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| Bad rabbit |
| 05.27.05 (8:40 am) [edit] |
Espresso is being a pain in my ass....she is hiding under the bed and I can't reach her. Jerry and I are supposed to be going out for lunch soon so I need to get her in her cage. I'm NOT in the mood for this....GRRRRRRRR...
I'm hungry...
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| Weight Training |
| 05.23.05 (6:38 am) [edit] |
I've been slacking on weight training...for a while I was in a really good routine and then I started doing more aerobics because I got bored with strength but now I want to start lifting again. I'm probably going to have to start out really light because I haven't seriously weight lifted for almost a month now.
I lifted light anyways...because I'm a woman and my muscles are small.
I don't want to be one of those beasty ladies...not for me but I did feel better physically and mentally when I was lifting 3 days a week and taking protein supplements. I will start drinking protein shakes again as well.
I will steal Jerry's protein...shhhhh...hehehe...
Jerry has really motivated me...when he started losing weight I got motivated...and in the past I've motivated him as well. We have this great give and take and I think that is why we have such a good relationship...we balance one another. We are really blessed.
Back to my fitness goals...I REALLY want to lose 5-10 more lbs...I'm at the stage where it is very hard for me to lose weight since I'm within a healthy weight range thus why my goal is 5-10lbs...I don't like that "very thin" look....I don't find it attractive...Lindsay Lohen (probably spelled her name wrong) looked waaaaaaayyy to skinny on SNL...I was like whoa....that's crazy...she was thin to begin with.
Amy's all about balance in her life! Yin and yang...yes...balance is good.
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| Sore Throat |
| 05.23.05 (5:54 am) [edit] |
I have a sore throat. :( I feel kind of cruddy...debating whether or not I will work out today. I've been making some changes to my tblog lately. I hope everyone likes them. As most of you know by now I'm getting married on July 10, 2005 and the wedding has a "strawberry" theme thus explaining why I'm obsessed with strawberries. Here is a photo of our yummy cake.
I just love this cake!!! I bet it will taste so good, I am counting down the days! I've been trying to get some last minute planning wrapped up before I start working more hours. Wedding planning is like like a "full-time" job, sheesh! I'm really glad I decided to get a certificate in professional wedding consulting. Although I cannot afford to start up a consulting business and currently do not work in the industry it has helped me greatly in planning my own wedding.
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| Time is dragging |
| 05.22.05 (12:37 pm) [edit] |
I have to go to an unpaid work meeting on a Sunday! :( What is this all about??? Lately I've been making a lot of unpaid trips for training/meetings and my employer is almost an hour a way! Sheesh...well I have another job now so I will not be able to do this all the time because I will be working on weekends. I'm not going to complain about this too much because there are some major perks with this job as well so I will deal for now.
I've been trying to wrap up some last minute wedding planning this weekend. It has been hard because my sister who is MIA....well not really...she just moved in with her boyfriend because my mom and her had a big blowout. It has been hard to keep in touch with her lately and I need to talk to her. She is a bridesmaid and will be reading in our ceremony.
I updated my Live Journal which I have been using as a wedding plannng tool....
If anyone has any interest in it, here is a link.
http://www.livejournal.com/users/dbreceiver/" title="http://www.livejournal.com/users/dbreceiver/" target="_blank"http://www.livejournal.com/us...
I can't believe we are just short of a month away from our big day, this last year just flew by. I still need to get alterations on my dress since I lost the weight! I had better do that soon otherwise I'm gonna be in trouble.
My teeth hurt...must be the sugar in my coffee...ugh...I have very sensitive teeth...eeerrg..
I want to see Star Wars!!! We are waiting for the madness to die down a bit before we go.
MMMmmm...I had better get ready to go to my meeeeeeeeting, yay!
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| Star Wars! |
| 05.22.05 (9:42 am) [edit] |
Your Star Wars Name and Title |
Your Star Wars Name: Amyfe Zawin
Your Star Wars Title: Nresav of Yrrej |
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| STRESSED!!!!! |
| 05.22.05 (9:37 am) [edit] |
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I'm so stressed out of my mind right now with wedding plans, new jobs, and trying to afford to move out. I'm most disappointed that we cannot afford to move for a little while due to other expenses. It is so expensive to rent especially the first month with all of the other fees they stick you with. You know applications, security deposits, pet fees, etc. Sometimes I feel that we will never get ahead.
