tuesday december 14
I went to see Usher, Trey Songz, and special guests at Madison Square Garden. This was one of the last things I did with the group :( We had so much fun! I also went with Andreas family to tour Google with Dale. Google is an amazing place...free food, exercise machines, scooters, and fun meeting  places.


Wednesday December 15
I had lunch with Brianna for the last time :(  we went and had sandwiches....she then gave me a frame from NYC with our group picture from Jason Castro. After that I went to  the girls apartment to hang out and get ready for the party :) Then I checked out of The New Yorker.....went to the party with the group.....where we ate food, watched movies, made a gingerbread house! Late that night it was time to say goodbye :( Me and Lisa cried and hugged a million times! It was SO sad and hard to walk out the door.

Internship done.....last minute fun....then home for more fun!

Friday December 10
Was my last day at Project Sunshine.  I helped send off hundreds of toys for the holidays. Then said my goodbyes and headed to the interns last hospital event at the  Hospital for Special Surgery. We made popcorn ball ornaments out of candy which was so much fun for the kids.

After the event I said bye to the other interns....I will miss them so much and will miss having a job to do everyday but will have one again soon enough. Later I went to my secret santa party where I was given a scarf and topogan from Jenna and I bought Lisa christmas items for her new apartment :) Then we all watched Elf and enjoyed being with each other for the last time.

Saturday December 11
Today was moving day for all of my NYC friends...I ate dinner with Brianna and watched Private Practice all day...Then went to Cold Stone with Brianna which was delicious and weird eating since it is so cold outside!


Sunday December 12
Went to church with Brianna at Cityvine. The sermon was great as usual. Then I had to say bye again :( I have just started to get to know and be comfortable at this church and now it is time to leave...saying good bye is not fun but I plan to come back and keep in touch with everyone :).  After church me and Brianna went to eat where I ate a delicious BBQ chicken pizza that was yummy! Then I stayed in my room the rest of the day since the weather is so gross...

Monday December 13
I have eaten lunch with Lisa, walked around fifth avenue, central park, and tried to find me a NYC mug at a souvenir shop unsuccessfully....Later I have Andrea's showcase with all my New Yorker friends :) then maybe Serendipity for dessert after :)

The end is near...bittersweet but still a little sad

Tuesday December 7
I sent teddy bears that were donated to us for different hospitals out. Then we started putting things together for our Naughty and Nice event. This entailed going to our storage facility and picking up a few boxes. The car service that was supposed to pick us up from there cancelled so it all became drama filled very quickly! But me, Heidi, and Stephen finally made it back to the office. Then I sent more teddy bears out.

After work I just chilled in my room after a long busy day. Then watched Gossip Girl with Lisa.

Wednesday December 8
The day started with me receiving around ten emails from Jing about sending bears too hospitals. I ended up sending three boxes each to about eleven hospitals....After that I took a break because I was running around with my head cut off almost and Jing said I needed a break lol...Then I helped pack up all of the raffle prizes for our event because the girl in charge of it all was a little stressed!

I could not get away from work fast enough! Everyone was going around crazy all day and the office was filled with boxes. So I left and went to Duane Reade for a snack and to buy some last minute items for my outfit I am wearing for the event. Then Kathleen and Brianna were waiting on me to eat but I had a left over burrito to eat from lunch. So they bought pizza and we just hung out for the rest of the night. Then I went back to my room and managed to lose my remote to the TV....still have no clue what I did with it :(

Thursday December 9
Today is almost my last day!!! I have sent off two boxes of teddy bears and helped Marisa with a few things and that is it! Tonight is the big Naughty and Nice event where I will be helping at the Registration table..I am told the event will be fun but we shall see...it is a fundraiser for Project Sunshine where we invited Young Professionals..hope to see some celebs maybe :)

Tomorrow is my LAST day at Project Sunshine and event with them!!! It has been fun, stressful, frustrating, and just a experience I will never forget.

Start of the end of my journey...

Friday December 3
Well my day started with happy news from my sister :) so excited for her!!! Then I went to work...my second to last Friday there :) Then after work I had to pay for school tuition :( which reminded my class days are soon to begin again....


After work I went and  helped my friends paint their new apartment! It is a two story apartment that is great! Who would have thought you could find an affordable place that was nice with a backyard in Manhattan! 


Late that night we went to Tick Tock to eat dinner because we were tired and starving. Then it was off to bed..I had a train to catch in the morning.


Saturday December 4
I headed to Long Island early on Saturday. Brianna picked me up at the station and we went and picked me up some Ugg cleaner at a place called Lowmans. Then we went to Main Street but it was way too cold to be outside so we went to her house and got warm while watching CSI Miami! Later Kathleen came and joined us then we went to go see The Next Three Days with Brianna's parents Dan and Rose...the movie was amazing! It definitely kept us guessing the whole time. Then we went back to their house and got pizza for dinner followed with more CSI Miami.


Sunday December 5
We went to Brianna's church which is Episcopal and so it was very different from what I am used to. But going meant alot to her and let me learn more about other religions and also about her families beliefs. Then we went to Smoky Al's a barbecue place that was very good. The cornbread was probably my favorite part because it was moist and yummy...reminded me of home!


Then me, Brianna, and Kathleen baked cookies all afternoon. I wondered why we were catching such a late train back to the city...come to find out Brianna had planned with her Nanny to make a goodbye meal for me...her whole family was there except for her sister and was so nice. We ate and talked and just enjoyed each others socializing...I was really tired but staying late was so worth it! I will miss all of them very much! They are a great family and are always entertaining :)


Sunday night I arrived back late to my room. So I talked to mom on the phone and then headed to bed. I missed graduations and showers but it was great to be doing my own thing and having my own plans for a change :) 


Monday December 6
At work we had a 5th year anniversary for Emily which was alot of fun. We ate Indian food and decorated the room with bills because Emily brings in the money to or organization :)


After work I went to Shake Shack with Brianna and Kathleen :) so yummy! Peanut Butter Shake...(The diet starts when I get back on Texas soil...maybe) Now I am waiting on Gossip Girl to start and hang out with Lisa! I am going to miss these girls

Holidays! Internship almost over....almost time to leave NYC :/

Sunday  November 28
I was lazy all day! Eventually I went and worked out but for the  most part I caught up on sleep.

Monday November 29
I worked on cleaning my back area at work all day because it is a mess. Then after work me Brianna and Kathleen went to Shake Shack. This place is a popular burger and shake joint but to me it was nothing special.

Tuesday November 30
We had mine and Stephen farewell lunch. They ordered sandwiches and we talked about each of our experiences....Then I had to go to the bank to pick up a wire transfer...get Beatrice to sign it...bring the paper back to the bank. Also picked up a coffee pot because someone left it on during the Thanksgiving break.....
Then I went to the Rockefeller Center tree lighting ;) I was across the street but got to see the tree light up and here some of the performances....just wish others from my group could have made it.

Wednesday December 1
I worked on last minute internship paper stuff....also had to un do a bunch of craft kits that were junkie and keep the salvageable items...Then I updated the fundraiser database that goes along with our Naughty and  Nice event next week.

After work I went to Subway because I had not eaten all day and was starving! Subway is great wherever you are...Then we ran to get snacks and go see the movie Love and Other Drugs. The movie was not my regular movie but was cute and had a lesson with it...

Thursday December 2
I paid for tuition today :( I am excited about seeing everyone but am not ready to go back to school...plus I will miss my friends I have made here....
Then I finished cleaning out all of the bad craft kits, put together an event box, sent off fifty hair straighteners  to a hospital, and sent surgi dolls off.

Later tonight we are supposed to go walk to Rockefeller and see the tree and to take fun pictures :)

Saturday November 20 continued
to finish the long night we decided to eat at Tick Tock Diner.

Sunday November 21
Me and mom went to church at CityVine. When we went to get on the subway Brianna and her dad Dan were there. Come to find out they were also headed to church. We all went  and enjoyed church and then went our separate ways.

Me and mom were waiting for Jo to be done with her service so we went to DSW and Forever 21 in Union Square to buy boots and leggings. Then I was getting a huge headache and was hungry so we grabbed a snack at Crumbs and sat in the park.

Then Jo arrived and we ate at Patsys to get our pizza fix. After that we walked from Union Square  to The New Yorker....
On our walk back we saw the set of Mr Poppins Penguins with Jim Carrey and stopped at Starbucks because it was significantly cooler outside. Then we ended the day with seeing the Broadway show Chicago.

Monday November 22
The task of the day was to get my stuff packed to be shipped to Buna...Me and mom met Lisa at Hale and Hearty for lunch. We ate sandwiches in  Bryant Park and had a good time chatting until Lisa had to leave. Then we found boxes and headed back to my room.  On our way back we literally ran into the set of The Good Wife where the street had been turned into trailer lane and a building was turned into Peter Florricks campaign office!

After packing all of my things in boxes we headed to Macys to find a dress for upcoming events. I found a dress that was not necessarily my favorite but I am excited about how different it is and that I do not have to find anything when I arrive in Texas.

Tuesday November 23
Sierra was flying in! First me and mom did a bunch of walking! Mom wanted to go to Highline Park so we went there first. The weather was perfect for the day and we enjoyed taking pictures of the city. Then we headed to Soho and Greenwich Village area where we saw the Washington Square Arch and ate lunch.  By the time we walked back we were exhausted so we hung out until Sierra arrived!

