Aaaaaaaaand Done.

Tomorrow marks the end of my three-year graduate school experience. I can hardly even believe it. Where has the time gone?? Well, it's gone to a full-year full-time internship, papers, studying, and working harder than I've ever had to in my life. As a little reflection on being finished, I am going to walk you through how I've come to this point and what this all means. First of all, let me say a huge thank you to all my friends and family who have encouraged me, listened to me complain and (ahem) FREAK out occasionally, asked questions, and supported me the whole way through. An especially huge thank you goes to Jeremy, without whom I probably wouldn't have made this huge jump. He has been so incredibly supportive and has helped me through my BIGGEST freak outs (poor fella).
I appreciate you all for helping me survive. Whew. Here we go:
How I Decided to Make the Jump
As you may recall, I was perfectly happy in a wonderful job teaching Spanish at CLS. I loved teaching, and I loved working with the kiddies, particularly the junior high kids (I know, I'm nuts). However, in the fall of 2006, after several attempts at getting my teaching certificate (that's a whole 'nother story... Basically I was supposed to teach in my undergrad degree, which was psychology, and that just wasn't gonna work out), I knew that something had to change. I just had no idea what. Jeremy and I went backpacking that November, and on the way there, I all of a sudden blurted out with, "I want to go back to school. Full-time." The rest of the trip was spent brainstorming on how we could possibly make that happen. I really didn't even know what I wanted to do, but I quickly narrowed it down to school psych or social work.
What I Had to Do
I had to take several poopy tests (the GRE, the PSYCH GRE). I had to write letters. I had to figure out college professors who could vouch for me (I hadn't been in school in FOUR years!). I also had to decide which program to do. I ended up applying for both and hoping for the school psych program. I knew that school psych would combine my two loves: psychology and education, and I felt it would be the best fit for me. This also meant I had to wait because I wasn't able to apply until July, and the program started in August. Which meant I had to quit my job that I loved without actually being accepted into the program. And that was terrifying. I also had to take a pre-req class (Tests and Measurements) that I didn't take in undergrad without being accepted. Scary!
It all worked out in the end though... because I got in...
The Program
The School Psychology program at UCA is set up like this: two full years of full-time classes (including one whole summer of full-time classes), and a year-long internship. I end up with (technically) a masters degree (M.S.)+ 21 hours. This means I finished my 45 hour program, with 21 additional hours. We usually get paid on the teacher's scales, so that's what bumps us up a few notches.
Anyway, along the road for the program, I had to take comps (ew), the Praxis for school psychology, and complete several other big projects where we would have to stop the program if we did not pass. And I passed them all (a few gray hairs later). I ended up getting an internship with Conway Public Schools (which I have loved), which is what is ending tomorrow.
My Fantabulous Initials After My Name
Now when I sign things at work, I will be (once I turn everything in and PAY for it):
Elizabeth Spann, SPS, LPE-I, NCSP
This translates to Elizabeth Spann, School Psychology Specialist, Licensed Psychological Examiner-Independent, Nationally Certified School Psychologist
Say that ten times fast. No, don't.
It breaks down to this: the SPS is granted by the Dept. of Education in AR (similar to a teaching certificate) and it's so I can work in the public schools, the LPE-I is granted by the AR Psychology Board and it's so I can do emotional/behavioral assessments and therapy, and the NCSP is so I could be a school psych in any other state besides AR (not that I'm moving).
OK, What Will I Be Doing?
One thing I've noticed is that very few people actually know what I'm going to do. NO, I will not be a school counselor (If you've thought this, you're not the only one who thinks that!! No worries!!). Here's a breakdown:

• I work with kids with disabilities: this means a million different things... I literally go into the classroom and do programs with them, I look out for their rights, and I try to get them the best education possible.
• I look at how kids with disabilities learn: I do IQ tests (my favorite), achievement tests (reading, math, written expression), language tests (how they produce and take in language), visual-motor tests, auditory perception tests, adaptive behavior, and a host of other things.
  
• I can educationally classify kids so they can get services: they can qualify for special education under Specific Learning Disability, Autism, Other Health Impaired (ADHD most of the time), Hearing Impaired, Orthopedically Impaired, and several others... The testing I do helps determine if a kiddo has a disability, and if so, what kind.
• I serve on IEP teams to help plan what kind of services kids need
• I consult with teachers and come up with interventions for kids in the classroom to help them learn (and/or behave) best
• I do group counseling sessions: I lead social skills groups, divorce groups, and similar groups to help kids deal with different issues
• I do individual counseling: if kids are not able to get therapy somewhere, we can see kids who need help in a particular area. This is also where my LPE-I will come in handy.
• I help implement prevention programs in the schools
• I do behavior observations in classrooms for a variety of reasons (does my kid have ADHD?? Why won't this kid work in English class?? etc...)
  
