Another year gone.

Ok, so I let another three months go by without an update.  *hangs head in shame*.  I don’t have a real good reason other than I have been extremely busy at work, and when I go home I workout, shower, eat then sit down/piddle around the house for an hour and go to bed.  I usually update the blog at work (when I have a few minutes) because that is when I feel the most creative and in the writing mode, but I have been pretty swamped lately and haven’t had any free time during the day.  Bad excuse, I know, but it’s the truth. The other reason I haven’t updated much, as I have stated in the past, is not a whole lot is going on.  I’m ok with that. A simple life is better than a hectic drama filled one any day.  I follow other bloggers and read about all the neat things they get to do and experience and how they don’t have to work because their blog is doing well and allows them to “work” from home.  I would love to be able to do that, but alas, I have no blog-worthy talents.  So I will just continue to bore my small audience with stories about my uneventful life and dream of being accepted into PA school.  :o) 

Since our last meeting, I have continued to work every other weekend at the rehabilitation house as a C.N.A, and for the most part I enjoy it.  It’s more the getting up early on a weekend to work part that I dislike than the actual job itself.  I really enjoy helping the patients heal and progress with their therapy so they can go back home to their normal lives.  There is still a lot for me to learn in this role, and so much to remember, but I am enjoying it and hopefully will only have to do it for another six months. 

I received my interview invitation and will be interviewing on January 6^th, so if anyone applied to WSU and has an interview on that date, maybe I’ll see you there!  In order to prepare I had a mock interview with one of my co-workers and her PA husband, which I already blogged about, but yesterday I had another interview with a former PA chair.  THIS WAS SO AWESOME!  He asked me questions like they would in an interview, I would answer and then he would tell me what to make sure to include in my answers or not include.  He asked me what questions I remembered from last year and then told me what they were looking for when they asked those questions.  For example, they asked me to name something I recently learned to do, and to explain how I learned to do it.  He said that they are looking for an analytic thinker, and to include words like analyze and examine.  He was so helpful, I cannot stress enough how important doing a mock interview is!  I am really kicking myself that I did not do this in preparation for my previous interviews as I think this could have changed a few things for me.  “Not the best science grades, that’s ok, she was persuasive and confident enough and explained very well why she is a good fit and that she can make it. “   This was not me.  The interview really is the biggest factor in getting in – don’t let anyone fool you.

Brad is doing well in his recovery.  He is now able to lift 20 pounds and has started to work out on a regular basis.  He should be released from work-comp in a month or two.  He was also able to find a job selling insurance, so he has been studying up for the licensing exam, and once he has that he can begin training.  This new phase in his life will be an adjustment for both of us.  He has been gone during the week for most of our relationship, so to have him home every day this past year has been nice.  I am an independent person, so I miss my alone time a little bit and having free reign over the tv remote, but it’s nice to have him home and to be able to do things during the middle of the week.  I am really hoping this new job will work out for him and that he enjoys it.  Especially if I am going to be in PA school next year and not working, he pretty much has to do well or we will lose the house and starve to death.  No pressure.  ;o)

Thanksgiving passed, and we didn’t do anything.  I had to work and Brad was studying, so we just stayed home and chilled.  We will be going to his mom/dad/grandma’s house for Christmas and will spend a day or two with them, then come home so I can work that weekend.  Yay- Not! I’m just thankful that things are better this year for the holidays than last year.

And last but not least, I thought I would end this post with some candid photos of me at Halloween.  I was dressed as Jim T. Chur –  get it?  Get it?  gym teacher!   Funny right?!  Har har. 

Every year at work we have a soup and chili cook off where 

people can bring in their best soups and chili for us to vote on, as well as a Halloween costume contest.  It is a lot of fun and the food is always delicious! and this year I thought I would dress up.  It was fun! 

 My fat belly - I'm a dude, not pregnant.

 

Does anyone else think I bare a striking resemblance to Lt. Dangle from Reno 911?

