Ok, now what?

So, I have finished reading the most recent Harry Potter, and like so many other people out there, I'm wondering what I should read now. Really, all I wanna read is the next book, but of course, that's not an option! This book was so much better than the fifth one. Harry was such a wuss in that one. I won't divulge any details here in case there are slow pokes out there who still haven't read it. However, if you have any desire to discuss, please let me know! So, I am currently taking any suggestions for my next read. Should I read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe to continue my escapist trend, or should I turn serious and read something like The Life of Pi, The Bell Jar, or The Kite Runner? So, vote now, and you too can have an impact on my literary life.

In other news, I thought some of you who know me would be entertained by the fact that I have learned how to knit and am currently knitting a scarf. Feel free to laugh. I guess I have to now relinquish the right to make fun of my friend Erin who needle pointed in our dorm room Junior year.

Long Time No See

Well, it has been way too long since I last updated. I'm trying to remember what all has happened since then, besides a tiny diminishing of brain cells. Chris passed with flying colors on his first of five certification tests - I'm so proud of him! School is finally out for the summer semester. Woohoo!!! I hopefully have roped in two more A's for the good ol GPA, which is definitely needed if I hope to go to OT school in a year. For all you lay people, that's occupational therapy, and no, I wouldn't be counseling people on their careers. ;) What I really wanna do with it is work at Children's and focus on sensory integration dysfunction, if that's possible. This past weekend, Chris and I went to study at UT Southestern Med School's library and I think I officially became a dork on that day. Being in a med school library excited me and really made me wanna go to OT school even more! Haha. Please refrain from all dork jokes, for they are all too true. Saturday night Chris went with me to a friend's going away party at the Drama Room. It was a lot of fun and he got to meet even more of my Ursuline girls, which obviously is very important to me! They all have liked each other, so go me for having kick ass friends and a kick ass boyfriend. Last night, Chris and I joined some people at Chaucer's for sushi happy hour (gotta love a volcano roll) then went to see the Wedding Crashers. It was hilarious....Tullier and Gerety give it two thumbs up!

"LaLaLaLa..... ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGH!"

It's such a wonderful feeling when on a Sunday night, you can look back over the weekend and say "wow, that was a great weekend!" I had to work this weekend, but Chris was sweet enough to meet me up at the hospital and eat lunch with me in the cafeteria. That was such a treat! He got to meet some of the people I work with, see my office and take a tour of the hospital. I showed him my playrooms and of course, the train lobby! Then Saturday night, we went to celebrate a birthday with some of my Ursuline girls. I haven't seen them in forever, so it was so much fun to catch up, laugh and be with my girls! We had some yummy sushi at Blue Fish then went to the Bob Schneider concert at the Granada. Chris is a huge fan, but I admit I had never listened to Bob before. It was cute to watch Chris just smile about seeing Bob Schneider live, like some little kid finally seeing Disney World. I have to say, I LOVE Bob Schneider now. This concert was one of the most fun ones I have ever been to. (www.bobschneidermusic.com) Anne, Angie and I really got into the pirate song (hence, the title of this entry). After the concert, Chris and I actually got to meet Bob and take a picture with him. I have no idea how to post pictures on this thing, so please visit my yahoo photos to see pics, under my Summer 2005 album. (http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/akgerety@swbell.net/my_photos) Supposedly he dated Sandra Bullock....I wonder which one of us looks better with him. ;) I had to work again today, which was fun because we had super heroes visit us in the playroom! A group of about 10 adults make a yearly trip to the hospital dressed up as Wolverine, Batman, Supergirl, Wonder Woman, etc. and the kids loved it. It was so cute to watch the kids' just stare in total awe of these "heroes."

