OMG

Oh my goodness. This "Renew the Blog" is gonna be harder than I thought. I wanted to update things like just how it looked. So I turned to Etsy, because I always find great graphics for things there. Well, I found what I wanted and today I got it and thought, I'll just sit in front of this fire and put this blog together. I was worn out just listening to the printer print 35 pages of instructions on how to do it.
SO.....we will get to that eventually and in the meantime, just enjoy looking at pictures of my family when my kids were in 5th and 6th grade. I PROMISE none of us look the same.
I'm working to get my energy level up. I started a 7 week course of antibiotics last night. I'm just praying they help!! More about all of that later. Blue is home for the weekend, so I have intentionally not been sitting on the computer. When she heads back to school, I will attempt those 35 pages of instructions and hopefully get us a new look.

Definitely

I've been thinking on the blog. I've decided I definitely need the outlet and this is a good one. I've been trying to decide whether or not to leave this one as it was and start a new one or to pick up here. I've decided to pick up here. So much of my life is here already documented with pictures and thoughts. I don't multitask as well as I used to and I'm slower than I used to be, but I'm going to try to give this a new look and take off. If you are interested, be on the look out. - Kacy

It's Been Awhile

WOAH! I'm not sure if I read that right, but I don't think I posted since 2012. I don't even know if I know how to use "Blogger" anymore. Blogging was so much fun when the kids were young and crazy and I had a camera around my neck all the time. Things change so fast. Kids grow up, your camera becomes your phone, your health deteriorates and now you chase a dog around the house all the time.
I know I stay locked up in this house a lot. I also know I need an outlet. I'm not sure this is exactly what I want so I think I'm gonna sleep on it and see where it leads.

Summer Time

NO, I didn't fail, but I quickly realized that blogging is NOT in the cards when I am in school.  A lot of things are not in the cards...I've had to stop reading all other blogs, limit my FB use to at night after everyone has gone to bed, I quit cleaning my house and doing laundry and almost NEVER fix my hair :).  It stays in a pony tail or tied up somehow with a rubber band on the back of my head.  I'm down to only my best friend because I neglect everyone else (NOT ON PURPOSE) and my poor family...well my poor family.  I miss soccer practice and games regularly and I am THAT mom who occasionally has to dig the cleanest dirty uniform out of the laundry basket for the kids to wear.  UGGHHH!  This mess is hard, but I LOVE IT! 

This was a tough semester.  It was easier in some ways but it was tough.  Test taking has gotten a little bit better...I think it's just a little easier to anticipate what we will be tested on.  I only have three weeks off until I go back for summer school :/  I wish I had more time off but I know I will be very happy come July 1 when I have three more classes under my belt.

 

As usual it is CRAZY around here.  I had a good Mother's Day.  Both kids were playing in a soccer tournament, so the whole weekend was spent at the soccer fields in the rain.  We have Dalton's awards program in the morning and Blue is being inducted into the Junior National Honor Society tomorrow night.  I'm so proud of them.  Jeff and Dalton went to Italy for 10 days last month.  Dalton was playing in an International Soccer Tournament.  They had a great time and came home exhausted.  I still haven't been able to get Jeff to give me the pictures from his phone.  I only have a few and they aren't on this computer.  I will get them and update some photos of my International Men of Mystery.

Let me see what I have on this laptop :)

This was our Christmas card photo this year...

Yes, this is my baby boy.  This was right before the Masquerade Dance at school - 7th Grade.

This picture was chosen and used in a commercial for the kids Orthodontist :)  We are still working on those beautiful smiles!

Blue was in her first beauty pageant.  She looked AMAZING!!  We were so proud of her - 6th Grade



I will dig up more pictures and update through the summer.  I'm sure when August gets here it will be tough again.

Happy Summer.

Kacy





WHEW!!!

I PASSED!!

Gees, we had our first test of the semester today!  The first one is ALWAYS the hardest regardless of the content.  This one was not only the first one but the content was all over the place.  Last semester, I flunked the first test and spent the rest of the semester trying to dig my way out of the hole.  I did it, but I didn't want to start this semester off that way.  LUCKILY, I didn't.  WHEW!!

Jeff has decided to become obsessed with everyone in the house's grades.  That sucks.  He started in on Blue this morning, wasn't pleased with my test score today, and just closed out the evening riding Dalton over some extra credit reading that he isn't doing.  Both kids have locked themselves away from him.  I asked him what his problem was when he was less than pleased with my performance today.  He backed off then.  He needs to get busy with something else.  Blue's test was bad, I'll give him that.  She brought it home today and we looked at it.  She actually marked the correct answers on the test and when she was bubbling in her answer sheet she messed up on one bubble and missed everything from that point on.  UGGHH.  JEFF, SOMETIMES IT HAPPENS.....  Back off.  He accused the kid of cheating.  Everybody in this house makes excellent grades but no one likes to be micromanaged.  I've ALWAYS handled the kid's grades, let me do my job, dear.  We love you!  (And if you cancel my DirecTV like you threatened to tonight, I'll just sell some of your power tools or burn the house down :)  Kiss Kiss) 

Oh, and I won the election today.  I'm pretty excited about that.  We have a meeting on Wednesday.  I guess I will learn what I am in for then.  I dodged my "friends" today.  I just don't have anything nice to say yet.  I'll keep praying on that one.

