Rockstar (or glitter) Nails & Toes

Next up I have a tutorial for how to do Rockstar nails/toes (or Glitter nails/toes).  


It's a really, really easy process!  It's just like doing a regular mani or pedi, just with one extra step - you scrub glitter into the lefty tackiness of one of your layers!  Yep, that's really all there is to it!  

1. Prep your nails as usual - file and shape, do your cuticle work, clean off any dirt or filing dust, etc.  
2. Apply dehydrator and let dry a few seconds
3. Apply bonder if you need it and let dry
4. Apply thin layer of base coat, cap free edge, cure 1 minute in UV lamp
5. Apply a thin layer of color, cap free edge, cure 2 minutes.
• What color you choose is up to you, but I recommend using a color that's similar to your glitter color.
• For Example here I used a dark metallic silver because I was using silver glitter.  If I was using red glitter, I might use something like Gelish Hot Rod Red or Stand Out
6. You can apply a second layer of color if you want to, but if you are covering the whole nail with glitter as we are here, it's not really necessary.  
7. Using a small brush dampened slightly with alcohol pick up some glitter and gently pat and "scrub" it into the tacky layer
• Keep picking up the glitter and scrubbing it in until the whole nail is covered
8. After the entire nail is covered, take your brush and quickly brush back and forth and from top to bottom to brush off any excess glitter.  This also help make sure all the glitter pieces are laying flat.
9. If I'm using a larger size glitter, like 0.008" or larger, I generally will apply a coat of Structure gel over the glitter to help smooth it all out.  Alternatively, you can use two layers of topcoat if you need it.  
10. Apply top it off, cap free edge, and cure two minutes.  
• It has been recommended that you use a separate topcoat for glitter work so you don't end up with glitter mucking up your topcoat.  
• Personally, I haven't had an issue with this and have never used a separate topcoat.  Applying a layer of structure after the glitter would be done with a separate brush, thus your topcoat bottle brush would be protected anyway.  
• If a rare piece of glitter does end up in my topcoat brush, I just wipe the brush with a clean paper towel and it's fine.  I'm still using my original bottle of topcoat that I bought almost a year ago.  

Nars Orgasm Blush and Black Funky French

Hello Everyone!  So my current manicure is a funky french with a custom color that I mixed up using Nars Orgasm blush.  I use black for the tips.  It's a very fun mani!  

1. Do the basic prep on your nails first - have them clean and shaped, cuticle work done, etc.  
2. Next is to mix up the custom color that I used for the nail bed.  For the video below I'm only doing one nail that I broke and needed repairing, so I'm using a very small amount of product.
• Place a small amount of Structure on a piece of tin foil.  For this I used 2 little blobs of stucture, and one would've been more than enough really.  For a full manicure I use 3-4 blobs.  If I were using a bottle polish color, I use 8-10 drops for a full 2-coat manicure.  That of course will vary depending on the length of your nails.  
• Using the end of your mixing stick, scrape a small amount of the Nars blush onto the top of your little blob of gel.  Mix it all together.  You can always add more if you want it to be darker or more pigmented
3. Now that your color is mixed up, start working on your nails
• Apply Dehydrator and let it try a few seconds
• Apply bonder if you use it and let it dry
• Apply base foundation gel, cap free edge, and cure 1 minute in a UV lamp
4. Now it's time to apply your custom color
• Using a gel brush, scoop a very small amount of the color you made off the tin foil and apply it thinly, just like you would Structure alone or a pot-style gel.  The viscosity of the Structure is a bit thicker than regular Gelish, so it can take some practice.  
• Apply a thin coat, cap your free edge and cure 2 minutes.
• Apply second coat, cap free edge and cure 2 minutes. 
5. Next is to apply the black tips.
• I used EZ Flow Gelez Pitch Black, because it's what I have.  Other blacks are Gelish Black Shadow, Shellac Black Pool, ACG Swag, RCM Black Stretch Limo, etc
• Wipe most of the polish off the bottle brush and apply a VERY thin layer of the black to the tip of your nail.  Don't worry if it's not a perfect smile line!  You'll clean it up next.  Make sure to cap your free edge.
• Dip a small brush into a bit some alcohol, and wipe the excess off the brush - you only want it damp, not dripping.  
• From the center to the edges, clean up and smooth out the smile line
• Cure for 2 minutes in a UV Lamp
• Repeat for a second coat - the second coat often doesn't need much if any cleanup, because you have a guide you are already following from the fist coat
6. Apply Topcoat
• Apply a thin layer of Top it Off over the whole nail, cap free edge, cure 2 minutes
7. Finish
• Wipe with alcohol to remove the tacky layer
• Apply cuticle oil

