When I first started the nursing program, I thought it would never end. I'm pretty sure I cried everyday for the first week and wanted to drop out everyday for the last 15 months. It has added a LOT of stress to my life (including gaining weight and raising my blood pressure to stroke levels), and cost me way more money than I could ever afford. But even with all of that, I wouldn't change a thing. I have had some of the most spiritual, touching and life-changing experiences during the nursing program. I've met some of the most amazing people and made the best friends I could ever ask for. I have learned so much and gained a greater appreciation for the human body. I've become more confident in my skills and found one of my greatest callings in life. So yes, even though I've probably cried more times in the program than I have in my entire life, and even though it seemed a whole lot easier to just give up, I can finally look back on my experience and say that it was definitely worth all the tears and the stress. Here's to enduring to the end!
 |
| Last day of clinical for the program |
Well, just to catch up on this year's Thanksgiving celebration, Jordan and I decided to make a surprise trip up to Washington. It had been three years since having Thanksgiving with my family so we figured it was probably time to head up there this year. The fun part was that only my parents knew so it was going to be a complete surprise for my sisters. Mom and Dad bought us a hotel room near Boise since we were going to split the trip up, and then we arrived in Richland the next day right before the girls got out of school. It was so great cause Mom had the video camera ready to record their reactions. Once they turned down the street, they saw our car parked in front of the house and started to freak out. But Sammie told them not to get their hopes up in case it wasn't us. However, as soon as they saw the Broncos sticker on the back of our car, they knew it was us and started screaming! Apparently Shonna and Ronnie jumped out of the car before Sammie had even parked haha. We saw them running and screaming up to the house and then they burst through the door to hug us. It was the best reaction ever! That's how you know your sisters love you haha.
Then it was time to surprise Lydia. We all went to the elementary school and stood outside in the play field while we waited for her to get out of class. We were probably about 100 feet away from the door but we could still see her perfectly once she came out. She saw us, froze, and then took off running towards us. I started to head towards her and she jumped up in my arms. It was so sweet! To be honest, surprising my sisters was the part of our trip I was most excited about. I love love love my family and love it when I get to be with them.
Thanksgiving was great. We cooked a giant feast, got out our China dishes, set up fancy tables, Skyped with family in Texas, Olympia and North Carolina and stuffed our faces. We played tons of card games and ate Grandma's delicious homemade pies, Later that night we braved our way to Wal-Mart to get a few necessities (like phone cases for Jordan's and my new phones) and watched lots of movies. On Black Friday, we went to a few more stores and saw Mockingjay Part 1 as a family. Such a good movie! Saturday was busy with helping a family move into the neighborhood, eating lunch at Shanghai, and having Juli and Trevor Webb over for homemade pizza. Sunday we left for Rexburg, but it wasn't too sad of a goodbye since we knew we would see them again in three weeks for graduation. And here we are only a few days away!
So that was Thanksgiving for us this year. It was just what we needed and everything we wanted. Since then, we've been busy working and finishing school, going through boxes in preparation for moving, applying for jobs down in Salt Lake, Christmas shopping and enjoying time with family here in Idaho.
 |
| ward Christmas party |
As a final thought, I just want to share my testimony on the power of prayer. At the end of the nursing program, we are required to take three exit exams and pass at least one of them to get our degree. So yeah, you could say there is quite a bit of pressure for those of us getting ready to graduate. Well we had to get a 62% on the first test to pass it and I got a 60% (that probably sounds ridiculously easy but trust me, it's not. They make the tests extremely difficult in order to give us an accurate idea of how prepared we are for the NCLEX.) Needless to say, I was very discouraged when I left the testing center. I cried, got depressed, lost motivation to do anything and felt like a failure. After talking to my parents, we decided we would put a lot more spiritual effort into the next one. I studied more, prayed almost every second of everyday, all of us fasted on Sunday (including my sisters which I thought was very sweet of them), got a Priesthood blessing from Jordan the night before and my dad even fasted during work the day I took my test. This test was 180 questions and I needed a 65% to pass. After almost two hours, I finally ended the test. As an answer to all of our prayers, I passed the test with a 70.6%! I no longer had to worry about graduation and getting my degree and it was such a relief. I know I couldn't have done it without my amazing and supportive family. I know it was their faith and positivity that helped me the most. I still thank God everyday for helping me get through it. I know Heavenly Father hears our prayers and is aware of our needs. As long as we are willing to do our part and put in as much effort as we can, then he will sustain us the rest of the way. This is true no matter how big or small our needs are, no matter where we are in life. There are many new and exciting adventures in the near future for Jordan and me and we can't wait to see where they take us!
