Day 37

Hi everyone.

I am babysitting baby Talia today and she is such an angel! She is very well behaved and she is so stinkin cute! She is 1 year old and she is Austin's supervisor's daughter. Luckily Wendy is able to come home early so I can get to work on time. I am bringing nail polish to work tonight to do some of the ladie's nails. The weather here is raind and blah. I was looking forward to taking Talia to the park today but it's too nasty out. It's supposed to continue like this until tomorrow. I hope everyone's day is going well. Miss you all. HUGS!!!

Day 36

I got called into work to work the evening shift today. Nothing exciting happened except there was an adorable baby girl that came in. She was so tiny and cute and chubby. I also got to take blood from Austin. The nurse that was working showed Hazel to take blood from me, and I got to do it to Austin when he came to get me. It was a lot of fun!!! Mom woulda been impressed! I'm babysitting tomorrow (Monday) from 8 to 4, then working the 4 to 8 shift at the hospital so My post will probably be here early afternoon. Hove a great week everyone!! Miss you!

Day 35 We Aren't Dead!!

HIII

We've have had problems with the power since the thunder storm on Tuesday so that's why I haven't posted in all week. The power was out from Monday until Tuesday night. Then it went out Wednesday morning until Thursday at 5 pm. Then I was working Thursday night from 4 to midnight. And I got a lovely call yesterday morning from the hospital asking me to come in for 8 am. So I worked to 4 pm thennnnn the lady that was coming in after me failed to do so, so I pulled a double shift BUT I get time and a half so that eased the pain in my feet. I can't really complain tho, the patients were really good yesterday which made it a lot easier for me.

Hazel and I were working together (the 2 new girls... what could go wrong?) and we were told we had to weigh the patients that day. So we already knew that the scale on the lifter for the tub room was broken and the only other scale we knew of was on the lifter we use to transfer a patient from their bed to the wheelchair. This thing works kind of like a hammock. So anyways, we had already weighed the patients that we usually use the lifter for and now we had to do everyone else. So we started with Theressa who is a very kind lady who is like grandma Robin in the sence that you never hear her say anything rude or negative. So Theressa cooperated with us and we got her weight and we were on to George's room. Luckily Dillon (the nurse there that sounds like he was raised on like the beaches of California, dude) overheard us explaining to george that we had to strap him in this contraption. He came in and informed us, "Uhhh, ya know there is a scale down the hall there..." OMFG All this time there has been a SCALE that no one told us about til NOW!!! ugh. Oh well. 'You just get turned around and there you are'

Day 31

Hi my wonderful family! This morning we went fishing down at Anderson's point. It was a 40 minute walk there but it was so gorgeous out! We stayed there for at least an hour. I sat down and watched Austin try to catch a fish but he didn't have very good luck this time.

So yea, after the baseball tournament I was whipped! Our team made it all the way to the finals, but we lost by 4 points. So close! Our team was so great and encouraging! I have never felt so happy playing a sport I suck at!

Day 30

Hi. I'm sorry I havent posted in a couple of days. Baseball really beat me up and i think i have sun stroke. I have a nasty headache, every flippin muscle in my body hurts (even my ribs!?!?! wtf!) and to top it all off mother nature paid me a heavy visit that I can say is crampin' my style. I have some pics and a good story to tell about the game so I will post that all tmo when I feel better. miss you all!!

Day 28

Today we played in a baseball tournament. There were 5 teams and each played twice today and we play another 2 times tomorrow. We were outside for 6 hours and I lathered on the sunscreen but I managed to get this lovely burn.

Our team played pretty well. We lost the first game by 2, then we killed the next game. i am soo exhausted from the sun, and I will be soo sore tomorrow.

An Eventful Night

We got a call last night at 1 am from Tyler telling us there was a fire behind the building that was close to the gas tanks. So we hopped out of the appartment, but since I am such a loyal reporter to you guys I snagged my camera. Hey, if all my stuff was going to get blown up, I would at least want pictures! Turns out the fire wasn't as big as they had thought, it was a scraps pile that someone has lit on fire. Next door is a shelter for battered women that they are finishing construction on so that's where the scraps came from. Luckily the fire dept. showed up in a couple minutes and they were actually sober!

