Where have I been?

Hey Everyone,

My goodness it has been quite sometime since I posted here on this blog of mine. I apologize to anyone waiting for me to post an update. I have been crazy busy with all that life has to offer. Especially my crazy puggle. He has had a great time of life.



Cooper is my little crazy man. He has been a delight but he has also been quite a challenge. He has been sick, I wasn't aware when I got him that he was very sick with giardia...so it has been a constant battle since he first came home. He has finished his third round of antibiotics, just dropped a sample off at the vet, let's hope this one is clear. The sooner he gets the go ahead from the vet, the sooner he can have fun at doggy daycare.



So earlier, Karen, Vanessa and I took a weekend and we went up to New Hampshire and Vermont to see the pretty foliage, Cooper loved it. He had such a blast just driving around with us in the car...and since his FAVORITE thing in the world is fallen leaves, he had a fantastic time.



He was a little afraid of the river.



He was such a litte cutie...since then, he has grown like an absolute weed. Each day it astounds me how much he is growing and advancing. He and I had a great trip when we came to Utah to see the family and all the little kids. Such a great experience for both of us. He loved meeting his little cousin Spike...I am sure he would love to meet again at some point.

Anyways, to all of you wondering if we are still alive, we are indeed. We are having a great time. Cooper is getting used to the fact that I unfortunately have to work ALOT..i think he realizes it is so i can afford to take care of him and get him fun toys. I have been so incredibly lucky to have such a wonderful support system out here, and who can help me with the crazy man when I am off to work and school, I truly have been blessed with all that I have. I never thought I could make it out here. I am glad that I have been proven wrong several times.


So thank you to everyone for lending me your strength. It has been much needed and appreciated.

My little Cooper

OK, so as many of you know and maybe as many of you do not yet know, I have acquired the most cutest little puggle puppy in the world. His name is Cooper and he was born on July 4th. See why I could not resist him? If you can't see yet, Let me show you why resisting him is basically impossible. It was such a crazy day. My friends Karen and Ness called me and asked if I was available to go somewhere with them. They wouldn't tell me where but, I was curious and so agreed. They knew that I had been wanting a puppy for quite a while and so they brought me to this breeder who had this one little puggle left. I couldn't resist his sweet little face and the instant connection I felt with him. He is such a little sweetie.



This was our first picture together. Isn't he just adorable?


So this was hilarious, after getting home, Cooper was sussing out the joint and he found my mirror. He is such like a little kid. I am convinced he thinks it is one of his brothers, he attacked that mirror for like 5 minutes. He was soo cute. I think pretty much everything he does right now is adorable.


BAT DOG!!! Look at his cute little ears. Ahh, he is such a trouble maker, and his feet are too big for his little body, so they are all flopy when he runs. Makes me laugh every time.


He loves his little chew toy. Every time he starts nipping at me, or any of my belongings, I try to give him a toy, so that he doesn't ruin all of my belongings. Think it will work? Yea, I hope so, I am somewhat skeptical that I will come through this unscathed.


So this was hilarious, Cooper got in trouble because he pooped inside my apartment. And so I had to get upset with him and tell him he was being a bad dog and such. So he got all emotional and ran away from me while I was cleaning up his mess, anyways, he was found down the hall pouting like this. It was so hard to remain upset with him when he was being so dang cute.

Anyways, so this is Cooper. No doubt, he will continue to be a huge part of this blog as he is now a huge part of my life. He is sleeping now right by my feet. Have I mentioned he is the sweetest little puppy in the world?

Love,
Paige

My Unsung Heroes

I'd like to take a moment to praise two people who have become very important and basically lifesavers as I have acclimated to life here in Massachusetts. While coming out here and visiting, the various times that I have throughout the months leading up to me moving to Massachusetts, I have met two women who have become such great friends and who have become very supportive as I have made this transition in my life.

In short, they have become like family to me, taking me to different places, telling me the best roads to take and how to best avoid traffic.

Today, Karen and Vanessa (or Ness as I call her) who have become amazing friends and supports as I have made all of these transitions in my life. Well, they took me to this funny Medieval fair called "King Richards Faire" Basically it was awesome. So there were many crazy people there dressed up in medieval clothing and saying things like "thither" and "therefore" It was great fun, and a wonderful tension breaker as I prepare for the things I mentioned in my previous blog.



Oh yea, I tried to do Jacob's ladder today... that was very hard and I had absolutely no success. Does anyone have any tips as to how one might climb the crazy ladder?

