Preparing For The Move

Our house in Kansas has been rented. Phew. That is one less thing to have to worry about.

After several trips to Springfield, and having gone inside many, many, many houses for sale, we were able to decide on an older home very near the university. Phew. One less thing to worry about. Now, I just have to worry about the packers.

Our preliminary moving inspection went very well. We have nothing out of the ordinary that should cause our packers any troubles. We sold lots of extra stuff at a garage sale. Not only does that limit that amount we have to move, but also the weight. I'm not for sure exactly what our weight was, but I suspect we were pushing the authorized amount. Our next move should not even come close to weight allowance as we will be down another kid's possessions.

I am hoping to make this next house a bit more organized than our current house. Instead of cardboard boxes in the basement, I had some cupboards built specifically to house all the linens left over from my mother's Bed and Breakfast. Not having been able to seen them over the last year, I forgot what I had. Talk about "Out of sight, our of mind." Not anymore.

My wonderful husband is still talking about when we move back to Kansas. So, unless something spectacular comes out of Springfield, we'll be returning to our current digs. With that said, I'll keep the landscaping endeavors to a minimum. It's a bummer because I really wanted to jump into the garden society. I have amazing ideas, but I don't want to put all the effort and money into a garden that will be abandoned in three years. Of course, I say that now, but you never know. I could easily change my mind.

In preparation for the move, I have done the whole space bag thing to my extra towels and blankets. Man, it really makes a HUGE difference. If only I could space bag my dishes. That would be something cool.

I also washed the outside furniture and sun-umbrella. Yuck. They were very dirty. Not anymore, which will make it nice to unpack on the other end.

With my husband on leave and school out for the summer, we do have some free time. So, my fabulous husband suggested a trip to the Omaha Zoo. Woo Hoo! I love the zoo. But first, we stopped at the Arbor Day Farm in Nebraska City, NE. That place is way cool. There were some very tall, yellow flowers.





Anybody know what kind of flowers these are?

After the nature walk, we went into the nursery where we were given two Blue Spruce seedlings to plant. My grandpa Bob highly recommended planting trees. Unfortunately, I don't care for Blue Spruce as they have very sharp needles, but I'll plant them anyway. Naturally, I haven't decided where to plant them, yet. Maybe here in Kansas, maybe there in Springfield. That's a decision I'll make later.

The Zoo was great.



I asked several employees what kind of background and education they had. I think it would be terrific to work at a zoo. I'm all about animal health, welfare and enrichment. I can't think of a more wonderful job.

So, once we get to Springfield, I'll apply for work at the Springfield Zoo. I also plan to apply for a position at Animal Paradise. That place is a wild animal safari park. Of course, I'm not ruling out the Rutledge-Wilson Farm. I would love to work there. Those folks really need my experience and expertise and they don't even know it. Hopefully, the city will approve funding for another full-time position and I can help them create an amazing agritourism place. Wherever I end up working, be it a pet shop, dog kennel, zoo, animal safari place or even the public school department as a substitute teacher, Red Barn Farm will always be the NUMBER 1 place for me.





I love that place. If we do end up returning to Kansas, I'll be back there, giving tours and doing chores.

4.0 GPA

Another semester finished and my grades are amazing! Yep, three A's. And wanna know what I'm going to do with it? Well, not nursing school.

I came to the conclusion that I would rather work on a farm or in a barn cleaning up after animals than in a hospital cleaning up after people. There is a city operated educational barn in Springfield, but unfortunately, they do not have a position available. It is possible that a seasonal position will come available in the fall, but in the meanwhile, I'll have to find something else. There are plenty of kennels and puppy stores in the area. I think I'd like to see if I could get on with a doggie daycare place. Any day that involves playing with pups is a good day.

Perhaps, I might be able to find a horse barn that would employ me to pick up poop. I'll just have to wait and see.

Two Out of Three

Of the three courses this semester, I have completed two of them. Medical Terminology was only for one credit. I finished the requirements for that class several weeks ago and received an A.

The final for Medical Assessment was a head to toe assessment of a patient. My wonderful husband graciously volunteered to be my patient. Actually, I volunteered him, but he readily accepted the position. Of 170 possible points, I earned 169. The only thing I forgot was to test for skin turgor. Something very simple. I just didn't even think about it. I'm glad that class is finished and that I earned an A.

