Thursday, March 7, 2007, 2:03 p.m., C.S.T.~

Dear Journal~

I have been busy the past few days (make that nights). I have been working nights for the past several days. I am now off from now until Tuesday, thanks to my working several double shifts back to back.

As I have alluded to before, I am an RN. I am the charge nurse of the day shift at Nashville Memorial Hospital. I usually work the Emergency Room, but lately I have been working the MICU (Medical Intensive Care Unit). Some of the patients in the MICU have kept me on my toes, particularly my newest admit, Aurora Skydancer, who was admitted to the hospital from a heart attack. She is doing a little better, but she has a long way to go before she is moved out of Intensive Care. She is grossly overweight, has diabetes, and other medical problems stemming from her weight. She is a very sick woman.

Another patient who has kept me on my toes is Tottie Weatherspoon. She has pulled out the nasogastric tube and has pulled out her IV's. I don't know how many times she's done this; we keep having to tie her to the bed, and she is not a happy camper!

Tottie was in a horrific accident on the way from the airport (she is from Australia), and she faces a very long, painful recovery. She is from Australia, and I just love listening to her Aussie twang! She is doing a little better, but her attitude has soured. I don't blame her; she is in a strange country far from home, and she is now coping with the loss of one of her legs. I feel sorry for her.

My children have missed me at home; they are getting tired of eating leftovers or going out to eat. They are crying for some good home cookin'. I don't blame them; yet, what is a nurse to do when there is a nursing shortage facing the hospital, and she is needed? I guess that is the price to pay when one is a working woman. Yet now I am home until Tuesday at least, so the kids have me for five glorious days.

That means we will be able to go out to eat like we do every Sunday before church. We go out to eat at either Golden Corral or Fire Mountain or Denny's, it depends on our mood. We then head over to our church, Christ Community Assembly of God, where we get ready for church services. (Some of the kids are in the children's choir, and Bill and myself are in the adult choir/praise team. The other children go to their Sunday school classes while the main services are going on.) We are practicing for our upcoming Easter Cantata; that always brings in a lot of extra visitors to our church.

Emir smiled for the first time today; I mean actually smiled. He has been having night terrors due to the bombing that took away his limbs, and I am wondering if this will have any long-term effects on him. He was watching "The Backyardigans" on tv; he doesn't really understand the language yet, but he loves the action on the tv, and he loves the music and singing. It's a cute show. I guess the music made him happy, so he laughed out loud. It made me smile to know that he is starting to adjust to new life here in America.

Emma-Ruth, Vijay, and Opal were watching the television with their brother, and they were laughing too. The kids on the show (okay, animals, but they were supposed to be kids) were having a race day, and the music featured was Cajun. The kids loved it. They were bouncing in time to the music, and Vijay and Opal were soon dancing and jumping around! I had to tell them to quiet down.

The weather is glorious; the kids are now outside, playing in the front  yard, where I can keep an eye on them. Some of them are playing basketball or baseball or tossing a football around while some of the girls are playing with their dolls or bouncing a ball back and forth to each other. Other kids are on the swings or on their jungle gym, and Ronee', Johnny, Janica, Gemini, Danita, and Richard are playing frisbee, along with Johnny's dog, "Ginger", who keeps taking off with the frisbee, causing the kids to chase after her. She thinks it is great fun to agitate them.

Jodie is sitting in her wheelchair, laughing fit to bust at all the activity swirling around her, and enjoying the sunshine. She loves to be part of the action, and she loves watching her brothers and sisters playing. Now she is laughing as a tiny ladybug lands on her hand, and she is squealing happily.

I don't know what I have done to deserve all this happiness, but I have a beautiful family, I have a husband who loves me, and I am fortunate to live in an area of the country that gets to experience springtime before the northern parts. The weather here is in the sixties to low seventies, with bright sunshine, and I am in the garden, pulling out the last of the weeds before we start planting in a week or so. Ah, springtime. How I love it! I am ready for all this nice, warm sunshine and to see the greenery explode on our trees and see the grass greening up after looking so brown and dead all fall and winter!

I don't know how many people have waved or beeped at us as they drove by our house; guess seeing all those kids causes them to look a second time. It isn't every day when they see so many kids gathered in one yard! LOL

Tonight we are planning on going out to eat and to the park near our place; the kids need to burn off some excess energy, particularly Roberto, our son with Down's and autism, who is acting particularly antsy. He is stimming his hands, flapping them in front of his face, and he is howling at the top of his lungs. i sure hope he settles down before we go out to eat! Tonight we are going out to eat at Appleby's, and I don't need him causing people to look at us, wondering what we may be doing to him!

Life with Roberto is never dull, let me tell you!

Life with any of the children isn't dull! I guess that is what I deserve after adopting so many! LOL I never get a moment's rest before they are clamoring all over me, begging for my attention! It sometimes gets so bad I feel I need to clone myself! LOL

~Love, your friend, Louie. :D