Here is the video.  You can see it also on YouTube

Videos now up on YouTube!

Ok, Ok.  So, I know I said I wouldn't be doing any videos for a couple of reasons, but I decided to give it a shot anyway.  My editing isn't so good, and I'm having to use a crappy old camera for the video because I cannot find the charger to my digital camcorder, and my regular video program I use to convert videos from my DSLR isn't working for some reason - hubby says missing a codec or something.  Sigh.  So, at any rate, crappy old digital camera in movie mode and Window's movie maker for the editing, but it does an OK job.

I just thought it would be easier to show you guys some things than try to just explain them.  I will go through the step by step here and also link to the videos.

for future reference, this is my YouTube Channel.  :)

I will go back and add videos to previous posts when I get videos done that relate to those posts.  :)

How to do a soak off gel manicure

OK friends, here is how I do my soak off gel manicures.  This includes shaping, prep, and the gel polish itself.  I started with Gelish, and use the same process for my manicures no matter which brand of color I am  using.  


An important thing to keep in mind is that cuticle is not what most people think it is.  It is not the skin that surrounds your nail, it is skin that grows over the nail plate and can be invisible until you go about trying to remove it!  If you've not had or done a proper manicure, there could be a lot of cuticle that you didn't even know was there!  It just depends.  Some people seem to have very little cuticle.  You should also never go about nipping or cutting the skin around your nails with "cuticle nippers".  The ONLY time I ever use them is to take care of the occasional bad hangnail.  


I also recommend watching the basic video on how to apply Gelish.  There are many on YouTube, and mine is linked at the bottom of this post.  

