summer evening television.

life post graduation is great. let me tell you, i am loving it. one of my new favorite evening activities with kara is watching seasons of alias [which is the best show ever, might i add]. have you ever seen this show? it was on abc from 2001-2006, and it is fantastic. the show follows the character sydney bristow who is a double agent for the cia, and pretty much she just kicks major a___ all five seasons [i want to be sydney bristow when i grow up].
so if you have lots of time this summer, or you are looking for a new show to start watching, i highly recommend alias, you won't be disappointed. . .

hump day.

speechless.

i realize that i have been MIA, i apologize, but i have been a teensy busy [promise]. this past week has been filled with new, random, and exciting things. let me share:

if you forgot, my last post last week was about how i was preparing to taking the NCLEX. i didn't want to make any big announcement on when i was taking it, because there was the butterflies in the pit of my stomach that i wouldn't pass [and any humiliation prevention is always a good things]. so, anyhow, last thursday was the big day. and let me tell you, that test was hard. mentally, i had prepared myself for 100 questions, maybe 3 hours of testing. no no no, that did not happen [the nclex basis the numbers of questions you get by how well you answer some questions...it is weird]. 5 hours, and 264 questions...my brain was mush. i couldn't even comprehend what had just happened. luckily, i got to debrief at cheesecake factory with grace and margie [i am so grateful for these amazing ladies and for being able to share my nursing journey with them]. and the waiting began...

on friday, grace and i had a spontaneous trip to disneyland. and yes, we got season passes [call me a 10-year old, but this place never gets old!]. it was just such a fun and relaxing day, and a great way to take my mind off of post-test anxiety and the curiosity of whether or not i was officially and RN. and, grace officially accepted a position at northridge hospital medical center in the icu, i am so excited for her! she is going to be such an incredible nurse!!

now we are on saturday. saturday morning i had my very first firefighter exam with OCFA [orange county fire authority]. the results are still pending, but i feel like it went really well. it was exciting though, it definitely made me pursuit to be a firefighter a lot more real.

later on in the day, i left for viva las vegas to celebrate my sister amanda's birthday!! the celebration crew consisted of amanda, me, and then her good friend jessica. i was in vegas from saturday to monday [the girls stayed till tuesday], and the trip was so much fun! we laid by the pool, dressed up, went out, and just celebrated amanda and the amazing person that she is. it was such a fun weekend and definitely a much needed vacation.





















now we are on tuesday. not only was it the first day of summer, but it was the day that i officially found out that i am a nurse!!. erin minnick rn bsn. man, i cannot even tell you how good it feels to be able to write that!!



and, the cherry on top, i began at ucla yesterday as well [i recently got hired as an emt clinical instructor, there will be another post about that later]. yesterday was just so amazing in so many ways, i am just speechless.

this week has just been phenomenal. i feel so blessed and overwhelmed by God's goodness this week, i don't even know what to say. for everyone who was a part of my life this past week, thank you. this time has been incredible. i know that big changes are right around the corner, and i am excited to see where God is going to take me next.

happy wednesday everyone!

hiding.

i have gone into hiding. with my sweat pants, messy hair, [strong] coffee, glasses, notes, and review books. i have gone into hiding and i am praying that i will emerge on the other side... an official nurse. your prayers are very much welcome. saying that i am nervous is the understatement of the year.

noun: the beautiful one.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAMA MINNICK [aka bonita louise]

my mom is one of the most incredible people that i know, so this post is for her.

mom,
happy birthday. thank you, thank you for being the amazing person you are. thank you for always having just the right words to say when i am down in the dumps. thank you for loving me unconditionally, even when i am selfish and only think about myself. you are so selfless and set such a great example everyday of Christ's love; you make me want to strive to love others better. you are the glue for our family, and are not thanked enough for being that glue. you are the epitome of supermom, and i simply don't know how you do it. thank you for always listening, even when i have to simply vent. thank you for always supporting my dreams and never putting limits on what i can do. thank you for being one of my best friends. you are such a blessing to me. love you more than you will ever know.


