What happens in Vegas......

We went to Vegas to watch Jayli play some rockin' SUU Softball!! Well, she was actually the first person on the team to get on base against the California Bears (ranked like 3rd in the nation!) It's pretty much an addiction.....us watching Jay play softball!!

Addi entertained everyone with her dance skills at the ballpark!! Then Mom, Jodi, & I were people watching at the hotel lounge on Saturday night......oh my!! I haven't laughed that hard for a long time!! Everyone was at least 10-20 yrs older than us, NO ONE had their real hair, and lets just say the dance moves and the groovin' style demonstrated how much EtOH they drank that night!! Jodi was asked out by a guy who looked like Keanu Reeves in "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure", I was asked to learn to play a new type of poker, and we were ALL offered several drinks!! All in all - the band was fab, and the laughs were loud!! We even got a little dancing in.......just had to dodge the creepy staring guy : /

Loved spending time with The Fam!! To top it off, we had a fried oreo sunday at Serendipity.....mmmmmmhhhhhh yeahhh!

Addi, Shalene, Jayli, Mom, Me

Sistahs! Jo & Me

Addi - Jay - Me - Shalene

Addi LOVES Aunt Jay

.....but by the end of the trip, she loved me too!

....and she like the animals!

Addi & her Mama

Hands

So the topic of discussion lately has been HANDS.......namely the SIZE of people's HaNdS. Everyone knows their shoe size, but do you know your hand size?? If you work in an operating room, or have any other reason to wear sterile gloves, you know what I am talking about. For everyone else.......what size do you think your hands are???

Mine are 6.5

According to some surgeons, their hands are appropriate for what they do.......I'll let you all figure that one out.....

I have the smallest hands in my family, even with the girls, but I think my sister's hands are appropriate for their height & shoe size.

My Grandpa Blood has HUGE hands, and his children do also, in addition to a number of grandchildren (my cousins).......and sometimes they don't fit the body type - but I think that is awesome!!

I like big hands, long fingers, wide fists, and the strength that they exhibit!!

Mark is always so fascinated that my hands are so much smaller than his.....I kind of love that too. ;)

So what size are your hands??

You don't have to use a number, but you can if you know it??

Or use your own creative way to describe them.....

hAnDs are more than just a size.....they tell you much more about a person.....

What do your hands say about you?

For my learning enjoyment.......

Today was a busy day, but good all around. I bounced back and forth between 2 operating rooms (ORs) today, one surgeon evacuating a subdural hemorrhage (bleeding between the dura and the brain)....and the other surgeon clipping an aneurysm in a big artery in another brain.

InCrEdIbLe!!

For being a good little PA, and paying attention to the clock......I got a souvenir....

an ANEURYSM CLIP!!!!

They use a temporary clip on the vessel leading to the aneurysm to reduce the pressure while they put permanent clips on the neck of the aneurysm......and then they take the temp clips off......

and then I got to keep one....

OK - so maybe this isn't that exciting for the rest of you......but I was excited - ha ha!

So if you had surgery, and they removed something.......would you want to keep it????

Bright & Shiny

So I know the last post was kind of a depressing reality check........a reminder that life's not fair.....

Here's an update that will show you my job is not all dark and twisty heartbreak:

Since I only work in the hospital, I don't see anyone for follow-up. Therefore, I don't know how they are doing unless one of my docs or their NP's tell me. There was a young guy, in his 20s, that had a nasty wreck on his longboard (NO helmet). This resulted in 2 craniotomies and severe traumatic brain injury. He left the ICU to go to an LTAC (an acute, advanced nursing facility) and I honestly didn't think he was going to wake up. We had to remove 6 cm of his brain because it herniated - when he left he didn't open his eyes and only moved his arms/legs spontaneously......and his Mom was always there, never giving up, rejoicing in every little advancement he made, exhibiting incredible patience when we told her over and over that time will tell his outcome...

Today, Dave, who works in the office sent me a text that said he just saw this longboarder walk into his office.......awake.........talking..........back to life!!!

This canceled out all the dark and twisty I have seen for weeks!!

Hope you felt the warm & fuzzies too =)

Time.......

Wow! It has been a while since I posted on here eh?? Sometimes I feel like my posts need pics, but then I remind myself I can always find an appropriate pic on line!!

New Years has past, and there are a number of things I want to do this year.........yet because of the patients I have seen recently......I have been reliving the past!! I knew when I took this job, there was going to be a lot of sad and heart wrenching circumstances, and thus far the position is yet to disappoint. Lately though, I have been seeing a bunch of 18-20 year olds who have experienced a devastating event, obliterating their senior year in high school as they know it -- or changing their lives forever!

-A Cheerleader relearning to walk - getting over the fact her hair is only 1/2 an inch long, and that her biggest triumph this week was wiggling her toes.....

-A State Champion Wrestler, who was "kicking butt" this season, top of his game in his weight, in incredible physical form, who now is trying to regain strength and mobility in his whole right 1/2 of his body. He can still get the chicks though!! Ha ha - such a flirt!

-An outgoing rodeo cowgirl, returning from her first job at a State Fair - now will never walk, and is hoping for ANYTHING (except the crazy nerve pain she currently has) below her waist.

-A 20 y/o cowboy, bull rider, working hard, caught up in the little nuances that seem to overwhelm life - and now is fighting to regain function in his lungs so he can also work on ANYTHING he can get back below his waist -- right now....not so much.

