st. valentine stole my heart

Hello my name is Aimee and this is a real life adventure....

Aimee- Valentine's Day is a silly holiday. No one should spend more than $10.00 on a gift. It's supposed to be corny and funny.
Clayton- Yeah, it's about being with each other.

You have to imagine how completely surprised and absolutely floored I was when he gave me my Valentine's Day goodies comprised of two cheese sticks and one brand new Nikon Coolpix camera!!!!

It has a million and one features, all of which I have no idea how to use. Clayton seemed kind of annoyed that when people asked I kept saying it had 12 pixels. Apparently its 12 MEGA pixels. The point is, is that he definitely went above and beyond the $10.00 spending limit. But I am extremely thankful. He knew how much I wanted one to start documenting my life and spicing up my blog.

He is wonderful.

The camera came wrapped in paper he decorated himself. On it are love poems, hearts, and a tie-dye segment with my name embedded into it.

I'm in way over my head.

Despite being completely shocked I stuck with my (much) smaller gift, a love care package. It was filled with homemade cookies, his favorite gum, The Little Rascals movie, and a book called I Like You by Sandol Stoddard. It was wrapped in a red, white, and pink box covered in patterned hearts.

The book was my favorite part. I read it to him out loud. One of my favorite excerpts:

"I like you because
When I tell you something special
You know it's special
And you remember it
A long long time

You say
Remember when you told me
Something special

And both of us remember"

I hope St. Valentine was good to you this year.

what did he just say?!

Hello my name is Aimee and this is a real life adventure...

If you listen to the radio you've undoubtedly heard the new hit single "Bedrock" by Young Money featuring Lloyd. The song is currently in the #3 spot on the Hot 100 list according to Billboard. If you happen to know me personally, you've seen me dancing around singing the ridiculous lyrics driving everyone around me totally insane. With charming lyrics such as

"...Ooh, Baby, I Be Stuck To You, Like Glue Baby, Wanna Spend It All On You, Baby, My Room Is The G Spot, Call Me Mr. Flintstone, I Can Make Your Bed Rock..."

I can't imagine why my Mother is disgusted, my sister's annoyed, and me brain washed.

I was humming along to the radio in my head (I was making Clayton crazy) while I was doing my hair today. I stepped back to admire my work and realized I had Wilma Flintstone hair (minus the sweet bone necklace).

Shocked at how the power of my own singing took over my hair-do I vowed never to sing the inappropriate lyrics while doing anything important- especially getting ready for Chi Omega's Valentine's Date Party this weekend.

Meanwhile I can be found running around UCENT bopping along to the tune in my head rockin' my Flintstone hair.

I hope you're having a good hair day.

blog of the week: favorite class

Hello my name is Aimee and this is a real life adventure...

This week's blog topic in the office is focused on the best class each of us have ever taken at ASU. Easy. ASB 353 Death and Dying in a Cross-Cultural Prospective was one of the most enjoyable classes I have ever taken. The class pushed me to become more open and accepting while learning about the death ways of American culture as well as many others around the globe. The instructor was so passionate and knowledgeable about the subject that going to class was viewed as a reward rather than a nuisance and completing homework assignments were exciting projects to look forward to.

I remember going into the class thinking I would never survive, as it was my first upper division class I had ever taken at Arizona State and I was only in my first semester of my sophomore year. Despite my self doubt I received more points than were possible in the class (thanks to extra credit opportunities) and I earned an A+ for the course. I don't want to lie and say that the class was easy, weekly readings and essay tests kept me constantly busy however the reward and satisfaction at the end of the class was worth it. For the first time I began to realize the importance of education and it's impact on my life.

I hope you're getting your money's worth.

weekend recap

Hello my name is Aimee and this is a real life adventure...

I feel as if I have bee a little MIA this week, but it's only because I've been so busy! Here's what I've been up to:

Friday:

I got to meet up with Barb Gallagher a CTRS in the field who works with the behavioral unit at St. Luke's in Phoenix. After a tour of the facility and a quick Q&A she told me her department would love it if I could come volunteer! I am so excited.

Since it was the first Friday of the month I met up with a group of friends and took the light rail downtown to participate in the Phoenix art tradition of First Friday's. We got to check out some cool local art, yummy food, and even a few small bars. One of our favorite drink spots is The Roosevelt because they specialize in beer and wine and have AMAZING panini sandwiches. We also got a chance to visit a new bar called the Lost Leaf. Similar to The Roosevelt, the Lost Leaf specializes in beers but only serves bottles. Both are converted from old homes and have a warm atmosphere. The night was a great success!

Saturday:

My Mom's boyfriend Mike offered to take her, my sisters Emily and Bee, Clayton (that's PDF's real name, p.s. he's no longer my "potential" dating future- he pretty much IS my dating future) and I to lunch. How sweet! The one drawback was (at least I thought it was) was that we went to Joe's Crab Shack. Now I know many of you are thinking "what is she complaining about?" but I've always had an aversion to seafood, some thing I attribute to three scarring seafood experiences and my Dad. On the upside they gave us super cool napkin things to wear around our neck's and neat-o contraptions to get the crab/lobster meat our of the shells.

