The one with Riley's Masterpiece

--- 1 ---

Last Friday I sort of talked about how I forgot to pay our garbage bill. It was a sort of embarrassing moment of mine. That day I got a "notice" in the mail about how I had an "apparent disregard" of their previous attempts to collect. (They sent that notice prior to me calling and paying off our overdue balance). I'm going to go ahead and blame my husband on this one, because he usually gets the mail and doesn't have any specific place that he puts it. So it ends up being placed wherever he stops first. This means we have piles of mail here and there, and I have no idea what pile is old or new or important. We need to figure out a system I guess. But to be quite honest, that was not where I thought this take was going to go...instead I was going to speak about all the money we are saving by adding yard waste. :)

--- 2 ---

In an effort to decrease my family's carbon foot print, I decided to try adding yard waste to our garbage service. A lot of items we use daily can go into the yard waste container, like paper towels, food scraps and should I admit this here? cough...paper plates....cough. By making the switch we were able to decrease from a 60 gallon garbage can to a 32 gallon can (and sometimes we still don't fill that one up!) We save about $100 per year this way as well. Which is a plus. But, and this is a huge but, yard waste is a bit stinky. It wasn't so bad until this last week. I went out to dump the inside food scraps into the outside yard waste, opened the can and the entire rim of the 90-gallon yard waste cart was white and wiggly. I about vomited then and there. It still gives me the chills thinking about it. Nasty, disgusting maggots all over the can. Blech. I went inside to grab something to spray them with, and by the time I came back most of them had wiggled to the ground. They are quite interesting little pustules. They wiggle and roll all over the place. The next morning the majority of them had wiggled/rolled around the corner to the bottom edge of my front porch. They traveled about 25 feet from the can to there. I was disgusted. Surprised. Horrified. I sprayed them like crazy and went to an appointment. I asked my mom how long it takes for them to hatch, because while I don't really care for flies, I prefer them over maggots.

Later that evening, after Jamaal got home, I went out to the garbage and noticed the maggots were gone. All of them. I couldn't find a single one. Even some of the dead carcasses were missing. I kind of shrugged it off, thought perhaps my darling husband had cleaned, and was happy the nasty buggers were gone. I also noticed this: 

This is a photo of our driveway. Notice the pieces of moss and debris strewn about. I thought it was left overs of the destruction, and figured my husband had something to do with it. That night I asked my husband about it, and we came to this conclusion: the neighborhood birds had a feast. Because my husband had no idea what I was talking about. This is not the first time I've noticed some moss strewn about, and I thought it was something Jamaal was up to. He, funny enough, thought the same, only about me. We both had a "that makes so much sense" moment, and were able to rest easy knowing we have some friendly (to us, of course, not the maggots) neighborhood birds watching our front stoop.

--- 3 ---

Today I finally called to change our home insurance to the same insurance we use for our cars. Progressive, if you are curious. We will be saving $150 on our home insurance alone. (we will also be saving for our car insurance but Jamaal is in charge of that bill, so I'm not sure how much!) I got a notice that our old carrier would be increasing our rate this year, so I decided now was a good time to change. 

--- 4 ---

Today I bought some vitamins for me to start taking. I was horrible at taking vitamins when I was pregnant with Riley, because I hated how big the vitamin was, and started to get a bit gag-y when taking it. So I just flat out stopped. I had one of each today, and they tasted pretty good. Now, I'm going to have to wash my vitamin case so I remember to take them everyday. :) I also got some "My first Flinstone vitamins" for Riley. I was giving him some liquid vitamins, but he really hates it now, so unless I mix it in with his milk, he doesn't take it. (and I keep forgetting to do that...) My plan is to put his vitamins in with mine so I remember to give him his. That's the goal anyway! (and I just read on the containers that I'm supposed to take two of each per day...anyone know if Costco carries gummy prenatals?)