[photo by photographs by anjuli]

roots.

so today kara and i had a random trip to escondido [i had contacts and new lenses for my glasses to pick up]. it is so nice being able to just go down to see my family without the pressure of homework weighing me down. the more time i spend with my family, the more i realize that i miss them. i miss seeing them on a consistent basis. i miss their ridiculous humor. i miss standing in the laundry room with mom and crying [the laundry room is where i have shared so much of my heart with mom. my parent's laundry room is my safe place]. i miss girl movie night. i miss having a conversation with my sister stephanie and having her burst into song. i wish i lived closer to my family. but the spontaneous trips to visit them make the distance a little less painful. it was a good day.
and remember how i said i wanted to start my own etsy store?? well, here is a little preview.

more to come soon.

hump day.

strength.
you come across people in your life, people that are strong. i really admire those people. my partner had the opportunity to go to joplin, missouri last week to help out with relief work from the tornadoes, and the stories that he brought back with him... they are inspirational, and they reminded of the strength that mankind is capable of, if it chooses to be strong. i don't feel like i should be the one telling any of these stories [i don't feel like they are mine to share], but they are incredible, and have reminded me of a lot. they have reminded me that God is still present in this world, and miracles do happen. they reminded me that there are still good people out in the world, even though so many times we only see hatred and anger. his stories made me want to do more with my life. they reminded me that cities are able to pull together, and work together for the greater good. the stories reminded me that one person's love and compassion, just one, can make a big difference. the things that detoy told me, reminded me that i have so much to be thankful for, and that life shouldn't be about what you do or how much money you make, but it needs to be about giving your life away.
detoy, thank you for inspiring me this week. joplin, mo; you are in my thoughts and prayers.

don't trust your memory...

this post is about how it isn't a good idea to make decisions based on what you think something is. if you are unsure, CHECK.
so, last saturday, kara and i decided we wanted to go to rock harbor. it had been a few weeks since either of us had been to church [between moving, working, weddings, etc.], and i worked on sunday, so we decided that saturday night service was just what we needed. well, we were 99% positive that the services were at 7 and 9 [and basically just to lazy to double check], so decided that we would head down to costa mesa at about 5, walk around ikea, and then head over to church at 7. well, we arrive at rock harbor at about 645, and it was way too quiet. there were a lot of cars, but no people. so i quickly pulled out my iphone [seriously don't know how i survived without one for so long] and double checked the service times online. welp, the service started at 6. sunday nights the services are 7 and 9, not saturday. we [at least i did] felt stupid. how on earth did we not double check the time??? since we were already all the way down in orange county, and didn't want the trip to be a complete waste, we ended up taking a spontaneous trip to newport beach [shout out to firefighter van andel!]. we stumbled across this bomb pizza place, and wanted to get some famous balboa bars for dessert. so, we went up to this snack shack [i don't have a better name for it...], and kara ordered first. the clerk was giving her such a hard time, it was ridiculous. and it was really hard to tell if he was trying to flirt and be funny, or if he was just a really angry person that hated his job. turns out, he was trying to be funny. when we went to try to pay he told us "your money isn't good here...get outta here", followed by a huge grin. you can ask kara, i was in shock. did we just get something for free? simply because we are girls?? [obviously i don't get out very often...] it made my night. and the balboa bar was even more delicious, because it was free.

10 things.

10. i was reminded today how much i really don't like interviews.
9. the show make it or break it is my guilty pleasure [don't judge me].
8. i have a strong addiction to spearmint gum. i can go through a pack a day at work.
7. my skin is peeling like crazy right now [it looks like i have a really bad skin condition]
6. i love the smell of fresh laundry.
5. i wish i was a better cook, or more creative with my cooking. either way, i need to add more variety to my diet.
4. i have never been to a real concert [sad, i know]. i want to change that this summer.
3. i have a new love for country music [there it is, i said it].
2. i am trying to cut back on napping. trying is the key word here.
1. i think i have an etsy store idea [but that is for another post].



[just because. my dad is my favorite. pinning ceremony. azusa, ca]

hump day.

peace.
there is a part of me, a part deep down inside of me, that longs to be at peace. i don't know what it is, i don't know why there is a continuous battle going on deep inside of me, a struggle that i cannot seem to find source of. this battle, i thought it would end when the craziness of these last two years ended, but it hasn't. the pit of my stomach [you know, the part of your stomach that rumbles before a job interview, a first date, or a huge roller coster] is constantly tight. maybe it is because there are so many unknowns. maybe it is because change in on the horizon, and that petrifies me. maybe it is because i am scared i am going to make the wrong decision concerning my future. maybe it is because i am so scared of failure.
i hate this unrest in the pit of my stomach. i long for peace. i long for that feeling of comfort. i long for the feeling in the pit of my stomach to simply disappear. i know God has big plans for me, i simply wish i knew how to better trust him, so that i can be overwhelmed with the peace that i know he has for me.


[baby avery at stephanie's graduation. i love being an aunt]