Happy Birthday, William!

My brother is 23 today!!

William, Marian, and me

Boys are just hard to buy for, aren't they?! My dad and brother have always been this way...just plain content with what they have. Definitely a compliment, but sure hard for those of us wanting to give them a gift! In order to think of a thoughtful idea, each year I must get my creative juices flowing way in advance to come up with something special and fun. 

This year I decided to paint this turkey on my spring break trip to DeBordieu for William's new house. See Molly's blog for pictures of our trip (since I haven't had time to post any). 

And Cole had the great idea of ordering 4 pounds of Benton's bacon from Tennessee....sounded perfect for William to me. 

Happy Birthday, William!

99.5%

Yes, you just read it. That is The Sims' ranking in the 2012 ESPN March Madness bracket competition (we were 99.8% until UNC Chapel Hill lost today). I must give credit where credit is due and that is to Cole who, if you didn't already assume, filled out a bracket for us! I haven't even watched a basketball game this year... so obviously, I have never been much of a sports fan, nor even really competitive at all, but it is one thing that I have learned to do and enjoy with Cole. This bracket thing is pretty fun, but isn't everything fun when you are winning?!

Herb Garden

Yesterday I took a personal day from all things school...I spent some quality time exercising with a few friends, enjoyed a Starbucks green tea, devoted time to prayer and Bible Study preparation, and on a whim decided to go ahead and plant my seasonal herb garden (Molly, my friend with the green thumb, told me it wasn't too early)! 

Basil, Dill, Thyme, Oregano, Lemon Verbena, Mint, and my somehow perennial parsley. I can't wait to cook with these!!

Favorite Unique Kitchen Tool #4

Zip-lock bag assister/holder...If Cole is not here to give me a hand, transferring food to a zip-lock  is always a diaster. Thanks for this, JoJo!!

 

You can order it here. Click here to read about my other favorite unique kitchen tools. 

Notebook Organization

My pharmacy school notes desperately needed to be organized and consolidated. For some time now, I have wanted them grouped by body system. For example, everything about cardio in the same place...cardio notes from pathophysiology, pharmacology, medicinal chemistry, pharmacotherapy, labs, clinical applications cases...all together and with repetitive information discarded. This is hopefully going to be very useful for referencing my notes on rotations! 

After one trip to a thift store (my secret place to find new binders for cheap) and $5 later, I was ready to get started. 

Before...

 After...

Whew!

Happy Anniversary to My Blog!!

A Week with Diabetes

Today it starts! As part of my clinical assessment lab and diabetes management certificate, I am living with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus for an entire week. I will be taking "metformin" twice daily and injecting myself daily with basal "insulin". My blood sugar needs to be checked twice daily, both fasting and 2 hours post-prandial. I must use carbohydrate counting. My meals must be between 45-60g carbohydrates and my snacks 15g (max 2). I have to record 150 minutes of cardio exercise and 3 resistance training regimens during the week. My feet must be inspected and washed each day.

You may be wondering why in the world I am doing this, but pharmacists play a huge role in diabetic management, especially with insulin dose adjustments and lifestyle management. While this task seems a little daunting, I think it will prove very useful and help me empathize with my future patients who are struggling with this disease state. No better way to learn something than to do it myself! After one injection and one blood glucose reading, I am almost already comfortable with needles...

Wish me luck!!