My life now...

I was talking to hubs last night and he said "you never post about fun stuff on your blog any more--only food" and I guess that's a bit true these days...though I think most of my followers over here are here for food, those of you who I know in "real life" and who are interested in what is going on in my life after some major changes have been left with no info except for the fact that I am doing a LOT of cooking for big groups of college students!  There is definitely more to life now so I'll start to fill you in on that in between the food posts...

My last day at the office was Wednesday, July 28--I left before 5 in a torrent of tears, hugs, & goodbyes.  Crazy girl that I am, I decided that I would take myself off all of my medication around that time and see what just plain rest & water aerobics would do for my health conditions.  Well, going off of the Prozac the day before I left my job of 10 years...it wasn't pretty!  I cried and cried and snotted and cried some more!  It was intense!

The week before I left my coworkers honored me with a goodbye pot-luck lunch and some precious gifts

 a very blurry picture of some of the food

 they got me a cupcake Christmas ornament!

 a cookbook from Patti's--a Kentucky restaurant famous for amazing food & pies and they all signed the inside of the cookbook so I can think fo the whenever I cook from it :)

sobbing my little eyes out over my goodbye card.

I got another cookbook from one of the nurses "Great Recipes for Good Health" since that is one of the big focuses in life now.  Also a check and lots of hugs from the doctors and some money from my co-workers, and a 3-tier cakestand from another of my dear co-workers.  It was so special!  I'm disappointed with myself for not getting a picture with everyone before I left though :(  But I"m glad that I at least have our 1970s wood paneling and orange benches from the basement immortalized on the blog ;)  

The first two weeks after I quit I did very little.  I still took a lot of calls from the office on how to do certain things, and then these precious little ones entered our lives:

 Logan

 Connor

Butch even got to have a few visits with the babies & she loves them!

It was a great time and my sister-in-law & I really got to bond.  I was able to stay with her some in the hospital and help with feedings and cuddling and all that great aunt stuff :)  The boys were so tiny though!  It was scary sometimes...at one point when feeding one of them I was sure that I had killed him!  He just didn't seem to be moving and I was terrified!  Thankfully no one has died in the hands of Aunt Sarah (yet) and the tiny boys weighed at just under 10 pounds on their two month checkup!  They've done amazingly well for being born on July 31 when their due date was Sept. 8.  I love them!

Well, that is what happened in the two weeks after leaving my job...I'll update again soon on my major role now!

guilt

so...I have guilt.  I think every woman does.  You hear a lot about "mom guilt"--how mothers seem to feel guilty for everything that they do or don't do: if they stay home to be with their kids they have guilt over not providing financially, if they work outside the home they feel guilt over not being home with the kids, guilt over doing anything for themselves, etc...

Well right now I'm dealing with a case of what I will call "childless and jobless guilt." I have two more days of training my replacement at my job before I start  my "semi-retirment." (that reminds me--i haven't yet really gone into what I will be doing after I quit other than the health stuff--will update that soon hopefully).  As I'm preparing for this transition I'm just really struggling with the things that I think I should be doing.  I guess my main reason for this guilt is that I feel that if I do not have children, I have no right to be staying at home.  In this time I could continue working (though it would probably negatively impact my health) and saving up more money so that if/when we have children we would not have so many financial strains.  I have plans for things to do--cleaning, organizing, making our house really a home, tackling the mountains of piles that are going on, catching up on my scrapbooks, knitting, crafting, reading, having dinner for my husband when he gets home at night--so many things, but I just don't feel like it's enough.  Do you ever feel like that?  Like there is always more that you should be doing?

I know that this is the right choice for us.  I know that it will help our future, and hubs is even starting to really enjoy it now that the house is cleaner and he gets a good meal when he gets home every night instead of waiting another hour for me to get off work, and then waiting for me to finish dinner (which all too often meant a cold-cut sandwich).  Butch is thrilled to have mommy at home w/her too.  I think everyone is ultimately happy with the decision (minus the little aspect of tighter purse-strings) but it is still gnawing at me.  I think every woman would love to have this opportunity, so why is it fair that I get it?  Yeah, it is ultimately due to my health issues, but I just don't feel like that is enough of a  reason. 

