warm fuzzies

There's nothing like spending a few hours in a children's hospital to help you put things into perspective.

I am not spending my 17th birthday in the pediatric ICU.
I am not deaf as a result of an intentional injury from the people who were supposed to love and take care of me.
I am not sitting beside the bed of someone I love, watching them hurt.
I am not one of two one-year-olds with no one coming to visit because I have been removed from my home.

No, no. I'm a girl with a pretty wonderful life and pretty fabulous people around me. Those kids and babies helped me remember that today.

I had my actual "first" day volunteering at Cook Children's Hospital two weeks ago, but it was actually more of a final training day. I didn't get to interact with any patients; instead I learned (or was supposed to learn) the ins and outs of the two floors where I will be volunteering. Today, of course, I couldn't remember if I was able to go into another patient's room after leaving a "contact isolation" room where I wore gloves and a gown...luckily, I found out the answer is yes.

I helped sing happy birthday to a 17 year-old boy in the ICU. Child Life got balloons, a cake, and presents (from the "happy room!" aka toy storage). We wore gloves, gowns, and masks...I felt so Grey's Anatomy-ish. Then I went back up to the floor I was on and checked on kiddos and their families. I took puzzles and movies to some of them. I then spent the rest of my time with a little 8 year old girl who had no one in her room all day. She is deaf and has developed really neat ways to communicate. She was a sassy, bossy little thing! We cut out hearts and the letters of her name...we colored...we put together a puzzle...she took her own temperature (bossiness!) when the nurse came in. I wished that I could hear her story; that she could speak it....that she could speak the words "cover your eyes until I'm finished" instead of using her hands to show me what she wanted me to do. I didn't spend the time feeling sorry for her, however, I was just glad to sit beside her and help her be an eight-year-old child.

I walked out at 4:30 to a beautiful, sunny day and such a feeling of accomplishment and purpose...what a good day.

apartment antics

So I've been in my place for a little over a month now and I'm pretty settled in. I still need to get a few more things for the walls and I'm in a desperate search for an outside couch like the one I see in the backyard of a house on my walks. So far, no luck. Luckily I still have some time until its truly patio weather.

Being that I am by far one of the youngest people living here...by approximately 50ish years, I've already had quite a few experiences with the old folks.

1. The old man below me was wheeled out on a stretcher at 2 a.m. a few weeks ago...luckily... he's back. I told Emily about it and she wrote a whole blog about my experience here: http://clarkyclark.com/2009/02/19/a-real-life-nancy-drew/.
I think the next 2 adventures are payback for all my old spying days.

2. I have a serious Snow White complex. I have taken in many a bird and fed them watered down Ritz and water with eyedroppers, mealworms, and even taught one little survivor to fly. Elvis the cat would have been mine in the 2622 days had I been more interested in having a pet at the time. So instead of adopting him, I just let him in our apartment, cross-eyed and all, to hang out and nap on my bed. I believe he knocked his sister up at least once while we lived there. If I had a house, backyard, and doggie door, I would probably have 3 dogs by now. I want to make (almost) every stray a pet.
Enter this little nugget of affection:
The first time I saw her, she was eating with the raccoons at night in front of my car. Um, bada**. Second time, she was under my car and then just about climbed up my pants leg to get to my hand so I would then pet her. Well, duh. She came around a few more times, and since I'd been pondering getting Mazie a friend due to her recent wake-me-up-exactly-one-hour-before-my-alarm-goes-off and destructive tendencies, I thought maybe this was the perfect time. I made an appt. with my vet for the little kitty, but of course could not find her when it was time for the appt. She then showed up again and I decided to put some food out to see if she would come around. ONCE. I turned around from dumping out what was probably 1/2 cup of food and one of the older ladies in the complex was standing at her trunk watching. I knew immediately that I was in trouble. I think got a good 10ish minute lecture about how all these cats run wild and procreate and kill shrubbery from spraying and somehow also contributed to the death of her indoor, 12 year old cat. Then she saw my Blue Haze emblem on my shirt(thank goodness for field trip day) and I think that softened her up a bit; she's a high school librarian. Lord, please do not let me be the 60 year old cat lady living in a one-bedroom apartment giving lectures one day.

