So we have officially moved. Sydney and I are now living in a nice little "subdivision" - that's what they call neighborhoods here. It's really nice because we now each have our own room and there is a really fun park real close. We're excited for summer because there are always kids skateboarding and playing basketball at the park.
The house is real small, and it was pretty dirty when we moved in. The landlord didn't have time to clean it because we had to move in as soon as the other people moved out because we had to get out of our other place. It took us 2 hours to clean the shower- literally! It was terrible. Really disgusting. Things are getting better we're getting it cleaned up and getting our stuff all set up.
One of the saddest things for me was that in the move I put my beautiful plant in the back of our friend's pick-up truck and it got too cold and now it's terribly wilted! I think it's a goner. I'm so sad about it. I can't believe that I was so silly and put it in the truck- I think I just figured it would be a short ride and it would be ok... :( I'm gonna miss her.
Good news is that I shoveled my driveway today all by myself! I was so proud. It was hard work for sure but needed because we got like a foot of snow the other day and my car was having a hard time getting out. I didn't want it to freeze and then we'd be stuck for sure.
I'll have to download some pictures of our new place soon. We also have some good pictures of playing bingo for Sydney's birthday I should post.
I better get going to bed, but things are going really well and I'll try to update more soon.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Dog Mushing
Here I am at the K300. That stands for Kuskokwim 300. It's a dogsled race- like the Iditiarod, but they race up the frozen Kuskokwim River instead. It was pretty darn cold that day, my hands were freezing even in my sealskin mittens. Alot of the racers had frozen beards as they went by. All the dogs had little booties on their feet so they wouldn't freeze and some of them even had jackets on. Honestly the dogs are a little dissapointing. I always imagined mushing dogs to be big Huskies or something, I don't know what these dogs are but they're surprisingly small. It was definitly a cool experience- Definitely not something I could have seen in Seattle.
I'm still really enjoying my job. Today was an especially good day. I just love being able to help people get what they need to live the best they can. It's so fulfilling to me, to be able to help coordinate people's care. I love being in the behavioral health setting, it's so fascinating to me and fun. I love the people that I work with true. Alot less stress than my previous position. I am so thankful for my previous position though because it really has helped having all those connections at the hospital! I kinda do miss drawing blood and stuff though... I know that sounds gross but it's true. :) I should be doing that at my job soon though, so I'm excited about that. haha I also miss the babies, but two of my friends up here are having babies this summer so I should get my fix then. And then one of my best friends at home is having a baby too, so I'll have a nephew soon! I'm super excited about that. Slightly bittersweet though because I wish I could be there to see him all the time. That's definitely the hardest part about being up here, missing out on daily thing with the people I love.
I'm so lucky to have my sister up here with me. She's doing really good. She's still working at the elementary school as a substitute. She's pretty much a permanant sub now, they really love her there- I'm so proud of her. She's fitting in so well, it really is amazing. Bethel isn't an easy place to live, especially for a city girl and she just goes along with everything. She takes the bus to work (it looks more like what we'd call a shuttle) and then walks home. Yup she's quite a trooper.
Her walk will be significantly shorter now that we're moving. We're pretty much looking forward to the move now. Not so much looking forward to the packing or even the unpacking but it will be nice to be in a new place, especially a 2 bedroom place.
Also I've been helping with the Awana's program at one of the churches in town. It's basically Sunday School/Children's church/boy and girl scouts on Tuesday nights. It's really fun. I take my friend's little cousin with me and it's been a really good time for us to hang out too. It's such a great opportunity to be able to love and pour into some really needy kids. Many of these kids see so much at such a young age, they have to grow up really fast. Most of their parents drink away their childhood- it's nice seeing them on Tuesdays being able to just be kids. And I just pray that the love we show them and the things we teach them will make a lasting impact. I pray that the memory verses that they learn will stick with them always. The word of God doesn't come back void right?!
We have lots to look forward too because my parents will be here in a few weeks, my best friend Corey comes in April and then two of my roomates from college will be here in May for my birthday! Isn't that wonderful! When I tell people about all my visitors they are amazed. People that have been here much longer than I say that they've never been able to get anyone to come visit them. So things are good.
