Profiling

I spent last week at an offsite (here in Miami).  In one of the breakout sessions, we did a profile assessment to learn different communication styles, behavioral styles, etc.  I love this stuff.  It fascinates me to know that we are made up of this DNA 'stuff'...some of which can change, some of which is just how God made us.  And, that there are people smart enough to figure out what questions to ask to allow us to see all this on paper. 

Here are the quick buckets of where you could get placed:

D - Dominance; likes to get results, make changes and have impact.  They are direct, compelling, believe in their abilities and will take risks. 

I - Influence/Interpersonal; like to get results through people.  They are extroverted, like changing situations, and will accommodate other's wishes.  They would rather flee than fight and 'have a way with words.'

S - Steadiness/Stability - indirect and introverted, prefer a stable environment, following through on projects and accommodating others.  Make good team players, listen and have patience.

C - Conscientiousness/Cautious - indirect and lean toward order, precision, rules and policies.  Take great pride in their work, respond with facts rather than feelings.  Prefer logic and accuracy.  Ask 'why' a lot. 

Any guesses on where I netted out??......................

It was fun to go around the room and try to take guesses of people's personalities before knowing where we all fell on the test. 

Me = High 'C', closely followed by a pretty high 'D'.  I had a little bit of 'I' and almost zero 'S' in me.  I guess 'steady' would not be a word to describe me.  I guess listening and patience are two areas I could develop.  :) 

Based on where you ranked for each letter above, you added them up and on a chart, it uses just one word to describe your profile....'Creative' was my one word.  I can live with that.  I actually really like it.  It was better than 'perfectionist'.  My finance guy got that one.  If you're the finance guy, I think that's probably the one you'd want over creative.  Maybe the Enron finance guys were 'creative' and not 'perfectionists'.  Maybe they were just in the wrong role.  Hmm??  (kidding!)

Funny enough...one of the traits of high 'C's' is the use of sarcasm.  I think I have that one nailed. 

Value to an organization with this pattern - initiates or designs changes. 

Watchouts for my 'personality'...many, I'm sure is what you're thinking.  But, 'bluntness' is one of them.  Remind me to tell you about me the bathroom story when Kyle and I were house hunting.  It was not my greatest moment.  But, I sure could've used this feedback then.  (No, it's not a gross story....I just really stuck my foot in my mouth with someone else in the bathroom). 

Our instructor used an elevator analogy to best describe all the profiles.
D - would get on the elevator and push the button, without care if anyone else needed to get on.
I - would get on, hold the open button and wait until everyone was on board.
S - I can't remember....see, those listening skills need to be sharpened. 
C - this person would get on and then guess weights of everyone and add them up to make sure they weren't over the weight limit. 

This describes me to perfection!  I count everything.  All the time.  I think it's the one OCD habit I have. 

What do you think you would be on this test???  Have you taken it? 

Looking Through the Files..

And I found this....just makes my heart melt.  I truly cannot believe that Olivia has grown up so incredibly fast in just two short years.  Lord, help me through the next 15 (and then some) because the last year has made my hair turn grey and we're not even in kindergarten yet!! 

Is it possible to stop time?  I loved this age.  So sweet. 

Did I Fail to Mention a Haitus??

I think so.....

It looks as if it's officially been 2 months since my last post.  A new record.  And you thought I was slacking before?!? 

I'll post a longer update in the next few days.  I feel like we took the entire summer off!!  Not a bad problem, but need to get back in the groove of things. 

Here are a few pics for the time being...

The little man....isn't he handsome??

Kyle and I were lucky to sneak off to the Caymans for a VERY quick trip.  But, it was long enough to relax and enjoy the sun. 

No kids, beer in hand and beach 5 feet away...what more can you ask for?

Our self portrait! 

Olivia at dinner with me in NYC! 

Smiley little man...being kissed by Eddie!  An hourly occurrence. 

Look what Luke got into??  Guess what we did this weekend??  - BABY PROOFED! 

The Party Continues.....

I think we have been on a non-stop party for the last month.  And, the fun continues this weekend!  I just flew back in town from a trip and I'm sitting in the airport lounge waiting for my parents to get here!  I cannot wait to see them and I know I'm not the only one in the house excited for their arrival! 

