Well, for having so much free time, I've certainly been neglecting my blog. It's really been strange to be off work with absolutely nothing to do. Before, I was either studying, working, or sleeping. So, to be totally free with nothing that absolutely needs to be done, is kind of amazing. I really like all the sleep I've been getting. ;) Working only two nights a week hasn't been too bad either. They have been bad nights, but at least I have so many free days to catch up on sleep. Sunday morning after working all night, I came home and slept from eight to two in the afternoon! Apparently, I was a lot more tired than I had even thought. Tonight's my last day to sleep in my own bed for awhile. Starting tomorrow afternoon, I work 40 hours straight. I'll get off Friday morning, come back to the apartment to shower before heading down to Rolla. Then I'll come back Sunday night and get a good nights sleep (I hope!), work for 48 hours straight and then head home again. :) This will be my first Christmas away from home....hopefully, it won't be too bad. I just keep telling myself how much nicer it'll be for those with kids, to be home with them for Christmas. :)
I'm so looking forward to spending this weekend and the next with my family! I love all the good times we have :) Coffee dates are the best! And I love how extremely loud we all get when we're together. =) I love my family so much and can't imagine life without them. There's nothing better than when your family is your best friends. I'm so thankful that God put me in such a loving, happy family. :)
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Saturday, December 8, 2012
And she's back!!!!!!
I'm finally back! Today was my last final and I am so happy to be done with this semester. I only had seven credits, but boy was it crazy at times! There were many times I felt like I was going crazy, but it's over and I can finally relax! Oh, and by relaxing, I'm working all weekend. No party time for me until next week. :)
Work is as lovely as ever. Lately, there hasn't been as many overtime shifts, so I've been working normal 40 hour weeks. Which has really helped with my sanity. ;) We have been incredibly busy almost every shift though and that made getting homework done nearly impossible. Yesterday and last night there were some bad wrecks and a pedestrian vs. car that didn't end so well. We were dispatched around midnight this morning for a injury accident. Reading the notes it said that two patients were ejected from the vehicle. At that moment, I was thinking, "Yeah, right. Surely they weren't going fast enough on that road to be ejected." Anything is possible, and the pickup with our patient (and two others) rolled several times. The only one not seriously injured in the accident? The guy who was intoxicated. Even though the scene reeked of alcohol, we never smelled it on our patient. For having been ejected, she did not have very many noticeable injuries besides a few abrasions. We knew she had a brain bleed and we found out a couple hours later that her back was broken completely in half. I found out when I got to work this afternoon, that she had died. The other guy that was ejected is still in critical condition and was not expected to live very much longer either. Sad to think of the phone call those parents were getting early this morning. Be in prayer for these families and the pain they must be going through.
And now that I've probably made you all thoroughly depressed, I'll tell you about a very happy drunk. :) When we got in the back of the truck, my partner told him that if he were good, I would ride with him, if he were bad, he would have to ride with him. The happy drunk's comment was, "I'll be good, cause she's hot! I love her. She's the best Columbia has to offer!" Lol, after a little bit of this going on, my partner told him to behave because I was mean. Of course, the patient already knew this and stated, "Oh, I know! I saw it in her eyes." Amazing, you can see the meanness in my eyes. I've tried so hard to conceal it and now everyone can see it in my eyes! Oh boy, what will I do now. ;-) Yeah, I pretty much laughed on that entire call.
