Counseling Services

I HAVE MY "P" (unofficially of course)

Today it finally happened. About 10:30 this morning, I completed the 3,000 hours of client contact that are required in this lovely state of Arkansas for a Licensed Associate Counselor to become a Licensed Professional Counselor (just waiting to get my official word from the state board and it will be official!). I am now finished with supervision, which will definitely help with my bank account but the weekly advice will be missed. So, now I have my "P" unofficially as my family has been teasing me for weeks. It was actually hard to realize how easily the morning event passed without the banging of drums and cymbals or confetti falling from the sky. I made a couple of calls and then kept on chugging....what I really wanted to do was go outside of my office and just let out a big scream of "Hooray!" or some other words that I can't print here. =-)

I really wanted to get my paperwork in the mail today to the state board because nothing is official until they stamp and sign it all...no ordering business cards or advertising, etc. But that was not meant to be. A meeting with my supervisor didn't work out and our schedules didn't match up for the rest of the day, so it looks like it may be tomorrow before I get to mail that precious packet off. What a relief that will be.

In the meantime, I found out that tomorrow is the deadline to get my new phone number (which I didn't have until 5:00 today) and name listed in the white pages for the new phone book, which is the way most therapists get their clients. So I got busy when I got off work and now have a phone number that will go into effect at the office on 18th street that I'm sharing with Cheryl Edwards starting in April on a part time basis.....it is the start of my private practice....for real.

I also have another week to figure out what I want in the yellow pages. Steve and I went to eat tonight (to celebrate my "P") and stopped by Connie's house on the way home. We all started thinking of a creative "name" for my new business...which really isn't necessary because I am most likely going to list it as Baer, Dianne MS,LAC LLC in the phone book and have a short ad following it. I was hoping to have my "P" back before the ad, but alas that is not to be.

In our fun, we began to come up with names such as "Happy Place Counseling" or "Absolute Counseling" or "Personality Plus" or "the Baer's Den" (are you kidding me?) and then the final one that did us in: "Baer It All Counseling" which we thought we could even pull into one word that would rhyme with Geritol: Baeritol Counseling. Isn't that just awful? And we were sober!!!!! So, I think I will stay with my simple original idea, but will always giggle a bit about Baeritol.....

Dreams and Nightmares....

Well, here it is folks. The house of my dreams. At least it was so last night. With Steve working away with repairs and caulk and paint while I type notes today, I was reminded of my dream (nightmare) that I had last night. I can't imagine where it came from!! He is definitely getting this old house in "ready to sell" condition. It doesn't exactly take a degree on the wall to see this one coming...the thought of moving from a house I've lived in since Steve and I've been married (17 years) is daunting for sure! I dreamed that it was going to look a lot like the one in this photo with no heat/air and nothing but one big room and we were surely going to starve to death.

As a side note, Steve just came by the computer and I showed him this photo I was using on my blog today. His only question..."does it have acreage?" Oh brother. That is his dream to live out where we have some room to stretch out a bit without evil dog living next door and constantly hearing our neighbors music and everything else for that matter. I grew up in the country and swore I would never move back to it. I don't know. If the road is paved and he keeps the snakes cleared out for me, then it is a possibility. I don't know. There are pros and cons. I keep telling myself that change is good. My friend Connie has moved more times than I can count since I've known her. I think she does it as a way to clean out her attic and closets. Can you just imagine what mine will be like???? Seventeen years worth???? And we are such packrats!!!!! It will take an army of men and women to go through it all. Heavens.

I can't imagine why I was having a dream like that one last night, can you?

Spring Break Week Update

Monday and Tuesday: Here's a photo of Steve and I with my Mom and Dad at their favorite restaurant in Wynne, Kelly's Restaurant earlier this week. They eat there all the time. Doesn't Dad have pretty white hair? I'm sure mine won't do that...it will turn ugly gray and crinkly I'm sure. Steve and I went and spent a couple of days there with them to catch up and visit. I wish I had the time and money to spend at their home making repairs and cleaning things up that have just been left undone in recent years. Their large home is just too much for the two of them. They basically just live in the downstairs, but it really needs a lot of work. Dad is still working at Walmart, bowling in a league every week and getting along pretty well.

Wednesday: I worked all day at the clinic doing intakes. It was very interesting for sure. In the clinic, I have the chance to see clients that are not teenagers so it is very good experience. It also bumped up my hours, bringing me closer to finishing my supervision. I added my hours when I got home and I am only 3.4 hours away from my LPC now!!! Woohoo!

