Christmas in California

Most of you know that I haven't posted a blog in a couple of weeks because one of my college roommates was here visiting me and my family. We did a lot and it was super fun having here her. She was here for about 10 full days and 2 half days. (December 13-24) and I was pretty sad to see her go.

Day 1 Evening: Christine got to my house on the evening of Thursday, December 13 and we had a very typical Mexican dinner at home. After some catching up, we ended the night with some Grey's Anatomy.

Day 2: We out to the local mall to meet up with our friend Caitlin, a fellow SMC chick, for lunch at the Yard House and some shopping. I think the weather that day influenced our purchases because we all ended up buying some species of sweater. After shopping we went home and helped my mom with baking fruitcakes. We tried to watch The Polar Express, but ended up pausing the movie 17 minutes in before going to sleep.

Day 3: We spent the morning getting at the dedication mass for my new church. We got lucky and ended up sitting next to the choir during mass thanks to extra seats. The Mass was quite long, about 2.5 hours, but it was a pretty cool thing to experience. Once home, we finished The Polar Express, took showers, and made delicious chocolate chip cookies. We ended the day by going to get the Christmas tree, decorating it, and watching Elf.

Day 4: We all went to San Diego for the day to go ice skating. One of the hotels down there sets up an ice skating rink where the pool would be during the summer. It's pretty cool because the beach is about 5 steps away from the ice rink. We skated for well over an hour and ended up playing a fun game of tag. After skating we had dinner, dessert, and got some things from the gift shop before heading home.

Day 5: We had a bit of a slow start since we had stayed up late the previous night watching a Christmas movie. Our adventure for the day was going to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. I had never been there before and Christine volunteers at The Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, so she wanted to see it. We were able to see the whole aquarium in under 2 hours and were able to see lots of sea life, watched a seal and sea lion show, and got a backstage tour of some of the aquarium. Upon coming home, we made a delicious pasta and salad dinner. We ended the night with some ice cream, girl talk and the claymation Christmas classic, Santa Claus is Coming to Town.

Day 6: Today's plans got a little warped due to some misinformation. Long story short, we were supposed to go see the Hobbit but we ended up at the wrong theater so we then walked across the street to do a little more shopping. It ended up being for the best because we were able to help my brother pick up stuff for my mom's birthday celebration. To celebrate her birthday, we went to daily mass, went out to dinner for Chinese food, and then went home for cake and wine.

Day 7: This was our Disneyland day. We spent a good 13 hours at both Disneyland and California Adventure. We saw the Christmas Fantasy Parade, fast-passed a few rides, and stood in line for almost two hours to ride Radiator Springs Racers in Cars Land California Adventure. Let it be said the wait is worth it. Radiator Springs Racers is much like Test Track in Disney World. We didn't leave Disneyland until we had finished shopping on Main Street for some souvenirs.

Day 8:  Day 8 was extremely enjoyable. I was supposed to babysit, but they cancelled last minute. It was a bit of a relief for me since I was still pretty tired from Disneyland. Christine decided to go on a run after breakfast while I stayed at home to chill. After she came back, we laid out in the grass for a good half hour enjoying the sunny 66 degree day. Later, we went down to Balboa Island to walk around and had to have some frozen chocolate-dipped bananas. Once we got home, we got all prettied up to go see The Nutcracker with the family. This was the first time I had seen a full Nutcracker performance, and I loved it.

Day 9: Day 9 was what you could call a lazy day. We spent the early part of the afternoon driving around looking for ugly Christmas sweaters to wear to a Christmas party we had been invited to. Well, we didn't find ugly sweaters and ended up not going to the party. Instead of going to the party, we drank wine and watched half of The Nightmare Before Christmas. We also had nap/rest time in the later half of the afternoon.

Day 10: We had another slow start to the morning and decided to do some more baking in the afternoon. We made two batches of almond cookies to both give away and keep for ourselves. It took us about two hours to finish, ate lunch, and went wine tasting. We tried to see some of the Balboa Island boat parade but parking was near impossible and we ended up seeing about 10 minutes of it. Then it was time for more shopping, home, and another claymation Christmas classic.

Day 11: This was Christine's last full day in California so we spent the day doing laundry, packing, and going to mass in between the two. Packing was a struggle since she bought lots of gifts and clothes during her stay. But, thanks to my small yet spacious carry-on and the superior packing skills I have developed over the years, we were able to get everything to fit perfectly. It was a relief when everything was packed away, but that meant we had to go to sleep, which we didn't want to do.

Day 12 Early morning: We had a rather early wake-up yesterday because of when Christine's flight left. We were awake at 7am and it was time to say good-bye an hour later. I was planning on going to the airport with her and my dad, but he had to go to work.

Thinking about the good-bye gets me choked up simply because she is one of my best friends and I miss her even though I know I'll see her on Skype soon. All in all, it was so good to have her here for Christmas and I hope that someday I will be able to visit her around Christmas and/or have our families come together for a Christmas-time visit.