We were so excited to have us all here :) But we had to hit the ground running....First we went to the Empire State Building in order for Sierra to see the whole city...Then we walked to Bryant Park but it was closed and so we just walked by Project Sunshine office building. After this we went to the tourist infested area of Times Square where we went to the Disney store and showed Sierra GMA and all the great things in Times Square.

Wednesday November 24
We went to the Statue of Liberty. People were everywhere but it was a beautiful day to be on the water. The wind was very chilly but we got Sierras pictures taken and headed to Wall Street. Sierra was not interested in taking pictures at every site but I did make her take a picture at the New York Stock Exchange. Then we walked 5th avenue and went into Tiffanys, saw The Plaza, and walked the outside of Central Park. Then we  ate dinner at Simply Pasta and went to see the show Jersey Boys which was fantastic!

Thursday November 25 Thanksgiving
We slept in a little bit. Then headed to the parade! We were a little late but were able to get on the subway and push through the crowd to see the parade :)

We went to Crumbs after the parade and got cupcakes to go. Then headed back to the hotel. Since we were really tired from the crowds and more sightseeing we took naps.
Then we decided to go eat at Heartland Brewery where they had a Thanksgiving meal but we opted for just a regular menu meal.

After our meal we went to show Sierra Rockefeller Center and the big christmas tree. Then we had the Christmas Spectacular. The Rockettes are phenomenal!

Friday November 26
Sierra left New York.. It was a short trip but she was able to see the city. Before she left we were able to get up early and try to be on GMA. But because the weather was gross and the holiday they decided to not film outside. So we went to Mc Donalds and had Stephens girls time which was much needed :) Then we went to Macys for Sierra to see the floors and decorations. After this it was time for her to go so we walked over to Penn Station and was able to get her on the NJ Transit headed for Newark Airport.

Now it was time to ship my boxes which was an ordeal because of the holiday but it was all taken care of. Then me and mom wanted to see West Side Story and so we went to the TKTS booth to buy tickets. For dinner we had one dollar pizza at two bros and headed to the show. The show was definitely as good as we thought it would be. A few of the actors were good but they just did not project their voices...After the show we stopped at Starbucks to grab hot chocolate and a snack for the night :)

Saturday November 27
Mom let me sleep in :) we had already done enough walking and touring the city to where we did not want to go anywhere. For lunch we went across the street to Lucys mexicanAguilera did an amazing job in this movie. As soon as the movie was over we had to head to our next show...Mary Poppins! I had already seen the show but mom had not. We loved every part of it :) disney was a great end to our visit together!

Mom left to head back to Texas at 1:30 this morning. In two weeks I will be doing the same.

Family Gone....back to the "real" world for all

Saturday November 20
I slept in because of mom and Jo flying in...Then I was bored from laying around so me and Lisa met to go work out. After an hour
of that we were tired again and hungry. Me, Lisa, and Erika headed to Kodam Sushi to eat. I am not a huge fan of sushi but since I have lived in New York I have learned to tolerate it. So we finished our food and since it was cooler outside decided to pick up   Starbucks on our way back....we also bought one for Andrea because they were having a deal. Then we went to Andreas room and hung out for a little while before going our seperate ways.

I had recieved a text by this point that mom and Jo had landed so it was now the waiting game...They were starving so we dropped of there bags and headed  to Times Square in order to just walk through and then went to Bryant Park to look at all of the holiday booths. On our way back towards the hotel we ran into Macys so they could see all the decorations and floors. MacysM

Slow week but the fam and friends are coming!

Tuesday November 16
Sent craft kits and  sunny grams to a hospitals play room that is in need of activities.Then I uploaded the Canada Gala pictures to the share drive for Jenny. After that I submitted a college chapters applications to the database. To end the day I walked to Josephs office to get papers signed and still did not meet him.

After work I went to Crumbs to get a cupcake because I had not been there in a while. Cupcakes have become a weakness here and now m&ms because I have a friend who buys them all the time. Then I went to workout with Lisa to make me feel better about my cupcake :)
Lisa has family in this week so we all went out to eat at a steakhouse called Kleins. The food was so great and her family was so kind. Fun night all together!

Wednesday November 17
Work consisted of Lisa having me do her Credit Card forms for most of the day. Organizing and finding all of the receipts for a statement takes forever when they are thrown in random spots. Then I worked on more of Jenny's college chapter applications to be put in the database. The office was having a board meeting so I also went and bought food for the board members. Since Joseph came to the meeting I also met him finally. He is not what a person would expect in a organization founder because he is so young and just does not have the professional look but he is very successful in all he has done.

After work I went and ate at Tic Toc with Lisa and Andrea. Then I tried to go to bed early...was not successful!

Thursday November 18
No one was in the office today so we did nothing! All I did was send one package to Miami that had a sign in sheet, brochures, pins, and press kits in it. Then I was asked to run a gift to a hospital for a patient. I arrive at the hospital to find out the patient has been brought home. My office is on 39th and 6th avenue and this hospital was on 39th and 1st avenue...To say the least I was tired and frustrated when I got back to Project Sunshine....

But after work it was Harry Potter time!!! We went to the theater at 9:30 and was let in at 10:00ish. Then we sat and watched extreme fans fight with their wands around the theater and quiz people in the audience on their Harry Potter knowledge. The movie started at 12:30 and ended at 4:00! I was so tired but it was fun and so worth it!

Friday November 19
Woke up exhausted!!! Luckily at work was boring today....but then again their is only so many times you can get on facebook a day before it gets ridiculously boring! At lunch I met Lisa at the set of Jennifer Aniston new movie! We totally saw her and were yelled at by the crew :) A women yelled at me and told me I was going to get ran over by a car lol but it was exciting! Then I went back to work :( for the next four hours I did NOTHING! I tried to leave early but they thought I might need to personally deliver some documents....at five o clock I was finally told they did not need me and I could leave....what a wasted day!!!

After work I went to the Armani sample sale with Erika and Lisa. They bought a few items but even though everything was dramatically on sale I just could not get myself to pay that kind of money for a purse....So we headed back to our place and me and Erika made pasta for dinner. Now I am chilling and resting up for when mom and Jo get here tomorrow!!! :)

Harry Potter Marathon Weekend! :)

Sunday November 14
So I can not wait for Harry Potter Thursday night at 12! I watched the other movies all day! First I went to church at Cityvine with Brianna though. It was so great to see everyone again and they were so friendly of course! We caught up and it sort of made me sad I will be leaving soon. Pastor Dave talked about Obedience and how what other people does around us shapes the way we are because of their influence. Also how we are always asked "Who has influenced you in your life?" Then the first answer is some celebrity or important person....in reality the main people who influence you are your immediate family! I totally agreed with this because my first though was my mom :) With out her I do not know what I would do because with everything I ask her opinion and then after that my twin sis Sierra! :)

After introducing Brianna to my other friends we headed back to our area from Union Square on the N! Yes I am starting to totally get the Subway which is a miracle in itself...lol! Then we ate at Taco Bell which I am not a fan of here in New York but it sounded good....

My afternoon consisted of watching Harry Potter on ABC Family! But this weekend was Open House for EHS so their were a million tours and I could not stand it. So I headed to the gym for an hour :)

Then the gang me up and we watched Harry Potter 6 Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince in order to get ready for Thursday!!! Lisa brought her amazing Austrian chocolate and of course I ate way too much! So today the workout is going to have to be intense :)

Monday November 15
Today at work I did a little shopping....Then Lisa and Emily both needed there Credit Card Forms done for like three months. So I found all of their receipts and matched them up to the correct statement. Then created the form for each. Today was slow but productive for the most part.

After work I went shopping! I went to Macy's and Kara to see what they had. Kara was having a huge sale so they were very picked over and did not have much. I am sure they are receiving a shipment soon. Since that store was a dud I ran to Macy's. Macy's had some very cute dresses! I liked what I tried on but not loving any of them enough to wear to my upcoming events so I have not made any purchases yet.

Tonight I am going to work out with Lisa while watching our shows!

Friday November 12
At work I turned into a boring intern again...I would rather sit in the conference room and hang out with the other intens while doing tasks..

First we brought all of the mailing to the post office and was able to get that completed. Then I caught up on sending off craft kits to five hospitals that had backed up while we were working on the appeal. After that I was asked by Emily to prepare her Credit Card Report Forms. She has not done this for about five months so I first had to find all of the receipts that matched with each statement. While I was in the middle of this the staff told Stephen and me that we were getting lunch on them so we went to Guy and Gallard to get lunch. I had a turkey sandwich that was actually very good!

When we arrived back at the office we were told that Monday they were going to order food for the office to really thank everyone for helping with mailing. We were starting to feel a little percentage of appreciation by this point. Then I went back to my Credit Card form task....After working on this for a little while I was asked to go to Joseph's office to get a few documents signed. His office is not far so I walked but once again I did not meet him. That is the fourth time I have been there and have not even seen him..he is now the "invisible man" to me.

At around 4:55 Caitlin told us we could go home "early"....me and Stephen literally dropped everything we were doing and walked out. She really knows how to reward someone.