I ended up feeling nauseous the entire meal and refused to touch the actual shellfish, but it was a great experience overall and a hilarious bonding session. Thanks Mike!!!

Sunday:

It was one of my Chi Omega sister's 21st birthday so after the Super Bowl a few of us met up to prepare for the birthday festivities. It was then when I received one of the most endearing compliments I have ever been bestowed with.
s: you look so cute!
a: thanks!
s: but seriously, every time I see you, you look adorable. you remind me of someone...
a: wow, thanks Sam!
s: TWIGGY, that's it, you remind me of her- such a fashion icon!
Samantha walked away but I was frozen with shock. I reminded someone of Twiggy?! The top model of the 1960's and amazing fashion icon?! I'm still floating on cloud nine.

I hope your weekend was wonderful.

blog of the week

Hello my name is Aimee and this is a real life adventure...

Here in the StAR's office we are reviving an old tradition I like to call "Blog of the Week". This week we were posed with this question: what are you excited for/dreading most about this semester of classes?

Personally, I am excited that I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. This is my last semester of coursework before I start my internship in the fall. I am excited for both of my therapeutic recreation classes, because I know I will be learning tons of useful information in both. However, I am also scared to death of doing a terrible job.

I will be completing 100 CFE hours this semester as well, and I am looking forward to volunteering (cross your fingers) with St. Luke's Medical Center and Hospice of the Valley. I hope that these opportunities will guide me in the right direction for internships and ultimately a career.

My roommate just got back from studying abroad in Spain, so I am looking forward to sharing a room with her and getting to know her much better!

I am not looking forward to having to say goodbye to my Chi Omega sisters at the end of the semester, or to giving my last tour for Devils' Advocates. Doing these things will be harder than any project or paper I have ever completed.

What are you excited about/dreading this semester?

I'm hoping for the best semester yet.

merried?

Hello my name is Aimee and this is a real life adventure...

I cannot focus. My motivation has taken a hiatus. I crave to crawl in to my extra long twin bed in Adelphi and pull my softy owl blanket over my head. For me, this usually indicates something is wrong.

My heart is broken.

The perpetrator of these types of situations tend to be a younger, scrawny male. Unfortunately, I have never dealt with this type of situation before. I tried to ignore it, refused to acknowledge it, and pretended to downplay it. Nothing worked, so I'm just going to get it off my chest- this will be the only time I mention it.

My Dad and the terrible-stepmother-to-be got married. Six months ago. Apparently everyone on my Father's side of the family knew. Everyone except Aimee, Haleigh, Emily, and Abbey. I wish it was because they forgot to tell us, but it was on purpose.

I haven't talked to my Dad since my intoxicated Aunt spilled the beans at a dive bar over karaoke, except an email and text message to ask about my new insurance card.

Some people think I'm overreacting.

Others think I should try to salvage some sort of relationship.

"That's immature" my Dad's family says.

"It's not that big of a deal" my cousin assured me.

My Dad has successfully made me feel this big.

It's not even that he came to see me and tell me he is sorry. It's not even that he sent me a letter to say how sorry he is. It's not even that he left a voice mail (you wouldn't have answered the phone either) to admit he is sorry. It's that he sent me a rude, sarcastic text message:

"I already told your sisters so you don't have to worry about telling them tomorrow. I really appreciate you and Haleigh understanding and being supportive.....(sarcasm). I love you anyway."

I'm still kind of confused about how to feel. Hopefully my softy owl blanket will help.

I hope my family stops lying.

Day 13

Hello my name is Aimee and this is a real life adventure...

Order of business #1:

HAPPY FEBRUARY!!!!

and now for the spring break shape update:

I've been better this week! While I haven't gotten to the Y as much as I wanted I've been choosing healthier eating options. Kind of. At the grocery store I purchased rice cakes instead of brownies and cheese instead of popcorn. Also, I haven't had any fast food since the update last week! I'm still working on either giving up coffee (gasp!) or switching to a healthier option full time (most likely tea).

After my swim this morning I couldn't help but smile as I overheard the following convo:
( and yes, these are their real names)

Ethel: (in a sassy southern accent) I could not believe Julio this mornin'!
Mary Anne: I know, he never listens. After you got out he passed out two more times.
Ethel: Well, he's not supposed to sit in that hot tub for more 'an 15 minutes. That's probably why.
Mary Anne: It's just ridiculous.
Ethel: Ridiculous? Yes. This swim suit is also ridiculous. Magda was supposed to come by with her old one this past weekend but she never came. She was gonna to give it to me seeing as how it doesn't fit her since she lost all that weight.
Ellen: (from across the room) What size are you?
Ethel: I'm usually a 20, but sometimes I can squeeze into an 18.
Mary Anne: Well you know what? I was watching a TV show this weekend and they said we should take our clothes and cut all the tags out of them. Size shouldn't matter. Just wear what fits.

A murmur of "amen" broke out among the women's locker room and the gossiping continued.

I think Mary Anne was on to something. As long as we're healthy we should love our bodies despite our tags and the number that rings up when we step on a scale. As long as it looks good, rock it!

I can't wait for the post-water aerobics gossip next week :)

I hope you're loving your body.