--- 5 ---

I'm really beginning to feel comfortable working at Weight Watchers. I'm constantly worried that I will say the wrong thing though, especially when the clients have gained. I know the feeling. I gained a couple times when I was losing weight, and it is so embarrassing, along with other mixes of emotions. So, I know that they are in a very sensitive place, and anything I say could set them off. It is a lot of stress to have! Plus, I remember feeling uncomfortable weighing in in front of people who already look great; it is easy to forget that the staff at Weight Watchers have been there before. (and actually, some clients don't know that staff have all been there.) I'm kind of one of the youngest staff members I've seen working, and I think that plays a role in how little I'm trusted. But I've been through that before with nursing and I'll get through it... :)

--- 6 ---

After Riley got up from his nap, he seemed to want to talk on the phone, so I called his Nana, (my mother in law) but by the time she got on the phone, he had decided he didn't want to talk after all. Long story short, she decided to take him for the night tonight since there will be a big family gathering tomorrow in Tacoma. (and she hasn't had him over night in a while since she had surgery this summer) It is always such a treat to be baby-free. :)

--- 7 ---

I have decided to try and scan all of Riley's artwork into the computer. I realize that we will have a lot of artwork over the years, and keeping it all just isn't feasible. It is also such a waste of space. This is his very first drawing using a 24-pack of crayola crayons on Whisper White cardstock. I actually kind of like this one a lot. I was going to use it to decorate a card, but decided against it and made Riley color again. I used a Stampin' Up! punch to cut out pieces of his artwork, and used them in my card. It turned out pretty cute. (You'll have to excuse the quality of the photo, as at the time I couldn't find my good camera, and so I used my scanner.) Quality aside, you get the idea. :) Happy Friday!

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Mocha Ice Cream Dreams

Today I performed an experiment in my kitchen. Here is how it started:

A little over a week ago I made some maple walnut ice cream for my father, who could not find it in stores anywhere and was craving it. It turned out to be a success. But not quite up to the perfect standards my dad had set for me. I blame this on using pure ingredients, as I'm sure the maple walnut ice cream of his past contained more than 5-ish ingredients. He did say it was good, just not quite right. 

Well, I thought it was good. Great even. Probably some of the best ice cream I've had in a while. 

It was the first time I used eggs/egg yolks when making ice cream...okay so go ahead and correct me, because technically "ice cream" contains no eggs, but frozen custard ice cream is just so gosh darn long, and let's face it, not as familiar...and it wasn't as scary as I thought it would be. 

So back to today...I realized I needed to use up the rest of the cream and what better way than to make another batch of ice cream. :) To decide on the flavor, I consulted with my husband. He stated he didn't really feel like ice cream tonight and ultimately was not very helpful. I had kind of thought about making a coconut or a coffee ice cream, and thought he would like neither of them. But he surprised me and said he would eat the coffee ice cream "if it was good." Even if he only has a little bit, it will be a little bit that I'm not consuming. ;) So coffee won out. Mocha to be precise. 

And then I started Google-ing. There are conspiracies about the type of coffee you use, the type of chocolate or cocoa you use and whether or not to use eggs. (and there are also some dairy-free recipes out there!) It is such a difficult decision, because each blog you go to claims to have the best recipe. After looking at about 15 different websites I had Jamaal hand me the manual that came with our ice cream maker. And inside there was a very simple Coffee Ice Cream recipe, with a variation for Mocha Chip Ice Cream. That was it. I didn't have to print one out, I already had a recipe to carry into the kitchen. 

And then I didn't read the directions quite right. I got excited and measured out all of the ingredients and put them in a mixing bowl. The recipe calls for:

• 1 cup whole milk
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2-3 tablespoons instant espresso or coffee, to taste
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Variation:

• Use 1-1/2 tablespoons each instant espresso powder and Dutch process cocoa instead of just espresso powder
• 4 ounces bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate bar, roughly chopped into tiny pieces (to be added in the last 5 minutes of churning)

You are supposed to use a mixer to combine the milk, granulated sugar and espresso powder (and cocoa) until dissolved, about 1-2 minutes on low speed. But I also added the heavy cream. Now, if you know heavy cream very well, you know that it can also be used for whipped cream. That means, you beat it, it fluffs up. So as I was mixing it was foaming, and the gosh darn cocoa and espresso wasn't dissolving! So I decided to warm it up a little to get it to dissolve. (and just so you know, I chose to use regular cocoa powder, because that was what was in my pantry, which, I read, is a little less chocolaty, and also doesn't dissolve as easily. While I'm on a roll confessing my divergence I also used 2 heaping tablespoons of both the cocoa and the espresso, none of this decreasing to 1-1/2 business. I want it to taste like a mocha dang it!)

