Is it that hard?

One part to my social work class is on an online database called Blackboard. For those of you who do not know what Blackboard is, it is simply an online classroom forum. Once a week I have to post my answers to a question that is provided by my professor. Then once a week I must respond to three other student's postings. From now on, I almost hope that no one responds to my own postings. There is no word limit or minimum for the responses. I find myself annoyed reading my fellow classmates responses to my postings or to someone's posting. I find myself reading responses like, "I really like your post because you used the word care. As social workers we must care for our client's problems." I know it is only one part of the class, but come on!! I had a discussion on Facebook with some friends about this and one of my friends who uses Blackboard for her seventh & eighth graders admitted that her students have more fulfilling responses to another student's posting. I just feel as if I am back in grade school when reading the replies to the posts.

This past Thursday for class, I had to sit through a Library Orientation. I think that I would have rathered plucked my eye-lashes out than sit through this, as I already know how search in a library database to find books or journal articles. I did learn though in the orientation where else I could look for journal articles on the databases. There were a few databases that I had never thought about using. So that was useful to use. After the librarian finished talking she went around the room to see if students needed help. A girl sitting behind me was completely clueless, as if it was her first time using the databases. I do not think I could ever go into IT and actually have to help people like the girl who sat behind me. I would probably find myself slamming my head against the wall as I was telling someone how to do something.

I did learn that it is highly recommended for Social Work students to gain membership with the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and that students get a discounted price for the membership. I talked to Rob about on the way home from school Thursday evening, and he said, "Do it! Sign up..this will give you an advantage when you are looking for a job!" He also encouraged me to go to any of the NASW conferences to help myself network with other people who may be hiring with in the next couple of years. So I think that I will go ahead and sign up. He said that when he was a PhD student he had signed up with a couple different organizations as the membership dues were so cheap for students. I doubt any of my other classmates will sign up, but why not get involved and do some networking and some help while I am still learning about the whole field of Social Work.

School - 1 week down...how many weeks until December?

Week one of classes did not kill me, but I know if I get behind on ANY of my readings for my two classes, I will be dead before the end of the term.

Sociology is going to be very interesting to me. I guess I am one who likes to learn about other human groups. :) It is an introductory class, and so I will just get a basic overview of what Sociology is. This class requires three books, which are all read through out the term. I will have two papers, a midterm, and a final for this class. My first paper is due towards the end of September. I have the choose one article from the assigned book to write about. I will use the article to analyze the topic along with using another required textbook. I think I will write about the Amish and how they fit in today's society. I find the Amish culture very interesting. Most of you probably do not know this, but I actually have Amish heritage from Holmes County, Ohio. Scary thing is, that is where Rob grew up. So wierd, I know. The second paper will be similar to the first but I will be told to use a different assigned book.

Social Work is going to be a very time consuming class. There are two books required along with a CD-Rom and PDF files from the Blackboard school site. For those of you who don't know what Blackboard is...it is an online Forum based teaching tool that alot of Colleges and Universities use to bring in an Hybrid part of the class. My professor is having the students read a chapter in one desired book or pdf file, then the students will discuss it on blackboard each week. We then have to respond to two or three of our classmates postings. Along with all of this there are 4 quizzes, 1 large term paper, and then a Report Analasis fromk our practice in class group work. Each week we will break off into an assigned group of three and work on a certain emotion. One person will be the client, the other will be the social worker, and the third person is the observer who will give pointers for the social worker on what needs to be said or not said. This class teaches us the first basic model in working with clients in a social worker setting. The term paper for this class will be on a social work profession of our choice. I think that I will choose the social worker position in an Adoption Agency. I am hoping that my professor gives more detail soon on what she wants in this term paper. I have heard horror stories about this class from my social work classmates who are now seniors. I miss having those classmates in class with me, this year!!

So that is it for the first week of class. :)

Summer coming to an end

Well, tomorrow marks the end of summer for me. School starts back up, which I am happy for. I am ready for a regular schedule again. I do know that once I am back into the swing of things, I will be looking forward to another break. Never fails! Fall term brings me Sociology and Processes I Class which is one of my Social Work core classes.

