"The Ends of March"

Well, where in the world did March go??!!  Time is flying right by, spring break has come and gone, flowers are popping up everywhere, and this house hold is excited for summer to hurry up and get here!  With the newness of spring I had to search for a new blog background.  (I "dig" the flowers...) : ) Daryle was taking me to work the other day and this gorgeous rainbow stretched across the sky.  They amaze me!  Never gets old to see these....  Apparently with spring comes the desire to wear more colorful clothes dug out from the deep dark recessed of one's closet.  Thus, Ni'ke's outfit for school this past Tuesday.  (Perhaps a confusing mixture of winter and spring??)  We'll call it a "Sprinter" outfit.

I love visiting my friend Giuliana and her daughter Amelia in Healdsburg (my favorite town).  We don't see each other as much as we used to since I started working in a different part of the hospital, so our visits are few and precious!  We had breakfast a couple weeks ago, and little Miss Mimi entertained me and made my whole day!  So fun to see her walking!!!! 

Sheila Goes to School!

Well it's no secret that I've been back in grad school - it'll be two years this fall!  But I finally have been able to start a clinical rotation, (after diligently work for 18 months to get a contract at my hospital for the university I'm attending) and I'm loving it! (Please note the nursing student name badge that I'm sporting, citing me to be a student nurse from Fitchburg State.)  :)  This has been a humbling experience for me, and a little confusing for every at work who sees me!  Just goes to show that after working at this hospital for 11 1/2 years now, there is STILL a lot that I can learn.  This clinical rotation is for an advanced practice class I'm in called Advanced clinical concepts, which focuses on in-depth head-to-toe physical assessments and taking histories and physicals of patients.  I've been working with Gina, a nurse practitioner for Trauma Services and ACSS (Acute Care Surgical Services) here at my hospital in Santa Rosa.  We follow trauma patients as well as those with acute abdominal surgeries, make a daily plan of care for them, and order labs, xrays, CT's and other tests accordingly.  SO grateful for this amazing opportunity that has taught me so much and has given me a great foundation to my forensic practice.!

Jen's Baby Shower!

 This lovely woman threw a baby shower for ME 11 years ago when I was a brand new wife and mommy-to-be, 2000 miles away from my family and a little homesick.  I will never forget her thoughtfulness and the love and generosity of the nurses I worked with who soon became life-long friends!  And here we are, full circle, with Jen expecting a baby of her own!  Rhine Suubi ("river of hope") will make her appearance in April sometime!

 It was just a year ago that we were celebrating Angie's little miracle baby, Ashlynn!  She turns the big 1 this Thursday!

 Love the daffodils and the smiling face beside them!  Emily, your carrot cake was out of this world delicious!

 Ellen entertains us with a story!  Was great to see Bekki, who worked with us years ago!  Love that she came all the way to Roseville to spend the afternoon with us!

Loved this dog! I learned later that HE is Max, after calling him a she/her all day...  OOPS!

Always good to see my Kim!

Raye, looking at pictures!

Mary and Charlene

Show us that baby bump!!

Gifts of love.  Check out the little baby booty party favors!

 Almost naptime?! That's ok, Raye will entertain you! It's a great hostess that throws on a cowboy hat make a baby (and all of us) smile!

Love this picture of Theresa and Charlene!

Opening presents!

This is a little plaque/stand thing I got for Jen.  Suubi means "hope"!

Ellen and Max!

 Aaaahhh.... those tea cups made my whole day!  All I could think of were my grandmas!  I think all of them used quaint little teacups like these, but especially Grandma Cleo and I'm pretty sure Grandma Borton, too.  (With those amazing sugar cookies she used to make!)

The whole gang!  Back: Mary, Bekki, Angie, Ashlynn, Kim, Colleen, Charlene, Ellen, Theresa
Front: Emily, Jen's mom, Jen, Shannon, and Raye!  Thanks for such a fun and special day in Sonoma!  Can't wait to meet you, Suubi!!!

Haircuts and Happy Smiles

 I took the curly girlies to La Chaise Rouge for their annual haircut.  (Gotta love curly hair!)  I occasionally snip around on it from time to time, but with all the swimming around in chlorine that they do, it's good to have a professional help  me out and healthy up their curls now and then.

 Rea managed to not freak out when Maddy trotted up to her and sniffed her shoes.  :) 

Ni'ke was well-prepared and serious about her day of pampering, and brought her book a long for "dryer time".  She immediately said "yes" to an offer of pomegranate tea!

 Hose her down!

 Ni'ke posing for her 'after' shot!

I love the sign behind Rea's head. "Unattended children will be given an espresso and a free puppy."

Well, I can't have half of my children well-groomed, and the other half untamed and shaggy, so last night it was the boys' turn!  Here are the "before" shots:

 And the much improved AFTER!!!  They look like almost grown-up young men! (sigh)

Great and Precious Promises!

 While the rest of the country is digging themselves out of massive snow piles, we are enjoying some badly needed rain!  Daryle and I were driving the kids to swim practice the other day, and we were SURE that the end of the rainbow was literally right ahead of us, so close that we could touch it!  I was fully prepared to hop out of the car and stand on the side of the road, bathing in the colors, but alas....  It disappeared just as we approached it.  I love rainbows!