3. I went to turn in my rent check on Monday before class and the nice older lady in the office said "You can't leave a dog in your apartment." Um, I felt like I was 6 years old. Emily had come over for the day for a wedding shower and sushi dinner. She brought Rocky so he and Mazie could have a play date. Apparently he was barking and she got a lot of complaints. I apologized profusely since dogs aren't even allowed in the complex and told her he wouldn't be here again. She was really nice and said something about the spoiled older people who complain. Now I'm paranoid that the old folks are banding together to oust me and my animal ways.

4. I have seen TWO cars with "Clubs" on the steering wheel. Seriously?!?
A-Who has used one of those since 1992?
B-Who wants your 1990 Toyota Camry?

if you know me

...then you know that I can easily become quite obsessed with a single song and listen to it over and over again, well past the point of when I should be tired of it. Most recently, I played two Taylor Swift songs back to back continuously in my car. Then there was Umbrella a while back. Some might even remember a certain rap CD from the 2622 days. As of right now, the song of choice would be "Happiness" by The Fray. The lyrics are wonderful, as is the music of the song. Lyrics are super important to me...I probably could not write a song to save my life, but I do enjoy writing....it's how I communicate and think through things. So here you go:

Happiness

Happiness was just outside my window
I thought it’d crash blowing eighty miles an hour
But happiness is a little more like knocking
On your door, you just let it in

Happiness feels a lot like sorrow
Let it be, you can't make it come or go
But you are gone, not for good but for now
And gone for now feels a lot like gone for good

Happiness is a firecracker sitting on my headboard
Happiness was never mine to hold
Careful child, light the fuse and get away
Cause happiness throws a shower of sparks

Happiness damn near destroys you
Breaks your faith to pieces on the floor
So you tell yourself that’s enough for now
But happiness has a violent roar

Happiness it's like the old man told me
Look for it and you'll never find it all
But let it go, live your life and leave it
Then one day, you'll wake up and it will be...home
Home, home, home

happy heart day! (almost)

Ah, just one of the perks of teaching small people. I had a minor stomachache at the end of the day...probably due to a cookie bouquet cookie-only part!, some gummy bears, and the outside part of some gross chocolates...but thanks to Deneise and her "mo jee toes", I got a serious ab workout and the pain all went away. :)

All my blog fans (kidding) have been complaining about updating because apparently the picture of my poor back is not enjoyable to look at. I have literally not had 10 minutes to update, but the people who really want/need to know what's going on, do! Here's a short run down of updates, as I still have little time for my beloved blogging. :(

~School is kicking my behind...I have a project due Monday night and then a quiz and presentation Tuesday night.

~Work is good. My little people were oh-so-excited for their party today and it went really well and did not cause any stress.

~I'm settled into my new place, minus anything being hung on the walls. I love it!

~I believe I might start holding me some babies at Cook's next weekend-yay!! :)

~2 months and a few days until Suz and Jay tie the knot!!

Here are some parting words courtesy of The Fray:

And there is so much we don't know,

So we love and we hope that it holds

this is how i spent my ice day

Jealous?

Due the fact that I haven't been able to breathe normally or finish many sentences without a series of sneezes or sniffling for over a month, I booked myself an appointment with an allergist.

Survey says: After 15 minutes of trauma (it was just as bad as when I was little), the doctor came back in and said my mountain cedar spot was "one of the strongest reactions I've ever seen" (letter D area in above pic). AWESOME. While I do like to excel at things, having such strong allergies is not one of them. I think shots are on the way, but we're gonna try the strongest medicine on the market for a month first.