My only remaining class is Nutrition. The instructor is thorough, but I knew that from Microbiology. I have only two tasks left to complete. One is the class written project about healthy weight loss. I'm simply writing it. Everyone else is doing the research. Of the information submitted to me to date, this will not be an in-depth discussion. I'm thinking it will be an overview of healthy options. The second assignment to complete is an online timed test covering minerals. As I did not score as well as I would have liked on the online timed test covering vitamins, I'm concerned about this test. On the vitamins test, I earned myself 42 points of 50. Basically, a crap score. I wrote a note to the instructor inquiring as to how badly that score impacted my overall grade in the class. He indicated that I'm still well within the A range. Phew! My status on the President's List is still secure. Not that it matters to anyone other than myself.

I've decided to not to attend nursing school. I know, I know, I know. This was a difficult decision to make. Thankfully, my husband agrees with my choice. I've decided that I want to work for the city at an agritourism farm. I'd be much happier asking children if they want to pet a baby chicken. I've spoken with those who run the operation and they have indicated to me that once the city approved that money to fund an additional employee, I'm on the short list of potential staff. In the meantime, I think I'll seek employment at a dog kennel/day care. I just love the animals. Maybe, I'll take advantage of my husband's faculty position at the university and take a class or two. I'm thinking animal husbandry.

That Saddle

Okay, the saddle is a wee big at the withers. So, until I get a riser pad, I'll be riding without a saddle. The problem now is that my local tack shop, doesn't have riser pads for western saddles, only english saddles. I suspect I'll be forced to order one. Hopefully, I can find one that fits. It's not as if I can have Kadance go try one on.

Anyway, I rode my girl this past Saturday. This was the first time since my fall. I was very nervous. Kadance did well, as her trainer said she would. I guess I was lacking confidence. The pain of my fall and the subsequent rehabilitation is still in the fresh in my mind. It took a few minutes and a lot of reminding to breath before I relaxed enough to enjoy myself. Kadance was a champ and was not in the least bit concerned.

So, today I played with her for about an hour and then took a lesson with her trainer. It was amazing. Still bareback, we asked Kadance for a trot and she gave it. The very first trot with a rider! She is so smooth. I was able to easily sit her trot. Even when she got going a bit fast, I had no difficulty with her. Her trainer and I are both impressed with her progress. Concerned that my knee brace might be causing her some irritation, I lifted my leg up near her shoulder. Woohoo! That was something new that she wasn't exactly ready to experience and she bolted. I, however, remained right where I was and ended up flipping over her backside and onto the ground. As I was airborne, I focused on remaining relaxed and directing the impact away from my knee. There was just no way I wanted to explain to my husband, doctor and physical therapist that I hurt myself AGAIN. I hit the dirt right on my hip. You may recall the photographic evidence that I do not bounce...well, I hit in the same spot. I suspect that later this evening and/or tomorrow, I'll be bruised up. Just great. As my husband is returning home tonight from a 3-day trip to California, won't he be pleased at my discoloration.

New saddle

I ordered a saddle last week for Kadance. It came in and I was all excited to get it and take it to the barn and see how it fit. Unfortunately, it snowed. So, I had to wait until today to try it out.

Kadance doesn't care in the least. She was most interested in playing with the girth strap. Actually, to be more accurate, she was most interested in playing with the packaging that came with the girth strap. Silly filly.

Everything went well. Even better than I had expected. The trainer has done a very good job with her. I am pleased. Now, I can't wait for my knee to heal to the point that I can actually ride my horse. Only 6 more weeks...

Accepted

I received my acceptance packet from St. John's College of Nursing. Now, the process begins.

Among other documents I had to sign, I had to sign authorization for drug testing. I have no problem with being tested. I don't use illicit substances. It makes sense as working in a hospital does present a certain amount of availability. But, shoot. I can't remember simple conversations I had when I was on the hydrocodone for my knee. How in the word can people function, much less take exams while on narcotics?

I received a telephone call from St. John's College of Nursing last week indicating that I needed to schedule an appointment to meet with an academic adviser and to take the HESI entrance exam. As the school is 3 1/2 hours away from me, I inquired into the possibility of taking the test locally with a proctor and perhaps conducting a telephone conference.

