Class Beginnings

Congrats! These "feel-sorry-for-me-because-of-these-huge-books-that-secretly-make-me-feel-awesome-yet-completely-overwhelmed" posts are limited (not to mention this one is a little sub-par since all the books aren't in my possession yet).

Yep, after 15 weeks I will be able to sit for the NCLEX and (having all grown-up, and everything that that implies) be a true, honest-to-goodness registered nurse! Eek! But, don't you worry your little heart; I still have two semesters after this one until I'm for sure finished ... as of right now. There always is that chance that I will keep going. But, we'll see about that later.

I'm super excited for this semester because I have my preceptorship at Alta View ER - hooray for no more Utah County hospitals and hooray for the ER. My preceptorship is basically a clinical where I actually work as a nurse ... but I pay them to let me do it. Ha!

Most of my classes shouldn't be super hard, but they are going to take a lot of time. I've got patient care and coordination, care of childbearing families (pediatrics), statistics, NCLEX prep, and photoshop. On top of that I've been studying for the NCLEX, and will need to keep at it through the entire semester. I'm also co-in-charge of the pinning ceremony for my cohort. It's a fun time where a registered nurse pins a new graduate nurse as a kind-of "good-luck and make us proud" ceremony. There will be food and pictures, and pledges, and you're all invited, and it's going to be a lot of work, also. But O-MY-GOODNESS I am glad to be so close, and to see that hard work does pay off!

One more thing: after his first day of class this semester, D shared this story with me! While going around the room telling the most exciting thing they did during the Christmas break (you know, so we can get to know you), which were mostly "I went to Idaho to see family," one guy said, "I don't do exciting things anymore; I don't like seeing myself on the news." How do you not laugh in people's faces?