1. Shape all nails:
• Using a 100/180 grit Zebra file (my favorite one) I shorten my nails if they are too long for my liking and shape them.  I prefer a squared or squoval shape, so that's what I do.  do whatever you prefer.  I most often already have this step done, as I do this before I remove my old manicure usually.  For some reason I find it easier to do it that way, and in the process it breaks the seal at the free edge making soak off easier
2. Remove cuticle from all nails:
• Place a small amount of cuticle remover around the edge of my nails.  Let it set there for 1 minute.  
• GENTLY push back the cuticle on the nail plate with a cuticle pusher. 
• After this, I use a Curette GENTLY in a small, circular motion all over the nail plate and around the lateral and proximal nail folds (the skin surrounding the nail) to remove any additional cuticle.  
• It really helps to get into that area, especially if you have any deep nail folds.  I thought I was doing great at removing cuticle until I got this tool and realized just how much I was missing! I highly recommend if you don't know how to use this tool that you google some information on it and watch some videos on you tube.  Search for Cuticle Work on YouTube and watch some of the first videos that come up.  
• Most cuticle remover needs to be deactivated with water.  Since I don't do a wet manicure (meaning I don't soak or wash my hands) I just use a paper towel that I dampened with water before I start to wipe my nails and the surrounding skin off when I am done with my cuticle work.  
3. Buff the nail plate on all nails:
• Not everyone does this, and it's not a recommended step in all Soak off gel systems, so keep that in mind.  
• I use a 320 grit soft block buffer and just lightly go back and forth across my nails to remove the shine, nothing more.  I'll also usually smooth the free edge where I've filed to shorten and shape.  
4. Clean all nails:
• Take a cotton ball with a little alcohol on it and wipe the surface of my nail clean.  This cleans it from any filing dust and any dirt that might be there. 
5. Dehydrate the nail plate:
• On whichever hand you are doing first, Apply Gelish pH Bond over the entire nail plate and let it dry (It dries very fast)
• Alternatively, you can use swipes of alcohol and then acetone soaked cotton balls to do this, as that is basically what pH bond is
6. Apply Bonder only if needed:
• I apply bonder (Gelish Pro Bond or similar, acid-free bonder) only to the tips of the nails I have problems with tip lift with.  
• Bonder does make removal slightly more difficult, but if you have eliminated all other possible causes of lifting, and using bonder works for you, then I say go for it.  This is only my opinion.
7. Apply Base Foundation Gel:
• Wipe almost ALL product from the brush on the sides of the bottle.  
• Using a scrubbing motion, apply foundation to the entire nail plate in a very, very thin layer. 
• This scrubbing motion with very little product keeps the layer very thin.
• Cap free edge by swiping brush along free edge of nail
• Use the light around you and look at your nail from different angles to make sure the entire nail is covered.  
• Clean up around the cuticle and sidewalls if you get any on your skin with a manicure stick or fingernails of your opposite hand
• Cure for 1 minute in a 36 watt tunnel lamp
8. Apply color coats:
• Thinly and evenly apply color coat by placing brush in middle of nail, pushing back toward the cuticle before pulling the brush to the free edge.  
• After covering the nails cap the free edge
• Clean up any gel on skin and cuticle area with manicure stick or fingernails
• Cure 2 minutes.  Very dark colors may need 3 minutes.
• Apply second (and 3rd if using) coat in same fashion and cure again.
9. Apply Top It Off (TIO):
• Thinly apply top it off to entire nail, ensuring the entire nail is covered.
• Cap free edge
• Remove any gel that has gotten on skin with manicure stick or fingernail
• Cure 2 minutes.  
10. Remove tacky layer:
• With alcohol on a cotton ball, wipe nails and free edge to remove the residual tacky layer
11. Repeat:
• Repeat Steps 5-10 on your other hand.
12. Apply cuticle Oil:
• Brush or drip cuticle oil (depending on the applicator you have) on the skin all around all your nails and massage in gently.

Soak off gel nails - what you need to get started

One of the questions I see asked most commonly by newbies to Soak off Gels (SOG's) is "what do I really need to get started?"


Many of the items you need can be purchased at a drugstore, local Sally Beauty Supply or Ulta store, or other open-to-the-public store.  If not, there are plenty of places online to purchase them.  I personally do not use the Gelish cleanser or their remover product, so if you notice they are missing from the list below, it's because I just don't use them.  There are some products here that I use, but you may not need or want to.  There are also products I use that aren't listed here, as I don't use them all the time - they have a more specialized purpose and will be covered in other tutorials.  


The links I have listed here are in most cases what I actually have, or some variation (i.e. full size vs. Sally's Mini).  In other cases it is just to give you an example


These are the tools and things I use when doing a basic SOG manicure.   They are not really listed in any particular order, sorry.  

• A nail file.  My favorite is a 100/180 grit dual sided, curved Zebra file.   Right now I have a straight one, which also works fine.  It's just preference. 
• A 120 grit block buffer (optional, but I use it to buff the topcoat before I soak off.  You could also use your nail file).  
• A 240 or 320 grit polar block buffer (they make several grits in this, so just pay attention so which one you are getting.  You want a super-fine grit. The 320 is my favorite).  
• Cuticle remover (this is the one I use and I like it)
• A cuticle pusher.  This is the one I have, but there are much nicer ones out there. 
• A Cuticle Curette (optional, but really helped me in removing all cuticle from nail plate)
• Manicure Sticks (Orangewood sticks, birchwood sticks, whatever you want to call them.  Optional, but helpful for many).  
• Alcohol (70% actually works fine, but 99% is recommended.  Sometimes my local drugstore will have 91%, but not always.  Use what you can find.)
• 100% pure acetone
• Cuticle Oil.  I have this one, as well as the CND solar oil and several others.  They all work well so use what you like.  I think consistency of use is more important than which brand you use.  
• Cotton ball or squares
• Tin foil or silicone rubber finger protector/thimbles.  (See below for more info)
• Gelish pH bond (optional.  You can wipe the nail with acetone and alcohol to dehydrate the nail as well)
• Gelish PRO Bond (optional.  Should only be used if you have problems with lifting polish after you've troubleshooted other potential causes)
• Gelish Base Foundation (often referred to as just Base)
• Gelish Top It Off (often referred to as TIO)
• A Gelish color polish (or other brand if you prefer)
• A UV light.  This can be a 36 watt fluorescent bulb tunnel lamp (as shown here) or an LED lamp.  Which you choose depends on many factors.  
• To my knowledge, all brands will cure in a fluorescent bulb UV lamp.  Not all brands will cure in a LED lamp.  For the purposes of my tutorials I will be basing curing times on a 36 watt tunnel lamp, as LED cure times vary depending on wattage.  The tunnel lamp I have looks much like the one I linked to, although mine was an eBay purchase.  I recommend getting a good lamp, as while I got lucky with my Shipped-from-China Ebay purchase, others didn't have as good of luck.

