super bowl village

On Monday, we traveled to downtown to see the Super Bowl Village! I had the day off and Matt got off work at 10 am.  We both went to my BodyPump class and then made our way downtown.  I was so excited to see what all they did for the Super Bowl, but I wanted to go during the day when there weren't so many people...plus I wanted to use my new camera :).  We had some issues finding parking because we didn't want to pay $20.  We found a garage close to everything and ended up paying $10...so maybe the extra stress wasn't worth another $10 but oh well.

It is so amazing that the Super Bowl is coming to Indianapolis! It's a once in a lifetime experience to go down there and see everything. I am so glad we went. And so proud to call Indianapolis our home!

I guess I didn't properly adjust the zoom...

First (because we were low on blood sugar and high on anxiety) we went to Giorgio's Pizza and chowed down.  It was right on Monument Circle which was perfect because I wanted to get some pictures of the huge XLVI display.  I love being downtown and especially at Monument Circle...it's where Matt proposed.

Then, we made our way down to Georgia Street to Super Bowl Village! I wish they could leave all that up and downtown could be like that all the time. 

Ice sculpture 

After 10 people offering to take our picture together I finally let a man take this one.  Only because he had my exact camera hanging around his neck so I knew I could trust him.  I am still a little paranoid about my new toy!

COLTS!

Fire and Ice lounges.  They had alcohol and couches and heat lamps...what else do you need?

The Convention Center.  I really wish we could have done the NFL Experience!

The zipline was awesome! Tickets were sold out and we didn't feel like waiting in line for hours to do it so we just watched.

Love this one!

My friend from work and her husband were down there too and we met up with them inside of The Huddle (inside of Circle Centre Mall).  We all got a drink and then went back out on the streets. All laws (including no open containers) fly out the window when the Super Bowl comes to Indy :).

Then began our photo shoot.  Amber and I were waiting to have Matt take our picture, but he was being a paparazzi all the while.  I think he took more pictures than I did and now knows way more than I do about my camera.  At least he likes it I guess.

Coffee for the man who had been up since 2:30 am!

We found one of the doctors on our unit down town!

Super Bowl Village was so much fun! I am so glad we could experience this.   Now come on Giants and beat the heck out of the Patriots!

where have I been?

Hello out there! It's been forever since I have been on here to blog.  It seems like I sit down to blog, but then something turns my attention away.  Here is a brief update of what's been going on these past couple weeks here at The Dunn Casa.

*I am back to picking up overtime at work.  They have been cutting Matt's hours down a bit at UPS, so I have been picking up some extra just to even it out.  I am so lucky that I have that option to pick up overtime when we need it.  

*Kiwi Fitness has been doing great ever since we opened! Our launch went off without a hitch and we actually had 64 people during our BodyPump class! It was crazy! I'll have to do a post later on it with all of the cool pictures. We have already had quite a few new members sign up.  It's always nice to see some familiar faces from LFF and also to meet new members who sometimes have not never taken a Les Mills class before.  I had 5 brand new pumpers in my class alone this past Monday! 

I also got some exciting news last week...I am taking up another BodyPump class! Not only will I be teaching Monday mornings, but now also on Thursday mornings! I am so excited.  I will say it makes it harder for me to schedule at work.  If I am teaching, I can't work that day (since we work 12 hour shifts) so it makes it tough.  I will have a harder time picking up overtime so I am going to have to see how that works out too. It's such a fun hobby to have, I just have to make sure I am not stretching myself too thinly with this and working full-time while still making time for fun.

*Matt just sold one of his motorcycles this past weekend.  A guy he used to work with bought it.  It's nice to actually have been able to sell it; we've had it off and on Craig's List for a couple years now (although we weren't really trying TOO hard to sell it).  Plus, Matt only lost a couple hundred dollars between what he sold it for and what he paid for it so that was a huge bonus. It is nice to have more room in the garage now, but I know it makes Matt a little sad.  That was the first big purchase he ever made and he really wanted to put it towards getting a new Harley...but that's just not in the cards right now. Sorry babe!