Plus, I have always worked outside the home.  Since I was 16 I was working (at the same office that I am leaving now!).  When other kids were on summer or winter breaks from school, I was picking up extra hours at the office.  I have never just had a break.  And honestly I didn't need to work that much, but I just did b/c I like to work hard.  I think that is where so much of this guilt comes from.  I always see things that need to be done and that I can do and I always have multiple things going on at once.  It wasn't enough just to manage an office.  I had to do that plus college ministry, plus taking care of the house, plus weekly baking for my co-workers, plus a few little direct-selling businesses.  But I don't think there are any women on earth who don't have some "plus" things.  Don't we all try to do it all? 

Then there is the pressure on hubs.  How is it fair for me to not be working while he is practially working 2 jobs?  He has a freelance videography business that is growing by leaps and bounds, as well as his 40 hour/week computer consulting job.  I can try to talk myself into believing that before I basically had the two full-time jobs of maintaining our home (I've always done pretty much everything housework-wise) and working at my office, so now I'm just going to have one "job"....but it doesn't seem to be validated when I am not earning a paycheck.  I don't think that anyone would argue against the fact that homemakers work extremely hard--and it's not like you can leave that work at the office and go home--there is always something to clean, someone to feed, things to get rid of...but our culture defines people so much by salaries that it is hard to get an adequate value for that kind of work.  I feel like it is unfair--at my age & without children--to have him solely responsible for our finances.  That is a lot of pressure on him-- though we have no debt and have honestly had a basically stress-free marriage when it comes to money, I'm just afraid that I'm throwing that away without enough cause. 

It's just a weird situation.  I almost feel like I have to have a baby just to justify this move in my mind! eep!  What about you?  Do you have guilt that you are struggling with?  Is this mostly a "woman-thing" or do men struggle with it constantly too?

Just when I thought I was out...they pull me back in!

This week I have been agitated and aggravated and antsy and angry and all kinds of negative "a" emotions. 

Seventeen days ago I posted this about a new change coming up in my life.  After 10 years, I turned in my resignation at the pediatric office where I work.  I gave them a month notice, with my last day set as June 30th.  After over 3 months of deliberating and praying before making/announcing this decision, I've run through the gamut of emotions and am honestly kind of over it.  I know that when the time comes to leave I will be completely and utterly heartbroken over the people that I will no longer be in every-day contact with, but I have honestly loved the moments this month when I have done something I'm not fond of with the knowledge that it would be the "last time."

Well, there is this thing about having four physicians with completely different ideas, schedules...pretty much everything...as the responsible parties for moving forward in this situation.  They take their time.  I thought that 30 days notice was reasonable--generous even!  Apparently not.

Here is how the decision-making timeline has gone thus far:

• June 1: handed in my resignation letter to the physicians and met w/each one to discuss why, etc..
• June 2: physicians schedule meeting on June 4 to discuss how to move forward
• June 3: physicians reschedule meeting to June 7 due to scheduling conflicts (one week gone)
• June 7: physicians meet to discuss moving forward.  Decide to put ad in next Sunday's paper=another week gone w/no real progress
• June 13: Advertise opening at our office in paper
• June 14-16: I review resumes and do phone interviews/screenings
• June 17-18: 4 interviews scheduled with physicians.

Okay, so as I was doing these phone interviews and scheduling interviews w/the docs I came to a realization.

If we hire someone who currently has a job...the first available date for them to start after giving 2 weeks notice would be July 5...remember that my last day was supposed to be June 30?

Then I walked over to two of the physicians who were discussing how to do interviews and they brought up the fact that one of the docs has been on vacation all this week and unable to do interviews, and another would be gone all next week (21-25).  But they want to have all four meet with the top 2 candidates to make a decision.  This means that a decision would be impossible to make until June 28...plus 2 weeks if the candidate has a job = new hire's start date is somewhere in the week of July 12-16--right smack dab in the middle of the vacation week I had planned in Florida with my parents and sister...you know, because I was supposed to have had my last day two weeks before!  Of course, during this conversation they were discussing me training the new hire so I knew they weren't planning on doing it without me.

