Weekly Update

Friday, September 30, 2011

It is an ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS day out there today 🙂

I am so happy and smiling like crazy!

I have to say, I really am influenced by the weather, even though often I don’t think I am.  But this last week of humid, wet weather was really starting to get on my nerves.  But today it is breezy, sunny and not humid in the least–finally FALL weather.  We opened all the windows in the house and are airing everything out!  Love it.

Another thing that is making me smile today is the fact that we both slept really well last night.  Despite going to bed late (it was my last night before having two on again and I wanted to enjoy it!), we just slept and slept….close to 9 hours which felt glorious.  I cannot emphasize how much better I feel after having a good nights sleep.

When I woke up this morning I headed downstairs to get on the scale.  I don’t know what I was expecting.  I was just hoping for the best.  And even though my results were nothing outstanding, the number went down and I am happy about that.

Result:  Down 1 pound this week

Pounds to lose before the wedding Oct 29 (my personal goal): 6 pounds

I think this is TOTALLY doable!  There are four weeks until then.

My parents are visiting this next week so I just need to remember to eat well, not deny myself any treats we may have, but also not to OVER-indulge.

Overview of my goals last week:

1) drink 2 of my water containers/day (which I found out the container is 16 oz, so a total of 32 oz)–DONE 🙂

2) have a healthy, portion-sized snack each night–I did pretty good 6 out of 7 nights…there was one night that non-portioned cheesy pretzels were involved, but that’s not bad for me!

3) get 8 hrs of sleep/night–accomplished 4 of 7 nights–not too bad I think considering all the extra stress with our plumbing issues…

So now moving on to my GOAL for this next week:

***Drink 3 of my containers of water/day (48 oz/day)

I decided to only make one goal for this next week because I’ll be busy with my parents here.  I’m still going to aim for 8 hrs of sleep/night, but that may not happen.  I will still focus on healthy eating, but there may be a few treats thrown in.  But I figure I don’t want to beat myself up…life is too short for that!  So I will track what I KNOW I can accomplish this next week.  If I can get all my water in, I’ll feel good 🙂

I already am thinking about getting back to the gym after my parents return home to MAKE SURE I can make my goal of losing 6 pounds by the end of October.  I’m actually getting kind of excited about it.

ENJOY THE DAY!!

 

No Big E

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Well, no Big E for us this year.

Today was the last time we could have made it, and the weather was pretty undesirable–rainy and humid.  So we decided not to go.

This is the first time in a while that we have not gone.  And I have to say, it feels kind of strange.

But also okay.  I mean, the Big E does not change from year to year and THERE ARE ALL THOSE FOOD TEMPTATIONS.

Definitely not something I need.

I’m sure we’ll hit it up next year.

Last night at work felt rough.  I had IMC overflow patients (4 of them) with no aide so it was BUSY.  I don’t always mind busy, but last night just felt non-stop.  And I got out late.  And of course I didn’t get paid for it.  So frustrating.  I was telling Kimm that I have to learn a way to get more done, in less time.  I think this is the most difficult part of nursing.  I don’t mind patient care.   It’s the charting that will drive you crazy.  Sometimes when I am in a patient’s room I find myself thinking…if only I could chart what I am doing AS I am doing it!  Then I would never feel behind.  Doctors who can dictate their notes are so lucky.  I hate writing everything out.

Another one of my frustrations at work is that I NEVER take a break (like a real break)–in all my four years of nursing it has been EXTREMELY rare for me to go off the floor and take time for me.  And then I get frustrated/jealous when others do (especially the smokers).

I really think that I am BURNT out a bit.

So I was thinking of ways that I can remedy this solution.

Here are my goals for my next two days of working:

1) Take breaks–I am allowed two 15-minute breaks and one 1/2 lunch break–I need to take these

2) Chart more concisely–this will be hard for me because I always want to include EVERYTHING–but then I realized that it is so much easier to read notes that are problem focused and less wordy–working on this really will be work for me…but I think in the long run it will be a huge time and stress saver.

That’s all…now I’m going to enjoy watching one of our new favorite fall programs…Prime Suspect!

Plumbing Update

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Ugh!

I am so TIRED of dealing with this stupid plumbing issue already.

I feel like even writing about it is driving me crazy.

But I do want to at least write out what I know.

Briefly.

So the appraisal guy came today.  I didn’t like him.  Basically he was rude.  Just our luck.  Why we keep having to interact with these kind of people makes me wonder what I did in a previous life to deserve this???