OK, back to the silicone thimbles.  I found these things at WalMart with the office supplies.  They were in a pack of 12 assorted sizes for $2-3.  I cannot find them online on Walmart.com to show you what they look like.  They look sort of like these, but mine are blue and have holes on one side, and are textured on the other side.  I just place the hole side where the pad of my finger is, and leave the closed, textured side on the nail side of my finger.  I have used them many times and they are showing no wear from the acetone exposure.  You can see the ones I have in the photo below of my basic supplies.  


Note the wooden manicure sticks are missing from my photo.  That's because I actually don't usually use them anymore, I just use my nails on my opposite hand to swipe around the edge of the cuticle and sidewalls to clean up.  It was easier when I started though to use the manicure sticks.  Also, those little pump-top bottles hold my acetone (black one) and alcohol (white one).  I got them at Sally's.  

Soak off Gel Nails

I'm going to try to start posting some tutorials here on soak off gel manicures and nail care.  I don't as of yet have pictures of my processes, but hopefully it won't be too hard to follow along without them.  I'll try to do some with photos soon.  I hate being on camera, so photos are probably all you'll be able to get out of me, LOL.  Videos aren't likely at this point, because I think my voice sounds funny on camera and I absolutely do not need the extra 10 lbs it supposedly adds, LOL.  Also, I don't know squat about video editing,  LOL.  


First of all, the disclaimer: I am NOT a professional nail technician.  I am receiving NO compensation for doing this.  ALL of the products I use have been purchased by ME with my own money.  This is just what I do and what works for me.  Trying to do soak off gel nails yourself using my way of doing things or any other is something you do at your own risk.  


I personally feel that this is not an adventure you should embark on without having done a little research, so please, before you begin do some research, watch videos on you tube, visit forums related to doing this, etc.  There is a bit of a learning curve with soak off gel polish, so expect a bit of trial and error before you find what works best for you.  


I use mostly Gelish products, but I do have some things that are not Gelish.  I also have colors that are Shellac, Artistic Colour Gloss (ACG), IBD Gelac, Geleration, Gelez, Red Carpet Manicure, and several others that also include pot-style gels such as Axxium that need to be applied with a separate gel brush.  Since it is what I started with and what I have, my base coat and top sealer are Gelish.  I have experienced no incompatibilities between brands, and use the Gelish base and top with all my colors.  I have a new bottle of ACG base and top as well, which I tested once and also had no problem mixing it will another brand, so I don't forsee an issue when my Gelish runs out.  


So, let the tutorials and information begin!  :)

Random update

Well, it's been quite some time since I wrote last.  Work and life have been keeping me busy.

My little girl just turned four recently.  We had an awesome party here at the house for her.  It went great, there wasn't any family fighting really, all the kids and adults had fun, a lot of people showed up, we had great food.... it was one of the nicest parties I've ever thrown.  She started VPK this year, and we also got her started in Ballet.  She's very excited about that part!

