summertime in a glass

I hear the word "summer" and I instantly think "SANGRIA!" 

What's not to love?!

Fruit. 

Wine. 

Sparkling little bubbles. 

And it's pretty. 

What's better than fresh fruit & basil?! NOTHING!!

First of all...make yourself some blueberry cubes. Drop some fresh blueberries in an ice cube tray and fill with white grape juice. Freeze. Pop out and store in a freezer bag. (The greatest part about this sangria is you make it by the glassful, not the pitcher.)

Once your cubes are frozen, grab a glass. Drop in a few blueberry cubes. Add a few fresh strawberries (hulled and cut into halves). Throw in a few fresh basil leaves. Seriously, is there any better smell?! Fresh basil. Heavenly. 

Add about 3/4 glass white wine. The best thing about this is you can use the cheap stuff and it still tastes good. 

Top your glass off with sparkling water. Ooohhh bubbles. Pretty. (top it off with some more white grape juice or 7up if you prefer a sweeter sangria). 

That's it. Presto. Magic. A heavenly summer dream in a glass. 

Now, good luck just drinking one glass. You're better off just making a pitcher :)

[you can make this kid/pregnant lady friendly - skip the wine and use sparkling white grape juice instead]

Muffookies

Let me explain:

One box spice cake mix.
One can of Libby's pumpkin.
One bag of dark chocolate chips.

Mix well.

Drop spoonfuls on a lined cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Yes, 25 minutes.

Remove and cool. Try not to eat the whole pan.

Share with friends...if you're into that kind of thing.

Enjoy with your coffee in the morning.

Muffookies. Tastes like a muffin...looks like a cookie. MUFFOOKIE. 

You're welcome!

...oh, hey!

Well hello there Blog World (all 2 of you that might read this)!!
Just dropping in to update anyone that may have missed it...

... I'M A NURSE!!

Ok, so technically I'm a graduate nurse...
...but I don't care!!
I take my boards in January.
Wish me luck!!

Oh, and MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
I hope you all have a wonderful Holiday with your families.
Me? I'll be working the next 7 out of 8 days.

xoxo

change is good.

I should have put more thought into my blog name.

At the time I guess I felt like I was going to be a student f-o-r-e-v-e-r.

Yes, I'm a drama queen.

Yes, forever is a long time.

But it really did feel like forever.

Well, ladies & gents, it's NOT forever.

This is the countdown I have going on my phone.

I check it daily. Yes, daily.

Sometimes twice.

Because maybe (just maybe) another day will have gone by.

(okay, so then I have another year of school for my RN...

...but I'm taking this one step at a time.

I will NOT be a nursingschoolgirl forever!!)

*Insert happy dance here*

nothin' cuter

seriously.

is there anything cuter?

chubby legs. 

chubby arms. 

(why can't my chubby legs be that cute?)

he's so proud.

sitting up all by himself.

so big. tear. sniff.

nothing sweeter.

(is sweeter even a word? oh well, I'm using it anyways.)

this little man is pure deliciousness.

and he comes from a great family.

they're all pretty great.

I'm so blessed to have his mama as a best friend <3

be better.

run faster.
eat better.
sleep longer.
try harder.
aim higher.
love more.
day by day, get happier.

Why is it so easy to believe in others...but not yourself? We constantly remind others of how wonderful they are. We point out their strengths and accomplishments. We help them to be better people.

I've realized it's time to make me better. It's time to believe in myself. It's time to remind myself that I am wonderful. I have strengths and accomplishments. I'm better than I think. And I'm responsible to change the things that aren't so great. I can. I will. Starting now.

It only takes one person to point out something great. Something that I didn't see. All it takes is one person to believe in you. Why compare yourself to everyone? If everyone was great at everything...we wouldn't have strengths.

(This has a point, I swear. Friends of the blogging world...you can stop reading here. I'm about to get excited about my [lack of] photography skills. For you few others who don't take amazing photos daily...read on!)

Why ask something of others that I'm capable of doing myself?

This is my sister, Katie, and her fiance, Mike. Man do I love them. How could you not? Just look at 'em! They're getting married in February...can you feel the love? I can. Anyways, I was trying to set up some engagement pictures for my sister as a gift...no luck. Boo. Then my sister says, "Jackie, you take great pictures...won't you just do them?" Me? Engagement pictures? Umm...a little out of my league. But, you see, I can't say no to my baby sister...so I grab my camera. We went out and just played around. I captured them. Professional? Not me. Perfect? Not even close. Real? Absolutely! No PhotoShop, no crazy shots, nothing fancy...just them. Perfect.

So my sister puts these unedited-nothing-fancy shots up on Facebook. Good ol' Facebook. She's proud. She loves them. That's the important thing. And then something happens...other people like them. Other people want me to capture them with their families. Other people think they're good. Wow. I was just going for "good enough." It's silly, but it makes me stop and think. I realize that I don't have to be as good as the people I look up to. I don't have to compare myself to them. I'm good enough. And I can only get better. And if even just one person believes in me and thinks I'm worthy...then I am. It's a great feeling. Self-actualization.



...and so it begins

 
It's Monday. Ugh, Monday. How did Monday get such a bad rap anyways? Just because it follows the weekend? What if you work the weekend? Monday could be just the thing you need...

...but I didn't work this weekend...and I did NOT need Monday to come. Not this one.

Today was the first day of my last semester of nursing school (for now). The first day of school is always a little rough. It sneaks up on you. Today was no different. This weekend I was enjoying my summer and BAM! ... school starts.

What makes the first day even better? How about a 9am math test? Yes, those are fun. Especially when you haven't used your brain for 3 months. And if you don't pass said math test with 80%, you can't go to clinicals. (Don't worry, I passed...just barely...and yes, I might be caring for you someday...please don't be scared).

I blame my "case of the Mondays" on the fact that I left my coffee in the car this morning. Delicious iced coffee. Sitting in my car. Getting warm in the sun. I could have went back for it. I had time. But I'm lazy. And because of it I almost failed my math test.

Tomorrow is Tuesday. Tuesdays are good, right? I think as long as I remember my lunch and my coffee I'll be okay. I hope.