Nephews = FUN

Today my mom and I went to pick up my nephew to come spend the night tonight. We had a good lunch at El Fenix (of course) and then went bowling. Up until the last two sets (I'm not a bowler, I don't know what they're called) I was being beaten by an 8 year old!!! And believe me, he made it known EVERY time he bowled something better than I did, which was often. But oh oh, I came back in the end for some whopping spares and I beat his little 8 year old hiney! You play with fire, and you're gonna get burned! Don't worry people, I really am a good aunt, I promise. On the way back to our house, my nephew was talking about what he wanted for his birthday. The conversation went something like this:
Nephew: "I want a PSP for my birthday."
Mom: "Isn't that some sort of street drug?"
Me: "No, mom. That's PCP."
At least I don't have to worry about my mom getting into drugs....or do I? After the bowling, Adam and I went swimming and he had great fun splashing water on Chloe and making her bark. Then tonight we went to Chili's for dinner, but alas, the monsoon that came through cut off power to that intersection, so we settled on Chuck's. Then we went to see War of the Worlds. My dad and nephew liked it (MEN!) but I guess it wasn't that bad. It just seemed like Independence Day Part Deux. Plus, I'm on Tom Cruise overload - when will he ever go away? Other than that, it was good. Gotta get up early in the morning for work (which I'm oddly enough excited about) and then Chris and I are off to eat sushi and go to see Bob Schneider to celebrate one of my UA girls' bday. Should be a good day all around! :)

First weekend back

This weekend was the first weekend with Chris back in town. So, that in itself made it a good weekend! Friday night we went out to Bucca di Beppo for dinner to celebrate one of his friends' birthday. It was so much food and Chris fell asleep at 9:30 that night. hahaha. Another wilde and crazy Friday night. ;) Saturday we went to lunch with my extended family which was great. I'm really glad they got to meet Chris and that he got to meet them. Then that night we went and ate Thai food with some friends, which was also so yummy. Met up with Ginger and some other people and did the lower Greenville thing. Then made a short appearance at the Lizard Lounge. It was a lot of fun to go "out on the town," cuz I hadn't done that in awhile. Then today we had lunch with his mom and then headed over to Keller to swim and barbecue with Paul and Melissa, two of Chris' friends who are engaged. Had a very fun and chill evening swimming and drinking wine by the pool. Melissa and I had great fun watching our boys get tipsy!

So much to say, so much to say

Chris is back in town!!!! I picked him up yesterday morning and we were able to spend all yesterday together. The poor guy was tuckered out! He had an amazing time and took some breath taking photos. He was also sweet enough to bring me back some presents - some woven bracelets that match the ones he got himself, a beautiful turquoise Incan cross pendant, and the softest teddy bear made from alpaca fur, which we named Al (short for alpaca). So he done good! It's so wonderful to have him back in town!

In other news, today my mom and I met my aunt and cousins at the Galleria and we had lunch and did some shopping. It was really good to hang out with them and catch up. But I think the best part of today was my home visit this morning. I met my little boy up at Callier to work with him while his brother was in speech therapy. However, his mom had to run the girl they carpool with home b/c she had gotten sick. So, after working with my kid for an hour outside on the playground (and it was HOT!), his mom still wasn't back and we waited for her in the lobby. It sounds odd, but I was so excited that he was crying for his mom. He was saying "mama" and using the word to actually refer to his mom! The poor little kid was getting upset and missing his mom, so I held him in my arms and patted his back and he drifted off to sleep. There's nothing like having a baby or toddler fall asleep in your arms!!!

4th of July

Today was a fun and relaxing 4th. Got to catch up on my sleep, which I greatly lacked this weekend and then this afternoon I went over to Thomas' to grill out and swim with him, Carp and Rachel. Then Wen and Trisha met up with us and we hung out and ended up at Ozona's on lower Greenville for $1 margaritas where we enjoyed lots of laughs. Didn't get to see any fireworks this year (actually, did catch one on the drive down to Ozona's) but I did get to hear them at Ozona's. I'm picking up Chris at the airport tomorrow morning and I'm so excited I could pee my pants. I don't think I could go one more day without seeing him!