Friday night I ran errands with Brianna. Then we ate at Applebees where she ate a burger and I opted for dessert :) which was a Maple Blondie Brownie! Yummy
Then we went and had a Private Practice marathon back at the dorm :) It was a much needed hang out time with my friend Brianna! I am going to miss it.

Saturday November 13
Today the EHS facility is having there Open House. So our room is one of the rooms that gets toured because we have the smallest double room. This means people would be in and out of my room all day and all I wanted to do was sleep all day! So when I woke up at 10:30 I was very surprised that there had not been any tours that had come through all day. Then Andrea invited me to breakfast where we went to Tic Tock and I had a Belgian Waffle! We had a fun time catching up and just talking about our week :) She is a great listener and someone that I enjoy doing things with.
Then I went back to my room where only one tour had come through all day and my roommate with her friend from California was still asleep. So I started watching the movie "Red" on the Internet. The movie is a really good movie with alot of great actors...I would suggest it to anyone.

After that my roommate woke up and so I decided to get out of my room and head to Times Square. They were having a Holiday Fair on 47th where they had food and shopping! I bought four necklaces, a chicken kabob, and a brownie :) Had a great time by myself!
As soon as I arrived at Times Square the Naked Cowboy was out so people were everywhere taking pictures of him and of course I became a tourist again and also grabbed a photo lol!

Now I am finishing watching Red! Listening to Christmas music and eating my brownie :)
Tonight we are watching Harry Potter! Cant wait until Thursday Night!

Oh the family is starting to come next Saturday :)

I will never write, label, or glue closed another envelope again!

Sunday November 7
I woke up early to start my Internship paper so that I did not run out of time before the due date which I finished! Go me :) Then I needed a break so I worked out with Lisa. After my good hour work out I watched my shows. Brothers and Sisters and Desperate Housewives was very interesting this week.

In the middle of my shows Alexis showed up with Eddie and were so very awkward. She is a great roommate but does not know how to respect a roommate when it comes to eleven o clock at night and bringing your guy friend home.

Monday-Friday
Work was consumed by MAILING! But the annual appeal mailing will be all mailed off by tomorrow at lunch!!!!

Monday November 8
After work me and Lisa were really bored so we hung out in her room watching television and eating her awesome Austrian chocolate! She swears that there chocolate is way better than ours...it is definitely good but I don't know if way better is right...

Then we met with Andrea and went to Forever 21. Andrea had a hip hop 80s audition she had this week and so we were shopping for that.  Once we were back we decided to watch the first Harry Potter in order to prepare for next weeks premier!

Tuesday November 9
I went to the Jason Castro (American Idol) concert at BB King Club with Lisa, Brianna, and Kathleen. He does a very good concert. The girl who opened for him Toby Lightman was also a great singer and has some songs that were used on TV shows and movies. The venue was a different atmosphere than I was used to though and we all had a long day so we were all very tired. We had to order at least one thing at the club and since we had pizza for dinner we all got dessert at the club. My cheesecake was very good and surprisingly my first piece since I have been here.

Wednesday November 10
Last night I went to a place called Joe's Pub with Erika, Lisa, and Andrea. It was located on the West Village so to keep away from getting lost in the crazy streets of the village we took a cab. Then the doors were not open yet so we stood outside in the cold for about ten minutes complaining about how cold we were and that we had a reservation...none of it mattered! Once we were let in we ordered dessert again because the food was expensive but we had to buy something so I had cookies and brownie :) This place was much more fancy then BB King Club but was smaller and quaint!

We were seeing Louis Hobson from Spring Awakening. Erika loves this show and is obsessed with everyone in it and so that is why we were there. He was a very good singer and even brought in other Broadway cast members he has worked with over time. The night was alot of fun and nice to have a night out but still low key with the girls :)

Thursday November 11
Today at work we of course did mailing!!! But we finished all of it finally :) The fun part of it was that me, Steve, and Marisa were in the conference room all day working on them together...we had alot of fun just listening to music and telling stories.The whole day we were either delirious, hungry, or just plain tired of doing the same thing over and over for the last week. It was so much fun to just let loose and talk freely with the rest of the interns in the conference room. Me, Steve, and Marisa now have a band called the Paper Cuts....yes we were that delirious and tired of gluing envelopes!

Every time someone came in to check on us we literally almost bit their heads off. The only person we respected in the office after today was Heidi who is in charge of all this mailing and could be annoying when checking on our progress but we were okay with her :)

So glad the mailing is DONE!!!

Wednesday November 3
At work I worked on our annual appeal! We are sending out thousands of letters to people for donations that help our organization run.So the interns get to label all of the envelopes with addresses which has been scheduled for a three week block of time. Then I took a break from that and put together a bag for a little girl who is having surgery soon and has to be in the hospital for four days after. So we put together a package for her and she becomes a star for a day which is alot of fun. We put in the bag a crown to decorate, megaphone craft, high school musical t shirt and some other fun items.

To me this program is really fun but when I think about my hospital stays and how much I wanted out of their it just makes me think that I would never want this junk. All I wanted to do when I was in the hospital was sleep and get out as soon as possible! So having a million crafts shoved at me would  have not worked but would just stay in the bag until I arrived back home.

Then to finish the day we went through more of the 3000 sunny grams and went to work on some more envelopes.

Before work I had tried to get tickets to Promises Promises but Kristin Chenoweth was not going to be performing until Friday so we decided not to go. Then we went to Fela and tried to get tickets but they were not selling Student Rush until 6:00. After work we  went to the theater for Fela and got our tickets.

Andrea was performing in Time Square for a new video game promotion so we went to watch her do that which was really fun to see her perform! Then me, Erika, and Lisa went to Juniors to get cheesecake and chicken strips for dinner. At 8:00 we went to see Fela which was probably one of the worst shows I have seen since I have been here because we could not relate to the show or understand through their African accents. The dancing and singing was really good but was just hard to relate and our seats were awful because they do not have good Student Rush seating.

Thursday November 4
We worked on envelopes all day and were supposed to start printing the letters but our printer was broken! I also helped Naomi find recipes and decided that we love the website FamilyFun for recipes. For lunch we all decided to order pizza which was really good and we also had a good time sitting and talking. We learned alot about each other and they figured out I have a twin...Sierra they know about you now! lol ...They knew my mom and sister were coming for Thanksgiving but I guess I never told them the sister was my twin. lol... They were freaking out and could not believe I did not tell them but I do not share alot I guess and takes a while for me to say anything, Then we went back to work on envelopes until there were no labels to stick!

After work I was not feeling well. I was supposed to meet some girls from church for dinner but that did not work out. So I decided to veg and just have the evening for myself with some snacks of course! Then I went to Lisa's to watch Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice which were both very intense great shows tonight! Private Practice was sad but for me interesting because it was all about rape and I just took a class on Family Violence.

Friday November 5
We had to organize the office because there were boxes everywhere! Everyone in  the office does not like clutter and so we had to do something about our mess in the back of the office. I literally have a cave where my desk is to sit and work and then behind me I have piles of surgi dolls that need to be fixed! Then the printer was finally fixed and letters were printed. We had to cross our the friend part of "dear friend" in the letter and put the persons name it was being sent to and then at the bottom of the letter I had to write "We would be grateful for your continued support. It makes our work possible." They preferred for this to be written in cursive but my generation does not write in cursive and so you can not read my writing if I write that way....So they decided to let me write regularly. Which I understood why they wanted me to write that way because of our directors signature at the bottom but its a signature....no one prints there signature they sign it in cursive so then it did not make since to me....either way the letters are going to look kind of tacky!

Another frustrating part of the day was that none of the WoldShip software was working on the computers. So I could not send off any of our clutter!

After work me and Lisa went to Macy's Bar and Grill where we had fries, salad, and a huge ice cream sundae with brownie which we split all of it. The meal was very good but it was very awkward to have shoppers looking at us eat this huge sundae! lol ... the waiter was like I did not think you two would finish this and we just stared at her like of course we did lol...

Then Dale, Jose, Patrick, and Andrea were going to eat Thai food so we me up with them and hung out. We had a really great time talking and just catching up from the week. Then a few of us went to go see Due Date which was better than I thought it would be but still really dumb.I just do not have that kind of humor and really wanted to see the movie Red instead but we had already missed a few minutes of it.

Saturday November 6
Me, Dale, Lisa, and Erika left at 10 to go get tickets for Promises Promises! Which we finally were able to get our hands on some and hopefully the seats are not terrible...Then we went to eat at Tic Tock Diner where I had chocolate chip pancakes that are amazing but I am getting tired of that diner...

This afternoon I am just catching up on neglected things and probably will go workout with Lisa before the show.
Tonight is the show! Kristen Chenoweth and Sean Hayes are in it and I think it will be a great show :)

Halloween Fun and then back to the internship...

Saturday October 30

I got up early to go apartment shopping with the girls! No, not for my apartment so Becca do not worry I am coming back :)... Erika, Lisa, and Andrea have finally found a great apartment in the Upper East Side. So we went out to find them some possible furniture and decorations. First we needed food to wake us up so we sent to a little cafe in Union Square where I ate a bagel which I have been  craving forever! The bagel was not great so that was disappointing! Then we went to a fun antique store first which reminded me of home. They found some decorations that could make their walls beautiful but they are waiting on the keys first before they buy anything. Then we headed to Anthropologie because they have wonderful decorations but also clothes we all love! Of course we could not afford hardly any of it so we just looked mostly and wished we could buy half of the store.

