>Room service solves all problems

>Hey kids,

How are ya? I’m well on my way to getting into PA (physician assistant) school, fingers crossed! First step: Passed Nursing Aide test. Let me tell you that exam was one of the most annoying/aggravating/painful experiences of my liiiiife!

The written portion of the exam lasted from 8-8:30am. Next they had us wait in a room to be called for our Skills portion of our test. We were told not to leave the room in case they call our names. I was called at 4:30pm! Yes, I waited in a classroom with NO FOOD, book, computer, etc. for 8 HOURS! I felt like I was in detention. After taking the skills exam which lastest about 25 mins, I had to drive 4 hours home (which took 6 due to traffic). Ahhhh, what a day! Sorry for the rant 🙂

The trip wasn’t allll bad I did pass the exam aaaaand order some room service. Friday night I ordered a class of Shriaz and piece of chocolate cake. You bet I ate it in my whirlpool bathtub. Yep, I felt like I was straight out of a movie 🙂 For a wake up call, I ordered some fruit, coffee, and tomato juice to accompany my oats and protein breakfast:

Unsure what the food situation would be, I packed some regular oats and a baggy containing SunWarrior protein to mix in. SO GLAD I ate a big breakfast considering I wasn’t able to eat for 10 more hours!

Did you know you can steam hot H20 in your coffee maker? haha…Maybe I’m the only one..

Steaming hot H20 for oatmeal

Once I arrived back in the District I had to snap this pic to show you the craziness that is Georgetown Cupcakes:

Ever since the show DC Cupcakes aired, Georgetown Cupcake has become NUTS! This picture shows about 1/10th of the line and was taken at 10pm on a Saturday!

When did cupcakes become so trendy?????

Today I woke to a delicious Strawberry-Pineapple Green Monster Smoothie:

Vanilla SunWarrior, frozen strawberries, frozen pineapple, 2 huuuge hand fulls spinach, ice, h20, stevia, 1/2 tsp xanthan gum (to thicken), pinch sea salt. Yummm.

[Insert 2 hours of application writing]

I was craving a weights sesh at the gym. I took a BodyPump class and it did the trick. Has anyone tried the new BodyPump series?? I think it’s BodyPump 74?? Well, it’s HARD! The lunge and triceps tracks are killer!!

I met my friend Alyson for lunch at Chop’t, my favorite salad place.

Mmm.

Speaking of good eats, here are two recent favorites I’ve made within the last week…

Healthified Mac N’ Cheese:

Diced medium-firmness Tofu (~1/6 block), 1/4 cup oats, 2 tbsp Nutritional Yeast, ~2 tbsp shredded lite cheddar cheese, mixed frozen veggies, sea salt, pepper & topped with hot sauce.

Chocolate Protein Pancakes:

1 scoop Chocolate SunWarrior, 1/3 cup egg whites, 2 tbsp PB Flour, 1 heaping tbsp spelt flour, 1/2 mashed banana, stevia, dash sea salt, 1/2 tsp baking powder. Topped with a PB smear and 1 tbsp organic maple syrup. Perfection, I tell ya.

Alright I’m off to volunteer with some kiddos then take a spinning class with Alyson. Happy Monday!

Cute/weird Pic of the Day:

Michael doing some yoga

>Doneee

>Hi LOVES!

How are you?? I’m GREAT! Today was my last day of clinical! It was 40 hours at a VERY nice nursing home/assisted living facility. Seriously if you’re looking for someone to wipe your bum, clean your catheter, feed or bathe you – I’m your girl 😉 hahaha

Right after clinical ended I headed immediately here:

For one of these:

^ Reece’s cup McFlurry! GREATLY deserved, I think 🙂

Besides the great experience gained in the class, getting to know the residents was amazing. I will admit that in the past the thought of working with the elderly kinda freaked me out. But once I got there and saw how fragile and helpless these people are I had such compassion for them. It’s hard to believe that these 90-something people once led full and often FASCINATING lives. Each one had a unique story and I really learned a lot aside from the technical skills. Exhausting week, but very worth it 🙂

Sad it’s over, I’m glad to be back to my normal routine which will be:

1) Getting a JOB (as a nursing aide; to obtain patient care experience required for PA school)
2) Getting back to my workout schedule
3) Finishing my thesis and applying to PA programs (!)

1) I reeeeally want to work in an oncology unit or hematology/transplant since these areas are still my passion

2) I just want to RUN RUN RUN! Since clinical required us to be on our feet and moving (sometimes dashing frantically) for 8 hours per day, I had NO ENERGY to run when I got home.

3) Finishing my M.S. thesis (on the generation of antibody-drug conjugates for you science geeks like me 🙂

But for now, I’m chillin with Kels (sister) on the couch, catching up with Sir DVR, and savoring this guy:

^Sangria! Great (and easy!) recipe here

Alright loves, have a great weekend!!!!! XOXOX

**QUESTIONS: Have you ever taken a week off from exercise because you’re completely SPENT from a new job? How do you adjust???

