Started a new nursing job....and dead on my feet!

Hi everyone out there in blog land. I haven't posted anything in a while, so I thought I would change that today. I started a new job about 2 weeks ago, which is why I've been so quiet. I *thought* I would love to go back to obstetrics as a nurse, working in the well-baby and level II nursery, sometimes on the postpartum floor doing couplet care (mom and new well baby)....and while it sounds really good, whew, I'm beat!! :(

I have quickly discovered that the new job, working 12-hour shifts (something I'm no longer used to doing) is quite an undertaking, and I'm not totally sure that I am up to it! I feel like I work in a baby factory....because of the huge volume of babies delivered and just trying to keep up with all of the work. I have yet to get a break in the 4 days I have been at the hospital in clinical orientation....and without that break to refresh, it's just too hard to keep up. I am hoping I will learn to keep the pace, but I'm not overly optimistic...I think I am too old for this type of schedule/workload, and I didn't think I would EVER hear myself saying that. Truthfully, I have a pretty high energy level and can accomplish an amazing amount in a day, but I feel like a failure at work because I have yet to keep up well.....I get everything done by the end of the shift, but it's like a mad race to the finish line on a daily basis..... I am off today, simply exhausted...too tired to even think about quilting, and that's just TOO tired! :(

Until we chat again,
quiltingcheri

Our Australian shepherd website is updated!

Good news!! Y'all probably won't have to look at many more dog pics...I'll get back to posting quilting stuff now! :) LOL. We raise Australian shepherds, which is pretty obvious by now...and I have been working to update and rebuild our doggie website, so I've been taking all kinds of pictures and transferring pics from the notebook computer (where I download them from my Kodak digital camera) to the mainframe computer...I know, it's complicated, but it works for me...lol! So....here's the link just in case anyone wants to see the furkids. I had a great time, and included some pics just for fun, too..... I'm sure the website isn't done...probably never will be completely finished....but it's such a wonderful relief to have this much done. Next step, you ask? I have to figure out how to put the pedigrees up, now won't that be fun...NOT! :)

Here's the link:

http://www.flyingwaussies.com/

Enjoy browsing and meeting our furkids....make sure to let me know if you have any comments or suggestions....they're always welcome! :)

Until we chat again,
quiltingcheri

Cody's FINISHED planet quilt....

Well, it's done and it's one wacky quilt....very bright and colorful. Cody helped me choose some of the colors for this quilt quite a while ago...hope he doesn't change his mind when he sees the finished product. I just need to get the quilting done on it (and several others)....I was waiting to finish this one up before I started machine quilting the myriad of quilts I have stock-piled....so no more excuses.....Juki machine here I come! :)

Enjoy the pics....and let me know what y'all think....

'Till we chat again,

quiltingcheri

Cody's "planet" themed quilt is STARTED!

This is a quilt I finally got started for my youngest son, Cody. Cody just turned 14 on July 2nd, so this quilt is right up his alley. LOL! It's bright...and in case you can't tell, the fabric in the center is of planets. It is on a king-sized bed right now, so I have to decide how many more rows to add onto the quilt (I'm making ANOTHER of those roosting robin quilts, they are soooo addictive and quick to make!)...... I think the quilt will need some purple added in...and then maybe a big row of the big planet fabric (center square) to finish it off. I have 2 sizes of "planet" fabric prints that coordinate in this quilt, and it's a good thing, I need all of the fabric for this one. I'm a little bit worried about how bright this quilt is turning out, it's not very restful....lol. After I get it done, I'm sure we will be painting his walls because it's going to be way too much with what he has in there...can you say CLASH! :) Oh, well, they needed done anyway.

Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend.....it's raining and cool here, we're loving it, especially after our 105-115 heat indexes earlier this week....happy to see those gone! :) I was out getting groceries yesterday and got poured on at least 3 times...and I loved every minute of walking through the rain...it was nice and 80-ish...terrific! Today it's almost cool in the upper 70's...what a blessed relief, our a/c unit is getting a well-deserved rest. Because of the humidity (a rare thing here), our a/c unit was having a terrible time keeping the house above 81 degrees....which is just a few degrees warmer than I usually keep it....I prefer about 75 degrees, so it seemed very hot indoors to me. Did I mention that I'm NOT from the south and don't like the heat?? LOL!

We spent the hot part of the week out and about finishing up the FSA paperwork for our commerical chicken houses that are scheduled to start going up very soon. As far as I know the only thing we need now is a permit.... It's pretty amusing, actually. Here in MO, we apparently don't need a building permit to put up the chicken houses, we need a "land disturbance permit." Strangest thing I have ever heard of....if you own the land and want to build on it, and will be tearing up more than 1 acre, you have to go and get this permit (that costs $300) in order to "disturb" the land. Wild! :)

Have a great rest of the weekend. 'Till we chat again,

Quiltingcheri

Isis

This is Isis. Isis is a blue merle female with brown eyes. She was one of our bred puppies....she is now almost 5. Isis reminds me so much of her mom, Sapphire.....so beautiful with all of her dark spots and perfect merling. She's a total sweetheart, too, which certainly adds to her beauty.

Isis just loves everyone and is a pleasure to be around. She gets along with all of the other dogs...and cats (you can see our male cat's tail in the pic right above this)...... Our dogs and cat(s) have always gotten along pretty well....it doesn't hurt that the cat isn't afraid of anything...lol!