Oh except one piece of really sad news. Skippy died. Yup the little fish in the middle of the picture. I was pretty tore up about it and I was kinda mad at Lenny and Reggie, I really don't feel that they mourned good enough. But I guess grief is subjective and only they truly know how they felt about it.
Talk to you guys soon...
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Introducing the Men in My Life
I would like you all to meet my handsome boys: Reggie, Skippy and Lenny.
Here's a little insight for you guys. I won Reggie at the Halloween Carnival by throwing balls into glass jars along with another fish I named Lil' Timmy. Lil Timmy died though (me and syd think it might have been the name that did him in) and ever since then Reggie was really depressed. He kept having stomach aches, for which I would feed him cooked greens, such as broccoli and asparagus but still he mostly just moped in the corner. Well my friend Brenda fish-sat him while I was in Seattle for Christmas (that was a surprisingly snowy trip- snowy but wonderful!) and she said she was always scared that he was going to die of sadness so she got him some friends- Skippy and Lenny.
So nce again I have done a terrible job of keeping you all updated on my adventures in Bethel!
Summer has come and gone, fall was hard to distinguish and now here is winter in full swing. It was -28 degree today and with the windchill it was -58! Now that is what I call cold. It was painful. My car wouldn't start because it was so cold- we tried to jump it but that didn't even work. My hands were throbbing and my legs were burning even through my jeans and stretch pants. It seemed like the coldest day that I've experienced here yet and it made me question why people chose to inhabit Alaska.
Well so much has happened. Lots of changes. My little sister came to live with me in October. It has been such a HUGE blessing having her here to live with me. I love it so much. We have so much fun. Everything is better with Sydney, and it's so nice having someone around that knows me and understands me so well. We haven't had one fight- pretty impressive I must say. She's the best roomie ever. Currently she is working at the elementary school as a substitute. She'll be filling in for a aid in the special education dept once school starts up agian, while the aid is on maternity leave. She does such a great job with the kids and everyone just loves her. I'm so proud of her.
Some of you may be wondering how she is able to substitute since she just graduated from highschool and my best explanation is.... it's Bethel. You can do anything in Bethel. ;) She actually substituted at the highschool for few weeks when she first came, and some of her "students" were older than her!
Another significant change is that I have transfered jobs. I am now working in the Behavioral Health Dept within the corporation. I am still a registered nurse and my new title is "Behavioral Health Psychiatric Nurse Case Manager". The position has been vacant for at least the past 3 years so in many ways I creating and discovery what exactly my role intails. So far I love my job though. I've always had a passion and fascination with psychology and mental health. I love being able to see the patient in such a holistic way. My job is perfect because it combines both the medical and behavioral aspects of nursing.
I work with the Nurse Practitioner here assisting with medication compliance and follow up. I also am going to be facilitating medication administration at the residential facilities in Bethel and being a resource and advocate for staff and clients there. I get to do alot of patient and staff teaching and I love all the various interactions that I am able to have throughout the community. I love all opportunities and new experiences this job gives me. There is a lot of depression, suicide, post traumatic stress, domestic violence and substance abuse in this area, among other things. I am just greatful to be a part of a team that is addressing these issues. Oh and another plus is that the developmental disabilities department is connected to BH so I get to work with those clients as well!
It's a really big job and there is alot to be done so please pray for me as I discover what all that entails.
I hope to possibly start working as a nurse for the Saturday clinics that are sometimes held at the hospital to keep up some of my other more hands on nursing skills as well.
Well because of my job change I also am going to be making a housing change. I currently live in an apartment owned by the corporation. Well since my new job is not directly stationed in the hospital I am no longer qualified to be living in this building. This came as quite a frustration and I was very stressed and upset about it for awhile. My move out date is in less than 30 days and I still don't know where I am going to be moving to.... The good news is that God has given me such peace about it and to my own amazement even excitement! I know that it will all work out and that God has a great place for my sister and me to live. One plus is that wherever we go we'll be upgrading to a 2 bedroom, right now we have a one bedroom and I have a curtain in the dining room that serves as "my room". Another plus is that we are most likely going to get a dog (living out in the community by myself- especially once my sister returns to Seattle does not appeal to me)! We have a few options that have come up recently and we are eager to explore the possibilities. Please pray for us as we are looking for a new home.
Alright I better get going to bed, so I can wake up for church in the morning. Things are going really good and I'll try to keep you all better updated!
