Dallas City Limits

Comps exam tomorrow

2009-10-29T20:38:00.000-07:00

I haven't updated this in a very very long time! Tomorrow is my comprehensive exams for grad school. That means 4 essays that decide whether I graduate from grad school or not. I'll let everyone know how they go. I'm hoping and praying it goes well!!! Thanks for everyone who has supported me through this semester and all of grad school, yall are truly amazing! Update will come soon on whether I pass or fail!

So exactly how did the first week go....

2009-08-31T17:58:00.001-07:00

I have finished my first week of my last semester of grad school....now that's a mouth full! It was definitely a new experience and my practicum is going to be a great experience. I really think my supervisor is going to challenge me and that I will learn a ton from her! Now most of you that talk to me know about the eccentric case load that a county hospital (Parkland) brought me. While I'm sure I will have some great stories this semester is going to be a lot different. Two really great things: 1. My supervisor is the only SLP on staff so I get to see anything and everything under the sun 2. I'm going to be able to sit in on a brain surgery at some point during the semester. As far as my caseload goes it looks more like I will have lung transplants, cystic fibrosis patients, general medical problems, and stroke patients. I definitely have set some goals for myself this semester! I really hope (since it is my last semester...in case no one has figured that out!) to be more independent so that when I take on the responsibilities of an actual job I'm confident and as proficient as possible. I think this will be a great place to have that experience.

Anyways life outside of that has been eventful. Went to margarita and salsa festival for the first time and had a good time. Also spent Friday night out in Grapevine. It was a such a cute little area. I'm definitely going to have to head out there for some shopping sometime. Maybe even there Wine Festival!

For anyone wondering also....Neil Patrick Harris is hosting the Emmy's!! Very exciting!

Official End of my LAST Summer

2009-08-23T14:29:00.001-07:00

Sadly I have concluded my last summer vacation. It was definitely eventful and relaxing at times and ended rather abruptly.

I have been through many emotions starting this semester. Definitely scared of what is to come when graduation happens, as my previous post explains, but I do believe that I won't have time to think about it too much. I'm taking 3 classes, 20 hours of an internship at St. Pauls, and studying for my comprehensive exams. I will be busy busy.

Things I'm looking forward to:

Starting at St. Paul

College football (still crossing our fingers for UT tickets)

Stephanie and Chris's wedding

Comps being OVER

New York

Finishing schoooool and having a master's degree (5 1/2 years of college)

"The American Gladiator" kickball team

I start tomorrow at St. Paul. Wish me luck! I will be updating this week about how my first week ends up. I'm sure it will be overwhelming, eventful, and fulfilling to be back to doing what I love!

Times are a Changing

2009-07-26T14:56:00.000-07:00

So I'm totally addicted to How I Met Your Mother. It's legendary and you all should watch it! There was a quote from a recent episode that I felt like explained a lot of how I'm feeling these last few months:

"Sometimes it is possible to think you're doing just fine in life, and then someone opens your eyes a little bit and you realize your whole world is off blanace, out of whack, crooked"

Now I'm so thankful for everything that I've had going on this past year. I'm just hitting that point of not really understanding what comes next. I officially registered for my last semester of graduate school, got a 4.0 this summer, and was placed at St. Paul Hospital for the Fall semester. I take my comprehensive exams in 3 months and graduate in 5 months. Somewhere in the midst of all of this I will have to decide the overwhelming question...where to go next?

See I've had most of what I've wanted to do planned out since I was like 14. I knew I wanted to speech therapy so picking a college became about that. I knew after college I would have to go do a master's degree and again picking a graduate school became about that. I've never moved some place for any other reason but my goals! While that is an incredibly wonderful accomplishment I have no idea what my goals or dreams are anymore. I know what I would like to do but more than likely I will be able to do that in any place I choose. I don't know if I want to move back to Austin closer to family, to take a job somewhere completely random to experience a new place outside of Texas, stay in Dallas where I have incredible networks of job opportunities??

I know I can't have it all figured out just yet but this "grey" area tends to haunt me everyday. I know at some point I will have to sit back and let the plan figure itself out but I'm just not to the point of letting that happen. I will always welcome any encouragement and kind words from all of you.

Here are some pictures of my most recent adventures all around. I'm so thankful for having a summer break to relax and just try to "stop thinking"

My Parent's Grandchildren!

I finally got my t-shirt quilt back! Here is the women that made it! Such a great job!

Texas T-Shirt Quilts

Birthday Celebration in Austin! Chris, Steph, Myself, and Christopher

Weekend trips

2009-06-29T17:37:00.000-07:00

First stop Waco: A bunch of us attempted to go swimming although it was closed after questionable water conditions so we settled for the bathtub (aka outpost pool). We tried out the daiquiri drive thru on our way back.