After shopping they were all going to try out a gym membership that is near their new apartment. I went back to are place now and took a nap! I was so tired but of course two tours had to come in while I was trying to sleep which was annoying!

For dinner I ran to Auntie Anne's because Lisa and Andrea had already had dinner but wanted dessert so we just got pretzels which I was okay with :)

Then me, Lisa, and Erika had tickets to see Rocky Horror picture show while a cast acted the movie out! This was alot of fun to learn all of the quotes you scream out during the show and the props you use to make the show alot more interesting. I did not think this was possible but quickly learned this is possible!

Sunday October 31
HALLOWEEN!!! Me, Lisa, and Erika met in the lounge at 11. Our plan was to finish up our costumes for the Halloween parade. I decided to be Little Red Riding hood because the weather was supposed to be freezing and my coat is red :) perfect! But I tried to find a basket at Kmart and had no such luck! Lisa found a witches hat though so she now had a easy costume she could wear warm clothes with! We also bought candy for when our group met in the lounge before the parade. We decided that since we cant trick or treat we were going to still have candy with each other :)

At 4:30 we all met in the lounge all in our costumes. We dumped all of our candy on a table and dug in! Also we all took pictures together and just had a fun time before heading out! We had m&m's, Jack Sparrow, Ferbie, Goth Guy, Grifendor student, and a wise man.

After filling up on candy we went to the parade. The parade had every costume imaginable in it and some fun performing bands and dance schools but it was really cold! We stayed for pretty much the whole thing but then we were getting to cold and hungry. So we headed to Tic Tock for some chicken strips and waffle fries! yummy! Then to end the night me, Andrea, Lisa, Erika, and Dale watched Beauty and the Beast :)!

Monday November 1
At work I worked on doing inventory of t shirts. We received a shipment of t shirts in and I was to count the number we had and then count the number we had received in the shipment. This took me the morning to get all straightened out. Then we started our annual donation writing and so the interns get to write our directors name on the millions of envelopes. For the next three weeks we have a schedule for which intern works on mailing and at what time. My hand is about to fall off from all the writing but I guess we will get lots of donations from it so maybe that is worth it.

After work I met up with Lisa and we went to Chipoltle to eat burritos! Which were very good and gave me lunch for the next day because the burritos there are so huge. Later we went to the gym to workout during Gossip Girl and get my mind off of the fact that I am working out lol. Otherwise I would never get through an hour of workout.

TuesdayNovember 2
I was on the schedule to work on mailing for the morning shift. I was able to get a whole box of envelopes finished. Then we received 3000 sunny grams to go through so all of us interns worked on that throughout the day. We hate when their is the cutest sunny gram and then open it and it says God bless or Get Well Soon..that is not appropriate lines to write on cards of this nature.

Later in the day I took a break and ran an errand for Heidi to pick up a DVD which was on East 21st Street which is about 20 blocks from our office. I had the dumb idea to walk there and so this took a while and made me extremely exhausted and sore feet by the time I got back. Then I put together a few training packets for Naomi who has a training tomorrow.

To end the day I started opening more boxes thinking there were more sunny grams when come to find out Americhoice sent us a bunch of junk! We had snoopy dog bowls, storage bins, and brochures from there business. So we had to figure out if they sent us all of this on purpose or if this was a huge mistake which we sort of hoped was the case. There was no way we could send all of that to hospitals because they would not want any of it just like we do not want any of it.

Tonight I have worked out and now I am watching Glee. I am hoping my roommate does not come back for a while because I am enjoying my room to myself without her and her boyfriend but that wish will probably not last for long...We shall see!

Halloween in Full Swing!!!

Wednesday October 27
Today Naomi had a Halloween event at Henry Street the place where I took the kids to the Pumpkin Patch. They did Spooky Smoothies and Pretzel Spiders. The group was such a fun group that I wish I was asked to go but I was stuck in the office. So instead I sent off Halloween items to hospitals that a corporate group had made for us at an event. The group made so many items that we were able to send two hospitals in New York cards and gift bags for patients to celebrate Halloween. Then I helped Naomi get all of her items together for her event which involved cooking items and items for other crafts they were making. We also had a Book Club event with Maryann McDonald at KidZone and Sally with Jenny went to that event where they dressed up for Halloween and read the authors story.

After work I figured out my schedule for Spring semester back at Sam Houston. I am so excited because I am so close to graduation I can feel it...just two more semesters! Then I worked out with Lisa.

Thursday October 28
Thursday was a big day for Project Sunshine! We had an event at Beth Israel for Halloween of course but what was so special was Abigail Breslin was our VIP there. I was not allowed to go because only higher up staff members went but I uploaded pictures today from the event and she is adorable! She dressed up as a cat and just took over helping the kids with their crafts and looked like she belonged. Then I took the free day to look up winter crafts for the upcoming Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. To end my day I was asked by Jenny to combine all of her College Chapter medical facility information together into one big database. My computer is so slow that this task became a very drawn out time consuming task and so I did not finish but put a dent in the project.

Me and Lisa decided to go shopping after I got back from work because I wanted to buy some better Ugg boots. I have been debating this for about three months because the pair I already have I love but they do not stay up....So we ran into Forever 21 first to see what they might have. I ended up buying a dress, blazer, and a skirt. Guess I was in the shopping mood for once but I think Lisa is rubbing off on me because she loves to shop! This is so not good but I do still debate my purchases so I think I am still okay...Then we ran to Journeys so I could try on Uggs...their are so many pairs now days but I wanted some plain tall black pair...the  choice was easy but the price tag was hard to look at...Hope the purchase will be worth it!
After this my shopping trip was over so we went back and went our separate ways. My roommate Alexis and her friend Eddie was in our room hanging out so I talked to them for a little while and then it was time to go workout. Me and Lisa have decided to go workout during the times our shows or shows we like are on to keep us engaged on something other than our workout. So last night we went during Greys Anatomy and then I went back to my room and ignored Alexis and Eddie and went to sleep!

Friday October 29
I was tempted to go into work late because today I had two parties to go to and I knew I would not be done with work until 9:00. But when I woke up Eddie was still in my room and Alexis had gone to practice. This was just awkward so I minded my own business and got ready for work and went there at the regular time. I did this just to get away from the situation and hoping I would not have to do much when I arrived. At first all I had to do was work on Jenny's database. She had three new chapters to be added so I did this once my computer stopped freezing up on me...Then I put more pictures of Abigail on the share drive we had received by the photographer. After that I was sent on an an errand to Duane Reade to buy last minute event items a few times because people kept on remembering things they needed once I arrived back at the office. Then at 2:00 me and Kaylee went to HSS ( Hospital of Special Surgery) for my first event of the day. At the event we made pear witches with the kids. You take a pear and cut them in half then put holes in them for the eyes nose and mouth. Add a twizzler for the mouth, a chocolate chip for the nose, and raisins for the eyes. Then take a cookie and put frosting on it in order to attach a ice cream cone to for the witches hat! This was a very cute idea and the kids for the most part loved it :) and we also had pumpkin and bat boxes for the kids to put their witch in to take home.

At 5:30 it was time for me to hit my second party! Me and Caitlin took a cab together but she was headed home and I was headed to an event...She gave me some insight on Child Life Specialist and told me she would put me in contact with her contact at Texas Children's! I was so excited and decided this was meant to be for me to be stuck going to two events in one night...

At Good Sheppard we also had a Halloween Party! We had mask decorating, face painting, bracelet making, and cookie decorating. My spot was cookie decorating but the teen girls were not into the cookies tonight. Tonight boys from another home were brought to Good Shepherd for the party so we believe that they did not want to eat junk in front of them :) teens! But we had VIP Damaris Lewis, Sports Illustrated super model there and another model friend of hers. She is so great with these girls every time I see her. She has done a ton of events with us here and also did a dance camp with the girls this summer. Since this event was teenagers the event was more low key and not as stressful so I made it in one piece! After eating around four cookies and drinking alot of water I was finally done with my crazy day! Now I am hanging out waiting on people to get back from seeing The Addams Family on Broadway...

Tomorrow I am going to see Rocky Horror Picture Show! Then Sunday I am going to the big Greenwich Village Parade!!!

Figuring Life Out and Having Fun While Trying To Do So

Sunday October 24
I slept until 11:00 which felt great! Then me and Alexis watched Say Yes To The Dress for a few more episodes. At 1:30 I met up with Lisa and Brianna to go eat at Five Guys which is a burger place that originated in New Jersey but now is everywhere. Sierra had actually told me about it because there is one in Austin but I had never made it there so we went to the one across the street from my place. The burger and fries were very greasy but the best I have had since I have been here. After that we all had different things to take care of so we finished up our chat and went out separate ways. Patrick called me at about 5:00 and asked me if I wanted to try Yoga with some people...I was very hesitant but ended up agreeing to go. The class was on the Upper East Side and was by donation so we left here at about 6;30 so that we could get a snack beforehand. We stopped at Wendy's and got our snack then had extra time so we went into a little book store. The bookstore had the book I am now reading The Girl Who Played With Fire so I sat and read some of it. Then we went to the Yoga class which was surprisingly a nice work out. I could not do half of the stuff but we tried it at least and made it through after a few laughs and dodging kicks because the class was full. We liked it so much we might start going every Sunday evening.