That's it for now....until we chat again,
quiltingcheri

Rodeo Sweetheart

That top pic is an Aussie smile!! Rodeo Sweetheart is a wonderful red tri female Australian shepherd that we have had since she was a puppy....now 5-1/2 years ago. She is a red tri (deep red, copper and a full white collar) with beautiful, loving amber eyes. She's simply beautiful. She is bred out of the #1 Hall of Fame Australian shepherd kennel lines, Las Rocosa, and she looks it. She is the mother of our beloved blue-eyed black bi boy that we bred about 3 years ago...actually she bred 2 black bi/tris with blue eyes in that litter. That may seem like a simple feat, but it was unexpected when we got it, and very highly sought after, so a good thing!

Rodeo is my husband's dog, something you will hear out of me a lot. Our Aussie females, for the most part, all claim Wes as their personal property. Like the other ladies, Rodeo "tolerates" me most of the time, and is my friend whenever Wes isn't available....lol. That's okay, I'm honored to be a part of her life...she's a beauty, so very loyal....a total keeper.

We're taking new pics for our website, so you're all going to see LOTS of pics of our Australian shepherds....and let me tell you in advance, they are all just amazing animals. I know all breeders will tell you that their breed is the best...well, Australian shepherds ARE the best, undoubtedly! :)

'Till we chat again,
Quiltingcheri

Introducing Texas Twister, Australian shepherd

This is our BIG boy Australian shepherd that we just added from a very dear friend and breeder from Kentucky. His name is Texas Twister, call name Tex. He's a complete sweetheart for such a BIG, big guy! He is seen in these pics with our new baby kitty (orange) and his daddy (big orange cat), Garfield. The kitties think Tex is just awesome...and they're right, he is. Texas is technically a blue merle with 2 crystal clear blue eyes.....he is what is known of as a cryptic merle or phantom merle, since he looks almost entirely like a black tri with his merling only around his full, thick furry neck. He's just gorgeous. As he becomes more comfy with us, I'll try to get better pics of him....

Tex is a laid back guy who loves nothing more than hanging around with us....and herding! He herded our horse today, a new experience for her. None of our other Australian shepherds would *dare* attempt to herd the horse. Tex has been here for a matter of days and has already successfully herded the horse! The horse is a pet, too, and was attempting to help Wes clean out the water buckets for the dogs today. We bleach them out everyday to keep fresh water available all the time for the doggies.... Anyway, the horse attempted to come on over to the part of the pasture that Wes was working in when Tex spotted her...he moved her right on back to the other side of the pasture, real quick and in a hurry! :) Wes, I'm sure, about lost it, nearly dying of laughter...lol. I'm sure the horse was SHOCKED! Just another day at the office for Tex! We're thinking he is going to be awesome with the cattle, his instincts are just awesome...

AND...we have a new baby kitty. That's pretty good for a family with only a male cat! :) We're guessing that our Garfield went a-visiting. When he came home this time, it wasn't empty handed...one of his baby kitties followed him right on home. We're assuming it's a little girl...and she's the spitting image of her dad, as you can see in the pics above. We couldn't be more thrilled. She's a tame little munchkin...and typical of kitties, she will choose her own home and family, thank you very much! I've been feeding her moist food over the course of the past 3-4 days, since she looks to be freshly weaned, about 4-5 weeks old. She's sleeping in the garage (attached to the house), and hangs out in the backyard (see pics) during the day..... We've got to come up with a name for her, though...hmmmmm! :)

That's about it for now.....till we chat again!

Quiltingcheri

Australian shepherd puppy is here....His name is Roper!

Roper is a total charmer.....when he is awake, and just as sweet when sleeping. He's only 10 weeks old, so we understand the cycle.....play, eat, drink, pet the puppy, potty the puppy and nap time. He will occasionally pose and show off in the middle of play time, but I haven't yet gotten an action pic. We are very pleased with our new little one. He looks similar to Miss Spy...a black tri (black, copper and white) with two beautiful BLUE eyes..... He again has a wonderful pedigree, and we are feeling quite blessed to have him!!

We also added a BIG boy, his name is Tex, short for Texas Tornado. He's a big boy, full-grown, and just a teddy bear. I didn't take any pics of him just yet, he's still warming up and bonding with us. I'll definitely post pics soon, though, he's postively gorgeous. Tex is technically a blue merle, although he only has merling around his collar...he appears just like a black tri, again with 2 clear BLUE eyes.....and that minimal amount of merling to complete the pic. He's called a cryptic or phantom merle, and we LOVE him!! His pedigree is very impressive...we're thrilled he's here with us forever.

I did start working on Cody's quilt with a "space" theme. I'll post pics soon of that...it's turning out rather bright, but interesting....and Cody loves it, which is all that matters. And I have a new job! I'm so excited!! I interviewed for several jobs, nursing and QA/medical editing.....and have accepted the QA/medical editing job. I think it makes the most sense for now....of course, I may just change my mind tomorrow....lol! I start the new job on Monday, 8/4/08....and this time I work NO weekends and NO holidays, a Monday-Friday, 9 am - 5 pm job. I don't remember the last time I had a job those days/hours that I liked...had several I didn't like that I took for the work schedule, though. LOL!

Hope y'all are having a wonderful weekend......

Until we chat again,
Quiltingcheri