The Verdict is IN! (And weekend recap!)

We had a busy, fun, relaxing weekend! More on that to come, but first wanted to let you all know what happened with my meeting on Friday.

First of all, I spent the morning a huge ball of nerves. Really? I don't get nervous too easily, but if there are big life changing plans on the line, I guess I do!

The meeting was pretty uneventful. I was bummed when I heard this:

"I just wanted to touch base with you to let you know that we do not have an answer yet. We are exploring options".

Where does that get me? Nowhere, really! My supervisor said she met with our department heads to discuss options. The problem is that there is another nurse who will be on a 3-month medical leave that coincides with my request. Not helping matters, but nothing I can do about it. So, my options are to set forth my risk-taking side and proceed with 15 credit courseload this fall. If I get my leave approved for spring, great! I could continue on course to graduate in 2012. If I do not get my leave approved for spring, I would not want to take full time load this fall either. No point. So without this approval, it would force me to either 1) quit my job or 2) decrease my course load, adding another year to my education, pushing back graduation from 2012 to 2013.

Option 1 is really NOT an option. I love my job and I don't want to quit. I have 3 ½ years under my belt with Mayo, and it is an honor to be a part of this. I have learned so much, met some amazing people, and have a wealth of knowledge at my fingertips. I learn from the best. Mayo is phenomenal to work for, and I wouldn't want to mess up a good thing. Plus, I like my paychecks and I like my benefits and I like my tuition reimbursement. Just a little. All good reasons to NOT quit if I don't get this approved.

Option 2 would add an additional year to my plan, make my life more bearable by allowing more time for sanity, but also leave me with more student loans. I hate that, but it is what it is, and obviously will pay off. I also am somewhat impatient, and the thought of 3 MORE years instead of just 2 more years, makes me want to croak.

Big decisions on the line and not a lot of time to make them. School starts again on September 8^th. …

In the meantime, we took a weekend
staycation
to think about it some more. It was just what we needed to clear the cobwebs from my mind and take any emotions out of my thought process for the time being.

We went to Minneapolis, about 75 miles from us, and spent the weekend. Dora was having her birthday celebration at the Mall of America, and of course, Dora needed her Number 1 Fan in attendance! They had cupcakes, birthday hat decorating, a meet and greet, and a dance party. Perfect, right?

Emersyn made sure she had her Dora and Boots purse for the occassion.

Emersyn LOVED Dora and Boots. She squealed and giggled and said "Dora and Boots!" and was super excited.

From afar!

It was her turn to go meet them and she would not let me out of her grasp. She held on for dear life. Dora was doing everything in her power to "warm up" to my daughter. She wasn't having it.

I suppose it was just one step above when she met Dora at last year's Christmas party!
There were no tears this time, unlike last December. Just shy smiles and white knuckles.

Maybe Emersyn just isn't cut out to enjoy characters of any sort. She hated Santa. I mean, freaked out. She was on his lap all of 5 seconds. Literally. It probably makes for one of the finer Santa Lap pictures in history.
The things we do to our kids for a photo opp!

After Dora's party, we went and checked into our hotel. Back in March, I purchased a Groupon for one Saturday night stay at the Radisson, complete with 2 Prime Rib Dinner Buffets and 2 Adult Beverages, all for $79. I love Groupon!
If you haven't ever heard of it or used it, check it out. I recently got 2 Groupons for Shabby Apple Boutique that were just $40 for a $100 gift certificate. So, I have $200 worth of Shabby Applin' in my future and paid just $80 for. SCORE! I need to cease the muffin top before Shabby Applin'. More on that progress tomorrow.

Back to the hotel.
When you are fighting muffin top, what better thing to do then stuff your face full of a-maz-ing food?Oh em GEE!!
We had a 5-course meal. Emersyn was enthusiastic about her mac and cheese and mixins of buffet.

I guarantee you I looked hot in my swimming suit when we took a dip in the pool afterwards. So hot in fact, that I will not post pictures. I would hate to make anyone envious of what a year of grad school, in combination with eating like crap and chilling on gym time, looks like in a bathing suit! HA! (As I said earlier, more on that progress to come. We are currently at a halt with new plans in the making!) We all had a great time in the pool.

You know what one of the worst things about hotel rooms with a toddler is? The fact that when they go to bed, you are held hostage. I mean, it's nice because it forces a person to go to bed at a decent hour, falling victim to sheer boredom. It also stinks because it's our time away, and sitting in the pitch dark texting your spouse sitting right next to you while you wait for your child to fall into a deep sleep is just sorta weird. (I hope someone else out there knows what I'm talking about, or I sound like one total fool!) And on that note, if anyone has really good suggestions for how they deal with the kid in the hotel scenario, please share!

Anyways, Travis and I talked about getting a bottle of wine and sitting in the hall in front of our room. We figured it would make us look too hard up. Plus we had plum full tummies of prime rib buffet, desserts, and wine already. We whispered funny things out of the blue dark from time to time. We turned on the TV with basically no volume since Emersyn was sleeping a few feet away. We eventually called it a night and went to bed early, only after the Sleep Number remote showed a "dead battery" message as our bed was set to 45. Much too soft! Whenever one of us would move, the other one would bounce upward. It felt like a huge air mattress. We both woke up with sore backs and laughed about the crappy timing of the dead battery.

So, when all was said and done, and we had a nice relaxing getaway to think it all over, what decision was made?

Nothing has been made official just yet, but I am 99% positive I am going to electively cut back in my course load. A leave of absence won't be needed and I will keep working 3 days/week. This will add another year to my misery plan, but will allow more freedom and flexibility along the way. My numero uno priority from day one of this adventure has been my Emersyn Olivia. I have not felt she has taken the backseat at any point thus far, and I am very proud of that, but things are were about to get really sticky and crazy busy.
I would hate to get the stink eye from my little darling if not absolutely necessary. It's fierce. HA!

Life will work out in God's time and I am ready to embrace that timing. This is just a step in the already long road I have taken to reach my dream of becoming a Family Nurse Practitioner. I can deal.