A Merry Bosscher Christmas

This year we all traveled from near and far to spend Christmas at Mom and Dad's in Florida - and the trip was well worth it. To have Katie, Emily, Bob, Alec, Luke, Mom, Dad and myself all in one house brought a comforting closeness that sparked the reminiscence of childhood memories and the creation of new ones. Plus we got to spend time with the world's cutest nephew!
We discovered that for all the gifts we could buy Luke, he was more than content with the wrapping paper and Grandma's spatula. We had fun seeing all the roses at Leu Gardens and hanging out on Dad's new deck.

I know that the last time we were all toghether like this was last April at Grandma Bosscher's 80th birthday, but I can't help wondering when the next time will be. Hopefully soon.

'Cause when my family's not around I kinda miss them...

Ahh...Moving...

Ah, moving. The joy of a new house, the pain of unpacking boxes. The excitment at rediscovering things that haven't been used in a year, the frustration in tripping over the empty boxes and not having room in the garbage can for them. Lugging all your "stuff" into trucks and hauling it across town, realizing your new house is big enough to hold it all...and still has too much empty space.

Needless to say, I've got all my stuff in the house, but it isn't all unpacked yet. My friends Jason and Jake helped me last Saturday morning and we ended up getting it all done in just two trips with their 2 trucks and my car! And then Michelle came over and helped me with a little unpacking. But now it appears that I'm really in need of some more furniture. Oh well, good thing I'm in no hurry.

Thought I'd leave you with some pictures of the house as it is now - that way you can appreciate it as it evolves!



The kitchen...



...the living room...



...the office...




...at least my bed is all unpacked! And ready for sleep...

Brrrr!

And today the thermometer read -3 degrees. Orlando is sounding really good right now...

Holy Crap, It's Cold!

Yikes! Denver is in the midst of some of the coldest weather we've had in a long time. So cold that windshield wipers on the ambulance keep freezing and when you walk outside your breath freezes in your nose! Just to prove that I'm not kidding, here's a picture from my car thermometer.

Don't worry, I wasn't driving when I took the picture. I kinda thought this next one was funny. I have a tire pressure sensor in my car, so whenever any of the tires lose pressure or go flat, it let's me know. Well, tonight it was so cold that it showed all four as being flat! Ha! I checked them and they were all fine, but I guess the whole air-molecules-become-denser-as-temperatures-drop theory is actually true - I wouldn't know, I hated physics.


Anyway, we got about 3 inches of icy snow today and are supposed to get more tomorrow. It wasn't really fun driving emergent all the way to Boulder tonight, but we've got some great EMT's who really know how to drive in the snow. I'm just glad the lady we transported decided not to have her baby in the back of the ambulance after all...

First Tube!

Today was a very exciting and educational day for me on the ambulance. As a Critical Care Nurse I have the ability to perform a procedure called RSI, but rarely the opportunity. This is a procedure that I'm not allowed to do in the ER. For all you non-medical people (ok, ALL of you!) RSI stands for Rapid Sequence Intubation and is used when people are still alive but not awake or alert. Most of the time it's used when people can't maintain their own airway and need help from us. So we give them a series of drugs to sedate and paralyze the patient and then put a tube in their trachea to breathe for them. Most patients that I transport are either already intubated or the transport is so short they don't have a chance to crash on me (too badly!). Needless to say, I haven't had the opportunity to perform this procedure except on a dummy. Until today...

We ran a 911 call this morning on an unresponsive man. We're not sure what exactly was going on with him, but he was definitely not awake or alert. So we dropped him off at the hospital and stuck around a little to help the ER staff with him. We were just about to leave when my medic came up to me and told me they were going to RSI the patient and I should ask if I could do it. I told him they probably wouldn't let me and we shouldn't bug the resident (yeah, I was really nervous). But this was a teaching hospital and Brian really wanted me to go in there and do it. Now Brian is normally very much the Southern gentleman, but on this occasion practically grabbed my arm and forced me back into the ER.