• .... and a bunch of other things, but that helps give you an idea. ;) Clear as mud, right?
  

I truly, truly love what I am going to be doing, and I am very passionate about it. I felt that I needed to share with you guys exactly what all this work the past 3+ years means. I can't believe it's drawing to an end. Again, thank you to everyone who has supported me the entire time. I certainly couldn't have done it without you.
Oh, and I have a job interview on Monday. Fingers crossed!

Oh, hello, friends...!

I have been ridiculously neglectful with the bloggity. However, just ohhhhhh... one or two things have changed with the Spanns in the past month or so. For very big starters, we have MOVED (onnnnnn uuuuup!). It all happened very very fast, and we are so very thankful and lucky that things have turned out the way they have so far (knock on wood). We had been thinking about moving for a while, but it didn't seem like the right time (with me being in internship and all). However, Jeremy's folks decided they wanted to move to a smaller casa, and we started thinking about how perfect their house would be for us. It's in a great neighborhood (that is not far AT ALL from where we were... yay Midtown!), and there is lots of room for us to grow (one day. Don't get too excited.). I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE our new house. I will do a photo tour soon! Promise. Also promise to do an upcoming post about the babies (they're staying with us tomorrow night!!!), Katie and Holt's amaaazing wedding, and other exciting things that keep happening. However, I will just give you a glimpse at the new home with our outdoors. The mother-in-law has done an outstanding job with planting pretty things for me to get to enjoy now. Azaleas! Huzzah! And, AND we have a double-decker deck. So we're not sacrificing our super awesome deckitude too much. We want to have you all over very soon. Sorry we have sort of dropped off the face of the earth. We have been very very busy... keep fingers crossed that the old house sells quickly! ;) I will update again soon. Much love.

Feliz Cumpleanos!

I'm a day late... lo siento, papa!

A very very VERY happy birthday to my Papa Bear. I won't tell you which birthday this is, but let's just say it's a very big one. ;) Words can't even express how much I love my dad, so I won't get too gushy here on the bloggity, but just let me say that I (and I'm sure my sister agrees) am a lucky girl to have such a wonderful dad in my life. He has always been there for me (whether it's teaching me to dribble a basketball, sitting in the stands for hours on end and watching me play volleyball, or cheering me on with my grades). He has always told me he'd dance at my wedding when I did something for him... and he did- to Rod Stewart, to be exact. He'd always change the music in the car from something Melissa and I chose to Neil Diamond when we fell asleep. Then he'd slowwwwwly turn the volume up, until we were startled awake by "Forever in Blue Jeans." He'd always yell "ahhhhh, hello!" when he walked in the door, despite the fact that I had a friend over. He always always had to get about 1,000 glasses of water from the kitchen when I had a boy over. Not to check on me, surely. Just because he got unexplainably thirsty, right? ;) Check out the moustache in that last picture. I mean, seriously. He was a cool dad too, no matter what I tried to tell him.

He's a wonderful dad. And I know he's going to be an AMAZING Poppy (cute, huh?). Happy birthday, dad. Love you more than you know.

I mean, if you can believe it, they've gotten cuter.

Sorry for the lack in updates on the babies! Everyone is HOME and healthy and happy at the Wood household. Riley and Tyson had their first ever photo shoot. Seriously, go check out the pictures here at Sweet Little Things Photography - they are the most beautiful babies I have ever seen (yeah, I'm a little biased, it's true!).
From top to bottom: Tyson & Riley at their photo shoot, Riley, Tyson, and my folks getting all gushy over them. Just wait till you meet them, guys. You'll see.
Want to see even MORE? Go see my Picassa album. Happy vibes to my fabulous sister who is at home with the babies this week on her own (Greg's back at work)! She's doing awesome.

Wombmates!

