Wow, talk about "hit the ground running!"
School started up this week. I am in a clinical group that gets to go to the hospitals right away. I had lab days on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday to prepare for clinicals next week. I basically had 3 straight days of training, and already have procedures I am supposed to pass off before my first real lecture. It's so cool!
I have my first regular classes on Monday and Tuesday, then I have to pass off my procedures on Tuesday, and a test on Wednesday, then I work in the hospital on Thursday for 4 hours and Friday for 12 hours.
I'm really loving this semester. I am studying Maternal Newborn (labor and delivery), Pediatrics (children), and Med Surg (pre-op, surgery, and post-op). So far I'm enjoying it a lot more than last semester because it is a lot more hands-on work. I got to help deliver a baby yesterday. It was just a mannequin, but next week, it should be the real deal. Is anyone out there planning on delivering a baby next Friday at IMC???
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Collings Reunion 2010
Some fun pictures from our family camp out. We rented a cabin in Park City for 3 nights. We had a blast. Steve's parents are in Washington D.C. They joined us by web cam. Todd and his family weren't able to make it. We really missed them. 
White elephant exchange. Molly got "the picture".
Carter got hand-cuffs from his "secret buddy" Conner. He put them on his ankles and walked around with them on. He LOVED them.
The Bunkhouse for the kids.
Chloe and Brinlee spent a LOT of time doing gymnastics.
A pretty decent picture of everyone. We're missing Steve Sr. and Brinlee (she was up watching a movie.)
The grandkids. Chris didn't think he should be in the picture, but he was out-voted. Next year BRIANHEAD!! (maybe)
White elephant exchange. Molly got "the picture".
Carter got hand-cuffs from his "secret buddy" Conner. He put them on his ankles and walked around with them on. He LOVED them.
The Bunkhouse for the kids.
Chloe and Brinlee spent a LOT of time doing gymnastics.
A pretty decent picture of everyone. We're missing Steve Sr. and Brinlee (she was up watching a movie.)
The grandkids. Chris didn't think he should be in the picture, but he was out-voted. Next year BRIANHEAD!! (maybe)
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
My flowerbeds
I have really neglected my front yard for the past several years. I had two weeping pussy-willows that were really cute, but they were extremely top-heavy. When the wind would blow hard enough, they would tip over. I also got afids on them every year, which left behind a sugary substance, which attracted wasps really bad! So some summers, we would just run as fast as we could into the house to avoid being stung. I have tried for several years to get some peonies to bloom, this year I finally had one plant that bloomed beautifully, but the other two look very sickly. I have planted several varieties of mums, and one year they were amazing, but most years they are dismal. I tried hollyhocks, but the grasshoppers eat their leaves and they look more like a weed than a flower. The vegetation that grows best is my garden is weeds, they flourish!!!
A couple of weeks ago I told Steve I was sick of the front flowerbeds and would be happy to just pull out everything and start over. Steve has been saying that for the past couple of years, but we have been busy, and it always took the back seat to whatever else was going on. This time we decided it was time to fix it. I had 3 boxwoods that were in front of my porch, they stayed, and the peony plant. It was given to us by Grandpa Fred, I couldn't get rid of that. My Nauvoo Temple stone and my Manti Temple stone stayed too. Everything else was pulled out, and tilled under.
We put 3 boxwoods on the other side of the porch to try and balance it out, and then just planted some perennials that I think will look pretty. I don't think it will look marvelous until next summer, but it looks 100 times better than it did before. I'm sorry I don't have any before pictures to show. I actually forgot to post this at all. When I was staying with my mom, I got talking about my new front flowerbeds and she asked why she hadn't seen any pictures yet...my bad. So here you go, I'm happy to show you my new front flowerbeds.
