Call me the God Mother

My sis and her hubby have asked me to be the God Mother to my sweet angel nephew, Jaiden.

Not only am I intensly honored, but hugely overjoyed as well. Seeing little Jaiden's face makes me smile so big. Even during times of stress. I have this picture on my desk at work and all I have to do is look at it, and he makes me smile. How can you resist this face:

And, check out Peaker's blog for an article that brought tears to my eyes. It's called "And then one day, he looked up and smiled".

Saint Patty's Day

Okay. So I have not posted in a while. Been Busy.
Ray talked me into a hiatus from work to play at a home game this past weekend.
Blinders was there, along with Audra and some others.

I'm In!!!

I received this yesterday:


Hi Tina,

So I was able to use my magic and have the committee review your file today as opposed to Thursday.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

You have been accepted into the Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology here at Argosy University/Orange County!
I had no doubt that they would love you!
I'm very excited to be sharing this good news with you.
You will receive an official letter stating your acceptance, but I thought I'd give you the heads up before you receive the letter. :-)
Now go out and celebrate!!!

Thy H. Nghiem
Assistant Director of Admissions
Argosy University/ Orange County

PARTY TIME - EXCELLENT!!!!
As I read the "Congrats", I immediately burst into tears, as I shared the email with Ray.
This is one of the most important days of my life.
I simply cannot believe that my dream is about to come true.
I look forward to this new journey in my life....

Party Party Party

This is me a year or so ago at a friends birthday party.

It was at a Mexican resaurant in Long Beach.

I was on stage dancing a little Flamenco....

We drink Sangrias and ate Mexican food, including flan.

A dream come true

I think we have decided on the Mansion.
It's an English Garden style white and blue estate on the ocean, in Laguna Beach.
As you enter through a gate surrounded by grapevines and ivy, you are swept away to another world.
Travel a short distance down the cobblestone walk to the cool white front door.
Enter, my friend.

You are greeted by a grand staircase, dining room a little further to the right, and two fireplaces.
On this main level, a large white-pained window is framed by elegant flowing draperies.
It beckons to you.
As you approach, you are struck by the most amazing view of the ocean and beaches stretching far down the coast.





Upstairs, you find one of the guest suites first. It is decorated in traditional decor, comfortable and welcoming. Very much like a luxurious Bed & Breakfast suite. Back down the hall a bit lies the Master suit, containing a fireplace, King bed and separate walk in dressing room. You hear the sound of the Ocean and are drawn to glide past the fireplace and bed, to the French doors at the West end of the room. Here, you open the doors and walk out onto a balcony on the Ocean.

The air is crisp and clean. The rhythmic waves lull you into a trance.

The ceremony begins on the sprawling outdoor patio, as the sun sets over the ocean. Immediately following will be an indoor cocktail hour and then dinner, where guests will be served, yes you are correct, Filet Mignon and Chicken Marsala (our caterer is the Chef that prepares the menu for Champs restaurants). Wines for each course to be selected by the bride. Dancing into the wee hours will complete the night.

And now for the location....

Ray and I have an appointment tomorrow with our wedding coordinators, Francie and Elizabeth Christy. These two women are totally over the top. They always serve us wine and give us appetizers, call each other baby and believe that they are "The Mermaids of Laguna Beach".

Check out their website.

Ray went with me to the last meeting, and I think his ears started bleeding as we girls talked about colors, cakes, flowers and dresses. So tomorrow will be a thrill for him, I'm sure.....giggle giggle.

Anyway, we are going to a Mansion on the beach and the beach at the Ritz tomorrow to check them out as possible ceremony and/or reception sites.





I'll let you know how that goes!

Wedding Dress

So, I went here today:

It's an upscale Bridal Salon in Corona del Mar. They had Melissa Sweet, designer gowns, showcased this weekend. It's the kind of place where they only have about 50 gowns, all very pretentious, all very high priced. Why did I go here? LOL - Did not know it was like this. I'm not a very pretentious person, and I don't care much about designers and labels (except in shoes - wink). So, I was on bride.com, looking at gowns, and a lot of them pointed to this bridal salon.