Thursday: Moving Day for Connie. Connie found a great house and has finally gotten out of her apartment. It was a bit rainy, but we helped with the final loads and helped get her computer and televisions set up in her new house. That's the fun part! She treated us to lunch and supper and I think we were all really sore the next day. Not sure how long it is going to take her dog, Louisa, to figure out she is home.

Friday and Saturday: Pack up winter clothes and get out spring/summer clothes. Watch the snow arrive Saturday morning. Of course. Ran errands. Clean out drawers. Shoes to the repair shop. Clothes to the resale store. Steve begins the "getting the house ready to sell" initiative. I finally pitch in on Friday night. This is really going to happen. For the best, I know. I am slow to catch on to change of any kind. Why do people always wait until you are selling a house to make the changes that should have been made for years???? He took out the nails I use for Christmas swags over the doorways....guess we will plan to be gone by then. Wow. Am I really ready for this? In the middle of this I have found an office space for 1-2 days a week at my supervisor's office. It will be great, I think. I am making the transition to private practice...slowly. So many changes. And of course I have paperwork I could be working on. Joy. Should have gone to Cancun.

Spring Break Just "Ain't What it Used to Be"

It is Friday night...the beginning of the official Spring Break for the students in Fort Smith and I have to admit that I would have almost missed it if someone had not reminded me of it. Things just change when you get older and your kids are all grown.
Mary Beth is visiting Rachel in New Hampshire and I think, even though I'm thrilled they are getting some sister time, I am secretly jealous that I'm not with them! Greg had to hide out this week to catch up on a work project that was thrown on him at the last minute by his boss. Thank goodness he had not made out of town plans for the break! He came into town for a dental appointment and that is about the extent of his out of town business for his spring break...so I really shouldn't be whining.
I am about 9 days behind with my notes. I know...you've all heard this before. How could it be? How could I let this happen? I'll tell you how. I get home after 6 or 6:30 and after dinner have absolutely no energy left to even drag my laptop out of the bag most nights. Believe it or not! But now that means that tomorrow I will have to be dedicated and sit my prissy hind side down and just DO THEM so that I can get on with the rest of the week! For Heavens sake!
Monday and Tuesday, Steve and I are planning to go to my parents for a visit. We are going to stop on the way by the Volkswagon dealership so they can REVERSE by passenger seat belt that they put in backwards a couple of months ago!!! Yes, that is correct. How does that happen? I called today and the girl said they weren't sure how long it would take...it would depend on how many cars they had in there. Being the lovely customer that I am....(not) I told her when I arrive, I expect them to clear a path for my car since I'm having to make a special trip for their mistake. Steve says I should add that there could have been a HUGE lawsuit if anything had happened since it was probably not even safe to use the damn thing!!! Well, at least it gave her a story to tell to HER husband tonight over dinner about that witch that called this afternoon.
Connie moves into her new house later in the week and we are helping with that---should be fun and I know she is ready to get out of the apartment.
Whatever happened to Cancun?

Oops, left my computer cord at work, so what will I do?

I'm using Steve's computer tonight because I left my power cord at the office. Oh dear. No notes will be written tonight. Oh dear. Was that one of those things that I may have done on purpose subconsciously??? No, couldn't be!!!
I took my extra cord in because I was setting up at the table for my MYSTERY PARENT this morning. You know...the one that I got up extra early for. The one that I had an 8:00 appointment with for an intake with her for her daughter to get services. She didn't show, so I called her at 8:10 and woke her up. Okay, so everyone can make a mistake every now and then. She re-scheduled for 11:00. I saw other clients and then 11:00 came.....and went. No show. I called. Twice. Three times. Finally got an answer and she said she would be in around 1:00 today. You know where this nursery rhyme is going, don't you? And you are so right with the ending.
So, in a bit of frustration, I left the power cord at the table at the end of the day. Whether on purpose or not, it will be one more evening that I don't work on my paperwork. Maybe I needed a break. I'm not sure I would have worked on it anyway, but now I KNOW I won't!
Now is the time that I kick back my heels, turn on LOST and American Idol (yes, I'm hooked) and relax!
Hmmm...there are those that would say THAT was on purpose.