Anyways…

He came in.  He looked at the kitchen ceiling for less than one minute and then asked if we had recent work done.  “No” was the answer and then he didn’t respond to that.  He took a picture and then wanted to see the bathroom.

So up to the bathroom we went.  He looked at the tub and basically said he couldn’t tell what was causing the leak at this time but that it could possibly be the valve.  Took a picture.

He told us that he would be unable to do an appraisal until we got the work done and the plumber told us what was causing the leak.  Then he said that the only thing the homeowner’s insurance would cover would be “the damage caused by the work the plumber did to correct the leak.”  What would not be covered…”damage caused by the leak…anything that had to be done because it was improperly installed in the first place.”

Confusing?

It was to us but because he was so rude I was glad to see him go.  He said to give him a call when the work was done.

After he left I immediately called our insurance agent to discuss what he said because according to her, we were not to get the work done until he did an appraisal.  Well…after talking with her, she said that sometimes an appraisal cannot be done because they don’t know what is causing the problem.

So basically can you see our dilemma??

If we continue with the claim we don’t know what the homeowner’s insurance would actually cover.  It doesn’t seem like they would cover to get the kitchen ceiling repaired or to put a new tub in (because it had been originally put in improperly).  Seems like they would only cover the valve if that is what is causing the leak.  They could maybe cover the tub if the plumber HAS to take it out to get to whatever is causing the leak.

So there is a lot of unknown.  With a $500 deductible and an estimate of close to $5000 from the plumber, those are not good odds.  Especially when what we do know for certain is that with a claim our insurance rates would go up and we would become “non-preferred” customers.

If we drop the claim, we would pay for everything out-of-pocket.

Not ideal.  But do-able.

We always wanted to get the upstairs bath done.  Just not now.

But I guess everything happens for a reason.

We will be thinking on this for a little bit, but we are leaning towards dropping the claim.

If that is the case, we will call the plumber back, get a more detailed estimate and begin the fun process of deciding what we want for that bathroom.  Because if we do it, we will be doing it all–replacing tub, toilet and floor.  Then we will repaint.

There is a small part of me that finds this kind of exciting–the home decorator in me!

Then there is another part of me that is a little bit freaked out–the responsible, OMG-how much is that going to cost!, part of me 🙂

More updates to come as we know more.

The ONLY good thing about all this is that the bath WILL get done…we WILL get to enjoy it…and it WILL be good for resale down the line.

Another First

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Well, we have another first.

Today we filed our first homeowner’s insurance claim.

I honestly hope that I don’t have to do it again for a LONG time.

Let me backtrack…

We received the quote back from the second plumber who came and looked at the bathroom yesterday.  It was in my opinion significantly less than the first guy (about $1000 less).  So of course this made me uneasy that they were so different.  So I was initially thinking of calling one more plumber to get a last estimate.

Well, as I was contemplating this, one of the plumbers I called on Friday called back.  I talked to him and basically felt him to be NO help at all.  He kept asking me questions that I obviously didn’t answer to his satisfaction (hello, I don’t know much about plumbing…that is why I am calling you!!!).  He basically told me to do two “tests” with the tub (involving running water from the shower for 10 minutes, waiting five hours, then filling the tub full and draining it, and then seeing how the leaking was after each of these tests).   I just got the feeling that he didn’t want to come out and take an actual look…he even said (his words), “I don’t want to have to come out there and charge you $90 to tell you that the leak is from an area that needs to be caulked.”  WHAT???  Two plumbers have already told me that the tub needs to be replaced because it is basically falling down from the wall (there are cracks visible) and you can see mold in one area where water is dripping so no way does it just need to be caulked!  So I thanked him for calling back, hung up and then said, “Won’t be talking to you again!”

Then I called another plumber that was suggested to us by a friend of Kimm’s.  He actually called back within five minutes and when we were discussing the issue.  He said he was available to come out on Friday to take a look.  At that point I was thinking…ugh, since I didn’t want to have to wait until Friday, and so I just asked him if he would be able to prepare a free quote at that time, and he said, “Well probably but if I have to do any work looking for the leak, then I’m going to have to charge you because that is work.”  Well, that didn’t set completely right with me either since two plumbers have come out thus far and not charged us.  So I basically said that I would call him back after talking to my homeowner’s insurance because I was really only calling an additional plumber since I thought I would need another estimate.  He said to call him back if needed.  We hung up and again I was like, “Not calling you back mister!”

At that time I was DONE with calling people.  Seriously.