*We've had some great weekends with friends/family recently and we have a lot of exciting things coming up in the next couple months.  Matt and I went to Ohio this past weekend to see my Nana Sue.  She hasn't been doing very well and actually had to have hip surgery about a month ago.  I was pleasantly surprised when we visited her.  She looked great! I thought she sounded better and was getting around better than the last time I saw her.  She has definitely made some progress which is exciting.  We brought Jax to see her and I think he brightened her day a bit :)

We've got the Super Bowl coming to Indy in a couple weeks and that will be so fun to see our city turned into a Super Bowl city! We are planning on taking advantage of the festivities. We aren't too sure of our plans yet, but I have the weekend off!

In March, Matt and I and a friend of mine are going to Illinois for the Les Mills Quarterly! It is basically a day full of Les Mills classes where the best in the business (including the owner of Kiwi Fitness!) are presenting them to a crowd of about 300 people. It is going to be a blast.  We have a big group of us going from Kiwi.  I've never been to a Quarterly before and I am sure this one will be unforgettable :)

lovin on my job

This was an awesome weekend at work.  How many people can say that?! Occasionally Usually I am bitter about working every third weekend.  The weekends are when everyone else is off of work and it just feels strange to be working.  It's always frustrating when friends make plans or when my hubby wants to do something, but it ends up falling on my weekend to work.  Bummer. There are other times, like this past weekend, that I don't even think twice about it.

I absolutely LOVE my co-workers. They really make the environment what it is.  They are definitely an integral part of why I love it there so much.  The camaraderie and the teamwork are just unbelievable.  The whole "nurses eat their young" thing? Not applicable. Although I am always admiring the vets on the unit, they still treat us youngin's as their peers and value our skills and thoughts.  It's so awesome.  I really feel so comfortable on the unit and I am in awe of the type of work we do day in and day out. I am so honored to be a part of this team and proud of our unit.

Getting ready to walk out the door!
Photo taken by father of baby...ok'd by him to post :)

I LOVE our patient population. The teeny babies are such fighters and it really teaches you a lot.  They are so resilient. I love all of the babies, but there are some special ones that I really fall in love with.  I actually sent a baby home this weekend who I admitted and then primaried (I was primary nurse and had her every time I worked).  I loved that baby.  I could've taken her home and she could've been mine.  Too bad the family was amazing and loved this baby too...I guess I'll let them have her :)  I was really sad to see them go. I really enjoyed my time spent with this baby and also time spent with her family.  They were an amazing family and I loved talking with them.  I was actually very teary-eyed when I walked back up to the unit after walking them out to the car.  Maybe it was the huge bear-hugs I got from her parents.  Times like these really make me thankful to be doing what I'm doing.

Pictures from Google

We are also on our journey to obtain Magnet designation. It has taken us years and a ton of hard work to get everything together, but we are in the final stages and will soon (hopefully) be awarded Magnet Status! For those of you who aren't sure about what Magnet status is, I got a little excerpt from a website because honestly I can't explain it any better :).  "Magnet status is an award given by the American Nurses' Credentialing Center (ANCC), to hospitals that satisfy a set of criteria designed to measure the strength and quality of their nursing. A Magnet hospital is stated to be one where nursing delivers excellent patient outcomes, where nurses have a high level of job satisfaction, and where there is a low staff nurse turnover rate and appropriate grievance resolution. Magnet status is also said to indicate nursing involvement in data collection and decision-making in patient care delivery. The idea is that Magnet nursing leaders value staff nurses, involve them in shaping research-based nursing practice, and encourage and reward them for advancing in nursing practice. Magnet hospitals are supposed to have open communication between nurses and other members of the health care team, and an appropriate personnel mix to attain the best patient outcomes and staff work environment." (From http://truthaboutnursing.org/faq/magnet.html) It's basically a "magnet" to draw nurses in to our hospital because of our high standards and excellent working conditions. Pretty cool stuff!

I hope I still love my job (whatever/wherever that may be) this much in 20 years.  I am one lucky girl.