Reciple and More

So most of my blogs are about school because well school is my life at the moment but I'll try and branch out a little more in this post ;-) Three more weeks of classes and then I get a little break! Clinical will continue, but I'm really loving Hospice so that's okay. It's hard, but very fulfilling.

We tried a Pinterest found recipe and liked it so I thought I'd share.

Dorito Cheese Chicken Casserole

3 cups cooked chicken, chopped

8 oz sour cream

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 1/2 cups salsa or 1 can Rotel

1 can of corn, drained

2 cups Mexican cheese, shredded

1 bag of nacho cheese Doritos

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Lightly spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Crush the entire bag of Doritos and cover the bottom of the dish. Reserve one cup of cheese. Mix together remaining ingredients in a large bow. Pour chicken mixture over the Doritos. Bake for 20 min. Top casserole with the remaining cheese and bake 5 additional minutes or until melted.

(Original Source: Plain Chicken reader, Diane Blake)

We decided it would be better with tortilla chips instead of Doritos and black beans added in, but it was really good and really easy!

Have a good weekend! It's back to doing school work for me!

~BKL

School x 2

I don't think I've shared this here, but Justin has returned to school. That's right, two students under this roof. Fun times ;-)

Actually, so far, so good. He's working on a MAT degree in secondary education. I'm excited for him, I really think he will be a fantastic teacher.

I'm also excited for the day that neither of us will be students, LOL!

Now that we're both in school, our free time together is super limited. Yesterday we both did school work all day. We did walk to the "lake" in our neighborhood and watch some pretty awesome fireworks.

This weekend we are celebrating my dad's birthday! Love that man, and I'm so thankful for him!

Hope you all had a great 4th!

~BKL

West Virginia

I just got home from a two week clinical experience in West Virginia. I had a wonderful experience working in a rural clinic with such a large medically undeserved population. The majority of my patients had no health insurance. It was a great learning experience for me as I learned to really factor cost into the medications I prescribed and tests I ordered. The staff and patients were so open to me, it truly was a fantastic experience.

Justin came up for the weekend and we hiked and went rafting. West Virginia has so much natural beauty, it's gorgeous! Here are a few photos I snapped.

New River Gorge Bridge - We stayed in a cabin on the New River Gorge Preserve and this was in walking distance. It's the longest single span arch bridge in the Western hemisphere.

We hiked out to "Long Point" where you can see a panoramic of the bridge.

On our hike.

Prior to our rafting trip. It was fun for the most part, but the class 5 rapids were a little too extreme for me. I prayed a good bit on those to be honest. Only one person in our raft fell out and it wasn't me or Justin so overall I'd say it was a successful trip ;-)

6 more weeks till the end of summer semester and then only ONE more semester, I can hardly believe it!

~BKL

Love

He's here! And I am so in love. I've never met a more precious, beautiful, cuddly, sweet baby!

Can you tell I'm a proud Aunt? ;-)

I'm also a very proud sister. Jamie did amazing! It was a very long and hard day, but she handled everything so wonderfully. J, I love you and T so much!

~Auntie BKL

Check

I can officially check off the five classes I took this semester. Grades are in and I survived. So glad to have that LONG semester behind me. Two semesters left! Summer semester always flies by, so I know I'll be done before I know it. I plan to use that thought to get me through these two semesters. I'm starting to pray that the Lord is preparing a job for me. I know that He already knows where I'll end up practicing, but it gives me comfort to put it in His hands and let Him be in control. I signed up for a preparation course for boards in September. I won't be able to sit until Feb or March, but I want to start preparing much earlier than that.

Summer classes resume Tuesday and my first Hospice clinical is Thursday. I'm anxious and eager for this new learning experience.

This weekend we helped my family clean out my grandfather's barn and my great-grandmother's house. It was bittersweet. We found some neat items, and occasionally my grandmother filled us in on the history behind them. My great-grandmother's home is filled with vintage furniture. I'd take it all if I could, but there's just no where to put it all. We are having an estate sale this coming Saturday at 8 AM if any of you are interested or know anyone that is. Tools from my grandfather's barn are also being sold. More specific information is printed in the Hartwell Sun. Most of the furniture needs a little TLC, but has so much potential. We'd love to see these pieces go to homes where they will be treasured. My grandmother's home is also for sale. It's a brick home in the North Hart school district, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms with an updated kitchen, nice barn, and three car carport. This whole moving experience has been emotional, so many memories. We hope that my grandmother will be happy in her new home in town.

I am closer to being an aunt! We hope to learn a little more this week about when to expect his arrival. No matter when he comes, it's going to be a joyous day!

~BKL

Three on Tuesday

This is a spin off post of "Five on Friday." I actually have some time on my hands to post. A week without classes feels like a gift! I'll admit, I'm a little lost as what to do with my free time though because it's so strange and rare!

I love when people share their favorite products so I thought I'd share my top three right now.

1. EOS Lip Balm - Sweet Mint

I LOVE EOS lip balm! I have several flavors but sweet mint is by far my favorite. It tingles a little and smells great!

2. Alegria Shoes

Alegria shoes are AMAZING! I now have two pair, and I LOVE them! I'm on my feet a lot at clinical and these are the most comfortable and supportive shoes I've found. And they're so cute! Tons of prints and styles! Paloma is my favorite style. I have this pair (Black Etched) and they are so versatile. I love my tortoise pair too. They can be wiped down easily and are blood resistant which is a perk for nurses. These shoes are seriously the best!

3. Essie Nail Polish

Love Essie polish, especially this color. It's called "Ballet Slippers" and it looks clean and professional when it's applied!

Hope everyone is having a great week!

~BKL

Long Lost Blogger

I took my last final of the semester today. Genetics=Horrible. Hopefully my grade survived so that I can check this semester and all of its classes off my list. I hate waiting on grades.

This has been my worst semester by far. A lot of stress. I have enjoyed my clinicals this semester though. I spend a couple days a week at three different nursing homes and another day at the VA. Sadly next week will be my last week at the nursing homes. I'm doing some research at the VA so I'll be staying on there for a little bit longer. My summer clinical placement is at an inpatient hospice facility. I know that it will be challenging, but I requested the placement to see if hospice is a setting I would like to work in. Personally, my family has been blessed by hospice in the past, and I'm interested to see how I like it from the provider standpoint. I believe that everyone deserves to die with dignity and pain free and I know that this clinical placement will definitely be a learning experience.

I'm beyond thrilled that I will be an AUNT very SOON! Time has flown by! So exciting!

Happy first Mother's Day, J! He may not be here yet, but he already takes comfort in hearing your voice and he knows you're his mom. You're going to be a fantastic mother!

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms! I hope you have a wonderful day! ~BKL