DIY Ribbon Bow

Before Thanksgiving, I decided that I wanted to make a Christmas decoration for my room. I decided to make a bow out of thick wired ribbon. It was relatively simple to make and only took about fifteen minutes. Here is how I made it. I will also include the video that I used to make the bow.

1. Gather supplies:

• Thick wired ribbon (the one I used was 2.5 inches wide)
• Scissors

2. Measure a length of ribbon that is about 8-12 inches long. The larger the length, the fuller it will be.
3. Bring the end of the ribbon halfway across the length and fold.
4. Take the length you measured in step 2 and fold the ribbon on itself however many time you would like. I think I did 10-12 folds.
5. Finish the fold by taking another length of ribbon that is half the length of your Step 2 length over your last fold.
6. Adjust your ribbon so that the two half-length pieces line up in the middle
7. Take your scissors and cut a slit about 1/3 of the way down the width of the ribbon. You want to leave at least a 1/2 inch uncut.
8. Measure out another length of ribbon as long as you would like. Mine was 4 feet long.
9. Find the center of the ribbon and tie it around the folded ribbon.
10. Start separating and fluffing out the folds until you are happy with how your bow looks.

This is what my ribbon bow looked like in the end:

 

 

To get it to hang on the door, I simply took a smaller piece of ribbon and tied it around the thumbtack that I put on the door. I used the knot from the ribbon in Step 8 to anchor this third piece of ribbon.

Christmas time is here!

Hello, again, fellow readers! After being MIA for almost two weeks, I have returned. No, I have not forgotten that my blog exists. I have just been pretty busy between my hospital work, nannying, and getting ready for Christmas.

There are various things I have been doing to prepare for Christmas, some are typical and some not so typical.

The most obvious is putting up Christmas decorations and buying gifts. In my room, I have put up a ribbon bow that I made, a ornamental tree from Target, and a mini Nativity scene. A blog about how I made the ribbon bow might be up soon. My older brother, his girlfriend, and I will be putting up decorations around the house and outdoor Christmas lights.

As usual, I have been working at the local hospital for my internship. I love working at the hospital. Yes, it is tiring and hard on the body, but it is so incredibly rewarding. This rotation, I seem to be doing only minor things such as changing sheets, fetching items for patients, talking to patients, and and helping the nurses with minor procedures. Last week, I helped an older woman get EEG glue out of her hair. Every single time I do these seemingly mundane tasks, the patient I am with always seems to be a little bit happier than they were before I had done the task. I guess in a hospital setting, it truly is the little things that matter the most. The patients love having someone change their sheets.  I will be going in for a shift on Christmas day and I am interested to see if the energy on the floor will be any different than it is on a daily basis. I've found volunteering to be a great thing to be doing at Christmas time because it is a humbling experience and I get to bring my service and joy to others.

Another way I was able to serve and bring joy to others this seasons was at a Christmas party over the weekend. The youth ministry team at my church and an organization called Stand Up for Kids put together a Christmas party for homeless teens and families. The whole idea of the party was to give them a Christmas since they are not able to have a Christmas of their own. We had over 70 kids and teens at the Christmas party and they were all smiles. The one thing that I found most interesting was that the phrase "Homelessness does not have a face" could not have been more true. Every child and teen at the party had a sponsor who gave them gifts and more often than not, a teen that I thought was just another volunteer with youth ministry or Stand Up for Kids was in fact homeless. The Christmas party was a great way to spread Christmas cheer and I also got to know some of the youth ministry teens better.

In a few short days, I will have one of my best friends from Chicago come visit me until the 24th. I suspect my posts will be less frequent, but I will do my best to put up at least one post while she is here.

That is all for now. Christmas blessings to all!

I Have Been Personally Victimized by Noro Virus

It seems like everyone and their mother are being victimized by Norovirus. Norovirus is the bug most commonly known as the stomach flu. Last week was Thanksgiving week and we had a total of 12 family members come over to our house either just for Thanksgiving or overnight. Of the 12 of us, 4 of us were struck down with stomach flu, myself included. This year's round of stomach flu must be really strong because this was the worst round of stomach flu I've ever had in my 22.5 years of life. To put it lightly, I was bound to the bathroom for almost 3 hours and was so dehydrated that I almost fainted a few times.

Anyway, here are my tips for recovering from the stomach flu.

1. The most common symptoms of stomach flu are diarrhea, vomiting, fever, and headache. These symptoms can cause dehydration, so you want to monitor your fluid loss and watch for signs of dehydration. These include

• dry mouth
• thirst
• decreased urine output
• headache
• being dizzy or lightheaded, especially upon standing

2. While the diarrhea and vomiting are present, focus on replacing your fluids. This doesn't mean drinking water. Yes, you are losing water but you are also losing salts in the form of electrolytes. The best drink on the market that you can get over the counter is Pedialyte. Pedialyte is essentially pure electrolyte. Try to drink at least one bottle per day. If your symptoms do not improve or worsen after 2 days, it would be wise to go see your doctor.

3. Once your symptoms start to improve, keep a simple diet of bland carbohydrates and lean proteins. Foods that are easy to digest are things like bread, saltine crackers, and rice for carbohydrates and turkey and chicken for lean protein.