After some thinking and grumbling to one of my coworkers and overall frustration I took a calendar over to each of the physicians and told them that we had to discuss "logistics."  I would not cancel my vacation.  If they can make a decision quickly that would be preferable, and I will agree to work 2 days a week--no more--through July to make sure that the new hire gets adequately trained.  Shew.

In reality, it is not a horrible situation.  I mean, I will continue to be paid for a bit more time than I had planned and will still be able to rest and recoup and start some of the therapy things that I was planning on.  It was just frustrating.  My coworkers are happy with this option b/c I will be around longer, and I think the gradual change will be a good thing as well.  The whole situation has just given me a headache!  Craziness!  So I'm in it for a while longer.

I have so many fun posts that I want to write with some Butch stories & friend stories & recipes, but my mind has just been so foggy from this crazy.  I'm ready to go to sleep!  Will post fun things soon :)

a change will do you good

I don't do change.  I've said this before, but I have had the same car since I learned to drive, the same guy since I was 17, and the same job since I was 16.  I'm 26 now, and basically my life has been fairly constant since I was in my late teens!  Yeah, there have been the major life things such as getting married and finishing school, but in areas that I actually make a choice, once I make it I tend to stick with it.  I feel like I am a person who adapts well to new circumstances, but I guess I don't just seek change out. 

Well, it's time for a change.  Today, after nearly 10 years, I turned in my resignation at the office where I work.  That is the "big thing" that I have been hinting about for several weeks now.  I'm quitting my job. 

Now I realize, for some people--especially people in their early to mid 20s, changing jobs is basically like changing clothes.  It just happens as you get different kinds of experience and move around before settling on a career choice.  Most of my friends have worked at at least 5 different places which is hard for me to imagine!  I, on the other hand, have only ever worked at Pediatric Associates.  Yeah, there were a few part time church or CRU childcare things thrown in the mix, but those were always in addition to my main job or for just a week or two at a time.

I started working at PA when I was sixteen.  I had been a patient there since I was two years old, and at that time was getting allergy shots 2x a week.  I figured that it couldn't hurt to try to work there since I was already in the office so much!  I remember exactly how I approached it...I was getting my allergy shot, and I asked the nurse who was administering it: "Do you ever hire people who are under 18??"  That's all I said!  lol.  Well, thankfully my doctor and the nurse liked me and a few weeks later I filled out an official application and met with the office manager for an impromptu interview...I was sick that day and there to see my doctor and I was wearing jeans with holes in them!  I remember asking the office manager about the dress code and she looked me up and down and said "Well, not ripped jeans!" 

I went in after school every day except Thursdays since the office manager was off and did menial tasks like filing, copying records, shredding old documents,  pulling insurance documents and sorting mail.  I would work extra time when school was out and it began to be like a little family for me.  And best of all, if I was sick or needed allergy shots, I just had to walk down the hall!  The craziest thing about those first few months was that I was not even driving yet, so my parents would pick me up from school, drop me off at the office, and then pick me back up one hour later!  bless them!

It carried on that way for several years, through my senior year of high school and then through college.  I picked up more responsibilities over time and they liked me and even agreed to let me take 6 weeks off to go on a mission trip to Russia.  Around that same time, there was some sketchy stuff going on with the manager and by the time I was scheduled to leave she was gone and the office was in shambles.  I thought I wouldn't have a job when I came back, and they even talked to me about letting me go, but I persevered and stayed on.  By my senior year of college they had decided to create a new position for me, and during my last semester I was promoted to "Billing & insurance specialist" though I had no experience whatsoever, and only 2 weeks of training!  I ended up training the next manager and eventually was promoted to the position myself.  (A big step up from formerly sitting having to sit sideways at a filing cabinet for my workspace!)