 Some other pictures from earlier in the year:

Serving pizza at Convocation – the welcome back to school event held every year (I was talking in the photo and thus the weird open mouthed smile)

Serving hot dogs at Welcome Fest – another welcome back to school event

See the theme here?  FOOD!

 

Updates

Ok, so I let the past few months slip by without any updates. Does that surprise anyone? What have I been up to the past couple of months, let me see….

I spent all of August and the first part of September preparing my PA application for submission, looking for a part time C.N.A. job and getting my shots up to date for a shadowing opportunity. I submitted my application and was verified in time for my application to be sent to WSU before their October 1^st deadline.  I was a little worried that I waited too long, but the director of the PA program was willing to review my personal statement, so I kinda wanted to know if he had any input.  Thankfully he thought it was good, or at least lied and told me it was, either way it is submitted and I can’t take it back.  Now, I am patiently awaiting the arrival of the supplemental application which I believe should be next week.  Once I submit the supplemental application, my whole application will be reviewed for an opportunity to interview.  The invitations will be sent out late November and the actual interview will be held in January.  There is so much waiting!!! 

I also had the opportunity to do a mock interview with one of my co-workers and her PA husband.  I can’t tell you how helpful it was!  They gave me some pointers and tips, but said that I did a good job overall.  I would really like to do one more in December or early January, depending on the date of the actual interview, just to get some more practice in. 

The last part of September and early October was spent doing orientation for my new C.N.A job!  I am working every other weekend at a local nursing home in their rehabilitation houses.  I help care for people who have recently had some type of injury/surgery and can’t quite be on their own yet.  The aids pretty much have to do it all, cook breakfast, housekeeping and patient care, so it can get pretty busy around there.  I’ve only been working there for a month and so far I am enjoying it – of course the extra money doesn’t hurt.  :o)  

Nothing else has been happening – mainly because there isn’t much extra time for anything to happen, and because I live an unexciting life.  I’m ok with that though.

PA School Application – Round 2

This past month I have been working on updating my application and personal statement for submission hopefully the first week of September.  I have also been working on setting up some more shadowing opportunities that will maybe lead into either volunteering or working as a C.N.A.  My only hold up right now is waiting for a dr.’s appointment to get a varicella titer, which is scheduled for next week.    Even though I am or have never worked in the health care field, working at a university has its perks.  I work with a retired dean of students who loves to help students succeed in any way he can.  What does this mean for me?  He has taken an interest in my struggles and wants to do what he can to help me get into pa school.  Sweet!  He would often set up mock interviews for his students and he wants to do that with me and then give me some coaching/feedback.  I know I should have taken advantage of this on campus when I was a student, but I just didn’t.  Very dumb on my part – I highly recommend doing this to everyone who is going to interview for ANYTHING.  Interview skills are very important and often neglected.  This is often the only chance to sell yourself, and if you are not prepared to answer some questions – no matter how hard they are, then you are out.  It all matters – clothing, posture, hair, attitude - presenting yourself confidently but without appearing cocky even though you may be nervous as all get out.  It may all be an act on the outside, but you have to be sincere when answering questions or you will be doing no one any favors.  I have received two interviews – one for medical school and one for pa school, and I am pretty sure my interviews are part of the reason I didn’t make it in.  I prepared for them, but not well enough.  I had some doubt about my pa application and didn’t think I would make it in due to the lack of healthcare experience, but in all reality, if I would have went into it thinking “hey, I may not have the experience, but I am a damn good applicant and I deserve this spot,”   I may have had a better interview and possibly offered a seat in the class.  I’m definitely going into this application season with a newer, better and stronger attitude.  I am getting accepted this year or die trying.   