A couple of weeks ago I told Steve I was sick of the front flowerbeds and would be happy to just pull out everything and start over. Steve has been saying that for the past couple of years, but we have been busy, and it always took the back seat to whatever else was going on. This time we decided it was time to fix it. I had 3 boxwoods that were in front of my porch, they stayed, and the peony plant. It was given to us by Grandpa Fred, I couldn't get rid of that. My Nauvoo Temple stone and my Manti Temple stone stayed too. Everything else was pulled out, and tilled under.
We put 3 boxwoods on the other side of the porch to try and balance it out, and then just planted some perennials that I think will look pretty. I don't think it will look marvelous until next summer, but it looks 100 times better than it did before. I'm sorry I don't have any before pictures to show. I actually forgot to post this at all. When I was staying with my mom, I got talking about my new front flowerbeds and she asked why she hadn't seen any pictures yet...my bad. So here you go, I'm happy to show you my new front flowerbeds.
Last day in Washington
I have tried to write about out trip in 3 separate posts. This is the last post. Sunday morning we woke up to no hot water. We had no idea what had gone wrong with the water heater, but didn't have time to figure it out. We used a couple of tea-pots and heated water on the stove in what Grandma called "an old fashioned spit-bath." We went to church together, and then mom said it was our day to go for a drive. This was our only time to see the area, we had been so busy on Saturday.
Mom and dad took us to Deception Pass. We walked accross this bridge, and there's an area right in the middle of the bridge where you can walk down some stairs and see below the bridge. It's such a beautiful state. I love visiting Washington.
Our next stop was at the beach to see some tide pools. When we arrived, the tide was too high, so we took off our shoes and just put our feet in the water. It was SOOO COLD!!!
Conner spent most of his time looking for neat rocks. He is fascinated with rocks, and has a collection at home. He only picked out five rocks, but they were each very unique, and very pretty.
We dropped in to see my cousin Randy's family. They live on Whidbey Island, actually they just purchased a new home, and Lisa took us on a short tour of her new home. It's so neat! The views of the water are incredible, and it has so much space! I'm so excited for them.
Mom and dad took us to Deception Pass. We walked accross this bridge, and there's an area right in the middle of the bridge where you can walk down some stairs and see below the bridge. It's such a beautiful state. I love visiting Washington.
Our next stop was at the beach to see some tide pools. When we arrived, the tide was too high, so we took off our shoes and just put our feet in the water. It was SOOO COLD!!!
Conner spent most of his time looking for neat rocks. He is fascinated with rocks, and has a collection at home. He only picked out five rocks, but they were each very unique, and very pretty.
We dropped in to see my cousin Randy's family. They live on Whidbey Island, actually they just purchased a new home, and Lisa took us on a short tour of her new home. It's so neat! The views of the water are incredible, and it has so much space! I'm so excited for them.Our last stop was at Fort Casey. I can't imagine a better place for a 13 year old boy to hang out. This old fort was built during World War I, and was used in World War II as well. It's been closed up now, and you can go exploring. What an amazing place. There are stairs and ladders everywhere that lead to secret passages. Most of the passages have been boarded up, but some are still open, and it was so fun to see where they led. There are hidden look out towers, and guns hidden in the mountain. Conner was in HEAVEN.
Mom tried to hide at the bottom of a steep flight of stairs, it was so dark you couldn't see her there, she was trying to scare Conner and Jessica. They're too smart. They saw a shine off of her camera and knew it was her. That's pretty good, it was pitch black!!
This is one place where Conner can climb up and down and all around and not get into trouble! Sure, climb on a cannon, I don't care!!!
There was a herd of deer in the field by the fort, Conner walked right up to them. He couldn't touch them, but he was so close, I thought he would be able to.
Right next to the fort is an old lighthouse, and a few other fun things to take pictures of! All in all it was a really nice day. We went home and had breakfast for dinner! YUM!
We drove home on Monday, and at about 10pm, my mom called and said they finally had hot water. We sure enjoyed hanging out with my parents and grandparents. Hopefully we can do it again soon!