For those of you wondering what a daiquiri drive thru here it goes: Imagine a hut that you drive up to a door (not window) a rude girl, who probably hates her job and life comes to serve you daiquiris and "margaritas" in a sealed bag. Somehow a sealed bag skirts the open container law. Anyway, while the concept is a novelty to Waco it was not worth the ordeal or taste! There was no menu and clearly we were not on the ready to know the daiquiri flavors available so the girl had to walk 3 steps to the door, retrieve a small blue paper with a menu, throw it in the window, and stair at the ground waiting for us to decipher terms like "berry bomb". Two margaritas, two strawberry daiquiris, and twenty minutes later we left. I'm pretty sure the margs had no alcohol and weren't margs at all but lime flavored daiquiri mix posing as a margarita and the daiquiris were questionable but had at least a hint of alcohol. Overall experience and taste: F. I will not be going back!

Went to Wild West that night to see Casey Donahew Band. It was a good time! Here is a link to there website: http://www.caseydonahewband.com/

On Saturday night my family and I went to see Mamma Mia. It was mediocre. Being able to drink wine during the show made it more enjoyable. Basically got to Austin and turned right around to come back to Dallas. Made a stop at Bed, Bath, & Beyond and got this door mat with an "R" of course:

Not too busy of a week ahead and looking forward to making plans for the 4th!!!

New apartment pictures

2009-06-23T17:13:00.000-07:00

So I live at Vue at Live Oak in an efficiency apartment. I LOVE being by myself and having my own space finally. Biggio has not gone insane...yet. I need to get him a friend but puppy training in downtown Dallas would be ridiculous. My goal is to have a dog as my graduation present to myself come December if I can wait :-). Okay so here they are!

Summer update!

2009-06-22T18:36:00.000-07:00

SO I guess it has been forever since I updated anything on my blog. So here it goes...

I finished up my internship at Parkland in the May and started working on an independent study with the head of the speech therapy department at Parkland. I'm creating their family education materials for TBI, stroke, dysphagia, etc. I'm also compiling a new student manual for their program. So it definitely takes up a lot of time but the perks: I don't have to make comps study materials this Fall! I will have summaries/study materials already created. SO when I start attempting to study for my comprehensive exams in August I'll be a step a head. Forced to not procrastinate, thankfully!

I'm in two different practicums which I'll explain at a later time. Basically one I love (adult setting) and one I'm counting down to the final day (kid setting). Surprised?? I do love the little boy I'm working with, he is adorable when he isn't screaming :-).

In other EXCITING NEWS....

I moved to my new apartment
Betsy came back a month early from Europe (I was totally surprised and so excited)
Betsy, Christopher, Lara, Nat, and Aaron's birthdays were this past June
Steph, Meagan, Angelica, and Myself are all having birthdays soon!! (and I always thought I was SO young)
I'm completely obsessed with "How I met your mother"
I have 5 months until graduation...and have no idea what I will be doing :-)
Planning river trips and trips in general during my month long vacation (in 3.5 weeks)
Texas is in the college world series...hook'em
Mamma Mia is this weekend and Wicked is in a month!

So, I will post pictures soon of the new apartment....when it isn't a disaster like it is at the moment. Till then here is a view of the outside :-) My apartment is actually on the right 3rd floor next to the balcony.

Sic'em Bears!!!

2009-03-31T18:39:00.000-07:00

Baylor is going to the NIT Championship Game!!

Thursday, April 2 at 6:00 p.m.

Re-Cap of the Semi-Final Game

Spring!

2009-03-29T15:29:00.001-07:00

So despite the fact that Texas weather can't make up its mind I figure my spring break vacation is the welcoming of the spring season!! I have a little more than a month until this semester ends and summer semester starts. It is going to be more of a load than I was expecting but will be well worth it come Fall.

Spring Break Highlights:

Baylor basketball in the Big XII tournament, we lost but so far so good in the NIT tournament, Sic'em!!
Houston -- Time with Russell's family and friends, St. Patrick's Day was spent with Jessie James for some much overdue catching up! Russell's friends also joined us for the green beer holiday (although there was no green beer)
Austin -- Shopping, hanging out at Chris's downtown apt, delicious dinner cooked by my sister (mmm), one night on 6th but the SXSW crowd was awful, but in general Austin was relaxing!
LOOONG 5 hour trip back to Dallas with a pit-stop in Waco for some Baris's with Rachel

Post-spring break week was uneventful. I was glad to get back into a routine and VERY glad Russell got to spend some extra days here in Dallas. The countdown begins...only 9 more months until we live in the same city, hopefully less! The long distance thing is definitely trying on us at times but we are luckier than most to have the time to travel and spend so much time together. On that same note, our year anniversary is coming up next month. It's hard to believe that it has been that long! Things are just flying by!

Upcoming Adventures:

I will be apartment searching soon for a new place to live in June, visiting Meagan in Colorado Springs in May before she is halfway across the world, Russell continues to look for a job in Houston, Dallas, and Austin that's the right fit, and I will continue my countdown until graduation!!