Monday October 25
I had a long list of tasks to complete. The first thing on the list was we had sent a package to Israel and they had never received it. So I had to call and find out where it was. Turns out the package had made it there but someone else signed for it. Then I was asked by Jenny to make a list of possible hospitals and Ronald McDonald Houses that SHSU Chapter could volunteer at. This was time consuming but i ended up with a pretty good list considering we are so close to Houston and their are a ton of branches of hospitals near us. After that Naomi needed me to order food for an event she has on Wednesday where we are making Spooky Smoothies and Pretzel Spiders. So I made sure we would have enough food for 25 kids and sent out the order to be delivered to the correct hospital. To finish the day I did more work for Jenny putting in another college chapter into the database.

After work I met up with Brianna and Kathleen to go eat pizza. We decided to go cheaper and go to the place that gives you two slices and a soda for $2.75. Then we just headed back to Brianna's room and chatted about high school days for a couple of hours which is fresh on their minds because they graduated last year so they still have alot to say about it.

To end my night I went and worked out with Lisa which was difficult because we were supposed to watch Gossip Girl while working out but I left my headphones so I had to guess what people were saying. Tonight I am not leaving my headphones because I will not miss Rocky Horror Glee!

Tuesday October 26
Today was super low key! I asked Caitlin a dozen times if she needed anything to be done and she never did. So I put in another college chapter into the database for Jenny. Then I finished putting together the box for Naomi's events with measuring cups, plastic silverware, and a blender. Then the rest of the day I researched job possibilities. I am stuck on either Child Life Specialist or Medical Social Worker which are very similar but one works alot with kids and the other just does alot of paperwork and some time with the kids. So I have alot of thinking to do and hopefully contacts to seek out.

Tonight I am reading some of my book and researching some more. Then going to workout with Lisa so we can multi task while watching Rocky Horror Glee!!! Cant wait!

I am becoming artsy! Well I tried...

October 21, 2010
I did most of my work with Naomi today. First she needed to order ingredients for a spooky smoothie we are doing at a event next week. So I had to figure out the exact amount of items we needed to order and then add a little more so we would have extra. Then we wanted one more item for the kids to make and so I found a recipe for Pretzel Spiders using peanut butter, crackers, pretzels, and raisins. The only problem was we were dealing with allergies but this would have been the best Halloween snack ever if not for that. Then we we were sent sunny grams to be looked through and sent out so I did that. After this Jenny had New York University volunteer chapters paperwork to be put in the database so I worked on that.

To end the work day we had some very sad news given to us! Jenny has a college chapter that called her about a little boy who is in the hospital that is not expected to make it out of the hospital. To make the matter worse we were told his birthday was coming up on Saturday and he might not make it and so he asked for everyone around the world to send him birthday cards. Of course our office jumped right on this and started making cards! We were sad about the situation but made it fun by seeing who could make the best card for this little boy.

After work me and Lisa ran to Gristedes to get groceries and then went to work out while watching Greys Anatomy!

October 22, 2010
This day was crazy busy! We were messangered all of the crafts from Marisa's huge corporate vent. So me and Stephen were given the great pleasure of going through all of it. We had  thousands of craft kits and hundreds of sunny grams with a few surgi dolls all over the front of the office. The goal was to count and find a hospital for these crafts to go to as soon as possible. Then Jenny suddenly had a list of things for me to complete for her which was to scan a collage of the SHSU Chapter, put another college chapter in the database, and start a research project. I only got a few of these items completed so the rest of it is sitting at the office waiting for me to complete on Monday.

Then Brianna and Lisa met me at work and we went to the MOMA (Museum of Modern Art)! We got to see famous paintings like the Starry Night and Water Lillie's but I think I have decided that I am not a great museum person. Me and Lisa were bored after the second floor and could have left but Brianna was all over taking pictures of the different artwork. Once we were done we decided to run to Magnolia Bakery because none of use had been yet. I bought a Toffee Peanut Butter Bar which was very good but the bakery is famous for there cupcakes which are way too small and are not as good as Crumbs in my opinion. Then we went back to the hotel where Me and Lisa decided to be good and go work out but Brianna decided to be done for the night. So we went and worked out for an hour. After that we hung out  in our rooms and waited to see what others were doing. Dale had received free tickets from Google to the Museum of Natural History so we decided to watch the movie "Night at the Museum" so me, Jose, Lisa, and Dale started watching the movie. Then a few more people came in and the movie went to the waste side when we all started talking and looking up music.

October 23, 2010
Jose, Dale, and Andrea had gotten up early to go see the new Dinosaur exhibit that Dale got tickets to for free at the The Natural History Museum. Then me and Lisa met up with them at ten when the museum actually opened. Since Dale interns at Google he was able to get us both in for free also...thanks Dale! The museum was interesting but again after about the first exhibit I was over it...They had fake animals in exhibits for all the different areas of the world and we saw a exhibit for the earth and creating of the solar system. But then we had to go see all of the exhibits from the movie we wanted to see. For example we had to go see the Easter Island Head...

After the museum we went to Union Square to have lunch. Me and Andrea had told everyone about the pizza place Patsy's we had gone too that was really good! So we decided to eat there and then of course go get Crumbs cupcakes afterwards. Then we ran into a Halloween costume shop to get inspiration. We ended up not getting any inspiration but settled with being M&Ms for Halloween I believe...we wanted something we could make and something we could stay warm in. But who knows we still have a few days until the final day so the decisions will probably change.

A Week of Being A Helpful Hand

Tuesday October 19

My day at work was spent helping Marissa with her event she is having today. We had to box all of the craft materials up which ended up being eleven boxes stuffed full of materials. Then we had to figure out what was missing and add what was forgotten.

Then after work I called friends back home and figured out all the events I am missing! Then I worked out with Lisa in order for me to eat what I want but look good for all of these weddings coming up :) Then we picked up some food and met with the rest of our group for a hangout session in the lounge. The problem with the lounge is that when alot of people gather in it everything becomes really loud! So we all ended up staying for about an hour but were tired of not being able to hear each other so we all dispersed. Me and Lisa went to her room and just hung out for a little while longer. Then I went to my room and watched The Good Wife which comes on at 10 here and is so frustrating to me that all of my shows are so much later here but was still good and I just went to sleep soon after.

Wednesday October 20

I became a "accountant" person today. All day my task was to find all of Caitlin's receipts again. Then organize all of the receipts. After that make Expense Forms to go with all of her bank statements. In total I believe that the total amount of forms I made was six. But I am learning how to use Excel so much better and having "fun" learning a new skill. At some point in the day I took a break from my pile of paperwork on my desk and went to pick up some pictures for my co worker Emily. The Walgreen's I had to go to was on 32nd so it was a nice walk but also a miserable one because I was getting closer to the tourist. I was so close to the tourist and did not even realize the Walgreen's I was at was right underneath the Empire State Building. There were ticket sellers everywhere and people everywhere and I did not even notice until I went to leave and happened to look up! I guess that is when you know that you are not a tourist anymore when you do not even notice a major tourist attraction in front of you! All I could do is just laugh :)!

After work I decided to go shopping for some warmer shirts because the weather is getting cooler and I really did not bring alot of warm shirts. So I decided to check out a store called Daffy's...they are a store of nice brands but lower prices. After looking through the store for at least an hour I had tried on a few boots and found nothing but had grabbed two shirts. One shirt is black with a cute brown belt and the second one is blue and white striped button up. Then Lisa met up with me and we ran by Gap but here the store is a mess because so many people come through their a day and so we decided to go back when we were in the mood to dig around...

Once back at the hotel we went and worked out even though we really did not feel like it. While we worked out we had our laundry going because it is right next door to the gym and makes everything convenient. Then we went our separate ways until our laundry was dry. I went to my room and talked to Granny and Grandad on the phone. My day goes by so quickly here and so I  hardly ever get the chance to make a phone call unless I call while walking back from work. But I was able to stop and talk to them for about an hour which was really nice! Sounds like Buna is going to have a fun night tonight with there Homecoming Parade...parades with lights are so much fun!

Saturday October 16

I slept in for some much needed rest. Then I got up and worked on my assignments due for my internship on Monday. I had written down the date and knew that it was coming but still did not have everything done. Then I met up with Andrea and Aaron to go eat dinner. Andrea really wanted Thai food so we went to her favorite place and I tried out Thai food. The meal was pretty good and the company was fun after I had been in my room all day. But the checks came and everything came really frustrating for me. Not everyone had enough cash to pay for there food and wanted to use a credit card. What is frustrating about New York is everything has a limit so if your meal is under ten dollars you cant use a card on it. Also you have to tell the waiter you want separate checks before you order which I forget about every time we go out to eat which is very frustrating!

Then we headed back to the hotel to meet up with the rest of the group. They had been upstate to a friends house. All of them were hungry so of course we joined and decided we could get dessert. Me and Andrea ended up being disappointed because Crumbs was closed but Tick Tock was not...I got red velvet cake that was made differently...in between each layer they had put chocolate and cheesecake...different but still pretty good! I ate about half of this and went to bed because Sunday morning was going to come early for me.