Mom tried to hide at the bottom of a steep flight of stairs, it was so dark you couldn't see her there, she was trying to scare Conner and Jessica. They're too smart. They saw a shine off of her camera and knew it was her. That's pretty good, it was pitch black!!
This is one place where Conner can climb up and down and all around and not get into trouble! Sure, climb on a cannon, I don't care!!!
There was a herd of deer in the field by the fort, Conner walked right up to them. He couldn't touch them, but he was so close, I thought he would be able to.
Right next to the fort is an old lighthouse, and a few other fun things to take pictures of! All in all it was a really nice day. We went home and had breakfast for dinner! YUM!
We drove home on Monday, and at about 10pm, my mom called and said they finally had hot water. We sure enjoyed hanging out with my parents and grandparents. Hopefully we can do it again soon!
70th Wedding Anniversary
Warning: Picture overload!!! If you don't want to see a lot, just don't read this. I am writing about our vacation in 3 separate posts, this is the second post. I've actually posted a lot more pictures on my facebook.
When we arrived in Arlington, we found out that Grandma and Grandpa's fridge had stopped working...it was Friday the 13th. We knew we really needed a working refrigerator if we were going to pull off this open house that evening. So Mom, Dad, Jessica, and I all went shopping. Conner was the lucky one, he got to go hang out with my cousin Dorel's family. They made a huge slip and slide which kept Conner entertained for the rest of the day. (Thanks again Stephanie!!) We found a great deal on a refrigerator at Best Buy. I think everyone thought I was crazy, snapping pictures left and right.
It was fun for me because I didn't have to make any huge decisions, just take pictures. Jessica and I got a little bit silly...
We got home and the four of us unloaded the new fridge and set it up, and took out the old one. Then we started setting everything up for the open house. It was supposed to start at 6:00pm, but people started showing up at 5:15!! I had been setting things up and was going to go clean myself up before people started arriving... that didn't happen. Luckily most people didn't know me, and I took my place behind the cake and ice cream, hoping nobody would recognize me. I felt very frumpy.
Jessica helped me serve, and then spent most of the evening taking hundreds of pictures. She took most of these, and I think she did a great job. She was so positive and helpful. We truly had a nice evening.
Conner came with Dorel's family, and then spent the evening with his "new" cousins. I think they had a fun night too. They kind of hid out quite a bit, playing hide and seek and tag, and eating LOTS of refreshments.
Here is a picture of my dad. (The goodlooking one in the back.)
And my mom (on the left)
Here are the guests of honor. John and Helen Dickson. They are both in their nineties, both very active and happy, and very happily married. It was touching seeing them interact with each other throughout the day, even before the celebration. Grandpa is so funny, he told such funny jokes to the kids, and grandma spends her day serving grandpa, and making sure everything is running smoothly.
We put this sign out by the road, and so many cars that drove by would honk. It was so fun.
Just a few pictures of the party, this is from below the patio in the makeshift parking lot.
This was the display/dessert table. It's a picture of John and Helen when they were married, and one taken this year.
Gifts were not necessary, but there were some brought, and we took a picture of them. Many cards were brought and sent through the mail along with email messages. Grandma read every single one of them. It really meant a lot to her.
By 9:30pm most people had left. We came into the house to find a hot water heater that wasn't working! That wasn't fun with church first thing in the morning! But that's a story for the next post!! I think their bishop stated it perfectly in his card to them, "70 years!! just a drop in the bucket in the eternal scheme of things!"
When we arrived in Arlington, we found out that Grandma and Grandpa's fridge had stopped working...it was Friday the 13th. We knew we really needed a working refrigerator if we were going to pull off this open house that evening. So Mom, Dad, Jessica, and I all went shopping. Conner was the lucky one, he got to go hang out with my cousin Dorel's family. They made a huge slip and slide which kept Conner entertained for the rest of the day. (Thanks again Stephanie!!) We found a great deal on a refrigerator at Best Buy. I think everyone thought I was crazy, snapping pictures left and right.