I got there, and was all by myself, which was okay since this was my first venture out trying on dresses. I walked in, seemed to fit in, sighed, and then signed in. This cute little OC blondie named Melissa was helping me with my dresses. So, basically, it's like, strip down in front of Melissa and spend the next hour climbing into dresses, looking into mirrors and having all these ladies coo over how beautiful you look.

I tried on this:

And this:

Both were beautiful. As I was falling in love with the second gown, I made the mistake of looking at the price tag: $6,000!! OMG BUT, if I bought today, it would be 10% off. LOLOLOLOLOL

Smokkee better win some Big Tourneys soon!

The search continues.....

Wedding Planning

Shopping for a wedding dress makes me feel like such a Princess.
My favorite little Vegas Hottie has volunteered to come shopping with me.
So far I like:

I'm going to make sure this is truly the best day of our lives.

From the invites to the flowers to the dinner to the honeymoon - this is going to be an event to remember.

A Proud Day

Allow me to gloat a bit, because I'm sooo proud.
When I earned my Masters Degree from Pepperdine University last year, with a 3.97 GPA, while working Full Time, I was very proud.
My sister and her hubby were scheduled to fly out from Cleveland for the ceremony, and I was ELATED.
So, when Ray and I went to pick them up from the airport, and I walked into LAX, I expected to see them.
However, I instead heard a faint voice from behind calling my name. OMG - it was my MOM.
She was not supposed to be there. Evidentaly, instead of my brother-in-law flying out, they decided to fly my Mommy out. It was one of the best surprises of my life.

At the ceremony, I almost broke down twice (crying) in the processional line.
It was one of the proudest days of my life, as I had succeeded in accomplishing one of my life's biggest goals.
So I graduated, and walked the line. The line across the stage. The line into an upper echelon of education. The line, and one step further towards my dream. My dream of attaining my Ph.D. - Of becoming a Doctor.

I will digress a bit here . . . when I was a senior in high school, I decided to major in Psych. Everyone told me that the only way to make good money in the field would be to get my Ph.D. I became determined at that point to make this my Ultimate goal. I remember when I went on the campus visit to Akron U (where I eventually earned my Bachelors Degree), my mom jokingly told my Dad that he would be calling me Dr. one day. We all giggled gleefully at the prospect of it all. . . .

Several years later.....I'm walking the line. I'm one step closer to my goal. I'm running towards my mom, diploma in hand, near tears. Imagining my Dad smiling down on me. Beaming with pride.
Do you ever have those moments in life when you feel true joy? The kind of joy that brings back memories of childhood and Christmas? That day, I felt joy. I felt proud. I felt invincible.

So, in my quest to earn my Ph.D., I am applying to several programs. And, I am required to go back to my professors from my Masters program and solicit recommendations. I was pleasantly surprised by this letter:

January 17, 2007

RE: Letter of Recommendation for Tina Terebeckij

To whom it may concern:

Tina Terebeckij was a student in my Principles and Theories of Learning course (PSY659) at Pepperdine University from January of 2005 to April 14, 2005. She demonstrated exceptionally high levels of commitment to mastering the content of the course. Her class rank was number two out of 20 students.

Tina was a class leader. She worked hand-in-hand with her classmates on group projects, in-class discussions, and in her presentations. Her passion for supporting other people’s growth was clearly and consistently displayed in the time she was my student. When Tina asked me to write a letter on her behalf, I was delighted for the opportunity to support her goals, because I see what is in this talented young woman. She has the emotional and intellectual maturity and academic talent to be successful in a doctoral program of study at your University.

I would be most pleased to personally talk with you in more detail about other qualifications of Tina Terebeckij. Please contact me at....

Sincerely,

Jack L. Housden, Ph.D.
Adjunct Professor of Education and Psychology
Pepperdine University, Orange County Learning Center, Irvine, CA

Our Little Donkey and some Psych info (WARNING: non-poker related content)

Here is an updated picture of our puppy, little Smokkee.
I absolutely adore him! He's such a good boy.
Ray laughs at me because I send the puppy to doggy day care a few days a week.
It gets him socialized with other dogs, and he gets lots of exercise!!

I've been busy applying to PhD programs in Clinical Psych.
I'm applying to the University of Las Vegas, the University of North Carolina, Greesnboro, Alliant University in CA, and Argosy University in CA. They all require Transcripts from all 3 schools I've attended, letters of recommendation, a personal statement/essay, a resume, application and fees. Whew - soo much work!! Many of my professors from my Masters Degree program have been very happy to write letters. Ordering transcripts has been painful. My personal essay was difficult to write, but easy to conform to each school's requirements.

