Ahh....the end of the week!

I can almost hear the angels singing the Hallelujah chorus!! Friday is finally here!!

What a week it was!! You know those weeks that you were counting on being long, hard, and tiring?? Yup- this was one of them!

But here I am on Friday...tired and giddy all at the same time!! I'm sitting in the library at school (once again!) before my last day of class.

This is officially the last day of class I'll EVER have to attend...EVER!!! Oh yeah!

Yesterday we started off the morning in the simulation lab which I have to say I like. The manequins are almost as real as a manequin can be (they even have a woman who goes into labor and has a baby!!!) But we stick with the peds maniquins : ) The thing can breathe, has pulses, has bowel sounds, opens and closes his eyes, sweats (which is pretty gross actually!) and can talk (via the man behind the one way mirror talking into the microphone).

Seriously cool stuff!

My instructor started out by saying we would only be doing 2 scenarios so we needed 2 "team leads" and then another person to "play" the mom, and one to "play" the nurse. I of course, thought, "Well, that's only 6 volunteers and there 18 of us...so nope, NOT volunteering for anything!"

Until my instructor then said that she drew the team leads out of a hat since she thought nobody would volunteer. At that very moment I KNEW that I was going to be one of them.

She announced the first name, and then my heart started beating faster, and I seriously heard her say my name before she even said it. And yup, she said it!!

So I got stuck with the oncology teenager patient...ugh! I hate oncology!!

But I have to say it was a really good experience, and a great way to learn (although a bit embarrassing as you watch yourself on the recorded tape!). The "mom" wasn't too hard on me and didn't ask me crazy questions like some of them could.

Being put on the spot in a patient room is SOOO different than being put on the spot in a manequin's room...with 15 other people watching you on the big screen next door!

The instructor asked several questions throughout the scenario and I nailed them all. I had been given 5 minutes to look over the guidelines and protocols for these types of patients before we started which was my saving grace!

As I walked out she told me "You did a great job...you sounded like a textbook in there!"

YEAH!!! Thank you!

And then the afternoon, we played APN Jeopardy. Now any of you that know me know that I'm competitive...really competitive. I told my team that we were going to win, because I had my eyes on the water bottles that were the prizes!!

We set up our team name ("Health Care Hotties") and totally won the game!! And for some reason, my biggest contribution to the group was all of the palliative care answers!!

I really don't like palliative care (probably for the same reasons I don't like oncology!) but along the way I guess I've picked up quite a bit about palliative care.

So all in all, it was a good day...much better than the 9 straight hours of lecture the day before! I'm hoping today will be just as interactive, but we'll see!!

Either way its Friday...it's almost done. And it's my LAST class day EVER (have I mentioned that!?).

I guess I should say last day of class in person...I do have 3 online classes over the summer...but it's so not the same thing!

So I will contnue to rejoice in this Fabulous last day of class Friday...and looking forward to the slightly teasing graduation ceremony tomorrow.

I may not officially be done when I walk across that stage tomorrow, but I will take pride in the great accomplishment that I have almost completed!!

I hope you all have an equally Fabulous Friday!