It was fun for me because I didn't have to make any huge decisions, just take pictures. Jessica and I got a little bit silly...
We got home and the four of us unloaded the new fridge and set it up, and took out the old one. Then we started setting everything up for the open house. It was supposed to start at 6:00pm, but people started showing up at 5:15!! I had been setting things up and was going to go clean myself up before people started arriving... that didn't happen. Luckily most people didn't know me, and I took my place behind the cake and ice cream, hoping nobody would recognize me. I felt very frumpy.
Jessica helped me serve, and then spent most of the evening taking hundreds of pictures. She took most of these, and I think she did a great job. She was so positive and helpful. We truly had a nice evening.
Conner came with Dorel's family, and then spent the evening with his "new" cousins. I think they had a fun night too. They kind of hid out quite a bit, playing hide and seek and tag, and eating LOTS of refreshments.
Here is a picture of my dad. (The goodlooking one in the back.)
And my mom (on the left)
Here are the guests of honor. John and Helen Dickson. They are both in their nineties, both very active and happy, and very happily married. It was touching seeing them interact with each other throughout the day, even before the celebration. Grandpa is so funny, he told such funny jokes to the kids, and grandma spends her day serving grandpa, and making sure everything is running smoothly.
We put this sign out by the road, and so many cars that drove by would honk. It was so fun.
Just a few pictures of the party, this is from below the patio in the makeshift parking lot.
This was the display/dessert table. It's a picture of John and Helen when they were married, and one taken this year.
Gifts were not necessary, but there were some brought, and we took a picture of them. Many cards were brought and sent through the mail along with email messages. Grandma read every single one of them. It really meant a lot to her.
By 9:30pm most people had left. We came into the house to find a hot water heater that wasn't working! That wasn't fun with church first thing in the morning! But that's a story for the next post!! I think their bishop stated it perfectly in his card to them, "70 years!! just a drop in the bucket in the eternal scheme of things!" What a great example of love for us all.
Arlington, Here we come!
I decided that I'm going to break this next post up into 3 segments. My grandparents were going to be celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary on Saturday, and my parents were going to celebrate their 43rd wedding anniversary on Monday. I haven't had any real vacations this summer, excluding Education Week, so I thought it would be fun to drop in and spend the weekend with them. I had received an invitation on facebook for an open-house on Saturday, and had already sent a message back to them saying I would not be able to make it. Then I thought...why not?? I asked Conner to come along with me and Jessica. I was so surprised that Jessica said yes. She works, and is really busy, actually next weekend is the busiest weekend of the year because students will be moving into apartments for the school year. But the weekend of the anniversary she was free.
We had a lot of fun in the car. These are just a few funny snapshots of us on the trip. We left at 7am, and arrived in Arlington at 9pm...not too bad.
Jessica's in-laws live in Hermiston, Oregon. We thought about going to see them while we were on our way, it's just over the half way point for us. Jessica was so excited that she was actually able to find their house by herself. We were disappointed to find that they were both working. Jessica left them a note and we were off again. (On our way home, they asked us to call them when we were an hour away. They came home from work and gave us two "famous" Hermiston watermelons, and a bag of fresh tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant. We had such a nice visit with them. Chris' parents are such neat people)
When we arrived in Arlington, the family was having a small anniversary party with Grandma and Grandpa. Several of my cousins and their families were there. My mom found out that we were coming a couple of hours before, she was so excited. She whispered to the cousins that I was just a few minutes away, so they extended their stay just a bit longer. When we arrived, I was told by my cousin Janice that the house was so full of people that they wanted us to go into the living room and see how long it took my grandparents to notice I was there. It didn't take long at all. Grandpa noticed right away, and was reaching to give me a hug when grandma noticed. We all had a very nice visit. I was so glad we came. It's been so many years since I've seen some of my cousins. They are always so sweet and make me feel so comfortable when I come.