Valentine's Day Antics

2009-02-16T14:08:00.000-08:00

Russell and I spent the weekend at his lake house off Lake Livingston to "celebrate" Valentine's Day. Most girls would love to have a boyfriend that willingly celebrates v-day and I do love it but I'm also cursed. Despite all of my previous bad luck it turned out to be such a great weekend and we couldn't have asked for better weather! Biggio got to take a road trip up there with me and had a weekend of chasing bugs and rolling around in dirt/dust. Needless to say if he was a dog he would be getting a bath but since he still has back claws I'm not risking it!

Anyway, we basically spent the weekend watching movies, sleeping, cooking, and making numerous trips to wal-mart. A few adventures were inevitable with my bad luck but all turned out for the best. We decided Saturday afternoon to take the boat out on the lake, fish and relax. Relaxing was about the last thing we did. The boat died in the middle of the lake with no other boats around! I mean...who goes out on the lake mid-February besides us right? Oh, did I mention there was a storm heading straight for us at this point! Of course we both became meteorologist and predicted how long it would be before it got to us and at what point we should call the police to come rescue us! Luckily after about 20 minutes of waiting and a panicked phone calls to Russell's parents, I saw boat was in the distance and I said something to the extent of "boat, BIG ARMS, yell" to Russell and we got their attention. They towed us into his dock and about 15 minutes later the storm hit. We were dry and warm thank goodness!! It was a very laughable situation even at the time we both couldn't stop laughing at how stupid we were! I think we even resorted to sweet talking the engine a few times. So that was our big adventure of the weekend. A few minor freak outs about big spiders and roaches throughout the weekend but nothing on or near me so I won't complain.

The biggest excitement of the weekend is that I am now the owner of a Wii. I have been wanting one for quite some time now and finally broke down and bought it. Thank you to the GameStop in Livingston, TX! I'll take any recommendations on games. I think Russell is just excited he never has to think of presents for me again since there will always be fun Wii games for us to play :-).

The Hospital is Nothing Like Grey's Anatomy...it's even better!

2009-02-11T16:38:00.000-08:00

I haven't talked too much about my practicum so I will fill everyone in.

I'm at Parkland Hospital on the trauma unit. It's a really cool setup they have for the speech pathologist. Basically every 4 months the therapist rotate between medicine/burns, trauma, outpatient rehab and inpatient rehab. So for this semester my supervisor is on trauma rounds and so am I!! I absolutely love it. It is challenging and crazy every day but I get to see and learn something new with each patient. Parkland has quite a diverse population coming through both in types of injuries and ethnicity. In fact I have been greatly inspired to learn spanish so I converse with many of our patients! It is frustrating to not be able to communicate with them in anyway. Parkland also offers a lot of help to unfunded patients. I think it's great and I won't get started on my views of our healthcare system. All I will say is that it's angering and inefficient and the more I learn and see each day makes me wonder how our healthcare system is so terribly run. Mind you it is run by predominately by insurance companies who never have contact with the patient but decide their future treatment...go figure! I only hope for a change...no it's not socialism!

Some things I've worked with at the hospital:

1. Traumatic Brain Injuries caused by:

Car/Motorcycle/ATV accidents
Gun shot wounds
Horses in general
Aggravated assaults
Drugs (Did you know how many people do drugs? Cause I didn't!)
Diseases (One in particular was caused from undercooked pork! Mom..don't freak out it happens rarely and "boot leather" :-) meat won't help!)

2. Strokes

3. Swallowing Disorders

Who knew a speech therapist had so many roles!!!

I currently have a patient right now that has a love/hate relationship with me. She hates everything about the hospital and won't let you forget it but secretly I think she loves the attention. She is a sweet woman, has a good heart, just stubborn as hell! I have now gone from being told to "get out of here" at the end of the session to "get out of here honey." haha, I can appreciate it.

Anyway that is a big summary of a just a month of being at Parkland. I'm sure I will have more stories to come!

6 days in New York

2009-01-30T11:23:00.001-08:00

Day One:

We arrived early Friday morning at Newark airport. We had to take a train/subway to get to Michael's apartment. That was an adventure. Lets just say we got stuck in the turnstile a few times and then went the wrong way on the subway, haha. We finally got to his apartment with all our luggage in one piece. After that it was a day of exploring and LOTS of coffee since we left Dallas at 6:00 a.m.

The Empire State Building

We were able to get some great pictures of all of New York from here. Now it was freezing most of the time we were in New York BUT this was a particularly COLD spot to be. The wind was blowing so hard. Regardless we got some great pictures. After the Empire State Building we went to the New York Public library. It was absolutely gorgeous. We had no intention of going there and just stumbled upon it. The architecture was absolutely amazing and it was all marble. The night was spent drinking wine and getting warm!

Day Two:

We went to Ellis Island and The Statue of Liberty. Lady Liberty is not that pretty up close :-)

Russell & I with the Statue of Liberty

Russell and I on Ellis Island with New York in the background

My Grandfather came through Ellis Island. I found his name on the wall!

