Another Week Bites the Dust...

This last week wasn't the greatest week ever in Hays family history. I had a test and a paper due, and Lakin had a paper of her own to do (though hers was significantly more monstrous than mine). But, we survived, a testament to our resiliency. This week should be a little better, especially now that I've gotten caught up to Friday on my homework and studying.

Lakin just finished her last day of clinical EVER! That's pretty exciting in and of itself, but it also means she doesn't have to wear those hideous BYU issue scrubs any more. I really think we should perform a ceremonial burning... Lakin's excited to be done and enter the "real" world. She'll unfortunately still have one leg in Babylon (which in this case is BYU), as I won't be done with school for a LOOOONG time.

We didn't have much time for fun stuff this week, so grocery shopping was the highlight of our week. You know you're ready for summer when you're excited to buy milk for $1 at Smith's... Anyways, hopefully next time we post it'll be something a little more exciting than school, school, school, cheap milk.

Here at the End of All Things

I have 26 days until my last final is due...26 days. That seems a ridiculously short amount of time...I mean in 26 days I will never have another reading assignment, another paper, another midterm...I could sit on my couch and be illiterate for the rest of my life.

Actually, one of the things I'm most excited about graduating is that I can start learning whatever I want. I have this huge pathophysiology book I want to read cover to cover and I want to learn about economics, history, politics...basically all the electives I didn't have time for in college. I have this long mental list of everything I want to learn about (and classics I want to read and domestic qualities I want to develop) and I can almost start...just 26 days...and the NCLEX (the exam that determines whether or not the last four years of college are worth anything...I will expound at a later point...right now I'm trying not to think about it too much :) ).

It's going to be amazing.

Here in Provo Robb is just trying to survive this semester. He spent all Saturday doing homework and there's still more to do. I'm just plugging away at my to-do list. When the shifts were assigned at work this month I only ended up with 30 hours (and 24 were in the first week). So I suddenly have way more free time to focus on the papers, projects, and clinical hours that are all due on April 8th. We are going to try our hand at gardening this summer from a window box that we can hang from our chunk of railing. We bought seeds, fluffy potting soil (because according to the internet, tomatoes like it that way), and fertilizer on Friday and planting will commence tomorrow with any luck.

I'm happy, the sun's out, and if BYU had managed

to make through the second round, life would be pretty much perfect.

P.S. Robb made chicken pot pie tonight (he comes from a line of great pie makers and if he decided to be a stay at home dad, we would probably eat better :) ) and he got flour on his face in the process. I think there are few things more endearing than when a guy gets covered with flour while making you dinner.

P.P.S. I asked my Capstone if there were any jobs available and they strongly indicated that they would like to hire me...woot!!!

Why ball? Y-Ball!

For anyone who's curious, dances are ten times better when you're married, and that's coming from someone who actually liked dances when he was single. One of the blessings of being a poor, college student is that sometimes people feel like doing free things for you. Last week that happened to be the Y-Ball.

The Y-Ball is basically a free dance for married and engaged couples only, but it gets even better! This dance happened to be a formal dance, so we got all gussied up (ok, so I just put gel in my hair and wore my wedding suit, but Lakin was gorgeous!) and went out to dinner with McKay and Dasily before the dance. On top of that, there were free dance lessons before the dance, where we learned to waltz. They also had tons of free food, free pictures, and free date package giveaways. Unlike the Daily Universe, I don't care where BYUSA's money is going as long as they keep putting on awesome free activities like that!

The lesson we learn is that being married makes everything better. I highly recommend it!

One Semester Left...

I'm sitting in the back of my nursing professional conference while writing this (deep down I know I should be ashamed of myself, but I guess my conscience doesn't get pricked as easily now I'm in my last semester :) ).

Life is wonderful...and busy (I don't say I stressful anymore; busy sounds so much nicer and it makes me feel like I have things under control). After months of searching, I finally found a job at a nursing home working as an LPN (Licensed Practical Nurse). I love it. The patients are amazing, they constantly shower me with compliments (in their eyes I am all things glorious and good) and they crack me up. I take care of all 34 patients after the wound nurse leaves...so I basically run the entire time, but someday I'll have crazy time management skills.

