Job News!

I am sooo grateful that I finally have my employment all lined up.  No more online applications, interviewing, and the DREADED waiting for the call- at least  for the time being...

I am grateful for all the family and friends that have been praying for me to get a job. I've had the opportunity to interview for some amazing jobs here - I feel really blessed.

Thursday morning I got the call.  I did not get the NICU job.  Honestly, I was pretty hurt.  I was so confident that I was going  to get it.  It just seemed like everything had lined up too perfectly for me not to get it.  I got served a very large piece of humble pie.

The next day I got to go to a relief society fireside with Barbara Thompson.  I felt the spirit so strongly and just felt at peace with everything.  I ended up sitting next to young mother from Utah.  She had traveled here to Ohio so her little son could get brain surgery at Cleveland Clinic, other hospitals had told her there was nothing that could be done.  The more I spoke with her  about her story, the more comforted/excited I felt with the prospect of working in a neuro ICU at CC.

I might have given it away, but yes today I got the job in the Neurological ICU (NICU) at Cleveland Clinic- I was ecstatic.  In a strange way, I feel like this is where I need  to be.  That  doesn't change the fact that I'm scared to death and have ALOT to learn!  I would never have guessed  I would have ended up working on this unit at such a high acuity hospital - with such stark white walls! (so different from NICU) I keep asking myself, how did I get this job!?! I don't like adult ICUs, I like babies! But seriously, how can I even complain when I have this opportunity- I can't - so I'm going to embrace it and learn as much as I can... I can't wait!  Now I'm going to get me some new nursing clogs to celebrate.

WISH ME LUCK!

I have faith that this is where Heavenly Father needs me.  NICU - I hope we can meet again in the future :)

NICU

One year ago today was the first day of my capstone in the Newborn ICU.  I remember it well, it was a extremely busy shift.  My lovely preceptor, Alice, was the transition nurse for the day, which meant we got to go to all the c-sections and take care of the baby right after birth.  Frankly, It was overwhelming and I had no clue what was going on.  After a few more shifts, I got a better feel what NICU nursing was all about and I was hooked. It was my niche and I felt that it was the perfect outlet of nursing for me.  I even shed a few tears after my last capstone shift because I didn't know when I would get  the opportunity to work in NICU (in this economy, it can be tough to get a job there).  

Now its crunch time...  I had an amazing opportunity a few days after coming to Cleveland  to interview for a  NICU position.  Not only is the hospital walking distance (!!!) , it is consistently ranked in the top 4 NICUs in the country---they write  textbooks for goodness sake   

I am supposed to hear back anytime now and I feel soooooo anxious.  I have mixed emotions, I keep analyzing  the interviews in my head, I am preparing  myself for not getting it, but constantly praying that I will!  

Please Please call me and put me out of my misery!

Whatever should be, will be.

~Grow Where You are Planted~

So my excitement about moving to Arizona was shattered when Tyler was put on waiting lists at both schools he interviewed there (what are the chances!).  Turned out he was never taken off those lists and here we are in Cleveland, Ohio at Case Western.  I spent a lot of time, before coming here, worrying about moving to an unknown place - so much farther from family and even worse winters, leaving my jobs to find new employment with limited RN experience and starting a new life in a place with, lets say, not the best reputation... Despite all this, I had faith and confidence that this is where Heavenly Father wanted us to go, so we went.

Honestly, pulling into our new neighborhood was exciting. I loved it immediately.  Our new home is  in a historic district called Little Italy.  It is lined with cute little shops and family-owned restaurants, completed with cobblestone roads. Most of the houses are historic and so charming - they remind me of the row houses in San Francisco. We live on the 2nd floor of a home built in 1903.  We love our charming space, we love our landlords, and we love our location (walking distance to Tyler's school and University Hospitals,  and a short drive to Cleveland Clinic (a world famous healthcare system).

Little Italy

Our transition here hasn't been perfect, but it has definitely gone well. We really like it here! Thereare of course some really sketchy areas, but otherwise I don't know why this city has such a bad rep.  I have found many nursing opportunities here in some top-notch hospitals.  I am obviously nervous about taking care some of the sickest patients in the country, but I'm excited about all the knowledge and experience I can gain here.  I did get a job at Cleveland Clinic on a surgical floor, but I am still waiting to hear back from some other interviews (NICU as in Neonatal ICU and NICU as in Neuro ICU).  Hopefully by  the end of this week I will know for sure where I will be working.

Tyler has started dental school and he is doing well. He has to wear custom scrubs with  his name embroidered etc...  It was so cute  to see how excited he was when he got his scrubs.  Haha, reminds me of when I got my first pair of scrubs for nursing school-I felt so cool!  Well that feeling definitely fades, but I didn't tell him that. Its seems like he has learned a lot in a short amount of time, he is already starting to speak in a different language. I'm really proud of him!

Above all, I believe the reason for us being here is for missionary work.  There are not very many members here, and most of the members are here for grad school and come from Utah or Idaho.  A lot of people here haven't even heard of Latter-day Saints.  I'm excited about sharing the good news of the gospel here!

 I have a lot more to tell, but the dishes in the sink are calling my name.  I'll update more and hopefully post some pictures soon.  I miss everyone so much!