Yesterday was a GOOD day

We got a huge surprise when we showed up to the hospital yesterday afternoon: they told us we could hold the babies! Melissa had told us that the babies were getting off their iv's, and that she and Greg had gotten to hold them. But we had no idea that we would get to! It all happened so fast, and my heart was pounding as I walked from their room to the NICU. As soon as I walked into the room and saw them without their tiny little tubes and all wrapped up like a burrito, I burst into tears. I mean, blubbering. It was ridiculous. And a little hilarious (remember me at our wedding?? I'm such a wimp.). Everybody's doing amazing. They want to make sure Tyson and Riley can regulate their own temps, and check a few more things, but there is a slight possibility one or both of them can stay down in Melissa's room as soon as today. Amazing news. I am a gushy, gushy aunt. Who knew?? ;) Me.

Mimi and Poppy.... think they're in love?? Uh, yes.

This is when I first got ahold of Tyson. Notice the tears and the struggle to look normal. Hahahaha.

More cuteness

More info on the babies! Tyson's hair seemed a lot darker today. ;) He is always very alert, and he's always looking around. He will also most definitely let you know when he's not happy with you. He's very opinionated already.

... and then there's Riley's hair. Look at it! It was less matted today after her bath, but it's super thick and curly at the bottom. She's just as sweet as can be, and sleeps peacefully every time Uncle Jeremy and I go in there. She held on to my finger with a super-strength grip, though. She wouldn't let go. Ok, so I didn't try too hard- she talked me into just letting her hold on.

So the babies are in the NICU right now, just as a precaution. They're both on pretty much the lowest levels of oxygen possible, and it's just giving them a little boost. Melissa and Greg got to hold them today, which is awesome. Melissa should be able to go home Tuesday, they think, and the babies might stay just a little longer. They're just beautiful, and I can't tell you how happy we are for Melissa and Greg. It's going to be so much fun, and I can't wait to watch it all unfold...

When Aunt Beth met them for the first time...

.... I fell instantly in love. Gush! I swear.

More pics and info ;)

So here's the story: Melissa sent me a text message on Thursday that said, "Tomorrow is baby day. Call me when you can." Well, I called her immediately, of course, to find out what was going on. See, she wasn't scheduled until February 25th, and all signs were pointing to the fact that she was going to make it til then for sure (much to her dismay). She had been going to see her doctor two times a week for a while now, and when she went on Thursday, he quickly realized she was not going to make it that long. As in, he told her she was about to go into labor at any moment. So he went ahead and said that Friday, February 12th, would be baby day, unless she went into labor earlier. She was also instructed to get to the hospital in the event that it started snowing again (luckily it didn't).

(Note: Melissa, if I get any of this wrong, let me know!) So she goes to the doctor again at 9:00 on Friday (after waking up early to eat breakfast because she knew it would be her last time to eat!), and they tell her it's go time. She's been having some contractions, nothing too serious at this point. They tell her she can check into the hospital at eleven. So she went to the hospital at eleven, and she's having contractions about every half hour. By the time Jeremy and I get there (around 1), they're starting to pick up. From there, they get a lot more frequent. To make a long story short, she went into "hard labor" and she finally got into an operating room around 3:00 or 3:30. A few things didn't go quite as planned, but Melissa is AMAZING and totally rocked it. I mean, she did an awesome job.

Their "going home" outfits. ;)

While we waited...

.... we found some ways to amuse ourselves. ;)

They didn't have "aunt" or "uncle" buttons (what the??) so we had to compromise.

Meet Riley & Tyson

Riley Elizabeth (top) and Tyson Jack (bottom) arrived yesterday, February 12, 2010 around 4 p.m. They both weighed in around 6 pounds and were the exact same length, somewhere around 19 inches (I will get those exact numbers today!). Everybody's doing great! I have a million pictures and a million things to say, but I am about to go see their sweet faces again, and I'm too excited to sit still! Let me just say these three things:
1. My sister is a complete ROCKSTAR. She is amazingly strong and wonderful, and she is going to be the best mom ever.
2. Riley has a mass of dark hair. It was curly last night- we'll see how it looks today. ;)
3. Tyson has quite a pair of lungs on him. His doctor says he has a "temper." It's awesome.
4. Make it 4 things: I can't believe how much I love them already. I can't wait to see their little personalities emerge, and I am so happy to be an aunt.

More info to come, I promise. I'm on my way out the door though. Much love to everyone!

IT'S GO TIME.

I will keep you updated, and trust me- there will be many many pictures!!! EEEEEEEEEK! I'm so excited.

Good things.