So I went inside and asked the resident if I could do the RSI. He said sure. This particular doc was a third year resident and his attending wanted him to have some practice teaching procedures to other people, so it really worked out well for everyone! We set everything up, discussed which drugs we wanted to give and in what order and my hands began to shake. Badly. The way they did back in nursing school when I started my very first IV. Hopefully no one noticed. So the ER nurse gave the drugs and the guy was well paralyzed. The picture here shows the instruments that we use. The laryngoscope has a light on it so you can push the tongue and the epiglottis out of the way and see the vocal cords. And then the tube is passed just through the cords so that both lungs can be ventilated. It's pretty difficult to get it in the right spot because a lot of times it slips down into the esophagaus and ventilates the stomach - not very helpful for the patient!

The first look I took was very much blocked by the man's tongue, so the doctor gave me a longer laryngoscope blade and told me to look again. This time I saw cords and passed the tube - in the right spot on the first try! The doc and the attending were so nice. They both told me I did a great job and were so helpful in talking me through the whole process. The ER where I work is not a teaching hospital, and you can definitely tell the difference in the attitude towards learning procedures like this. I don't think I'll be quite so hesitant to ask to assist on procedures next time we're in this particular ER. Plus we're getting to know all the docs and nurses so they are more comfortable with us coming in and helping out!

So that was my exciting day. Not that it sounds particularly exciting when I spell it all out like this, but it was a great day for me nonetheless! Yes, I'm an adrenaline junkie. Shocker. Now on to my next 5 shifts in a row...

Finally Finished

As promised, I finally got around to taking a picutre of the quilt I finally finished. It's not quite Katie or Mom quality, but for a couch blanket it will do just fine. Plus it was fun putting it together all on my own without a pattern. And it's a nice was to keep all those memories close even though I don't wear the t-shirts anymore.

I'm in the process of packing and I'm reminded how much I hate it. I didn't think I had that much stuff, but once I got down to the basement and started sorting all that stuff out I realized I was quite wrong! Good thing I've roped a lot of people in to helping me next week! The best thing about buying a house? I won't have to move for a very long time...

Countdown...

Today by either the grace of God or the simple stupidity of the loan company, a date was set on which I will close the sale of my new house. Next week Thursday, December 8, 2005, I will be the proud owner of my own house! We met with the mortgage guy today and he said that everything looks good and is in order for us to sign all the papers next week. Yea! And just in time for Christmas. I'm not sure if I'll get a tree and do all that decorating this year. There's not really enough time between when I move in and when I leave to go home. So I guess I'll just concentrate on the normal decorating - that's the part I love! And man have I got some good ideas...! But in the mean time, I still have to move... I hate that part.

Christmas Ideas

Alright kids, so I finally got things together and have a list of ideas for Christmas presents - and it's illustrated!

First, I need a new stethoscope. I really like the 3M Littmann Master Classic II. Color doesn't really matter, but blue or black always works.

And since I returned the dishes from my registry (heehee!) I might need a new set for my new house! I found a set at Kohl's that I like - it's called Sakura Samba and it's all white and square in shape.

There are also a couple cookbooks that I'd like. Yes, I cook. Just ask Bob about my awesome salmon! The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook and Tyler Florence's Real Kitchen are at the top of my list.

Ok, that's all I've got for now. Hope this helps whoever. Now I think the only list we're missing is Alec's...

Going once...Going twice..

Big news! I'm in the process of filling out paperwork so that I can - you guessed it! - buy a house! I've been looking into the option for over a year now and found the perfect house. It's out on the eastern edge of Aurora where there isn't anything yet. The backyard looks out over a huge, empty field with grass and sunflowers in the summer. And there won't ever be anything back there because there's a main gasline that runs through there all the way to Texas and they can't mess with it! Yippee! Over the past two years of living and working in the cities of Denver and Aurora, I've learned that I'm not really a city girl. I love the open space of this area and it's actually quiet! (Who knew that would be something I would value!)