Well, I have completed my first ever 8 hour adventure race and I'm now totally addicted! Like I thought I wouldn't be. ;-) When I finished, my response was, "That was the most awful, fun thing ever!" And it truly was awful and fun. I had not biked nearly enough and was not ready for the millions of hills (I'm pretty sure they were little mountains) that we had to go up. I walked up most of the "hills"
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Wouldn't you hate me if I had just posted that up without finishing? ;) It took me several hours to write that small little post, since I was writing reports and going on calls. My plan was to go ahead and finish it off once I got home from work, but then I was so tired that I went straight to bed. So now, I'm trying to finish it up. :) This morning we were busy with calls and then I desperately needed a nap this afternoon, so I got one and now that it's 1530, I'm ready to finish this up! ;)
So....where were we.....hills. Ok, so yep, I walked up most of the humongous "hills" that were very steep and seemed to go on forever. Seriously. I'm not even really joking. The guys biking up were barely going any faster than we were walking. And they were burning way more energy by trying to bike. BUT, best part ever? Coming down. =D Now that really gets your adrenaline going! On the paved roads, we got going really fast and it felt soo awesome! Besides being a little chilly. ;) The ending of our race, we were biking more on the trails, going up a ton more hills, and then coming down! If you've never done mountain biking, then you should. The last mile or two of the race was all downhill and that was extremely freaky. My bike chain came off once, but it was a quick fix and we were flying down the hill once again. Just imagine trying to ride really fast downhill, with tree roots sticking up, rocks at odd angles, people in your way, hairpin turns....and you get the general picture. ;) There were so many times that I thought for sure I was going to hit one of those roots, my bike was going to stop and I was going to go flying.....and probably break my neck in the process. Thankfully, that never happened and we all made it safely to the finish without injuries. I think it was the adrenaline from it all that made me love it so much. ;)
This is right after we crossed the finish line. We finished in 6 hours and 33 minutes, which wasn't too bad for being my first time. It was the perfect weather for a race, 40's in the morning and 60's by afternoon. It was cloudy all day which helped a ton with us not getting too hot.
So, a breakdown of the race.... We got to the park around 6 and proceeded to hang out by the start line, pretty much freezing to death. ;) Kenny, (2nd from right) kept saying, "Man, this really sucks. Why are we doing this?" We were all excited, nervous, and cold. The night before we had figured out the route we were taking to get all the checkpoints and so in the morning we had to figure out where we were and where the first checkpoint would be. We were allowed to get the checkpoints in whatever order we wanted to, but we had to make sure to get the right checkpoint marked on our passport. The checkpoints aren't marked as to whether they are 1,2,3etc, you just have to know which is which. Thankfully, these guys were awesome with direction and we never once got lost. So, for 3+ miles (not sure exactly on the mileage) we ran/trekked through the woods. Once we got all 9 checkpoints, we ran back to the start, picked up our bikes (well, not literally. We rode them;-) and we biked for 14.5 miles and picked up 11 other checkpoints. We then got off our bikes and trekked/ran 2 more miles to find 3 other checkpoints. Then we got back on our bikes and went 3.5 miles to where the canoes were at. There we had to put our bikes in the canoe with us and paddle 6 miles, stopping for 2 checkpoints along the way. Once we finished that leg, we had a gear check (you lose checkpoints for anything you're missing from you bag) and then it was back on the bikes for 5.5 miles and 7 or 8 checkpoints. It was a hard, fun race and I'm so planning on doing another before long. I'm being convinced to do a 12 hour race....we'll see about that. ;) I felt like I had to be holding the guys up the entire race, but they never said it and just told me that I was an "animal" (lol) and that I could race with them anytime. I guess I didn't do too terrible then ;)
There was Papa John's pizza after the finish which was really awesome. =) I wasn't very hungry, but I think the guy's were starving. Then we left soon after that and I made the little over two hour drive home. That is one of the hardest things about racing a few hours from where you live. Sitting for over two hours after that much of a workout on your legs, is quite the killer. That evening was extremely painful. My legs felt hot and they ached so bad when I tried walking that I felt like crying. (lol, and you're thinking I'm crazy to want to do another one;-), but by Sunday, I was doing a ton better and only had a few sore muscles. :) And by Wednesday, I was ready to sign up for another race. There's something really awesome about being so tired and worn out after just doing a big accomplishment. It feels so good even if it hurts like crazy! If you've never had this experience, then you're seriously missing out on a lot. :) So, now you all need to go sign up for a race! ;-)
Alright. I think that's all I'm going to write today. :) I'm gonna hope we don't get a call so I can call my mom. Aren't mom's just the best thing ever? I love mine. <3 br="br">
Work is as lovely as ever. Lately, there hasn't been as many overtime shifts, so I've been working normal 40 hour weeks. Which has really helped with my sanity. ;) We have been incredibly busy almost every shift though and that made getting homework done nearly impossible. Yesterday and last night there were some bad wrecks and a pedestrian vs. car that didn't end so well. We were dispatched around midnight this morning for a injury accident. Reading the notes it said that two patients were ejected from the vehicle. At that moment, I was thinking, "Yeah, right. Surely they weren't going fast enough on that road to be ejected." Anything is possible, and the pickup with our patient (and two others) rolled several times. The only one not seriously injured in the accident? The guy who was intoxicated. Even though the scene reeked of alcohol, we never smelled it on our patient. For having been ejected, she did not have very many noticeable injuries besides a few abrasions. We knew she had a brain bleed and we found out a couple hours later that her back was broken completely in half. I found out when I got to work this afternoon, that she had died. The other guy that was ejected is still in critical condition and was not expected to live very much longer either. Sad to think of the phone call those parents were getting early this morning. Be in prayer for these families and the pain they must be going through.
