Im still here

Let's see, what has been going on lately? ? ? 

Well my weeks tend to fly by like a whirlwind because everyday is jam-packed and 6/7 days of the week I'm up at 6 and there's a couple days I don't slow down until after 9pm.  Im not always sure how I do it, but I just push through and make things work, I've got to.   I think out of the entire week, Tuesday are my busiest and most hectic days.  I usually have class all day in East Lansing, stop by at the Feister's house for a quick bite and then not soon after that Im off again to the next event - - a teen support group which I facilitate.  

My weeks generally consist of school, facilitating support groups (x2 nights: Monday and Tuesday), work, internship, and homework.  Plus I always try to squeeze in some quality time with Bobby, his family and mine.  Do you see how my week is a whirlwind?

I'm more than ready for May to come, because I know that once may rolls around I will be done with grad school, and I won't have anymore huge paper to write, lengthy assignments to complete, article to critique, discussion's to post, or chapters to read.  Don't get me wrong, I love learning, but I don't like the "busy work" that is attached to school.  Im ready for it to be over, only 1.5 semesters to go. 

I don't know how I would do it all without the support I get from my family. I wouldn't be able to work enough to pay for  rent, and all the other bills, I wouldn't have time for school, and I would have a lot more on my plate then I already do. So here's to my family that is near and dear to my heart... my parents, Bobby and his parents, my sister Tarra, and Bobby's sister Leslie.  I would not be able to do everything I am doing right now without these people. They are MY support system and are always there when I need them the most.   I don't know what I would do without them.

So thank you! 

More to come...

Wow... the past 2 weeks have flown by!

Here's my last 2 weeks bullet style:

• Finished my first semester of graduate school, with ALL 4.0's out of 6 classes!
• Celebrated Ruby's 1st birthday.
• Went on a great camping trip @ Lake Michigan
• Layed on a beach for 3 days, took lots of naps and read an honest to God real book.
• Started a new job and am loving it.
• Got to visit with some good friends
• Also got to see the C. Family
• Got a facial,  and I have massage, pedicure and haircut scheduled to treat myself.  =)
• Spent quality time with Bobby.  
• Relaxed and didn't worry about a darn thing!

Pictures to come tomorrow and Thursday. 

Where has the time gone?

I was doing so well at posting more often, and I had even been posting pictures... and then guess what... life happened and things came up.  So I have slacked a little on blogging.

I stayed @ Bobby's parents house for a week to house-sit/kitty-sit while they were on vacation.  I took care of their little kitty Lucy, who slept with me every single night, and woke me up most mornings around 5:00AM for her daily dose of kitty heaven Fancy Feast... (yuck!) 


I was able to go to the fair with Collin's family which was a lot of fun.  Reyna was so excited she barely could wait until we got tickets to go on the rides.  It was pretty darn cute the entire time we were there... she was able to ride some rides, ride a horse, eat cotton candy, and see all the farm animals.  Ruby seemed to have a good time too.  She was pointing at all the lights and attractions.  I wish I had taken my camera.  Its bad to say but when I know Leslie will be around, I count on her to have a camera. Well that night she had technical difficulties, so we only have the pictures in our memories.

This week I am finishing up my first semester @ MSU!  It has been an exciting and exhausting 6 weeks.  But I will say that the time has gone by fast, and its hard to believe that I have completed my first semester of graduate school.  I am hoping that the next semester goes as well as the first.

The C family had the twins on August 14th.  That is super exciting! I cannot wait to see Liv and to meet this babies... 2 boys : Ethan and Logan.  I am making a trip to Rochester on saturday to meet the babies and of course to see little Olivia.  I have goodies for all of them!  Plus I will get to see my best friend Karen while Im there, so I just know it will be a great day.

More News and Updates Later!

Wow... has it been a while.

It has been a while since I have posted anything. A lot has happened since my last post.

Where oh where to begin....

~Well I finished at Oakland University with my Bachelor's of Social Work degree. That was an exciting day.