I have to go save my son now.  Blue just asked me when Dad started his Cougar, LOL.  That's her code word.  I don't know what the problem is.  I wish I could figure it out though.  It's bad around here tonight.  He better watch out or I will clean off his nightstand.

Peace!  We need some around here.

Kacy



Holy Smokes Batman!

I've just had a Debbie Downer kind of day!  I'm trying to fix that right know with a Peach Daiquiri, maybe it will be working by the time I'm finished typing, LOL.  One day back, and I'm already in a mood :)

I woke up cranky.  It's my fault.  I usually keep an eye on the weather and subconsciously brace myself for the rainy days.  Yesterday was so nice I guess I just assumed today would be, too.  I wasn't so lucky.  I knew before I opened my eyes.  Any morning when you can't roll over by yourself....it's just not gonna be cool.  Of course, once I get up and get moving it gets better, but it still sucks.  School was good and we even got out a few minutes early. 

My left foot has been hurting pretty badly since sometime around Thanksgiving.  I ignored it for a few weeks, but after finals I broke down and went to the doctor.  I had some pretty nasty inflammation in the joints in my second and third toes and in the joints where your toes connect to your foot.  No real reason for it, just lovely RA stuff....they put me in one of those lovely RoboCop boots and I've been in it ever since.  Blue has told everyone that my Carpe Diems were inflamed.  She went with me to my original appointment and somehow got my metatarsals confused with carpe diem.  Anyway, it hasn't gotten any better.  With clinicals starting in the next couple of weeks, I finally broke down and agreed to cortisone injections.  Those suckers hurt and I swear the smaller the joint, the more they hurt.  I also know that the more they shoot my joints the less effective it will be the next time.  I held out as long as I could, but it was time.



I sure hope it helps.  They went in both of those toes and then in through the top of my foot in two different places at the base of my toes.  Hopefully, it will start feeling better in a few days.  Tonight it hurts worse, but that is to be expected.  It's been traumatized, LOL.

OK, so here is my rant...I knew I needed this outlet.  We have an election at school on Monday for an office in our Student Nursing Association.  YES, I am running for political office.  WTH was I thinking?  I was hesitant at first, knowing that these typically turn out to be nothing more than a popularity contest.  I'm a bit old for that, but after thinking about it, I decided I really wanted the position and had a lot to offer and at the time no one else was stepping up to the plate.  After several more days, actually at the last minute, 4 others stepped up.  That was fine.  We had a meeting Wednesday and all had to introduce ourselves.  It was interesting.  I just told a little about myself and my background.  A couple of other students did pretty much the same thing.  One student developed an entire campaign and even started off with nursing jokes :) and another came up with a great idea she would implement if she won.  We vote on Monday and to be honest, I haven't thought much else about it.  We have our first test on Monday and I've been focused on yesterday's check offs and Monday's test.  Any of us would be fine in the position.  Tonight, once I got home and got settled, I got my laptop out and logged into FB.  We have a page set up that is just our nursing class.  There are 80+ members in our group.  We talk about EVERYTHING on there.  Lately, it's gotten out of hand and even been a bit weird, but whatever.  So, I'm scrolling down reading questions people are asking about our upcoming test and BAM!  There is a post from a young student directed at Kacy Acree.  It asked me why I didn't disclose to the class that I had actually graduated from nursing school at this very school before???  WHAT?  <>   I guess negative campaigning even happens in nursing school.  This young lady went on to explain how her mother told her that one of her friends told her that I had already done this and graduated.  Sister, if I had already done this, WHY would I be here?  I calmly replied that I didn't know where this information came from, but I was sorry it just wasn't true.  I unfortunately had told the truth the other day.  So then, her mama comments and proceeded to call names about who told her.  I once again, calmly replied that I was pretty sure I knew more about my own life than anyone else did.  About 20 minutes later she comes back with...well I called so and so to get to the bottom of this and she said she guessed the person that told her must have been mistaken. Sorry for the confusion.  Excuse me, but WHAT?  You went back and checked my story tonight with your "source"?  OMG.  A little while later, I got a message from our page "moderator" who saw right through the cheap "political" shot being taken at me and took the whole comment down.  I have since been apologized to in my INBOX of course.  I'm so stinking mad about that.  I'm way too old for some crap like that and I sat in front of you today for two hours in class.  You could have asked me if you really wondered why I wouldn't disclose such information, not that it should matter anyway.  I'm old enough to be your mom for heaven's sake!!!  Am I really that much of a threat??  GEES!  I guess it actually hurt my feelings more than it made me mad.  I felt attacked and rightfully so.  I was publicly called a liar.  For heaven's sake, somebody has been drinking too much HATERADE!  Ugghhh!  Why are people so stinking mean?

