A Student Nurses Prayer

Lord:

I know we go through this every day but please give me the knowledge as to why I actually wanted to go to nursing school and remind me of how much I like nursing. Lord, give me the strength to make it through those six hour lectures without falling asleep. Lord, please give me the patience to make it through eight and twelve hour clinicals with instructors that can’t just give you the right answer and on the same note, please give the instructors the ability to teach us what we need to know to be able to pass the NCLEX and be a competent and safe nurse in the real world. Please give the nurses at Suburban the ability to remember what it was like to be a student and give us just a little more respect (oh and please let the CNA's not be so jealous and RUDE). Lord, give me the endurance to read all the assigned readings and be able to remember it when I am taking a test with four possible right answers. Lord, give my family and friends the ability to realize I really am on the edge of insanity, and to not be offended when I cannot be hang out with them this year. Finally, Lord, give me the vision to see that one day I will be a real nurse and I will never have to wear this ugly uniform again.



-Daniella

Maui Here We Come

Of course Josue and I can't wait for Puerto Rico Cruise, but we have just planned our second trip for the year 2010. A group trip to Maui, Hawaii in Early August.

We are going with friends Cesiah & Temo and Yeimy & Ronald. SOOOOO excited!!!

I already "called" the Master bedroom (as in we pay more for the view and larger space lol)

We rented this ocean front condo for the week, so we can save money and make our own food. Although I'm sure we will go to at least one luau (sp?) Mostly I think all of us just want to relax and just go with the flow, but organized me will have to come up with a few activites. And Josue and will have to do at least one romantic trip and dinner just the two of us as we will be celebrating our 2nd anniversary!! (wow did I just say second???)

I feel so blessed to be able to travel, and we hope to do a few more big trips until we start thinking of a having a family (don't get scared Mom) So I'm sure you will see many more travel updates, and pictures on this blog!!

The only trip we have planned (know we want to go to) is the road to Hana. We will prob have to rent a small van since it's the six of us (if everyone wants to go) But I already nominated Yeimy/Ronald to drive since they have minnie experience LOL ( If you're reading this Yeimy I'm just kidding...kinda)

Can you tell I'm excited!!!?

....... Now just to find a good deal on flight tickets, any suggestions?

Lighter Chocolate Chip Cookies

So I've kinda turned this into a baking and cooking blog, but I do intend to write more about life stuff but for now here is a recipe I created. Of course they are no Martha Stewart or Mrs. Fields, but they are pretty yummy for a lighter dessert. =)

Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Butter

1/2 Cup Applesauce

1 Cup White Sugar (Substitute can be made here, I used 1/2 sugar and 1/2 splenda)

1 Cup Splenda Brown Sugar Mix

2 Eggs

2 tsp vanilla

2 1/2 Cups white flour (brown flour can be substituted, but white tastes better) =)

2 Cups oat (oatmeal, ground finely can be done slowly in blender)

½ tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 bag of semi sweet chocolate chips

1/2 bag white chocolate chips (or whatever variety you prefer)

Directions:

Cream together the first four ingredients

Then mix in eggs and vanilla

In a separate bowl mix together all dry ingredients then slowly add them to wet ingredients

Fold in chocolate chips (At this point I divided dough into two portions, and added white chocolate chips into only one portion)

Refrigerate for at least an hour covered

Roll into 1 tablespoonfull balls. Flatten and place on greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 degree preheated oven for 7-10 minutes . Cool on rack

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

ENJOY =)

Oreo Muffins Healthy?

So I'm on my let's make good food healthy kick, and I decided to make muffins for breakfast! So I subsituted some healthy ingreadients, but I just had to add those oreos =)
Regular Recipe
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
11/2 cup Oreos, crushed


Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
Grease muffin tins.
Beat together the egg, milk and butter.
Stir in the remaining ingredients except the Oreos.
Fold in the Oreos; batter will be lumpy.
Spoon into prepared muffin tins and bake for 15 to 20 minutes



I used splenda instead of sugar and applesauce in place of the butter

Key Lime cookies....yum!

