Firemen, speech, yoga meets dance, old friends, and family bliss

The last couple of days have been full of excitement. Though my lack of writing has been brief, hopefully this recap will tickle the fancy.  As I said, I have a crazy life. To some, this is only the minor leagues, but regardless I love it.

Wednesday came and went and therapy as you read, was fantastic. Being able to work with the same therapists again is great. They know me, they're familiar with what my muscles are capable of, and most importantly push me to keep working. After I finished therapy that afternoon and eventually made my way back home, I brushed up on my speech I was giving the next morning. Afterwards, my head hit the pillow and sleep and I became best friends once again.

Thursday seemed to come to soon. Yet ironically, some stiffness, a little soreness, and other than that, this gal was feel'in pretty good. Once ready, it was off to speak at the Mississippi Society for Social Work Leadership in Healthcare 2011 Annual Conference. Back in October I had been asked to speak and was super stoked the date had finally arrived. Before any speech there are always a few butterflies in my stomach. Then once the butterflies calm down, all is good, and I begin my speech. I've been told and also say, that everyone is their own worse critic. We're sometimes harder on ourselves. The speech went well. Of course I have my critics to work on and fix, but for the most part, I feel it went well.

Everyone was really receptive and kind. Though, my time wasn't over yet. I'd be heading back to the end of the conference Friday afternoon for a Yoga Meets Dance session to begin the weekend. That night I occupied my friends to the unveiling of the 2012 Mississippi Firemen's catalog they were commissioned to do for the MS burn foundation.
Talamieka and Charles Brice are both the creators of Brice Media, they shot and did the layout on the opening page of this website. Here's a sample of some the shots they took for this calender:

Pretty good right? Needless to say, I was looking forward to the event. It was literally down to the wire to get  all the calenders printed, which by the way happened in the nick of time. Then it was off to the event, which we made right on time. The event, and the calenders looked great. Firefighters from different parts of the state were featured. Luckily, a few of the firefighters featured in the calender were there to sign autographs. Quite the scene.

The inside of the event looked beautiful:

These are some of the firefighters in the calender

Of course my buddy, the beautiful talented,Talameika Brice of Brice Media

Look at her in action

And of course the other founder and my big brother buddy of Brice Media, Charles 

Goofy

Those two are great. The evening was great was. Good Music, great cause, I saw a few folks I knew. Brice Media shined that night. Everyone really loved the calenders. So, we left happy and content. 

Friday it was back for round two at the conference. I was ending the conference with a Yoga Meets Dance class. I had my doubts if it was going to be a good class because right as we started a fire drill went off for about what seemed like an eternity. But luckily, as the music played and the class went on, we ended on a great note for the conference and the weekend. 

That night, I was invited to attend a birthday. An old friend of mine was in town visiting her family  and celebrating her birthday. Reuniting with an old friend is always fun. We caught up, ate cake, and I was able to meet her kids who filled the celebration air with sounds of giggles. 

Party! This is another close friend, Jordan, just enjoying fun 

A hefty size of ice cream cake and friends was the close of a good week. I'm not sure if I've ever shown a picture of my brother on here, but as I was getting home he was heading out for the night. We shagged a picture together before he head out into the night's festivities. Here's my little bro. The kid drives me crazy some nights, but I love him :)

The moon went down and the sun came up and low and behold, it's Saturday! It was a pleasant Saturday also. I went and visited my friend Donovan, who in September learned and was diagnosed with intestinal cancer. The doctors found a tumor which spread to his liver. Luckily a few days later, doctors removed the tumor which had practically blocked his digestion. He's been at home recovering actually quite well and will begin chemotherapy just as soon as possible. In the meantime he's become a movie buff with all the time he has. So, I spent the day hanging out and watching movies. He's growing his hair out along with a beard and  also introduced me to the newest member oh his family, Chango (if I spelled it wrong, I'm sorry).

Sweet Right?

Adorable

And just when you thought it couldn't get any cuter. Look at this little puppy dog curled up asleep

Awwwwwwwww

We watched movies, chit chatted and geeked out. It was nice, his girlfriend joined in fun movie time after she got off, and all was well. The weekend came to a beautiful close. I headed to the country to visit a friend. The weather was perfect for lodging. She has a screened in front porch. At one point we were both sitting on the porch. She was reading a book and I listening to the tunes on my ipod enjoying nature. And we both had the same thought " I know were not talking, but I am so happy". Just sitting enjoying nature is a nice pass time. 

So there you have it. A little crazy yet, completely fulfilled. Let's see what this week has in store.

Nicole