So I called the homeowner’s insurance and asked all my “worry” questions regarding putting in a claim.  I felt so much better after I talked to the lady who handles our homeowner’s insurance.  She answered all of my questions and I felt so much better at that point.  If we put a claim in she thought the issue was more than likely going to be covered, that it would be highly unlikely for us to be canceled from our insurance and that the rates would increase 10-25% for three years.  That would still be a lot less than paying for all of this work out-of-pocket.

So we decided to put in a claim.

And I’m so glad we didn’t call any more plumbers because our insurance agency has its own claim adjuster that comes out and writes an appraisal.

The claims adjuster called this afternoon and he’s coming out tomorrow.

All I can say is that I hope he is better in person that on the phone.  I found him to be extremely rude.  He basically said that he thought it might be just the valve that needed to be replaced and that it was a “common” household fix.  I said I wasn’t sure but that two plumbers said that the tub needed to be replaced and that the kitchen ceiling also needed to be replaced.

SERIOUSLY.  I hate dealing with this stuff.  I mean the guy does this for a living. I thought he would just say something to the effect of “I’ll be coming out to do an appraisal of the damage.”  That’s really all I needed to hear.

Now of course my worry is that he will really low-ball what needs to be done.

If that is the case I have to find out if we can withdraw the claim.

Again, I’m trying not to make problems that do not exist yet, but it’s so easy to do!

I guess I’ll just have to wait until tomorrow to find out.

For now I’m going to watch Parenthood!

BTW…Kimm is STILL sick but we think on the mend.  If she is still sick on Thursday, she’ll call her doctor to try to get an appointment for Friday.

 

Plumbing Stress

Monday, September 26, 2011

My one day of work went fine…no major issues–which is how I like it.

However, I am still feeling very stressed about the plumbing problem we are experiencing.  I was hoping that another of the plumbers that I had called on Friday or Saturday would have called back.  But no such luck.  And since I had talked with a co-worker regarding her water damage due to plumbing issues and heard how her home owner’s insurance required her to get two estimates, I wanted to have at least another plumber come out and look at the bathroom and kitchen.

So after I slept a bit during the day, I called a local plumber and was amazed that this time an actual live person answered.  The guy I talked to was a little rushed and kind of gruff (I didn’t get the best feeling from him on the phone) but he said he could come out within the 1/2 hour so I said that would be great.

Once he got here, I again didn’t really care for him.  I really don’t understand why people who work in service careers are not more personable.   I mean he didn’t even introduce himself!  I’m going to possibly pay him for a service…I would think that he would want to impress me.  Anyways, he did take a look at the bathroom and said he would write an estimate and email it to us the next day. I am pretty anxious to see what it is since he also agreed that the tub would have to be replaced.

All I have to say is that all of this UNKNOWN is SO stressful. I’m worried about how much this is all going to cost.  I’m worried that the home owner’s insurance won’t cover this, or if they do that they will cancel us or that the premium will become astronomical.  I’m worried how long the repair will take.  I’m worried how it will fit in with my working schedule.

Yep, I am a worry wort.  I completely admit it.

I’m trying to just go with the flow, but I feel this is all happening at such an inconvenient time, what with my parents coming for a visit this next week.

I am really going to have to work on being LESS stressed and MORE relaxed.

I just hate feeling stressed because then of course I want to eat more.  I don’t know how most people who get stressed eat less.  I WISH that was the case for me.

I’m just trying to focus on my weekly goals (drinking my water, eating my good snacks, and getting enough sleep) and that has been helping tremendously…gives me something to put all my nervous energy into 🙂

Approx. $5000

Sunday, September 25, 2011

$5000.

According to the plumber that we had come out this morning, that’s approximately what we can expect to pay to replace our tub upstairs and repair the kitchen ceiling that is water damaged.

Yikes.

So now the next step is to call our insurance company on Monday to see if they need an adjuster to come out or if we can just send in pictures.

The plumber said that the work could be completed in a little less than a week.  Not sure when this will be happening since my parents will be visiting in a week.  Probably after that.

Welcome to home ownership.

This will be our first major home improvement, but not by choice.  The plumber actually said that the tub was put in wrong–it was never properly supported on the wall and that is why it is pulling down (huge crack that I never noticed above where the tub wall connects to the back wall–he said it will eventually cause the tub to crack causing a lot more water damage).

At least I have to say that I got a good vibe from this plumber.  He was 1) on time (actually a bit early!), 2) honest (I think!), 3) polite, 4) knowledgeable, and 5) efficient.   Kind of reminded me of Holmes 🙂

It’ll be interesting to see what it all looks like when it’s done.

