Chelsey, lately.

well, lately i have been babysitting everyday, studying for this nclex exam for this coming march 14th, and working out! thats pretty much been my daily life! i am just finishing up the first month of the Insanity workout program. i must say, that is a tough work out! for not being in shape at all (due to sitting on my butt all day while i would study during nursing school and taking naps whenever possible) i have done really well! i feel a big difference with my body and muscles! i actually feel like a have abs (under the flab...i guess i could call them "fl-abs" haha!) i am really trying though! i need to feel good in my whites (and i don't mean scrubs!!!)
job searching hasn't gone that well though. i am trying not to be discouraged. most recent graduate nurses (without prior tech positions) don't get a position right away until they pass the nclex. so once that happens, i will *hopefully* get something so i can get started and stop being so nervous about this whole "career-job-out-of-comfort-zone" situation. it has really been hitting me hard! i can't believe i am at the point of my life i have been dreaming about! i am so excited what life is going to bring next! i just need to do it! i have just always been so nervous about change. what scares me the most is rejection and negativity. i know i am going to be a big spaz when i start my nursing career...and in school, they teach about lateral violence and how experienced nurses treat their young and blah blah blah...and that kind of stuff makes me worried! i don't want people to be mad at me or disappointed! and most of all, do something wrong! i am going to be working in the health care field..with people's lives! real lives! but i need to remember my clinical skills. i did real awesome throughout my clinical nursing experience.  the only thing i rarely messed up on was documenting (that is documenting too much!..i love to write novels and use correct wording!) but other than that, i did wonderful.  even with 3 patients. phew thats tough..and one day i will have 5...or 6! oh gosh, can't think about that now! lol

there are some things in life i just need to get over. and i will. i am young and i am learning all about life. its crazy though, to think about one day i will be 40 and maybe have life figured out by then (gosh, i hope). as for now, i still feel 17! i just need to take it day by day.

 i found a quote on Pinterest the other day and it surely relates to my life and stepping out of my "comfort zone" ....it is by Eleanor Roosevelt:

"Do one thing that scares you every day."

as for the wedding planning, (planning -aka "looking on Pinterest"- always cheers me up when i have a crappy mood), i have the date, location,engagement photos, save the dates on the way, photographer, and videographer! as i cross those off my list, i just add more! i just can't wait! 10 months away!

here are some lovely photos my dear friend Ashlyn took of us! she is just getting started in her photography business facebook.com/MKphotography2013 and she did fabulous!

i love my handsome fiancé!

so glad he's mine!

<3

sorry for being m.i.a. again!

A LOT has been going on lately! i have not had a chance to update my blog because i am trying to PLAN A WEDDING! yes....he proposed! i will explain in a few, but yea! it happened! i have also been trying to study and do practice questions because the NCLEX-RN is coming up (March 14th)...oh boy, i am nervous! i just want to get it over with so i can find a job and get started on my career! its been so frustrating being in limbo between ending a stage in my life and getting out of my comfort zone..and into a VERY uncomfortable phase of starting a real adult job! i do not look forward to all of the struggles, but i pray every day for when it comes and i hope that it goes smoothly. until then, i will enjoy every last minute of not having adult responsibilities! it's been nice being out of school.  christmas was amazing (especially because i was engaged! and got to show off this beauty of a ring David picked out...all by himself!) well i suppose i will share the proposal story.  here it goes!!!!
December 13, 2012 was the day we had our pinning ceremony.  Afterwards, we planned on having a graduation party with our close friends and family.  It was such a wonderful party and everyone was so proud of us! While everyone was sitting and eating, my dad starts a little toast and says how proud he is of us for finishing nursing school...David and I are standing up in the front of the room saying thank you...and when he finished, a Mariachi band walked in and started playing! It was so awesome! Everyone was all into it! It was funny because they were singing "Happy Birthday" in spanish...and David says he specifically told them to not sing that song! Haha! So it was cheesy and cute all at the same time! Everyone was clapping along! Then when they finished playing that song, David and I gave each other a great big hug and said "Yay, we did it".  Then, he got down on his knee..everyone started screaming!...we just looked at each other and I said "Ohhh noooo!" really loud haha (meaning I was shocked!...not to say no, don't marry me!) and David says "This is it, baby!" Then stood back up and hugged me soooo tight! He then got back down on his knee, held my hand and stated his love for me! Tears were flowing from his eyes!  I could see them coming down his cheeks in the dim light when the flashes of people's cameras were going off.  He then pulled the ring out of his sock and asked me "Will you marry me?"and I said (like a spastic fool) "yes, yes, YES!" haha then everyone clapped and cheered and ran up to hug us and take pics! Wow, I really felt so special and blessed that night! I have never been the star of the show before and it felt really nice to have our family and friends witness such a wonderful thing! I will never forget the looks on everyone's faces while he was proposing to me! Especially David's mom and sister.  They were so surprised! I will always remember their faces full of tears! We have it all photographed by our amazing friend Dustin Baker.  Here are some pics!