Obviously some group of people got their cheques this week...

Mom's Care package has arrived woooo

Some of my Creations

Here are some cards that I have made for people that I would like to display. Hopefully everyone has got them by now!

Scruffus n Chubby

This is How we Grocery Shop

5 days and $200 days later:

Day 27

Today I went to the office at the school to talk to the principal about my dance school idea. She loved it! She thought it was wonderful and she said I probably could get funding from the Health Centre so I wouldn't have to charge the parents! She said she would forward my letter to a lady named Amy who organizes stuff like this for the kids. I should get a call from them some time next week. She was surprised that I didn't want to take any money for myself. I'm glad she was so excited about it. If i can get more funding I could get more music and a good CD player and good treats for the kids! I could probably get them dance shoes too so they don't have to go bare feet! Hopefully this all works out.

This afternoon there is a Pizza Hut and KFC sale at the band office. They are flying in a bunch of fast food from Timmins. It's $40 for a large pizza but after going a month without fast food I would absolutely pay more! I am sooo excited.

Day 26

Hi!

I'm sorry this post is so late in the day, I was on the phone with my parents for 2 hrs tonight. Sometimes they freak me out because I won't hear from them in a week then one night they call me one after the other. Weeeeiiiiird.

I got paid today!! Cha chingggg. I ran to the hospital to pick up my cheque. Not because I am dying to get flour and icing for cupcakes, but because I had to go on a run anyways. It's kind of useless having a cheque here because there is no bank to cash it... damn. Usually they do a direct deposit, but mine didn't work for some reason. On the way back it was hard running because the wind was right in my face. My throat was sore and my nose felt weird, so I had to walk a couple of times to fix my face so I could breathe but other than that I was sweaty and full of energy.

I've been contemplating starting a dance school here for the summer just to give the kids something to do this summer. I'm going to go to the principal tomorrow to ask her what she thinks about it.

And that was my day!

Thank You Nanny & Papa

We got a wonderful care package today!! It was such a pleasant thing to wake up to when Austin came home from work!

MMMMMMM CHOCOLATE!!!!

I love this gorgeous paper! I'm soooo excited to get crafting!!! I might have to skip badminton tonight.

Thank you so much, Nanny & Papa! HUGS xoxoxo

Austin's walleye

He's such a wonderful cook!

Day 25

Good Afternoon!

I got a phone call at 10 pm last night from June, one of the nurses, asking me to cover for one of the HCA's that called in and couldn't come to work. The only reason I hesitated was because my shift would have started in 2 hours. But being the money-needing student I am I agreed to work the night shift. It was a pretty good shift, I must say. All of the patients slept well, so that made it easier for me. I got home at 8:15 and crawled into bed. Austin came into my room when he was home for lunch to say hi, then I went back to sleep and I just woke up because I'm hungry. I think I'm gunna go back to bed tho once I've eaten.

Toodles!!

Day 24

Good morning!

I started my day a lot differently than I usually do. I got up with Austin this morning and made him breakfast before work. We had toast, eggs and ham. Then he went to work for 8 and I checked my email and checked to see if Laurentian had accepted me yet. No dice. Then I checked the weather and saw it is supposed to be 25 and thunder storming this afternoon. Unfortunately today I am supposed to do my 6 k walk/run/walk routine again. So I groaned and hauled my a** outside with my vest and toque on. After my first 2km lap I started making excuses as to why I should go back to bed and resume later, but I kept going and finished the 6 km in 70ish minutes. I got to pet some puppies on the way. I came across 2 liters and they are so stinkin cute! I think Michelle should come here and start up a humane society. Apparently there is an annual dog shoot where people get the green light to shoot the dogs to get rid of the extra dogs so the place doesn't become [any more] overpopulated. the police are even involved! I think that is awful and they should let nature kill off the old and sick. Survival of the fittest, not survival of the ones that know to avoid an indian with a gun. Oh well...

Have a good day everyone!!! xoxoxo

Day 23 and the RIGHT way to post a comment

Hi homies!

