Wow! We are getting slammed with snow! We had a snow storm start on Friday afternoon, and it snowed really hard until Saturday night giving us somewhere between 24 and 30 inches of snow, depending where you are. The good news is that the roads have not been fully cleared yet, so I got to have off the last 2 days with my two lovebugs. Dylan and I have spent time playing the Wii together. He loves the Carnival Games! He is really good at them too! Tessa and I have been practicing her walking (she will do somewhere close to about 10 steps now and could do more if she wasn't such a fraidy cat!) and cuddling during nap times! I've actually really enjoyed the time at home with them.
So now, that the roads are about to clear...GUESS WHAT? Yup, ANOTHER SNOW STORM IS ON ITS WAY!
Starting this afternoon, we are supposed to get about another 10-20 inches! There are still mountains of snow on the sides of the road, and in some cases, it's very dangerous because all of a sudden, a lane just ends with a mountain of snow! I truly do not have any idea where they are going to put all this snow, so I'm worried that if it actually does happen, we might not get out for a while because there won't be enough room to plow the snow too because of the already existing mounds that are already there! It should be interesting if nothing else!
Sorry, I haven't updated the blog much lately. Things have been a little hectic. As always, there are updates on the health spectrum in the Carver household.
Jimmy is having back surgery on his bulging disk on Friday. Hopefully, that will go well, and in a few days, he will at least be able to walk around, as I will have to go back to work on Tuesday. He, on the other hand, will likely be out of work for 6 weeks! Yikes...that makes me nervous! The doctors seem to think that that shouldn't be a problem, so keep your fingers crossed for him that all goes well!
Tessa, as many of you probably know, does have the kidney reflux going on. They tested her because of a bladder infection that she had recently. She will be seeing a urologist on March 2 to figure out what the plan of attack will be from here. The pediatrician seems to think the plan will likely be for her to take a preventative dose of antibiotics for a year, and then be retested to see if it's still happening. She thinks that it is very likes that she will grow out of this! We'll see what the specialist says on the 2nd of March!
Dylan and I are just fun and plugging along. He is doing fantastic in school and is loving it! He is always so proud of the things he makes and does in school and is really learning a lot! We really love his teacher this year. She is wonderful and even got Teacher of the Year for the school this year! She has been great for him because she adores the kids, but is also no nonsense at the same time! I am doing my move to the DV Unit on February 23 and am already working on some things for after the transition! I'm really looking forward to it! Finally, my girls' teams are doing great and starting to prepare and train hard for the spring season. I think it's going to be a FANTASTIC SEASON for both teams, and I'm excited to see how well they do this year!!!
Hope all you fellow Marylanders are enjoying the snow (and all the days off if you are getting them too)!
Talk with all again very soon!!!!
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Soooo excited!!!
Ok, so this comes a day late because I didn't have time to blog last night.
Well, I had a big meeting scheduled at work at 10 am yesterday morning. The meeting was with the supervisor of the Domestic Violence (DV) Unit, one of the Deputy State's Attorneys (2nd in charge) in our office, and another one of the Assistant State's Attorneys (or ASA...that's what I am) who is currently assigned to the DV Unit. They really didn't tell me what the meeting was about, only to be there for the meeting.
Well, I got there, and they gave me the BEST NEWS! I am being moved into the Domestic Violence Unit! This will be effective March 1. I have been wanting to get into that unit for a long time. Our FJC (Family Justice Center) is really where my heart is. I think prosecuting domestic violence and crimes against children which are the crimes that are handled at the FJC is probably some of the most important work our office does. I will be handling domestic violence cases, not so much the crimes against children, with the exception of some cases which include assaults against children. I am so, so excited. The other ASA that they met with (they ended up doing the meetings separately to break the news to her first) will be moving out of the unit and back to regular District Court as well as doing juvenile sex offense cases.
The reason for the move is this. Our office got a federal grant last year in light of our county's budget crisis under the Recovery Act of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) which goes to fund the position I will be filling. We made a proposal to get this grant. The grant proposed that the position that I will be in (and the other ASA is currently filling) requires that 85% of the ASA in that position's time will be spent doing District Court Domestic Violence cases. The problem was this...the ASA currently in that role is not interested in being in District Court. She makes no secret of the fact that she thinks District Court is beneath her and consistently takes on more and more cases in Circuit Court, including DV cases and other types of cases. We have gone 2 quarters under this grant and not even begun the changes we proposed to make, mainly because she didn't want to do the job for the position she was in. The icing on the cake was when she took on voluntarily the juvenile sex offense cases, thus taking more time away from the DV cases. As it currently stands, there is a monthly DV docket in District Court which it is technically her job to handle. I don't believe she has handled one in months. She has recently admitted that she wasn't in District Court AT ALL the whole month of February. The reason I say all this is that since the meeting yesterday, I believe she has been complaining about the fact that she is being moved. The thing is she doesn't care that she is being moved out of DV. She is mad because she is not going to Circuit Court (mostly felonies), but rather back to District Court plus doing the juvenile sex offenses. In light of the economy, no one is leaving their jobs, and there is really no opening in Circuit Court, so I really don't know what she expected, but I am annoyed and frustrated by her attitude, especially since she does not care about DV, and it's sooo important, and to her, it is only a way to NOT be in District Court, even though the job she currently hold is "District Court DV prosecutor! Ridiculous!
