Fabulous end to my day

Can you believe it? I've been given my first award from Hot Tub Lizzy, who is one of my absolute favorite bloggers! She is one funny chick. As in, makes you want to pee in your pants funny. Insightful. Uplifting. Honest. A healthy love of all things Target. You need to go check her out.

I love that the SMILE award came my way. I need some motivation to SMILE my way through my last 2 months of work!

These are the rules:
1. The recipient must link back t0 the award's creator (http://www.thebabblingsofmere.blogspot.com/)
2. You must post these rules if you receive the award.
3. You must chose 5 people to receive the award after receiving it yourself
4. You must fit the characteristics of the recipient of the award, as posted by Mere.
5. You must post the characteristics of a recipient.
6. You must create a post sharing your win with others.
7. You must thank your giver.

Characteristics for the Smile Award:
1. Must display a cheerful attitude. (not necessarily at all times--we are all human)
2. Must love one another
3. Must make mistakes
4. Must learn from others
5. Must be a positive contributor to blog world
6. Must love life
7. Must love kids

And the award goes to...

1. Kimberly - She is wise far beyond her years and always has some amazing stories to tell about her travels. I can't wait to hear about her first year as a teacher in Salt Lake City this fall! Her students will be incredibly lucky!

2. Sabra - a dear friend from way-back, who makes her own plum jam...from trees in her front yard. And then she claims that she isn't a crunchy granola mommy. Um, I'm not buying it! Her 3 kiddos are always involved in fun activities and her positive outlook is contagious.

3. Amy - another dear friend from way-back. Our lives have mirrored one another since single-digit days, and here we are again with our little girls! It looks like this family is always on the move and never sits still. Oooh, and she's quite witty.

4. Where's My Angels - She has 3 girls that keep her on the go, plus a Child Husband to raise! How does she ever find time to sleep? Her stories will make you smile on a daily basis.

5. Buried With Children - I supposed you could say she loves children...she has triplets and their big brother! Her sunny outlook on everything from locker rooms to vomit-fest 2008 will have you rolling!

Thanks again Lizzy! You made ME smile all evening!

Who let the dogs out?

I promise I'll finish the next 50 bits of useless info about myself soon, however I'm still a bit mortified that I told you about skinny dipping with carp. But in the spirit of non-censorship, I'm not allowing myself to go back and edit it out. I just threw that fact in there because someone last week said to me: "You know, I'm learning that my poor decisions frequently come back to bit me in the a#@." Which logically lead me to think about the carp biting ME in the a#@. All comes full circle, doesn't it? Makes perfect sense.

This was supposed to be a quickie about my friend Sabra's recent post (her name is a link). She is an absolute riot! She and her children have been playing dress-up with a random neighborhood dog. It started as a joke because this pack of dogs ran the neighborhood, so they put a t-shirt on him and laughed that obviously his owner would know that he was out and about if he returned wearing clothing! Much funnier when she tells it, so check it out for a laugh!

100th post celebration!

Wow... it is hard to believe that I've had enough things to write about for 100 posts since November! I have to admit that I've loved every minute of it. This evolving blog has allowed me to share my daughter's progress with friends and family, and also helped me to keep my sanity by giving me a space to share all of the thoughts flying through my head. I've been able to connect with dear people that I haven't lived close to in years, and to make some new bloggy friends via the fabulous SITS site.

It is tradition for your 100th post to do a giveaway, but unfortunately the only thing I have to give is our destructo-dog. Any takers?
Or you can post 100 things about yourself that no one knows (or wanted to know, for that matter!)

I'll do the first 50 today, and the next 50 this weekend. If you see something that I should elaborate on, let me know and I'll (insert drumroll here)....blog about it!