They want to know all about your personal struggles, why you will be a good therapist, and what you will base not only your therapy strategy on (theory), but what you plan to research for a possible Dissertation topic. My dissertation must explore a topic that is interesting to others and myself and invokes numerous job opportunities. Attachment theory and morality, for me, have become two key fields of interest and possible dissertation topic areas. I tentatively plan to investigate the development of attachment during childhood, and the establishment of morality, as they relate to the criminal mind. I am interested in interventions during adolescence that will redirect at-risk children to healthier ways of expressing themselves.

So you lose some, and you lose some

The last few weeks of football have been rough.
My Bucks lose, my Chargers lose.
How could 2 teams that are sooo favored, lose so badly?
I don't understand.

I'm not sure which is worse, losing all season, or winning all season and screwing up unexpectedly - in the playoffs, in the Championship game.
You see, my football team breakdown is this: Ohio State Bucks, Cleveland Browns, San Diego Chargers.
I grew up in Cleveland, and remain loyal to my OH teams. I love the Indians, the Browns and the Cavs.
Since I'm a big fan of the football, I put my heart mostly into those teams.
I like baseball, on a nice Sunday afternoon, sitting in the sun, drinkin an ice cold beer.
I'm not a huge fan of basketball, but love watching Lebron.
I do love hockey, and the Bluejackets are awesome. But, I don't get to see them much.
So, I mostly root for my Bucks, and the Chargers, my winning teams.
Plus, Ray and I have Chargers Season tix, and have been going since I moved out to CA 3 years ago. Ray has actually owned the tix for about 7 years. The first year he owned the tix, they went 1-15 with Ryan Leaf. He is truely a loyal fan.
He was so heartbroken on Sunday. It sucks.
My heart was broken, too, but to a lesser degree than when the Bucks f-ed up.
Oh well, what's a girl to do? At least I did not bet on the Chargers. I think I'm giving up betting.
I stress out too much, and can't enjoy the game.

Speaking of enjoying the game, I'm struck with memories of when my sis and I lived back at Ohio State. We lived in several locations around campus - geesh, it seemed like we moved every year, and we did. Anyway, where ever we lived, we always made it down to campus for Bucks home games. We had some friends that lived across the street from the stadium, and charged $20 for parking. We parked for free though. We would walk a half block to the locals' favorite hang out, the Varsity Club, and staked our claim to a place at the bar. There, even though we didn't have tickets to the game, we felt like we were present. The crowd, the cheering, it was vintage good cheer - the kind where everyone is just there to have a good time.

Aaaahhh....the good ole sporting event. It's a place where joy and heartache often collide.

Playoffs BABY!!

Well, it's on to another football game and team.
My San Diego Chargers play thier first playoff game tomorrow, against Waffs team, the Patriots.

Check this out, courtesy of my beloved:



Should be a pretty Sweet game. Hmmmm...I wonder what I should wear.
I'm NOT going to bet. I've determined that it's bad luck.
Plus, I usually go broke. The game is around 1:30 tomorrow. We'll head out around 10:30.
It's about an hour drive south of Laguna, depending on traffic.
We'll take baby Smokkee, too, and stay overnight in a hotel. We may even enjoy an adult beverage or two.

Go Chargers Go!!!!!

Sooo...have not played much poker lately. Have not been into it. Have you ever felt that way?
I feel like "what's the purpose?" I never win anyway. Live games are more fun. Blogger tourneys are more fun. I guess I'll just have Smokk fund my bankroll....

A Story of Heartbreak....

Pregame excitement.... so ready to go
Our whole season wrapped up in a Red Bow.
We set forth to play the game we can't loose.
Our fans filled with pride - we prepare FL's noose.

First play of the game, we run the ball back.
Scoring first, quick and stating that we are no match.
We bask in the glory of true champion's reign.
Our Heisman trophy winner, about to be slain.

I sit here watching in disbelief and strife
As Florida steels a touch down, they plunge in the knife.
We score one more Touch Down and even the game
As I realize today, somehow, we are not destined for fame.

