Hello Washington!

So a few weeks ago I went up to Washington to check it out and hang out with my friend Emily. Thanks Emily for letting me stay with you and show me a great time!! This is kind of long but I figure that I'm documenting for journal purposes as well as informing all my blog readers. So enjoy :)

To be honest, I was little weary about Washington. I guess most of my thoughts about Washington were from reading Twilight and knowing that it rains ALOT up there. I wasn't sure how I would feel about living in the rain with hardly any sunshine. Someone actually told me that I should like it because I'm not an outdoors person. Um excuse me, I totally am. Even if I'm not water skiing or rock climbing or swimming 24/7 I'm a Cali girl at heart and LOVE the sunshine. So with that said, I wasn't sure how I would really feel about Washington AND the possibility of me living there...don't worry I'm getting to that.

So my friend Emily's mom works for a hospital in Washington. I can't remember exactly what she does but hey she has an office and is important so that's all that matters :) My mom has been bugging me ever since I told her that Emily's mom might be able to get me a job there or at least help me. I think with all the bugging about it, I was less willing/wanting to go. But when my mom found out Emily was up there she was like, well you should go. So we booked me a flight and I asked Emily if it would be alright to come visit for just a few days to check things out.

I flew from Ontario to Salt Lake City and had like an hour and half layover. Kind of sad I didn't get to see any of my family and friends in Utah but hey I waved to you at the airport :) The next leg of the journey was to Washington of course. Both of my flights there were fine...nothing too worthy to tell happened while flying haha.

I arrived in WA and texted Emily to let her know I was there. I only had a carry on because I was only staying for two days but the flight from Salt Lake to WA I had to check my carry on so I had to pick it up at baggage claim. It actually all worked out because my flight ended up early and Emily was planning on being there on time. The airport there was different and I was a little confused. When you fly Delta there (and I'm sure other airlines) you get on this like bus thing that takes you down to baggage claim. It was kind of cool. I actually felt like I was in a Harry Potter movie getting on it. Weird I know...but that's how I felt..so get over it :) While waiting outside Emily found me and we along with Anthony (her friend in WA) went to dinner.

I arrived when the sun was setting and it was BEAUTIFUL! We went to this Mexican Restaurant called Cactus and it was awesome. I only got an appetizer because I wasn't super hungry BUT it was good food! After that we drove to a golf course kind of by Emily's house (or so I think...it was dark and I don't know my way around haha) and it was up on a hill. It was really beautiful seeing the cities with the lights and stuff. I tried to take a picture but sadly it didn't turn out :( Just take my word for it that it was beautiful. We went to Emily's house and ended up staying up into the early hours just doing girl talk. It was fun. Thanks for that Emily I needed it!

The second day we got up and went to Emily's mom's work at the Swedish Hospital in Issaquah. Let me just say it is a beautiful hospital with a fantastic view! It's not even open yet! It opens in November and it's awesome!! They have a cafe there where we ended up eating lunch and it was all healthy food. I LOVE that! Emily's mom introduced me to a few people whom we talked to about how I was a new graduate RN and one lady gave me her email and the email of the nurse recruiter in charge of hiring new grads. Later we met up with Anthony who had gotten off work and went to the city. Alright here are some pictures to post of this fun day:

Trophy Cupcakes

Me with of course Red Velvet :) 

Anthony works for Microsoft so he took us to one of the buildings and this is the view on the 27th floor. Can I say AMAZING! :) 

Me and Emily 

We had dinner at Dick's ...kind of like their version of In N Out

Anyone Grey's Anatomy fans?? This is the REAL view. Beautiful!

I loved the skies! The weather was chilly that night but during the day it was so beautiful!

Me and Emily 

After all our fun in the city we went to Emily's grandparents and played a card game. It was a lot of fun and I had a great time! 

The next day we got up and went to the Children't Clinic in Seattle where Emily's mom used to work. They have an MA job there which is under an RN but her mom figured it wouldn't hurt to go and at least talk to them. So we went out to Seattle and met with the staff at the children's clinic. The one RN there was super nice and gave me a lot of advice. I definitely got a lot out of this trip that's for sure. 

Another view overlooking the city :)

Ferry boat!!! I see them all the time in Grey's Anatomy and now I saw one in real life! What can I say I'm a nerd lol

The Space Needle

These two seriously made me laugh. They were so funny and so fun to hang out with. It was my first time really meeting Anthony and he is such a gentleman! I wish all guys were like him!

