Starting over sucks

Now that I am halfway awake I can update this blog, hopefully completing a coherent thought. You see, I had to work two night shifts the last two nights. Haven't needed to do that in over 6 years. I tried doing nights for exactly 6 months after graduating nursing school and it did not go over well for me. I'm terrible at it. Granted, now that I'm a little older & have dealt with sleep deprivation on a more regular basis out of necessity as a parent, I'm handling it a little better than I did back then, but it still sucks. More power to you guys who choose to do nights regularly. Seriously. I applaud you. But me? I'll just whine. I had been at my job for almost 10 years in Kansas City, and with working on a big unit, I was almost eligible for some pretty major perks given my tenure there. No more weekends, no more holidays (as long as staffing permitted of course, but still). And being such a big unit we were staffed as either a day shift nurse, or a night shift nurse. Some of you know this already because, well, you work there too! lol Buuuutttt... it doesn't exactly work that way here. I was hired to work on the bone marrow transplant unit only. 9 beds. That's it. So we share the love when it comes to staffing and there's no such thing as seniority. Everyone has to do their share of nights, everyone has to do their share of weekends, & everyone does their share of holidays. Thankfully there are a few wonderful nurses who choose to staff themselves exclusively on the night shifts, and that helps a lot. But we're all still required to work at minimum of two nights shifts a month.

Did I mention I suck at it?

I worked Tuesday night and Wednesday night. I wish I could just reverse everybody else's schedule just because mine is for the moment, but life goes on despite my sleep deprivation. Thursday the kids had off of school and our schedule was packed because of it. No sleeping for momma.

So we've chosen to live in a place that's both very convenient and also very far away from civilization at the same time. This town has a lot more right in town or right next door than I was used to in Kansas, so in that sense it is so much better. (Movie theater? Got it. Grocery store? Right up the street. WalMart? As much as I hate to need it, it's right across the border in NH.) There's not a major hospital anywhere nearby, so my hour-long commute to work is no big deal. I'm used to that from KS. But sometimes traveling across these mountainous states takes a little longer than a 60 mile drive would take anywhere else, so heading to a "nearby" town can sometimes be a big deal. Which brings me to our schedule on Thursday.

My work is 60 miles from home. It takes me one hour (North to South). So when I agreed to take the boys to their first orthodontist appt in another town 60 miles from home in NH for Thursday I didn't think it would be that big of a huge ordeal. Ummm... wrong! 60 miles from home, across NH to almost the Maine border = an hour & 45 min! 60 miles from my work to said town = two and a half hours!! So instead of meeting Matt there after I worked (my original plan) I decided not to commit sleep-deprived car-crashing suicide & headed home first. So this is how my day went: worked all night until 7:45 (which just had to be a crazy-busy, patients crashing & heading to ICU, exhausting night) and drove my hour drive home where I picked up my family. Then Matt drove the hour & 45 minute drive to the orthodontist where my plan for a little nap in the car was totally foiled. Hour long appointment. (Thank GOD this guy has several offices & we can do the rest where we actually live!) Then the hour and 45 minute drive back home to make it 5 minutes late for Mark's parent-teacher conference! Holy mother of pearl I was tired! I hope his teacher and orthodontist didn't think I was a total mess of a mom. Yikes. Then I finally got to go home where I was worth nothing more than a lump on the floor. (Yes the floor. We still have no couches. Thanks ServPro, you're awesome. Another story for another time).

Anyway...

I survived & got a great night's sleep last night & all is well again. And the bonus to all of our driving all over God's creation yesterday? We got to see our first MOOSE! :)

He he! We're dorks, I know, but we were very excited! :)

Okay. End whine. I'm going to enjoy my three day weekend with my beautiful family now! :)