The Adventures of A Nurse Mom

The one thing no one told me about being a parent was the huge amount of bodily fluids I would have to endure. Don't get me wrong... I knew there would be a lot. I did understand that I was responsible for that little person's fluids. You become very in tune to what is coming out of the orifices of your brand new baby. You painstakingly monitor every ounce they take in and the color, volume and consistency of all that comes out. What they don't tell you, is when they get a bit older, they are incredibly interested in those fluids. No one told me that my 2 yo middle child would put her hands in her diaper then try to play with my hair. Or touch her poop as I am trying to change her. No one told me that my oldest child would squeeze her legs together when she pees so it pools on top of her legs and ultimately ends up on the the floor. I am three kids deep, and I clean up more bodily fluids at home than I do during a 24 total hour shift weekend at the ER! The nurse in me fee...

Fun fact about my crazy family... my brother in law actually believes that the popular 1980's show "Alf" ripped him off and stole the line "Excuse me for livin'" from him. He will randomly rant about the fictional alien "stealing his line" and while the rest of us think he is absolutely crazy, he truly believes it. So of course, being the comforting, supportive family we are, we all will randomly declare "Excuse me for liven'!" just so we can get a rise out of him. I use this line as the subject of this entry, because there is something that has been on my mind regarding that phrase. I am an apologizer. I apologize for EVERYTHING. In an "excuse me for livin'" kind of way, because sometimes when I apologize, I don't even know why. I grew up in a family that are all apologizers. Almost every sentence starts with "I'm sorry, but could you..." or "I'm sorry did I..." If I seem to apologize o...

If you ever want time to stop, just get pregnant. If you want to feel like time is actually working in reverse, get pregnant after age 35. I feel like I have been pregnant for 47 years. I have never been this uncomfortable in my life. My OBGYN has diagnosed me with 3rd-kid-syndrome. Basically I'm healthy and baby is healthy, but I'm old and its my 3rd pregnancy so everything just feels awful. To all of you mom's that have had more than 3 kids, I bow down to you. I could not be more grateful that I am healthy and baby is developing well and there are no apparent complications. My only problem, albeit a selfish one, is that I feel like I must just be a whiner. I am not a whiner in real life. ER nurses are not whiners, nor are we the most sympathetic people on the planet. (My family constantly complains about my lack of sympathy in most situations). I do not complain about pain, or exhaustion. I work 12-16 hour shifts in a busy ER on a mid-shift. Now I feel like I can barely...

Exhausted... yes in my introduction post I talked a bit about this. Let's talk a little more about this shall we? Parents, you know this feeling. Mom's usually get the "most exhausted" trophy, but I know for a fact that this is a parent thing as a whole. My wonderful husband, Jack (even though he snores like a ban-saw cutting through granite) truly does understand the meaning of teamwork. He is definitely not the guy to ever use a vomit-worthy expression like "Woman's Work" (and shame on anyone for using that expression). He is the main "cook" in our family. Which is great because it is not my favorite task. He mops and vacuums, does laundry, definitely shares the work with the littles. Basically, his mom raised him right. However, that being said, there are some "extra exhausting" things that Moms just do. Like grow babies INSIDE their bodies... and give birth. We are currently expecting our third child. Yes that is right. We are ...

To mother's everywhere, I salute you. I salute single moms, working moms, office moms, stay at home moms, teacher moms, retail moms, factory moms... you get it. Every mom that cares about their children and every mom that wants the best for their children, I salute you. In  my line of work I do run into mothers that should never be mothers. Mothers that have born children, but do not deserve to have those small lives in their hands. However, most mothers have much of which to be proud. I have only ever been a mother and a nurse. I was a teacher, but not as a mother. I was pregnant in nursing school, and started my first job in the ER 4 months after my daughter was born. Therefore, I can only speak to healthcare moms. Much of my posting will be in regards to that, as it is all I know. So for all of you other moms out there working hard, this is never meant to downgrade what you do. That being said... Working in healthcare and being a parent is the most rewarding, exhausting, tha...