My little brother is a college graduate...

As Granddaddy said, now it's on to degrees #2 and #3.

He's done!

Brad and I at his graduation

And the people who paid for it all

No Stamps, No licking envelopes, No address lables. YIPPEE

Make a photobook!

My Party Dress

Wearing costumes makes me happy. Sometimes I do it for fun, and other times there is actually a purpose. This weekend I attended two birthday parties. The first was a "my little pony" themed party for my friend Anne who just wanted to celebrate like she was nine again. She wanted to wear a party dress and tights. So I found a party dress too! I thought the dress was clearly costume worthy, however I became aware that it was quite ambiguous to others. Another favorite activity of mine....making other people feel uncomfortable. Several people gave me funny looks as if they could not tell whether I was joking or not. Classic. When I left Anne's I headed to another themeless keg party. People were really confused at this one. Especially when Tim and I busted out our stellar dance moves. PS - I was sober.

Dan and I showing off the party dress

Showing off the robot moves

Katie taking advantage of Tim

Watching Tim juggle - getting ready for the hand off

Lighting of the Lawn

My first holiday season at UVA is off to a great start! Snow and lighting of the lawn in one week! Here are the highlights.

Snow in Charlottesville!!!

It's finally begining to look like Denver around here. Anne and I played in the snow between writing papers and preparing presentations tonight. Then we sat in her 18th century room on the range and built a fire. What a romantic night.

I aspire to be like them

Thinking About Staying at UVa....

Until they beat VA Tech! There are plenty more degrees this place has to offer. I can stay for years and continue to party on the corner. I may have overlooked the benefits of being an eternal student in the past, but I am fully aware of the potential I have to remain in Charlottesville for a few more years. Here are pictures from Thanksgiving weekend - out in Arlington and on the Corner in C'ville.

Taking a break from writing papers....

W&M UVa Groupies For Life

We have this tradition, of packing up the Jeep and heading west to Charlottesville for a "real" tailgate and football game. Then we get all dolled up in our room at the Cavalier Inn and run around "grounds" as if we are real UVa students. And as we were taught to honor tradition so well, we lit our candles and met in Charlottesville once again this weekend. Round 5 ladies. Now that I am in Charlottesville, a few things have changed the way this trip usually works. For starters, they come from the north in Hondas, stuffed full of more bed linens than a Holdiay Inn. We cram into my place downtown instead of picking up random Lacrosse teams at the Cavalier Inn...although we still did make it to a Ramada if memory serves me correctly. And we take the trolly around town because now I know how public transportation works. Things that don't change: the obscene number of random pictures we take, Bodo's in the morning, the way we dance in the streets of Charlottesville, Barbie's spread at the tailgate (minus one pumpkin roll), and the amount of trouble we cause at 4pm. Here's a sample........

Happy hour

Getting happier

Game Day with Cavalier man

And the sunglasses are on...inside....while talking on the phone

Finding a white van to pose with and rocking out

Clearly shocked

From VA live in CO Hate the Sox Go Rox

October 2007: Rockies win the NLCS Pennant and go to the World Series for the first time in franchise history. After spending an entire summer watching the Rocks play from the stands, I move to Virginia in August. Go figure. So in a rare moment of spontaneity, I book a ticket to Denver for the weekend during which the world series will be played there. Life is short. These things don't happen everyday. We have to make the most of it when we can. Plus, I've always wanted a "Travis Simone" moment in my life and this may have been it. Although, I did not get tickets to any of the games. The Rockies were swept by the Red Sox in 4 games, ending on Coors Field, but it was a weekend that I will never forget and neither will the city of Denver.

Walter's sign for the stands - some people were lucky enough to go to game 3:-(

Carrie and I made fast friends with these guys

Carrie and I hanging out before the first pitch

Loving Life in Scrubs

Welcome to the world of nurses, where the uniforms are comfy and you are once again privileged to receive a locker for all your stuff. Clearly, I have not achieved the prominent status required to receive my own locker, so I just shove a backpack into my preceptor's little cubby.

There are some other aspects that are a tiny bit different than they were at E&Y too- cell phones are ignored for 12-14 hours at a time, diapers and wipes are more common than computers, and clients actually do call us for help with issues. I've worked two 12 hour day shifts which means that I go to work in the dark, go home in the dark, an do not even realize that the temperature outside may be different than it is on my floor. It sounds a little dismal from that description, I suppose, but I have already had so many exciting experiences that I cannot wait to go back for more.