Here's a little insight for you guys. I won Reggie at the Halloween Carnival by throwing balls into glass jars along with another fish I named Lil' Timmy. Lil Timmy died though (me and syd think it might have been the name that did him in) and ever since then Reggie was really depressed. He kept having stomach aches, for which I would feed him cooked greens, such as broccoli and asparagus but still he mostly just moped in the corner. Well my friend Brenda fish-sat him while I was in Seattle for Christmas (that was a surprisingly snowy trip- snowy but wonderful!) and she said she was always scared that he was going to die of sadness so she got him some friends- Skippy and Lenny.So nce again I have done a terrible job of keeping you all updated on my adventures in Bethel!
Summer has come and gone, fall was hard to distinguish and now here is winter in full swing. It was -28 degree today and with the windchill it was -58! Now that is what I call cold. It was painful. My car wouldn't start because it was so cold- we tried to jump it but that didn't even work. My hands were throbbing and my legs were burning even through my jeans and stretch pants. It seemed like the coldest day that I've experienced here yet and it made me question why people chose to inhabit Alaska.
Well so much has happened. Lots of changes. My little sister came to live with me in October. It has been such a HUGE blessing having her here to live with me. I love it so much. We have so much fun. Everything is better with Sydney, and it's so nice having someone around that knows me and understands me so well. We haven't had one fight- pretty impressive I must say. She's the best roomie ever. Currently she is working at the elementary school as a substitute. She'll be filling in for a aid in the special education dept once school starts up agian, while the aid is on maternity leave. She does such a great job with the kids and everyone just loves her. I'm so proud of her.
Some of you may be wondering how she is able to substitute since she just graduated from highschool and my best explanation is.... it's Bethel. You can do anything in Bethel. ;) She actually substituted at the highschool for few weeks when she first came, and some of her "students" were older than her!
Another significant change is that I have transfered jobs. I am now working in the Behavioral Health Dept within the corporation. I am still a registered nurse and my new title is "Behavioral Health Psychiatric Nurse Case Manager". The position has been vacant for at least the past 3 years so in many ways I creating and discovery what exactly my role intails. So far I love my job though. I've always had a passion and fascination with psychology and mental health. I love being able to see the patient in such a holistic way. My job is perfect because it combines both the medical and behavioral aspects of nursing.
I work with the Nurse Practitioner here assisting with medication compliance and follow up. I also am going to be facilitating medication administration at the residential facilities in Bethel and being a resource and advocate for staff and clients there. I get to do alot of patient and staff teaching and I love all the various interactions that I am able to have throughout the community. I love all opportunities and new experiences this job gives me. There is a lot of depression, suicide, post traumatic stress, domestic violence and substance abuse in this area, among other things. I am just greatful to be a part of a team that is addressing these issues. Oh and another plus is that the developmental disabilities department is connected to BH so I get to work with those clients as well!
It's a really big job and there is alot to be done so please pray for me as I discover what all that entails.
I hope to possibly start working as a nurse for the Saturday clinics that are sometimes held at the hospital to keep up some of my other more hands on nursing skills as well.
Well because of my job change I also am going to be making a housing change. I currently live in an apartment owned by the corporation. Well since my new job is not directly stationed in the hospital I am no longer qualified to be living in this building. This came as quite a frustration and I was very stressed and upset about it for awhile. My move out date is in less than 30 days and I still don't know where I am going to be moving to.... The good news is that God has given me such peace about it and to my own amazement even excitement! I know that it will all work out and that God has a great place for my sister and me to live. One plus is that wherever we go we'll be upgrading to a 2 bedroom, right now we have a one bedroom and I have a curtain in the dining room that serves as "my room". Another plus is that we are most likely going to get a dog (living out in the community by myself- especially once my sister returns to Seattle does not appeal to me)! We have a few options that have come up recently and we are eager to explore the possibilities. Please pray for us as we are looking for a new home.
Alright I better get going to bed, so I can wake up for church in the morning. Things are going really good and I'll try to keep you all better updated!
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Happy Winter!
Greetings my long lost blog readers.
