Tag: News

Job Hunting Frustrations and Irritations

So, I’m applying for CNA jobs at local hospitals and such in Knoxville and I start to thinking about how I might be able to transfer my certification registry from NC to TN. I go hunting on the TN Nurse Aide Registry site and start reading. About halfway down I come across this:

An individual who is currently listed as active with no derogatory or abuse information on another State’s list of certified individuals can apply for reciprocity.

Okay, that sounds like me:

Tennessee accepts reciprocity from all States except Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois and North Carolina.

Uh Oh. So what do I need to do?

An individual living in Alabama, Georgia or Illinois must provide verification of their status and apply to challenge the test. An individual living in Florida or North Carolina must retrain and retest in Tennessee in order to become certified as a CNA in this State.

That’s right folks I have to retake a class in common sense and retake a skills test on hand washing. Apparently people in NC and FL don’t know how to wash their hands right.

In which I tell you everything

Latina mortua lingua est,
Ut mortua potest esse:
Necavit omnes Romanos,
Atque necat me!		 (Latin is a dead language,
Dead as it can be:
It killed off all the Romans,
And now it’s killing me!)

The rumors of my death, unfortunately, have not been so greatly exaggerated as one could have wished. As you may recall, I was offered a job about a year ago to teach Latin at a classical school in Concord, North Carolina. This was very odd because, well, several reasons:

  • Though I love teaching, I had never taught in a classroom setting, nor had I been trained in any way to do so.
  • Though I had decided I wanted to try teaching, Latin was the furthest thing from my mind. I had applied to teach English.
  • Of all the positions to offer me, Latin was the least likely. I like languages, but I had never studied any with the diligence that produces proficiency. In other words, I didn’t know what I was talking about.

Nevertheless, the school and I endeavored upon a noble experiment, based in necessity: I needed a job, and I was interested in teaching. They needed a Latin teacher, and they were willing to try me, apparently because I sounded pretty good on paper.

About a month ago, I learned with the finality that the experiment was to be considered a failure. Contracts at our school are offered on an annual basis with no guarantee as to future years. I was not to be offered a new one. Continue reading “In which I tell you everything”

Home Health Aide

So, it’s been a while since I’ve done anything remotely resembling an update. So sorry (well mostly sorry); it’s been a bit busy on my end getting used to being a mama.

For those of you who haven’t heard, I took and passed my state test to become a CNA I. The first place I applied to for work was Bayada Nurses which provides care for people in thier homes. Within ten minutes or so of my online application, I received a phone call for an interview. Within a week I was hired and doing orientation, then the fun began of trying to set up days where I could work and have a sitter for David.

This past Wednesday was supposed to be my first day on the job (which I had set up a sitter for); and Moday I found out that my client canceled services for the day. I was also supposed to have another client today (Saturday and have Kyle watch the Bug), but I found out on Thursday that my client is in the hospital.

Friday, was not supposed to be a day of work, since I didn’t have a sitter and Kyle was at school. Apparently, however, God had different plans. Continue reading “Home Health Aide”

Glory be! It’s got a heartbeat!

Just a very quick update. I had a prenatal exam yesterday at my new care provider in town. It was absolutely amazing to hear the little one’s heartbeat for the first time ever. Kyle was unable to come to this one so we’re going to make it so that he can come to the next one in October. Our health insurance comes online October 1st and I have an appointment for October 9th. I’ll be meeting with one of the other midwives and we’ll also have an ultrasound.

Things on the job front have not changed as yet. I’m still applying and praying that the Lord brings something along for me to do until the baby comes so that we can save up a bit of money.

I’m also seriously praying about going back to school either in the spring or next fall part time. I’ll be working towards an associates degree in nursing through the local school which is attached to the hospital near our apartment. And before you begin protesting, I am well aware of the facts of how tired I will be with a new baby if I take classes in the spring semester. If that is the way that the Lord decides to lead us, then he’s given promise after promise to be my strength and peace and hope and sanity through it all. I’m not even remotely considering going back full time, but if I’m part-time, then I can keep the loan hounds at bay until I have a job that can pay them back.

The Lord is good; He provides for His children, and I am so grateful to be counted amonst the flock. Otherwise I would have had a meltdown long before now.

Peace and Blessings.