~My last day working for the  C. family was on June  25th. That was a sad sad day. I cried, and so did Olivia's mom, Megan.  It's hard to believe that when I started Liv was just a baby, starting to eat solids, she hadn't started crawling, and was so tiny.  And now she was running all over the place, and talking up a storm.  She has changed so much from a year and a half ago.  The C's took my out for ice cream and gave me a couple Pandora beads for my bracelet to remind me of them. It was too sweet and very thoughtful.
Here's Liv and I as my last day as her Nanny Emmy:

~ I moved back to my hometown, and am no longer living with my dear old auntie... instead Im living with my parents to save money.

~My 4 nieces where here in Michigan for 10 days.  That is always fun, although they were here while I was moving so I didn't get to see them much.

~ I took a trip to East Lansing to navigate my way around MSU. My mom came with me which was great, she helped a ton.  We found the buildings I have classes in and where to park.

~ MSU classes started Tuesday (yesterday) it was exciting to be on campus and meet new classmates. I can already tell its going to be a busy semester.

~ Lastly I will be starting my internship tomorrow... at a hospice and bereavement program (I'll let you know how that goes).

More to come later....

Its Official!

 I have completed my bachelor's of social work degree!

I had my last Oakland University exam Tuesday night... and afterwards Bobby took me out to a nice dinner to celebrate.  We also went and took a nice stroll at the park and went out for coffee.  It was great!

I love saying ....
" I am an official Oakland University graduate and I have a bachelors degree!"

Now on to Michigan State for my master's of social work degree!!

The rest of the week I am finishing work, my last day with the C. family is Friday, and I'm packing and getting ready to move.

Its a busy week!

A much needed update

It's been a while since my last post, so I thought I would try to catch up on what's been going on. Not like its all that exciting or all that different, but for the sake of a much needed update I will give in and go for it.

•  I had my first MSU class in Flint.  The class covered Grief & Loss which will be very helpful for my next internship that I will start in July. It was a 2 day class, and I got a lot out of it. But I still need to write a reflection paper about what I learned... that's due on Saturday (yikes!)
• I attended a beautiful wedding reception almost 2 weeks ago. It was for someone very special to me, my godmother, Julie (Pictures to hopefully come later this week).
• I had an 'interview' for a new nanny job... it is looking promising! :) ...
•  I have 5 more days with Olivia, it is going to be hard to leave that little girl. So hard that I am almost dreading it. 
• Car Repairs Galore! My little 2002 Sunfire has been in need of some attention... first my diver's side mirror got broken ( again that's another post in itself), my driver's side window wasn't working anymore, and it is in need of a transmission flush. My sweet mother has gotten my car all fixed up and ready to travel to Iowa. 
• On that note, my mom will be going to Iowa to see my sister and will be bringing  my 4 nieces to michigan for about 10 days. I only wish I was going to be able to see them more... I will only see them about 4 days while they are here. 
• I am in the process of moving. Holy Cow did I collect a ton of 'stuff'' while staying with my aunt. I cannot believe all the stuff I have in my little room/bathroom. I took a car load last weekend, and I plan on taking some more things back this upcoming weekend as well.
• Speaking of packing... I will only be living with my dear old aunt for another week and a half! I have been here for 2 years... it sure doesn't feel like it now that Im looking back at everything.  When I first moved here it felt as if I would be living her FOREVER... and now Im packing and getting ready to move out.
• Today was my last day at my BSW internship at the hospital. It was a bittersweet day. More details/pictures to come later.
• I'm at the home stretch for my classes... I have 2 more days of 'class time' which all of my BIG projects/papers/presentations/portfolio's are due. Then next week all I have is a final. Then I am free... well free for about a week anyway!! 

Alright, enough for now. Check back this week for pictures! 

First Class

Today I am taking my first Michigan State University Class. And I must say that I am pretty excited about it.

More because the class is geared towards my graduate degree, and I will be meeting new professors and students.

I am also excited about the class/program because it is highly geared toward select specialties.

The class that I am taking today and tomorrow is a 1 credit class elective about grief and loss.

I feel like I am starting something new and fresh.

I am ready for a change. Its going to be intense but I am ready for a new challenge.

