It was a happy month for our family because my little sister graduated with her nursing degree this month! A single mom is a hard job to have, but add on to that supporting your family with a full-time job and going to nursing school on top of it…
Yeah, INSANE.
I have always admired her endurance and ability to see things through even when her path was a hard one. I’m a fizzler so I would have given up about three weeks in. Isn’t it funny how different two sisters can be?
Selfishly, it is quite exciting to talk to her every day and have, like, unlimited time with her now that she has finished her program. I’m sure you can imagine how happy that makes me to have my best friend back. It is like every day is now a seester day over here!
I am so proud of her success. Sometimes I feel like I get a lot of undeserved glory with this funny job. While I’m out tooting my own horn all over the interwebz, this girl was buckled down in an intense program and cranking out incredible work every single day (while juggling everything else in her life). I couldn’t admire her success more.
Not only that, there are going to be so many patients blessed by her incredible compassion and giving heart. Everyone should have a nurse like her!
Congratulations, sissy!!
Here are a few other things that are making me happy this week!
No More Ironing
I hate ironing so I am really selective about the clothing I purchase and have even been known to return things if it is shipped to me and has wrinkles. Ironing requires a level of commitment that I just can’t swing. I’m not sure why I have never considered purchasing a small garment steamer before, but this gadget is LIFE CHANGING for someone who hates ironing. Basically, I just fill this thing up with water, give it a couple of minutes to start steaming, and blow the steam in front of the garment and watch those wrinkles just fall out of my clothing. Detailed areas around armholes, tricky spots around buttons, that tight spot under the arms….all those wrinkles just fall right on out when you have one of these.
This is so much smarter than using my hair straightner. While I am wearing the garment. Oh, you’ve never burned your stomach because of this before?
For less than $25, this one comes with a little bag so you can pack it for trips and freshen up your clothes when you arrive to your destination.
If you don’t have one, I can’t recommend this inexpensive gadget enough for feeling freshly pressed every dang day!
An Ergonomically Correct Way to Read
As I’m sure you know, the book section of the site takes quite a bit of reading time. Since I have had some issues with joint pain in my hands, it made holding a book quite uncomfortable. It also wasn’t good to have my arms constantly in a bent position or have my neck bent down all the time. For Mother’s Day, I got this Levo Corner Table Clamp Book Holder for my gift and it is awesome if you spend a lot of time reading and are looking for something that will be easier on your hands and body.
You attach the book cover with velcro to the stand and then the page holders hold the pages down for you. It has a quick guide on one-handed flipping and the book holder can swing out of the way when you aren’t using it. I took this out to my little she shed and have been using it to hold my iPad too (minus the velcro) although they do have another product that might work better if you are looking for just a holder for your electronic devices.
I can’t tell you how great this has been to have my books at eye level and the convenience of clamping this wherever I might need it. This was such a great gift this year and I know I will get many years of use out of it!
Better Support
I’ve learned that supportive shoes are always a smart investment so I never skimp on buying good quality shoes anymore. That said, I noticed that even with this smart investment that I had a bit of heel and knee pain going on so I picked up a pair of these arthritis pain relief inserts, from Dr. Scholl’s, for my shoes.
Yes, I realize this went to an old lady happy really fast, but I think most people could benefit from a good quality insert in their shoes.
These have a shockguard that helps absorb the impact of your steps and I have decreased the pain in my knees with just a pair of these slipped in my shoes. I paid about $5 more for these at our drugstore so I found them even more affordably priced over here.
I love that they offer a money back guarantee if they don’t work out for you too! If you struggle with knee, hip pain, or any type of joint instability, give these a try!
Eating: As soon as the weather starts warming up, I start arming myself with ingredients for a Shrimp Boil with the family. This weekend’s project is to get that picnic table stained again for another season of shrimp boil eating with our friends. Yum!
Listening: I’ve been listening to this playlist a lot this week on the way to the various appointments and such. I also loved hearing NPR’s take on Master of None.
Reading: I have been swept away in this fabulous read this week. It’s very different than her past books and has such a beautiful love story. I think you would love it too!
Watching: This has become our new favorite family night show together. Are you addicted too?
Loving the Interwebz Because of This:
You will only get the image above if you are a Parks & Rec junkie. Do you remember the Ice Town scandal? LOL!!
We call this a Taco Bell night. (warning- language)
ALL THE FEELINGS.
The Dirty Dancing Roast– oh, snap! Totally did not watch it. Did you?
I’m obsessed and now I’m more obsessed.
If this doesn’t make you smile, you aren’t human.
Have a lovely week, friends!! xoxo
*this post may contain affiliate links- I only recommend what I love though. Check out past editions of It’s the 3 Little Things!