What do you do with your gum when you are done with it?

Apparently, putting your gum on your hair and eyebrows, so that you look like the love child of Unibrow and Wolverine, is a great option!
You can probably imagine how awful it was to try and get that stuff off his hair, but we managed. However, despite washing his hair and face, he stills smells like a combination of gum and peanut butter... YUK!!!

Pirate ship

Two posts in one day is very unusual for me, but I had actually written the first a few days ago, and just had not posted it.
Well, today Logan went to the daycare for about an hour, and he had lots of fun drawing. I just thought his pirate ship was the cutest thing I have ever seen! He went through great pains to draw a skull and crossbones on the flag and I can't help but want to share his artistic talent :)
I also asked him about his name on the top left, and he said, "yes it's my name, L O G A N, Logan!"
He is a bright little rascal! Love my little boy.

Down to the wire

Life is changing very quickly for me... Or at least I hope so.
I had wanted to go to college for quite some time before I did so. I first applied to the University of Wisconsin shortly after I married, but became discouraged after continuous problems delayed my admission, and in fact, I simply made the decision to wait. When I prayed about it, I got the impression that it was OK to start my family then.
Fast forward 8 years, and I found myself with 3 kids, dirt poor and with absolutely no prospects. In fact, I was very lucky to have a good paying job doing translations for the department of defense, but only worked part time, so I was not able to make enough money anyway.
At that time, I prayed a lot to get an answer to what I should do, and received a distinct impression that I should go to school. I got everything started, and didn't look back.
It took a lot of time and work,It's not perfect, but despite being so busy, Doug and I are trying to be good to each other, which is all I can really ask for. I have been very successful in school so far,got good grades and I am truly learning about the world and myself which has made going to school a very fun experience (when I am not stressing excessively about all I have to do).
And now, here I am, at the eve of applying to the school of nursing. A very nerve racking experience, since I worry too much about what might go wrong in these kinds of things. I have had my share of disappointments lately, and I get a little scared.
I had to write an essay, which I started a long time ago. I was having a very hard time writing it, which is not really characteristic for me, but nevertheless, I could not write, or fix what was there, I felt utterly powerless. It took a lot of time, but finally I asked friends and family to look at what I had, and help me out. Everyone was so wonderful, giving me plenty of feedback, telling me what they thought was lacking. Thanks to Marco, Kike, Cory, Trina, Julie, Eli (James), Chelsi, Mary and Martha. You guys really helped get my essay where it needed to be. I have to say that I felt much better after working on it some more, and I feel confident that I have done everything possible to make my application reflective of my potential. Well friends, as of today, the application is in, and now I wait. I should hear from them by the end of March. Until then, I just wanted to share with all of you the finished essay, which actually tells a lot about some of my previous life experience and where I want to go.
Here is a small excerpt:

According to the Institute of Medicine, Medical errors are the cause of approximately 98,000 deaths in the United States (Kohn, 26). Of those, 34,850 patients would have survived if they had received appropriate treatment (Shojania et al., 2853). Although misdiagnoses have decreased substantially in recent decades (ibid, 2853), a development nurses played a considerable part in, they continue to significantly affect patient care. Unfortunately, I have experienced this firsthand.
My father suffered a stroke when I was 15 years old. When he sought medical help he was misdiagnosed, subsequently suffered irreversible brain damage, and has been permanently disabled since. After my father returned home, my family and I had to make adjustments to accommodate my father's needs, and I became his full-time caregiver. I fed, bathed and dressed my father everyday; I helped him do physical and speech therapy exercises, and went with him to his doctor's appointments. Through this experience, I gained a great deal of respect for nurses. It was emotionally challenging to take care of my disabled father, but also extremely fulfilling to see his progress and make a difference in his life. From that point on, I was determined to one day become a nurse... (I wrote a lot more, but have been advised not to post all of my essay, so here is the conclusion) As a nurse, I will have the unique opportunity and responsibility to do what is necessary to obtain the correct diagnosis for my patients. While it is not feasible to expect an error-free performance, I know that the personal experience I've had with my father will always remind me of the reason why I should strive for excellence in clinical practice. I know that the quality of education I attain will dictate the caliber of professional that I become. This is why it is my sincere aspiration to realize my dream of becoming a nurse at the University of Utah nursing school.