Side note:

I had planned on taking some pictures of the rest of the house, but I ended up helping a friend paint some cupboards and ran out of time.  I will see what I can do this weekend.  :o)

Progress

It's been a long 6 months, but I am finally seeing some real progress towards my fitness goals.  I buckled down and changed my diet to be healthier and really focused on working out on a regular basis.  You might not be able to tell in the photos, but I have lost an inch in my waist and thighs! This is where I like to hide my fat so I am very happy I'm finally starting to see a difference in these areas.  My arms are more defined now where I am starting to see a little bulge in my triceps, and I have gained more muscle in my legs.  Oh, and my butt is smaller and firmer, yay!  I am beginning to think I may start doing a little light body building.  I don't plan on competing or anything like that, but I would like to become as fit as I can and build a little muscle doing it.  :o)  I still have a long ways to go, but I'd say it's a good start.

The top  pictures are from last week - Aug 2013, and the bottom three are from Aug 2012.

 

House Pictures!

Finally!!!    Here are some shots of the living room/kitchen/dining area.  I will post some more this weekend after I clean house.  :o)

Wildlife

My grandparents, and at one point my parents, owned a pet store and I loved "working" when I was a kid.  I say working because I mainly ran around playing with all the animals, but I did catch a few crickets for some customers.  NO!  I did not get paid for my job and yes, my grandparents had the labor board called on them once because I actually said I "worked" there to a customer.  I was like 5 or 6, it wasn't like I really knew what I was talking about.  Anyway,  I love animals and the softer and fluffier the better.  I always had a dog and cats running around the farm growing up and when I was a junior in high school I got my "own" cat. His name was Noah and he was a cool big black and gray tiger striped cat.  When I moved to Tucson he ran away because he wasn't used to other people and my dad was looking after him.  I was pretty heartbroken and when I visited my grandparents for Thanksgiving, I came home with this.


  

 Remember when I said my grandparents owned a pet store?  Well my grandma can sell you anything!  She rescued "Sunny" from a friend who had a dog that liked to kill the barn cats, but since my grandma also had two dogs, he spent most of his time hiding under the couch.  When I came to visit for turkey day I of course had to play with him and love on him, so when I was walking out the door she handed him to me in a box and said I think you should take him home with you.  So, "Sunny" became Bubbas and has been my little buddy ever since.  It will be 14 years this November! 

The rental home we lived in for the past 6 years had a tree in the front yard and four in the backyard, so we would have squirrels and rabbits constantly running around our yard - and on our roof.  Since they are so damned cute I would love to watch them run around and play.  (Yes, I know I will hate them once I start a garden and planting flowers, but they are so soft and cute!)  Since we built a new house, we had to start from scratch with our yard and thus we had no grass and no trees and I really missed seeing the squirrels and wabbits. Every once in awhile our neighbor would have a rabbit or two in his backyard and I couldn't wait until our grass started growing enough to have some in ours.  Well after a couple of months our grass started growing and the bunnies hoped on over!   Last night they were really close to the house and I caught a few pics.      

Look at the cute little bunnies! They look so soft! I just want to reach out and pet one.

Yes, I wrote a boring long story just so I could justify posting pictures of cute bunnies on my blog.  :o)

Workouts and Eating

Today I thought I would share with you my workout and eating regimen only because I think I finally found something that works for me and might even give me my six pack abs...someday.  :o)     Most of you will want to skip this post and that is ok.  I'm fine with that. 

As you know, I am a pretty regular exerciser and somewhat a healthy eater.  I know that I need to work better at both of these areas if I want to lose the fat I have slowly packed on around my waistline, and for the past six weeks I have been doing just that.  I actually started working out more regularly the beginning of the year, but the past six weeks I have been strict to my schedule.  I have also been trying a new eating approach and really paying attention to what my meals contain.  I'm not really trying to lose "weight" as I am at a decent weight, I am trying to lose the fat and build muscle.