Since graduating college and becoming the manager (or "Office Coordinator" as the position is officially titled) I have caught mono (most likely from the patients) and developed some probably permanent health conditions; dealt with a roof literally being blown off the office and the subsequent move to and from a temporary location; drama of all kinds including some directed at me; major employee turnover; the retirement of a physician and the adding of a new one;  learning and eventually mastering the insurance systems; being cussed over past-due patient accounts; being cussed over divorce/custody drama; being cussed over the on-hold music...maybe I exaggerated that one a tiny bit, but you get the idea...I could go on, but this is already a very lengthy post ;)

And you know what?  This may sound kind of sad, but seeing my coworkers and physicians/bosses truly upset over my decision to leave, I feel like it was all worth it.  I feel truly loved and appreciated.  Instead of being excited that I'm leaving, several of them have actually cried!  All of them have protested (some threatened to kidnap my little Butchy if I didn't change my mind!) and even the doctor that I thought would be jumping for joy to get rid of me offered to let me have a shortened schedule if I would stay. 

So why am I leaving??  Because we have been blessed.  We have had our financial burdens lessened which has made the need for my salary go away.  And after much prayer and crying and wondering and money crunching we felt that this was God's way of providing so that I can try to get healthy.  Getting me out of an environment where I am constantly exposed to sick children can only help my health.  At this point I feel like I have tried every other alternative, but nothing has truly, permanently helped.  How can I go forward without trying every possibility to get better?  I would always wonder "what if" had we not made this decision.  Especially if this allows me to be able to eventually be healthy enough to raise a child.  My doctor had already said that working after having kids was not an option for me, at least not for the first few years, so I am just taking a bit of extra time to prepare for that. 

And what am I going to do now?  I have some plans.  I am not getting another full time job and I will hopefully have some time just to rest, but I feel that I have already "talked your ears off" (in reading/writing form of course) so you'll have to stay tuned to learn the most exciting things that God has provided for my future!

**By the way, in case you haven't guessed, I didn't get to the TWD post for this week, though it looked quite wonderful.  You can still see everyone else's White Chocolate Brownies here.

a brunch for special ladies

Sorry that I have been MIA for a bit...life has been ca-razy.  I will update more on this later, but here in Bowling Green, KY we've also had some of the horrible flooding that has affected the midsouth lately, and it was my birthday, and I have some developments coming up in the next few months that I will tell you at the beginning of June,  and my house is a mess!

Before I post about recent happenings, I decided that I would like to give you some yummy yummy recipes that would be perfect if you want to have a mother's day brunch.  I will be having a family cookout, but I made these yesterday for some other very special ladies--Nurses!  That's right, today is Nurse Appreciation day--so get out there and hug a nurse or bring her (or him...there are male nurses, just not at my office) some goodies!

 some of our lovely nurses in front of their breakfast table

the spread :)

And now for the recipes...

So this coffee cake...when I saw it in one of my holiday baking magazines (you know...when i freak out and spend all my money...) I had to make it.  However, I did not need one this big for me and hubs (i'm already too fat...).  So I made it for my sister-in-law and her girls.  It got rave reviews...but I hadn't gotten to try it!  So when I started planning on what to make for Nurse Appreciation breakfast I couldn't get this one out of my head.  I actually scoured the rest of my recipes for an easier overnight coffee cake, but nothing looked this delicious, so at 8:50 pm I began to make the cake...not even my butter was softened!  I generally go to bed right around 10 and, needless to say, that didn't happen last night.  But I think it was worth it!

YUM!

Cinnamon-roll coffee cake
Cuisine at home Holiday baking 2009

For the Caramel Topping:

• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• pinch table salt
• 1 cup chopped toasted pecans

For the Streusel:

• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp table salt

For the Cake:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. table salt
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt (I used regular sour cream)
• 2 eggs
• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar

Preheat oven to 350* F.  Coat a 9 inch round, 2 inch deep cake pan w/nonstick spray (i did not have this size pan, and used a 10 in. round springform pan.  a bit of the filling leaked out of the bottom, so if you go that route I would recommend lining your springform pan w/parchement, or at the very least, set it on top of a baking sheet--which i did)

Stir together the 3/4 cup brown sugar, cream, and a pinch of salt for the caramel topping in a measuring cup (not sure why the measuring cup is "necessary").  Pour caramel into the prepared pan, spreading to coat bottom of the pan. Sprinkle pecans over caramel.  Also, I was a bit "off my game" last night and measured this out backwards at first...1/4 cup brown sugar to 3/4 cup cream.  Then I realized it was WAY too liquidy...anyone know a recipe that calls for that mixture that has already been combined??


