next step

My International Application was due this morning and I decided for sure that I want to go to Ghana. So Ghana was my first choice and Taiwan is my second. Now the next step is an interview in the next few weeks and then hopefully I'll know by Christmas if I got into either of those. If I didn't, I'm stuck staying local. So start saying your prayers that I get to go to Ghana!!

Big decisions

So I knew that this year was going to be a big year for me to make decisions, but now that I have to make some of these decision very soon (like from a few days to 2 months) it's getting quite a bit overwhelming!!

-Stay in Provo for a one day clinical next semester or switch to Primary's Children hospital for 2 days? Convenience vs. Experience (this decision has to be made by tomorrow haha)

-Ghana or Taiwan?

-Mission?

-Move, or stay put?

-Stay friends, or pursue something more with a person?

-Aim for graduation or just drop out and move home?

That last one sure is tempting :) Just kidding!

HELP ME!!

So I have the opportunity in the nursing program to go this spring and do nursing abroad for 4-5 weeks. It seems very exciting, and yes, it is. But it's also one of the most stressful decisions I've ever made! I'm pulling my hair out! You can ask my mother I keep going back and forward on what to decide. Problem is, I have to submit my international application by Wednesday at the latest and it has my top 2 choices on it. After learning about the international sites, which includes Vancouver British Columbia, Ecuador, Jordan and Jerusalem, I have selected my top two choices to be Ghana and Taiwan. But don't ask me which is first and which is second choice BECAUSE I CAN'T DECIDE! So I need input. Lots and lots of input.

Some things to know: I do have to interview, but I only get interviewed for my top choice. If you don't get your first choice, they try and put you in the second choice, but if you don't get that one, you don't get to go international, and instead you go to DC for a week, Colorado for 3 days, the "inner city" of Murray UT or the state prison. So yeah, I'd like to go international ha. Also, I know I'll have a great experience no matter where I go, but what's going to be best?! Anyway. Below is my pro/con list. See?! It's gotten so hard to decide I had to type out my pro con list!

	GHANA	TAIWAN
PROS	· More service oriented · Get to make a noticeable difference · Not for the faint hearted, and I am definitely not weak. · Two faculty members going are my past two clinical instructors · 3rd world country · 13-16 spots available · I have a bunch of very good friends who want to go, and will probably end up going	· Cheaper · Get to travel entire country over weekends · In country 5 weeks · ER rotation · 1st world country · Opportunity to scuba dive, learn how to surf, see country….
CONS	· More expensive · In country only 4 weeks · Don’t do much travelling, go from hospital/village to housing at night · Don’t go out at night · Risk of illness or death (technically) · Requires lots of immunizations and taking anti-malaria medication.	· Seems to focus more on my own personal experience (travel, scuba etc) · More people are going to want to apply here (mainly because of price and international location) · Only 8 spots available · I don’t quite feel as attached to going to Taiwan. It just seems more logical

I'll try and pretend I'm not baby happy...

You know time is going fast when the person you've been best friends with since birth, gives birth....

Congratulations to Erin and Justin Wilson and little Bennett!
You are a beautiful family.

Justin Bennett Wilson
9/28/2009
8:39 pm MDT

Pinching Pennies 101

I'm a poor college student. Cliche, I know, but SERIOUSLY, it's true. So to help the whole situation, I resort to pinching pennies, counting quarters, clipping coupons, bargain hunting...whatever the phrase I probably do it (although not as insane as some other members of my family--cough cough Eric). So when I went to send 4 letters to missionaries on Monday, I did not falter when I found I didn't have the right stamps. I opened my stamp holder and found a plethora of stamps that didn't fit the 44 cent and 98 cent stamps I needed. Lots of 2, 5, 10, and 41 though!

So did I go to the post office and buy some nearly-a-dollar international stamps, and possibly some "Forever" stamps that I can send to anywhere in the US? NAY! What kind of college student would I be if I didn't scrap around trying to save as much money as possible? So I was very resourceful and used FIFTEEN stamps to send FOUR letters. How awesome is that? The post office may raise their prices for stamps and think that means people will buy more stamps but they don't know the power of a frugal nursing student. Once again, I stick it the man.

Unfortunately, the man stabbed back, now that I'm completely out of stamps and have to buy some new ones. Win the battle and lose the war.

Thank You, Nursing...

This post is dedicated to Sarah Alvey.

Nursing school is full of stimulating information. Some of it is obvious, others not. This would fall into the obvious category.

Wound dehiscence or evisceration is essentially when things that are supposed to stay inside your body come out through a fresh surgical wound. I'll keep this squeaky clean for all you faint-hearted out there.

But here is a paragraph from one of my books:
If wound dehiscence or evisceration occurs, call for help and contact the primary care provider immediately, stay with client, monitor the client for shock, cover with sterile towel, and do not attempt to reinsert organs.