Wow sorry it's been so long since I've written. It's been a whole two seasons here. Summer is long gone and winter is now in full swing here in Bethel. I went and watch the sun rise with a friend of mine the other morning and it was only four degrees out. Yeah Bethel is definitely the only place that I would ever be able to watch the sun rise (never seen it before)- most of you know how much of a morning person I am not. Luckily the sun doesn't rise here until 10am, very convenient timing for me. It is such a breathtaking sight to see the sun rise over the frozen lake. One of my new favorite things to do- watch the sun rise. Each time I see it I am astounded by God's glory and how he created things to work together so perfectly- and right on time.
I had a great summer here, it was so fun being able to have so much daylight and be outside so much. I went for lots of walks and quite a few boat trips out on the river. I even jumped in the river twice- which was quite exhilarating. Literally had to jump in and jump out though because it was so cold- the current was pretty quick too... good thing I was on swim team. Most of the locals thought I was pretty crazy for doing it.
I went berry picking during one of the river trips and came home and made fresh tundra blueberry pancakes and then me and my friend ate them down by the river- well we attempted to we had to finish eating them in the car because the gnats wanted to eat us!
Moral of the story is I loved this summer in Bethel! It was so beautiful. Good memories.
Wow sorry it's been so long since I've written. It's been a whole two seasons here. Summer is long gone and winter is now in full swing here in Bethel. I went and watch the sun rise with a friend of mine the other morning and it was only four degrees out. Yeah Bethel is definitely the only place that I would ever be able to watch the sun rise (never seen it before)- most of you know how much of a morning person I am not. Luckily the sun doesn't rise here until 10am, very convenient timing for me. It is such a breathtaking sight to see the sun rise over the frozen lake. One of my new favorite things to do- watch the sun rise. Each time I see it I am astounded by God's glory and how he created things to work together so perfectly- and right on time.
I had a great summer here, it was so fun being able to have so much daylight and be outside so much. I went for lots of walks and quite a few boat trips out on the river. I even jumped in the river twice- which was quite exhilarating. Literally had to jump in and jump out though because it was so cold- the current was pretty quick too... good thing I was on swim team. Most of the locals thought I was pretty crazy for doing it.
I went berry picking during one of the river trips and came home and made fresh tundra blueberry pancakes and then me and my friend ate them down by the river- well we attempted to we had to finish eating them in the car because the gnats wanted to eat us!
Moral of the story is I loved this summer in Bethel! It was so beautiful. Good memories.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
I Tore Up the Tundra on Monday!
Yes that is me on the tundra and yes I did drive that all by myself. Super cool- I know. ;)
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
The Celebration of Independence
Happy Belated 4th of July! This is a picture of me and Kelly and Charly at the 4th of July festival here in Bethel (I painted the cherries and the fireworks and my friend joey painted the palm tree on my cheek). It's daylight all the time right now so we don't have any fireworks on the 4th but we do have a parade (basically consisting of firetrucks and candy) and a festival with lots of booths of food, raffles and carnival-like games. The youth group had a booth with video games, candy and face painting (I helped face paint). It was so great because we made $1100 towards the youth group fund which will help send kids to the youth convention in Anchorage this fall.It was a really fun day and the sun was out nice and warm. I loved being around all the people. People come in from the villages just for the event. I'll try to post some more pictures later.
So arrived back in Bethel on the 29th of June. I was able to be in Seattle for 17 days for my sister's graduation. It was so nice. It was so great being in Seattle with the people I love. I'll have to post some of those pictures too.
It was hard having to leave- alot of tears were shed, but I'm doing well back in Bethel. I got the official acceptance from the loan repayment program so I will be here for 23 more months. The countdown started on June 15th (or at least that's what I'm told, I'm still waiting for the official paperwork, I sure hope they didn't trick me).
I want to do my best to live it up here these next two years. I want to focus on what God has for me here and not just long to be back home- because it will be soon enough that I'll be back and then maybe I'll be wishing I was here... haha
Yesterday and today I had a dream come true and spent time out in the Tundra. It was so fun. Yesterday me and my friend Joey took the fourwheeler out riding and then today me and Angela, my new friend Mike and a nun (yes a nun) went for a walk out there. It was quite a day. I'll have to explain that one more once I get pictures from Mike's camera. It was so great.
The Tundra is truly beautiful to me. And everything is better with a nun don't you think?
Ok I love you guys. I have to work tomorrow so I need to get going to bed. But I'll try to write more soon.
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