Russell and I went to dinner on Saturday night but the camera wasn't charged so we don't have any pictures. We found this great little Italian restaurant, Pasta Prego Grill, and little coffee shop/bar. It was so adorable with a little fire place. We ended up staying out until 3 a.m. just us two chatting!

Day 3:

We went and ate lunch at ESPN zone. It was the only place Russell "had to go." Reluctantly (just kidding) I went and we had lunch. Queso = Nachos in the North, ha! We then met up with Michael to take a walk through Central Park and visit the John Lennon Memorial. It was like something out of a movie! Everything was covered in snow and it was so beautiful. We spent a good hour or so in the park just walking around. This was one of the "warmer" days while we were there. Here are some of the pictures through central park:

Russell, Michael, and I in Central Park

John Lennon Memorial in Strawberry Fields

That night Russell and I went to the Lion King. My parent's gave us tickets for Russell's graduation gift. It was such a great show. I had seen it in Austin before but seeing it on broadway was awesome. I actually ended up getting sick about midway through the first half of the show. That was a nightmare. We were dead center in the mezzanine which meant I got to make 30 people extremely happy by walking in front of them and tripping on their things to get to the bathroom. I think they should feel lucky I didn't erp on them! I got to feeling better after getting water. Believe me, I have NO idea what that was about but just glad I didn't get some stomach virus.

Day 4:

This was one of our busiest days! We went to the MOMA (Museum of Modern Art). We got to see tons of Picasso, Andy Warhol and Van Gogh paintings. There were a ton of really amazing pieces and a ton of not so awesome pieces. If I could paint it/make it then I don't think it should be hanging in a prestigious art museum! After the MOMA we went and took a tour of NBC studios. We were able to see the SNL studio (which probably be the closet we get to seeing a show) and Brian William's studio. After that we went on an impromptu adventure to try and get tickets to Avenue Q. We ventured to the TKTS booth where the was NO line. Crazy I know! It was snowing SO hard that day which was an adventure in itself. By this point and time we were thinking snow wasn't as "cool" anymore. It was in our eyes and covering our jackets eventually soaking them. However, we managed to get 3 tickets to Avenue Q for a great price!

Waiting at TKT for Avenue Q tickets in the snow!

After Avenue Q

Avenue Q was so so so SO funny. It was nothing like what we were expecting and a very nice surprise. I know it is coming to Austin so for all of you there GET TICKETS! After the show, the three of us went to dinner at Serendipity. That was my "had to go" spot. We had dinner and then for dessert, frrrozen hot chocolate (mine had peanut butter). I got to sit in the spot that Marilyn Monroe used to sit. Russell thought it was photo worthy so mid-dinner he took a picture!

Me at Serendipity sitting where Marilyn Monroe sat!

Day 5: INAUGURATION!!!!!

We woke up and went to Time Square where the three of us watched Obama become the 44th president. There were hundreds of people watching the big screens. It was such a great place to be! Lots of cheering! Here is some pictures from that morning:

Obama-man on Columbia Campus

The rest of the day was spent at the Met. That was probably the most overwhelming museum I have ever seen. There were so many exhibits and it was easy to get lost in it. We ended up feeling so exhausted from the week and didn't stay too long .We did get to see a few more of Van Gogh and Andy Warhol paintings and also some Renoir. That evening we figured out that it was "New York Restaurant Week." Basically all these great restaurant's had a fixed price 3 course dinner for only $35. The place we choose to go was Ono. It was SO delicious and worth every penny. It was great last dinner in New York.

Day 6:

I went shopping at H&M. Sadly, it is the only shopping I did the entire time. Not that I have money to be shopping! Then packed our bags and left!

It was such a great trip. We were so grateful for Michael and his roommate letting us invade their apartment for the week.

Vacation and Spring Update

2009-01-23T11:40:00.000-08:00

Since it has been forever since I last blogged I'll try and do a brief update.....

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009!!

December

I finished last semester at the beginning of January! It has been a whirlwind ever since. Russell graduated on December 20th and began his job search. Unfortunately the economy is not friendly to new graduates but he is working hard to make as many contacts as possible. I helped him move from Waco to Houston then spent Christmas in Austin with my family.

Betsy finally came home for her vacation from France/Hong Kong. I got to spend a good amount of time catching up with her (it totally wasn't enough time either)! Regardless it was so nice and comforting to see all the Austin crew!

The day after Christmas I went to Houston for a Texans game and spent some time with Russell's family. The Texans game was such a great time and we ended up with really great seats. Since the roof is still damaged from hurricane Ike it stays open all the time. Of course it was raining and freezing that day! Russell then made the trip to Austin where we rang in the new year.

My sister, Mom, and I decorating a tree on 360

New Years Eve

I spent this night with the best people in the world! I couldn't have asked for a better night. It seems like forever since I had a night like this spent with friends. We all congregated at my best friend Chris's new downtown condo. We had a beautiful view of the Austin fireworks, danced, and toasted to the new year. I was so lucky to have a bunch of the Baylor crew join us as well. All in all it was such a wonderful night spent with my closest friends and family!