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| MIA |
| 05.21.05 (8:23 am) [edit] |
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I'm alive...alive and well. I promise I will be back with a real post soon!
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| Boxes |
| 05.16.05 (5:58 pm) [edit] |
Well I'm watchng The Bachelor tonight...hehe...Reality tv is usually not my cup of tea but for some reason I've been hooked on this show...well since Charlie O'Connel has been on. I ate way too many cookies and unsalted peanuts..and feel quite guilty...I would say I ate those cookies out of stress and not out of hunger! Bleh! Last couple of weeks have been hectic and stressful. Walter (maitenance man at my fav park district) filled my car with boxes that Jerry and I can use to pack our stuff for the big move. I knew Walter would have boxes that we could have. He is an older Polish man and I appreciate his friendship. He's a good person. We always discuss personal family issues. He has an out of control daughter that his wife spoils and my future sister in law is quite spoiled and out of control herself. I'm excited to be moving however I have moved a couple times in that last two years so I would really like to be able to settle for at least a little while.
OOOOHHH who will Charlie choose?????
Too many darn commercials for this last episode....grrrrrrr I MUST know!!! :)
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| Another busy week |
| 05.16.05 (10:55 am) [edit] |
This is going to be another busy week...last week was exhausting but at least I had the weekend to recouperate. I have also had the pleasure of being "lazy" this morning. Starting this week my hours increase at the daycare, I have to go for more training tomorrow immediately after daycare so tomorrow will be a long day. Wednesday I have to go get my physical which is going to cost me an arm and a leg...yikes...then more teaching and more daycare.
The store I'm working at opens Memorial Day weekend so I will probably be working that Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday...
OI!!!
Oh yea...and last minute wedding planning and trying to pack up for the eventual move!!!
Many many many things are on my plate.
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| Apartment |
| 05.14.05 (7:23 pm) [edit] |
Well we found an apartment complex that we really like ....we think this is THE ONE...finally...We just have to wait a few weeks so I can get my pay check stubs and then we can apply.8)
I had the first day of training...it went pretty well...it wasn't really even training but mostly new hire paper work and an overview of practices...Next week starts cashiering and sales training which should be an adventure. I've been out of the retail environment for about 4 months and the corporate retail environment for even longer so this is a change in gears once again. I get a REALLY great discount which I'm excited about.
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| Been pretty hectic |
| 05.12.05 (5:19 am) [edit] |
I've been trying to complete all these requirements for DCFS Home Daycare. I went and got my TB test on Tuesday. I have to go back to get it read tomorrow morning. Yesterday I went and got finger printed. That was certainly interesting! The only thing I have yet to do is get the medical form filled out. I guess I have to go in and have an exam and I'm currently uninsured right now so this really sucks! I will have to figure out what to do. My old doctor left and is at another clinic so I'm trying to figure out where I will go.
The bunnies new cage came and it is really big but she seems to like it. I bought it on Ebay...it was best value for the buck... the huge Wabbitat its like 37X19X20...My rabbit is a dwarf so that is plenty of room for her. She is a spoiled little brat!!!
I overslept this morning...I felt great at 6:30 A.M. and then being the lazy person I am I went back to sleep. I was so comfy and cozy...didn't want to wake up. Now I feel like crud.I need to get my butt on a consistant sleep schedule!
I had better go work out before time slips away from me!
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| Kitten |
| 05.11.05 (6:28 pm) [edit] |
I'm getting the CUTEST kitten!!! :) My mom's cat had two kittens and I'm keeping one. They were just born on Monday so they are really tiny.
It will be 12 weeks before I can bring
him/her (too young to tell as of now) home. I love cats!!! My kitty is light gray with stripes and oh so adorable!
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| Got the job! |
| 05.09.05 (6:26 pm) [edit] |
Induction AKA training is this Thursday evening!!! 8)
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| Train Wreck |
| 05.09.05 (6:07 am) [edit] |
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I woke up this morning feeling like a train wreck. UGH! My head hurts and my muscles hurt as well. I'm trying to decide which workout will be most beneficial to me in this state...I might have to start with some yoga/stretching. Boy I sure have been feeling crappy...well "physically" crappy lately. I think I have been fighting off something. I need to start taking my vitamins more regularly. I need to get my butt into gear and get back on some set routines.