The house currently belongs to my friend Mike, but he's moving and selling it to me. So now comes all the fun stuff like my meeting with the mortgage broker on Wednesday and moving - again. Yuck. That's the worst part. I think I've moved 7 times in the last 6 years - I can't wait for the permanency of a house of my own. (As you can tell, the "gulp" factor of my own mortgage hasn't quite set in yet!)

But I'm super excited. The house was finished in March so it's still new. There are three bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms upstairs. Downstairs there's a half bathroom, family room, living room and kitchen. And the basement is another 700 square feet that has great finishing potential. There's also a 2 car attached garage with lots of storage and cupboards that Mike put in.

So that's the latest big news out of Denver. Nothing's set yet, so I don't know when I'll close or move. But probably at the end of November/early December. Just wanted to show you all what my new place will look like! Obviously it needs some "Beth" touches, but that will come. Now for Christmas ideas. How about a new couch? :)

Why I Love My Job

The other day we transported preemie twins back home to Ft. Collins after they had spent the first 91 days of life at the University Hospital NICU. They were teenie boys - about 3 pounds each, but man were they cute! While waiting for the nurse to finish paperwork I got to feed the smaller of the two and my medic snapped this picture on my phone for our work scrapbook. I'm always amazed at how easy things like this come to me. Changing diapers, giving bottles, comforting little ones - maybe it has something to do with all the babysitting I've done over the years, but I've come to realize that I'm pretty good with kids. My co-worker at the hospital calls me the "Pedi Queen" partly because I always end up in peds when I work the mid shift, and partly because kids respond to me. See Mom, I knew there was a reason that I never wanted to grow up!


Anyway, the twins did pretty well on the hour long trip up North. They both have pretty significant lung problems just from being born so early - they were born at 24 weeks and normal is 40! The little one decided to drop his oxygen saturation so I flicked his feet to wake him up. He pinked up and then he pooped for me, so I guess he was feeling fine! Then the other one decided that we weren't giving him enough attention, so he dropped his sats and I had to suction him and wake him up a little. Sounds scary, but all things to expect when babies are born so early.

These pictures alone remind me why it is I do what I do.

New pictures of a still-new car

So I realized the other day when I was looking back through Katie's blog that I never posted a picture of the latest Denver Bosscher car. So better late than never!

And no, that's not actually my car in the picture, but that's what we were doing this weekend! I went to an Emergency Medical conference up in Keystone this weekend with a bunch of friends from work and we got dumped with 8 inches of snow on Friday night! So that's what the good 'old Pilot looked like in the snow.

The conference was pretty great, too. I did a cadaver lab on Thursday and was able to get some practice at a bunch of procedures I don't normally get to do. I put in a chest tube, did a cricothyroidotomy (emergency airway procedure), did a needle decompression of the chest, did a cut-down (last-ditch attempt for a difficult iv line) and even learned how to put stitches in! The class was run by a trauma surgeon and a surgical PA from Vail who both knew very well what they were talking about. I think the PA's job would be something I could do someday. He works with the trauma surgeons in the ER, but also does elective surgeries. Two medical aspects that interest me greatly. But we'll see. I think that would require me to go back to school...And we know how Beth feels about going back to school...

When I got back in town today I discovered that Hal had eaten some red gift ribbon and then barfed it back up on my bed. So everything's in the washer right now. Guess the picture of that quilt will have to wait. Now he's hiding from me because he knows he's in trouble!

Hmmm...

You Should Get a MFA (Masters of Fine Arts)

You're a blooming artistic talent, even if you aren't quite convinced.You'd make an incredible artist, photographer, or film maker.

Very interesting...I'm the one in the medical field and yet supposedly I'd make a good artist. I guess all those photography classes in high school were trying to tell me something...

Beth, Domestic?