The response was a deliberate NO.

The trip was schedule with my husband's support. He would drive me to Springfield on Monday evening and I would take the exam Tuesday morning. The meeting with the academic adviser would immediately follow the exam's conclusion.

Watching Sunday evening's weather report was a disheartening experience. A cold front enveloped the Springfield area and freezing rain was expected. By Monday morning, the situation was much worse and the town froze beneath a blanket of ice.

What a predicament.

So, I called the school only to discover it had been closed for the day due to inclement weather.

"But, I'm scheduled to take a test in the morning. Will I still be able to do that?"

"I don't know."

"What would you recommend I do?"

"I don't know."

I discussed the situation with my husband and we agreed to make the trek.

The closure we got to Springfield, the nastier the weather. Freezing rain clung to everything. Icicles pulled on tree branches until they gave way. Although it was pretty, I was filled with dread. Had I made this trip for not?

After getting some dinner, my husband and I snuggled down in the hotel room. The rain continued throughout the night.

Early the next morning, I turned on the television and learned St. John's had canceled all classes for the day and the building would be closed until 12:00pm. No longer faced with a rush to arrive by 9 am, we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast followed by an adventure around town. By 10:30 am, we parked at the mall. I quick called the school to determine its status. It was still the same.

Shortly before noon, we headed toward the building. There was a sign posted on the door which indicated that classes were canceled and all other inquiries were to ring the bell. So, we rang the bell. The woman who came to the door was unable to provide any information as to what I should do. Obviously, there was no examination that morning and there would be no meeting with the academic adviser that afternoon. No one was available. A second woman came to the door and informed my husband and I that we should have called before coming.

We were faced with a long drive home. And...it was a long, long drive. My husband was irritated with the whole situation and that made for unpleasant company.

The next morning, I telephoned the school to determine a course of action. After explaining what had happened, I was told that I should have listened to the radio or watched the television before driving all that way. --We don't get Springfield stations in Leavenworth.--
Not wanting to argue, simply wanting to schedule the test and meeting, I chose to not inform her that I had called on the previous Monday, watched the television on Tuesday and called on Tuesday. I tried to convince her to allow me to proctor the exam locally. That was again, a definite NO.

--I wonder, what do the folks coming from a more distant location do? Are they expected to travel to the school to take a standardized entrance exam? Apparently so.
I just hope that next week, the weather holds out and that I am accepted to the school. It would be such a bummer if I jumped through all these hoops only to be denied acceptance.

Off crutches

At 5 weeks post-op, I was finally allowed to walk without crutches. PHEW! Thank goodness. Those things are a giant pain in the patooty.

I had my 5 week check-up with the doctor and he explained that week 6 is when the graft is at its weakest. He then told me I'd be in the brace for an additional 3 weeks, weather permitting. If we keep getting snow/rain/ice and conditions remain slippery, then I'm to stay in the brace longer. I can understand that. It doesn't mean I'm happy with the information, but, nonetheless, I'll tolerate it.

So, I have 2 more weeks in the brace and just three days ago, we got about 7 inches of snow. crap. That snow accumulation canceled school and physical therapy for the day. crap.

Don't get me wrong. I really enjoy winter and love winter conditions. What I don't like is being put behind in my recovery and education. Come on, already.

Anyway, two weeks ago in my Health Assessment class, we had to use our stethoscopes and listen to lung sounds. Because I didn't have my stethoscope, I volunteered to be my group's patient. However, when I got home, I volunteered my husband to be my patient. Unfortunately, he wasn't very. Soooooo, I looked around the house and called for my dog.

"Here, Sydney. Come to momma."

She did. Sucker.

Her lungs sounded pretty good and her heart sounded strong.

I quick pulled out my cell phone and sent a text message to my classmate, Christina.
I wrote that my dog had good resonance and good lung sounds.

She wrote back that her dog did too. How funny is that?

So, when I went out to visit my horse, I was so very tempted to take my stethoscope. The only reason why I opted not to was because I knew she would be covered with mud and I didn't want to get my stethoscope dirty.

Stitches Are Out

I had the sutures removed and I returned the ice water pump. I still have wound dressing and ace bandages under my brace, which I must wear for the next 5 weeks. Yuck.
The best part about this whole thing has been the parking.