My workouts have been a combination of Zuzka Light's Power Cardio and Strength DVD workouts, Tatianna's (from lovingfit.com) upper and lower body workouts and interval cardio.  I really like to use the DVD workouts during the week because they are short, about 15 minutes long, which is perfect because I do another 20 min HIIT combo on the treadmill afterwards.  Tati's workouts are usually around the 30 min length and with a 20 min run afterwards it just made my weeknights too short, so I do them on the weekends.  The HIIT (high intensity interval training) run combo that I do is 10 min of alternating 30 sec of a full out run with 30 sec walk, followed by 5 min of flat running. 

My schedule is this:
Monday: rest or yoga
Tuesday: fullbody workout followed by HIIT run combo
Wednesday: HIIT run combo
Thursday: full body workout followed by HIIT run combo
Friday: rest or yoga
Saturday: Upper body workout followed by HIIT run combo
Sunday: Lower body - optional HIIT run combo

I have a calendar set up to help me keep track of which exercises I need to do for the week and it feels so great to cross them off and know that I actually did them!  This schedule has worked out really well for me and I am noticing changes with my strength/stamina and the way I look.  I am at the point where I am adding in some weights to my workouts which adds some intensity to the workout.  I am also working out for six weeks, then taking a week off and doing nothing but yoga or resting.  I want to give my body a break every now and then, plus it keeps me motivated.

As far as my diet goes, I have been doing intermittent fasting every other day (EOD).  I tried the 16/8 combo but it didn't really seem to work for me.  With the EOD method, I eat normal every other day and "fast" on the off days.  I will explain what I mean when I say "fast" so you don't think I am not eating all day.  To start out, I figured out what my calorie range needed to be on a normal day using this formula.  Since I am trying to lose "weight" (more fat than weight) I cut the total down by 20%.  It comes to around 1250-1300 calories.  I don't really count my calories per say, but I try to use this as a guide. Now, my normal days I eat my normal calorie range, and my fasting days I cut my calories in half.  Yes, I said half, and no I am not starving myself.  Here's what I do: I fast on MWF which are the days I rest with the exception of Wednesdays when I run.  So I'm not doing a super intense workout on the days I am fasting and burning myself out.  I eat a small breakfast if I am hungry, and a larger lunch and then a smaller meal at night.  The EOD fasting really calls for you to eat one large meal a day, but I have a hard time not eating at night, so I just eat a small meal. The reason I chose this method, is because the research stated those who did this method of fasting lost more fat and gained more muscle than other methods.  So I tried it, and it works really well for me, but  I am also going to take a week off the fast the same week I take off my workouts, just to let my body take a brake. 

I have also been eating healthier.  I have a portion of protein, veggies, fat and carbs with every meal and use my hands as measuring tools - 1 palm is protein, 1 fist of veggies (though i usually do two with a salad), 1 cupped hand of carbs and 1 thumb of fat. My meals are pretty similar during the week which makes it really easy to prepare everything for work, and the weekend they are a little more lax only because I cook for the family and they don't want to eat salads all day.  :o)           

I haven't measured myself in awhile, but I think I am down about a 1/2 -3/4 inches around my hips and thighs.  I am finally able to get into my smaller jeans now without a muffin top! Plus, I am now starting to see definition in my arms, legs and abs.  I still have a ways to go and it's a slow process, but it's working!  Maybe I will get brave and post some before and after pics for y'all.  :o)

I really enjoy working out and being fit and healthy, and I want to make this a permanent part of my life.  I know it will be hard when I am in PA school, but a 15 min workout is definitely doable and will help me keep my sanity while studying. Not to mention if I can be in the shape I want to be in by the time I start, then all I will have to do is maintain which is a little easier.  I can do this. 