Remember the first day of class and your teacher asked, "What did you do over the summer?" I was thinking about that today. "What did I do this summer?" I would be the kid this year who would stand up and say, "In the month of June I spent a long weekend in Oregon visiting family and friends, along with celebrating my grandparent's 50th wedding anniversary. The following weekend in June I spent a quick weekend in Eastern Tennessee for my 29th birthday, and then two weeks later I spent 8 days in China." Hard to believe that I did all of that in just one month!! What an adventure, for sure.

July brought us new windows and door for our house, along with my sister-in-law visiting from Tucson, AZ. While she was here, I met her down in New York City for her first two days and showed her around the city. I helped her ride the train back up to our house.

Just a week ago, Rob's parents were up here for a week. It was nice to see them, but I was glad when I was able to have my house back to myself.

We celebrated Rob's 35th birthday last week, by spending the day up at Yankee Candle Village up in South Deerfield, MA. This is where Yankee Candle all started. Rob and I have a hard time getting out of there under $100. It is just to easy to get caught up into the "Oohh...I like that scent!"

Rob and I saw many movies over the summer, as well. I think Rob saw more than me, only because there were days that he came up to the movie theater on the days that I working to sit and see movies. One of the best summer movies this year has to be "The Hangover". I think that I could watch that movie over and over and not be sick of it. The movie just makes you laugh and laugh.

I am curious to see what the rest of the year has to bring Rob and I. Before I know it, I will be working on Christmas Cards and trying to get them out the day after Thanksgiving.

I hope you all had a great summer, as well!!

Home Alone

Rob has been left for Ohio last Friday to get some cleaning done at his parent's attic. This was the first time I would be at this house alone for a long period of time. I was a bit nervous at first only because our house is a large house for one person to be alone in. I get the creeps pretty easily...and so trying to sleep alone with just two dogs who expect me to protect them is not comforting. haha. gotta love dogs!!

Anyways...I have found that I have needed these days alone. It has been a nice break. I had to work Friday and Saturday evenings, but then I have had Sunday through today off. I have been lazy and have not done much. Sunday consisted of sleeping late (yes too late to go to church), calling my mom and a few other people on the phone, watching the movie 27 Dresses, having a friend stop by for an hour or so, then deciding on what to watch. I opted to find shows or movies that Rob absolutely hates watching, so that I could get those fixes before he came back. I was not really in the mood for another movie...but could not find anything on the television. I had picked up last summer at a yard sale the first two seasons of WILL & GRACE. I have not been able to watch it, because Rob can not stand the show...and I don't like watching stuff when he sits and ridicules everything about what I am watching. I must say that I had forgotten how funny this television series was. I sat and giggled through each 27 minute episode. Before I knew it, I was placing the 4th and final dvd of season 1 into my dvd player. I didn't mind though because it was better than watching real tv.

Yesterday I finished Season 1 and started with the 2nd season. Let me just say that I am 3 hours away from finishing the second season. I am hoping to have it watched before Rob gets home. haha. I am just sucked in. I have to remember how the second season ends. I remember watching the shows when they first premiered...but didn't watch the show all of the time due to another show conflict or something else. Some of the episodes are brand new to me. What I love about the show is that it is just so down to earth.

I recieved some emails last night from NaeDean (Kaylee's adoptive mom). One email was an update on how their summer has been. They tend to camp quite a bit and stay busy, which I love about them. She said that Kaylee did a week of Vacation Bible School at their church and is going to be starting swimming lessons here shortly. Then in September she will start playing Soccer. I will have a little soccer girl. Love it!!! I had sent her a box last week full of items that I have picked up through out my summer travels to Tennessee and China. Kaylee loved everything that I had sent. The other two emails that I got last night were pictures of Kaylee. I was so excited!! It was just something that I needed. She is getting so big and her hair is super cute!! She and I have about the same haircut. I love it.