Under the brace, the ice water pump, ace bandage wrap, and sterile dressing is this mess.

The incision is where the surgeon removed my tendons from my hamstrings. That is what hurts the most; the graph. My knee feels fine. My leg is killing me.


This is Henry, the luckiest cat of all time. He needed to come visit me in the bed.

Narcotics Continue

Here I am in bed. I've spent a tremendous amount of time there. Notice the crutches. Those things are a HUGE pain in the butt. The only upside to having to use them is the fabulous abdominal workout that is required to operate them.
I would also like to point out my super cute nightshirt. My kid, the redhead, gave it to me for Christmas. Thanks Jordan...You're A-okay, my buddy.

The Surgery Is Over, Let the Healing Begin

I am eager to get going at this point. The sooner my knee is rebuilt, the sooner I can get back to my active lifestyle.



Life is still good. My IVs have not yet been put into place. The first attempt was extremely unsuccessful. No, I take that back. It was a PERFECT example of what NOT to do. The nurse pushed the needle straight on through the vein. The back of my hand began to swell and I could clearly see that something was definitely wrong. Shoot. Ray Charles could have seen that something was wrong. So, a second nurse came in and put an IV in my other hand. Very successful. Goodie. However, the just prior to the inserting of the lead line, blood spurted out all over the floor. Lucky for me, I didn't actually see the fountain. I saw the puddle after the fact.



Here I am immediately after surgery. I am feeling no pain. Don't I look good?



Kelly.....wake up....
Huh? Wha?



Back home. I don't even remember having this picture taken. I'm still looking good, though. Hahahaha...it is to laugh.

The Midwest Had an Ice Storm

This past week, the Midwest suffered two days of ice and freezing rain. It did cause damage to trees (broken branches) and downed power lines. Several thousand people were without electricity for a few days. Most folks had power back within two or three days.

Our house and our immediate neighborhood were relatively untouched. We did not loose power nor did we suffer broken limb damage. The big tree in our front yard lost two branches. When they fell, they dropped straight into the yard and did zero damage. We were much better off than many, many people.

Many broken tree branches collided with houses doing tremendous damage. Many trees suffered more than a loss of just a few smaller limbs. The huge maple tree four blocks away is quite literally half of its former size. It broke straight down the center of its trunk. I was sad to see it go, but on the bright side, somebody will have plenty of firewood next year.

In spite of the damage the storm brought, I thought it was beautiful.

Guess Who Has a 4.0

The results are in...I am a super study nerd and proud of it!

There were a few interesting questions on my final exams. More than once, I said to myself, "What?" and "Uhhh, burrito?"

Apparently I did well enough on my final exams to maintain my grade in the course because grades are officially posted and I earned myself an A in Anatomy + Lab, an A in Physiology, and an A in Microbiology.

With my A from my summer course, Child Development, I'm sitting pretty.

I'm almost finished with my general education required classes for nursing school. So, when the spring semester begins, I'll be taking Medical Terminology, Nutrition, Pathophysiology, and Health Assessment. If I can keep my grades up, I think I'll be good for acceptance into the nursing program at St. John's College of Nursing in the fall.

Guten Tag

Last night, Mona from Freienhagen, Germany, called. She mentioned that my blogging has been laking of late. So, Mona, Guten Tag. Wie gehts?

Today is the last day of regular classes. I have two lectures today: Physiology (human reproduction) and Microbiology (continuing immunology). My Anatomy class, which normally follows Microbiology, is an optional lab. As the weather outside is frightful and at my house, the fire is so delightful, I must go, I must go, I must go. Actually, the weather guy said that after 3 pm today, we are expecting crazy snow. Okay, he didn't actually say "Crazy Snow." I don't believe "Crazy Snow" is a proper meterological term, so I am paraphrasing here.

This coming Wednesday, day after tomorrow, is my final exam day for Microbiology and Anatomy. Friday will be the day for Physiology. I'm confident that I will do well in all of my classes. I currently have an A in each class and expect to maintain my grade. I still have a bit more studying to do on HIV and the endocrine system. Other than that, I'm not too stressed.

I still have chapters to write for my novel. I requested an extension to the end of December and they graciously agreed. Once exams are finished, I have to focus on my fictional world.

Still to come is my knee surgery. That's on the 27th of this month. So, techincally, I don't have to the end of the month to finish my chapters. I really only have until Christmas.