I think it is safe to say I sleep too much. Last night we went to bed around 1 am and I snoozed until 10 am. Thennnn I lied in bed pondering the meaning of life until 11. Then I rolled out of bed, made myself look half decent (which didn't take too much work (; ) and started cleaning the place. A sink of dishes, a clean bathroom, a clean floor, and a load of laundry later I started watching Planet of the Apes. Around the part where the humans escape the ape village and return to the forest I fell asleep and woke up and hour later to Austin coming home from work at 4 pm. Somehow 4 hours slipped away then I called my mom to see why she couldn't post a comment. Then we went to one of the nurses's houses for dinner because she is leaving for the real world on Wednesday (lucky!!!). So we just got back and I figured out why it was impossible to post a comment!! Here's REALLY how:

- click on the title of the post, which is in pink

- scroll down the to comment box and type your heart out

- go to the drop down box saying [Select Profile] and select [Name/URL]

- fill in your name and click [continue]

- type in the word verification and click [Post Comment]

I am so sorry to anyone who was nearly as frustrated as my poor mother. Don't worry, you aren't technologically challenged, it was a setting that I had to initialize and I'm sorry if it was a P.I.T.A. for you. Hopefully we will get more comments :D.

Bye! miss you all xoxoxo

Day 22

Hi family!

Today was a great day! I went for a 2 km run but it was a lot harder than yesterday. Possibly because it was 20 degrees out today and I was warmer than yesterday. Work went well. I just got home and out of the shower. Austin doesn't like it when I come home smelling like old people...

Speaking of Austin he finally caught his first fish today!! He went out with Tyler this afternoon and caught a 2 lb walleye. He didn't get a pic tho (because I wasn't there) but he filleted it and it's in the fridge now.

Austin was also a sweetheart and brought me dinner at work. He went to the convenience store (the one with the no drunks sign) and got me pizza pops and an iced tea and walked all the way to the hospital for me! He also had the dishes done when I got home. What a keeper!

I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend, it went by super fast for me! Miss you all! hugs xoxo

Day 21 and how to make a comment

I went for a super duper run today. I walked 2 km, ran 2 km and walked 2 km. It took me 68 minutes all together. It was so nice outside I was in a t-shirt and capris and still workin up a sweat. The only down side is my feet are a little sore and I have to work now with sore feet :(

Austin has all weekend off and I work all weekend so it sucks that it worked out that way, then again I spent 2 weeks doing nothing while he was working so compared to that he's gettin a sweet deal.

I just wanted to let you all know how to make a comment because it is kind of tricky. you click on the post title, so in this case it would be "Day 21..." in pink. The window will refresh and you scroll down and there is a comment box to type away in. Then click "Publish comment" in the white box below.

Hope everyone is enjoying their Saturday!

Day 20

Greetings!

My night shift went well. It was slow as anticipated, but nothing bad happened, so that's good. We watched one movie, House, CSI Miami, and Bones. I did do work though. I slept a lot today and I also went for another run. It's starting to become less of a chore and more of a habit and I'm proud of that! I got my measurements done when we got weighed and I want to be a size 4 so I need to lose 2 inches off my waist and 6 off my hips, which shouldn't be a problem as I have plenty of inches to shed lol. Hopefully everyone has received their Mother's Day cards by now. I can't wait to get my care package from mom because I am running out of cardstock! I also can't wait to get my Roots order in the mail. Woohoo clothes! I'm gunna have to order more uniforms for work once I get paid because I only have the 3 mom got for me before I left.

I'm getting kind of annoyed with the intoxicated wanderers that shout and laugh late at night. I guess that's the only thing drunk people have to do around here... walk around town. At least make a bon fire and stay in one place... well no, because if they made a bon fire someone would do something stupid and either fall in the fire or catch the house on fire. Either way its more calls to keep Austin busy.

This weekend is supposed to be beautiful here! Eighteen degrees tomorrow and 19 on Sunday woohoo!

I am working this weekend from 4 to midnight, so I will post in the afternoon before I head out to work. Hope everyone has a very enjoyable weekend! Miss you! xoxoxo

Day 19

I gave Austin a haircut today with the buzzer set dad sent us. Looks pretty good I think!

We also went to get weighed in for the weight loss challenge today. Austin actually gained a couple pounds, probably of muscle, and I lost 3 lbs!! YAY!

Tonight I'm working the night shift. I know I should be sleeping right now but I slept in until 11, and I took a nap from 6 to 8 and I can't sleep any more.