At this time during my senior year: I was getting ready for state drill team competition, trying out for the All State Team, looking forward to every basketball game, every dance, stressing about getting ready for Sterling Scholar, looking forward to spring, softball, and not having to worry about anything after Drill Team tryouts. We took 2nd in State Softball my senior year.....all this would have been soooooo insignificant if I suddenly couldn't walk, squeeze my boyfriends hand, or even wiggle my own toes.........

So what were you doing your senior year??? The summer after high school??? And what would you have done had any of this happened to you?? Makes you think huh?

Festivus!! The celebration begins....

The McKell Family Christmas Party.......food, family, presents, and lights!

Still getting the cheat grass/fox tails out of my scarf & coat - but all in all.....a good time!

Good to see everyone there!

The Berretts

Clint & Melissa

Mike & Kandalyn, with Alli checkin the tree in the background

Ashley & Tanner

Si, Brandon, & Brian

Brandon, Sarah & Me

Brandi, Dallen, Tyler, Si, & Clint

Boyd, Nate, Landon, & Barbara

Me, Boyd, Nate

Alli, Mark, Grandpa Berrett

Merry Christmas 2009!!!

The List Returns!

How to stay out of the trauma bay:

1. Don't forget you put up an electric fence - otherwise you might run into it with your 4-wheeler at 45 mph.

2. Remember - if it sounds a little crazy to jump your motorbike off a huge home-made ramp for a youtube video.......it IS crazy! Unless you think that 4 broken limbs, broken jaw & face, and subsequent stroke 2/2 vertebral artery dissection sounds like "not a big deal" to you!

3. If you're skinning an elk, don't put a freezer underneath you. Use pillows instead - then when you fall off the ladder you get a soft landing.

4. If you're manic, and haven't slept in 7 days, don't drive your shaggin' wagon any further with your crazy wife- even if you're trying to get to Cali for some medical marijuana! Just stay in Kentucky-I'm sure they grow it there.

5. Don't try to jump out of a golf cart while it's moving - you might just fall on your head! (btw - this was a young guy folks - you are not invincible!).

6. If you have spinal stenosis - don't be a cage fighter! (unfortunately, that's not a typical screening in those oh so thorough sports physicals we get).

7. If you're over the age of 65, do NOT get on any ladder, roof, or scaffolding! I know this is a repeat - but I see this like 2x per week. Oh, and the guy that went off the roof was younger - like 45 - you're not invincible.

8. Don't pass a car on the double yellow line....there are reasons for this.

9. Don't long board w/o a helmet - just avoid long boarding all together.

10. Avoid hitting cows with your car.

Number 10 is a personal reminder.....I actually avoided the trauma bay even though my little Civ split 2 black cows standing in the middle of the highway, in the dark. I'm missing both my mirrors, and my front passenger end is a little smushed - but overall I was very fortunate. Definitely something to be grateful for this weekend!! Also, grateful for my incredible brother who made my car driveable by taking all the mangled plastic off the wheel well. He and my Dad are AWESOME!!! Oh btw the cows didn't die either - I backed up the car and checked. One just got a smack to the head and the other a spank on the rear!! All I could think is how embarrassed I would be when they tranferred me to Utah Valley and I met the surgeons or Trauma PAs that I work with - and then tell them that I hit a cow!

If you have any others to add to the list - feel free! I welcome all recommendations!

Black Out

The UTES were a little scary on Halloween

but pulled it out against the Cowboys in the end!

Happy Halloween!

Showing the BlAcKoUt support!

This is Jodi & I last week at the game against Air Force!

GO UTES!

60,000 Wins????

All in all - good times in College Football!

Halloween Festivus

On Oct 24th, there was a Halloween/Birthday Party at the condo for Alli, who turned 2 on the 17th of this month. There was food, family, and lots of games....including a mummy wrap (see below) It was good to see everyone and the kids had another reason to wear their costumes! On the other hand, I didn't know the adults were dressing up - so I had some arm tats and some black make-up left over from last year....and the rest is just from my closet. Improv at its finest! Then Clint & Melissa showed up with costumes to match! It all worked out! = )

The Rockers

Grandpa McKell & Me - I think he was a little freaked out!

The Mummy Wrap

My Team was the BEST! We WON!

Shout out to: Melissa, Grandma Christiansen, & Steve (John's Dad)

The Winters (clockwise): Taking us back to the big hair era - Clint & Melissa, Dora II (Sarah), The Ninja (Devin), Diego (Tyler), and The Dodger's MLB Star (Nate)

Kent Bumstead & Barbara as Jack Sparrow

Deer Hunt in Angle

You can always find my family in Angle during the deer hunt! There used to be more of us - but with the draw and just all of us growing up - it has become less and less. We were excited to see everyone there this year!!! All in all, it was a good time!

My fam, with Jayli, Jodi, and John & Shalene & Addi.

The babies: Addi & Khloe (with the pink bow)

The kiddos! In the top Left corner: Kale, Kalese, Tucker, & Cam. Cam would get in football stance and run across the room when you said "hike" and then throw the football! Loved it!

The kids with Grandpa & Grandma! Kale @ the top R, and Kalese & Kesler with me.

The Great Hunters! Jayli & John, then Mark; Uncle Kerry, Brett, Brook, & Brandon; then Kaden, Kes, John & Brook in bottom L.

Deer Hunt 2009

To family: if I spelled your child's name wrong - I apologize in advance! Love ya!