Happy 2015

New Year, New Quarter and finally Financial Aid.
I am really really happy about that.. and it means I get to eat a little better, buy my books and not work insane hours and try to study up.

We are beginning with Cardiac next week, so this week is all about prep, and some coffee dates.. not sure how I managed to schedule three of them, but I did.. oops.

I am been browsing the web for cardiac helps for nursing and I am overwhelmed by them.  I will see if I can find a few to post here.

As for the budget.. that needs some serious checking.  I went a little crazy while the kids were here for Christmas since I worked full time this last month.  Now I need to rein it in hard and get back to bare bones and come up with some healthy budget recipes.

Sunday after work will be my prep for the week of food and starting next week.. back to Zumba twice a week, and the cycle twice a week, coupled with three times a day of walking the dog, and the pounds should start to come off again.

So  far since September, I am down 26 lbs..

Sunday is weigh in day and measurement day.  I have a challenge with two of my friends from class that this quarter, we will lose instead of gain and that we will be stronger instead of more tired.

We have acute care clinicals and they start EARLY.. so I am coming up with some exercise plans that will be good for me to build up the cardio and endurance for being on my feet for 12 hour stints


Happy New year and for all you other broke nursing students.. hang in there.. it will so be worth it when graduation comes!

I decided to finally start a blog about being an older, broke, newly divorced nursing student in the 2nd quarter of a 6 quarter RN program.


Why would I do that?  It is not like I really have time to blog.. because I am in nursing school and I have to work because, well I am a newly divorced nursing student in the... well you get the idea. I do however, need a place to come and get some things off of my chest so to speak, and I am slowly finding out that I am NOT ALONE.. there are other over 40 nursing students that went through a divorce either right before, or right after starting a nursing program.

It is an interesting phenomenon and I am curious how many of us there really are.  I have grown children and the back story on my life is too long for one post.  Nursing does draw in the fixers and dysfunctional types for sure.

I am going to be starting week number three of a 10 week quarter.  It is fast paced and a little scary.  I will try and share as much as I can (which is not much) according to my school policy and HIPPA about school, but I will try and share a good deal of the stuff that I can legally and ethically share.

Nursing school changes you and so does divorce.. some days I look at myself and I think.. Who the heck is this person.. and I think.. how in the hell did I make it this far.. and then I secretly do a happy dance that I am so different and that I HAVE made it this far.

Every program is different.  Every Quarter or Semester is different... Some programs are more forgiving than others.  I work about 28 hours a week.  I am over 40, I have a dog, and an apartment in the...ummm not so nice part of town.  I am however, walking distance from my program and one of the clinical sites, I have my family back, I have INCREDIBLE friends and some even more amazing ones in my co-hort, and I have a new friend that is changing my perception about love and relationships.  All in all.. a pretty good gig.

There are some things you can do to keep yourself sane and some things you can do to set yourself up after school... I will try and share my experiences with those topics.

Thanks for stopping a moment and reading this.

I now have to go and practice my catheter insertion skills and sterile gloving.. and giving shots into my  injectEd.
I am sure there will be some more fantastic ATI videos on enemas as well for watching tonight.  I think I will make some popcorn!


On a side note.. my son's ship is headed back to the states.. my youngest is in the Navy and has been on deployment for awhile now.. so I have to post this picture:

My late husband was also Navy, so I get a little Patriotic and proud of our Navy!  I was a Navy wife for many years and now I am a Navy mom!  Go Navy.. okay.. enough... I am walking away now...