First part of May Madness did not disappoint.

Work was busy, what with all the defiant kids climbing fridges and running amok. They were handled. I did not fall into beating myself up over "what I could've done differently". I'm very proud of myself for this. Found out my coworker's putting in her resignation. My feelings over it are bittersweet. On the one hand, professionally, I learned a lot from her. On the other, personally, I took her constructive feedback pretty hard. Overall, I think I'll miss her. She had a way with the kids that awed and inspired me. I'm also jealous that she's leaving before I am. She's doing what's best for her right now, and that's really important. I respect her for that.

I got my wisdom teeth pulled on Thursday. It hurt like a biotch! Not the usual extraction either - impacted. Yep. I waited that long. I drugged myself up for the first day with 4 doses of generic Vicodin (at the appropriate timely doses) because the pain was so bad. I still can't decide whether or not I think the pain was worth the nausea I had. Bleh. I ate solid foods today - salmon with mashed potatoes, which was great. I was starving! We had chocolate ice cream for dessert. Yum. =P I still look like a chipmunk with the swelling, but at least I can sit up without too much pain, be somewhat useful at home, and I can enjoy the rest of my weekend. Woo! We're going to visit The Hubby's cousin for lunch and a trip to the boardwalk tomorrow. =)

The upcoming week will be just as busy. The Hubby's getting his extraction Tuesday. BIL's bday is Thursday. I have homemade gifts/cards to make for all the important mothers in my life. I want to bake now, but I think I should do a little more resting before I go overboard with baking and making. I'm excited. When I've figured out recipes to use, I'll post them here.

I hope everyone else is enjoying their weekend.

I can't believe it's May tomorrow! Let the Madness begin!

*falls over*

The Hubby and I watched Harold and Kumar: Escape from Guantanamo Bay. The jokes were pretty funny, and some of the new characters were great. Though we both enjoyed the movie very much, we think the first one is better.

I'm so easily entertained. =P

It's really terrible when all I live for is the weekend now, especially with the weather being so gorgeous. =P

( I've been obsessing over work/my license a lot. I need something different. )

On a positive note, we're starting to plan our summer program. I'm really looking forward to it for the following reasons: planning fun activities, daytime hours, rec activities instead of therapeutic groups all day, outside time, and daytime hours. Yes, I mentioned "daytime hours" twice. It's worth the mention. =D I hope to find something different by the end of the summer if I don't find anything beforehand. It would be a great transition to end the summer program, then begin a new job. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I finally received my licensure application in the mail. I'm almost done filling it out, so it should be mailed out sometime this week (I hope). Due to taking this next step, I resumed looking for other positions within and outside the company. As much as I like the kids and enjoy my coworkers, I feel the urge for a change. I'm starting to feel burnout, which isn't a good sign. I also didn't see myself working with kids or with a partial care program for the rest of my life.

I've been looking around at hospitals, mental health agencies, and such. I hope I find something once I get my license physically in my hands. It would be nice to expand my resume to doing things other than groupwork.

Sans the rain, the weather was quite nice. It was warm, sunny during some parts, and it was still light when I headed home at 7:30pm. I love this season. =)

It was such a nice weekend, I hate for it to end. Though it was cold and I have a slight cold myself, the weekend was sunny, filled with friends and food.

I had Friday off because I took my licensing test. It was hard. Most of the time I wasn't sure if I was answering them right. I started a bit early, and finished the 170-question exam within 3 hours. As a computerized exam, my score would flash on the screen within minutes of completion. However, the computer held it hostage, while it made me fill out a survey. Ack! *grumble, grumble* After taking a possible 4-hour exam, I'd like to have my score, thank you very much. I guess it makes sense to do it that way, or they'll never get any feedback from anyone. =P Ah, well. It was worth it: I passed my exam! Yayayay! The hardest part of getting my license was over. =D

After the exam, I called my family to tell them the news. I broke down in tears of relief and joy. I was so stressed out for the past couple of weeks, I couldn't hold it in anymore. I did it! The Hubby took me out to dinner to celebrate. Delicious steak and maple butter blondies a la mode. Yum!

Saturday was a continuation of the celebration - this time, with our families. We took them to Minado, a Japanese buffet restaurant. We stuffed ourselves silly, to the point that many of us felt like we needed someone to roll us out the door. The Hubby was so full, he couldn't eat for the rest of the day. >P We spent the evening vegging out, watching TFC (The Filipino Channel) or something we taped on the DVR.