We had a lot of fun in the car. These are just a few funny snapshots of us on the trip. We left at 7am, and arrived in Arlington at 9pm...not too bad.
Jessica's in-laws live in Hermiston, Oregon. We thought about going to see them while we were on our way, it's just over the half way point for us. Jessica was so excited that she was actually able to find their house by herself. We were disappointed to find that they were both working. Jessica left them a note and we were off again. (On our way home, they asked us to call them when we were an hour away. They came home from work and gave us two "famous" Hermiston watermelons, and a bag of fresh tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant. We had such a nice visit with them. Chris' parents are such neat people)
When we arrived in Arlington, the family was having a small anniversary party with Grandma and Grandpa. Several of my cousins and their families were there. My mom found out that we were coming a couple of hours before, she was so excited. She whispered to the cousins that I was just a few minutes away, so they extended their stay just a bit longer. When we arrived, I was told by my cousin Janice that the house was so full of people that they wanted us to go into the living room and see how long it took my grandparents to notice I was there. It didn't take long at all. Grandpa noticed right away, and was reaching to give me a hug when grandma noticed. We all had a very nice visit. I was so glad we came. It's been so many years since I've seen some of my cousins. They are always so sweet and make me feel so comfortable when I come.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Mission Call!!
I seriously didn't think we were going to be able to find out where Steve was going on his mission until tomorrow!! We have all been so busy, it was impossible to get the whole family together at the same time to open his mission call! Steve has been putting a new roof on the Salt Palace (that will be a two month long job!), he had to work for 16 hours today and wasn't going to get home until 9:00pm. Steve Sr. had a coordinating council tonight, that's where all the Stake Presidents in the Tooele Valley, and the Area Authority have a meeting. He wasn't going to be home until after 9:00pm. On Wednesday nights I take Kaylea to work. We leave at 5:30pm and don't get back until midnight. Tonight we pulled some strings and were able to get home by 9:00pm. So that was the plan...everyone get home at 9:00 to open it! Conner went with the Young Men to a Salt Lake Bees baseball game. He didn't get home until almost 11:00pm. Conner feels very loved...we couldn't wait, and opened it without him. I'll have to make it up to him. We got Jessica on the line so she could hear at the same time as the rest of us.
Steve came home, took off his dirty shirt; the pants, face, and hands were still filthy from work, and tore into the envelope.
Notice dad holding Jessica on the phone... Steve pulled it out and started to read it, but when Kaylea leaned over to see, he stopped her. He held it so close to his face that only he could see it, and said... Oh that's so COOL! We were all asking "where!!! Where?!!" But he had to read the entire paragraph to us.
He has been called to serve in the Frankfurt Germany mission. He speaks a small amount of Spanish so I thought he'd go somewhere in South America, but he didn't want to go to a spanish speaking mission. He is so excited! I was looking at the map, and it looks like he's in the same mission as my sister Tera. How cool is that?? I tried to call her, but I think it was about 5:00am...sorry Tera!
Steve came home, took off his dirty shirt; the pants, face, and hands were still filthy from work, and tore into the envelope.
Notice dad holding Jessica on the phone... Steve pulled it out and started to read it, but when Kaylea leaned over to see, he stopped her. He held it so close to his face that only he could see it, and said... Oh that's so COOL! We were all asking "where!!! Where?!!" But he had to read the entire paragraph to us.
He has been called to serve in the Frankfurt Germany mission. He speaks a small amount of Spanish so I thought he'd go somewhere in South America, but he didn't want to go to a spanish speaking mission. He is so excited! I was looking at the map, and it looks like he's in the same mission as my sister Tera. How cool is that?? I tried to call her, but I think it was about 5:00am...sorry Tera!I don't think we will be sleeping tonight...we're all very excited. Steve will report to the MTC on December 8th. We are applying for his passport right away.
VERY EXCITING!!!
Saturday, August 7, 2010
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