Speaking of Christmas, I informed my husband that I am ignoring holiday decorations this year. As I am the one who decorates and put everything away once the holiday has been celebrated, I decided that after surgery I will not be too interested in wrestling decorations in a full leg brace and medicated. I think he was a bit disappointed, but he didn't protest to much. I'm thinking that I'll get a live poinsettia and it will be our tree. That way clean up will consist of tossing a dead plant. It's festive and easy clean up. Ho, ho, ho, in the trash it will go. Although, I DID get out my fabulous Christmas bear last night. The cats are fascinated by it.

This morning, I am meeting my girlfriends for an All You Can Eat pancake breakfast. The price is right....$2.00. YeeeeHaw!

Tschuss.

Turns out, Nacy's Grade Was Better

After continued inquiries into the scores of the tossed exam, I discovered that Nancy had done better than I. She earned herself a 72%.

The next exam on the heart was much better. I earned myself a 98%. Much more appropriate and reflective of my awesome study skills. It's true, I am a super study nerd.

The results of the micro test weren't as good as I had thought. I thought I had done better than a 92%, but I'll take the A, no matter.

Today is my anatomy exam on circulatory, lymph and respiration systems. I'm feeling confident about the material. Hopefully, he doesn't bring in some question from way out in left field.

There isn't much time left in the semester. Frankly, the only class that I'm ready to be finished with it physiology. I could study anatomy every day. I like it. Micro just grosses me out. I've learned too much about nasty communicable diseases. Thank God I have a functional immune system. Even then, there are some virulent creepy crawlies out there that can still do some major damage even with a high speed immune system. And to think.....people continue to practice poor hygiene. Yikes.

The Tossed Exam

Last Friday, I took a physiology exam that covered muscles.

When I walked into the classroom, I was extremely confident that I knew the material. Unfortunately, as I read the questions, I began to wonder if I had studied the correct chapters. Shoot, the correct text book, for that matter.

Let's just say the test was...in a word...RUDE.

Other students were just as numb as I was. One student actually approached the instructor and advised, "You didn't teach us any of this stuff."

To which the instructor replied, "I hope you were able to reason it out well."

I was sick to my stomach with anxiety. Come Monday morning, I didn't even want to know my score.

The instructor walked into the room and announced that the exam would be thrown out for everyone. Apparently, the scores were horrific.

Curious, I inquired into my score. It was brutal......68%

Of my peers, it was the high score.

There were lots of 50-somethings. One girl earned herself a 22%.

A 22%! There is no coming back from that. She said she should be embarassed, but it was just too ridiculous to be anything but funny.

With the test scores tossed, my grade still stands very comfortably at an A.

Official Results Are In

The Radiologist Report is clear. My knee is completely DORKED!

My tibia does have a fracture right near the epicondyle. Both my femur and my tibia have contusions which are significant enough to warrant a delay in the reconstructive surgery for my ACL, which apparently has completely disappeared. Although it would be possible to comfortably live without an ACL, provided that I did not need to move side to side or pivot, I have to have my replaced. Normally, the meniscus would be able to compensate for the lack of the ACL, however, my meniscus suffered damage and would deteriorate rapidly causing me to have that surgically repaired in the not so distant future. So, the surgeon will harvest a tendon from my gracilis muscle to reconstruct my ACL.

In the meantime, I must do physical therapy to prepare for the surgery. Additionally, physical therapy must be conducted postop in order to get my leg and knee functioning again. Surgery is scheduled for December 27th.

The biggest bummer about the whole situation is that I cannot ride my horse. CRAP!

Non-Rider at the Trail Ride

Last Saturday, Oakmont Farm hosted a group trail ride for the boarders. As I have this crappy knee situation, I couldn't ride, but that didn't stop me from visiting with my girl, Kadance. I even talked my extremely patient husband into coming and taking some pictures.


Kadance is a very loving horse. She seeks out attention and loves to be rubbed on her throat. There is a particular spot on her throat that she loves more than any other. You can obviously tell by her expression when I rubbed it. If a horse could get its back leg going like a dog does when the sweet spot was scratched, she would have been kicking like crazy.

Physiology Grades Are Back on Track

The exam on nerve cell conduction....96%. Sweet!