Now my plan is to get a nap in since I didn’t sleep well last night due to Kimm’s not feeling well.  She had a 1/2 hr long bloody nose before bed and then couldn’t stop coughing so eventually went to lie on the couch.  Plus with worrying about the tub situation…just made for a tossing/turning kind of night.

Back to work tonight for one and then off for two.

Tough to find a plumber…

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Well, the plumber that we called yesterday afternoon never called back.

So today we called our realtor to get a name of a plumber he recommended and called.

Three hours later…no response.

So we called our realtor again to get a second name and called.

One hour later…no response.

SERIOUSLY!!!

So then I just googled all the plumbers in Agawam (there were six–three had websites, three did  not).  I checked out all the websites and called the one that seemed like it had the best customer service reviews.

Called and within 20 minutes got a call back.

Guy said he could come out tomorrow at 9 am.

I was IMPRESSED.

I’m hoping that this goes well.

Spent the remainder of the day pretty much looking up hotels for New York for when my parents are  here  (we are planning to do a 2 day trip–we want to go to Ground Zero!).  Hotels in New York are CRAZY EXPENSIVE.  I think I will have to do a fresh look tomorrow when all the information is not swirling around in my head so much!

Drip, Drop

Friday, September 23, 2011

We’ve got a problem 😦

Home-related.

Today I went to go get my haircut.

I took a shower beforehand so I could fix my hair so my hair dresser could know how I style it.

After getting out and coming downstairs Kimm and I noticed a water stain in the kitchen ceiling.

It got worse.

Kimm took a shower while I went to get my hair cut.  Then I took a second shower when I got back from getting my hair cut (because I CAN’T STAND all those little pieces of hair sticking to my neck!).  It was a longer shower because I shaved my legs as well.

The tub was leaking a bunch from the side and there was actually water leaking from the kitchen ceiling into the ceiling fan.

SHIT.

NOT GOOD.

Why do these things always happen on a Friday afternoon???

Goal–find a plumber to take a look.

I’m hoping this won’t be as difficult as I imagine it to be.

Why does it always seem like something major happens when you feel like you have the least amount of time to deal with it??

Weekly Goals (this Thursday to next Thursday)

Thursday, September 22, 2011

So I weighed in this morning and it was a bit disappointing.

Up 2.2 pounds.

However, I did notice that it is getting close to that time of the month and maybe I’m retaining water?? This does happen but I’ve never really kept a close eye on it because I was weighing myself monthly before.

Anyways, I recorded the number and noticed that at least I’m still down one pound from the week prior.

So I’ll take it and with that attempt three health related goals this week:

1) Drink more water (two of my pink containers…which I believe is about 48 oz? I’ll have to measure tonight to be sure…but anyways…drinking two full containers is more than I normally drink…usually I just drink one with dinner)

2) Cut down my night-time snacking (pay more attention to portions…possibly just have a cup of coffee?)

3) Get at least 8 hours of sleep each night

I know I will feel good if I do this consistently this week.

Kimm is sick (a cold) so my other goal is to NOT GET SICK!!!

 

Excitement at class…

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Well I passed my sedation and analgesia class.  All checked off on that for another two years.

Note to self–do not spend time studying for this in the future…the test was fairly simple and they go over all the questions before you take the test.  And best of all, there are hardly any questions on med dosages.  Wish I would have known that yesterday…it would have made for a much more enjoyable evening.

First, let me just say…I am NOT a morning person.  I was up at 6:30 am with the alarm and it was not pretty.  My eyes were burning, I felt nauseous and basically just wanted to crawl right back under the covers.  But I’m an adult and had to get up and get ready.

Somehow I made it out the door by 7:35 and then managed to get stuck in traffic getting over the South End Bridge…almost 15 minutes.  It is RIDICULOUS.  They have it down to one lane and they are not even doing ANYTHING on the closed off lane!!!

I got to the class on time and thankfully managed to feel pretty good once we started.

However I cannot say the same for one of my co-workers.  She actually started having true chest pain and the ambulance was called.  Thankfully she was surrounded by a room of nurses who sprung into action, but that was pretty dang scary.  I heard that she is doing much better today.

I’ve always said that you can’t take people who work overnight and expect them to function well during the day.

Last night was all about relaxing!  I took a 2 hour nap in the chair, ate dinner and then proceeded to watch Restaurant Impossible the remainder of the night.  It was great.  I also started a new book that is awesome…can’t wait to see how it turns out…I haven’t been this into a book in a while.  Of course at this moment I cannot remember the name of it…I will share in the future.