Good thought for the year's end (and beginning)

I saw this on a Twitter feed from another social work blog:


As we ponder the year 's end and a new year beginning, think about where you've been this year and who you've helped. Be thankful you could.


Such true, true words. I know as social workers it is often frustrating working with many of our clients, as well as within the broken systems we have no choice but to interact with.

There is no doubt that social work is a challenging job. But it is super rewarding and just down right powerful to think back over a year's span of time to all the things we do on a daily basis for persons who are often powerless to make change without our support.

I just thought this should be pointed out again. Thank you fellow social workers for all that you do!

Have a safe, happy and prosperous New Year, and keep up the great work in 2011!

I can't believe

my baby boy is going to be 2 years-old at 12:03 tommorrow morning.

I kept bursting into tears tonight when I looked at him.

DH thinks I am totally nuts.

Right about this time 2 years ago, we were checking into labor & delivery. I remember a group of pregnant women were about to get onto the elevator to go on the L&D tour, and DH was pushing me in the wheelchair, stating "get out of the way" as I was saying (very loudly) "there's no way I can do this. It hurts it hurts it HURTS".

But I did. And he came so fast too. DH told me the nurses told him that if I had not gone through with the epidural he would've been born well before midnight.

I love my crazy, sweet child so, so much.

And it never fails......

NONE of us are in the office today. I emailed my boss earlier to say that at this point I think it's safe to say I am not going to venture in. He responded back that I would've been the only one anyways.........well, I decided to leave my work cell on because it is technically a work day and I didn't want anyone not to be able to get in touch with me in a true emergency.

Well, it never fails......

I just got a call from a client (who calls me at least twice a day to give me "tasks" to do....often ones he's already completed because as it's been said by him this is my job and he wants to make sure I am kept busy) that they have only partially shoveled him out and he does not know what to do so I should call him back on this ASAP.

Really? I am not even completely shoveled out and no plow has come down this block. I think this is one return phone call that is going to have to wait until tommorrow. I guess I am a mean, mean social worker..........

Snowed in!!

LI was hit with a major blizzard yesterday and all has come to a complete standstill today.

And I am totally loving it. I am hanging out with DS right now as he plays with his new Christmas toys..........and I just made a delicious cup of coffee with my new French Press :).

If things are back to normal tommorrow, I will only have a 3 day work week..........


AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH..............this is the life............

I don't know about anyone else

but I am sure happy Christmas is over.

I don't know if it's the money we spend, the fact that we have houseguests for several days on end, or if it is just that there is some ridiculous expectation to live up to in my mind.....but Christmas in general is really stressful and anxiety provoking for me.

Today we are supposed to be hit with the blizzard of the year, so my family ended up leaving late last night so as not to get stuck in that.

I am planning to just stay in and relax today. DH just ran to Home Depot with DS to buy a new snow shovel and salt. When he gets home, he's going to make us home-made waffles. Then we need to clean up the house and find places for the zillion-and-one gifts DS ended up getting for the holiday. His birthday is this week too, so I am sure he will only get a bunch more that we need to find a spot for.

Then I have to address my holiday cards. I ended up doing a New Year's theme because I was so behind.....

Anyways, I am going to take a quick shower before they get home. *Here's thinking positive thoughts that we get a snow day here tommorrow and I have a 4 day weekend and 3 day work week ;)*

Survey of the day!

Come play along :)

1. What color are your eyes? Blue

2. How tall are you? 5'4

3. What are you most afraid of? Something happening to my son.

4. Do you play an instrument? I played flute but quit because I didn't want to practice (I regret that now!). I also remember playing the recorder in elementary school.

5. What is your favorite physical feature ( on yourself)? My belly when I was preggers (seems so long ago now!) and probably my eyes.

6. Goal you would like to achieve this year? I've been saying this every year it seems, but I really need to just get my damn LMSW already. It would open up SO MANY more options ;).

7. What are your favorite clothing stores? Old Navy/Target. I'm cheap and so are their clothes and they still look decent.

8. Favorite vacation? Our honeymoon cruise to Bermuda. Need to take a vacation soon!!! It's been WAY too long.

9. What are you most looking forward to this holiday season? Feast of the 7++++fishes :)

10. When was the last time you went swimming in a pool? A couple years ago at least. I am more of a beach girl although I don't really "swim".......just go in enough to get wet.

11. Do you speak any other languages? Spanish but not fluently. (I should brush up on that).

12. What is your least favorite chore? Folding and putting away laundry (hence why I have about 3 huge bags in my basement waiting for me to lug upstairs).

13. Do you get regular manicures and pedicures? Pedis only in the summertime every couple of weeks. Doing my fingernails would be a complete and total waste.