So I found this recipe on the martha stewart website. I know you don't mess with martha but I changed up the recipe slighly by adding lime juice in the cookie mix and lime juice & a drop of green food coloring in the the frosting. Please excuse the bad pictures, the lighting in my kitchen is bad ;)

You can leave them without frosting and just powdered sugar, frost them or make them into mini cookie sandwiches...super yummy!!!!




Makes 3 dozen
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for rolling
2 tablespoons granulated sugar, for sprinkling
Creamy Lemon Filling


Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl using an electric mixer on high speed, beat butter, confectioners' sugar, lemon zest, and salt until combined. With mixer on low, add flour (dough will still be stiff); finish mixing with a wooden spoon.
Turn dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap, pat into a disk about 1/2 inch thick. Wrap, and chill until firm, about 1 hour (and up to 3 days).
Unwrap dough; place on a lightly floured piece of parchment or waxed paper. With a lightly floured rolling pin, roll dough about 1/8 inch thick (if dough cracks, let it warm up slightly).
Cut out cookies with a 1 1/2-inch round cutter (reroll scraps once, chilling of too soft). Place 1 inch apart on two baking sheets; sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake until barely beginning to brown, 15 to 20 minutes; transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
Form sandwiches: Place about 1 teaspoon
Creamy Lemon Filling between two cookies, sugared sides facing out; squeeze gently.

Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

I'm trying to make healthier meals at home to help me lose the extra pounds I've packed on since the wedding. Living with my carnivore, fat, high caloric loving husband makes this difficult. So I've started making some of our favorite recipes with more vegetables, and healthier ingredients. Today I made Gumbo for lunch, traditionally not the healthiest meal but I made some changes.

Here is the regular recipe




1 cup oil
1 cup flour
2 large onions, chopped
2 bell peppers, chopped
4 ribs celery, chopped
4 - 6 cloves garlic, minced
4 quarts chicken stock
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons Creole seasoning, or to taste
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 large chicken (young hen preferred), cut into pieces
2 pounds andouille or smoked sausage, cut into 1/2" pieces
1 bunch scallions (green onions), tops only, chopped
2/3 cup fresh chopped parsley
Filé powder to taste Season the chicken with salt, pepper and Creole seasoning and brown quickly. Brown the sausage, pour off fat and reserve meats.
In a large, heavy pot, heat the oil and cook the flour in the oil over medium to high heat (depending on your roux-making skill), stirring constantly, until the roux reaches a dark reddish-brown color, almost the color of coffee or milk chocolate for a Cajun-style roux. If you want to save time, or prefer a more New Orleans-style roux, cook it to a medium, peanut-butter color, over lower heat if you're nervous about burning it.
Add the vegetables and stir quickly. This cooks the vegetables and also stops the roux from cooking further. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, for about 4 minutes.
Add the stock, seasonings, chicken and sausage. Bring to a boil, then cook for about one hour, skimming fat off the top as needed.
Add the chopped scallion tops and parsley, and heat for 5 minutes. Serve over rice in large shallow bowls. Accompany with a good beer and lots of hot, crispy French bread.
YIELD: About 12 entrée sized servings.




http://www.gumbopages.com/food/soups/chixsaus-gumbo.html







I made it with chicken breast and chicken sausage instead of regular sausage. I used wheat flour, and brown rice. I used heart healthy oil from smart balance We omitted the french bread and added many extra vegetables to the gumbo. (carrots, celery, etc.)




It was really yummy, even Josue loved it! I hope I can continue making healthier meals with my husband not hating them!

1st Wedding Anniversary

This is what happens when you try to save your wedding cake for a whole year! =)

Disgusting!!!!

So we ordered a new one it's a combination of the main cake and our heart cakes from the wedding.

We still can't believe it's been a year. It has definitely been a year of ups and downs but together we can make it through anything. I love Josue more today than on our wedding day and I never knew that was possible. That man is always there for me and I can't thank him enough.

Plus what's an anniversary without gifts =)

Traditionally you're supposed to give paper as a first anniversary gift so I gave Josue paper tickets to a Dodger game, and a photo printed on canvas paper from our wedding. He loved it!

Josue gave me this awesome new camera that can take pictures underwater it will be perfect for our cruise next year. His thought was that you can take pictures that will print out on paper =)

He also got me this great new entertainment center for our living room, I'll show pics later.

I love how much he likes to spoil me, it's so much fun!!!!