Final week

Hello everyone,

I'm in shock that the semester is coming to an end.  Where did the time go?  I've come so far since I first started school but still have so much to learn.  One thing that I have learned is how to balance my time between family and school.  Having three kids with very busy schedules leaves little time for myself and my work. 
When I first started classes I would pull my school work out when my kids were needing me to help them with different things.  I would end up getting frustrated which would make them frustrated.  I have learned to only take out my class work when my house is quiet and I can concentrate which isn't often. 
One thing I learned in my first class at Kaplan was to work from a schedule and to prioritize all my chores, school work..etc.  That has helped me immensely.  I know find myself working whenever I have a couple of minutes free.  I bring my laptop when I get my hair done because if I'm "kid free" for an hour I can usually get some work done. 
I have enjoyed this semester and I look forward to the next term:)

A Hospital Trip

On Tuesday around 4:00 I heard screaming from downstairs in my house.  I ran down the stairs to find my oldest daughter who is 10 carrying my three year old daughter up the stairs.  She had blood pouring from her hear.  I scooped her up and brought her in the bathroom.  After cleaning her up I saw a pretty good size cut on her forehead above her eye brow.  She was screaming and my two older kids were screaming.  I calmed everyone one down and called my husband.  I have never had to deal with anything like this before so I didn't know what to do.  Should I put her in the car and go to the pediatrician, hospital, or first stop medical center.  Well my husband made the decision for me; he called EMS from his cell.  Approximately 5 minutes later they were knocking on the door.  After evaluating her they told us she needed to go to the hospital for stitches.  We went in the ambulance just in case she lost too much blood, they told us.  My daughter thought this was great!  She got a new teddy bear:)   The hospital was about 20 minutes away, they took us right in and after waiting in the room for about an hour for the doctor, they ended up stitching her up.  They said she needed eight stitches but would only tolerate four.  It was very traumatic but she did great. 
The only thing she said we were done was "I want to go home" and that is what we did.  She slept great that night.  We have to get her stitches out in 5 days.
Well after all that we ended up asking how it happened.  My oldest daughter was playing horsey with my youngest on her back and she fell of and hit her head on our fireplace.  Wow, don't think they will play that again.

Stomach update

Hi everyone,

  I never thought I would say this but my stomach issues are back.  I was feeling great dairy free with limited gluten.  I told myself that I would not eat any dairy again because I felt so good.  I have not felt that good in a long time.  I thought that was enough for me to eat good and stay away from the foods that were making feel so bad.  Well I started slowly adding certain things back into my diet.  First in was gluten which didn't effect me at first but I did feel a little bloated.  Then I went out to dinner and could resist a spinach and artichoke appetizer that was loaded with cheese (dairy)!  It was so good but 30 minutes after eating it my stomach was rock hard and extended as if I was 5 months pregnant.  I could barely get out of the restaurant with my pants buttoned.  I was so mad at myself for eating that. 
When I made it home I went straight to bed.  The funny thing is that I would think that I would get a stomach ache but I don't just extremely bloated.
I have not had any dairy since then and I've been fine.  It amazes me how I forget how bad I feel when I eat bad.  Temptation is that strong to me but I always regret it shortly after I eat.  It is the same feel as staying strong when you're trying to loss weight.  I will do good for a week then I ruin it by eating something fattening! 
I back on track and feeling good again:)  I just hope it lasts!

Semester ending

Hi everyone,
This semester is coming to an end.  It went so fast which to me means it went well.  I have really enjoyed these two courses I'm taking.  I've learned a lot about the writing process and organizing a paper.  Writing the paper in this class was much easier than in my past classes.  I don't know if I'm getting more comfortable or if I'm learning more either was I'm enjoying the writing process.  I am so upset about one thing, I never posted on my blog last week and got a 0.  I am shocked that I didn't do it.  I replied to a couple classmates and posted a comment on my last week post but didn't get any credit.  I'm so upset at myself for forgetting to do that initial post.  I need to just move forward and not beat myself up about it.
Anyways,  my second class is I've also learned a lot of great information about nutrition.  There is so much to learn but she is a great instructor and breaks everything down so we can understand it better.  This is the second semester I've had this instructor.  It was great at the start of this semester to see a familiar name.  We have a final exam that we have three hours to take,  she has given us a study guide which hopefully will help to prepare.
As this semester comes to an end I look forward to next semester but it will be nice to have a little break.
Have a great week everyone!

Draft conplete

Well I finished my first draft of my paper.  I actually enjoyed writing it once the research was complete.  The only problem is finding the time in my hectic life to devote to my paper.  I always feel guilty taking time away from my husband or my kids.  Now I understand why Kaplan talks about "at home support" so much while registering.  It is very important to have your family pushing you along when you need it.
Anyways, back on the paper....
I never thought I would say that I enjoyed writing that paper.  I'm sure it will need polishing but I feel that I have come a long way from when I started here at Kaplan.  I'm learning so much about myself as a student and a person.  One thing I have learned is that your capable of doing just about anything if you work hard enough.  Having a good topic when writing a paper helps so much.  I have so much interest in diet pills and eating healthy that I wanted to keep digging for more information.