14. What was the last thing you cooked? Fetticine y meataballs & a spinach salad (well that's not "cooked" LOL).

15. What states have you lived in ? Only NY. However, different regions......Grew up in the Hudson Valley in the tri-state area of NY/NJ/PA, went to college at SUNY New Paltz, moved to NYC and now live on Long Island. I often dream of moving far, far, away from NY though............

Welcome

I have had a few new subscribers to my blog over the past several days. I just wanted to say welcome, and that I hope you will stick around. Feel free to introduce yourself as well. I love making new bloggy-friends :).

Fill in the Blank Friday

I am going to play along today. I love Lauren's Blog.

1. I wish I had a million dollars. Totally. I'd even settle for something more reasonable, like 10 grand. Or even 5 or 3. Money has been very tight these days because of DH's business. Coming up with our mortgage has been difficult, and because of that, our savings is slowly going buh-bye.

2. Yesterday I resolved lots of client issues that could have had the potential to escalate into not so good things.


3. Today I will work from home, and hang out with my little hellion of a son LOL.


4. Tomorrow I will probably just lounge around the house, maybe run to the grocery store or Target and enjoy my day off with Matteo.

5. Maybe I will hit up a yoga class or two this weekend. (Fingers crossed).

6. Someday I just wish everyone going through some kind of bad stuff could have peace in their lives and all of their needs met, whatever they may be.


7. I love when things are calm and quiet. That is all :)

Great post

for those of you thinking of coming into the social work field, and a great post for those of you who are already here. Check out this blog.


With that said, it has been a hell of a week around here at work. And it's not ending. I am barely breathing.........and my duties keep piling up..........so much so I often feel like my head is going to explode.

Is it worth it?

Most of my yoga tops and sports bras are from places like Old Navy, Target and Wal-Mart. I usually don't spend more than $15.00 on stuff like that. However, I have noticed that what I have now doesn't really offer much support, especially for someone like me who is well, fairly heavily endowed up there.

I am constantly finding myself pulling and straightening my top out after most poses, which is not really what you are supposed to be focusing on in class ;).

I have been browsing different yoga and running sites lately such as this one, and after speaking to several other yoga lovers and runners for their suggestions, I think I may need to just suck it up and spend the money on a couple expensive tops. I guess cheaper is not necessarily better, but if I have some costly ones, at least they SHOULD last a long time and also hold the girls in where they need to be so I can focus more on my practice.

Any particular yoga tops, stores or websites you can recommend that offer good support?

I suspect I will get a few Amex gift cards for the holidays, so the plan is to use them towards this.

Thank goodness it's the weekend!

Been a rough week with one of my clients.

This guy has severe communication deficits and he is hard to keep under control, even with 24 hour oversight and supervison.(i.e. he curses and yells loudly out of frustration from his word-finding difficulties, often runs ahead of staff in the community, is unaware of any kind of dangerous situation and often finds himself in one). He was living in a behavioral center for several years and was discharged in late October. He was also taken off all mood stabilizers while in the behavioral place (probably because it's such a structured environment, it was "easier" to work with him there).

Now, his behaviors have been increasing. I've been trying to get him into a mental health clinic (many won't accept if someone has brain injury), but there's like a whole big long process and overall WAIT for him to be evaluated with the ones who will consider him. We were planning to just walk him into the local psych ER and ask for him to be checked out and hopefully given something to tide him over until he can get into treatment somewhere........when boom...........quick as anything he had a really bad seizure (hasn't had one since he was in a coma when he got his TBI). So he is in the hospital now.

While you never wish someone gets sick or ends up in the hospital, it is definitely for the best, because he can get a good work up now, and hopefully be put on some meds to keep him a little more stable (I say A LITTLE because I know he's always going to have issues). If he refused to go with staff to the ER (which was a strong possibility!), we would've eventually had to call EMS and I KNEW that was not going to be a pretty scene with this guy.

I am trying to get some information from the hospital on how he is doing, but of course, no one has called me back yet ;). Another day, another............day.............

Boo!!!

Sickness has hit our household again......first it was me and DS a few weeks ago........now DH has come down with flu symptoms. He's been passed out on Nyquil since around 4PM.

DS just went to bed, but I am nervous about leaving him to go out to yoga for a couple hours since DH is so out of it.

Boo!!! I haven't been there since Sunday. I am planning to go tommorrow though, and will try to squeeze in 2 classes between Friday and Sunday.

Everytime I sign up again for the unlimited pack, this seems to happen.

Oh well. I think I am just gonna have a bowl of cereal for dinner, then crawl into bed myself. That's the next best alternative when it comes to missing yoga.