Betsy, Christopher, and I on New Years

Baylor Crew on New Years

(Russell, Me, Courtney, Josh, Thomas)

January- Cruise

My family took our annual cruise our of Miami this year. Our ports were San Juan, St. Thomas, and St. Maarten. It was definitely the most "interesting" cruise we have ever been on. Dinner was always an adventure. You never knew what you were going to actually get and heaven forbid you want some soup from room service! The ports were beautiful. We were in San Juan at night and since my family didn't want to go on a swamp adventure we ate at a delicious Italian food restaurant. I know, italian in San Juan. . .but it was recommended for good reason!

My sister and I just spent a day on the beach in St. Thomas snorkeling. I got to see a SHARK! It was tiny and non-threatening. I'm pretty sure you could raise one in an aquarium but still it was pretty awesome. In St. Maarten we spent another day at the beach. It rained every twenty minutes but we all got some good sun. The next few days of the cruise were spent on the ship. My poor sister got so sick. I felt terrible for her and of course what worse place to be than stuck on a ship. I know she was glad to get home. It was great to spend so much time with my family, regardless of the "interesting" happenings of the boat.

My sister and I watching the National Championship game on the ship.

Did I mention I hate OU!

New Semester
I have officially started my internship at Parkland Hospital. I was assigned to the trauma rounds. This means I have patients that have brain injuries normally resulting from some kind of fall, car wreck, etc. Right now I'm just shadowing my supervisor. I have done a little work with patients. It has been really great so far. I can't say I'm not totally overwhelmed by the amount of information I've been taking in. It is going to be such a great learning experience and I know I will be challenged. I'm there five days a week from 8-12 and then have class in the afternoon. Classes have started pretty slowly. We had Monday off and my first round of exams is not for a few more weeks. Oh yea and everyone think good thoughts because I'm going to need a strong stomach during this semester!

I'll post another blog about New York once Russell gets some pictures up! It was definitely a great trip and the inauguration in Time Square was unforgettable!!

Holiday time!

2008-11-10T16:56:00.000-08:00

First off, I couldn't be more excited that Obama was elected president. I don't think I will ever forget where I was when it happened. More than anything I'm proud of our generation for getting out there and voting. What a turn out!

In other news... I have begun the countdown for the semester: 6 days of practicum, 17 days of class, 1 research paper, 3 projects and THEN a break!

In the meantime I have been traveling a lot. Rachel's (Russell's sister) birthday was a few weeks ago. She got a kitten which she named Toonces! We joke that we will be the crazy cat ladies some day. Baylor homecoming was two weekends ago. It was great. I go to Waco fairly often to visit Russell and friends still in school but this was a bit different. Meagan and Kelly flew in from Denver on Thursday night, Jessie drove up from Houston, and tons of other people made the trip back. Needless to say there were lots of dinner/lunch outings. Russell, Josh, and Pat hosted their last halloween party. It was fun to see everyone and celebrate together like old times. Russell and I were Jack in the Box and Wendy. Here are a few pictures:

Biggio meets his first cat friend, Toonces!

The pumpkin that took us 2 hours and wine!

Meagan, Kelly, and I visiting floats!! Congrats ZTA/ATO

Meagan, Russell and I at Bonfire

Meagan, Jessie and I

Banana (Luis), Jack in the Box (Russell), and Wendy (me)

Last weekend Russell and I took a trip to Austin for the Baylor vs. UT game. All in all it was a very lazy weekend. Lots of time spent with family. I got a tour of my sister's new condo which is amazing!

Next semester's schedule looks great. I'm doing assessment (testing) of all ages Wednesday and Thursday mornings and Our Children's House Wednesday afternoons. It will be all pediatrics in the Spring. I'm anxious to see how it goes since most of you know I'm set on working with adults. I need more experience though! I'm taking a variety of classes. The crazy thing is this will be my last semester of a heavy class load. This summer I'll take one or two classes and in the Fall, my internship, I'll have one or two classes as well. WOW things are flying by, December 2009 will be here before I know it! Until December I probably won't post again seeing as I should be using my free time to write my paper and do projects but I'll need distractions. Hope everyone is doing well!

Debates, Road Trips, State Fair and Football

2008-10-07T19:32:00.001-07:00

I feel like those 3 things have been what the past few weeks have been. Most of you that know me well know that I have a strong passion about this election. I won't go into much detail but goodness something has got to change. I've been adamant about reading the news, watching the debates, etc. I actually feel like I'm voting for someone instead of against someone (Bush)! So I hope all of you go out and vote! I know in Texas it can seem pointless (for either party) but how could you complain about either candidate if you didn't do your part? Anyways...VOTE!

In school news, I'm meeting with my advisor tomorrow to create my Spring schedule. I can't believe it is that time again. I'm hoping to get some experience with children in a medical setting. I'll know more later. I'm still loving my practicum and classes are going well.