Sunday October 17
I had to be in the EHS office by 8 o clock. When I arrived two people were there and their was no coffee and donuts like we were promised. You see we were going to the Breast Cancer Walk in Central Park and were promised food before the race by our RA's which did not happen. So the beginning of my day started BAD...but the walk was alot of fun. Me and Lisa ended up walking faster than the rest of the group but still enjoyed Central Park and all of the people walking with us. It was amazing to see how many people came out to walk in this event and how the city organizes such a big event.

After we finished the 5 mile walk we were given healthy snacks to eat as a "gift" i guess which was actually really good. I do not know if I was just starving by this point or if the snacks were really good. One of the items was vegetable straws that I was very skeptical to try but they were my favorite snack and if I see them in the stores I would probably buy them. They reminded me of the Muncho chips in the orange bag that I used to eat all the time in high school but they are definitely not healthy like these chips were.

Then me and Lisa went to Soho and Greenwich Village...the plan was to find some celebrities! We were so close to Sarah Jessica Parker's but of course we did not have an actual address so we just got close. But we had fun trying to find the place and walking around this beautiful area. If I ever lived in New York officially I think I would try to live near this area because it is so calm and just beautiful. You are still close to the "city" but you are far enough away from the tourist that it is a relaxing environment.

Unfortunately we did not see any celebrities but we still had a enjoyable afternoon! Then we went our separate ways and I relaxed for the rest of the afternoon until going to Lisa's room to watch Desperate Housewives!


Monday October 18
Work was uneventful! I sat around for a while because Caitlin was out at the end of last week and had to catch up on emails and phone calls. Then Heidi needed stamps for the office so I ran to the Post Office for her. Then I came back out of the freezing cold and played on the computer. Marisa needed help with her event on Thursday but Caitlin would rather her do her work by herself rather than get help for some reason so I could not help her. Then Jenny needed keys made for our bathroom because for some reason the Women's bathroom stays locked and we lose the key all the time. So I went and made more in order for us to hopefully not lose all of them. After that Jenny received some College Applications in the male and needed them to be put into a database so I worked on that for the rest of the day...

Today my Evaluation and Time sheet was due for my internship and so Caitlin completed this for me and then went over all of it. I was very happy with her evaluation and realize I have alot to work on but am still doing a great job with the things that could be approved! Then I faxed the papers off and headed back to my place. I was supposed to go work out with Lisa but I am not feeling great...have the aches and a headache...not a good sign    :( so I have stayed in bed all evening and plan to go to sleep early!

Thursday October 14

I helped Marissa make fifty surgi doll templates for her event next week. She has a huge list of things to take care of before then so I decided to help. Then I organized all of the supplies and packed them up so that they can be sent off to the venue next week. Friday we were having two events at two different places with the company Draft SCB who is a health care company.

After work I went and worked out with Lisa for about an hour and then watched Greys Anatomy and Private Practice.

Friday October 15

I went to Woodhall Hospital in Brooklyn for our Draft SCB event. The event was in the outpatient facility of the pediatrics unit. Since we were in the middle of the waiting area everything was hectic! Parents would drop off their kids to hang out and do crafts with us and then come back later for their kids who had already left. No one had a organized way of keeping track of the parent and their kid. This part of the event was very frustrating to me. But we had fun doing face painting, making crowns, decorating journals, and decorating glasses. All of the activities were a hit and the look of the playroom afterword showed that we had a good time.

Then I met up with Lisa, Erika, and Andrea at Zara a clothing store to finish up shopping and go eat. We went to Simply Pasta where I had lasagna that was pretty good but not as good as my moms lasagna or lasagna from Joe's. The girl time was fun and the bread that we inhaled was really good! We decided that was not enough so we ran to Crumbs and got cupcakes to enjoy! None of us had seen the movie Social Network and so we went to see it and enjoy our cupcakes at the theater.

After the movie went to the lounge to find Dale, who has interned with Facebook before and is now at Google here in New York interning. He knows alot about the Internet world and so we were all interested in what he thought about the movie.

Then we all decided to go up to Andrea's room and watch Land Before Time...the first one! We had not seen it since we were kids so watching it together was fun. The plan is to watch one every week or try to finish all of our favorite ones this semester I think.....

Monday October 11

While everyone I know here had the day off for Columbus Day I had to go to work. But I was not in the office. Me and Stephen had to go to Stanton Street which is really far in the Lower East Side area. It is actually one street down from Houston St. but here some people pronounce it Howston street ... I always laugh when I here this pronunciation. Anyway after we arrived at the living facility we were assigned to go to we helped gather all of the kids up and head to the Subway. We then took the F train for about ten stops and got off to catch a bus for about another ten stops. After alot of riding and standing we finally arrived at Queens County Farm Museum where we did a corn maze, ate lunch, did the petting zoo, a hayride, and picked out a pumpkin. With ten kids in tow and all the walking we did on this day we were all exhausted! I was told that I would get an early day out of this but my day started at eight and ended at around six. When I arrived back in my room all I wanted to do was crash.

Me and Alexis ran to Mc Donald's across the street to get a snack and after that I crashed. I was so tired that when I woke up the next day I realized that we slept with the television still going and the light still on. Usually all of this would have kept me wide awake but I was that tired!

Tuesday October 12

Today we were busy getting ready for an event we have on Friday with Draft SCB. The company is making craft kits for us so I copied all of the papers needed to go in the kits.Then both Lisa and Caitlin needed me to do there Finance Reports. Lisa had everything pretty much done all I had to do was put all the data in a Excel spreadsheet but for Caitlin I had to go through all of her receipts and make sure she had all of them accounted for from the bank statement. This took me almost all of the rest of the day. Since the interns usually use her credit card to make orders and pay for everything she has alot of receipts and I was the lucky one who got to organize and make since of it all. But she was so happy it was done afterwards and so this made it partly worth it. Then to end my day me and Stephen sent off about 600 sunny grams/craft kits to four different hospitals.

After work me and Lisa went to FIT to go see there fashion museum which was really neat because it has clothing from all different decades. They even have a Eco friendly section that tells you what the clothing was made of and if for exampled they were from recycled products or water colored...Everything was really different and interesting to look at. I wanted to take pictures but that was not allowed. Then they also have a Japanese exhibit that shows the clothing from Japan over the years and the clothing is different but not much different from ours but then suddenly as we get closer to this decade their clothes become very technical looking. I guess this goes along with how technologically advanced they are becoming...
Then Glee was on so we watched it and I hope that Glee gets better because if not I am not going to be much of a fan anymore....

Wednesday October 13

I had received an email from Naomi to send a package to Miami so I did this first. She wanted the box to arrive in Miami by Tuesday so I had to look up and make sure the way I was shipping was going to allow the right amount of time for the package to get there by Tuesday. This took a while because my UPS WorldShip was not loading today and that is how we print off and send off the labels for our packages. So I had to use Marisa's computer in order to get this task done. We were shipping a few books and t shirts to them for a Book Club Event happening Tuesday of next week. Then Naomi needed me to run to Sovereign Bank to pick up a wire transfer slip from our rep there Louis. I think by now he recognizes me since I have been there three times now and will be back there tomorrow. Since it was such a beautiful day today I decided to walk back a little slower and enjoy the day. I noticed so many shops and eating places I had never noticed before and I now plan on going back their now anytime I want to eat somewhere new or need any clothing for when it starts to get cold.

Then when arrived back at Project Sunshine Jenny needed me to do a task for her. The task was to call Staples because we had received an email from them about a discount. We are trying to get some letters printed off from there and this discount was for printing. But we do not know who our Staples rep is and so we can not get the discount without our rep putting the transaction through for us. (At least this is how I uunderstood it). After calling around six different numbers and no one able to help me or they would try but end up giving me the wrong number, Jenny decided to quit I guess. She had me call all sorts of numbers and was just getting frustrated every time I came to her desk to tell her that the number was no help. Hopefully the problem gets resolved but it did not get resolved by me today unfortunately. Needless to say we still do not know who our rep is for some reason.

At the end of the day Marisa needed help with an event she has on Monday. At the event the company is making surgi dolls for us and so I was given the task of making the template. I had to print everything out, cut it all out, and then tape it together to make a doll. The cutting part is most time consuming and so I was able to finish about 20 templates before five came around and it was time to leave. Tomorrow I will be working to get the rest of them done in order for Marisa to have 50 surgi doll templates at her event on Monday.

After work I went to eat with Brianna and Kathleen for Kathleen's birthday. We went to Chevy's which was really good! Since it was right after work the place was packed and noisy but we had a good time. I had queso and a diet coke which was much needed because I am still not energized from my trip on Monday.

Meeting New People Is A Blast!!!

Thursday October 7

We were preparing for a big meeting happening at our office on Friday so the interns were to work on making the place look presentable. The conference room had to be cleaned from the party we had the day before and sadly all of the sugar decorations had to be taken down. This took a few minutes with all of us interns working together. Then their are empty cubicles in the office so I was asked to organize the stuff that had been throw on them so that everything looked decent.