I am on the neuro unit for the next six weeks. We see a lot of brain and spinal cord injury patients who are awaiting or recovering from surgery. We also see patients who may have been involved in an accident or incident in which multiple parts of their body were compromised, but if there is anything wrong with their head or neck, they come to the neuro floor. The NIMU is a specialized step-down unit between the ICU and the floor where I have been working with my preceptor. Essentially, the six bed unit houses patients who are not sick enough to be in the ICU but not "well" enough to be on the floor. I have gotten to see some pretty cool things that I'll leave unmentioned for anyone who is not as enthralled with the human body as I am. I've also gotten to participate in a lot of the care for patients in the unit, thanks to my wonderful preceptor. She really lets me get in there and encourages me to perform lots of skills. Of course, this is wonderful for my confidence, so we have started out very well.

I got to see a real gamma knife surgical procedure as it was happening this week. This is a wonderful, relatively new type of non-invasive treatment for things like brain tumors, arteriovenous malformations, acoustic neuroma, and trigeminal neuralgia. The procedure is incredibly specific at targeting only the intended tissue and happens within an hour. It operates by aiming several low-dose beams of radiation at the exact site of the lesion. Because each dose of radiation occurs within a very short time frame, the procedure does not pose many risks to the patient. It essentially eliminates all of the risk associated with open craniotomies. I was with the patient when she went in for the procedure and met her on the way out. She was completely conscious the entire time. SO COOL!

Aside from all of the neat things that I got to do and see the last couple of days, I am really enjoying how fast the time goes by. Well, I mean, I feel a bit overwhelmed that I have to take in as much as I am in such a short period of time, but I think that I will really thrive in a profession that I enjoy so much I rarely look at the clock. I am exhausted at the end of each day and can barely stand to watch tv afterwards, but it has already been so rewarding. I'm really beginning to feel as if I have made the right decision to change careers. Good thing huh?

Katie and Ryan's Wedding

Katie Zemitis got married! One of my very best friends - since we were toddlers - finally tied the knot last weekend. The wedding was beautiful, and best of all, I got to share it with all of my best friends and family. We tore up the dance floor, fought for the bouquet and and of course, took lots of pictures. Hopefully the professional photographer did a better job than me!

Best friends forever

I was on train duty, but if you saw Katie's dress during the reception you would have fired me!

Hanging out before the ceremony



Mr. Zemitis walking Katie down the aisle

Tossing the bouquet!!!

No one actually thought they would be nice!

Dad and I dancing at the reception

I love these girls!

Leaving on a jet pla...in a mitsubishi

After a few tears and lasts breaths of mountain air, I headed out to Virginia. Here are some pictures from the top of my old apartment in Denver. Standing in front of Coors Field - home of the Colorado Rockies
Standing in front of the city skyline
That's Invesco Field at Mile High back there - Home of the Denver Broncos
Waving goodbye to Denver

Back on the East Coast But Still Living on the West Side ~Anne Fishwick

So my friends Bryce and Laurie Lee have this great blogspot where they post stories about what they are up to every now and then. My favorite part are all the adorable pictures of their son, Braden. I love catching up with the Lees via their blogspot and thought that my friends and family might be interested in what I am doing as well. Let's see if I am right....

Nursing school is far exceeding my expectations so far. My faculty and classemates are phenomenal and I am really beginning to feel as if I made the right decision by going back to school. God has blessed me so many times by granting me the reassurance that I needed after making such a big move. I have made great friends, been exposed to fantastic learning experiences and have enjoyed sunny skies that almost come close to those in Denver. But seriously, I am learning a ton and really loving every second of it. I am headed into my last two weeks of class before being released to work in the hospital.

I've been a strong supporter of the 'Hoos in football this season, logging attendance at three home games! The McKeevers and Wagners graciously host tailgates when they are at games and my friends who are local to the area host some as well, so I always have a place to hang out before and after games. Here are some pictures from the bl0wout game against Pitt last weekend.

CNL classmate Nathan and I tailgating

CNL Friends Elly and Nathan

All of us inside Scott Stadium