However, I am happy that I will have a little bit of a break between OU and MSU, about a week to relax and prepare myself for grad school.

...More than Ready...

*Beware this is going to be a venting post*

I am more than extremely ready for my time at Oakland University to be over with.

In my last 2 semesters at OU, I have more busy work than I could have ever imagined. All I have to say is that I do NOT have time for the unnecessary  busy work.

How in the world do professors expect you to throughly complete 20 page papers and portfolio's, (in great detail I might add), when they keep loading up the busy work.

For example:
One assignment was to research 3 jobs and created a resume and cover letter for EACH job. Simple enough I know, but  for starters I am not looking for a job at this time, so why do I need to worry about cover letters? I am going to graduate school. Hello! AND to top it off, each cover letter and resume had to be geared toward 3 DIFFERENT job postings. I don't have time for this crap.

I know, you're probably wondering, how is it you don't have time to create 3 cover letters, but you have time to blog...? Well that's simple: blogging is quick and I don't really have to 'think' about it, I can just type whatever I am feeling, where as a cover letter takes a little more time and effort, which I simply do not have right now.

So there's my vent for the day. I just keep telling myself that I only have THREE MORE WEEKS, and then my time is finished at Oakland.

{3}

I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel ... I only have about 3 weeks left of classes at Oakland University. Although with that, I have been extremely busy with the class work. It seems as though because it is the last semester of the program, the professors have just piled on the work.  I have 4 big paper due, one being a portfolio, and the other are 10-15 page papers. Needless to say, I am keeping busy, mainly with school work.

The weather here has been absolutely wonderful. Unfortunately, I have not been able to enjoy much of the nice weather. I have been inside... writing...

 *Are you getting the picture of why I haven't blogged much lately?*I have been able to enjoy some of my weekend...  

Mainly Saturday... Bobby and I went to the outlet stores and I was able to find a few great deals, mainly at J. Crew, and that night we had dinner with some friends, Karen and Chip. We grilled out at their house and then walked to a wonderful little Gellato Cafe. It was a nice way to spend a Saturday! 

Hopefully once I get through the next couple of weeks I can enjoy myself a little more.

{Orientation}

My buddy Karen and I both will be starting our MSW degree's through Michigan State University.  We had orientation on Wednesday.  Karen and I have class Tuesday night until about 9pm, and we generally ride together to class. Before class, Karen says to me, "Ya know, we should just drive to East Lansing tonight, stay at a hotel and then go to MSU from there, we would be so much closer!"  What a great idea!  Where I live now is about 2 hours from East Lansing.  So we hurried up and searched online for hotels in that area, booked a room, and by then we had to leave for class.  We ended up leaving class a little early and make our way to E. Lansing.

Let me just mention, that it would have been a super early morning on Wednesday, had we not stayed in a hotel.   We would of had to leave around 5:45 AM to get to orientation on time. I am so glad that we stayed at the hotel.  It was kinda fun too! We had a little wine, chatted and we were able to sleep in until almost 7am.

Back to orientation...

I was really excited to be there.  I was able to meet most of my professors, my advisor, and some of my future classmates.  It was however a long day. The presentation was mainly how to "survive" an advanced standing master's program, and the do's and don't's.

It was so nice and helpful that Karen and I were able to go together... I think it made the time much more enjoyable, and having her there eased my anxiety... it is always easier if you know someone. =)

I begin the journey on July 5, and I am pretty darn excited.
 I just have to get through the next 5 weeks, and I will be starting the next adventure!

{ Being a Social Worker Means: }

You will never be bored. 
You will always be frusturated.
You will be surrounded by challenges.
So much to do and so little time.
You will carry immense responsibility and very little authority.
You will step into people's lives and you will make a difference.
Some will bless you.  Some will curse you.
You will see people at their worst ~ and their best.
You will never cease to be amazed at people's capacity for love, courage, and endurance.
You will see life begin ~ and end.
You will experience resounding triumphs and devastating failures.
You will cry a lot.
You will laugh a lot.
You will know what it is to be human and to be humane.