Last Friday was officially dubbed NOOK MANNING DAY. This means that I got my Nook in the mail! Jeremy bought me this fantastic e-reader for my birthday (and Vday, St. Patty's Day, Easter, Memorial Day, 4th of July, and Labor Day. He's out of luck once we get around to our anni next year, hee hee). Let me just tell you how much I love my new toy. It gets books from the air. It's the most amazing thing ever. I was a little worried about not having books anymore, but to tell you the truth, I love it so far. Reading off the screen is surprisingly easy to get used to. AND the Nook has a color touch screen, which is a nifty little bonus. Since we started book club (back in May), I've pretty much been buying a book a month, so this little gadget is going to be super handy. AND I can get periodicals. AND I can just put it in my purse and get it out and read when I'm waiting (which I do a lot... in between meetings at work and whatnot).
Listen, I've already talked about how I'm not an iPod/iPhone/iPad person. I do, however, believe I am definitely a Nook person. Officially.

Monday began what is now dubbed BLIZZARD 2010 (er, for LR, I mean). I have not been to work in FIVE DAYS. Count 'em. Five. And I have loved every lazy minute of it. The snow was very unexpected, and apparently Conway got way more than we did here even, so school has been cancelled all week. I just got the dreaded tweet that we'll be back in session tomorrow though. Sadness. Ehhh, who am I to complain? That was stinkin' awesome.
How cute it this picture of Pooty? She's watching her fish friends: Cheetarah, Jose, and Orange Blossom.
Here come the snow pictures...! One guy got stuck sideways on our street. Monday afternoon was spent by me watching people try to get up our hill and sliiiiiiiide all the way down. It would have been funnier, I suppose, if I wasn't a little worried they might hit our house. Eeek. No one did, thankfully. I have a bunch of pics of the dogs running in the snow, but they're all on my phone, and I don't know how to transfer those. Like I said, not an iPhone user. ;) So anyway, wish me luck as I make the voyage back to work tomorrow (cue sad music). I have gotten spoiled, so it shall be rough I'm sure. Ehhh, it's good for me, right?

Thank God that's over. Mostly.

Hey kids. I have officially (er, mostly) survived one of the worst illnesses of my adult life. I recall being this sick as a kid, but not in a long long time. It started on Thursday at work. I won't get all gross with the details, but let's just say it was the type of illness you don't want at work. Right? Towards the end of the day though, my face started getting real flushed, and I couldn't concentrate (on the very important conference where I was meeting a parent to let her know her child had a disability. Wowza.). So I went straight home and got straight into bed. Where I shook and shook uncontrollably. And slept. For the next 16 hrs. off and on. I swear to you- I woke up long enough to watch an American Idol episode, and afterwards I immediately passed out.
Glad that it was a snow day and all, but this girl was too sick to move anyway on Friday. I slept off and on and moaned a LOT (my body hurt. my head hurt. i was a terribly moany and annoying wife, I am sure of it). Long story short, I had a fever until yesterday morning. Ew. And I hardly ate at all.
But I am ALIVE (probably a couple pounds lighter too, right?), and at work today. Feeling ever-so-slightly-more human. And I'm so glad my husband still loves me after all that. Hee hee. Grody. That's marriage right?

Cakes with bows! Whoot.

Hey kids. Birthday weekend= amazing. Me= sad it's over. Friday night the Spanns went to the Ross household and had fantabulous homemade pizza (ours: feta, mozzarella, green olives, black olives, kalamata olives, spinach, seasonings!) and delish cake from Blue Cake Co. It was seriously tasty. We also enjoyed ohhhhhh, about 20 rounds of Catch Phrase (girls vs. boys- who do you think won??).
Saturday was spent attending a beautiful baby shower for Melissa (I mean, for Tyson and Riley, right?) thrown by some of her lady friends. Bow Cake #2 is pictured below. We had a good time, and Melissa scored some pretty sweet gear. Counting down the days until the babies come! She's got less than a month left!! If you ask her, she'll say it's Feb. 10th (2/10/2010), but we'll see if the dr. allows that. I shall keep you posted!
Saturday night, Jeremy took me on a birthday date to Cantina Laredo (que delicioso!) then we met many friends at the Pizza D'Action for a little celebration time. Thank you guys for helping me bring in the big 2-9 in err... style. At Pizza D's. ;) I had a great time. PS, we sang "Don't Stop Believing" at the top of our lungs. I think sometimes we get a little attention when we all get together. Ooopsies. Had a blast. Loves to you all.