Sunday, Bloody Sunday

I swear, there had to have been a full moon looming over the hospital today. Another assistant had a Haz Mat spill in her playroom today and if that wasn't enough, one of the specialists, who is my supervisor, broke down in the office today. There were five patients in the ICU who were passing, and she was having to support all the families. I felt so badly for her and so helpless. It definitely makes me rethink my short term job of working as a Child Life Specialist for a year or two. I totally love my job and the environment and working with the kids, but there's no way I could deal with kids dying. The specialists have to be totally there for the the families without breaking down themselves. Michele (my supervisor) said that you have to just realize you have to do your job and be there for the families, and then you can deal with it yourself later, after you leave work. I know dealing with situations like that wouldn't be a daily thing, thank goodness, but I still don't know if I could handle even just one incident. Hopefully, I can gain the strength to do that, but I really don't know. Definitely makes me feel more comfortable and happy with the decision of eventually going into OT, where I could still work at Children's. So, all in all, I was pretty bummed and not feeling like doing anything when I got home from work. I just felt exhausted and emotionally drained. I ended up cancelling on Kaboomtown in Addison with my parents and family friends and turned down an offer to go to the Londoner in Addison with Thomas and Co. I think I needed the quiet and down time to myself. So, instead of watching fireworks, I played lazy in the recliner with a sleeping Chloe on my lap and watched The Others. Such an awesome movie and after seeing it so many times, it still makes me jump! Still trying to figure out the father's role in the overall theme of the movie - if you have any ideas, let me know.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

The Good: Tonight my parents and I went out to dinner for my mom's birthday at one of our favorite restaurants called Watel's. It's this little intimate French restaurant in an old house near Allen and Thomas in Uptown. I had the crab and vegetable lasagna and we all split a creme brulee. It was delicious! Ironically enough, the couple at the table next to us was talking about the time they spent in Peru and Cuzco. I just can't escape it! I get it, I'm supposed to be there right now! ;)

The Bad: Work today was definitely tiring. My playroom was so busy and hectic and all the nurses and doctors seemed to be in a bad mood. Kids IV's were beeping all over the place and nurses seemed to be very inpatient and rude when I called the station to let them know. I was just doing my job, people, now do yours!

The Ugly: Well, I got another e-mail from Wes in Ecuador. It was absolutely sickening and depressing. Turns out that matters have gotten much, much worse. The cruel lawyers have somehow managed to get "statements" from the boys and Wes found out that he had 24 hours before a block would be placed on his leaving the country. Fifteen minutes after finding this out, Wes was out the door with clothes, medicines and quick goodbyes from the boys that still remained in the house. He fled Ecuador and has flown back to the states. To rely on a cliche, I really don't understand how bad things can happen to good people. Wes gave up his home, his career, his money, his whole life and moved to Ecuador to build a home from scratch for disadvantaged boys and here the Ecuadorian government has charged him with hellacious and rediculously fraudulant charges. He will most likely never get to return to the home he built in Ecuador, nor see the boys every again. Part of me is relieved that Brenda (his deceased wife) did not live to see this dream fall apart, but I also feel incredily bad for Wes to have to suffer this alone. I guess "El Dulce Refugio" no longer means "The Sweet Refuge." I have lost my faith in the beauty of Ecuador.

"This isn't for old people, who have backaches, heartburn and scratch their butts all day."

As you may have guessed, I love quotes. This particular one wins quote of the day and was said by my 8 year old nephew. Haha. He's a hoot. Today we went to the Rainforest Cafe (all you DFW people need to check it out - it's in Grapevine Mills) and it was so much fun. This place is amazing. Throughout the restaurant there are HUGE aquariums and all the walls and the ceiling are covered in fake trees and jungle brush. They also have mechanical leopards, gorillas and an elephant that all move and make noise. We sat by the waterfall, which was complete with running water and a rainbow! After lunch, we went to see Madagascar, which was really cute. It's no Finding Nemo, but it's definitely up there. It even had references for adults, which always adds some fun. My favorite part was that there were lemurs in it!!! (Plus, they said "Oy Vey!") For those of you who don't know, my senior year at Sewanee I studied lemurs on St. Catherine's Island off of Georgia for a few days. Therefore, they hold a special animal place in my heart. Haha. And what would you know, Chris even has a tshirt with a lemur on it - is that perfect or what? Tonight, I was supposed to go hit some golf balls with Thomas and some friends but I have to get up early for work tomorrow, so I decided I'd regret the golf and beer in the morning. I'm actually looking forward to a weekend of work. I desperately need the money, plus it'll keep me busy and hopefully make the weekend go by quickly!