Fun news, I went to the UT v. Arkansas game...despite rude UT faculty/professors (yes, I was also rooting for UT)....the game was fun to watch! We are in the "go horns go" section, as my sister explains, for all you longhorn fans. I also spent the past weekend in Waco for the Baylor v. Oklahoma game. Considering OU was ranked #1 in the nation, Baylor stood little to no chance. However, being a Baylor fan I attend the games for the possible upset. Most of us never lose hope for that one upset of the season! There was no upset...only a pretty nasty score. Better luck this week!

Dallas has the Texas State Fair going on!! A ton of the Austin/Waco crew will be heading up to Dallas to enjoy the UT v. OU game. We are planning to tailgate at the fair! I don't know if I'm more excited about being in this atmosphere for the UT game or eating all the artery clogging food. I'll let you know how fried s'mores, jelly beans, and banana splits taste. Yes, those fried foods are all sold at the fair. Only in Texas, sick.

I'm looking forward to Baylor homecoming, float, and Meagan and Kelly coming back to Texas in 23 days!

Update!

2008-09-23T13:22:00.000-07:00

An update on the past month!

I started in the rehab hospital almost 3 weeks ago and I'm really loving it. I have one individual inpatient client and then 3 of us lead an outpatient group. I have really enjoyed both settings. All of our patients that we see have had a traumatic brain injury or stroke. It is a very interesting population. Up until yesterday I had no really great stories to share besides that I love it....then there was what I will refer to as "the incident." I get a weak stomach from my mom. My sister isn't too far behind me. Being in this field a weak stomach is not always a good thing (aka snot, throw up, bodily fluid, etc). Well my biggest fear has been that a client will throw up on me or near me! It happened.....

My client threw up, not on me, but in a trash can. Let it be noted that NO i did not urp immediately upon the sound... I was rather composed, stayed with her until the worst was over, got the nurse THEN preceded to feel very light headed. Needless to say it will probably be worse than what I saw yesterday but I guess I have stronger stomach than I thought.

Other news:

--My sister, Christopher, and Russell came to Dallas last weekend. It was such a great time. Basically we laid around, ate a ton of food, shopped, and went out! I realize more than ever that the company kept is what makes where you are living bearable. Maybe I don't hate Dallas that much.... it may just be the fact that my close family and friends are MILES away! Thank goodness my cousin Aaron has moved here!! Here is a pictures from NOBU, it was amazing.

After dinner we were escorted in a private car to O-Bar where the rest of the night was spent dancing and drinking. It was quiet the VIP weekend.

--My roommates and I are attempting to join a kickball league here in Dallas. I'll keep you updated on that. Everyone knows I love me some kickball!!!

Oh and a little SIC'EM BEARS!!! They have been so fun to watch this season. Something must be lucky about the number 10!

Vacation and Starting School

2008-08-25T18:18:00.001-07:00

It is officially my second semester of graduate school. After a wonderful 3 week vacation I'm back in Dallas ready for another exciting semester.

A little about my last few weeks: I first went to Austin where I was able to spend some time with the fam. It is never long enough!! I then flew to Houston for Russell's 23rd birthday where I found us a beach house in Galveston to spend 2 nights. All of his friends came up Friday night to help him celebrate. The most exciting addition was his cousin Drew who arrived back from Iraq that day for a two week leave. I know it was really great for Russell to get to spend some time with him and I was excited to finally meet him!

At the airport with Drew!

After the beach house we spent some time in Houston with his family then made our way to Waco to move him back into his house! During the time in Waco we drove to Belton to celebrate his brother's engagement. After a few days in Waco it was up to Dallas. The 3 days we were here we did defensive driving (6 hours of staring at a computer), watched an excessive amount of heroes, painted my room, hung up pictures, and my favorite thing we went to the zoo (we did a lot of zoo/aquarium visits over our trip).

Petting the Shark Russell petting the stingray

Gorilla at the Dallas Zoo!

After Dallas, I went back to Houston where my family picked me up for a RELAXING week in Galveston! Most of the time it was raining but I can't complain. There was much time spent on the porch enjoying the ocean and full moon. Some good quality conversation and wine with my mom and sister made Friday night so much fun. My sister cooked some great meals. I even spotted a shark (maybe a dolphin) but for a good story I say a shark.

The Full Moon!!

School started and not much to report. The only thing that is mildly concerning was our orientation today with the hospital. They are required to inform us of all infectious diseases we may be exposed to by our clients. I'm sure I'll be fine!!!

The most exciting thing about being back besides school is that my cousin Aaron has moved up to Dallas!! I'm excited to spend some time with him exploring the city!!

Congrats Meagan Ray on your new job!! Even though it moved you back to Colorado, Texas will forgive you!!

Traveling around Texas

2008-07-29T11:34:00.000-07:00

So, I probably won't post on here for awhile since I will be traveling all over the next couple of weeks.

Last week, the AC officially was fixed and they took money off our rent for all the trouble. Thank goodness that issue was solved after a month and a half! Very efficient.