This is me in front of Country View Manor...woot for being employed!!!

As part of my Capstone semester I am placed with a nurse and gradually she gives me more and more of her patient load until I'm basically doing her job. Mine is at an L-TAC facility called Utah Valley Specialty Hospital (see here). I'm on the High Observation Unit (so sort of a step-down ICU) and it's wonderful because I get to work as a nurse, but there's always back-up if I need it. Right now I'm at the half-way point: I've worked 117 hours and my preceptor, Liz, lets me take one patient (but I should be taking both patients by next week).

And Robb is still amazing. With work, clinical, and all the homework, I have little to no free time and he is pretty much the only reason I get fed on a regular basis and can see our living room floor. He listens to me moan about hard days, rubs all the kinks out of my left shoulder, and tells me that I'm going to be a wonderful nurse someday.

I live a charmed life.

Christmas and junk

Lakin is forcing me to write this because she thinks that I will somehow be more concise than her in my review of the events of Christmas vacation. So here goes...

We drove down to Mom and Dad Rigby's in Monterey. We braved the pea-soup fog of Northern Nevada on the way there. We had an awesome time while there. Mom and Dad Rigby had lots of fun stuff planned like sea kayaking, riding the Santa Cruz Christmas lights train, going to the movies (twice!), and caroling in one of the richest neighborhoods in the U.S. (Pebble Beach). It was a lot of fun. I did miss the snow a little bit, but I was definitely not complaining about the 50-60 degree temperatures. The drive home wasn't too eventful.

And now for the junk part...We just started Winter Semester (last one for Lakin; for me, not so much), and we're busy, busy, busy, but we're having fun.

There. I challenge anyone to be more concise with such an action-packed holiday.

BYU 26 + Utah 23 = Peace and prosperity in the land

Ah! All is right in the world. BYU just beat Utah in overtime on a Max Hall - Andrew George touchdown pass. Lakin and I rushed the field and got a few pretty good pictures before deciding that death by trampling is not the way we want to go, so we shoved our way through the crowd to freedom.

Before the game, we got a Christmas tree, which meant that I HAD to buy a new bow saw. There are few times I've felt manlier than walking out of SEARS with a saw in my hand. We put the tree up today and it looks great, mainly because Lakin is a master of tree decoration. If she were engaged in mortal combat with Chuck Norris armed only with her Christmas tree decorating skills, ol' Chuck would be the one taking the slow-motion roundhouse kick to the face.

Did I mention we beat Utah yesterday? Yep. I'm pretty sure we can expect to see the economy begin to improve from now on. The sad part is that everyone is going to think that it's because of Obama and congress and start electing more Democrats, when really it's because the forces of darkness were defeated in Lavell Edwards Stadium last night.

Much to be Thankful for...

I am grateful for Harry Potter. We drove up to Darby, Montana yesterday and Harry just makes those long hours shut up in the confines of the Civic much more bearable (that and snack food--if we end up being one of the those old RV couples, chunkiness is inevitable). Not that our trip was uneventful. On the way up we saw two moose hurdle over a fence (they're surprisingly limber for being so stocky) and then...

...I got tailed by a police car.

I was going 10 miles over the speed limit when I saw his car (so naturally I slowed down). The cop car slowly pulled out and started following us. Just to be safe I went three miles under the speed limit and he eventually passed us...but then he pulled out on an exit, waited for us to pass, and then proceeded to tail us again. After that we passed at least four more police cars before crossing into Montana. Lesson learned: Idaho cops should be the poster children for persistence and they are everywhere, so don't speed.

Now we're safe and happy in Darby and I'm so grateful for this wonderful family I've married into. It's fun to see where Robb gets some of his quirks and all of the little things I love about him. We've been married now for almost seven months and I'm not really sure how I got along without him. I'm grateful for my own family, for my faith, and for this time of year to be reminded of how charmed my life really is.

Hope your life is equally amazing!

Love,

Lakin

I'm officially part of the family now :)