My Beast

We all know Shaun can be a trouble maker. He's especially hard when I am working, he's got too much energy and I get very little sleep. Usually only an hour or two during his nap time.
I discovered yesterday how bad things can get when he doesn't nap.

The last few days Shaun has decided he no longer needs to sleep. Yesterday I was in between shifts (worked the night before and was going to work again that night.) And he was NOT going to take a nap. I finally just tried laying him in his crib. What does he do? Starts rocking the crib till it is SLAMMING into the wall. Can't let him stay in there, he'll either knock the crib over or knock out the entire wall. I take him out and hope if he stays awake longer, he'll get tired enough to put down again.

So by noon, I was awake 24+ hours and I crashed. Not sure how, but I was instantly asleep for over an hour. I wake to Shaun throwing a diaper in my face. He is buck naked and in the process of peeing on the floor (and laughing hysterically about the pee). That's when I sit up and notice my surroundings. He took an entire box of cereal and spread it all over the family room. Of course it's all crushed in. Shaun climbed the kitchen sink and emptied an entire bottle of hand soap into it to make bubbles. He had gotten into my room and used my deodorant to paint on the carpet. And lastly, he used an entire stick of concealer to decorate himself. Even his little butt cheeks were drawn on.

At the time I was too tired to be anything but hysterical. I really should have been taking pictures, cuz now it's funny. Luckily for him, he decided to take a nap today. If not he might have ended up in the river. ;) From now on, though, if he doesn't sleep I think I need to lock him in the toy room and sleep in there with him.

I still can't believe I managed to sleep through that much!

Yup

Well, ignoring every one's advice, I decided to take the job. It will be a huge cut financially, I am opting to give up my management pay as well as all the other stuff. But, what ultimately made me decide is the work environment.
First, my floor has oodles of issues. There is one RN who has actually showed up to work smashed a few times. One bring her laptop to work to look at porn. She'll stop for a few months after she gets in trouble, and then starts back up again. And the entire talk/attitude of the place is horribly negative. Lots of sex talk. Lots of "I hate being in health care." No one helps each other. And people having affairs is not even hidden. Everything I hear about IMC is it is very professional and everyone works together.
I've been talking to a lot of people about my new floor. Apparently my new manager, Katie, is very much of the opinion that it is only a job, and family must come first. While we already know Annette's attitude is the exact opposite; work must come before everything else. I think that is what made the final decision for me.
In the end, I have decided the money isn't worth what I have to be staying for.
I start training at the end of the month.

So, do I take it?

Well, I have been keeping an eye on the job board at work and an opening came up for one of the critical care units. I looked at it, didn't even submit an application, and I quickly got a call from them later. They wanted an interview NOW, they already knew me and offered me the job the second I walked into the interview.
The plus of taking the job: more room for advancement (I can't get any higher where I am at now.) I get to play with more cool toys, like chest tubes, pacemakers, and probes in people's brain (SWEET!) It's a unit where we are not expected to work overtime. It's something new with a lot for me to learn.
The negative: I wouldn't work only weekends any more, much more babysitter money. My commute changes from a 5-10 min drive to a 30 min. Almost 2 hours on the days BYU has football games. More time away from the kids, and more money in gas. No pay raise. And, I leave a unit where I know I love to work. I have to go through 3-5 weeks of orientation, during the day, what do I do with my monsters?
What do you guys think?

On a different note, I have lost 17 lbs since giving up my Mt Dew! 5 from giving up the soda, 5 from having pneumonia, and 7 on the South Beach. Butthead Aaron has lost about 10 or 12 just on the diet. But, technically, I am STILL ahead. hehehe Still not feeling much more energy. But my clothes are fitting better. I'll take that little bit.

This Sun was the fist day in June that didn't rain. As you can see, the girls made the most of the long awaited sunshine.

Now if only I could get him to rinse first.......

Starting to feel better

So. I'm starting to feel a bit better. I took Friday and Saturday off work and did nothing but sleep the 2 days. That really helped. Then I asked to be taken off all the extra shifts I was signed up for at work. Not working 50 hours a week also helps. I feel a bit closer to a human being now. My manager has been a bum about me not working extras any more. "You better bring me a doctors note saying you can't work extra any more" Huh? What's up with that? I am now required to work OT each week?

On the upside.... When you can hardly breathe, you really don't eat much. I lost 5 pounds this last week. Coughing till you puke might be a part of that. Since I have a head start on the losing weight category, I have decided to start on the South Beach. Eating almost all veggies has to be good for you, right? I haven't lost any from the diet, although Aaron has lost like 3 or 4. So, hey, at least for today I am beating him. ;)

Aren't you just melting with jealousy?

No, not really. I happen to be a very lucky person.
I got pneumonia. FOR THE SECOND TIME IN NINE MONTHS. aaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrgggggggghhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Really, how many people do you know get pneumonia not only in September but also June? And of those people, how many are under the age of 70? Just thought I'd share my happy news.

Course sometimes he makes me feel a little panic when he decides to climb.

Yeah. He likes to climb, a LOT.