Thank goodness I have learned lots of relaxation techniques in my counseling classes...I got really close, twice, to calling out for help. I was certain that my itching-which actually felt more like stinging-was some sort of freak reaction. Tropical beach and warm sand...check.

a thief in the night

Ahhhh, what a great weekend I have had...and I still have one more day!! Woohoo MLK! Last night my favorite and closest 15 friends met at Gloria's for an early birthday dinner. I had called HOURS ahead of time to get us on "the list" since they don't take reservations and we were a pretty large group. Well, after about an hour of us all waiting around and feeling like sardines with the rest of the people waiting for tables, Jay and Emily decided to go regulate on the hostesses. I think the hostesses just wanted them to go away so they said it would be just a few more minutes. Looking around, we knew that was a complete lie as there were no available tables in sight. Freddie tried to go talk Spanish or something to them to try and get us bumped up, but to no avail. Then Jay got frustrated and told the hostesses we were leaving. Um, I still had a good 3/4 of my delicious mojito in hand. And I was annoyed that we had waited for so long and would have been waiting for way longer. We decided to go across the street to La Familia where they could seat us right away. There was just one problem....my mojito. I had on my favorite wrap sweater, so I just tucked my mojito into it and we walked to Emily's car. It was my birthday! Anyway, Smalls helped me finish it in the 25 second drive over to La Familia and now I have a cool glass as a parting gift.

I have some of the very best friends in the world. They each made sure I had a fun night during what has been a less than easy time. One in particular (Emily) seems to have recently taken a liking to cake decorating. Since it's hard to tell from the picture, the scene is a shaved-head Britney Spears hitting the paparazzi car with an umbrella...do you remember that picture? Google it if not. It's one of my favorites. Emily also put her favorite Britney song title on the cake, but I cannot write what it is. And my New Year's resolution to take more pictures....well, I'm pretty much failing miserably at it! I have a picture of only 2 people who were with us last night...perhaps I should have planned a different resolution....

randoms & recipes

I had good intentions to blog about my super fun weekend, but time has gotten away from me! For a recap of my SUPER fun, I-want-to-do-that-every-weekend (well, maybe....), Friday night, visit Meredeth's blog...my famous words were the title for that blog. I definitely checked one thing off my to do list... :) As for Saturday, I met up with MJ, Suz, and Emily for a late Christmas exchange and dinner. We ate some yummy Mexican food, watching some new wrestling moves, analyzed life-ish things, and just laughed a lot-which is what we're good at! I love those girls!!!

I got my new bedding which I'm semi-obsessed with. I can't wait to put it all together. Speaking of, I got my llaves for the neuvo casa. :)

First week of classes at TCU-done. Not sure how I feel about my Monday class (Assessment). Pretty sure I'll love Tuesdays (DSM)...I'll be diagnosing all of you with all kinds of disorders as the semester progresses. Get excited!

Um, Simon is back. Oh how I have missed his "That was a horrible audition...worst thing I've ever heard...who tells you are a good singer?....you're finished." He's paused right now on the DVR so I don't miss a minute of his sweet face.

On to the recipes:

Pineapple-Stuffed Jerk Chicken (serves 8)
2 tablespoons dried thyme
2 teaspoons ground allspice
1/2 to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 tablespoons sugar
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 cans (20 ounces each) pineapple chunks in juice, drained
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
4 scallions, thinly sliced
8 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (6 to 8 ounces each)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil, such as safflower
Cooked rice, for serving

In a small bowl, combine thyme, allspice, cayenne, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; set spice mixture aside. In a medium bowl, stir together pineapple, lime juice, scallions, and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Season stuffing with salt and pepper, and set aside.
Lay chicken flat on a work surface. With a paring knife, cut a 2-inch-long slit in the thick side of each breast; insert knife, and pivot inside chicken without enlarging opening, carefully forming a deep pocket (make sure not to pierce the opposite side). Dividing evenly, tightly pack each breast with stuffing; rub exterior with oil, and sprinkle with spice mixture.
Heat broiler, with rack set 4 inches from heat. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil; arrange chicken on sheet. Broil until chicken is opaque throughout and an instant-read thermometer inserted into stuffing reads 165, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve stuffed chicken with rice.

