Job Search

Since being a post graduate, finding a job can be difficult. I was on the hunt before I graduated and now am on the hunt again. The position that I took right before graduation only lasted the summer and now I am looking for a job that will last longer than a few months. I would love to hold a day job that worked around my class schedule and not a job that requires night and weekends, but I will have to see.
While looking for jobs and updating resumes I decided to give a few tips and hints to how I went about looking for my job and continuing to look for a job.

The first step is to get an updated resume including current references. I have never had a potential employer call my references but it smart to have an updated list for them to call just in case. For me, I have multiple resumes, an employment one, a childcare one, and one for all my experience with autism. Sometimes I think this is too many but at other times, I think it is necessary because one resume may not represent my experiences in that field. So suggestions from you, should I combine them all or should I leave it to multiple resumes handed out to appropriate employers?
After my resume was updated and completed, I started the search, mainly by asking friends and family if they knew anyone hiring and looking in the local newspaper, but I wasn't getting anywhere. So I decided to hit craigslist.com and it has offered me many interviews and many job offers. It is important however to make sure the ad is reputable and not a scam. I decided to decipher the ads based on the detailed information given. If the ad was generalized in the description and asking for a name, resume, and number I turned it away. It if offered a detailed description of the job, where the job would take place, the salary, and a reply to the post then I would send my information.
Besides craigslist.com, I also went into retail stores and filled out applications. I think it is important to fill out the application right then and there so that the store knows how interested you are and that you are willing to fill it out right away. I found that if I took it home with me, I did not fill it out and it stayed on my desk.

My last advice, apply to anywhere and everywhere. You many never know what you find.

Good Luck and happy job search.

New Puppy

My family and I recently got another dog, and to many this is a surprise. If you knew our family you would know that is a big step but we did it anyways. We got a seven week old mix of Rhodesian Ridge-back, Lab, and Shepherd. We decided to name her Riley (even though it should have been Grace since she is very graceful). My sisters and I have been taking turns keeping her at night since she is still little and is in the process of being trained. Our biggest fear was introducing our puppy to our other dog, which is a twelve year old pure bread beagle. She has ran the house since we got her and the little one was not taken likely by her. After about a week, our older dog jumped on board and now they like each other. She had her first vet appointment yesterday and we found out she weighs 8 pounds. She starts Puppy Preschool on Saturday. :) She is also scared of everything and anything; plastic bags, trash cans, cars, black shoes (really anything!).

Movie Review: Despicable Me

An absolutely adorable movie that every family should see. Besides the quirky and fun one liners (i.e. It's so FLUFFY!!!!) there is an honest and cute story underneath. Despicable Me is about a Super Villain who is trying to come up with the best hijacking out of all super villains (he is trying to one up the other villain). He decides to steal the moon with a shrink gun, but he has to steal it from the other villain. By making a plot that involves his cute little yellow minions and adopting three little girls he successfully achieves his goal but realizes that family is more important. My only downside to this movie is that it was in 3D. I am not a big fan of 3D and think this movie would be just as good in 2D. I give this movie 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Happy Birthday America!!

I and the rest of the United States just recently celebrated the Nation's birthday on the 4th. It is one of my favorite holidays and this year was very eventful and fun. We basically did the exact same schedule that we did last year just with more family and friends! On the 2nd, my family and I went downtown to watch Red White and Boom one of the best firework shows in the Midwest. Following the best fireworks finale along with an awesome soundtrack, we slept in the next day and attended my dad's company picnic that ended in another awesome fireworks show. Sunday was family day where we had a major cookout, water balloons, slip n' slide, and fireworks! Besides my dad burning himself on the hand during a fireworks mishap (note to self do not sit while lighting fireworks) we had an amazing time. Monday was the closing of a fabulous weekend by spending the day at the water park.

Sensory Recognition

Working in Occupational Therapy and dealing with kids with special needs, there comes a time when not only do you start recognizing the child's sensory issues but your own. It has only recently come upon me and it is interesting to see how sensory integration can really affect you as a person and how you deal with things throughout your day. We are all sensory seeking individuals, we may just not know it.

There are many types of sensory inputs, tactile, visual, and taste are a few to name. For me, I seek tactile input, but can also experience other inputs to regulate my body. When I talk about regulating the body it is not a physical regulation, but a mental regulation.