Now I am in the wonderful world of planning a wedding! 

But no worries, I won't become a crazy bridezilla! (Hopefully! haha!)

November 30, 2013 will be the day I become Mrs. Ramos!

i'm back! and with great news!

i told myself i had to stop blogging for a little while because school was going to be my main priority.  i felt so much pressure to pass and overwhelmed by the thought of having to do things such as blogging and such.  well i am here to say that I PASSED NURSING SCHOOL ..... WE passed nursing school! yes, me and my hunny did it! we took our final exam last week on dec. 4 and found out our grade right away and did the calculations and realized we made it! we made it through the roughest journey of our lives and we did it together.  i feel so blessed that i was able to keep up and not fall behind a semester (i almost did during our hectic 8 week peds/ob rotation) but HEY 77=RN and thats what i am! (well officially after i pass boards).  i still haven't got my date yet to take the exam but, i have a feeling i will be fine...and david too.  and david already got a job! this dude was amazing to maintain a nurse tech and lab job while in school and helped him out to be accepted to work in ER as an RN sometime soon! i am so proud of him.  he inspires me to overcome my fears and push to be out of my "comfort zone" which is very hard for me....
so this week so far, we had our graduation banquet and NCLEX review course...and then on thursday is the BIG DAY! it will be our pinning ceremony! we get to wear our lovely, attractive white school nurse uniforms (that i used to say in clinicals, "we look like big tampons"haha).  for the pinning ceremony, we are considering that to be our graduation day but technically it is to "pin" the graduate nurses instead of the old school way of "hatting".  no one wears those silly nurse hats anymore...probably because men started to do nursing. (i couldn't imagine seeing david in a nurse hat) and afterwards, we are having a party at my old job that i worked for 6 years, chateau cafe. i am so happy it is going to be there because that is where my work ethic began back when i was 16 years old.  it is going to be such a fun night with family and friends! i can't wait! and YAY its CHRISTMAS TIME! this is the month of smiles!

here are some pictures from the past few months of being m.i.a.

it's fall, y'all!

hey guys! i am so happy today because the cool front FINALLY came through!  so here i am, this morning, drinking my coffee and blogging :)
life has been pretty great lately even though clinicals have been increasing my anxiety lately.  i had my rotation in the ED this past week and it was awesome!  i even conquered my fear and started an IV on someone! i even obtained a blood specimen! it took a lot out of me to finally cross that off of my "to do" list.  during our dinner break before we actually went on the floor, i took my blood pressure and saw that it was 120/94! that second number is pretty high for me! and my pulse was 110 at rest! talk about an assessment...lol...i, of course, knew the culprit...it was mr. anxiety knocking at my door and i was trying so hard not to let him in!!!! well, in clinicals the day before, mr. anxiety barged in and decided to make my chest and face fire red when helping out a nurse who was starting an IV on a toddler...i was so nervous and under pressure i had trouble opening a package up for the nurse because of those stupid blue gloves (large is too big and medium is too small..i can't win!) well i am happy my hands don't shake or anything when i am nervous...i just turn red..so people think i am sunburned.  lol.
any-WHOO, it's fall, y'all and i am excited, once again, about this weather and also something else.....
PUMPKIN flavored EVERYTHING! haha.  its great because usually pumpkin flavored stuff isn't too high in fat (i'm trying to start some healthy habits by eating right and exercising more..but who isn't..lol!)
here is the first pumpkin of the season:

omg this bread has been part of my breakfast this whole week!  its so yummy when drinking my coffee in the morning and its only 80 cals a slice!

happy birthday, david!

Today, I want to wish my hunny a very special 27th birthday!!!! I hope you have a great birthday and wonderful year!!!! Lots of amazing things will be happening for you during your 27th year! I love you! -Chelsey

                                                   this yummy tres leches cake is from the bakery @ whole foods

sorry so late!

hey guys!
sorry i am late on blogging! life has been a little crazy since my last entry.  school started and it was such a crazy week filled with orientation and 8 hour lectures every day with only a couple of breaks....it is officially the semester of ICU and emergency care! it's not my favorite,  but i am open to learning all about how to care in a crisis situation, because yes, i love people (wellllll, that's a good thing! lol)
the more and more i learn new things in this semester, the greater my passion grows for mother baby nursing care.
i know, i am being negative about my learning opportunity, but i suppose i should really state how i feel about this semester when it is closer to the end and i have gotten a lot more actual hospital/clinical experience. oh, and we had test one, which i didn't do so great,
soooo..............i'm hangin' in there!
as for the other crazy things going on during the past few weeks, we had a hurricane (isaac) come through and stirred up everything! i tagged along with david's family (with two pups and a bird) to shreveport to avoid hurricane issues such as the power outage (it was out for like 7 days for some people!).
my house and family were ok and so was david's family. just minor damage. however, my heart goes out to the people in laplace (city close by) and the area of plaquemines parish.  they got really bad flooding and damage.  i know a lot of people who lost their houses :( but thankfully with so much help, life is getting back to normal for them, slowly.  prayers, please :)

its getting close to the end of saturday and i have got to stop my blog break and finish studying for the night. here's a couple of pics to share how life has been.........

the amazing "Up" themed birthday was for david's cousin's baby, Eli and created by his wonderful parents, Meagan and Victor

pup shots are from the hurricane evacuation

well, it's a start!

i am really looking forward to sharing my wonderful life moments on my new blog.  currently, what's happening is the start of a new semester of nursing school, which is the LAST SEMESTER of the the two year program!  i can't believe the light is now starting to shine through the end of the tunnel! it has been such a wonderful, knowledgeable journey!  i am so happy to have been able to share this experience with my boyfriend of almost SIX years! yes, we are in the same program....around each other 24/7...during clinicals, study sessions, exams, lecture.....every moment, he has been by my side helping and guiding me (he use to be a medic in the navy and, fortunately, has tons of healthcare field experience...and me, struggling because i only had experience with serving coffee/making cafe food and babysitting)  so, yea, you can say we have spent a lot of time together recently! it has all been for the good of our future!  we have really learned more about each other.  i have so much appreciation for what david has achieved and i know he feels the same for me.

oh, boy, so i don't want to overwhelm this blog with so much info at the start, so i am going to keep the  intro. short.  however, as more blogs come along, i will surely share things from the past!  i have SO much to share! and will share as the future comes along! things are about to get NUTS these next couple of years, and i am SO EXCITED! 

sneak peek: graduation, new job/CAREER, new car, engagement, online bachelor's program, wedding, decorating our own house or apt, baby.

i am finally achieving the desires of my heart.....     

chelsey says, "cheers"....  cheers to the beginning of my wonderful blog journey...

pic is from our "dating" anniversary of 4 years -dec. '10

time is flyin' !