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| Interesting |
| 05.07.05 (5:10 pm) [edit] |
Your Element Is Air |
You dislike conflict, and you've been able to rise above the angst of the world.
And when things don't go your way, you know they'll blow over quickly.
Easygoing, you tend to find joy from the simple things in life.
You roll with the punches, and as a result, your life is light and cheerful.
You find it easy to adapt to most situations, and you're an open person.
With you, what you see is what you get... and people love that!
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| Interview |
| 05.07.05 (1:33 pm) [edit] |
I had my interview today, I think it went pretty well! I was given an internet personality survey to complete at home. I completed it as soon as I got home and called back to let her know I had finished it. I guess they are starting to train people in the next two weeks since the store is opening Memorial Day Weekend. I should know if I got the job relatively soon.
Other than that not too much is going on. I'm doing some browsing online for clothes. Nothing I have fits anymore...everything is too big so I thought I would treat me self to some new clothes although I haven't found anything that's my style as of yet. Clothers are so expensive! I can't stand it!!!
Oh well...lol...what can I do about it...I could run around naked but I think that might get me in trouble.
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| And the list grows... |
| 05.06.05 (6:02 am) [edit] |
That is the list of things I have to do....Next Wednesday,I have to go to SASS and get finger printed and all that fun stuff....because DCFS requires it. I also have to get a medical form signed saying that I'm "capable" to work with children and that I'm not psychotic.....oh and a TB test! I'm broke...I can barely afford all of this...hopefully I can track down my family doctor who is at another clinic now and she will just fill out the form since I've been to see her recently...I hope it isn't necessary for me to visit again because I have so many other things to do. I'm not psycho and have no communicable disease! :)
I'm REALLY stressed!!!
I have to figure out where I'm going to get my dress altered because it's falling off of me due to the weight loss...Jerry offered to pay for alts...traditionally the groom is supposed to pay anyways but I didn't plan on getting alts at the time...didn't plan on losing so much weight, although it is awesome that I did!
This last year has been CRAZY! That poor poor crazy woman planning a wedding for 600 guests....NUTS...just Nuts! I'm losing my mind planning a small wedding. Only two more months to go and this madness will be over. I'm really looking forward to the honeymoon. We are going to Desert Palm Springs, California and staying at a really cool spa/resort...we are going to visit the San Diego Zoo, and L.A. I'm excited about it....I really love California...well I've only been to San Fran area but I still loved it!
My heart belongs to the West.....and Jerry!
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| Staying cool, calm, and collected |
| 05.03.05 (7:20 am) [edit] |
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I'm trying to relax a bit...I've been wound pretty tight lately...might have something to do with the immensely stressful acts of planning a wedding on a budget, trying to find another job, and then...at last finding somewhere to live that is affordable. Oh yes...these things have stressed my relationship with Jerry big time but we are ok...we are getting through it. I know he "works" well at his job more hours than I do but I have a lot on my plate as well even though my end is more of spending and planning than bringing in income. I realize that challeneges of both. I'm broke....lol...sorry...I find it funny...I'm not really too worried...I know I will have much more money coming in the next couple of weeks and on. Yesterday I had a feeling in my gut not to call that other job, I felt that something better might come along. Low and behold I received a call from another retail store that is opening in an outlet mall pretty close to where I teach daycare so I'm going to pursue that instead. They want me to interview this week...it is a brand new store that opens Memorial Day weekend...I always thought it might be fun to help set up and merchandise a new store. I figure they will probably pay a little bit more than the other position as well and not require me to travel. OOOOHHH... cell phone is ringing...may be one of the two positions calling back or maybe someone entirely different...Ok it was the second returning my call...looks like I have an interview on Saturday at 10:30 AM, excellent! Watch now the other job will call back for a second interview and second guess myself. It always works out that way!!! Well, I had better go get on with they day!
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| Puppy Quiz! |
| 05.02.05 (6:43 pm) [edit] |
You Are a Boxer Puppy |
Energetic, playful and good with kids.
You've also got a wild spirit that can't be trained or tamed.
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| Gave me goosebumps! |
| 05.02.05 (9:35 am) [edit] |
Taking a different approach
Program helps kids learn to help themselves
by Mandy Burrell
photos by Josh Hawkins
Valerie participates in a calming exercise that uses a “wand” to “play”a bowl, creating a deep, soothing sound.