1. I love the color green...any shade.
2. The last time I skinny-dipped I was swarmed by a school of very large carp in a murky lake.
3. Dancing is my favorite thing to do in the world, and I will do it ANYWHERE.
4. Sunless tanning lotion is my close friend. White flab = bad. Tan flab = not-as-bad.
5. I was back to pre-baby weight within 5 wks after delivery.
6. Don't hate me too much, b/c I still had buy new pants as everything had shifted and I'm still flabby.
7. I respect and appreciate my body and it's abilities 100% more after pregnancy, childbirth and maintaining the breastaurant.
8. I realize that the majority of people don't like music on blogs, but it is so much a part of my life and memories, that I'm compelled to keep it on here!
9. I don't talk about it much, but I believe in God although my religious beliefs don't fall 100% into any one denomination that I've found.
10. My social work jobs have defined me for many years, but I'm going to have to reconcile that when I become a stay-at-home mom this fall.
11. Jobs I've held: intern therapist at adolescent male residential substance abuse treatment center.
12. Maternity floor/NICU/ER medical social worker.
13. Intake and assessment for psychiatric facility. (oooh, good stories there, as you can imagine)
14. In-home child and adolescent therapist.
15. Manager at The Limited (a much-needed hiaitus from social work)
16. Foster parent recruiter and trainer.
17. Foster agency treatment director.
18. Mommy (most challenging one yet!)
19. Autumn is by far my favorite season. New school supplies, perfect weather, burning leaves, Halloween.
20. Favorite foods: Mom's beef stroganoff or chicken divan w/ curry.
21. Adore Indian cuisine, but don't make it at home because you can't do it well low-fat or low-sodium, so why even try?
22. Places I've lived: Mexico, MO; South Bend, IN; Texarkana, AR; Austin, TX; Buford, GA (Atlanta suburb); Louisville, KY.
23. Favorite place: Austin, TX all the way. Meets the requirements of a "Missy place to live": liberal, diverse, healthy, salsa dancing, breakfast burritos, mountain biking mecca. Case closed.
24. I used to play the flute, but I kinda' sucked. Played the oboe, and I reeeeealy sucked! Liked the piano.
25. I've been told I have an "ethnic" nose. Translation = big.
26. It comes from my dad's side, and I actually have grown to like it b/c my dad, uncles and a few cousins share it.
27. Except when I was in jr high and really skinny. I looked exactly like Blossom, except without the tv show.
28. My parents are still happily married, which is a miracle these days.
29. Our family vacations were always adventursome and focused on experiencing things as the locals did.
30. My parents are scuba fanatics, but the thought of being stuck underwater is so scary to me it takes my breath away. I'm grateful they take pictures!
31. I'm a total workaholic. Can't believe I don't have an ulcer.
32. And a coffee-holic.
33. My best work is only done under pressure.
34. My husband and I met in Texas while I was in grad school and he was an Army officer. Yes, I married the good guy.
35. I drive him crazy by paying in change at Starbucks.
36. I drive him crazy by being fiercely independent.
37. I couldn't care less what type of car I drive, or how it looks.
38. If I can't blow dry my hair I don't feel human and I'm crabby.
39. My hair turned wavy during pregnancy, to the point I can scrunch it to make "beach hair".
40. I don't really know what "beach hair" is, but it sounded good, no?
41. We have 4 cats and a german shepherd.
42. They are the cause of great stress and at least 90% of the curse words said in my home.
43. My go-to fall/winter outfit: fitted turtleneck, skirt, tights, knee-high boots. It's a proven winner. Even with the pet hair as an accessory.
44. I am not responsible enough for "real" jewelry, but my parents keep trying, God love 'em!
45. I had braces but didn't wear my retainers properly, so you can't tell. I can't believe my parents still speak to me after that one.
46. Best party we threw: holiday tapas party for friends/neighbors.
47. I have a very big heart and usually give people the benefit of the doubt.
48. When faced with a decision, I narrow down all the options to just the ones that are real-life possibilities. Some call that pessimistic, I call it realistic.
49. Favorite wine: anything from V. Sattui in Napa Valley. Fun place to visit, too.
50. I feel quite self-absorbed writing about me, me me!

Shame shame! (and many thanks!)

Almost a week and no new posts? Shame shame! Tsk tsk! It shan't happen again, my loves...

Thank you to EVERYONE for making my SITS feature day such a fan-tab-u-lous experience!
Your funny and touching comments meant the world to me, and I hope you enjoyed your visit.
I promise to check the blogs of each and every SITSta who commented, just as soon as I return from vacation this week.

In some karmic twist of fate, our home computer crashed and burned on the the evening prior to the feature day, so I was like a wild woman trying to figure out how to get at the internet! Really, it was almost pitiful. No, I didn't go pimp myself out for wifi, I'm above that at this point. Give me two weeks without internet and we might have to lower the bar a bit. So I decided to go breakin' the law (can't you hear it? breakin' the law..breakin' the law...drrr drrr What song IS that, anyway?) and used the work computer to revel in my SITS love! Not really the "law" per se, but the HR-imposed "law".