Anyway, on to more important topics, our FJC and DV Unit is one of the best around and really held out in a lot of places to be an example. We do things sooo well and have a great team, and with the adjustments we are about to make, we are going to make even more leaps forward. The plan is this - our office, District Court, and the commissioner's office have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding in which there will be not a monthly DV docket, but a WEEKLY DV docket, and all of the DV cases that come in will be placed on those dockets. I will handle ALL of these dockets. Now here's the cool thing about that...that means that with the exception of felonies, I will have my hands on ALL of the DV cases that come into the office. The majority of DV cases are misdemeanors, so it's really an awesome task that I've been given, and one that could make a major impact on domestic violence in the county I work in and grew up in.
This will definitely be super rewarding, but challenging at the same time. DV cases are obviously emotional and very challenging because many times out of fear, love, financial reasons, and other reasons, the victims will change their story, minimize the incident, and do everything possible to protect their abusers. However, when you get a good result, it is so, so rewarding and feels sooo good!!
So, suffice to say, I am so looking forward to the challenges and rewards that are ahead and am so thankful they are giving me this opportunity to make such a big difference in people's lives.
Well, I had a big meeting scheduled at work at 10 am yesterday morning. The meeting was with the supervisor of the Domestic Violence (DV) Unit, one of the Deputy State's Attorneys (2nd in charge) in our office, and another one of the Assistant State's Attorneys (or ASA...that's what I am) who is currently assigned to the DV Unit. They really didn't tell me what the meeting was about, only to be there for the meeting.
Well, I got there, and they gave me the BEST NEWS! I am being moved into the Domestic Violence Unit! This will be effective March 1. I have been wanting to get into that unit for a long time. Our FJC (Family Justice Center) is really where my heart is. I think prosecuting domestic violence and crimes against children which are the crimes that are handled at the FJC is probably some of the most important work our office does. I will be handling domestic violence cases, not so much the crimes against children, with the exception of some cases which include assaults against children. I am so, so excited. The other ASA that they met with (they ended up doing the meetings separately to break the news to her first) will be moving out of the unit and back to regular District Court as well as doing juvenile sex offense cases.
The reason for the move is this. Our office got a federal grant last year in light of our county's budget crisis under the Recovery Act of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) which goes to fund the position I will be filling. We made a proposal to get this grant. The grant proposed that the position that I will be in (and the other ASA is currently filling) requires that 85% of the ASA in that position's time will be spent doing District Court Domestic Violence cases. The problem was this...the ASA currently in that role is not interested in being in District Court. She makes no secret of the fact that she thinks District Court is beneath her and consistently takes on more and more cases in Circuit Court, including DV cases and other types of cases. We have gone 2 quarters under this grant and not even begun the changes we proposed to make, mainly because she didn't want to do the job for the position she was in. The icing on the cake was when she took on voluntarily the juvenile sex offense cases, thus taking more time away from the DV cases. As it currently stands, there is a monthly DV docket in District Court which it is technically her job to handle. I don't believe she has handled one in months. She has recently admitted that she wasn't in District Court AT ALL the whole month of February. The reason I say all this is that since the meeting yesterday, I believe she has been complaining about the fact that she is being moved. The thing is she doesn't care that she is being moved out of DV. She is mad because she is not going to Circuit Court (mostly felonies), but rather back to District Court plus doing the juvenile sex offenses. In light of the economy, no one is leaving their jobs, and there is really no opening in Circuit Court, so I really don't know what she expected, but I am annoyed and frustrated by her attitude, especially since she does not care about DV, and it's sooo important, and to her, it is only a way to NOT be in District Court, even though the job she currently hold is "District Court DV prosecutor! Ridiculous!
Anyway, on to more important topics, our FJC and DV Unit is one of the best around and really held out in a lot of places to be an example. We do things sooo well and have a great team, and with the adjustments we are about to make, we are going to make even more leaps forward. The plan is this - our office, District Court, and the commissioner's office have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding in which there will be not a monthly DV docket, but a WEEKLY DV docket, and all of the DV cases that come in will be placed on those dockets. I will handle ALL of these dockets. Now here's the cool thing about that...that means that with the exception of felonies, I will have my hands on ALL of the DV cases that come into the office. The majority of DV cases are misdemeanors, so it's really an awesome task that I've been given, and one that could make a major impact on domestic violence in the county I work in and grew up in.
This will definitely be super rewarding, but challenging at the same time. DV cases are obviously emotional and very challenging because many times out of fear, love, financial reasons, and other reasons, the victims will change their story, minimize the incident, and do everything possible to protect their abusers. However, when you get a good result, it is so, so rewarding and feels sooo good!!
So, suffice to say, I am so looking forward to the challenges and rewards that are ahead and am so thankful they are giving me this opportunity to make such a big difference in people's lives.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
What a week....
Well, it has been fun around here this week. Everyone in our house has been sick.