Process the 1/2 cup born sugar, 1/3 cup flour, the 1/2 stick butter, cinnamon, and 1/4 tsp. salt fo rthe streusel in a food processor, pulsing until the mixture is sandy but without clumps; set streusel aside.

Whisk the 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, and 1/2 tsp. table salt for the cake in a bowl; set dry ingredients aside.

Whisk together buttermilk, yogurt (or sour cream), and eggs in a measuring cup with a pouring spout (pouring spout is helpful here...); set aside.

Using a hand mixer (?? I used my kitchenaid), cream together the 1 stick butter and 3/4 cup granulated sugar in a bowl, only until combined.  Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk mixture to the creamed mixture, strating and ending with dry ingredients.  Blend only enough to incorporate the dry ingredients into the batter.

Spread half of the batter over teh caramel in the cake pan, then sprinkle w/half the streusel.  Carefully spread remaining batter over streusel in cake pan; top w/the remaining streusel. Okay, I don't think the seperation of the streusel is necessary.  Half of what I had on the bottom just made a mess and fell off, so when I make this again I will at least do 3/4 in the middle, maybe all of it.

Bake coffee cake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50-60 minutes.  Cool cake for 5 minutes on a rack, then run a paring knife around the sides to loosen cak.  Invert onto a serving platter while hot.  Let cake cool slightly before serving. 


Next is an overnight sausage breakfast casserole, a la Sarah!  I got some basic guidelines from Cooks.com and then threw together a dish based on what I had on hand.  Here it is!

Overnight Sausage Breakfast Casserole

• 1--1 1/2 pkg. Kings Hawaiian Bread 
• 1 lb. pork sausage, cooked and drained
• 6 large eggs, beaten
• 2 cups milk (or one cup skim milk + one cup cream)
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. onion powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 cup fiesta blend shredded cheese
• 1 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (i really just eyeball the amount of cheese...) 

Tear Hawaiian bread into bits and layer across the bottom of a greased 9x13" pan 
Layer half the sausage over bread, followed by half of the cheese.  Then repeat layers.
Whisk together eggs, milk, and spices until combined.  
Pour over bread/sausage/cheese mixture, pressing down on the top of the solid ingredients to make sure that egg mixture reaches the top.
Refrigerate overnight if desired.
When time to bake,  preheat oven to 350* F.  Bake for 35-45 minutes until set.

**I also think this would be GREAT with veggies mixed in...peppers, onion, mushrooms, etc...but there are some picky eaters at my office so I stuck to meat and cheese ;) 

Friday Favorites!

I've decided to start a new series every Friday where I will post about one of my favorite things!

So this post is going to be about....Fridays!!!

Friday is a favorite for most people, being the end of the average working week, but it is especially wonderful for me.

When I got sick w/CFS & fibromyalgia in 2007 I was allowed to drop my work schedule to 4 days a week (which is the same schedule that everyone else in my office already had) and have Fridays off for rest. The schedule really helped me to be able to make it through a normal week without having my symptoms flare up too much, even though I normally start feeling sick by Thursday afternoon. I still get sick during the week sometimes--especially considering how many germs I am constantly exposed to working ina Pediatric doctor's office...but the three day weekend really allows me to recouperate and not be so drained that I can't do anything else during the weekends (like clean!).

I generally spend a good amount of Friday sleeping to be honest. My body is really tired and achy after a crazy work week, and then after that I tend to schedule doctor appointments and occasionally get to spend some time with friends b/c hubs is always filming games on Friday nights.

I am so thankful to have a job that allows flexibility with my schedule and I truly appreciate my favorite day of the week!

What is your favorite day?

What a week (or two...)