My peach daiquiri wasn't sitting too well, so I gave up and Jeff drank it.  I've got to go study and TRY to get some sleep.  I've been seriously deprived in that category lately.  Have a great weekend.

Peace Out,

Kacy

Cliffhanger??? Sorry about that!

It was once again brought to my attention today that it had been a long time since my last blog attempt.  Hey Mrs. Briscoe =)

I've thought about it often, but just haven't made the time for it.  After the second "gentle" reminder from one of my teachers today, I got to thinking more about it.  It actually may be just the outlet I need.  It cracked me up when she told me she missed Jeff and his nightstand.  WHAT??  I didn't even realize anyone payed attention to one of my all time BIGGEST pet peeves.

But, just so you know....

NOTHING has changed.  As a matter of fact, check out that yard sale stool that belongs to Blue that he hijacked so he would have more room to throw his mess on.  The coke wasn't his (it was hers) but the rest of it...ALL HIM.  UGGHHHHH!!!  I'm sure some of those receipts are for a bottle of water, but he HAS to keep them.  If he didn't have me, he would win Hoarder of the Year!

A LOT has happened since my last post.  I passed my first semester of nursing school (Thank You Jesus)!!  I've done a lot of stuff in my life, but this may very well be the hardest.  I left you hanging on the catheter check off.  I'll finish that real quick, but be warned, it's a little graphic.

I wish I had a picture of Mrs. Scott.  She was my lab instructor last semester.  She really is a wonderful woman and an excellent teacher, but to call her intimidating is an understatement.  I promised myself when I went back to school that I would not let myself be intimidated, but it didn't work.  It's scary.  Catheter check off is by far the hardest one of the whole semester.  It's a sterile procedure and staying sterile is difficult.  If you break your sterile field, you fail.  If you fail three times, you fail the semester.  SO, here we go....

Everything was going pretty smoothly.  My gloves went on (because I put a whole thing of baby powder in them the night before) and I remembered which side of the wigwam to clean first, second and last (yes, there is a method to wigwam cleaning, who knew?).  By the time you get around to cleaning the wigwam of a manikin, things have already gotten intense.  We have these very anatomically correct manikins that have heart beats and breath sounds and blood pressures and all kinds of stuff.  So far, all of our check offs have been on female manikins.  So, I've cleaned everything and it is time to insert the catheter.  I take a deep breath and go at the hole with my hands shaking like a leaf.  Luckily I hit it, and here we have to talk our way through it (pretend).  So I look up at her and I say, I go in 2 to 3 inches and I see urine (with a big smile on my face).  I tell her I advance the catheter an additional 1 to 2 inches.  Then I use my non-sterile hand to anchor it and it's time to inflate the balloon on the catheter.  We really do inflate the balloon.  That whole anchoring thing is a booger.  That one flunks a lot of people.  So Mrs. Scott has her face down there ON your hands making sure you don't contaminate anything.  So with her face down there in the wigwam over my shaking hands, I inflate the balloon on my Foley catheter.  The poor balloon had been inflated about 30 times in practice.  It decided, THAT was it.  My balloon ruptured in the manikins wigwam and water shot out of the wigwam and got ALL OVER my sterile field (which ruins it) and even worse, Mrs. Scott.  I'm pretty sure that I turned white as a ghost and my jaw landed on the floor.  Mrs. Scott stepped back and took her glasses off and just bent over at the waist and died laughing.  I'm pretty sure I peed my pants, but not from laughing.  She said, just pretend that didn't happen and tell me how you would finish this up.  I PASSED!  Oh the things that happen in nursing school!

Today we checked off on starting IVs, IV pushes, IV piggybacks, trach suctioning and all injections.  What a relief!  We have our first test of this semester on Monday!!

 

The kids are great and crazy and busy as ever.  Both are still playing soccer and Blue is doing some tumbling as well.  Jeff and Dalton are going to Italy for 10 days at the end of March.  Dalton will be playing soccer over there.  He is SO excited and I couldn't be more proud of him =). 

Hang with me while I find my new blogging groove!  I miss having my journal.  I guess I need to go back and read what I all I've said about the nightstand.

If you have a second, say a prayer...I'm getting the ole foot and toes shot up with Cortisone tomorrow.  I'm pretty sure I'm gonna puke.

Rock Out!!

Kacy