Katie practices staring at a candle and trying not to think.
Seven teenage girls straggle into a common room at Maryville Academy’s B Home, some chatty and excited, some reserved, some feigning indifference. One girl wears a System of a Down T-shirt; another wears a cotton candy pink one with a glittery red iron-on that declares “I [heart] Bad Boys.” Everyone is a bit antsy: It’s the tail end of another long Monday, and dinner’s not for an hour.
Maryville is Illinois’ largest residential childcare facility, serving children who have suffered physical, sexual and emotional abuse and neglect, as well as kids with developmental delays. Maryville has nine Chicago-area locations, including a long-term care campus in suburban Bartlett.
The girls at B Home are gathering for their weekly group session with Susan Voigt. As an alternative approach to conventional therapy, Voigt’s Kids Movement program aims to help kids learn coping skills. Many would consider the techniques she uses, which include meditation and focusing exercises, out of the ordinary. Voigt and others say that’s one of the reasons they work.
“When people are emotionally out of control, you can’t always reach them cognitively, which is typically the case with children or adolescents whose cognitive structures are not yet fully developed,” says Jerry Wesch, who directs a hospital-based psychology program in Chicago. “Relaxation techniques give a person a manual override on their stress or emotional reaction system so they can keep themselves in self-control.”
Studies show that these techniques calm both mind and body by decreasing heart rate, blood pressure and muscle tension.
These tools “are older than dirt, and fitting them into an overall treatment plan is important and quite useful,” Wesch adds.
Maryville has taken note of such research. “Children who have cognitive delays or a history of family trauma may be more open to expressive therapies,” says Steve Givens, director of the Bartlett campus. “Maryville has always been progressive and a leader in these types of services.”
Back at B Home, Voigt asks the girls to settle down. They do, slouching further into the nooks and crannies of the couches. Voigt asks one of the girls to pass out mirrors. The girls groan. Voigt doesn’t skip a beat as she reminds the group, which has practiced this exercise many times, to hold the mirrors and silently gaze into their own eyes.
“This is hard,” says one of the girls.
It’s worth the effort, Voigt says. “We have to fill ourselves with love and kindness if we expect to have anything to give anyone else.”
After a few minutes, Voigt tells the girls to repeat three times aloud: “I am strong and independent.”
“I am strong and independent,” the girls mumble, whisper and declare in a loose union.
“I have to do my eyebrows,” one girl pipes up, prompting Voigt to change the affirmation.
“I am divinely patient,” Voigt says in mock exasperation. The joke is not lost on the girls, who giggle.
Voigt then unpacks six crystal bowls, each with a wand. She easily recruits two girls to help her “play” the bowls, which they do by running the wands around the rims, much the way a finger dipped in water plays a wine glass.
The bowls vibrate in unison, and the room fills with a rich, deep, multi-layered sound, which resonates, dips, climbs and captivates the girls.
“I can feel the vibration,” says one.
And she could, in more ways than one. “Crystal bowls are another way of ‘tricking’ the brain into being quiet by triggering specific brain rhythms,” says Wesch.
After 10 minutes, Susan signals her bowl players to taper off. She taps a bowl gently, three rings signaling the end of the session. The change in the room is notable: Many of the girls have left the couches and stretched out on the floor. As they head to dinner, they’re relaxed and calm.
Voigt’s ability to help the girls shift their moods has not gone unnoticed. “I don’t think this works for all kids, but there are plenty of kids who don’t respond to talk therapy,” says Amanda Rankin, clinical therapist at B Home. “Some of the girls are seeking it out, so I know it does them some good.”
Under the radar
Voigt, who has two college-age daughters, launched Kids Movement in 2003 after 14 years of working in daycare and seven years of training in Reiki, hypnotherapy and other holistic methods. Her programs aim to help tots, tweens and teens focus, relax and feel confident. She and her instructors teach at park districts, churches and libraries across Illinois, mixing meditation with creative and physical activities, including art, drumming, dance and yoga.
Maryville began contracting with Voigt in 2004. She initially was hired to visit one Bartlett home. She now visits each home at least once a week.