The past few weeks have been absolutely insane! In the nearly nine years that I have worked at the doctor's office, I have never seen a September this crazy! Of course we have the H1N1 flu making everyone sick, but we've had TONS of respiratory viruses, infections, and who-knows-what else. We've had crazy staffing issues between some employee turnover, new hire training, and illnesses...oh I'm exhausted. I've been sick for nearly 3 weeks now (different from my normal CFS/fibro stuff) thankfully my flu test was negative, but I have had a miserable cough, fever, sore throat, and congestion as well as headaches and just plain misery. I've been on prescriptions including a Zpac, Tessalon pearls, mucinex, a prescription cough medicine, inhaler, and a steroid shot and nothing is working!!! Oh it's frustrating. The fever is at least gone, but the cough & congestion just won't leave.

In spite of all the sickness, I have had 2 cake orders in the past few weeks (two cakes for each order) as well as some pies for work. The first order was my first ever for someone who I did not know at all. The lady works w/my sister-in-law and needed some cakes for a surprise birthday party for her sister, and I had committed to doing it several weeks prior. The week of the order I kept seeing my doctors and getting tested for flu and everything else...trying to do anything to feel better, but it was not working. I finally called the customer after seeing my doctor on Friday and in the middle of a coughing fit--I told her that I was still up for doing the cake and didn't have the flu, but wanted her to be prepared for the fact that I was sick. After discussing it for a while and promising to wear a mask and gloves while doing the cake, she said she would be okay with it as long as I was up for it. I baked the cakes and left them to cool overnight, and then the nextr morning I actually felt better! I decorated the cakes, one a music theme and the other chocolate w/purple dots and writing, and then delivered them. It must have been a burst of adreneline, b/c as soon as I finished the cakes I went into a coughing fit again and felt just as bad for the next several days...but I got them done! And she loved them!

the music themed cake--white cake w/white buttercream. the piano keys are fondant and the rest is piped icing.


side -ish view of the music cake


chocolate cake w/chocolate icing and shades of purple writing (it looks blue in the picture...but it really was purple!)

My other cake order for the week was birthday cakes for my husband's aunt. She lives in an adult care home that has many residents with diabetes, so in addition to a chocolate cake decorated for her birthday, they ordered a sugar free cake! I was honestly terrified of that, but my mother-in-law told me about some diabetic-friendly cakes made with a cake mix and can of diet soda. Now, I always make my cakes and icings from scratch, but decided to use this method due to the type of the cake, and the fact that my health was not condusive to trying several different sugar substitute cake recipes over the weeks leading up to the order! I decided to go with a strawberry cake mix and diet lemon-lime soda (I really wanted to use a diet cream soda but could not find one ANYWHERE) and a few whipped egg whites. Then for the "icing" I mixed cream cheese with sugar free vanilla pudding (prepared w/milk), sugar free strawberry jello, and lite cool whip, then I topped it w/a few strawberries. I am very sensitive to artificial sweeteners, but I must admit that for a sugar free cake it was really good! They said both the cakes were hits and some people took my cards for the future, so yay!

chocolate birthday cake


sugar free strawberry cake w/cream cheese "icing"

Also, between my coughing and hubs' allergies, we haven't slept in the same room in two weeks! I feel sad and lonely. :( He is filming and editing so much that bedtime was our only time together, so it's sad. He said that he will come back to the bedroom "after the first frost" b/c that's when his allergies should get better. boo.

Now I'm trying to clean the house a bit while also dog-sitting for my parents (butch and autumn are CRAZY together) and trying to rest and recouperate a bit as well. (I treated myself to a pedicure yesterday!) Here's hoping the next few weeks get better!

some helpful tips for those seeking a job

Our office recently posted an ad for an open position in the paper, and today I was hit with a deluge of resumes to sift through. Some were good...some were...hilarious, and not in a good way

So here are a few points for what NOT to do when applying for a job:

1. Honesty is a great thing, but your resume does not need to include the reason why you left every previous job--especially when the reasons include "being terminated for missing too many days" and "an unresolved issue regarding patient care."

2. Spell/grammar check is your friend! Please use it! Errors jump off the page, especially when you are bragging about your "attentions to details" or intelligence.