Progress…finally

After dilligently bashing my head against two brick walls entitled “employment” and “prenatal care”, I seem to finally have cracked the foundation of the latter. After prayer and trusting in the Lord’s provision, we have decided to sign up for the spouse insurance through Kyle’s work. It will automatically be deducted from his paycheck, so it’s even more necessary for me to crack into that second wall.

The good news is that I finally have a care provider and my next prenatal appointment will be on September 4th. The insurance will officially go into affect October 1st, but since I’ve already had an initial pre-natal visit and all of my labwork, I only have to pay for regular visits out of pocket until October. I’ll be fifteen and a half weeks pregnant when I go in for my next visit and the insurance will kick in well before I have to take all of the mid-pregnancy tests and take Rhogam.

I’m still working on getting employed, but it feels really nice having one more burden lifted from my shoulders through the Lord’s grace and mercy. Please keep praying for employment or at least for the Lord to show us what he has in store for me to do next.

In other news, Kyle is quietly panicking about having to fly by the seat of his pants come Monday. He’s teaching 3rd through 9th grade Latin and is a little bit nervous as he’s still trying to get settled and plan lessons. Pray that I see my husband back to his normal goofy self soon and not so withdrawn.

Peace and Blessings.

Update thingies…I’m terrible at this sometimes….

Hello Everybody!

My, my, how the time does fly! I seriously owe everybody an update on what’s been going on so here goes…..

A little over a month ago (goodness!), we packed all of our belonging into a UPS truck and sent it to NC ahead of us. After being feted by our former church till our sides burst, we finally set out to follow our belongings. It was a good beginning of a nice month-long trip. Continue reading “Update thingies…I’m terrible at this sometimes….”

Happy News

Kyle has accepted the teaching position in NC so we are definitely moving southward. I’m really excited about being closer to family and back in an area that I can make sense of. The moving truck arrives this coming Friday. Saturday and Sunday we will fill it and have it picked up by the moving complany. Monday we will head out for our trip to visit with friends and relatives, and apparently we will have a stowaway on the trip with us who will make an appearance in about nine months. We’re really excited about that too. I’ll be putting up more updates as they come and have created a new page where registry and other information will be periodically updated.

When it rains it pours.

Hello everyone. I suppose it’s time for another update on life from the frozen north (well chilly north anyway…can anyone tell me where summer is supposed to be?).

I finished teaching at the school on June 8th, and Kyle and I decided that it would be a wonderful time to take a much needed break before chaos resumes and I have to pack up the house for a move. We decided to go to Niagara Falls for the weekend and it was absolutly, blessedly peaceful and restful. We did all the touristy things and I took lots of pictures, which will go up as soon as I can figure out what’s going wrong with our gallery program.

On the drive home Kyle was thinking about his last convesation with the Headmistress at the school in Concord. When Mrs. C had told Kyle that she was very sorry that she had offerend the English position to someone else who had more experience but that she had a full time teaching position for Latin also open. At first he politely turned her down thinking that it was a joke, but he realized on the ride home that she wouldn’t have mentioned it if she hadn’t been serious.
Continue reading “When it rains it pours.”

Life, the Universe and Everything…

Well at least life….

Yes, it’s that time again to make a quick update on what’s going on in the French world, and I do mean quick.

Kyle has finished his last paper for this semester and is asleep. He stayed up all night to finish it up and turned it in aroud 4ish this morning. i”m very relieved that it’s done. Next, I’ve set him the task of washing dishes, contacting the school in Concord and balancing the books.

Teaching is going well and I think that I’ve finally hit a good rhythm for getting things done in an orderly fashion. It helps that this week all but one of my classes had a test, so I’ve had a bit of a chance to catch up. I have four weeks left of teaching and final grades are due in by the end of the month for kids in the high school and something like June 14th for middle school. I’m really enjoying teaching and answering questions about science. It’s nice to be able to share things that I’ve learned over the years and not put all of my education to waste (that was a joke, you’re supposed to laugh).

As of right now, we’re still not sure exactly where the Lord wants us to move. Continue reading “Life, the Universe and Everything…”

Poor Pup

Sad news to share. Our family dog Peppermint Patti was put to sleep today. She was about 14 years old and her kidneys decided to shut down and paralyze her. Patti was always fun to be with and playful up to the end. She was a wonderful dog and companion to the whole family and we will all miss her a lot.