Tessa was very, very snotty all week and had fevers on and off Monday through Wednesday. Since Wednesday, she has still had the runny nose and stuff, but is not nearly as lethargic and grumpy as she was for the first few days of the week...she's back to her old awnry self now! She just can't get a break when it comes to sickness - she's had so many things...upper respiratory infections, bladder infections, colds! Let's hope she'll turn it around from here. Her tests for the bladder infection to make sure everything internally is doing what it's supposed to are scheduled for January 26. I am praying they go smoothly and that the results are good.
Dylan just has a little cough, and Jimmy just had a cold. I, on the other hand, am another story. I have had a hacking cough all week, and my coworkers told me that they wanted to quarantine me because I sound so awful. I have felt bad on and off...some days I felt like crap, other days my chest just hurt from all the coughing. I will be sooooo happy when this gunk goes away!!!
Well, for some good news, Tessa has gotten 2 new teeth and is working on another one. She now has the 2 middle teeth on the bottom, and her right top front tooth. The left front tooth is right there and will be breaking through any time now! I can't believe how big she is getting...she now has almost 4 teeth, cruises around this house like a pro, and will be 10 months old tomorrow. 10 months old...where in the world has the time gone?? I feel like I was just screaming in the hospital lobby about to have her and now here she is - this beautiful daughter of mine who is developing a personality and is not really even a baby anymore, and let me tell you, she is a feisty one. She'll give you the business if she disapproves of anything. She has learned to wave and blow kisses....and says her version of "hiiii" even when she waves. She is just an adorable little princess. I love watching her and Dylan play together. It gets better and better the bigger she gets, and Dylan...man he is such a good big brother. He takes things from her if he knows that she shouldn't have them. He's very protective of her. He constantly wants to be involved in all of her new accomplishments or decisions about her. When we drop her off in the morning before I take him to school, he won't leave without kissing her goodbye. It has just been a true joy to watch them...I can say that I think the last 10 months have been the best 10 months of my life.
I know that it will only get better. I can't wait for the things to come, Tessa's first steps, Dylan starting Kindergarten next year and full day school, etc.
We went to the Blast game last night and are going again tonight. Pat (my brohter) had an assist. That's 3 games in a row that he has gotten an assist. I am so proud of him for how well he is doing in his career. It is so fun too to watch the kids at the game enjoying something I loved to do as a kid. Dylan just loves going to the games, and Tessa is starting to really like it too.
Well for now, I want these colds to go away and have a healthy house for a little while. That would be a nice change. LOL. I hope to do better with keeping up with my blog more often.
Tessa was very, very snotty all week and had fevers on and off Monday through Wednesday. Since Wednesday, she has still had the runny nose and stuff, but is not nearly as lethargic and grumpy as she was for the first few days of the week...she's back to her old awnry self now! She just can't get a break when it comes to sickness - she's had so many things...upper respiratory infections, bladder infections, colds! Let's hope she'll turn it around from here. Her tests for the bladder infection to make sure everything internally is doing what it's supposed to are scheduled for January 26. I am praying they go smoothly and that the results are good.
Dylan just has a little cough, and Jimmy just had a cold. I, on the other hand, am another story. I have had a hacking cough all week, and my coworkers told me that they wanted to quarantine me because I sound so awful. I have felt bad on and off...some days I felt like crap, other days my chest just hurt from all the coughing. I will be sooooo happy when this gunk goes away!!!
Well, for some good news, Tessa has gotten 2 new teeth and is working on another one. She now has the 2 middle teeth on the bottom, and her right top front tooth. The left front tooth is right there and will be breaking through any time now! I can't believe how big she is getting...she now has almost 4 teeth, cruises around this house like a pro, and will be 10 months old tomorrow. 10 months old...where in the world has the time gone?? I feel like I was just screaming in the hospital lobby about to have her and now here she is - this beautiful daughter of mine who is developing a personality and is not really even a baby anymore, and let me tell you, she is a feisty one. She'll give you the business if she disapproves of anything. She has learned to wave and blow kisses....and says her version of "hiiii" even when she waves. She is just an adorable little princess. I love watching her and Dylan play together. It gets better and better the bigger she gets, and Dylan...man he is such a good big brother. He takes things from her if he knows that she shouldn't have them. He's very protective of her. He constantly wants to be involved in all of her new accomplishments or decisions about her. When we drop her off in the morning before I take him to school, he won't leave without kissing her goodbye. It has just been a true joy to watch them...I can say that I think the last 10 months have been the best 10 months of my life.
I know that it will only get better. I can't wait for the things to come, Tessa's first steps, Dylan starting Kindergarten next year and full day school, etc.
We went to the Blast game last night and are going again tonight. Pat (my brohter) had an assist. That's 3 games in a row that he has gotten an assist. I am so proud of him for how well he is doing in his career. It is so fun too to watch the kids at the game enjoying something I loved to do as a kid. Dylan just loves going to the games, and Tessa is starting to really like it too.
Well for now, I want these colds to go away and have a healthy house for a little while. That would be a nice change. LOL. I hope to do better with keeping up with my blog more often.
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