So although I've never been the Katie-type with the beautiful quilts and awesome sewing skills, or the Emily-type with the creative costumes and show-stopping props, I feel pretty proud of myself this week. My roommates requested the use of my sewing machine and limited tailoring skills to help them with their Halloween costumes. They had a party to go to and Jake wanted to go as ladybugs. Megan went along with it and I pitched in with the sewing. The final product turned out pretty cute and I was pretty proud of myself! And I think Jake and Megan had fun being ladybugs, too!

And then after I finished their ladybug costumes, I finished a blanket that I've been working on for the last two years. I made it with all my old t-shirts from high school and college that I never wear anymore, but didn't want to get rid of. (I'll try to post a picture of it later.) So even though it doesn't happen very often, I can be domestic! Just don't expect it regularly...

Dying with Grace

Today was not really a good day at work. Or maybe it was.

We were pretty busy when I came in at noon - they were resuscitating someone in room 4, room 2 was a motorcycle trauma, room 3 had been choppered in from the boonies for continuous seizures and I had to go up to triage to tell 17 people that there was still no room in the inn. By 3:00 or so we had finally gotten caught up to the point where we could at least breathe.

And then I got my little old man in room 8. Not really old in the grand scheme of things, though - only 65. He was brought from a nursing home for difficulty breathing. My friend on the ambulance actually responded to the call and did a great job of treating him enroute. He was only able to whisper, but he knew where he was and what day it was. He said he wasn't in pain. I put him on the monitor, drew some blood and did my assessment. The poor man sounded like his lungs were full of water. It was so bad that I couldn't even hear his heart beating over the sounds of his breathing. And I couldn't feel a pulse anywhere - hands, feet, neck. But he was still awake.

Our ER physician called the man's primary care doctor, who made it to the hospital in about 20 minutes. I love this doctor - so caring, mindful of patient's wishes and a genuinly kind man. He stayed in the room with the patient and me for the next half an hour while he quietly passed away.

The man kept squeezing my hand. Strongly at first, then with less and less pressure as his breathing became the focus of his remaining energy. His rhythm slowly decreased on the monitor and his breathing became more shallow. He no longer answered when we called his name.

A friend of his came to wish him goodbye, as this man's children lived out of state and across the country. The doctor contacted his sons and prepared them for the immenent. We put the phone to the dying man's ear and let his children say goodbye. And then there was silence. No heart rhythm on the monitor. No sounds of labored breathing.

As I finished my paperwork and called the funeral home, I was reminded of Grandma and how fast is was when she died. And I remembered the nurse in the hospice room at Holland Hospital and how caring and comforting she was, even though only hours before she had been a total stranger. I felt a lump in my throat as I hugged the lady who came to see him and suddenly my eyes felt like they were under water.

Later I talked to the man's son and signed the papers for all his organs to be donated. This patient's own son had received a liver transplant 10 years ago. The gift of life goes on.

And then I realized that I have the awesome chance to be Grandma's nurse. Monday I delivered a baby and heard his first cry in this world, and today I held a man's hand as his eyes closed for the last time. I've been told by weathered veterans of emergency medicine that after a while you don't care as much anymore. And I've also been told that I still care too much. But that's not a problem for me. I'm learning that death has it's own beauty, and if I get to be the gift of grace for one moment, then it's all worth it.

Ahhh...Winter

As predicted, Denver received a nice batch of freshly made snow last night. And it's still coming down! It always seems amazing to me how it can be 80 degrees one week, barely Autumn and 60 degrees the next week, and then snowing and 30 degrees.

It's pretty much been snowing all day. And it's a wet, heavy snow. There are a lot of trees with branches bent to the ground under the weight and lots of branches in the road that have broken off.

And of course when the weather goes bad so does the health of a lot of people. I haven't quite figured out why that is, but I think it has something to do with O'Toole. Most people follow Murphy's Law, but the medical community has their own special one - O'Toole's Law. Basically O'Toole says that Murphy was an optimist. If something can go wrong, it will. And if more than one thing can go wrong at once, you'd better count on it.