As much as I have loved having my time alone, I am looking forward to Rob coming back home. It is quiet in the house (which I love), but yet I need some noise or someone to physically talk to. I have the dogs, but one can only talk to a dog for so long before going crazy.

Signing out for now...sorry if this was random and all over the place. It is just how my mind is working right now.

AI Update - Insemination Day!!!!

our day started at dr. levi's office at 7am. rob gave his sample there at the doctor's office. he came out and said, "i sure hope to hell i do not have to sit in that sample giving room any other time!" he said it was pretty nasty. poor guy. he would have produced the sample at the house but the office on friday didn't send me home with a cup! lol they called me back around 815am and the procedure was done a few minutes later. the numbers for today that they were looking for was a low ball of 5million before they wash the sperm. well rob started with like 3million (which normally people do not even think about doing AI with that.) after the wash rob had about 1.7 million good sperm...and even with that the sperm didn't look stellar either. but we went ahead and did the procedure only because like people say, "it only takes one spermy to make things work!" we were thinking of doing 2 days of insemination...but because of such low numbers rob gave today...we figured it would just be a joke.

after the appointment they gave me two more apts where i go back next week to check my projesterone and then the following week (two weeks from today) i will go in for a pregnancy test. eeek!!! so that is the update.

today we spent the day out at the Woodbury Commons Outlet Mall out in NY. So Rob and I had some shopping therapy. It was nice.

AI Update - July 24th

I went to the doctor levi's office yesterday. the nurse checked my follicles and saw that there are TWO that are the correct size that they are looking for. She had me do some blood work as well. she told me that if the blood work came back good, then she said she would call me and give me further instructions. I told her that she may have to leave a message on the cell phone only because i was going down to NYC for the day and may not hear my phone. She was able to get a hold of me and told me that everything came back good. So today I am taking the HGH shot at 815pm tonight. (goodness i am hoping that it was evening that she said otherwise this is going to throw everything off). Rob and I then arrive to the doctor's office on Monday morning at 730am for rob to give his "sample". The actual AI process will happen at 815am!! I will then go back on tuesday for one more insemination procedure. then will be the waiting period to see if any of the sperm did what we wanted them to do.

Rob also had an appointment with his urologist yesterday as well. He had to give a sample just so that dr. honig could see what rob's numbers were. the news coming from dr. honig were not very good...but we are still going to think positive. Rob's count was 11 million, 20% motility (# of sperm actually moving), Morphology is basically pinheads. we are keeping our chins up with everything.

Days and Nights mixed up

So it has now been a week since Rob and I arrived home from China. I knew coming home my sleep would be messed up and that it may take a few days to get switched back. Well 7 days later, Rob and I are still messed up. If I go to bed around 11pm or midnight, I am wide awake by 4am. I have tried laying in bed hoping to go back to sleep, but that almost never works. So I have had many early mornings. Tuesday I went down to school with Rob, as he had to deal with some Freshman Orientation at Iona College. When he and I got home, I was feeling tired and thought I would go upstairs and take a nap. Normally I will only sleep for a couple hours. Well, the next thing I knew it was 10pm and I was waking up to put my pajamas on to go back to sleep. Rob had decided to go ahead and get up for the "day". I opted to stay in bed and dozed on and off until about 4am. Oh goody...my lucky 4am again. I then took a nap around 1pm. Big mistake to take that nap. I ended up sleeping until 5pm. So then by midnight when i should have been tired, I was once again wide awake. Rob was awake as well, and we ended up going to "breakfast" I guess you could call it.

When we got back we broke out the scrapbooking items. Decided it was time to work on the wedding scrapbook since it has already been two years. Monday I spent time picking out the pictures and sending them to walgreens.com to have them printed. We got everything out and said, "We are going to need a lot more pages!" So as of right now nothing has been done with the scrapbook. We have things sorted, but that is about it. I am hoping this weekend we will be able to get some of it done.

I am hoping that my sleeping pattern will get switched back...but my work schedule does not help with that at all. I am scheduled all really late hours all week. So maybe soon I will be a day-bird again rather than the night-owl.