For my favorite family :) Had to post! LOVE LOVE LOVE the Harrison Family

Beautiful Temple! When Emily asked what I wanted to see there, the first thing I said was  I HAD to see the temple! It was beautiful! I wish I could've done a session there. Next time for sure :) 

We went to this park and isn't this gorgeous?! Heck yes!! LOVED it! 

Overall it was a fabulous short trip. I didn't want to take up too much of Emily's time with her family so it was only two days but those two days we did ALOT! Oh and I'm NOT moving there. Well as of right now I'm not. I emailed the lady about new grad info. She was very helpful and I applied. Still waiting to hear back but even if I don't get it, it's okay. I will still go back and visit WA again. It's beautiful. And there was sunshine. It's not like Cali but it actually reminded me a lot of San Francisco which I love so that's awesome. All in all it was a great trip and I got a lot of good advice and got to spend some one on one time with Emily. It was a win win situation :) 

My flight however on the way back home was terrible. Between my two flights I had a woman next to me say our pilot was a terrible driver because he "shook" the plane too much...aka turbulence. It was obvious she hadn't flown before. That same flight I had a GROWN woman kicking my seat for 2.5 hours straight. Um hello... not cool! Then in Phoenix I had like a 4 hr layover or something like that which was fine. I like having plenty of time in between flights.. I hate being rushed. I watched Twilight...don't judge. Anyways, I board the plane and sit down (window seat) and it's hot. Come to find out there was a problem so they turned the air off in the plane while we sat on the tar mac in 110 degree weather. NOT fun. Not to mention the fact that the guy seated next to me was wearing a full business suit and proceeded to undress as much as he could with what tiny space he had possible. I felt sorry for the guy though, b/c it was HOT. So the captain gets on and says that they charging something (kind of like a car battery so we can fly) and we'll be on our way. We finally took off for my 1 hour flight. As we our landing the lady behind me said that she would've much preferred to fly at 60 miles per hour the whole way because that was ridiculous. Really? at least we had air once we were in flight. Goodness. Let's just say I was GRATEFUL to finally be home. The trip itself was GREAT the getting home...not so much. But hey...life is an adventure worth taking so it's worth it :) 

Exhausted!!!

So I started a new job. A temporary job of course until I get a nursing job but it's still a job!! :) Let me tell you though, I forgot how much work it is to just go to work!! haha...crazy I know but after my first two days of working I was exhausted!!! I'm definitely thankful that it's Friday!! Now I can maybe catch up on sleep...NOT!! Both Chad and Bret have games tomorrow and then it's Stake Conference for my stake so I've got that as well. Plus the normal cleaning and laundry and so on... it's going to be a busy weekend!! But tonight I'm just relaxing :) Going to watch the movie SALT with the family :) And then probably blog more... haha I don't know... we'll see. Have a great weekend!! I have loads to write about so hopefully I can this weekend!!

Blessings Come in Disguise Sometimes....

Life has been rough for me the past few years. Most of you know that. I've been through trials that I don't necessarily understand but I do know God loves me and everything happens for a purpose. With that said, I have been extremely blessed and sometimes I don't even realize it until after the fact. As most of you know, I have been looking for a job as an RN for about five months. While I am still looking, I have been offered a job temporarily as a secretary in a hospital setting. It's only temporary but it's still something! I have also been seriously considering going on a medical mission for about a month or two to get some experience. My cousin gave me info from Global Crossroads that I've been looking into and researching a lot about. If I can figure everything out, then I would like to go in June. My temporary job will be done by then so it works out perfect!! Mind you this is all still in the "dream" works process about doing this mission. But it is something that I would LOVE to do and have wanted to do for a long time now. Anyhow, I just thought I would write a quick note and update you about life. Count Your Blessings...there are many .... God loves us all!! :)

Trying to find the next adventure in life.....

So... life lately hasn't gone exactly the way I planned when I was in high school.... which is okay... everything can't be expected...there has to be some unexpected things...that's what makes life fun :)  I have my dream career... just without a job.... YET. There are a few states that I wouldn't mind moving to and living in although California will always be my home. What state do you think I should live in next?  Yes, I'm seriously considering leaving this beautiful state that I call home but I also like adventure and new places :) Here are the options: (or others if anyone suggests others haha)

Utah
Texas
California
Arizona
Nevada
Washington

Leave a comment please! I'm curious to see what people say about which state I should live in next....that is, if I have the opportunity to get a job there ;)

Becoming a Pro...