Anyway, today O'Toole was out in full force, probably in cohorts with Jack Frost. I went in to work at noon and got my butt kicked until nine o'clock tonight. 2 cardiac alerts, 2 stroke alerts, 3 GI bleeds, 3 pregnant traumas, 1 delivery, 1 bravo trauma, 1 alpha trauma, 2 PE's, and a trauma CORE. Wow. Lots of running in the ER today!

But by 9:00 we pretty much had things settled down and they let me go home early. Whew! But I feel bad for the night shift, because when the roads freeze it's going to start all over again...

Fall Colors

Cousin Michelle and I have a tradition of hiking the Colorado mountians in search of the best fall colors. Unfortunately, this year we were both so busy that we almost missed it. We took a drive up to Georgetown and Guanellas Pass looking for the Aspens. Pretty much all we found was fog and rain with occasional hail. But then we found a few streams and some trees that still had their leaves. I love Colorado in the Fall!

It was beautiful, but really cold! So we stayed in the car most of the time and got out only for photo opportunities. We saw some big horned sheep and a couple foxes. Unfortunately, the fox was the only one who would sit still.

And tonight it's supposed to snow in Denver 6-12 inches! Looks like winter's starting already. Good thing it'll be back in the 60's by the end of the week. Ahh...I love Colorado!

My "Other" Job

I thought I’d give you all a little taste of my “other” job. The one I actually like…the one that pays me more…the one that I’m going to do full time starting in November. It’s a small team, but it means that we all know each other well and have fun working together. And it kind of makes us elite, or at least we think we are! And look at that rig! It’s the biggest one Rural Metro owns – it’s a duely! Just think, on Thursday I get to learn how to drive that sucker. Look out Aurora! These two are my frequent partners. As of now we work Fridays and Saturdays together. Vicki (right) is probably our most experienced paramedic. She’s worked in the field for 25 years and has a lot of know-how. She’s also the “boss” and runs the administrative side of CCT. And she’s kind of a mom for all of us young’ uns, too. Carrie (left) is probably my favorite EMT because she’s spunky and might even talk more than I do! The three of us have worked together so much that we pretty much know what will happen in any given situation. We know how the others will react and can read minds – that makes it so much easier when the poo hits the fan!

Most days we run anywhere from 4 to 6 calls. Not bad when you figure critical patients have more equipment, more drug drips and more history than most. So it takes an average of 1-2 hours to get them loaded up and transferred to wherever they’re going. However, some days we get nothing. Nada. Zip. Like the other day. Thursday we ran one call. Friday we ran zero. Boring. Luckily our quarters has cable and a comfy couch. And yes, I get paid for sleeping. Pretty cool, huh? But when it’s slow we also do things like go out to eat with certain B-shift EMT’s or shopping (we are the Gumby Girls, after all!). Oh, don’t feel bad for me yet. Last week we had 2 days in a row where we got absolutely pounded and didn’t eat until 8:00 at night. But that’s how it goes when you work the streets. And I don’t mean that in the hooker kind of way. But when it's not busy we do other things - like clean quarters, especially after the boys have been working. Why does it always smell like feet in there? And of course we take good care of our rig. The other day Carrie, Vicki and I spent 2 hours detaling that beast! We even took out all the equipment, the pram and anything that wasn't bolted down. It's amazing how much goo you can find when you're really looking for it. Yuck! Now if only it would stay that way...

Hopping on the Bandwagon

Alright, kids.
So now that Mom and both big sisters have done the Blog thing, I guess it's time for me to hop on the bandwagon and do the same. Besides, I'm constantly told that I'm not the best at keeping everyone informed of the goings on out here in good 'ole Denver. So hopefully this will keep everyone happy and even let me share some of the cool things I get to do at work! (Don't worry, Mom. I won't share the really gory ones!) More to come...