Maybe you have to be a certain kind of sick sick person, but I laughed really hard at this. Can't you just see a student nurse--much like myself--saying: "OOOHHH!! OOOH!!! I took Anatomy!! I think I kinda sorta mostly remember where the pancreas goes! Let me!!"

Darn you nursing school. Now that this has been in my assigned reading, I'm legally accountable if I try and reinsert the organs. Darn you for dashing all my hopes and dreams.

Who wants to be my patient...?! ;)

Getting Past my Marriage Prime

I may have mentioned the pattern that seems to have emerged in my home ward/stake, where the last several girls that have come to Utah for school have gotten engaged at 19 and married by 20 (well technically 2 1/2 months past 20 was the oldest). In like a week I will be the older than that and will be an old single maiden. Originally I didn't think that I should worry, but after reading this I'm beginning to panic.

For some reason I imagine this being sung as a country song by someone with a lisp...

I turned eighteen a long time ago.
I'm wonderin' why it's takin' so long
To find that man, the one from my dreams.
Gotta find him before I turn nineteen.

I'm nearly an old maid!
Need to say "I do" before it's too late.
Past my prime now!
Come on guys, can you help a girl out?

It's been a long grueling eighteen years
Tryin' to fight back all these lonely tears.
Got my GED; It's time to settle down.
Colors picked, even bought my wedding gown.

I'm nearly an old maid!
Need to say "I do" before it's too late.
Past my prime now!
It's about time I settled down!

They say I'm a menace to society.
Need a man cause I have no self-esteem.
Wanna get wed now so I'm goin' to BYU;
Statistically it'll take a week or two.

I'm ready to be your wife!
I wanna taste of married life!
We'll start a family right away
Before my fertile regions decay.

Been married six years,
Eight kids under age five.
Still don't know you real well
But at least I'm satisfied.

Yellerrrstone

So I'm in Idaho right now, and have been here for the last almost 2 weeks. It's been a lot of fun here with Brian and the rest of the McKellar clan, and we've been keeping very busy. We've gone to movies, up to Brian's beloved Treasure Mountain Scout Camp, to the Idaho Falls temple, to the arcade (which I suck at...) up to Rexburg, over to Shelley to help in Amanda's classroom, and even went to watch Brian participate in the triathlon he's been training for (I love the boy, but when he WANTS to swim a mile in open water, bike 25.3 miles, then run a 10K, I seriously have to question his sanity...) He even developed shingles while preparing for the run! But it turned out well for him, since he knocked twenty minutes off his PR and did it all in 3 hours and 10 minutes, placing him third in his division. Plus he got steroids for the shingles. Which he loves. Too bad he didn't get them until after the race.

But I would have to say that probably my favorite thing we have done this vacation is go to Yellowstone National Park. It was absolutely stunning, so I thought I'd share some of my favorite shots. It was also very exciting because since Yellowstone is so big and we drove back through Grand Teton National Park, we officially went to three states and two national parks in one day. Not bad if I do say so myself...

:)

I loved this lake..

Old Faithful/Old Geyser/"Thing that Goes Kawhoosh"

One Week!

ONE MORE WEEK...

until I see this:

and lots of these:


Which eventually leads to this:


and this walking around campus:



One week til I get to enjoy this fabulous style again:



and eventually a ton of this:


But I'm mostly excited because it's one week til this:

Yee-haw!!!! :D

I'm so oblivious. But at least I've got class.

I'm one of those people who is easily surprised. Maybe I'm just totally naive, but I never catch a hint. But sometimes I think it's a good thing. Like when I miss all the hints that my good friend Adam Ward was driving all the way up from Virginia to come spend a few days with me in New York! This is the second time that Adam has taken the 600 mile trip north to surprise me. The first time he rode a Greyhound Bus for 18 hours next to a spanish nanny who cuddled with him the whole time. This time he opted out of the bus and just drove his car. You have no idea how surprised I was when all of a sudden Adam Ward was right outside my bedroom door. Poor Brian (who I was skyping with at the time) got an earful of excited screaming. haha. Adam was only here Monday night til Wednesday afternoon, but we had such a good time, especially in Saratoga where we got to try on those classy Saratoga race track hats. Man we've got style.

U.S. Waterski team show at Jumpin' Jacks

My best friend Abby was in on the whole thing. Like I said, I'm oblivious.

Hehe oh Adam...

Adam and I spent a ridiculous amount of time dancing to really loud music around the living room. We also reenacted the forever wedding march that I posted a few days ago. THAT was entertaining.

Adam and "Skipper"

Will: "Adam, you look like a convict. I'm talking about the guy who's trying to escape and blend in, in Mexico with the ridiculous sombrero. Not shaven, rainbow colored, $4 sunglass wearing, corona drinking convict."

Told you I'm classy. and apparently a diva.

Rockin' the aviators in Saratoga. Again, straight up classy.