Today was a mellow day. My cold didn't let up this morning, so I spent most of the day sleeping/lying down and blowing my nose. Stupid cold. At least the worst of it is happening now, rather than my exam day. That would've sucked. My cold is a little better this evening, so I was able to be productive. I did a load of laundry, straightened up the living room a bit, leisurely read, and baked some brownies.

The brownies came out pretty well. I have 4 different variations of 1 vegan brownie recipe. I made: (1) a batch with Ovaltine (more cakelike, almost has a light german chocolate cake-taste to them), (2) one with macadamia nuts and toasted coconut on top, (3) one with a melted chocolate center, and (4) one plain. I used my cupcake pans to make them the right serving sizes. I thought I'd bring some into work tomorrow as a "thank you" for their votes of confidence and for helping me out in my times of stress there. However, I did make enough for The Hubby and me to enjoy. ;P

Alas, I've developed a cold because of sleep deprivation and stress. =? It's not going to get me down though. My exam is todaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyy! At this point, most of my anxiety is gone. I feel like I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Whatever I know, I know. I feel confident I'll pass. That's what I keep telling myself.

I took the day off because it's at 1:30pm today. The Hubby took off, too, so he can take me. One less thing for me to worry about - getting lost. =) We're going out to dinner afterwards, to celebrate my taking it. I think it's going to be a good weekend.

I hate losing sleep. Especially when I have dreams laden with work-related images. 0.o I'm so tired. =( I hope my non-studying day tomorrow will help me get some sleep tomorrow night, before my test on Friday.

I might try to run around with the kids today to see if that helps. Short of taking sleeping pills, I wish I knew of other remedies for sleepless nights. =?

I got an email forwarded from someone at work about the licensing test I'm taking this Friday. This is what it said:

The intro:
Uh oh…

This is good friend of mine...

Read below…

Her friend's email:

I failed first time, got a 74!!!! 75 needed to pass in NYS. Is Jersey different? Its’ not hard just that I don’t test well and was sooo nervous. You’’ be fine. Take a prep class, one or two day because they condense it down and highlight what statistically is always asked on the exam.

I think she was trying to give words of encouragement that I'll do fine. However, telling me her friend failed the first time , isn't very helpful to my sanity. (I need a 75 to pass, too.) >=(

A few of my coworkers noted that this person has a tendency to do/say before she thinks. I feel like I should tell her, but I don't think it's my place. Personally, I like her a lot. She's kind, helpful, and sociable. However, I don't want her to go work somewhere else in the human services field, and rub a bunch of people the wrong way professionally. =?

...for it to be so sunny-gorgeous outside, and be so freakin' cold!

Lately, it feels like there hasn't been much in my life worth posting. I know a few things have happened, but I can't seem to remember anything. =?

Work's okay. I'm pushing myself more and more to move out of my comfort zone. I'm taking more initiative to handle the kids who really push my buttons. Though I'm not always successful (in my mind), I haven't broken any of them. Heh. Always a good thing. State reviewers are coming next month to look at our program, so we're all pretty high strung about that.

I finally received my diploma in the mail. Officially a Masters graduate. =) I scheduled my license exam for next Friday as well, which makes me feel really worried. I keep telling myself it'll be fine and I'll pass, but I hate taking tests. Going to the gym would relieve some of my anxiety, if I wasn't still fatigued from a slight case of the flu earlier this week. *sigh* I just have to keep reviewing. I know what I'll be doing this weekend.

I think I'll be a bundle of raw nerves until I take it next Friday. I hope the time I'll spend studying this weekend will help alleviate some of this stress. I think it'll do me some good to run around with the kids today, too.

You are the moment when the last bell rings and school lets out for the day. You are resistant to schedules and obligations, so you love feeling like you're in control of your life again. You are the very moment when the second hand hits the 12, and the halls fill with noise and motion. Even if your after-school time is packed with activities, lessons, or a job, somehow, you just feel freer in the late afternoon than you do earlier in the day. Maybe it's all that blue sky and afternoon sunshine? Nah -- even on rainy days, 3:15 is always a beautiful time.