Writing a paper

This will be the third paper that I've written since I've started at Kaplan.  I feel that I have learned a lot from my first two papers but I still have so far to go until I feel comfortable with the writing process.  Composition 1 helped preparing an outline and with the research process.  I actually enjoy researching the topics that I have chosen to right about.  Once I collect all the information I have a hard time getting all my thoughts on paper.  This is where the outline comes in handy for me.  Having my paper formatted as an outline gives me a solid foundation to start writing.  Having an interest in the topics also helps with pulling it all together.  Meeting the page requirements usually make me very nervous.  It has not been a problem as of yet but I don't want to add information just to meet the requirements so I struggle with it. 
I was able to find so great information in and out of the Kaplan Library.  Finding enough information on my topic was one challenge that I feel I have overcome.  The outline due on the discussion board should point me in the right direction to complete my first draft.
I wish that I could write a paper without all the anxiety about getting a good grade.  Hopefully I will continue to get better at this whole process.
Thanks for all the great feedback on the discussion board, it helps me a lot.

Week two with new diet

This is my second week of my diary free diet.  I was gluten free also but I started adding that back in.  I didn't have any issues after adding it back in.  Thank goodness because I don't think I can live without gluten, well if it made me sick I guess I would!  Anyways, diary free...it has been hard.  I did try to add some diary back in but sure enough the stomach issues were back.  The culprit was cheddar goldfish believe it or not.  I didn't think there would be that much cheese but there must be enough to irritate my stomach..ugg!  Love those cheddar goldfish but not as much as a non bloated stomach!
The next thing I'm going to try is lactaid I believe it is called.  You take one right before you consume dairy and it is suppose to help your body break it down.
We'll see how it goes..I'll keep you all posted.

Feeling Better!

Well it is day five of my dairy, gluten, and soda free diet.  I'm feeling great.  I can't believe that one of these things has been making me feel so badly.  It hasn't been that bad removing the dairy so far but the gluten has been a little difficult.  I love to eat all the foods that have gluten in them such as bread and pasta.  I did make gluten free pasta on Friday night for my family without them knowing of coarse.  They never knew the difference. 
I now have to start adding some foods in one by one to see if there is one item that is hurting my stomach.  I'm sure it is going to be a long road trying to figure this out then adjusting my diet accordingly.  It will be well worth it in the long run!

A stomach issue

I've had not had a great two weeks with my health.  Nothing life threatening thank god:)  I have always had stomach issues for most of my adult life but this week has been really bad.  I always feel good in the morning but as the day goes on I progressively get worse.  I have always know that milk does not agree with me but was tested for lactose intolerance amongst other tests which were all negative.  My symptoms are pains in my stomach after I eat and by the end of the night I can hardly stand up straight. 
I spoke to a friend that has had similar issues.  She had recommended a nutritionist that specializes in food allergies.  I called an made an appointment for next week.  Next week seems like forever so I thought I better try some different options to see if I can fix myself while I'm waiting to see the nutritionist. 
Tuesday was the first day, I took out anything I thought could be causing me these issues.  I removed dairy, gluten, and soda(even though it was diet).  Well this is day three and I feel great.  I have not had any issues at all. 
So what does this mean...I am clearly sensitive to one of these three things, but which one????  Everyone is telling me to try to introduce one thing at a time back in but I'm feeling too good to do that right now.  Dairy seems to be the most obvious because I can't drink milk. 
It amazes me that your body not agreeing with a particular food can cause so much discomfort.
Hopefully, I'll continue to feel this good and figure out what food is causing me so much pain!

Spending money

My husband and I had a great night planned.  We were meeting friends we had not seen in a while out to dinner.  In our area in was "restaurant week" which means there is a list of participating restaurants with a certain menu and you pay a fixed price.  We decided to try a restaurant that the four of us had not been to before.  Well when we walked in we should of turned around a walked right back out.  They have a picture on their website that doesn't look like the same place or it is very old!  We decided to stay and try it,  what a mistake.  The food was awful, the service was awful, and the place was dirty. 
We love to go out to dinner but with three kids it doesn't happen as often as it should.  When we finally get a sitter for the kids and go out we expect to have a great experience.  The check finally came and it killed us to hand over any money to this so called restaurant.  We've learned our lesson not to go any where that we have not been before or recommended by someone else.
After leaving the restaurant we looked it up on the computer,  the reviews were horrible.  Note to self...check reviews before trying some place new!

Online Classes

I have enjoyed taking online classes so far.  I like the convenience of being able to stay home and get a degree at the same time.  I'm only taking two classes right now because my youngest daughter is still home with me.  I have two older children that are in school full time so I know how fast the time goes by.  I felt that taking another class may take away time that I could spend with her.  Hopefully when my daughter is in school full time I will be able to take more classes.  Online schooling has amazed me how you can get to know classmates and professors without meeting them face to face.  That is another aspect that I have really enjoyed.
The one part that I seem to struggle with is the one on one with the professors.  The seminars are great and I do learn a lot in them but I think I would enjoy listening in a classroom and asking questions.  Being able to email with issues or questions has been helpful. 
The pros of online classes has definitely out weighed  the cons.  I have been asked if online classes are like "real college", I'm not sure what "real college" is like but it sure seems real to me!

Classes

I can't believe we are going into our 3rd week of classes.  This semester is flying by:)