The next day we hopped a flight to visit my folks in Texarkana, and as sweet as they are, I don't think they wanted our week together to be spent with me blogging, while they talked to me and I absentmindedly said "yeah" "um hmm" and "uh huh" as a response.
Of course this visit means a multitude to fun pictures are on the way. Our family hearts photos.
We've been having a great time, including excessive spoiling, eating and shopping.

See ya' Wednesday!

Welcome SITS Sistas!

Welcome SITS sistas'!

So happy to be the featured blog today and thrilled to make your acquaintance!

Come on in, the door is open (ooh, don't mind the dog, she jumps but just might lick your face)

On second thought, maybe we'll just sit on the front porch because the house is always a mess, and we can watch the neighborhood kids run in the sprinkler while we have coffee and brownies. They're always a little underdone at our house, just so ya' know.

Then we'll tell funny stories about our week and laugh loud enough to wake the baby.

I won't tell anyone if you laugh and coffee shoots out your nose, I promise!

We have a little bit of everything here. Some bullriding, some stories about people who just can't stop apologizing (Parts 1-3, no less!), and of course you can't forget our 2 monkeys at work.

Usually when I'm with friends and family the conversation eventually comes around to something like this: "Missy, tell your social work story about...." (Fill in the blank with any number of stories that fit into the category of you-can't-make-this-stuff-up)

Now I don't make fun of the sad stuff, the clinical stuff, or the HIPPA-controlled stuff. But that still leaves plenty, let me assure you! So maybe my new SITS sistas' would like to hear one?

Okay, so it was my last semester of my masters program, and I was doing an unpaid internship required for graduation... As in, 40 hours per week unpaid. As in, thank goodness for generous parents so I can eat unpaid! But I snagged the coveted internship slot as a medical social worker on the maternity & NICU floors at a large hospital in Austin, TX and I was over the moon.

One of my duties included routine visits to any new mothers that were under age 18, to determine if there were any resources that we could provide for them to make their transition home a little easier, and to assess their mental state. It was just a superficial assessment to look for obvious issues, because as well all know, you don't really fall apart post-partum until you come home and have to be ALONE with the baby! So terrifying! But I digress...

So one particular girl that had just given birth was only 14 years old. Healthy baby, healthy mom. She had a large, loving and supportive family who were always by her side. I kept popping into her room to see if I could catch her without all 20 relatives and giggly 8th grade friends (yep, I said 8th grade, you heard me right). I was really happy one late afternoon when I stopped in and found her alone with her newborn. Immediately when I walked in I noticed that there was something unusual in the baby's bassinet. Upon closer inspection it appeared to be a half-unwrapped Taco Bell burrito. I'm thinking "Ooookay, not so ideal to have adult food 2 inches from a newborn, but just let it ride for a minute because someone probably just placed it there accidentally and forgot it."

You don't see where this is going, do you? I couldn't either.

We discuss her support system, how it feels to have this new responsibility (those darn social workers, always obsessed with feeeeelings!), and her first diaper changing experience. Then it just goes quickly downhill.
Me: So how is he eating? (totally NOT connecting the burrito into the question)
Young'un: Yeah, it's kinda weird. He won't eat at all.
Me: Well don't worry, it takes a while for babies to establish eating patterns and I'm sure the nurses have discussed your options for breastfeeding and formula, right? But we can get them back in here if you're worried.
Young'un: Maybe, but I mean, I just laid the food there and he just won't eat. I even walked away and left him and he STILL won't eat!
Me: Huh? (ultra-intelligent response, as I'm still not getting it) So you're laying the bottle down for him and he won't take it like that? The doctors recommend that you don't feed them laying down yet, so you could try holding him to give the bottle.
Young'un: No! (meaning DUH! Why is this old-lady 23 yr old so dumb?) I left the burrito there for him and then walked away. Because you know, with my hamsters, sometimes they don't always eat when you're watching them so you have to like, give them space and see if they want it then.

Oh no she DIDN'T!

Homegirl was going to feed a 1 day old baby a burrito.

Needless to say, appropriate services were put in place and I couldn't sleep for weeks worrying about this teenager and her baby. Seriously folks, you can't make this stuff up!

More stories from a disgruntled social worker coming soon...