Work has been.... interesting.... lately.  I've just been feeling overwhelmed.  I finished my internship and started working on my own at the end of June.  I really like the unit I work on, I get along with everyone I work with, etc.  I just feel so overwhelmed most days.  I'm sure that all just comes with time.  I'm still new, I still have a lot of questions, and it doesn't take much some days to put me in the weeds!  I just can't wait until I don't feel like I am 10 steps behind all day long.  Sigh.  I know that there will always be some days like that, but I can't wait until it's not EVERY day.

I don't feel like I've had much free time lately.  I've been trying to really keep up on the housework around here, and that takes up time.  So far the house has been clean a whole month!  LOL.  It's been a long time since we've been able to keep up with it this long.   We did major cleaning before DD's birthday party, and it just looked so nice and felt so good to have a clean house.  During school, the last thing I had time for was cleaning house!  I would often not get to sleep for over 24 hours, I couldn't have cared less if my house was clean, LOL.

At any rate, I do still make time to do things I want to do.  I got really into doing my nails with the soak off gel polishes and made a little hobby out of that.  I love that my clumsy arse can't smudge the polish 10 minutes after I worked so hard to make it look nice, and that it doesn't chip in a day.  Of course I can't wear acrylics or anything at work anyway, but the soak off gels are so nice and don't lift or chip or anything.  They are THE BEST THING EVER!

On the photography front, not much exciting going on there.  I haven't been taking as many pictures lately.  It's too hot to go out during the day and get any nature stuff right now.  I'm too lazy in the early mornings on my days off anymore to get up and go out before it gets hot - that was easier to do when I worked nights, LOL, I was already up!

Crafty stuff, haven't been doing much lately.  Just unmotivated to drag all my sewing stuff out lately.  I'm in a mode where i just like to read or play on the computer or something.

Well, nothing else new going on.  I just need to keep on keeping on and hope it all settles down eventually.  Sooner rather than later, I hope.

State boards and new job!!!!

Well it was a long road, but I was so glad to see school end. Then as the date I had signed up to take my NCLEX exam got closer, I got more and more nervous! I considered changing the date to give myself more time to study, but figured a couple more weeks probably wouldn't help me anyway. If I didn't know it by know I wasn't going to I thought.

I am glad I didn't change it. I got to the point where I really just wanted it behind me. I didn't want to study anymore, and I just wanted to take it and pass so I could apple for nursing jobs.

I studied all day the two days before the test, and then got a good nights sleep. I scheduled my test for the afternoon, since I am not a morning person and the test center was an hour away. I slept in and left 2.5 hours before my appointment. I got stuck in a traffic jam on the way from an accident, had to get off the interstate and go another way. It took forever and I was glad I'd given myself so much extra time. I got there a half hour before my appointment. The closer I got to the test center the more nervous and shaky I got! By the time I went upstairs, still 30 min early, I could barely focus through my fear of failing and having to explain to the few friends and family who knew I was testing that while I had graduated with a 4.0 I was too dumb to pass the NCLEX.

I checked in and was taken into the testing room. You are not allowed to take ANYTHING in there, not a chapstick, not an inhaler, not even your watch! I sat there and went through the little tutorial and started my test, almost terrified to click that start button. But I did. I started doing the questions, trying to use the knowledge and skills I had to get the answer, as I really didn't KNOw any of them for sure.

I had about 25 select all that apply questions, which was way more than they had prepared us for in school, and I suck at those anyway. I got a ton of med questions, but mostly meeds I had never heard of and didn't even know what they were for. Weird mess, not the more common ones. I got questions about illnesses we'd never covered in school. I didn't feel confident in a single answer I chose. Wy couldn't I have gotten a bunch of math questions I wondered? I Am good at math!

I about burst into tears when I got my 20th SATA question, but I managed to stave it off. I did however mentally give up. I stopped trying to think through the questions and just started reading them once, picking the first answer I thought was right and moving on. I thought I was going to fail anyway.