Allergies

Just so you know...allergies suck. I don't even have the allergies to pollen, which is what is so active right now. I have been going to the allergy clinic faithfully for a year and a half now for allergy shots. My nemesis: dust mites, cats/dogs (where would those be??) and of course, wasps!
Since Sunday, my eyes have watered so much that it looks like I just lost my best and last friend. Especially my left eye. Always the left one. Why? I don't know. Why aren't they watering equally?? I have prescription drops that they must gather in a rainstorm on Mars during a full moon from the spit of a moon gnat...they are THAT expensive. Really. And today I have taken two non-drowsy formula antihistimines so I could struggle through work. I had to explain to each of my clients that no, I wasn't crying.
The non-drowsy medications are likely just not worth trying, I think. I also took a Benedryl about 3 hours ago and can't believe I'm still upright. I will try taking another in a minute before going to bed. I will likely be in a stone cold coma by morning.
And of course, I have an intake prompt on the button at 8:00 tomorrow!!! I should be alert for that!
So, why do I even take the allergy shots if my eyes are once again doing this? Is it because I just love giving up an hour of my week every week....a precious hour? I guess so. I plan to call them tomorrow and ask. I can only imagine the prescription they will order. Likely will include ingrediants that include eye of newt....

The Luck of the Irish? Oh yeah!

Saturday night in Fort Smith was the official night of the Garrison Avenue Pub Crawl. That is the night where folks can buy their first beer for $5 and each additional one for $1. Let me back up by saying that when we first planned this night out with Connie, we had no clue that it was the night of the Pub Crawl and that Garrison would literally be "crawling" with people! Fortunately, the restaurant we wanted to hang out in was on the upper end of Garrison. It is called Leoncia's, a New Orleans cafe/bar. They were hosting a band called the something "Low Water Dogs" in which Wayne Vyrostek played in it...we knew Wayne and his wife Gayle from years ago at Goddard. They play fun Irish music, which was perfect for the holiday! It was festive and the food was great as well - everyone should go try it but be prepared because they love to spice it up! We were joined throughout the night by some various folks that we know and even some dressed up characters that we didn't know!

We were joined here by a random leprachaun.
Here's a photo of the Low Water Dogs entertaining us with their Irish music.

Gayle and Wayne

Connie and the happy leprachaun that was checking the door...a little too happy, perhaps.

Have you ever in your life?????? And no, I do not know them. But don't they look like they're having fun?

Do I even LOOK like I know what I'm doing?

Here I am, the President -Elect of the Licensed Counselors Association of Arkansas. I'm at the conference we hosted in Little Rock last Friday that was basically concerning the VA and the troops that are returning home, their families, etc. It was a good conference and I met a lot of people that I am finally putting names with faces. I'm sitting at the registration table, which was my job that morning, with David the treasurer. He's a counselor in Wynne, my home town...small world for sure. Behind us is a PhD gal named Angie who is likely one of the sharpest folks I will ever encounter, yet down to earth while she is there.

So, there I sit, having completed my task that morning. And having nothing else to do I got out my camera and decided to take photos of the group. It turned out to be a good idea because the board decided to use the photos this fall in the conference in a slideshow....I agreed because everyone loves to see themselves on a slideshow. It's almost as good as door prizes! And we plan to have those too! So, at least I am in some form of my element now....and I'm learning how important it is to have people around you that know what the hell they are doing. Very important!

Lost Valley People

Here's a group photo from Saturday's hike to Lost Valley. My brother took the photo, so down below you will see a photo of him taking a break from his job as historian/tour guide. (Tommy was the official tour guide, but Hounie had been there before too, so he was able to add a lot of interesting information as well!)

Not much else to post about this but wanted to add these great photos that I didn't take, by the way.

Lost Valley Days...and I'm so out of shape

After spending the entire day in Little Rock on Friday at a conference, I was ready for some relaxation. When Steve had suggested that we go with a group of the guys he works with and their wives/girlfriends earlier in the week for a Saturday hiking trip, it sounded really good. I didn't get home until around 9:00pm Friday night and the idea of getting up early on Saturday was not looking so good. But we had committed!