It's Been A(Long)while

Sooooo, it has been forever and a day since I last posted on this sad little blog of mine.  Quite honestly this year has been so full of bad things that I haven’t really wanted to talk about any of it because of how depressing it all was.  And by depressing, I really mean I was depressed for at least the first three or four months.  I won’t bore you with all the details but let me sum things up so you can finish reading this post sometime today.  :o)

1.      We finally closed on the new house (yes I will post pictures)  on January 18^th.   The week leading up to closing I requested a walk through.  We did not get a walkthrough.  There were some things that were not finished - some we knew about, some were a surprise.  Then, a couple days after closing we received and invoice from our contractor asking for additional money.  Our roof was missing shingles, and the shingles that were on would flap horribly in the wind.  We asked them to fix it, but they said not until we get our money.  There are a few other things that we found out were done poorly or incorrectly, so the first few months of living in a nice new home with so many flaws made me sick to my stomach.  I wasn’t even excited to move in, and I’m just now starting to enjoy the house. 

2.      I finally found a part time job as a C.N.A.  It lasted a whole two days.  When I got the call for an interview, they asked me what hours I could work.  I explained that I work full time in Wichita and wouldn’t be able to work until 6:00 pm, but could work until 10 or 11.  They said that would be no problem.  I interviewed, got the job and sat through two days of HR orientation.  Finally, after all the paperwork and orientation, I was ready for work.  I spent two four hour shifts training with another C.N.A and when I asked for the next week’s schedule, the scheduling lady said she needed to talk to the nurse in charge of things to see how they wanted to work me in.  Well, they decided that since I couldn’t do a 5-10 shift, that they couldn’t use me.  So I am still looking for C.N.A. work.

3.      I didn’t get into PA school, but I honestly wasn’t thinking that I would. I took the opportunity to do a feedback session and found out what I already knew – I need to get experience.  They also told me that my personal statement didn’t do a good job of explaining why I wanted to be a PA or set me out from the crowd.  Even though this hurt the most, it was good information.  Everyone that read my PS said it was great and well written, but apparently it wasn’t.  Since I wasn’t having much luck with finding a C.N.A. job and with everything else going on at the time (read below) I decided to wait a year to reapply.   

4.       Brad’s job progressively worsened, and sometime in April (I think) Brad slipped on the stairs and tore the muscles in his back.  He had to stay home for a couple of weeks.  After about two weeks of unpaid resting, Brad was finally ready to go back out and his boss decided to take the truck in and have a few things done to it.  So Brad would be sitting for another week.  When that week was up, Brad’s boss kindly told him not to worry about picking the truck up as he wouldn’t be driving anymore and gave a really bad excuse.  We were not surprised by all of this, but it would have been nice to know three weeks ago since Brad wasn’t being paid during this time. 

5.      Finally after a couple of months of searching, Brad found a job and started work again in June.  The first day on the job he pulled up to an elevated scale and as he was getting out of his truck he fell.  Five feet.  Onto his side.  He broke five ribs and bruised his lung and spleen.  So, once again he is at home mending broken ribs for another month or two.  At least this time it was work related and workman’s comp has been helping with everything. 

As you can see this year has truly been a year of the unlucky 13.  It just seemed like no matter how positive I tried to be and to look for the bright side of things, I just couldn’t find the light.  It was all sucky.  It still sort of is, but things are quieting down, Brad will go to work again soon and I decided to apply this year to PA school.  The PA program just hired a new chair and I had the opportunity to meet with him and talk about my chances. He gave me some really great ideas to get the experience I need plus some other general tips and advice.  He also said that I shouldn’t wait a year to apply and that if I want this, to go after it. There shouldn’t be any reason why I can’t get 100-200 hours by my interview in January.  He even offered to practice interviewing me and wants to follow up with me in a couple months.  This was a pretty big boost for me, and his pep talk really helped me get excited about this whole PA thing again.  So I talked to Brad and I’m going to go for it.  The next three years (one year of volunteering to get my hours and two in PA school) might suck a little, but it will be so worth it in the end. 

That has been the past seven months in a nutshell.  I will talk more about the house, post pictures and talk about a few other things that are going on at a later date, but I thought I would at least show my face on here and explain why I haven’t felt like posting much lately.