This past weekend I went to Rachel's wedding! Meagan, Jessie James and Russell all came and spent the weekend in Dallas which was amazing. It was so great to catch up with Meagan and Jessie. I'm sure Russell was really annoyed by all the girl talk about weddings but he survived.

This Thursday I'll be flying to Houston. Russell and I will be spending three weeks in Houston, Waco, Dallas, and Galveston. Yes..lots of driving. Luckly we will be doing it in one car together. I'm excited to spend some more time with him and we will both get to enjoy a summer vacation for 3 weeks! If you are near any of those cities call us. We will be trying to visit everyone and spend time with people while we are there if possible.

I'll be returning to Dallas on August 20th and starting classes on August 21st! Just got some more news about my practicum for the Fall and it sounds like it is going to be an amazing opportunity. I can't say I'm not intimated by it though. I've never worked with adults so this will be quite an adventure!

One month of Vacation

2008-07-22T05:19:00.001-07:00

I have officially finished one semester of graduate school and only have four more to go! I'm pretty sure I passed everything (just kidding mom and dad), I did.

My birthday turned out to be amazing. Although it took a fews day for me to be excited about turning 22 I couldn't have asked for a better birthday. Russell came to Austin on Thursday where we had an amazing dinner cooked by my one and only sister, the chef! She cooked an amazing trout, with sides of asparagus and what I like to call $15 Macaroni and cheese. It was delicious, amazing, and extra cheesy. My favorite part about my sister's cooking is that whenever she is trying a new recipe she apologizes a thousand times that it might not turn out okay. Not once, ever, has it not turned out to be amazing. So, on that note I feel like anyone that has catering needs or wants a dinner cooked for them should contact her on her website: Cheffonade

The Friday night after my birthday was of course downtown on 6th. A small group of us went and had a wonderful time. Unfortunately alcohol seems to hurt all of us a little more these days.

Dallas life is still going well. I found another place last week (thank you Kelly!) to study. The name of it was BuzzBrews. It was amazing. A small diner type, with GREAT coffee, open 24 hours,clean and better service than Cafe Brazils. It was a great place to sit and study the night away for one of my finals! Besides that, our apartment has been lacking A/C pretty much since the 2nd day we moved in. It goes out constantly. While I love sweating and calling our apartment maintenance every few days.... I would like to have a trouble free apartment sometime soon! They are supposedly fixing the problem "for good" today! I've also been told that about 5 times. Note that at this moment, July 22, 7:40 am it is 88 degrees in my apartment. I couldn't imagine a better morning!

July 4th and Turning 22

2008-07-08T19:59:00.000-07:00

I am now just 2 days away from finishing my summer practicum and will be taking my finals next Friday. This summer session has gone by so quickly.

Vacation officially begins in 10 days!

I got my Fall practicum assignment!! I will be working at the Baylor Rehabilitation Institute with in patient and out patient adults that need speech and language therapy. I will find out specifics in the next couple weeks but it is exactly where I wanted to be! Luckily all my classes and practicum

are no more than 5 miles away from my apartment.

Russell and I went to his lake house this July 4th. It was so relaxing and enjoyable to be on the lake for the first time all summer. I was excited just to lay in the sun and enjoy the water. I felt like it was a mini-vacation. His cousin, sister and our friend Josh were able to come spend time with us up there and we found some fun places to explore in Livingston, TX (which was hard to do). Our favorite location was Buster McNutty's. It was a little bar/dance hall complete with pick up trucks, trailers, cowboy hats, and overalls (a very stereotypical Texas environment). I'm not sure we fit in but it was still a fun night.

I'll be traveling to Austin this weekend to celebrate my birthday with friends and family! It is weird to think this time last year I couldn't wait for my birthday. Somehow 22 isn't nearly as exciting. I haven't really had time to think too much about it. I'm sure I will have an amazing time though.

Weddings, midterms, and wine

2008-06-24T19:59:00.001-07:00

Tonight marks the end of a busy week. From last Tuesday until tonight there has not been much of a break. After moving all week I flew to Houston Friday night for my cousin's wedding weekend. I normally would be quiet annoyed by a flight delay but sitting in the airport for 3 hours gave me time to finish all my notes for a midterm I had on Monday afternoon. That meant little to no studying during the weekend of celebrations!

Russell picked me up from the airport and we had dinner and played scattergories with my aunt, uncle and cousins. Saturday afternoon was Whit's bridal shower, followed by a dinner celebration with Russell's family for his dad's birthday. Sunday was a pretty lazy day until the wedding at 7:00. My cousin looked beautiful and everything went as planned. It was really nice to see my entire family in the same place at the same time in what seems like forever! With a wonderful Sunday night of dancing and celebrating came a very tired Monday! This is where things went downhill....the first TWO MIDTERMS of graduate school....

I was exhausted from the 6 a.m. flight to Dallas (which was also delayed) and then followed that by studying for a midterm and preparing Monday night another one Tuesday! Needless to say, I am alive thanks to Cafe Brazil. Who knows how the tests went but I will hope for the best!