3. When applying for an office job, sending a head shot is not necessary...it is actually kind of strange.

4. If there are errors, random scribbles, or outdated information on a resume, take the time to type a new one--do not send in a crumpled resume covered with white-out!

5. Though salary negotiation is an important part of the hiring process, listing a "required salary" sounds greedy...but at least I know that you won't be interested!

As far as what to do...it really just depends on what the company is looking for! I think a personalized cover letter is always a nice touch, especially if your resume is very general. If you don't have experience in the field where you are looking, give them a reason why you would be a good fit and why your personality would be an asset. Don't worry about fancy colors or fonts or anything like that, just be honest about your qualifications and why you want to work there!

The whole resume sorting thing is honestly very awkward to me. I've gone through this several times in the past few years, and I always get really self conscious when it comes time for interviews and meeting new candidates. I am confident in my ability to do my job, and feel that I am respected by my co-workers, but I always feel that people are shocked at my age when coming in and meeting me as the "office manager." It is very strange for me to see some of the graduation dates listed as the same year that I was born! Just a weird position to be in all around...wish me (and the office) luck these next few weeks! I honestly think the positions are going to be filled quickly, but staff turnover is always difficult, especially during such a busy time of the year for a medical office!

(btw...I have baked something delicious every single day this week since Saturday! I will have some pictures and recipes to post tomorrow)

musings from a doctor's office

switching from briefs to boxer shorts will not cause medical problems

your pediatrician will not harvest and sell your child's organs (we don't keep surgical tools in the office even if he wanted to), so there is no need to threaten to sue us

if your insurance is not active, you are considered a self pay patient regardless of how long you've been going here.

if you are old enough to contract an STD, you are old enough to see an adult doctor--not a pediatrician

if you have a child of your own, you are old enough to see an adult doctor

"i've given you enough money already this year" is not a valid reason not to pay your bill

baking all the live long day

so this week i have been baking especially much. made another batch of eclairs and another pecan pie, and then 48 (!) cupcakes for a dear co-workers birthday. in the middle of making the cupcakes (strawberry & chocolate cream cheese w/homemade icing) i realized that my cupcake carrier only holds 12!!! i found some extra pans to transport the rest and kept a few home for me and patrick.

they were a hit!

i feel more and more like i need to have a bakery. this week pretty much all the front staff and nurses at work told me that they would come work for me if i opened one, and everyone said that i need to. then one of my coworkers told me that her daughter was literally crying last night b/c she can't buy my peanut butter cookies whenever she wants them! she asked her mom if she thought i would make her some if she drew me a special picture and got me the ingredients!! it almost broke my heart! (we have arranged a date to bake them together on saturday night). then i got online to write this blog and i checked my email and my mother in law wants to buy a pie from me! my first order and i don't even have a menu or pricing sheet yet!

i have so many ideas that i want to do but the logistics of it all is just overwhelming. i'm trying to remind myself to take small steps and not think too much about the crazy things like getting a building or commercial kitchens and stuff. i have nothing to lose by making a menu and price list!

Sweetness

My dear husband decided to surprise me today with roses! And I still had roses f/m valentines day, so now I have combined them into a lovely pink & red bouquet in my antique milkglass vase. AND he unloaded the dishwasher!! (that's a big deal for him--at least to do it w/out being asked).

butchy loves flowers

It was really good timing for me. I have been feeling somewhat strange about us. We've just both been snippy at each other lately. Nothing huge, but we also struggle with being so wrapped up in what we have going individually that we forget how to really connect with one another. We're putting more effort into it though, and that always helps! He is the love of my life--I can't believe that our 7 year anniversary is coming up in a few weeks! (dating, not marriage anniversary)


On another topic...I baked sourdough bread today and my house smells amazing! I love baking in general, but there is something special about making bread. I love the way that it feels when I punch it down and shape it into loaves after letting it rise all day. So gooey and warm and yeasty...that is true comfort! I just have to get some of this out of my house so I don't ruin the diet!

This week has started off crazy at work. I swear all of Bowling Green is sick--including half our staff! Hopefully it will slow down soon.