4. Slowly add more fruits and vegetables into your diet as your appetite improves. Once you have a normal bowel movement, you should be okay to continue your normal diet.

I hope this helps those stricken by the stomach flu feel better. Please be advised that I am in no way a medical expert. I am just going off of what has worked for me. If you have any concerns, please consult your doctor or other medical professional.

Senior Game

Tonight was a great night for Notre Dame players and fans everywhere. They played a shut-out game with a final score of 38-0 and are now number 1 and the only undefeated team in the nation. I must admit, I teared up several times during tonight's Senior Game. Watching tonight's game brought back many memories from lasy year's Senior Game.

I don't remember who we played, what the final score was, or even if I did push-ups. Here is a list of the things I do remember, including things before and after the game:

• Watching the band play in front of Bond Hall and then rushing over to see the trumpets under the Dome
• Taking pictures under the Law School arch
• Sneaking a picture of Nick and Jake as they marched by with the trumpet section
• The Marshmallow fight
• My feet being plastered to the seats by marshmallow goo glue
• Praying for a win
• Chanting "Go Irish, Beat Aztecs!" as the stands cleared out and only the seniors remained
• Precariously making our way down to the field and holding hands with Joe and Mary on the way down
• Playing a round of ninja on the field
• Doing cartwheels on the field
• Taking countless pictures as we celebrated our victory
• Cody's post-game party

Of the various pictures we took, this was my favorite.

This was probably one of the happiest moments of my senior year. Not only had we just won the senior game, but I was surrounded by the best people I know. I could not have chosen a better group of people to be in a football group with after much deliberation a few months before this picture was taken. I have this wonderful picture on my nightstand (Thank you, Joe!) and it can always bring a smile to my face when I look at it and remember all the great times I had with this wonderful group of people.

I only have one final thing to say. LOVE THEE, NOTRE DAME!!

A Ballet Lesson

A couple of weeks ago, I posted that I have started doing pre-pointe work and bought my first pair of  pre-pointe shoes. A few of you may be wondering "What in the world is a pre-pointe shoe?". I am here to enlighten you.

There are three types of shoe that ballet dancers use: a soft ballet shoe, a pre-pointe shoe, and the coveted pointe shoe. Each is built differently with different fabrics and are used at different levels.

The Soft Ballet Shoe:

This shoe is the first shoe that a dancer will wear. They are made of either canvas or leather and are either full-soled or split soled. The full-soled shoe will have the sole running all the way down the bottom of the shoe. The split soled shoe only has the sole on the ball of the foot and the heel of the foot. There is no sole on the arch of the shoe. Split-soled shoes are more flexible and are preferred over full-soled shoes. They will usually come in pink, black, tan, or white. My soft shoes are pink and split-soled

 

 

 

The Pre-Pointe Shoe:

 

This shoe is the next step to the coveted point shoe. Pre-pointe shoes are also known as half-toe shoes or demi-pointe shoes. They are harder and less flexible than the soft shoe. The main difference between a pointe shoe and a pre-pointe shoe is that pre-pointe shoes is that pre-point shoes don't have a shank. The shank makes the sole of the foot more rigid, which provides more support to the arch. This is why pre-pointe dancers are still able to rise up to the ball of the foot, but not fully onto the toes. These shoes are covered in pink satin and come with ribbons which help support the arch.

 

 

The Pointe Shoe

 

 

Pointe shoes are what every little ballerina wants to end up wearing on their feet. Pointe shoes are also called toe shoes. Pointe shoes, though highly coveted and beautiful are also very hard on the feet because of how inflexible they are. Point shoes have all of the same components as pre-pointe shoes, except they have a shank. They also are covered with satin and have ribbons. Both pointe and pre-pointe shoes have a full-sole.

 



My First Shift

Today was my first shift at the hospital as a CCE. I was supposed to start on Monday, but I got sick with congestion and wasn't well enough to go in on Monday. My first shift was exciting. I am up in the Medical Pulmonary floor which means the patients are there if they have a respiratory related issue. I didn't get to do too much with the patients, mostly because a majority of the patients were isolation patiens and CCEs are not allowed  to go into an isolation room. The four hours went by rather quickly except for the final hour due to slight dehydration and fatigue.

I was able to discharge a couple of patients, which I was glad to do. Since patients don't choose to be in the hospital, they are pretty happy when they get word they get to leave the hospital. I would say the most rewarding experience I had today was with a confused patient. I was paired with a CNA and we were changing her. She was nervous about it so my job was to hold her hand throughout the task. That woman had a strong grasp. I found this particularly ordinary task to be the most rewarding because even though it was simple, my holding her hand helped to make her less nervous. Since this was my first interaction with a bed-ridden patient, I was nervous and started to feel like I was going to faint or have a panic attack. All it took for me to get out of my head was one look at the patient and reminding myself over and over again "You are here for her."

Next week I will be working two shifts during the week. By the end of the next two weeks, I hope to become more comfortable with the floor, have more patient interactions, and start showing my assertive side.