“Unplanned events and situations are part of the journey. Adjust and keep going.” ~ Vladimir Elie

When life takes you around a curve and then a sharp left turn, and you were expecting a gently rolling straight-away, you KNOW life is going to get interesting. I’ve been MIA from the blog for awhile and I offer no apologies. There are times that life gets in the way of writing.

To follow up on my last post on Diversity & Inclusion, I have since obtained guardianship of the young lady who inspired that particular post. While she will have to remain in a group home for life, she does get to come home for visits. We enjoyed a few days over Christmas - she received presents from many of the ER staff who took care of her for the extended time she was there awaiting placement. The actual hearing took place shortly after the first of the year, and from the DHR attorney, to the DHR caseworker, to the GAL and the attorney of record, there were no objections to my being granted guardianship and she has since become a wonderful addition to our family.

The only problem with moving from staff nursing to management is the decided lack of days at home. As a staff nurse I worked three 12-hour shifts a week, leaving me plenty of days at home. Now, I work five days a week, and every other weekend supervising, which leaves me only two days at home. That lack of time makes working on the house a bit harder as I am usually exhausted in the evenings.

The local University received a grant to support the development and training for SANE nurses. As I had worked with the head of the University police on a couple of rape kits, the head of Public Safety contacted me to see if I would be interested. If you’ve no clue, SANE stands for Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner. These are nurses specifically trained to collect forensic evidence post assault. It is a time-consuming and gut wrenching process which commands a high level of detail to complete. I am in the midst of my training classes, in addition to my full-time job. Following the classes, I will be able to add FNE (forensic nurse examiner) to my repertoire of initials behind my name and then, after 600 hours of precepted clinical exams, I will be able to add SANE-A.

I have been so blessed at the end of 2023 and look forward to more blessings in 2024. Every life has it’s trials and tribulations, but the blessings far outweigh the bad times. I have been lucky to have made it this far (32 years) with Systemic Lupus and no real health issues. It is starting to catch up with me now, resulting in some health concerns but nothing that will keep me from continuing to do what I do.

I am constantly on Pinterest and Instagram, looking at ideas for homes and have found some fantastic ones:

@callsigndesign – some of THE BEST designs in an earthy departure from the TV-show greys and whites

@thesecretgardenkeys – if the children’s book, The Secret Garden, ever influenced you or you wanted to be influenced by the book, but didn’t know where to start, come see what little things you can do to creat your own Secret Garden

@gablehillhouse – dream of restoring a stately home but financially it’s impossible? Live vicariously through Tim & Daniel as they reach for their dreams.

Welcome 2024 and wishing all a blessed and Happy New Year!