~Author Unknown

It has begun

This week I have entered my very last semester at Oakland University! I have a short 7 weeks until I can say,

 "I am a college graduate!"

7 weeks is going to fly by... I can already tell how fast this last semester is going to go. Before I know it, I will be moving back home and preparing to start graduate school at Michigan State.  It is almost crazy to think about. I just know time will fly, and these last 7 weeks is going to flash before me.

I am excited but ready for this semester.  I am ready to finish these classes, and am feeling sad to be leaving my internship.  I have been working there since January and I have really gotten to know the people that I work with, and Iwill miss them and being there.

 Not to mention I will be leaving my Olivia... that will be a sad day. So sad infact I don't like to think about it.  It will be hard not seeing her 3 times a week. I have grown to love that little girl, it really didn't take long to fall in love with her, and honestly it was hard not to.  I hate missing 1 day of work, I can't imagine not seeing her at all.  Plus the new twin babies that are coming ( which are both boys, by the way). I plan on visiting the C. family to keep in touch and to see Liv. I am convincing the dad, Andy that Liv WILL remember me, and know me to be her "first nanny," I know I will miss her every single day.

But as the saying goes... "On to something and Better" although Im not sure if it so much 'better' ... more like just different.  I  have a feeling all of this is going to take some getting used to... being back home and away from this life that I have created here.

But its going to happen...  Before I know it, so I better enjoy it now.

{ Oakland University Graduation }

On Friday I had my graduation ceremony from Oakland University.

My parents and I drove to my Aunt Doris's house, (the aunt I currently live with), and so did Bobby and his parents.  We had appetizer's and drinks and then made our way to dinner.

I was given some wonderful graduation gifts...
My parents gave me a frame for my Phi Alpha certificate, and a really nice lab coat to wear at my internship.

Rocky and Lisa gave me some beautiful garnet earrings...

**************************************
After dinner, was the ceremony!

Pictures before:

The ceremony itself was students being inducted to Phi Alpha honors society, and the pinning for social work.  It was a very intimate ceremony with just students from the social work class.  It was pretty much a graduation ceremony.

Here's me... the college graduate.  

Well almost... I have 8 more weeks left! 

I am so thankful that I was able to have my family there with me to celebrate my accomplishments!
Thank you to my parents, Bobby, and Rocky & Lisa   for being so supportive, and loving me!

Finals....... {CHECK}

Well one more semester down until I graduate with a bachelors! Im seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, that's for sure! 

Today I finished my last final. One more thing to check off my list!  (( I love making to-do lists and crossing things off when they're finished! )) I have a little  mini break. I am home today through next monday morning. Then I will be heading back for my LAST 8 WEEKS at Oakland!!!

While Im home for my mini break, I have a few things planned.   Thursday I am going to a Tiger's baseball game with my dad, and Friday I have a graduation dinner/ceremony!   So it should be a fun week!

Picture to come this weekend! 

MSU Internship

I found out yesterday that I will be completing my graduate internship at Catholic Charities. I have an interview set up for next Wednesday. If all goes well, which I am hoping it will, then I will start the next chapter of my education at this new agency.

I am excited to have the opportunity to be there.  Leslie works there, so I know a little bit about what the agency has to offer. But being at C.C. will be a completely different experience than being at the hospital. Which I think I'm okay with. I liked the idea of hospice, but  I need to have a little variety as far as practice methods. And I feel that I will be able to do a little more counseling, goal setting and intervention at C.C.Rather than the hospital where I mainly help with discharge planning, and screening/interviewing for patient's living situations. I occasionally do a little bit of counseling, but it isn't a weekly thing, its a one time deal. Going to C.C. will defiantly be a different experience.

I will start at the beginning of July. Here's to something new and different! I'm looking forward to learning and experiencing new things.

{ Proud }

I think my parents are proud about me going to MSU for graduate school...

Here's why I'm thinking this:

I went home this weekend. When I pulled in the driveway, I saw this:

When I saw my parents pets, Nick, Cooper and Spicy, I saw this:

 All the pets had MSU collars on! It was too cute.