When I got to 75 questions I was afraid to click next. I was afraid it would shut off and then I would never have a chance to get questions I knew the answers to! I couldn't stare at that question forever though, and when I clicked next it went to a plain blue screen, much like the blue screen of death when your computer fries. I sort of felt like it was that blue screen of death, because I thought there was no way I passed that. I went to the car and called my mom in tears. She assured me she thought I had done fine. If only I had had had same faith!

I went home and tried the "person vie trick". It gave me the good popup, which I can tell you was my only hope and consolation for the longest 48 hours that followed until I was able to pay $8 to get my quick results on Saturday afternoon. By Monday my license number showed up on the board of nursing!

That was definitely the hardest, most stressful test I have ever taken, and I am glad I should never have to do it again! On the following Tuesday morning my director called me at work and told me there was an internship spot in OB and I needed to find out from the recruiter what I had to do to apply for it. I called her and they allowed me to apply to the internship late since I am already an employee. I tested the day after the application deadline, so I thought I was going to have to wait a whole other month to apply. I am glad I didn't.

It all went so quickly and smoothly. I applied on Tuesday, interviewed with the recruiter on Wednesday, the unit director of OB on Friday and got my job offer on Monday! I was never really expecting to get into OB as a new grad, but I am SOOOO happy I did! I want to do labor and delivery, and while this is in antepartum/postpartum, it is totally a step in the right direction! So much c,Oder than I thought I would get as a new grad!

I get to start February 15th and I am so very excited! I cannot wait for that date to come! I am a real nurse now, and will get to be working as one very soon!

It's OVER! (long!)

Nursing school has been a long, hard, trying, emotional, and amazing journey.  It is hard to believe that after 2 and 1/2 long years it is all over.  While at the time those 2 and 1/2 years seemed long anyway, when I look back they have flown by.

When I started nursing school, my daughter had just turned a year old.  Now she is almost 3 and 1/2.

I have new friends that I never would've met had I not been in nursing school.  Friends that will always be my friends no matter what, because we went through this all together.  We all took turns falling apart, and holding each other up and we all got through it together.

My way of thinking has changed so much.  I remember starting working as a CNA at that horrible nursing home, thinking I will never be able to do this, maybe I don't want to be a nurse after all if this is what it's going to be like.  I remember my first nursing school melt down in the lab my first semester, thinking all of what I was learning was just like the nursing home and I didn't want to do it.

I remember the year I spent not working, devoting entire "work days" to studying for all my classes and taking pages and pages of notes.  I treated school like a full-time job, since I couldn't find anything else.  As soon as I found a job those 8-hour long study sessions ended quickly, and I switched to working all night and then spending all day in class, often being up for 36 hours or more at a stretch and wondering how I ever made it home awake and alive.

I remember one of my best friends I made in nursing school being pregnant and having her baby at the end of this past summer.  And for all the times I wondered how I managed to do it, I wondered even more how SHE managed to do it and still keep good grades!  She worked full time, where I was part time, and she was having her second baby, as her first is the same age as Arianna.

I remember the family troubles - my sister being sick and spending a spring break helping her around the house when she came home from the hospital, just grateful she had made it through it all alive.

I remember nervous breakdowns over my first care plans, where now I can bang out care plans and care maps in an hour.

I remember stressing over how HARD those first tests were in Intro and Fundamentals.... If we had only known then what classes like Adult 2 would bring us!

I wasn't upset on the last day of classes, I just wanted to get the hell outta there.  I was a little sad on the last day of clinicals, as it was starting to sink in that the end was near.  Now, as I sit here writing the morning after my very last day of preceptorship, I am very sad, and happy and excited all at the same time.

I am Happy and Excited that it is over, and soon I will finally be an RN.  I am sad in a way that it is over, and that while I will always have my friends that I have made, we aren't necessarily going to see each other several times a week anymore.  I am sad because I really enjoyed my preceptorship, the floor I did it on, and the preceptor I had.  I LIKED being there with everyone and looked forward to my shifts working there, even if I was free labor.  I am going to miss all the people on that unit.  I would really love to go to work on that unit.

