new job as an RN. I graduated in May and have been searching for the perfect job since then. It never came and never came. I was certain I would land a job in Pediatrics at Sacred Heart Children's Hospital where I volunteered and completed my precepting. However, some unforeseen events at the hospital prevented that from happening. I slowly gave up my dream of pediatric nursing and started to look elsewhere. Being granted an interview was almost impossible. No one is very interested in new graduates right now as the market is flooded with experienced nurses looking for jobs, as well. So I searched and searched and made connections and still nothing came of it.

So I decided to start a business or two. One with my husband, the other for myself. I figured running businesses and being an entrepreneur is what I want to do anyway and the nursing thing just isn't happening for me right now. God will bring me the right job when I'm ready.

We were offered to purchase an established commercial snow plowing company and accepted the offer. That's what my husband will do to keep busy in the winters. It has been fun learning to run a business and set up all the little details. It is very rewarding but an extreme amount of hard work. And the real hard work doesn't even start until it snows!

The other business, as you may already know, is my event design company. Running an event planning company is a dream of mine! You can see my companies here and here!

And with all of these exciting events, God also brought me a job as an RN. Of course, everything all happens at once. We are busier than we've ever been and our lives are only going to get busier from this point forward. But it's perfect. I couldn't ask for a better life!

So my job will be a full time RN for Hospice of North Idaho. It is not pediatrics, it is not hospital nursing, and it is something I never thought I'd be doing. But I think it will be perfect for me. The schedule is awesome, very flexible. I will eventually have my own patients and go to their houses each day to provide in home nursing care. Of course, this new job will be my first priority but it will still allow me time to run our businesses and keep up this blog. I have a lot to learn about being a Hospice nurse. Thankfully, my friend Amy (who told me about the job) will be there and I will have a larger support group of experienced nurses and health care professionals to help me along the way!

Well, I'm off to my first day of work! My first day ever at a "real" job! I'm nervous and excited and ready to accomplish this 10 hour day!

I'll let you know how it goes!

Camp Nurse

I'm finally home from volunteering as a camp nurse. It was my first "official" nursing job. I didn't know what to expect but I had so much fun and learned a lot by taking care of the middle schoolers bumps & scrapes, tummy aches & headaches, and homesickness. There were about 100 kids and about 23 that came to see me regularly for routine medications.

The drive up to Newport, WA was beautiful.

I had  my own little nurse's cabin which was very quaint and furnished with the quirkiest pieces of retro furniture! I loved it!

My antique medicine cabinet...so cute!

My 70's retro vinyl chair and chenille couch!

I had a little buddy, Noah (staff member's son) who brought me my easiest patient to take care of: "Fred the Frog."

He really only needed food and water from me!

Where else would this Nurse be during her down time? In the kitchen, of course!

I spent a lot of time helping the camp cooks make the gigantic portions of food for all these hungry campers.

I also had my little helper tag a long most of the time!

My dear friend, Mary, was a leader up at camp so I got to hang out with her during the week! Isn't she the cutest little pregnant mama?

Mary was also helping out in the kitchen a lot and serving meals. On the right is Mary and the other pregnant leader, Kedron. Arent' they adorable?

The river was beautiful!

Overall, I learned a lot and really enjoyed "being in charge." I had one emergency occur in the last half hour of camp which required me to administer an epinephrine injection to a camper going into anaphylactic shock and call 911. It ended well and the camper is doing well now. Those darn peanuts!! It was so scary but I learned a lot from this experience.