After that Sunny Grams needed to be printed off because we had just sent off a huge shipment to a company. On this day I printed around 600 or more probably... Then a hospital had emailed Jing about being in need of surgi dolls and another had not received items from us in a long time and so I was asked to update our database to satisfy these hospitals in need.

The office was very slow today...

Wednesday night I went and had sushi with Andrea, Lisa, Jenna, and Jose. I had chicken dumplings which were really good. Then I had to be at work Friday by 9 o clock in the morning which I am used to being there at 10 so I went back to my room and watched Private Practice until I was asleep.

Friday October 8

Friday morning came really early but I arrived at work at 9 like we were asked to be and in my business attire. A few of the board members had already arrived but I only actually met one of them.
While the meeting was going on I had nothing to do so I asked Marisa if she had anything to work on and she had quite a list. I helped her with a door hanger craft kit, Halloween crafts, and of course Sunny Grams.
Then the meeting was over and Caitlin had projects of her own she wanted me to work on. The first project was Scratch Art which she had found online where you take white card stock and color the whole thing with crayons then you cover the crayon with black paint. Once the paint is dry you then scratch out with a paper clip or Popsicle stick the design you want. This was alot of fun to try out but I also think it is a very messy project. I also did not find a material that completely covered the crayon but it would still be time consuming for kids. Another project Caitlin had discovered was Wax Sticks...I do not know if you remember playing with these when you were a kid but I did. I am not much of a crafty or think outside of the box person when it comes to crafts and so I really did not want to mess with this craft. But I did and found a instruction book in the box for flowers, trucks, bicycles, bugs etc. Of course I just chose the easiest thing and made a flower out of the wax and it actually was really cute and easy! This project unlike the Scratch Art is definitely a awesome project for kids!

Friday afternoon the Program team had a meeting and interns were invited. We talked about upgrade all of our databases in one big Excel database, adding a hospital and chapter to Project Sunshine, and all or our upcoming events for the month of October.

After work I was supposed to go to the Museum of Modern Art with Lisa but it ended up being closed for some reason. So we decided to go eat at Tick Tock for some of their amazing waffle fries. Everyone was going to see Catfish at the movie theater across the street but I had no desire to see it so I stayed in and finished my book finally! I definitely recommend the book "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo".

Saturday October 9

Cityvine was having a apple picking day so I signed up to go. Me and Andrea went and had to be at the church by 9:30. When we arrived alot of people were already there but still waiting for more people. The weather was sweatshirt weather so it was a wonderful day to be outside and get out of the city.
We went to Dr Davies Farm about an hour outside of the city where you can buy a bag of apples for $31 and split it with as many people as you want to make the price less but you also can eat as many apples you want on the premises. I ate around five apples and enjoyed the view of all the leaves changing colors. The leaves for the most part have just fallen though because of the lack of rain.

After an hour at the orchard we headed out to Rockland Lake State Park which was fifteen minutes from the orchard. We had burgers, hot dogs, chips and potato salad. A usual afternoon BBQ! The park was so beautiful and was so nice to be away from the millions of people in the city. Then the games started we played the egg toss game first...I played this game and this game only because after the second toss the egg cracked in my hand and all over the front of my vest. Then a game of three legged race, soccer and football was played. At around five we headed back to the city after a long fun filled day.

Me and Andrea were starving and so me, Andrea, Jenna, and Lisa went out to find Mexican food. We started out at Chipotle but the line was super long. So we went to another place where we ordered and sat for an hour waiting for our food. Then the waiter decided to give us free chips for the wait. After that all the tables around us had food and it was clear that we had been either forgotten or our order had been lost. So our waiter saw that we were frustrated and decided to give us free drinks but that was not enough and we were out of there....
We ended up eating at Chipotle and going our own way.

Sunday October 10
I went to church at Cityvine. We had a guest speaker who wrote about learning to be a prophet...He was very interesting and then we took communion. I spoke to a few people I had hung out with yesterday and exchanged numbers...it is so hard to meet people and have to be like I am leaving in three months and do not know if I will ever be back but most our cool and just say we will have fun while you are here :(

Then me and Andrea were hungry so we decided to eat on University Drive which is Union Square and had alot of cute restaurants. We ended up at a Pizzeria called Patsy's that was probably the best pizza I have had so far here and it was cheaper because we split a pizza and was full from it. Andrea had never been to Crumbs so of course there was one across the street and we had to go! Sweets are like her favorite thing to eat so I had to introduce her to these amazing cupcakes. She got a pumpkin cupcake and I got a cookie dough one. Then we sat in Union Square Park because it is so pretty outside today and enjoyed our cupcakes!

Now I am working on my internship activities which have been neglected for a while....

Where Did The Week Go?

Monday October 4
Monday was a slow but busy day at work. The first thing I was asked to do was take inventory on how many Project Sunshine shirts we have in stock. We had run out of a few sizes so before ordering more Jenny wanted me to see which ones needed to order. Then I was told that on Thursday we were having a Sunshine Chefs event and I was the person who was going to find the recipes and craft we were going to do. I spent most of the day looking up recipes. This was a harder task then I thought it would be because I never thought about food allergies, nutrition of the snack, and if we had already done a recipe similar with the kids before. Lets just say that I did not find all of the recipes I needed on this day. I ended the day with printing off many more sunny grams because every time I look at the big stack I have just printed off their is only half of the stack left.....where do they all go?

The GREAT thing about this day was that I was complimented by two of my coworkers on how well I am doing here which made everything I am doing worth it and makes me feel like I finally belong!

After work I started back on reading my book and am not hooked on finding out what is next...I can barely put it down. But I did and went to watch Gossip Girl with Lisa. We always have a good time hanging out and I am so glad to have that time in the evenings most of the time to hang out.

Tuesday October 5
The search for the right craft and food continued....I finally got an okay on the recipes for Fruit Kabobs with yogurt and granola with a dessert of Banana and Chocolate Parfait! Sounds delicious right...Well the only problem was making pudding....we could not decide whether to make it all in one big bowl or to let the kids make it themselves in individual cups. So I tested this out and decided that individual cups would work just fine. For the craft we decided to use left over glasses from the carnival event and make masks to go with the kids Halloween costumes. So we were going to bring feathers, stickers, markers and glitter for them to decorate with.

Later in the day Caitlin asked me about kids from my chapter at Sam Houston. Both boys have great stories that are amazing but will break your hearts and she was finding stories to tell at the Project Sunshine Annual Board Meeting. I felt so honored and grateful that our chapter has such great people and families involved. To end my day I sent 150 band aids off to a hospital that wanted some kid friendly so I sent what else but Dora Explorer and Sponge Bob band aids :)!

After work me and Brianna had decided that we wanted to go see a movie so I went back to my place and met up with her. Of course we had to buy snacks before the movie so we ran to K Mart and looked through the whole store just to see what there was....Then we met up with my friend Lisa to buy tickets for "You Again". The movie was really funny and was alot of fun to just see a girly movie on such a dreary rainy day!

Wednesday October 6
Today was the big EVENT! I was so nervous because everything was basically riding on whether my ideas would work...
First though we had Naomi's fifth anniversary party to worry about. Her last name is Sugar so everything was in the theme of  "Walking Down Sugar Lane" and my job was to print and cut out a yellow brick road pattern we found online. Then we taped the road all around the conference room wall and attached pictures of her all on the road. Everything looked so cute and came together wonderfully with the whole staff frantically trying to decorate while she ran an errand. Nothing is much of a surprise in the office because it is so small but whoever the party is for just stays away from the conference room for the day lol...
We had Kosher food for lunch which I had never had before. I must say it was not bad but is still not going to be a top item toe at on my list...Then for dessert Caitlin had bough Magnolia Bakery cupcakes and we we crushed up candy bars for toppings. We had our own little "Make Your Own Cupcake" station...since Naomi is in charge of the Sunshine Chef events. After we were all full and sugared up it was back to work...

At 5:30 me and Jing headed out to ICC Incarnation Children's Center which provides specialized care for children and adolescents living with HIV/AIDS and is where our Sunshine Chef Event was. When we got there our food had been delivered and the volunteers had arrived. The volunteers included me, Jing, and four other people. I had to tell everyone what we were going to be making and how everything was going to be handled. At first everyone looked at me like I was crazy but once the kids started to arrive and the snacks were starting to  be made the volunteers quickly realized I knew what I was talking about. The pudding for the parfaits worked out perfectly with the kids making their own pudding. The only unsuccessful thing about the event was that the kids were not all that interested with the food portion. All they cared about was making the craft which was the mask for their Halloween costumes. I think this was because they were able to show their creative side and do whatever they want. The staff at the facility was so great and helpful and truly loved being around these kids and having a relationship with them.

All in all this day and event was a great day! My day was a tiring one but I felt accomplished once it was all over!

Saturday October 2 and Sunday October 3

Saturday October 2

Saturday I slept in until 10 and of course laid in bed until around 11. Then me and Lisa had decided the night before to go to Starbucks. So Lisa texted me once she was ready and we went to get some coffee! I am a big fan of the Toffee Mocha Frappucino but I have refrained from Starbucks since I have been here. Then we had to wait for the rest of our group to get ready or get back from kayaking so we went back to our rooms.