How fitting. *L*

The weather was so warm today that I walked outside with a light sweater and no jacket. It's February. In Jersey. 0.o *falls over*

On the upside, the kids weren't freezing when we took them out to play Running Bases. =P

For the last couple of weeks, I keep thinking that Tuesday/Wednesday is really Thursday. Not sure why, except for maybe the wishful thinking that the weekend was closer. =P

I'm still in the process of getting the pre-approval to register for my licensing exam. I'm a bit frustrated that the Board hasn't gotten my transcript yet, even though school said they mailed it out a month ago. =? To remedy this, I took my former classmate's advice (an intern at my work) to have it mailed to myself, then send it to the Board by certified mail. What a pain! The whole process makes me anxious because it's a lot of waiting and planning out the timing for everything. I just hope I can get it to them in time so I can still schedule to take my exam in the beginning of March.

My days became longer again, now that I commute with The Hubby on almost a daily basis. It's rough, but now I'm actually being more productive. I joined the gym near work (finally), so I alternate between weight training and swimming. I'm sore, but it feels pretty good. It's better than me spending those extra hours sneaking junk food because I'm bored, or spending money I really shouldn't. =? I hope that the exercise will help decrease my constant fatigue and my anxiety about stuff going on.

The Hubby and I are in the process of spring cleaning. It's rough because we're both packrats, but we're getting there. Our plans also include partial renovations in our bathrooms. Maybe by the end of the month. Anyone done bath fitting? We were thinking of that as an option. The in-laws did it, and it came out nice.

I have pictures of food, but it's late. I don't want to make anyone too hungry so late. =P

I've been pretty lazy lately to post with a proper update. I will eventually. In the meantime, here's a meme for you to enjoy, complete with a yummy picture of Wentworth Miller. =)



I hope everyone had a nice weekend.

I'm going to Europe! Woo! The Hubby and I booked our tour and airline tickets to visit London, Paris, and Rome. =D We're going with my family, so I'm super-excited! What a great way to spend the end of May Madness. =P

I'm not sure if I'll have lots of time to meet up with anyone, but if I can, I'll be in the London area between May 30 and June 1/2. I have no idea where we're staying yet, so that news will come at a later date. I'm so excited! Woo!

My coworker and I both called out on Monday. He was achy, I was nauseous and headachy. Another coworker thinks it's some sort of stomach virus due to the random bouts of headaches and nausea. I hope not. My head's achy, and I feel run down. Worst of all, the headaches are stress ones with the pain starting at my temples, running all the way to my shoulder blades. =?

I'd call out again, but it would make it very difficult for me to go back to a full week. Moreover, I can't do that to my coworkers again. My coworkers are luckily very understanding, and letting me take it somewhat easy at work. I have a scheduled doctor's appt on Saturday, so I'll give him a head's up on what's been happening this week. Friday can't come much sooner...

As I searched for some good deals for storage from Bed Bath and Beyond and The Web, I came across this link: "90 items found for: bed bath beyond coupons".

I did the stereotypical girl thing and went shopping with my sis today. Though my only intentions were to buy sweaters and a skillet pan, I bought a lot more. However, I found these great stuff for really cheap prices. I bought two lovely sweaters and a cami from NY&Co., brown suede ankle boots from DSW (very comfy, a rare find), my skillet, and a couple of things from VS. It was great. I got everything for under $100, thanks to additional store sale discounts and the lovely Christmas gift card The Hubby gave me.

After spending more money and time than we intended at the mall, we headed off to have dinner with her boyfriend at a Portuguese restaurant. The food was delicious. We had calamari with a spicy marinara sauce and codfish bites for starters, then charged into the seafood paella and a barbecue chicken and beef ribs combo. The seafood and the rice in the paella were cooked perfectly, and melted in your mouth. The chicken and ribs were moist and thoroughly cooked. We topped the meal off with a couple of cappuccinos and their "sawdust" dessert (a vanilla whipped cream-like pudding with crushed vanilla cookies). I slipped into a food coma shortly afterwards. =P

Luckily, the food coma did not affect my driving. I got home around 11:30, and I'm still up because The Hubby's still up. I just sent a text to my sis now to say I got home okay because I'm a spaz and forgot to do it when I get home. I did warn her. Doh.

I think the post-holiday shopping-for-me kick is almost over. Thank goodness. I don't know if my wallet can take anymore. o.o