Remembering New Beginnings

I know it is January, the month that everyone is focused on "New Beginnings". Half of us are trying to avoid all this change and cling on to what we have accomplished in the past, afraid to let go of past success and jump towards new goals. So, In honor of all that has been accomplished by everyone this past year, or in the past few years, I'd like to take a minute to appreciate how far we have come.

If you are sick of trying to change your life in an attempt to lose that extra pounds, enhance your blog, or are trying to "keep up with the Joneses" of Resolution keepers, then this is the blog post for you. I know it is especially intimidating to try and keep your own resolutions when you are looking at everyone else's blog posts about how glamorous their resolutions are and how easy the switch has been. I know if you are like me, there is not one thing about going to the gym that I could make look glamorous. Going from enjoying pizza and bagels to feeling full after eating a banana is never an easy switch to make. Possible, absolutely. Easy, no. 

I'm not suggesting that we all stop our resolutions and live in the past. I am simply suggesting that we take a deep breath, exhale slowly and think of how far we have all come! I have also been inspired by one of my best friends, I'll even call her my soul sister, who just started her own blog. I mentioned her in a post earlier this week. She inspires me to read, enjoy nature and appreciate the beauty in simple things. Not to mention, she makes everything sound so poetic. She makes life poetic. I highly suggest you follow her blog, Pocket Petals. She only has one post so far, but I promise you will not be disappointed. 

"Take a deep breath, exhale slowly and think of how far we have all come."

After reading her very first blog post yesterday, I got thinking about my first blog post. What did I say? Who did I want to convey myself as to all of my readers? These are questions I did not remember the answer to. So, I went back to my very first post and read along and learned who I used to be. I think we could all benefit from reading our first posts, and others, and see how far all of us have come as bloggers and as people.

Link up your first blog post below and check out some other people's first posts, as well. 

12. Learn To Knit

I accomplished another one of my goals from my list of 40 things to do before I turn 20! If you have not seen the list yet or want to see what else I have left to do, just click on the link and check it out. 

I have been a crocheter for about 10 years now and have always wanted to learn how to knit. I went to one knitting class last winter and ended up frustrated and crocheting by the end of the lesson. Although it was challenging to learn, I finally got my knitting needles together and sat there until I figured it out. I began by trying to knit a pair of socks...which I failed at. Then, I figured i would start with an easier pattern. So, I began creating a square. I called it a dish cloth, but we have just been calling it my versatile, knitted square. I use it to wash the counters. I know I am no knitting genius, but I can no honestly say I know how to knit and pearl, and I have officially finished a knitting project.

Now all I need to do is learn how to make a Christmas stocking!

Modern Manscaping

We have spent some time this evening creating a stop motion.

Enjoy.

A Woman In Residence

As some of you may know, I love medicine. I wanted to be a Doctor for most of my life and has decided not to pursue that dream based on the expense of schooling, sacrifice of free time and lack of time at home required by that career path. Instead, I am going to college to be a nurse in hopes of becoming a Nurse Practitioner. Either way, I have this strange urge to see people's X-rays, love to dissect and could watch "Trauma: Life In The E.R." for hours on end. Not to mention the several years I have spent addicted to Grey's Anatomy.

Now, I absolutely love to read. In 3rd grade I was told I was at a 5th grade reading level. By 5th grade, I was told I was at a high school reading level. My love for being lost in a book is no new discovery. On that note, I have not had a good book in my hands for a while now. I think my problem is an inability to read a book that I think looks uninteresting....hence the phrase "don't judge a book by it's cover." My desire to have a book that I refuse to put down, carry with me everywhere and sneak in a few pages any chance I get has really been getting quite intense. Then, one night I was scrolling through Instagram and came across this photo that my lovely friend Anne had posted with these words:

"It's odd, but I feel like that book was my best friend for the short while I was reading it. Now that I've finished my hands feel strangely lifeless, and my fingers are lonely without without those pages to turn, that cover to clutch, that vague feelings of a hard rectangle in my bag. Am I betraying the beautiful story if I move from it too quickly? How long is the appropriate grieving time after finishing a novel, before one can wholeheartedly step into another one?"

I could not wait to find a book any longer. I don't know if it is just me, but everything Anne says is so poetic. Maybe, that is why her words always inspire me endlessly. After reading her post I just had to have that feeling back, the feeling of true connection with a book that I have been missing.

So, I began searching. Thumbing through pages found in the back of forgotten bookcases. Running my fingers over book covers with my eyes closed, in hopes of finding something that really spoke to me. Finally, a few days later, I happened to glance at a pile of donated books at work and found this book. Not only was it a good book to dive into, it was about a woman doctor! 

Sew, I read and I read and I read. 

I have finished this book in a few days and learned a lot about medicine and the healthcare system along the way.