*I cut the recipe in half and only used 4 chicken breasts. This is pretty tasty and definitely fresh with the pineapple. I used some tasty brown rice courtesy of my twin.

Hummus and Vegetable Wrap
1 wrap or large tortilla
hummus
1/2 of a yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 plum tomato, seeded and thinly sliced
alfalfa sprouts
1/4 avocado, thinly sliced

Spread hummus on wrap, leaving a one-inch border all around. Mound all ingredients in the center and then....wrap it up! SOOOOO tasty and fresh-tasting!! I highly recommend this one when you're brown baggin' it. :)

ELATED!!!

This is by far the happiest day I have had in quite some time! I had applied over the summer to start volunteering at Cook Children's Hospital. I never heard back from them, so of course I started playing worst-case scenario. I'm really, really good at that game, by the way. I could have called and checked the status of my application, but time got away from me and I sort of didn't want to get rejected over the phone, so I never called. Fast forward to a few days after Christmas. I got a letter from them saying they'd sent me an email but never heard back from me and still wanted to interview if I was interested. Most certainly!! I contacted the volunteer director immediately and she offered to meet this afternoon.

She asked some standard interview-ish questions about personality strengths, why I was interested, etc... On the sheet I had filled out months ago, I had indicated that I was interested in the Child Life area and the babies. Well....she has a spot with the little bitties (0-3 yrs.) DOING Child Life stuff!! Hello-fate, much?? Needless to say, I had to tell myself not to cry tears of joy in front of this stranger....she may revoke the position after seeing my craziness. I will report and work with the Child Life specialists and the CL director. My "duties/opportunities" will be reading to the tinies, doing small art projects with them, taking them to the play rooms, and just rocking them. If you know me, then you understand how obsessed I will likely become with this-I am more than obsessed with babies! Also if you know me, then you know how disappointed/depressed I was about not being able to do Child Life (go read about it in my June or July posts if you feel so inclined).

I feel so blessed and fortunate that this has all worked out the way it has. I go to an orientation in about 2 weeks, then take a TB test (I can't remember if that involves a needle...does it???). After that, watch out babies because I might not ever put you down.

indian princess

Easiest Indian Stew
Serves 4

1 cup long-grain white rice
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, such as safflower
1 medium onion, minced
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 tablespoon curry powder, plus more for garnish
1 teaspoon ground ginger
3 cups homemade or best-quality store-bought tomato sauce
2 cans (15 ounces each) chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, plus lime wedges for garnish
1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt

Cook rice according to package instructions; cover, and keep warm.
While rice is cooking, heat oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Add onion and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until onion is tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Add curry powder and ginger; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomato sauce, chickpeas, and 1 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in lime juice; season with salt and pepper. Serve stew with rice and yogurt, garnished with lime wedges and a pinch of curry.

*I omitted the ginger because that is a flavor I could really live without. I also used quinoa instead of rice because I love it. This is surprisingly filling....easy, too!

blessed

Someone above has definitely had a hand around my shoulder recently. I have had a really wonderful, fun, and relaxing week. I had been worried about being bored which leads to moping which leads to frustration. Not so much. From Chimy's happy hour, to spending the day in Dallas curled up on the couch and eating black eyed peas, to lunch and checking out the new TCU with a friend who was in town, to hanging out with friends for their "Puerto Rico" party with all the Puerto Rican liquor they brought back from their honeymoon, to the walks I look forward to with one of my dearest friends...I have been far from bored. More like blessed. Friends and landlords, family and strangers have been more accommodating and comforting than they know. They're all helping to heal my little heart together.