Our Defense did not show up
Our Offense did not block
Our Heisman Trophy Troy got sacked, and we all watched the clock.

I beat up the couch
I cursed all that's sane
As Florida kept scoring, I felt my hopes drain.

I tried to believe my Bucks would come back,
But the screen on the TV proved Florida's attack.

My team, hopes and glory
Were crushed with disdain
The tears in my eyes were welling from pain

I finally realized my Bucks were sure beat
My heart in my throat, I shrunk in defeat.
How this could happen, nobody knows
My Bucks least of all
We went down the less chose.

Game Day is Upon us.

I'm undecided on whether or not to bet...and if so, how much.
It always seems to add to my anxiety about the game.
The last time I checked, Bodog was giving FL 7 1/2.
I'm SURE the Bucks will win, but the last 2 times I bet on them, they did not cover!
And, I'm too young for a heart attack.
May be a game-time decision...

UPDATE:
Okay, Okay, I bet. I put a cool $120 on my boyzzzz.
GO BUCKS!!!!!

now for some girlie stuff....oh and beer

I ordered Smokkee a Beer of the Month club membership for his birthday.
Recent shipments included BAD ELF and SANTA's BUTT:




My new shoes.... they are BCBG Paris. You girls know what I'm talking about...
I decided to treat myself to a post Christmas gift!!

Boise St. vs Oklahoma - Fiesta Bowl 2007

What an Amazing game!!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENwDDB0dlRk


Unfortuantely, Smokk and I missed it.
I made him watch a marathon rerun of Beauty and the Geek - oops!

TONIGHT: love_elf invitational west coast funtimes, BABY!!!

Tonight is Wil Wheaton's WWdN: Love_Elf 2nd chance invitational on Stars (10:3opm EST).

Stop by and play if you can.

the WWdN tourney password is: monkey

I busted out Wil Weaton!!

Played in the WWdN last night with some blogger friends.
It was my first time....
So, I must have been struck with beginners luck.
Evidentally, it's Wil Weaton's tourney, and if you bust him out of it, he names the next one after you.
Next weeks tourney will be called "love_elf 2nd chance / west coast funtimes"
SWEEET!

Here's the hand:
PokerStars Game #7623130777: Tournament #38470757, $5.00+$0.50 Hold'em No Limit - Level IV (50/100) - 2006/12/26 - 23:21:50 (ET)
Table '38470757 1' 9-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: Texas7272 (2290 in chips)
Seat 2: FatCat3 (980 in chips)
Seat 3: Astin (970 in chips)
Seat 5: Wil Wheaton (725 in chips)
Seat 7: Julius_Goat (3395 in chips)
Seat 8: rmitz (3635 in chips)
Seat 9: love_elf (1443 in chips)
Astin: posts small blind 50
Wil Wheaton: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to love_elf [6d 6s]
Julius_Goat: folds
rmitz: folds
love_elf: calls 100
Texas7272: folds
FatCat3: folds
Astin: folds
Wil Wheaton: checks
*** FLOP *** [7d 6c 9s]
Wil Wheaton: bets 300
love_elf: raises 324 to 624
Wil Wheaton said, "okay. here we go"
Wil Wheaton: raises 1 to 625 and is all-in
love_elf: calls 1
Texas7272 said, "gl wil"
Wil Wheaton said, "oh ****"
*** TURN *** [7d 6c 9s] [3s]
Julius_Goat said, "gg wil"
*** RIVER *** [7d 6c 9s 3s] [Kc]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Wil Wheaton: shows [3c 9c] (two pair, Nines and Threes)
love_elf: shows [6d 6s] (three of a kind, Sixes)
love_elf collected 1500 from pot
Astin said, "gg wil"
love_elf said, "gg"
FatCat3 said, "gg, wil"

OH - AND DID I MENTION THAT I ALSO MADE THE FINAL TABLE???
Notice that Smokk is also there.



Finally, we got down to three:



And this is how I finished:



HOLY Sheet! Not bad for a girl who only plays a few times a week.

Merry Christmas

May everyone's Holiday Season be Safe, Merry and Bright.
Holidays bring time spent with family and friends - load up on the Eggnog! Extra rum!!


My favorite Christmas song

Another classic

Bring on the GATORS baby!!!!