I am also sad that now I get to go back to work tonight and be "just a tech" again.  Chances are good we will not be able to take the NCLEX until after the first of the year, and who knows how long it will be until I can get into the Internship and start working as an RN.  I don't want to lose any of the skills I have worked hard to gain because I am not using them.

Again, I would like to thank my family, for without them I would not be where I am today.  My mom for inspiring me to be a nurse (she's my Hero).  My dad for helping pay for my education.  My hubby for putting up with my rants, raves, nervous breakdowns, constant studying and worrying over whatever test or project was due next, and taking care of watching our daughter when I couldn't (and my mom for all that too!).  Hubby also for listening to stories about "yucky nurse things" he had no interest in at all, and is easily grossed out by.  My daughter for understanding (somewhat, in her 3-year old way), that mommy had to study, or sleep because she worked all night and was up all day.  Someday I hope I am a role model to her.

I would like to thank my friends that I made in the nursing program, for always being there to support me, be a shoulder to cry on, study with me, commiserate with me, share stories with me, vent with me, and have "fun" times that did not relate to school or work. I have two new best friends that I never would've met had it not been for nursing school!

I need to thank my friends that I had before nursing school, for putting up with the fact that I have basically been MIA for the past 2.5 years.  Sorry that I haven't been around much, and I hope to be able to spend time with you all more soon!

I want to thank the great teachers and clinical instructors I have had throughout the program.  Most of my instructors were great, and I had all wonderful clinical instructors.

I want to thank my preceptor, for getting me through the last 3 weeks.  I had a great time and I hope she enjoyed it as much as I did.  I could not have asked for a better end to my Nursing School Journey. 

I want to thank the nurses on the unit I work on for being there for me, helping me learn new things, supporting me in school emotionally and mentally, and genuinely caring about me.  I have learned so much working with all of you that I never learned in school, and I think it really has/will help me excel.  There is no substitute for real-world experience.

Next week is pinning and graduation.  I will have a degree that I can have a career with, finally.  While I plan to go back to school and work up to a Masters or DNP degree, I don't HAVE to.  If i want to stay an associate degree nurse and work on the floor, I can do that.  While I also have an AA degree, I never felt this huge sense of accomplishment like I do now.  I even managed to complete nursing school with a 4.0 GPA in the nursing program.  That is huge.

Next week at the big graduation party, I am so burning this stay-puffed marshmallow man uniform, as I have been talking about that and looking forward to it for 2.5 years!  WOOHOOO!

Last Day of Preceptorship!?

Tonight is my last night of preceptorship.  I am excited and sad at the same time.  

I have had a wonderful experience on this unit doing my preceptorship.  I have found that I really enjoy working on the floor, as well as working with the nurses I have been with on my last 7 shifts there.  My preceptor has been great to me, and all the other nurses I've been working there with have been really nice.  I am sad to be leaving.  I really wish that I could work up there.  Unfortunately, Sonal and Christian will likely be working there after passing the NCLEX, and I don't think she will have any extra spots.  At least, Michelle was told it wasn't going to happen for her by her preceptor for that reason.  We shall see I guess.  

At any rate, I am sad to be leaving this unit.  Open heart has been very interesting and something I found I liked, where I thought before my clinical rotation started there that I would hate it.  I was never much into cardiac stuff, but I have found I really enjoy it.  I am glad I had the opportunity to do my precpetorship there instead of on just med-surg or orthopedics or something too much like where I work already.  

I am sad that after tonight, I will be going back to just working on 4N as a tech and not getting to do any nurse-things.  I don't want to be just a tech anymore.  I don't want to forget all the charting stuff I have learned because I don't get to use it, or forget how to do chart checks or check over the MAR's.  I want to keep learning.  I want to keep learning to take on more and more patients, to learn to start IV's, to keep learning how to put it all together.  I really hope I get to sit for the NCLEX early, and pass the first time, and get into the first internship there is after that on some unit that I will enjoy.  

I have already submitted all my stuff for the NCLEX.  I did it last week.  I'm hoping I did it early enough that once they submit our names after the NCLEX review I will be able to take it soon.  I still imagine I won't be able to take it though until after the first of the year, and that really sucks.  :(