A Year in Review

Well 2019, you were quite the year. I entered this year excited, motivated and a little nervous but you certainly did not disappoint. Sure, you had your moments but the amount of positivity and growth you provided made you one of the best years I’ve ever had. So lets dive into what you brought

Became a First Aid Instructor with Red Cross

This is an achievement I’ve wanted for a really long time, and I’m so excited I made the step to actually make it happen. Medicine has been a huge part of my life and getting to educate others and help them feel confident enough to deal with emergencies is exciting!

As a Recreation Therapist having this background is also huge. Whether is going on outing or even just day to day programs, emergencies happen. Knowing I can be involved in providing even more support to those I work with is really important to me.

Completed my Internship!

2019 landed me a summer at Memory & Company, a day program and overnight respite resort for individuals with memory loss. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life filled with opportunities, growth and really really amazing people. I cannot even explain to you how amazing this facility is, but I hope to have a post dedicated to this place as well as the amazing people involved in helping it run so smoothly. It’s a facility that is a first of its kind, and I am so thankful for education led me there.

I have to give a special shoutout here to Ashley, my internship partner in crime. Ashley and I really didn’t know each other before we landed this internship together but throughout our 4 months together she became someone I could really call a friend. We laughed, we cried and we lived some difficult moments together. Ash, thank you for living this internship experience with me!

I Graduated!

One of the biggest and probably most exciting experience of my life occurred this year. After 18 consecutive years in school I finally finished (kind of, keep reading for an update!). This year I graduated with my degree in Recreation Therapy from Brock University!!

University was a whirlwind of emotions from happy to dances, to crying, to even contemplating if I should even be there. My time at university allowed me to push my limits, and I could not be more thankful that I chose Brock University. I owe a huge thank you to my professors, my classmates, my roommates and the amazing people who have supported me.

Did Some Pretty Amazing Leisurely Activities!

Part of being a recreation therapist is practicing what you preach and that means making time for recreation and leisure. While I’m thankful I got to do a lot seeing Marianas Trench in Concert and running the 5k Foam Fest run had to be two of my tops!

Landed my first job out of university in my hometown!

Before I had even finished my internship and walked across that stage I landed my first job out of school. I have spent the last 4 months at the Elden of Bradford, a retirement home in my hometown.

It feels like I did a full circle with this little town being the place where my love for this field started and flourished.

The Elden isn’t your average retirement home, in fact we consider ourselves an un-retirement home. We strive on running programs that allow our residents to push their limits, grow all aspects of themselves and really LOVE there lives! Running “learn a language” program, going dog sledding, shooting nerf guns, cooking classes and monthly trips to the casino. It’s been a place where I’ve got to use my education in so many different ways while at the same time really learning to test of the limits of what programs can do.

Started This Blog!

Of course I can’t leave this one out! This blog has been a long time coming and I’m really proud of myself for feeling confident enough to finally make this step.

THANK YOU to everyone who has helped support me in this journey. From those of you who convinced me to make this happen, those of you that follow my instagram, those of you that read my posts/comment and who have helped share this blog!

Onto 2020 To Dos!!

I didn’t just take on 2019, I conquered it and the plan is to keep that momentum going into 2020. I’ve decided that instead of creating unrealistic resolutions and disappointing myself, I’m going to take a different route. In 2020 I’m going to set goals instead, goals that will provide me with a direction to take.

And yup, resolutions and goals are two different things. By definition a resolution is a firm decision to either do or not do something. A goal is an aimed or desired result that involve setting, planning, preparing and taking action. My hope is that be setting goals I’ll be able to keep a positive approach while still having a guide and actions to help lead me in the right direction.

So what are my goals? Lets jump into it!

Slow D O W N

If you know me, you know I’m a go go go kind of person. I love being constantly busy and I’m always jumping from one thing to the next. In 2020 I want to remember to breathe and really enjoy every opportunity and experience, both good and bad.

I will still stay busy and I already probably have too many things on the go, but the goal is to enjoy each thing individually and really absorb every moment I’m in.

Keep Learning

I’ve always been someone who enjoys learning new things and I want to really push myself in 2020. I want to push myself to learn about this field, learn about history, learn about present events, learn about anything and everything I can get my hands on. I kind of already have some pretty set goals for this one.

Become a CTRS. My plan is to study my butt off and obtain this certification. While it’s something I’m doing to get ahead in this field of study, it’s also just something I want to do for myself. Recreation Therapy is more than a job for me, it’s a passion and I want to keep growing that.
I’m going back to school! Starting in January I will be taking online classes that will allow me to work towards getting a certificate of achievement in Crisis Intervention Theoretical Training from Seneca College. The two classes I’ll be taking first are death and dying in crisis intervention and Crisis Intervention in Domestic Abuse.
Work on my Sign Language skills. In university I took some sign language courses and developed a true love for the language, learning to speak without words is such an art. My hope is to keep developing this skills in 2020 and really push myself.

This is just the start though, this is not a goal I’m limiting myself on. I’m hoping to gain more certifications, expand on some skills and learn about things I know nothing about. I’m definitely a learner and I’m exciting for all the knowledge thats going to come in 2020!

Read More

Going right along with learning more, I want to develop a love for reading. A little fun fact about me, I’m a really picky reader. I only like to read when I want to and the list of topics I choose to read is pretty short.

In 2020 my goal is to read as much as I can. The goal is to really expand my list with the hope that it will help me push my “keep learning” goal to a whole new level. It doesn’t matter if its blogs, newspapers, magazines, textbooks or none of the above as long as I’m reading.

Keep Writing

This blog has been a head start for this goal, but in 2020 I want to ensure that I keep writing. I am a really passionate speaker and my hope is to really work on putting that passion to paper (or virtual paper).

I want my blog posts to range, I don’t want to have just static writing. Fun little fact about me, I LOVE poetry and so my hope is to share some of my work right here! You might see some “day in the life of me” posts, some educational posts, some posts that focus solely on different assessments or programs. I’m honestly not even going to try and guess what they all could be because I want to keep an open mind and just give myself some room for creativity.

I have a really good feeling about 2020 and everything thats going to come. These goals are only the beginning. So here’s to everything that this upcoming year has in store for all of us and keeping an open mind for everything that is to come!