Rants, Recipes, and Running

What makes me happy right now? It's my weekend right now. I had a few days off in the middle of the week that gave me time to clean house, do some serious spring organizing, work out, and play in the kitchen. What makes me grumpy about that? That means I work Friday & Saturday night. What makes me super-duper-extremely happy and excited? Starting Monday morning I work the 7am-7:30 pm shift. (The only downfall is because days is so crazy, I rarely see anyone get out of there before 8:15 pm.) I get to join the WORLD again! What makes me a little uneasy ? Because I have to work another person's schedule for this month...I do not have a single work-free weekend until April 25. Gross. I wish hospitals could shut down on weekends & holidays. The patients can fend for themselves....(I'm joking...) What makes me motivated? I've been stepping up my workout routine lately, and Ryan has even been joining me! He usually is strictly a weight-lifting kind of guy,...

We are home from a wonderful, extended-weekend-getaway to Omaha. It was filled with family, relaxations, and greatness. I will do a more detailed recap on it soon! In the meantime, I'm doing this ABC bit that I stole from my cousin 's blog! Also, no -- I did not get switched to days. Trust me, I would've told the entire world and screamed it from roof-tops if I did. A. Age: 22, but that will change on Sunday. B. Bed size: King C. Chore you dislike: Cleaning the shower - especially dealing with hard-water stains. Lime away=ouch D. Dogs: Really really really really really dislike. Really dislike. Sorry. I could do a post in itself about my dislike for canines. E. Essential start to your day: Bowl of oatmeal/or cereal with bananas. Or fruit F. Favorite color: Greeen G. Gold or silver: Definitely silver. H. Height: 5'4'' - Sometimes I lie & say 5'5''. Some people lie about their weight, age, haircolor...I lie about my height. I...

It all began last week -- the day I wanted to eat my words. I said to Ryan, " For your birthday I will make you any cake you want! The options are limitless !" I should've known better. Ryan is always up for challenge. My original thoughts that his request would be something benign like chocolate cake, vanilla or marble cake , maybe ever carrot cake . He got a big grin on his face, and said " I would like  an Ice cream cake ." Simple enough, right? Oh no . This was different than the ice cream cake I've always known. I could just see the excitement building in his eyes. And he then goes on....:  "Not just any ice cream cake. I want the cake part to be white. No, I take that back - I want it to be marble. Not yellow and chocolate. White and chocolate. Then I went the ice cream to be............cookies & cream. Oo! And then garnished with hot fudge." I took the challenge head-on. I thought, "Hey I can do this!" Then he g...

I finished my last clinical of nursing school! I survived! Next time I will be on a hospital floor, I will be an RN. Crazy (kinda scary, too!) And..I. Am. Exhausted. So tired! But, this week has been an interesting one - many good stories to come involving baking mishaps, issues with critters, etc.... So please stay tuned. It's a busy week - but I hope to find time to blog on my fun and interesting happenings of the week! But, Tomorrow (August 4) is the birthday of my best friend in the whole wide world !!! I have been working diligently on a birthday cake for him this week. A home made ice cream cake. No worries, a post will come on this. It's been....interesting (needless to say...) He has had a pretty crazy week at work - and I'm having a crazy week with school.... So we will somehow find a method of meeting up for Sushi at our favorite restaurant for dinner tomorrow night  to celebrate- and will try to eat my cake afterwards (we'll see...It should tas...

"You never know what you're gonna get" That's the attitude with me, and my "beauty/style" life. In my lifetime (which has been considerably short...I'm 22!) I have had: -Very very short hair, long hair, red hair, auburn hair, blonde hair, REALLY blonde hair, brown hair, brown hair with blonde high lights, brown hair with red & blonde highlights, permed hair, straight hair.... ...You get the point....I'm pretty "bold" about hair. It's hair. It'll grow back. If it's too blonde, you can dye it darker...etc. So we have had 3 consecutive days that have hit about 100. Yesterday was 101. I'm burning up! It's been 6 months since I've had a haircut. So...I went in today for a "trim". And I went from this: To This..... The "kicker" is that my husband, Ryan...has absolutely no clue I did this. I told him this morning, "I think I'm going to go in to get my hair trimmed. It...

I am stealing this idea from my sister . Thought it looked kind of fun!! I just finshed my first Critical Care Exam....which I was terrified of. And I am actually walking away feeling REALLY confident about it! It's weird. So yay! Celebration. Ryan is charcoal grilling beer can chicken for me tonight! I am making a sweet-potato salad and spinach salad! I love doing the easy stuff ;) So here we go! I ALWAYS ... -Make lists . Lists are absolutely vital to my survival in everything. If you went through my purse, kitchen drawers, school-bag, anything - you will find many lists about everything! -Eat breakfast - and within the first hours that I'm awake. Skipping that meal is not an option for me! -Make breakfast, pour coffee how he likes it, and pack a lunch for Ryan EVERY day. Even on weekends when he gets up at 4:30 for guard. Doing those little things for him are really important to me. I Sometimes .... - Vacuum the house or scrub my kitchen floor when I'm feel...

Sometimes we have very stressful and mentally/emotinally-taxing moments in our lives. And sometimes those "moments" can last for weeks. I think we have all been there. A time in life where we feel like we're being pulled in 1000 different directions at once. Working out, getting good rest, coffee, good venting sessions, an occasional glass of wine - they can all get you through it. But there comes a time, where I think the best escape (aside from a get-away from St. Thomas.....or Hawaii.....) - is a visit to being a kid again! So yesterday, Ryan and I had a late-afternoon date. ....to a candy store. Our original intentions were to purchase some supplies for our Graduation party (cups, plates, plastic silverwear, etc....) Which we did accomplish. But we also found a candy store on our way. I let go of "health-nut Abby" for an hour, And I was brought down memory lane.... We each decided to pick out 5 different things, purchased our goodies, and headed ...