Tactile refers to touching objects or being touched, I am not one for the being touched but seeking surfaces that are different than smooth help me a lot. I noticed that I was like this after volunteering for two OT's this past school year (one in a clinic and one in a school) and noticing that when I walk down particular hallways that I have to have my hands on the wall. The hallways that appeal to my sensory system are hallways made of cement or bricks. I like anything with a surface on it and that I can feel. I will hopefully be making a sensory board to keep for when I become an OT but I know that it will be beneficial to not only me but the kids that I work with now.

Figure out what you seek or try to pay attention, do you like listening to music (if so, what kinds), do you like to eat, what type of foods (salty or sweet). Do you like visual cues, does TV calm you down, or looking at pictures. Once you have this figured out you will know what your body desires and what your sensory needs are.

Recapping the past 4 months

January/February:
The biggest part of these months were dedicated to my job and my love for the Men's Basketball Team. The season was still pretty rough but, we became the tight nit family anyways and we enjoyed every moment of it. So between classes and games that is where those two months went. The worst part of those months was February 13th when I walked across the gym floor and officially became a basketball alumni. Knowing that my job and college days would be over soon was extremely overwhelming, especially since I would not be seeing my basketball family everyday like I had been.
I traveled to Louisville in February in between the ridiculous amounts of snow that my area received from the great Mother Nature. I think that overall we received 50 inches of snow in a matter of a month. At one point a snow storm was on its way and we weren't sure where it was going to go :) However, my friends and I always made it an adventure.

March:
This month deserves a section all to itself considering this was the best month of the second semester. I went on a fabulous cruise with some friends from college and my oldest best friend for spring break. We traveled with Norwegian Cruise Lines and went to the Bahamas. Our crazy trip started out with a nineteen hour drive to Florida, yes nineteen hours straight! We visited Grand Bahama Island and Nassau. We were supposed to visit Great Stirrup Cay (private island owned by the cruise line), but the waters were too rough that day so we tanned instead. I tried so many different foods and things that I didn't know who I was! :) Following the cruise my friends and I drove another nineteen hours home so I could travel to Washington D.C. for two days. My sister placed a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier during her senior class trip so my other sister, mom, aunt and I went to see it. Next we went to the Smithsonian's American History Museum and then headed home.

April:
This month was semi slow but I did find a new love, Men's Lacrosse. Besides babysitting, volunteering at an OT clinic and local elementary school, I picked up working for Men's Lacrosse. I wasn't sure if I would like it but I missed my basketball team and wanted to work with a high impact sport. Little did I know how much I would love it. The best part of April was working with this team and seeing them beat our biggest rivals in an awesome game. Along with working I also participated in the Relay for Life again and all of my friends came over to my house for Easter where we had Just Dance competitions all day. April went so fast and then came dreaded May.

May:
The first sixteen days of May were an absolutely circus for me. I was finishing classes, preparing for finals, taking finals, and graduating that I had very little time for anything else but sleep (which I usually did not get). During finals week, a good friend of mine officially adopted two of her three children (the third is biologically hers). It was a very exciting time and we had a blast preparing and celebrating for it. Next came my graduation party which was exactly what I wanted: liquor and cupcakes :) Following my party, my fellow classmates and I entered six days of bliss where security allows pretty much anything on campus, no required classes are taking up our time, and all we had to do was smile and party because we were graduating. For six straight days we celebrated our great accomplishment. During this week my friends and I went on a pub crawl through the county considering that we typically only visited the same pub every weekend. I also went to the zoo to see the premier of the Polar Frontier and the return of the Polar Bears to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. Then graduation occurred and I am now moved home. It has not hit me yet that I have graduated but I am looking forward to the future. My plans for now are to be summer nanny and then go to school in the fall. I did not get into any masters programs, but I did get into a COTA (OT assistant) program that I will have completed in two years. From there I will work on my Masters.

Well that is a recap for now, I know that I will probably think of either more stories or have new experiences to tell you about. I am really looking forward to this coming summer and what it may bring :) I also and redecorating my room so I will be blogging about that soon as well!

4 MONTHS......

What a whirlwind the past four months have been. I have been go go go and I finally can stop to breathe or sleep (my body is preferring the sleep more than the breathing). So much has happened in the past four months that I want to blog about so I will probably be recapping each month instead of listing everything in this one post! :)