Kids at Maryville homes face a variety of challenges. “I want to help them see that these challenges are opportunities for lessons learned and growth potential,” says Voigt. “They are not victims, they are warriors.”
To do that, Voigt first has to connect with students. That’s not easy, says Don Martin Peterson, who spent 22 years as a social worker for the North Suburban Special Education Organization. “Sometimes to get to kids—and even adults—you have to get under their radar of the rational mind and all the chatter that’s going on there,” he says. “[Voigt’s approach] is similar to using humor: You don’t come straight at the person. You let the person come to you.”
Sahara,* 16, says Voigt’s techniques help. “At first, I had so much going on in my head, and I couldn’t concentrate to meditate, or to go to the space between my thoughts,” she says. “But the bowls gave me a yummy feeling.”
Voigt admits that the bowls “are like toys, but toys with a purpose.” She also brings play into her work with private clients, such as Justin Prenta, 13. Justin’s mom, Donna, hired Voigt to help her son with nervous tension.
The first time Voigt and Justin “hung out,” they played air hockey. Eventually, Voigt helped Justin develop an affirmation (“I’m safe, I’m loved, I’m happy”), which calms his fears.
Sometimes, particularly with kids in Voigt’s MetaKids and MetaTots classes, play does the teaching.
“I think the secret [to MetaTots] is that the instructors repeat core lessons in different ways, so the kids don’t feel they’re learning the same thing—and it’s fun,” says Mary Ellen Theisen, mother of Samantha, 4½.
Taking responsibility
While Voigt’s approach might seem roundabout, it allows kids some breathing room. “We’re not breaking and entering,” she says. “It’s a free-will planet.”
But they must be willing to change. Voigt helps her students pay attention to their actions and the actions of others, and to take responsibility for their experiences.
“The point is to bring everything to our conscious awareness so we’re not acting and living as if we’re sleepwalking,” says Voigt. “We’re not victims of our experiences. When we become aware of our power to create our own experiences, we can take responsibility both for what we’ve been creating and what we want to create.”
“Responsibility then becomes a lovely word,” she adds. “Instead of a burden, it’s an opportunity.”
Justin discovered that most of his fears were unfounded, and that it made no sense to dwell on “what ifs.” He also gained control over his emotions by learning to think and feel simultaneously, Wesch says.
Sahara learned that she can rise above the fray when others try to bring her down.
“It used to be when my dad called me stupid, I believed him. Now I know that he was just projecting his own problems on to me,” says Sahara. And she now avoids the clamor when the other girls at B Home bicker.
Voigt teaches similar concepts to even the smallest children. During a MetaTots class, Samantha learned to quiet herself and think.
“Not all of her thoughts are happy, and that’s reality,” says Theisen. “So she’s learned how to think about sad thoughts, too. She’ll come up and say, ‘Mommy, I’m very sad right now because . . .,’ whereas in the past, she may have just cried and not been able to put words to it.”
“I feel it in my heart”
At first, Sahara couldn’t put her finger on how Voigt was helping.
“It’s a scary thing when you don’t understand it,” says Sahara. “Then I realized that most of the stuff I already knew deep down inside, but then someone came to my side and told me it was OK to feel that.”
That’s what Voigt hopes to accomplish. “I want to be able to give these kids a way to calm down, allow some of the information to come forward, and then they can process it.”
In the E Home at Maryville, where all of the girls are developmentally delayed, Voigt challenges negative thinking by “filling” two balloons—one with happy thoughts (“I’m beautiful, I stay positive”) and one with “stinkin’ thinkin’” (“I’m dirt, I’m mean”).
As Voigt inflates each balloon, she points out that what we focus on expands. While she blows into the happy balloon, the girls shout out affirmations:
“I’m a cool kid,” says one.
“I love myself!” says another.
“I’m not going to let anybody stop me from getting my education.”
When Voigt pops the “stinkin’ thinkin’” balloon, the girls let out satisfied shrieks.
Then it’s time for the crystal bowls. The girls shut off the lights and curl up on comforters. As Voigt starts to play, the crescendo grows and one girl tiptoes closer. She rocks back and forth, her eyes closed and her hands over her chest.
“I feel it, Susan,” she says. “I feel it in my heart.”
* Name changed to preserve Sahara’s anonymity.
Copyright 2005, Chicago Parent,
141 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302, (708) 386-5555
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