Michelle Harrison wrote this book from the journals she kept during her struggle. She did her OB/GYN residency as a single mother with a child at home to take care of. In this book, she traces her battle against the healthcare system as she tries to give personalized care that is best for the patient in a hospital that is focused solely on moving patients out of the hospital as quickly as they come in. This novel really sheds light on how blindly patients follow doctors because they believe the doctor always does best. In many instances, Harrison describes how the doctors just find the easiest and quickest solution, which may not always be best. 

This story brings the reader into the fine line that exists between what is best for the patient and what is convenient for the hospital. She writes of women who are screamed at to "PUSH!" before their bodies are ready, given medicine to quicken the body's naturally slow labor and quiet the screeching mothers, deemed incapable of giving birth on their own due to exhaustion from pushing before their bodies were ready and cut open by Doctor's to quickly finish the job.The medicine detailed in this story is exhilarating, and at times I felt like I was working the 36 hour shift right alongside Dr. Harrison. 

A Woman In Residence

by Michelle Harrison, M.D.

As always, some quotes to convince you:

"We embrace a technology that symbolizes progress, while mourning the loss of human connection."

"Rarely do people listen with their ears. We act on the monitor, not on the patient."

"It's a sacred act that has been turned into an ugly ritual, not just because of the procedures - which are sometimes necessary and lifesaving - but because of the attitude with which they are performed."

"Forever torn between my need to sleep vs. my need for contact with the outside world, I live on the edge of exhaustion."

"We listen for a new baby's crying so we don't have to look at it. A baby doesn't have to be crying for us to know it is healthy. Hold a new baby. It makes eye contact. It breathes. It sighs. The baby has color. Lift it in your arms and feel whether it has good tone or poor, strong limbs or limp ones. The baby does not have to be on a cold table to have its condition measured. What do we lose by being kind to a baby who has just been born?"

Don't forget to follow my Instagram "AmandaRos3" and like Sew Much To Say on facebook!

Reflections and Resolutions

Hello everyone!  

I hope that everyone had a very wonderful Christmas with their loved ones. I could not wait to give everyone their gifts and I received far more than I could even wish for.

My mom made Alec his own stocking and surprised him with it this year. It is actually referred to jokingly now because it looks so much "worse" than the knitted ones we all have. My mother and I are trying to learn to knit together and this was her first major project. I think it looks great by itself, but when placed next to one of ours it looks way different. I still love it, though. It means more to me that he has one than It does to him, I'm sure of it.

It has been a very snowy holiday in New York since Christmas. We had a horrible storm where it took me 3 hours to make a 1.5 hour drive home from work. There has also been days blessed by peaceful snow fall, leaving my yard buried in feet of snow.

...and my car.

I was blessed with so many adorable kitchen ware this Christmas. My brother got me this precious little cheese grater that reminded him of me. Alec surprised me with a black, Kitchen Aid stand mixer! He is seriously the best boyfriend a girl could ask for. Now, all I need is my own kitchen to put it in. I got a Keurig from my parents, too. Like I said, I got way more than I could ever ask for.

My mom surprised me with this rolling pin from Antropologie (my all time favorite store). This color green is one of my favorite colors and I could spend all day in Antropologie oogling over their home goods. So, this ended up being one of my favorite gifts...some 19 year old I am!

I also got these utensils to add to my baking tote. 

Alec and I have been dating for two years and our "anniversary" was on New Years Eve. I got him this mug as an Anniversary gift because he always jokes that I nag him. So now, he can simply hold up his coffee mug and enjoy. 

We were both sick on the couch on New Years Eve, though. So, we rang in the New Years with the kitties at home.

I gave in and posted an Instagram pic. I got an Iphone 4 for Christmas for only $1 and am so glad to be back on Instagram. If you want to follow along, my Instagram name is "AmandaRos3".

Now for the Reflections and Resolutions jazz that was promised in the post title. 

Last year I posted my resolutions in this post.

Resolutions for 2012:

I. Get to my goal weight and stay there. I failed this one miserably. I'm going to try harder this year, though. I need to stop making excuses and start making results because lots of college girls balance work, school AND stay in shape. So, I can, too. Plus, If I can't get in shape now, how do I expect to do it later?

II. Make exercise part of my daily routine. I did do better at this one. I technically failed, though. I exercised more often, but not often enough.

III. Get a job in the medical field. Complete! I am currently a resident aid at an assisted living facility. 

IV. Continue to strengthen my relationship with Alec. Check! 2 years strong. 

V. Get an apartment so I can move off campus. Not yet. The school has a stupid "two year residency requirement" that forces me to live on campus for two years. I'm going to try to get one this Spring, though.

VI. Start volunteering. I have not volunteered at all this year.  I completely failed this one.

VII. Get A's in all of my classes. I got all A- in my classes, resulting in a 3.82 GPA so far.

Resolutions for 2013:

I. Get down to my goal weight and stay there.

II. Make exercise part of my daily routine, especially Yoga.

III. Strengthen my relationship with Alec.

IV. Strengthen my relationship with God.

What are your resolutions?