I went for a run this afternoon. I ran a km and it went really well. I ran a step up from my normal pace and my calves didn't hur nearly as much as they usually do. Then I walked another km. I was supposed to run 2 but today I feel really blah and low energy. We need to order groceries on Monday so I haven't been eating as as many veggies as I should be, and yeah dad, I know that's why I'm low energy.

I wanna take 2 seconds to vent about my pet peeve. Well I guess my second pet peeve; my first one is when Austin is sleeping and he makes these weird noises with his mouth. But the second one is when Aus fills up the sink with water and lets the dishes sit in it until it gets cold when he's at work, so I wake up to a cold sink full of dishes to do! Grrr He's done that today for the third time this week. He also heated up roast beef in the microwave, which exploded and made a mess, but he went to eat it and left me to clean the microwave. Whoo, okay, I feel a bit better now that I got that off my chest.

I hope everyone has a good sleep tonight while I'm working (blah). Love & miss you all!

Day 18

Hello!

Today was a good day at work! I did a lot of thing by myself today. Hazel was there too so that made the day more fun. I made a patient laugh today that I didn't know could laugh so that was a feel-good moment! One thing I really like about this job is I'm not running around picking up after other staff members, that's what housekeeping is for! I am doing a lot better with the patient's names and I was able to remember who was it what room. I work the night shift tomorrow which is midnight to 8am. That will probably be slow because I think you just have to check the patients every 2 hours. Overall I really enjoy this job and I am so glad I got it :)

Hope everyone's week is going well. miss you all!

Day 17 First day on the job

Hi Everyone,

So I started work at 8 am today and it was busy right until 4 pm. I thought I would just be going in to do paperwork but they got me started on working right off the bat. This week is my orientation so I have someone showing me how to do everything. My partner and I are responsible for waking the elders up, dressing and bathing them, feeding them breakfast and lunch, making the beds, and putting them down for a nap. I think there are 9 elders but you and your partner are only responsible for half on a shift, and they have a bath schedule so not everyone gets bathed on the same day. It's not too bad; I'm pretty hard to gross out. Some patients need more care than others and I'm having a hard time putting a face to the names on the charts and paperwork, but I'm sure I will get it soon with only 9 patients. There is another new girl there too. Her name is Hazel and she is 20. Her mother is a nurse there and they are Filipino. She is going to school for nursing and she said she wanted this job for the same reason as me: to get experience working in a hospital. The lady that was training me (I forget her name) was really nice and patient with me. Her husband is a nurse here and they have their 2 toddlers here with them. She was super nice and invited me to her place on our lunch break. She told me that the other HCA's are natives from here and they never show up for work on the weekends so that's why I'm working, which is fine by me! She said be prepared to work a shift without a partner in case they don't show up. I hope that doesn't happen this week.

I work another shift 8-4 tomorrow so I will let you know how that goes!

Brianna, the health care aide!!!

YAYYYYY I finally got a call from Joan today, she called and said, "Can you be in at 8 tomorrow morning so start your orinetation?"

So no more boring life!! The only problem is I don't know what to wear... I'm going to wear my black dress pants and a cardigan and bring a set of scrubs with me just in case that's what I'm supposed to wear. I tried calling her back to ask but the number I dialed ended up being some person and the only thing I could understand when I asked for Joan was "Sorry, wkdjfhakjdga kldfhgjkag, blah" So... I'm too scared to call that number again, therefore I will just bring an extra set of clothes. I'm not sure how much I get paid, but I'm not too worried because I am more excited to get the experience, but I'm sure glad I will be able to buy my own flour and icing.

I made my usual trip to the post office today and there was a different lady behind the counter. This one was much more talkative than the other lady, she started going on and on about the swine flu last summer and how she had to wear a full gown and mask to work for 3 weeks. She was very nice, I just think the swine flu was too random. You know, usually you start with the weather then go on from there.

Speaking of the weather, today is flipping gorgeous! It's 8 degrees and tomorrow it's supposed to be 11, then Wednesday 15!! Perfect for my running! I will have to slap on the sunscreen though.

Miss you all!