Anyways, as I have moved out here and made changes, I know I could not have done it without them, and if there is one thing that I have learned as of late, it is to treasure all of the things that you are thankful for. So, thank you Karen and Ness for making my time here a lot easier than I ever thought it would be.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

GOOOOO Cougars!

So I'm sitting here watching the BYU football season opener. Ummm turnovers?!?!?! Seriously? Geez guys, get your acts together! Anyways, I am so excited for it to be BYU football season. It is always one of my favorite things to do during the Fall and also, a sign that things are starting over again...Like school. Oh how I thought that last August was going to be my last "feeling of ill distress" as I thought of the upcoming school year. Why must I be doing this to myself? Going back to school so quickly after graduating? I had my first day of orientation for school, I am already stressed and the nails which I once had growing are now complete and absolute nubs as the stress and anxiety was taken out on my poor fingernails. I must quit that horrid habit. So here's to school, mixed with a harsh reality of adulthood, as I just checked my bank statement online and saw the harsh chunk which my first whole rent payment took out of my savings.

Oh gosh, reality of life is soo not glamorous. This grown up stuff is difficult business. I have also become an official nurse again....Different hospital, not nearly as glamorous as my previous job in the brand new hospital in Utah, but it's a job, and in hard economic times, I can't complain. So, I will gladly take my job in the Emergency Department of this aged hospital and the slightly smaller paycheck than I was hoping for. Oh what a wonderful life of a full time student and a full time employee. Hrmmm...Why do I even bother with an apartment? Good question which I shall ponder later.

Lucky for me, my bed far outranks any expectations I might have had as far as comfort and although costco.com failed me on the bed frame, the mattress came with top quality. I am safe and happy, mostly missing my family and happy people back home. I love you all. You mean so much to me and being out here all by myself has made me miss and love you even more ;) I guess it is true...absence makes the heart grow fonder ;)

Ok, back to the football game. GOOOO COUGARS!!!!!

Oh No Costco, you failed me.

So yesterday I was singing all praises to Costco. Today is an entirely different story altogether. Last night I went to open the box for my metal bed frame which I purchased at Costco online...after moving my wonderful air mattress to the living room for the night. I was surprised to find that about half of the frame was missing...Ok, so I lie..after about 30 minutes I decided to look online for instructions (because the dang frame didn't come with any) and realized that about half of it was not put in the box. Soooo...You wanna know what time Costco opens up out here in Massachusetts? Yea, 11 AM. NO good cause my bed was supposed to be delivered at 1:30. Well, I left my house at 11:30 figuring that I could get all the way there, before the store opened so that I might get home in time to get it set up and everything before the delivery came so that they could put it on the frame for me...Yea, that didn't work out so well. Dang traffic. Ruined EVERYTHING. Oh well, Luckily I got home thankfully in enough in time.

And now I have my bed all set and comfortable for sleeping. But still...Costco, you kinda let me down.

As far as the jam goes. I did a good job. Made 2 jars today, and I will make 2 more tomorrow. Gotta love those raspberries!

Have a good night everyone.

Paige

The Costco Experience

All is well in the world when you know there is a Costco Wholesale in your area. I have recently purchased a Gold Star Membership and couldn't be prouder to be a card carrying member of one of the most elite clubs. Especially when you walk into the aforementioned Costco and find that Yes, they are indeed selling snuggies.



A wonderful way to break the tension...see the snuggies. I think I'm gonna buy one the next time I go to Costco. What is the best thing about Costco you ask? Pepperoni Pizza, a Churro, and a Diet Coke. My most favorite Costco treat. No but really, I enjoyed driving out to Costco yesterday because it brought back a feel of home, granted, this costco was not nearly as gigantic as ours in Provo...Not much a need to buy things in bulk as not as many people are preparing a food storage. But it was wonderful. I kept thinking I would run into someone I know as I ALWAYS, without a doubt do when I visit the hometown market there in Provo.

Thank you Costco for making my day brighter.

Now I have just gotten off the phone with mom and if I am daring enough, later today I will try to make raspberry jam. Anyone think I can do it? I will report back.

In other fronts, today I had to wake up early to head out to the hospital for my pre-employment screening. Hopefully I passed with flying colors ;) Tomorrow my bed FINALLY comes. It will be good to have an actual mattress to sleep on. This blow up air mattress has certainly run its course.

That's all for now, I'll report back as far as the jam business is concerned.