I've decided that I'm a pro at applying to jobs online. I mean I do it daily...and really, I mean it when I say I'm applying to jobs daily. I'm not just sitting around the house being a bum, I'm hard at work researching hospitals and applying for jobs. Some of these online job websites are actually quite handy. Once I've entered in all the information once, it saves it so every time I apply for a new job, all the info is there. I just have to answer the qualification questions and then click, it's done. This is just a short post today.. I wanted to get the remodel pictures done but I've had other things on my mind so I will get it done soon..stay tuned, I promise they are coming! So if you ever have any questions about online applications, call me, I'm a pro at it now :) And hopefully one day soon, I will get a job.....

What comes next?

So this is kind of personal for me but I figure I might as well write about it ...maybe I'll feel a little better after who knows haha. Since I was 5 years old I knew I wanted to be a nurse. Granted back then I only wanted to because I thought my aunt's scrubs were cool and I wanted to be just like her. As I grew older, I found that I have a passion for caring for others and I knew I wanted to be a nurse and care for others the way they ought to be. After I graduated from high school I had my goal set in mind and I pursued it. I had no desire to go to a big university, I liked the smaller classroom sizes and so community college it was. I'm not ashamed at all in going to community college, it was cheaper, I paid for most of it myself and I learned a lot, just as much as someone attending a big university. I knew that while doing my pre-requisites I wanted to get into Valley who had a high pass rate for boards. I was determined, I had a goal set in mind and I achieved it.  20 years later and my dream has been achieved, I'm an RN but now the question is what comes next? 


For years all I've known is what I want to do and how to get it and stay focused. I always didn't know what to say to my friends who were undecided with their majors because I always just knew. I'm starting to understand what they must've felt like and I'm sorry I couldn't be more understanding then. Now that I have my RN, it's search for jobs that comes next. If only it were that easy, find a job, get a job and work. The problem now is deciding WHERE to look for jobs. I have been looking at a lot of places (yes outside of my comfort zone Cali too) but the problem is I don't know where I'm supposed to be next and it's frustrating me. 


I've been praying hard to know where to apply and where I'm supposed to be. It's a struggle I've never really had to face before because the answer has always come so clearly when it came to which school I needed to go to and so on. I have my whole life ahead of me and I have no idea where it will be. I will go wherever I'm needed, I just pray I make the right decision when it comes down to it. I want a job that I love that I enjoy. I do not want to be one of those nurses who took a job just because and hates it. That is not what kind of nurse I want to be. I apply to jobs at least 5 a day so when you add that up that's 25 per week...give or take. It's very draining to get rejection letters and nothing else but I am still hopeful. The right job is out there for me somewhere I just have to find it. 


I'm not mad or venting about this, it's just something I've come to realize that for once I'm undecided or unsure as to what comes next. I have a lot of people praying for me and I know that prayers work so I know that something will turn up eventually. I am grateful for all the kind nurse recruiters I have talked to that send me all kinds of info..problem is most of them I have to wait until March/April to apply for their June new grad programs. If that's what needs to be done then so be it. I will just have to wait until then I guess unless something comes up sooner. What comes next for me? That is still undecided but life is an adventure so  we'll see where it takes me! :) 

"We're sorry but we went with someone else".....

I have decided that job hunting is brutal and draining. "Nurses are in such high demand" is what people always tell me but then I have to explain that because of the economy, they aren't hiring. Older nurses aren't retiring and hospitals would prefer to take someone with experience rather than someone like me with no experience. It costs ALOT of money to train a new grad... I get it.. I just wish it was different.


At least twice a week now I receive a new "We are sorry but we decided to go with someone else" email rejection letter. I pray something comes up soon and I hope it does, it's just hard waiting day in and day out for something. 


Besides job hunting, I'm keeping busy doing things around the house (that is STILL not done by the way). Although these past two days I've been sick. Stuffy nose with body aches is no fun let me tell ya. My energy level is so low, I get up to do something and five minutes later I have to lay down again. I don't know if it's due to the weather acting crazy (one day hot then one day cold) or what but I'm feeling a little better at this moment. Prescribing myself to take it easy and drink lot's of fluid and get well :) 


Hopefully I hear about a job soon, I will keep you posted (whoever even reads this). For now I stay positive and hope for the best. And hey, it's Friday so Happy Weekend!!