Day 16

I am extremely proud to announce that Austin has done the dishes 2 days in a row now! It's incredible! We just got up today around noon. He doesn't have to work until 4 so we were lazy. I was thinking about going to the hospital to check up on Joan, but I am waiting to get my replacement first aid certificate faxed over to me, so I may as well not to see her until I have both my first aid and CPR certificates to show her.

Today is my rest day on my running schedule. Yesterday I ran 2 km (yay me!!!) then I walked 1 km. The run was really hard, and I did have to stop a couple of times but it will get easier. Tomorrow I am supposed to run walk 2, run 2, then walk another 2 km. That should take me about an hour and 15 minutes. Blah.

That's all for now, have a good Monday!

Day 15 Happy Mother's Day

I just want to wish everyone a happy mother's day! I hope you get your cards soon! My mom got hers on Friday, but I don't think they've made it to the island yet.

Last night Austin made us a feast! He made us an enormous roast with beans, yorkshire pudding and gravy. He had to make the gravy and yorkshire with whole wheat flour because that was all we had, but it was still really good!

Day 14 Cupcakes

I feel soooo blah today. I slept until 2pm and all I want to do is make cupcakes. I've tried my hardest to eat well all week and I have been craving chocolate cupcakes all week. But we are missing 2 things: white flour and icing. Austin is being a frugal Scruge saying those things are too expensive to get, but its okay for him to order 5 lbs or ground beef that will take probably all summer for us to eat. I can't wait to get this job and have the freedom to buy flour and icing whenever the flip I want!

Day 13

Hi everyone! Today was very boring. I woke up and cleaned the apartment, then Aus went to work and I cleaned my yoga mat, which was surprisingly dirty. Then I fell asleep, cuz there was nothing else to do. I woke up around 8pm, then visited Austin at work until he was done at midnight. I went to the hospital actually around noon to see why Joan hasn't called me about the job, and she was out of town! Hmph! So I'm going back in on Monday. The most exciting thing of the day was I got to order some new clothes from roots today :D

I wanted to get a watch to time myself for running, but I couldn't decide on what watch to get, so I went without. These are the 3 watches I couldn't decide on.

Comment and let me know which one you like best.

Love you all!

Day 12

Last night we played badminton with everyone at the school. It was a lot of fun but my shoulder and bum hurt today.

I ran for another kilometer today :D tomorrow is my rest day. yay.

Tonight we are having a dinner party for one of the nurses because she is leaving tomorrow. Too bad because she seemed really nice last night when she was my partner for badminton.

I have had an awfully intense craving for chocolate all week. I miss those chocolate covered jujubes sooo badly! And I want to stuff my face with those chocolate cherry things dad and I love so much. Damn you, sugar addiction!

I am getting rather sick of wearing the same clothes over, and over, and over. I think the people here are starting to think I'm poor and gross lol. Because they see me wearing the same outfits all the time. Thank God mom is going to the thrift store for me tomorrow.

Dad told me on the phone tonight that I could have flown to Florida for the same price it cost me to end up here. I definitely think I took the wrong flight... and next time I'm going to Florida.

When I went for my run today it was 1 degree C out. I must have looked silly running in my winter coat. I really want to get a new pair of running shoes but Austin doesn't trust me with his credit card. He claims that he wants to keep it on him at all times in case he ever needs it. Yea, like he is ever going to need it here. I'm not that dumb.

That's all I have to say for now. Miss you all! HUGS

Day 11

No word from Joan yet about the job. Hm...

Today I was bad and I slept in until 11:30, then I fell asleep on the couch until 2:30 so I got a full 12 hours of sleep. We had pancakes for breakfast this morning, and yea dad I know that's bad for me! I'm going to try doing Austin's workout with him today, which I'm sure isn't easy.

I hope you like the new background and layout of the blog. I thought it was more summery and cheery.

There's not much else to talk about so far, since I've slept most of the day. Have a good hump day!

Yay Me!!!

So I just got back from my run and I am so stinkin proud of myself! I ran a full kilometer without stopping! I didn't think I could do it but somehow I did! I was out for a full hour. I walked a km then ran one then walked 2. WooHoo!! So yea... I just wanted to brag about that cuz its a big thing for me :D

Day 10

Today we walked out to a place that's apparently a good fishing spot. It took about 30 mins to walk to it then we stayed there while Austin saved minnows that were left on the bank from the tide going down. He made some more raisin bread today and of course, it's delicious.