Two weekends ago, we hosted 3 functions back to back in our house.  We had our neighbor over Thur night before he left for the summer in NY.  The next night, Olivia had her last soccer game and we spoke up too fast and decided to have the 'end of season' pizza party at our house.  Last year we introduced our 'kid friendly' version of 'Jingle Bells and Cocktails' party, Miami-style.  We invited Olivia's class and all the families over for an end of school celebration/pool party.  So, why not repeat, right?  Well, her class grew from 11 kids last year to 18 this year.  Nonetheless, a great time was had by all.  And, similar to last year, the party (on paper) was from 3pm-7pm.  Well, the last guests left at 11pm!  The kids had a blast and were worn out for days.  That alone qualifies as success! 

This past weekend was a little bit of the same, but fortunately, none of the action occurred at our house.  Our pool, our dog and our wallet took a little break.  Our neighbors have a weekend family home in the Keys and we were invited to spend some time with them down there.  If you haven't been to the Keys....it is definitely a life-style that could grow on you if you have any ounce of 'laid backness' in you!  You just feel like you need to be sitting on a beach chair, margarita in hand, watching the sunset.  It was heaven.  Pure heaven. 

And, miracles do happen!!  I finally got caught up, as many of you know (sorry!) and got caught up on...oh, just about the last 9 months of photos!  All uploaded to Snapfish.  If I can figure it out, I will attach a link here to the pictures in the Keys.  Beautiful...am I repeating my self?

The best part.....we're going back down there this weekend with my parents!!  Today is my Dad's birthday, so we'll celebrate tonight.  Tomorrow we are getting a loaner of a friend's boat and getting a tour of Miami from sea.  Friday, Olivia graduates (yes, from preschool!) and then we're off to here.  7 pools.  I don't know who will test them all out first...Olivia, my mom or my dad!!  I'll let you know. 

New Experiences.....

Last week, Luke got to eat spaghetti for the first time.  If you can't tell by the pictures, he thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it.  And, I loved every minute of watching him.  Kyle....well, he was not thrilled with the clean up involved, as I decided to let an 8 month old feed himself spaghetti.  It was not thrown across the room as one would imagine.  But, rather a controlled mess staying mostly in the vicinity of the highchair. 

It was priceless!  His hand definitely turned into a shovel!

Happy Happy Friday

I just got back into town from Trinidad.  Although I would never consider Trinidad a tropical paradise by any stretch of the imagination, it made me pause and appreciate what I'm doing right now.  I have to say that I have been to some pretty cool places that not everyone gets to visit. 

On top of this, my experiences over the last two years have widened my eyes to different cultures immensely!!  My driver this morning from the hotel to the airport was passionately describing all the local 'Trini' cuisine in great detail.  And, exactly how to make it.  It literally came to life as she was talking.   Do you think we could do the same if asked about our favorite dishes? 

So many thought on this subject....I will write more.  But, right now, I'm off to get a pedicure and start the weekend! 

Here are a few pics of the family....all fun that occurred in my absence this week! 

Kyle and Olivia at her school's 'parent appreciation' breakfast which I missed as the school only gave us two weeks notice and I already had this trip booked!  Bummed.  Looks like they had fun though!

This is Luke on Michele's (our nanny) lap!  She took him for a walk at the nearby park/elementary school.  Apparently it was 'career day' and she took it upon herself to take Luke for a visit in the fire truck!  Cute, huh??



The Before and After....

Ok....you can still be in the running for a FREE closet cleaning!!  There is still time.  Submit your entries now.  Be as creative as you can.  Play the word game.  Here are a few we've heard:

- Coming out of the Closet
- Organize You (you need a drink in hand and Kyle playing charades to fully grasp this one!)
- Always Organized by Allison
- From Chaos to Clutter

As mentioned before, Kyle's closet is a shoebox.  I'll let the pictures speak for themselves, but here's a snapshot of Allison's magic.  I need to take the 'after' of my closet.  It's quite impressive.  I'll post soon.

What's interesting too, is that Kyle is a pretty neat person.  He's fairly Type A about keeping the house clean and picked up.  But...his closet....well.  Organization is probably not his strong suit! 

The Process:  What worked really well for us was mimosa's.  Took the bite out of the misery and truth be told....we kind of had fun!!

 

The Finished Product: 

Allison - if you're reading this, you will be happy to hear that it still looks exactly like this!!  Hangers and all....!  You'd be proud!