Camping

This past weekend we decided to try and see the international space station that is currently docked to the shuttle. It was going to be visible in the southern sky for 4 minutes about 9pm on Saturday night. We hoped the sky would be clear at the lake! My two teenagers decided it would be fun to camp out on one of the islands at Belews Lake..so that's what we did and we had a great time. We DID actually see the shuttle and space station. It looked like a very large bright white star streaking across the sky. Very Cool!

The AANP has issued a position statement regarding the use of the term "mid-level provider". I whole-heartedly agree! Read it here...

http://www.aanp.org/NR/rdonlyres/5AC2D9E3-74FA-4BF2-BF2F-1E424A62E516/0/MLP.pdf

Health Care Reform

Here is the latest on health care reform from the president. I guess he likes nurses!

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Remarks-by-the-President-on-Health-Care-Reform/

Cholesterol Info

http://www.healthcentral.com/cholesterol/understanding-cholesterol-31-115.html?ic=4042

I ran across this today and thought I would share it here. It is a good short video about understanding cholesterol. Hope it is helpful to those of you who may be interested!

Jan

July 4th on Belews Lake

Mickey and I took my 17 year old daughter and several of her friends to the lake on the 4th. We had a great time! The fireworks were great as usual. Mickey had been renting his boat out for the last 2 years and we finally got it back. We missed the old girl. We have a slip again (319 at Carolina Marina) and will enjoy being back on the water. Come visit!

Commissioned Piece of Glass

My youngest daughter, Mimi, told her teacher that I did stained glass. The kids in her class were building a (very large) playhouse to be auctioned off at a school fund-raiser. The teacher came up with the idea of having the school mascot made from stained glass in the window of the cupola. This eagle turned out beautifully. He is 1 and 3/4 feet tall by 2 feet wide.

So Pretty!

Photo I Promised

This is by far the prettiest piece of stained glass I have ever done. The tiny pieces would have been impossible to cut without the band saw and grinder. I made this fairy, from start to finish in less than 2 weekends of part-time work. I had help from both Mimi and Mickey. We had a good time learning how to use all the new tools!

Christmas Presents

For Christmas this year, Mickey built a complete workshop in my basement for me to start doing stained glass projects again. He hung and wired the lights, made me a second work tablea nd gave me a drafting table and two stools. Then he hung all the pegboards and gave me a grinder to use for my stained glass. Mimi had volunteered to have me do an Eagle in stained glass for a project at Summit School and that's what started all this. I hadn't done any projects in a long time and things have changed in the glass world since I last did anything. Now it's almost the norm to have a grinder and (if you're lucky) a band saw. Well..Mickey provided the grinder and then I caved and got a band saw. The result is this "Fairy". I never would have been able to do this without these new tools (and my beautiful "shop") They are amazing! Tomorrow I will solder this Fairy together and post a picture of the end result. 

Mickey and Suey

I know that fly's here somewhere!

Clinic Tour

CUTE?? My 21 year old son had two of his room-mates come to visit for a few days over Christmas. They each brought a sugar-glider with them! Very sweet and cute, but not enough for me or my kids to go out and get one. These little animals are marsupials and they can learn commands and actually bond with their owner. They are nocturnal and need to be played with for at least a couple of hours a night. They love to burrow and can be carried around in a little pouch all day. It was a great holiday with up to 6 kids at home at a time, 2 dogs, 2 cats and 2 sugar babies!

Stokesdale Family Care, PC

With a HUGE amount of help from family and friends, I opened Stokesdale Family Care. We opened on June 11, 2008 which is significant for me as that was my mom's birthday. 

The planning of the office started after I graduated from Duke with my Master's in Nursing way back in 1999. I knew someday I'd have my own clinic, but just didn't know any of the particulars yet! I wanted it to be a small and inviting office where people could come and feel comfortable. I am a family nurse practitioner which means I can see and treat all ages, much like a general practitioner of days ago. I emphasize wellness and prevention of disease by counseling patients and promoting healthy lifestyles. I also treat many acute illnesses and chronic disease such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and depression to name a few. If someone comes in with a problem that falls outside my scope of practice, I will refer them to another health care provider who can help. I also utilize collaboration with my supervising MD when indicated. NP's are well known for their listening skills and ability to teach and counsel.