I'm glad I make my parents proud! 

{MSU!}

Good news everyone!!!

I received an acceptance letter for Michigan State University. I will be starting an advanced standing Master's of Social work program on July 6th!

I am sooo excited and relieved. I feel as though huge weights have been lifted from me and that I can finally breathe.  The stress from not knowing is gone.
I was so worried about letting not only myself down but my family's as well if I didn't get in. Now I do not have to worry!
The best part is that  I can finally start to make plans. ( Yes, I am a planner! ) And that I will be able to move back closer to all my family. I am looking forward to finishing these last 12 weeks at Oakland and then moving home.  And yes I only have about 12 more weeks until I finish my bachelors degree. I am stoked! The advanced standing program at MSU is only 10 months, so I am seeing a light at the end of this tunnel!

Now all I need to do is finish up at Oakland, get myself packed & moved, start grad school, and find a job! Lots to do, but at least I know that I've been accepted to graduate school!

Yay!

Suicide

Tuesday night a girl in the social work program committed suicide. She was a senior, and 22 years old.

I didn't really know her. She was in the day program, where as I am in the evening program.  I had one class with her last summer.  She was always quiet, but nice. She didn't talk a lot.

Even though I didn't really know her, and we weren't close it still bothers me.  Apparently she was close with her family, and she had close friends. But nobody knew the hurt and pain she felt.  All together its just really sad. Its been on my mind all week.

She was even brought to the hospital where I am interning.  We were called to the ER, but the call was transferred to the social worker that covers that unit.

I guess the lesson to take from this horrible and tragic incident is that you never really know what is going on with someone, and to be careful with not only your words but with your actions.  One little thing that you do can completely change someone's life, for the good or the bad. 

Something to think about: 
Have you even known someone that has committed suicide?  Were you close with them? How did it make you feel?

Spring Break

This week is my spring break....

HA!

So much for that.  Everything's pretty much the same except I don't have an 8am class three days this week, and 2 evening classes. But I am still working my normal nanny job, and doing my internship at the hospital. So much for a vacation from my everyday, normal, routine. I just feel like I am skipping class. I still have a ton of work to get done for school, so what gives ?

Oh well. It is nice to not be getting up every morning around the break of dawn to get ready for the day. I got to sleep in this weekend and today. Actually it was pretty nice not to be out the door by 7:30, because we got a ton of snow last night. I was able to stay in my warm little cocoon (aka my bed). 

Hopefully I will get to have a little fun this week. It is spring break after all. But I can't really grasp the idea of spring break when today we got nearly 9 inches of snow. Spring break, seriously? Its more like winter break. 

I only wish I was somewhere warm right now. Laying on a beach with a nice cold drink in my hand.

Adoption

I got to the hospital today, just dying to find out what happened with the adoption case from last week.

I left Thursday unsure of what the birth mom's decision was going to be.

Was she going to keep the baby, or adopt out .......?

She and the baby ended up staying at the hospital until Monday. The mom had medical issues and was not medically stable for discharge.

During the weekend, the birth mom picked out a family to adopt her baby.

By Monday morning, the adoptive parents were at the hospital, excited and nervous. Excited to have the opportunity to adopt this baby boy, and nervous because the birth mom was so unsure, and hadn't made a definite decision.  

The baby went to a couple that was not able to have children of their own, and who had just been accepted as adoptive parents a month prior. This hardly ever happens. Usually adoptive parents wait months or even years before being selected as adoptive parents. But my patient chose this couple.   It was a difficult and tearful day for all those involved. And the birth mom was reminded of how this was going to be one of the most difficult decisions but also one of the most beautiful.

The adoptive parents took the baby boy home, and the birth mom went home to stay with her father and step mother to recover. 

I feel this was a good decision, for not only the baby but the birth mom as well.  I only hope that the birth mom's heart heals and that she makes use of the counseling and other services the adoption agency offers to her. 

I was worried about this case all weekend. And was anxious to find out what happened.  I do feel better now that I know and am able to have some closure after getting to know my patient and the baby so well last week.