The weather was promising to be mild, so off we went. It had actually worked out in a funny way on my drive back from Little Rock, as I call everyone in my cell phone to attempt to stay awake, that Glo and I were talking about the hike and she said she KNEW about a Lost Valley, but it was close to Harrison. She said it was near Ponca and I remembered Steve mentioning something about "Ponca" and she said there's a waterfall and a cave you have to crawl in to get to an inside waterfall. I knew that was totally the same Lost Valley then...but had not known we would be driving almost to Harrison!! She said I might give my brother a call and he might enjoy coming to join us because they used to hike and camp there often. So I did and he joined our group Saturday, which delighted Steve and I so much. I even packed his lunch, but I didn't have time to bake cookies or brownies as I would have when I was in sixth grade. (I used to love to bake for my big brothers - my most appreciative audience---at least when they didn't eat all of the dough first! Yes, Rachel, there were dough eaters before you, Greg and Mary Beth!)

We all met in Mountainburg. One family came from Stigler, Oklahoma to hike with us. It was an interesting combination, one family brought five teenagers and one couple brought a five year old. Everyone got along well and no one wanted to kill anyone by the end of the day.

What a beautiful park it is, along the Buffalo River. The recent ice storm had knocked out a lot of the trees and it was obvious they had cut back a lot of them to clear the trail again. Bet that was a fun job. So many huge cavernous areas where you could just imagine tribes of Indians and settlers from years ago finding shelter from the weather and other enemies. If those stones could talk! It was breathtakingly beautiful.

Around Ponca, there was an old settlement that a lady had lived in all of her life and she donated it to the parks dept. for historic preservation. Steve, I think, was looking this building over to see about buying it so we could move in it with a couple of acres....he was sure he could get a good deal on it! (haha) I think he would have to raise the door height if he stayed there for long, don't you think?
Here's a view at Steel Creek where we stopped for lunch.

One of the waterfalls at Lost Valley.

My brother, Hounie (nickname), checking out the size of what is left of the trunk they had to cut following the recent ice storm. I think he could hide inside of there!

Steve and I with Tommy (the ringleader) and John that he works with and their wives. We are inside this huge caverness area that has been washed out over the centuries by water. Very cool.

We looked for elk that are in the area but only saw one at a distance, which I understand is how you want to see elk. My brother says they will just saunter across the highway, unlike deer that dart and run.

We all parted ways and headed home, making plans to do this again soon.

And now for that Victory Lap...

Yes, friends and neighbors, here it is. Certifiable proof that I PASSED the National Mental Health Counselor Exam!!! I cannot even begin to tell you the great relief that I felt when the gal came back from the printer with my results, with a smile on her face. I felt like a ton of bricks had been lifted off of my shoulders. Then I set about texting everyone I could think of to let them know. Of course my dad says "Well, I knew you could do that...of course you could." Only a parent has that kind of confidence in someone!

Here I am holding my pass certificate. That will now go to the state board and in just a few weeks I will officially be an LPC - Licensed Professional Counselor. Woohoo!
When I got my feet back under me I decided to go to the mall in Fayetteville to look for shoes. Mary Beth was out of town and Greg was in class, so I was left to my own wasting of time and settling down after the exam.
When I got back into town, Steve asked me if I wasn't going back to work that afternoon. I thought "is he nuts or what?" Of course I'm not going back to work! I was actually a bit peeved at him for even suggesting it after I had just completed and passed that exam. Didn't think much more about it until I opened my office door today and there was a huge basket of flowers on my desk! That's what that guy had been nosing around about my going back to work. He had been there already dropping off flowers. Of course on the card he wrote one of my funny lines "you betcha" and "500 down" (hours I can skip because of the exam).
Here's photos of the flowers. Wow, flowers twice in just 3 days....sweet!

The sun will come out....what's the rest of that song???

My desk this weekend...looks like a bomb was set off there about a month ago and no one ever came by to clean up the remains. No joke.My three precious ones sending flowers my way - they always know when mom is on her final push for something. Mary Beth and Jon also sent a cool ceramic plaque that says "the best way to predict your future is to create it." With the love and support from them, I have found a shred of energy to keep chugging today.

Here's a closeup of the tulips...one of my very favorite flowers! It just reminds you that spring is around the corner. They mean hope and I always put a note on my emails to not ever take away someones hope...it may be all they have.
No truer words were ever spoken.
Thanks Steve for many suppers cooked and laundry done this last month; thanks to my kids for knowing when mom needs a boost; and thanks for friends sending emails and cards for good luck.
I took the practice exam today and passed it.
Let's hope tomorrow's is that easy.
Either way there could be a party involved.