Now I sit, relaxing with a glass of wine, watching Friends in my new apartment that I can finally start enjoying!

Congratulations to Whitney and Brian!!

New apartment and thanks mom :-)

2008-06-19T16:08:00.001-07:00

It is official. I am out of the hotel and into my apartment. It has been a crazy week of moving/studying/classes but all went as well as it could have. My mom came up to help me unpack (THANK YOU!) and I couldn't have done it without her. Lots of shopping and spending money but I found some really great deals on furniture. Anyone is welcome to come visit now that I have a bed and more than just a small room to entertain you in!!

We are exactly 3 weeks away from being finished with my practicum. It has been a whirlwind but I have learned so much. It amazes me how much they surprise me everyday. I definitely have no desire to work this age but needless to say I have learned a lot. I meet with an advisor tomorrow to set up my schedule for the fall. It is flying by!

So this weekend I will be heading to Houston for my cousin's wedding and to stay with Russell's family (again). They have been so nice as to not make me stay in a hotel (again) while I'm staying there. She is getting married on Sunday with shower festivities on Saturday afternoon. It should be really fun and I'm looking forward to seeing all of my family in the same place at the same time for the first time in forever.

Here are some pictures of my new apartment, very brief but it is a work in progress:

Living room with new coffee table I bought!!

My Bedroom

The Pool!!

The Front of the Complex!

I found Kerbey Lane in Dallas!

2008-06-08T21:14:00.000-07:00

So some of us have started a weekly Sunday dinner (as of tonight). I picked a place tonight called Cafe Brazil. It had been recommended to me by a friend of mine that has been helping me find all the "austin-y" spots in Dallas! Think Kerbey Lane (don't worry Mom we will steer clear of here when you come to visit) and Magnolia Cafe because Cafe Brazil comes complete with a weird atmosphere, mildly bad waiters, questionable cleanliness, and delicious food. It definitely makes me feel a little more at home. I would recommend anyone go there!! The food was really good and it is open 24 hours!

Learning mommy skills....

2008-06-04T14:24:00.000-07:00

We aren't at Baylor anymore....we went to happy hour yesterday hosted by the local NSSLHA chapter and had drinks with our professors! It is so much more relaxing and inviting!

Classes/Clients: This week was the first week with our little clients. I know there is a lot I can't say on here because of HIPAA laws but I will explain some of the basics. We have 12 kids most are around 2 to 3 years of age. They all have different disorders but one thing is consistent among all of them they like to cry, snot, and make messes. I suppose all of us are not only learning therapy techniques but how to play the "mommy role." One girl has already swapped spit with one of her kids. She was holding him in the air and drool dripped in her mouth...the best part...he was smiling and happy for the first time all day so she resisted being completely disgusted. I think we all have stories about this. I come home covered in tears and snot most of the time from the kids burying their heads in my stomach. They are adorable though!

On another note, Russell and I went into Austin this weekend to get Biggio and relax. It was an awesome time and we got to do lots of Austin-like things. I'm still searching for those places in Dallas. So far have found some GREAT restaurants...still no local coffee shop so starbucks is still the staple. Any recommendations??

Update on the hotel: The smell of teriyaki is finally gone...YAY!!!!

Here are pictures of where I spend most of my day and the current hotel I'm in:

Moving to Dallas

2008-05-29T09:52:00.000-07:00

I never thought I would consider myself to be from a small town. Now, Waco is a small town and I lived there for 4 years but Austin...Austin is the capital, it's a big city and I lived there for 18 years. Dallas wasn't going to be a huge change from Austin? I was wrong. There are more highways than I have ever seen, more traffic, no grocery stores around the corner, taller buildings, people honk a lot, and I find myself constantly confused as to where I am. Let me just say I thank god every day that I have TomTom (my GPS). TomTom has prevented me from having a complete nervous breakdown!

Living: Currently I am living at a hotel until June 17th. So far I have only two complaints. First, as much as I love walking into a room where there are dirty underwear in the closet I decided that it was not adequate for my three week stay and promptly requested another room. Second, I love chinese food but my room reeks of teriyaki. It's an appetizing smell for a restaurant and all but I will be glad to smell something a little more fresh once I move into my apartment!

Class: The first day was exhausting. I didn't sleep much the night before considering I had completely convinced myself that I was going to be horrible at grad school. Therefore that made a long day even longer. We started around 8:30 and I wasn't finished until almost 6:00. Everyone I've met is amazing so far. It's really nice to know we are all having anxiety about the same things. We start with our kids next week and I'll explain in another post exactly what I'll be doing (once I figure it out)! What I'm learning quickly is that everything is unknown and nothing is planned. Little kids don't work that way! The last few days have just been class and orientation, nothing exciting. However I have had a couple, "I'm not at Baylor anymore" moments when a professor cussed in class and another one talked about our president and how the war was unnecessary. It is a refreshing change to be away from the conservative side of Baylor.