So, I poured the foamy mixture through a strainer into a saucepan and began heating my base. As I'm stirring constantly, I think: "If I have to stir this constantly anyway, I might as well add eggs to the mix." So I found a "premium ice cream" recipe in my Cuisinart booklet, the Decadent Chocolate Ice Cream recipe to be precise, and kind of made it work for me. 

It calls for:

• 2 large eggs
• 1 large egg yolk

And wouldn't you know it, I had exactly 3 eggs! The recipe wants you to combine sugar, cocoa, eggs and egg yolk in a medium bowl and beat it until it is thickened like mayonnaise. But I had already added all but the eggs to the hot milk/cream mixture, so I just beat the eggs as best I could. Then I took 1 cup of the hot milk/cream mixture and in a slow steady stream, beat it into the eggs using a hand mixer. (This is called tempering your eggs. If you just throw them into the warmed/hot milk they would cook like scrambled eggs. This kind of slowly brings them up to a warmer temperature so they don't cook that way, instead they combine with the other ingredients first, to form a custard.) Then I added my egg mixture to the saucepan, and continually stirred over low-medium heat. I had a candy thermometer attached and I kept stirring until it reached 170 degrees Fahrenheit (and it was thickening up.) 

I had set up an ice bath prior, and poured the mixture through a strainer again into the bowl in my ice bath. This helped to cool the mixture quickly. That way I could quickly transfer the mixture into the fridge for the night. 

I can't wait for tomorrow! :)

Mrs. T

Today I had a patient ask me: "If you would have known you would be doing this everyday, do you think you still would have become a nurse?"

You see, today, I was in charge. And this patient had called, the unit secretary answered her call, and attempted to contact the assistant and the covering nurse (the patient's nurse was on lunch) and no one was available. The pt stated she had to go to the bathroom, "really badly." 

To be honest...I sighed. Even now, as I typed this paragraph I sighed. Taking people to the bathroom truly is not my favorite thing to do. I would not have become a nurse if that was all I were to do. I have experienced a multitude of different scenarios while taking people to the bathroom during my five years of being a nurse. Many of which are positive experiences during which "please," "thank you," and stories are shared. But of course there are always several negative experiences that seem to overshadow all of the good ones. 

The fact of the matter is that some people handle the sick role better than others. Some people weren't given, either by nature or nurture, the appropriate coping mechanisms to handle an illness. We nurses call this "poor coping skills." Some truly cannot help it at this time in their life due to some altered mental status, and in those situations I find the most difficulty. I have to constantly breathe into the task at hand, and repeat to myself "they are sick, they are scared, they don't know who you are." Because I have to believe if they did know, they would apologize for their actions, and a part of them would be embarrassed. Until that time, I try not to let their harsh words and actions get to me. 

Let me tell you, though, I will only lay still and take abuse for so long!

Anyway, back to my sigh. I walked into that patient's room, and there she sat, with her feet dangling off the bed and a huge pool of excrement on her sheets. She said, she was sorry for anyone who had to come in to help her. She had a slight Irish accent, and flashed a smile at me after I made a joke about probably not needing any more bowel meds. (She had been given quite a lot, because she was really constipated after having 2 separate surgeries about a week apart.) I usually can predict how a situation will end up if people get a kick out of my humor. 

I called for someone to come in and help me and together we got the bed and the patient all cleaned up in no time. While she was sitting on the commode chair, as I was changing her sheets, she asked me the above question: would I have still become a nurse if I knew I would be cleaning up poo everyday?

And I answered her honestly: I don't clean it up everyday. Several times a week maybe (back when I was full time), but most of the time people make it to the toilet. :) She said she had a lot of respect for what nurses did, and stated there would be no doctors without nurses. And I agreed. So I told her, that when it is someone like her, who is kind, respectful, and has a good sense of humor it is easy for me to do my job. I don't mind it. It doesn't even really gross me out. People like her are the reason I return to work. And when all of the negative encounters begin outweighing the good ones, I will find some other nursing job to latch onto. Because that is one perk of nursing, there are a multitude of other jobs I could do. But for now, I'm okay where I'm at.