Love,
Paige

Nauvoo and Carthage

On our road trip, Mom and I decided to take a detour through Illinois. We stopped at Nauvoo for a few hours. The Temple was beautiful and we also took some time to visit historic Nauvoo and see all the restored houses and learned how to make bricks. It was pretty cool.

See, the Temple was beautiful. We took a covered wagon ride and I took this picture while on that ride.

We then drove about 30 minutes or so to Carthage. It was a very neat experience to see such a historic site. I was overwhelmed by a feeling of peace and comfort as we saw where the Prophet Joseph Smith was killed. It was an amazing experience.

Niagra Falls

On our way to Massachusetts, Mom and I decided we should stop to see Niagra Falls from the New York side. How could we miss out on the opportunity? we were SOOO close.

Nurse Paige has arrived...

Hello Everyone who chooses to read this blog -

I am now in Massachusetts and getting settled. It has certainly been a long journey but it has already been very challenging and rewarding at the same time. My meltdown in the supermarket today was a real help, stress relief as I was searching for the Cheese Whiz. Stupid boys at the supermarket have no real idea where to find things. They just pretend like they know stuff and then send believing young women like me in the opposite direction leading us to mental breakdowns while holding easy cheese...which although resembles cheese whiz, is NOT and I repeat NOT the same product.

Anyways, that was my minor breakdown for the evening. It helped me realize that this blog which I had originally created before leaving Utah, should be put into use, so that I might express some of my feelings and also, share some of my experiences with all the important people in my life who are so far from where I am at the moment.

It has been hard leaving everything that I know and love but it is a blessing in disguise...I am sure of that. (I have to keep thinking that way in order to not break down in tears in even more embarrassing places than the supermarket.)

School will start in just a few weeks. I have my first class on September 8th. I am incredibly excited to see where this adventure will take me. Not so excited about all the exams but...well, happy about everything else. I also got a job. It was incredible actually. I had put out soooo many job applications without hearing anything from anyone for months. Well, actually I did hear one thing from one hospital, the HR lady recommended that I stay in my previous nursing job until December so that I could have a full 12 months of working as a nurse under my belt and then she could easily offer me an interview at their facility. I informed her politely (of course) that I would love to stay in my previous position on the surgical/trauma unit at IMC (which I loved and I miss all the amazing people I worked with,) but that I am going to be starting a graduate program at Boston College this fall and it would be a heck of a commute. I think she was sorta stumped as she then excused herself and the phone call was terminated.

Anyways, I got a job in the Emergency Department at a hospital which is a little ways outside of Boston...it is between where I live and where I go to school in Chestnut Hill...Which is a little suburb of the city of Boston. Got that? Lots of cities I visit every day. Sometimes, I drive through 4 or so cities to just get some nice sweet corn. Have I mentioned this state is foreign to me? I can't tell north from south, east from west, and I'm pretty sure I'd end up in New York if it wasn't for my GPS which I have lovingly named Gretchen. Anyways, back to my job. It is in the ER, which is actually the place I would have loved to have worked first going into nursing. I am intimidated because I will have to be sharp with my assessment skills, and work with kids, which is frightening, but slightly disappointed because I am not working at a trauma center, and so my hospital doesn't typically get many trauma patients, which has been my specialty for the last 7 months.

Anyways, life is treating me well so far and I don't have much to complain about. I have a beautiful apartment with a pool, hot tub, and a gym (which I have actually used) It is secure and safe and I love it. My bed will be delivered on Wednesday which means I will need to deflate the air mattress I have been sleeping on since mom and I arrived on the 13th.

Since I've been here I have witnessed some of the hottest, most humid days of the summer in Massachusetts, One hurricane (Bill) and am currently cuddled up in my sweats as tropical storm Danny wreaks havoc on the area and is making it cool and comfortable, bringing in the feeling of Autumn, which I hear is breathtaking in New England. Oh, also, Senator Ted Kennedy died...That's a huge thing around here, the only things I've heard about him are things my ultra conservative brother Chad has told me but apparently everyone in Massachusetts loves the man as all of the news channels have been playing non-stop coverage of his life and achievements since he passed away. It has been an interesting few weeks and I can only imagine it will continue to get more and more interesting.

That's it for now. I hope to blog at least once a week, if not more to share experiences that I have had. Also, I intend to post various photographs so my brother Chad (whom I love and adore can stop asking for them ;) )

Love,

Paige