The plan for the day was to go to Hoboken, NJ. You may not recognize this place but you might recognize the show Cake Boss. This town is where Carlos Bakery is located! So we decided to go there and buy some pastries and go to a little park they have in Hoboken. The day was beautiful so we all enjoyed our snacks in the park and took photos of the Manhattan Skyline in front of us. (All of my photos are on Facebook).

Saturday evening a Improv Everywhere event was going on. This is an event where you bring certain items to this one location. This year we were told to bring a gift, two pieces of paper with a consonant and then a vowel written on them, toilet paper, and a marker. Then you download a mp3 file to your ipod that you can not listen to until the event happens. The event started at 6 and you had to go to a retail department store that is within the shaded area on the website. We went to Time Square of course and waited for it all to start. Once it started you press Play at exactly 6 and are told to do certain things with each item and the products in the stores...The employees in the store were not too happy with us but luckily we were sent somewhere else quickly! We were sent to Bryant Park where we had to make a mummy out of someone with the toilet paper, color the continents on paper, and try to make a sentence with the letters...This all was for a guy named Steve and it was his "birthday" so we had to sing Happy Birthday and it was just super fun!

After that I just took the night for myself! I went and got cheap pizza and just watched tv for the rest of the night.

Sunday October 3
I went to Cityvine againn with Andrea. The message was about Jesus and the well with the Samarian women. We stayed after and talked until about one o clock again. They are just all so kind and I can not wait to go apple picking with them next Saturday!

The rest of my day has been lazy! I finally had an afternoon where I could just enjoy reading my book! I have gotten so far in it and can hardly put it down...but my shows are on tonight so I will have to stop for them! I also stopped to go to the gym with Brianna. She is really busy with class and going home so I do not see her that often. Our work out time was really great and we just were able to catch up and it was a nice break from her studying!

It is around 30 minutes from Desperate Housewives starting and I am watching it and Brothers and Sisters with Lisa and Laura so that ends my day and my fabulous weekend filled with eating and hanging out!

Work just keeps getting better...

Wednesday September 29
Work was very slow on this day! We had a huge event in East Harlem so I was in the office with about three other people. Two of the new interns were asked to go to this event for some reason so I was not allowed to go since their were so many volunteers there. So I worked on finishing 50 baseball craft kits and printing off sunny grams. We are in the works of possibly having a company make 10,00o sunny grams for us so I have to get them all printed off before then. Since the day was going to be slow I was told to take a long lunch break in Bryant Park so I definitely too advantage of this. The weather was beautiful and was a great break to my day.

After work I went to a Milkshake Mingle event. They were very good and reminded me of a frosty from wendys. There was not much mingling going on so we decided to head somewhere else. A bunch of people were hungry so we went to a sushi place called Sushi Osaka and hung out for a while. Then we decided that Magnolia Bakery sounded really great for dessert! Magnolia is famous for there cupcakes and we have wanted to go for a while but it never works out. This night the trip did not work out either because they were closed! Plan B, go get gelatto in Time Square....where I got Caramel Crunch gelatto...it was not my favorite dessert but was good to try it!

Thursday September 10
I had been asked by Caitlin last week to ship some boxes to a hotel in Tennessee. UnitedHealth Group is having a event there and so we needed to send them supplies but they did not want them to arrive too early for the hotel to have to store the boxes. So I had looked up the arrival dates and found that today would be the right time to send the three packages. Then I uploaded pictures from the event that were so cute! We had a photo booth there and the whole thing was carnival themed so we had carnival items for the kids to take pictures with. I could not get enough of all the cute little pictures that were taken of each kid. I was supposed to go to a Sunshine Chef event in Brooklyn but the weather was so gross that the hospital cancelled for this upcoming week! Caitlin then decided that I could go to a Book Club event at Mt. Sinai Hospital. Vincent Kirsch was the author and illustrator of Too Little Boys From Toolittle Toys...He was such an interesting guy! We were at a place in the hospital called KidZone TV where authors and other things get filmed and then the feed gets shown on all the televisions in the hospital for the patients. So, Vincent started working freelance jobs, then went to Bergdorf Goodman and was the person who did the window displaces, then he became a designer for Broadway show posters, and then he started writing and illustrating! His books are so cute but he totally lives in his stories world! We were very happy that he agreed to read his story for this hospital and represent Project Sunshine.

When I got back to my place me and Lisa were really bored! So we decided to go shopping...I bought a shorter black sweater because all of mine are long and then I bought some awesome teal Vans! They are surprisingly comfortable and will be great walking shoes for this city! After shopping we watched Greys Anatomy with Andrea, Laura, and Candace! Of course we could not miss our show!

Friday October 1
I was asked to go to Brooklyn to accompany Erik, a guy painting a mural for Project Sunshine at a hospital. Me and Marissa went with him and got a little lost with where to go. We never get the right directions but we made it....Erik started sketching and he is making a mural of Finding Nemo! We are so happy that he is doing this for us....then it was back to work!

I had to upload the photos from the Book Club event first! We took about fifty pictures it was crazy but a lot of fun! Then I sent off my baseball craft kits, filed some papers, and shipped SHSU there t shirts!!!

Friday night we all went out to eat. After walking a complete circle we finally ended up at a pasta place next to Bryant Park. It was very good pasta and a great atmosphere for a big group. Then me and Andrea got cake from Tic Toc Diner and hung out for a while...

Great start to a weekend!

The last two days...not so exciting!

Sunday night September 26 I ended my night with seeing the show Chicago! The show was so much fun...I had not remembered much from the movie so all of the Broadway show was pretty much new to me. Their is alot of dancing and plain black costuming in this show but the dancers are amazing! They do a dance called Fosse. I went to see it with girls from my place Andrea, Lisa, Jenna, and a few others. Andrea is here for dancing so she was all over this show. It was so much fun sitting with her and seeing how much she enjoyed the show and appreciated the dancing!

Monday September 27
Monday morning started the week of dreariness! It has rained SO much this week already! Four people I am around alot have not been feeling well and so I am  just hoping it is the weather and not that everyone is sick. As soon as I arrived at work I was swept away to the back to my new desk. We had two new interns start Monday so I was moved to the back where more of the team workers desks are. At first I was upset about this because Jenny a past intern works in the front of the office and I like her alot. But now I am starting to get used to and like having my own little corner. We were sent four huge bags full of craft kits. It is now my job to go through all of the kits and make sure that they are acceptable to send to other hospitals. Then I have to find in the database hospitals that need supplies and then box them all up and ship them off. The goal is to ship items we recieve as fast as possible and to the hospitals that need them the most. This task took me a while so when I was done it was time for lunch and Caitlin wanted the interns to go out to lunch and get to know each other. Now in the office their is me from Sam Houston, Kaylee from NYU, Kevin from New Hampshire, and Marissa who is from Massachusetts but is originally from California! We had alot of fun talking and getting to know each other and this made me feel alot more comfortable with my job and being at work. I am very happy that they are there with me and seeing what we all can bring to Project Sunshine.

After lunch I did not have much to do and Kaylee had said that she had a huge list of things to do so I helped her with a few things. One of the things was tying shirts nicely like a gift for a training session we had Monday night. I do not enjoy doing this kind of project but it gave me practice and I actually started looking close to a pro. Then ended the work day folding shirts for a huge event Caitlin has Wednesday with a very important company to us so everything had to look professional and nice.

Brianna and I were supposed to meet Sunday night to get a cupcake from Crumbs Bakery but I ended up seeing Chicago instead so after work we met up to get a cupcake. I had a Half Baked cupcake which is alot like a cookie dough one. It was so good! I have been so bad about sweats but they are so good! I figure I am walking so much that I can splurge a little. Probably not as much as I do but whatever :)
Then Gossip Girl was on last night and so me, Erika, Lisa, and Aaron watched it in Lisa's room. We had alot of fun recognizing places they filmed at and talking about Fashion's Night Out because the show was based around it last night.

Tuesday September 28
Caitlin did not come in until late today because she was not feeling well. This started a huge scare in the office that everyone was going to get sick! The weather has been so gloomy, humid, and rainy. My first task was to send Project Sunshine bags to Tennessee for a new Project Sunshine starting from a new company supporting our cause. Then I finished folding all the shirts for the event tomorrow. On Thursday we have a Sunshine Chef event in Brooklyn and so today we had to order all of the food. I was asked to look up all the ingredients and find out if the store we used had all of the items we needed. After this we were sent blankets and pillows from our event last week we had with NY Life. I was asked to find two hospitals in New York to send these items too because NY Life works with the people of New York on Medicare and things of this nature. So I shipped and updated the database on shipping these items. Then Kevin had not been shown the craft kit database yet so I was able to teach him how it all worked and what he needed to do to update the database and ship items to hospitals. After this their was nothing pressing to get done so I started making more baseball craft kits so that we could send to hospitals more often rather than waiting on our supporters to make kits for us. To end the day I ran an errand to Sovereign Bank to get paperwork for our program starting in Kenya.

When I arrived back at my place Lisa wanted to hang out. So I had not watched Desperate Housewives yet and wanted to catch up so we did that. Then we ate dinner and watched Glee!

A side note to my day is that one of our kids in Project Sunshine back home is at Texas Children's tonight. He is having problems with seizures. Please pray that he gets through this hard time and strength for his family! Thanks!