After he goes to work at 4:00 pm I'm going to do my dreaded run. I walk for 2 km, then run 1 km, then walk another 2 km. I'm almost certain that I can't run a full km but I'm going to try my hardest. Austin's co-worker, Wendy, said the prizes are usually exercise equipment like treadmills and weight sets for this weight loss competition and I want to win so bad! I have been doing alright with my eating. I still get mad sugar cravings though. But I know the less sugar you eat the less you crave it. Wish me luck!

Yesterday I made another 4 cards. I need a show box or something to keep them in because I seem to be producing more than I'm mailing. Austin thinks I'm nuts because yesterday I got a 10 pack of stamps and today I only have 3 left...

Hope everyone is enjoying their day! Miss you all and tty tmo.

this is Scruffus. She's so cute!!

Here are some puppies we found on out walk today.

Boreddddd

So my interview went well. It was only 30 mins and they sounded imperssed with my intelligent answers. they asked me questions like what does confidentiality mean to me, what I thought of the area, how flexible am I for work hours, and the infamous strengths and weaknesses question. She said that she would check out my references, Tammy, Leanne and Stacy from Tim Hortons, and get back to me in the next couple of days. I'm not sure if she actually read through my resume because she asked me for references and I had to show her that they were on the bottom of my resume...

If I get offered the job I do a week of orientation, and there is another girl that they are looking at so I would be doing the orientation with her.

So now I'm back at the apartment and I'm bored. At least I have the internet. Here are some photos I took just cuz.

this is a card for Gran I made yesterday

here is another one

Our camera has a drawing setting so this is Austin kissing the guns.

Et moi

Day 9

I just wanna start this off with HAPPY 19TH BIRTHDAY TO LYNN BUTLER. I'm sorry I'm not there to hold her hair tonight.

Sorry I missed yesterday. The internet here was down. I wasn't a happy camper because the internet is my complete source of entertainment, and here you need a lot of entertainment. but I didn't do anything yesterday really, just a lazy Sunday. We walked to the hospital and back, which was 30 mins, then I walked another 2 km in the afternoon, and I did some yoga.

Austin is working the evening shift from 4 to midnight this week, so we slept in today and went out for breakfast. I wanted to get pancakes, but they were out... so I got french toast instead. Yea DAD I KNOW THAT'S BAD FOR ME. hahaha. It was yummy tho so mnahhh. But we are definitely having chicken salad for dinner. Definitely.

So I am about to leave for my interview at the hospital and I am suuuuper nervous! I will post later to say how it went.

Last night I did something that was really hard for me to do. I called Lynn and told her that Aus and I weren't getting a house anymore so they would have to find a place on their own. Lynn said she was ok with it but I could tell in her voice that I had let her down a lot. I hate how much of a hypocrite I am. I was so worried about her and Jeff ditching out on our plans, then it turns out that I'm the one that did it. But they were so worried about applying for his work visa in time because they needed to know where they were living before they could apply. I knew that we would not be finding a house soon, so I figured that this might lower their anxiety by putting them in control of their own accommodations. I also gave Lynn the contact info for the apartments right beside her college, and we can transfer our phone and internet to them so they don't have to worry about that. we also have lots of stuff they can borrow from our jam-packed storage area. So I hope they are a little less stressed now.

Well that's all I have to say for now, I will make another post this afternoon to let you know how my interview went. And happy Monday!!

Day 7

One week. Wow, now only 15 more to go lol.

We are having a very blah day here today. Even though it's national scrapbook day, I kid you not, I'm not doing any scrapbooking. I have 5 cards in my purse to mail out Monday and making those yesterday tired me out of it for the weekend.

We just got back from the Northern store, which looks like a Giant Tiger on the inside, but a lot more cramped and expensive. It is about the size of Stedman's in Gore Bay and they sell everything from flat screen tv's to boxes of jello, and everything in between. We bought a big roast pan for $35, instead of a slow cooker for $130. I feel bad that I forgot to grab the slow cooker from the cupboard in the microwave stand. That was one of the things Aus wanted me to make sure I had and in the insanity of the move I totally forgot.

TTy tmo !