Who watched the Lakers vs. Celtics game??? Great game, but as the Bostonian I am, I was quite upset 😦

XX

>Nurse Lauren to your service

>HOWWWDYYY HOOOO,

Happy Monday, y’all! Hope your day was spendid. I had my FIRST DAY OF CLINICAL TODAY!!! I seriously can’t believe how much my life has changed in the last month! In case you don’t know I left my PhD program (currently declaring my MS) for a career as a physician assistant (PA). You can read more about WHY I made this decision here. A requirement for PA school is a TON of DIRECT patient care experience. At first, this really bummed me out as I had NONE. But now I think having this experience will make me a much better and compassionate PA in the future.

To obtain these hours I’m completing a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) course at the Red Cross and this is our week of clinicals! I would be lying if I told you I wasn’t a liiiiitle nervous – OK petrified (!) but that all subsided after the first hour and I REALLY LIKE IT! I can tell this is going to be a great week and can’t wait to report more later on 🙂

^How cool is this old ad I found?? source

Now that I’m home I’m completely EXHAUSTED. 1) I slept in waaaay too late the day before so I was wide awake when I should have been sleeping and 2) I was antsy in anticipation of the day. Thankfully, my lovely Manfriend decided to cook us dinner while I caught up on these girls (since I was busy gettin ready for class last night):

source

Seriously, what could be better after a long day? Kourtney, Khloe, vino, and a Manfriend cookin’ up a feast sounds pretty good to me!

Action shot:

Vino:

^I usually don’t order Malbec, but as Seth’s much more the wine connoisseur then me, I trusted his choice. And it was GREAT! I’d say it’s somewhere between a syrah (my favorite!) and a Zin. Smoky start and smooth/fruity finish. YUMM.

Meal:

^Trader Joe’s Tomato and Basil Chicken Sausage with sauteed onions and peppers in a whole grain pita. SO GOOD!

Traditional (aka PIG) sausage normally creeps me out. The thought of ingesting pig intestines makes me squirm, BUT CHICKEN sausage does nothing of the sort! In fact, it’s GREAT!

Aiiiight peeps, gotta get ready for tomorrow. Clinical STARTS at 7am! Early bird over here!!!

Have a great Tuesday!!!!!

Lauren

>Welcome backkkkk

>Hi everyone!!!! I’M ALIVEEEEEE!!!!!!! My life has been NUTS lately! I haven’t been this busy since undergrad when I was doing research, finishing finals, applying to grad school and tryyyying to have somewhat of a social life.

Here is a taste of what I’ve been up to…

Planning AND executing a Bachlorette party for my bestestest friend Brandy in Boston…

^haha, nice face!

Attending a 9hr/day (beginning at 8am) nursing technician course (4 weeks total):

^Our SUPER CREEPY dummy from class, Lol

For the PA programs I’m applying to, most require a minimum of 1,000 hours of direct patient care – which I DON’T have. I thought of getting a clinical research position (ex: administering MRI’s to study patients with brain trauma), which I could easily get from my research background but that really wouldn’t give me GOOD patient care experience. I think having a background (I’ll be a nursing tech until next May) in nursing care will make me a much better physician assistant down the road.

Attending Brandy’s wedding in GORGEOUS York, Maine:

^Rehearsal Dinner

Moving to a new apartment. Same neighborhood, upgraded the pad. And some SERIOUS UNPACKING TO DO:

And spending Memorial Day weekend with the fam in New Hampshire:

^hahaha…found this pic the other day and thought it was appropriate. It’s from a dance recital when me and my sister were 6 and 4 years old!

And now, what I’m LOOKING FORWARD to…

Eating BETTER! Being on the run has made me consume less of these:

^Salad monsters from Whole Foods

^Fruit/veggie smoothies

And (a little) less of these:

^But side note: SO GOOD! MickyD’s has a new Reese’s pieces McFlurry! Yeeee-UM!

And DEF more of these:

^REDIC sweaty workouts

And a little more R&R!!!

Alright kids, I have some studying to do. Have a great week!!!!! GLAD TO BE BACK 🙂

Lauren

QUESTION (!): I want a new mission statement for this blog (as I left my PhD program) – Can ya help me out?!

>Busytown!!!

>Hiiiiiii!!!!!!

How are you?????! It’s been soooo long! SO SO SO sorry for the M.I.A-ness. I’ve been soooo busy!

As you know, I had my last day in Scienceland. Not gonna lie, it was bittersweet. I feel happy because I have this ginormous weight lifted off my chest, but at the same time a huge piece of me feels missing. Maybe missing isn’t the best word, but my ‘professional life’ has been entirely research. I’ve never had another ‘real’ job.

But in the end, I know I made the right decision and I’m looking forward to my new path in life.

I need to to take a little break from Bloggerville (maybe a week) to deal with all of the craziness going on.

Here’s a taste of my life right now:

– Class 8am-4pm (straight!) for the next FOUR WEEKS!
– Finishing up experiments in lab (5-8pm)
– Last min bachelorette party planning! (Jet-setting to BOSTON this weekend!)
– Moving to a new apartment on Monday (with the Manfriend and ma sistah!)
– Working on my M.S. thesis
– Applying to PA programs
– Volunteering

And here is a recent pic (with ma new toy!) after an 8hr lecture and clinical practium (be kind – no make-up and some tiiiiiired eyes! haha):

So puh puh pleeeeeaase bear with me as I take a little bit of time off! I’m still reading your lovely comments and blogs just need to focus on the more pressing issues lately…

source

See you in a week!!!!

LOVE YOU ALL AND THANKS FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING!!!!!

xoxox,

Lauren