And now that I've probably made you all thoroughly depressed, I'll tell you about a very happy drunk. :) When we got in the back of the truck, my partner told him that if he were good, I would ride with him, if he were bad, he would have to ride with him. The happy drunk's comment was, "I'll be good, cause she's hot! I love her. She's the best Columbia has to offer!" Lol, after a little bit of this going on, my partner told him to behave because I was mean. Of course, the patient already knew this and stated, "Oh, I know! I saw it in her eyes." Amazing, you can see the meanness in my eyes. I've tried so hard to conceal it and now everyone can see it in my eyes! Oh boy, what will I do now. ;-) Yeah, I pretty much laughed on that entire call.
Well, I have completed my first ever 8 hour adventure race and I'm now totally addicted! Like I thought I wouldn't be. ;-) When I finished, my response was, "That was the most awful, fun thing ever!" And it truly was awful and fun. I had not biked nearly enough and was not ready for the millions of hills (I'm pretty sure they were little mountains) that we had to go up. I walked up most of the "hills"
-------------------------------------------------------------
Wouldn't you hate me if I had just posted that up without finishing? ;) It took me several hours to write that small little post, since I was writing reports and going on calls. My plan was to go ahead and finish it off once I got home from work, but then I was so tired that I went straight to bed. So now, I'm trying to finish it up. :) This morning we were busy with calls and then I desperately needed a nap this afternoon, so I got one and now that it's 1530, I'm ready to finish this up! ;)
So....where were we.....hills. Ok, so yep, I walked up most of the humongous "hills" that were very steep and seemed to go on forever. Seriously. I'm not even really joking. The guys biking up were barely going any faster than we were walking. And they were burning way more energy by trying to bike. BUT, best part ever? Coming down. =D Now that really gets your adrenaline going! On the paved roads, we got going really fast and it felt soo awesome! Besides being a little chilly. ;) The ending of our race, we were biking more on the trails, going up a ton more hills, and then coming down! If you've never done mountain biking, then you should. The last mile or two of the race was all downhill and that was extremely freaky. My bike chain came off once, but it was a quick fix and we were flying down the hill once again. Just imagine trying to ride really fast downhill, with tree roots sticking up, rocks at odd angles, people in your way, hairpin turns....and you get the general picture. ;) There were so many times that I thought for sure I was going to hit one of those roots, my bike was going to stop and I was going to go flying.....and probably break my neck in the process. Thankfully, that never happened and we all made it safely to the finish without injuries. I think it was the adrenaline from it all that made me love it so much. ;)
So, a breakdown of the race.... We got to the park around 6 and proceeded to hang out by the start line, pretty much freezing to death. ;) Kenny, (2nd from right) kept saying, "Man, this really sucks. Why are we doing this?" We were all excited, nervous, and cold. The night before we had figured out the route we were taking to get all the checkpoints and so in the morning we had to figure out where we were and where the first checkpoint would be. We were allowed to get the checkpoints in whatever order we wanted to, but we had to make sure to get the right checkpoint marked on our passport. The checkpoints aren't marked as to whether they are 1,2,3etc, you just have to know which is which. Thankfully, these guys were awesome with direction and we never once got lost. So, for 3+ miles (not sure exactly on the mileage) we ran/trekked through the woods. Once we got all 9 checkpoints, we ran back to the start, picked up our bikes (well, not literally. We rode them;-) and we biked for 14.5 miles and picked up 11 other checkpoints. We then got off our bikes and trekked/ran 2 more miles to find 3 other checkpoints. Then we got back on our bikes and went 3.5 miles to where the canoes were at. There we had to put our bikes in the canoe with us and paddle 6 miles, stopping for 2 checkpoints along the way. Once we finished that leg, we had a gear check (you lose checkpoints for anything you're missing from you bag) and then it was back on the bikes for 5.5 miles and 7 or 8 checkpoints. It was a hard, fun race and I'm so planning on doing another before long. I'm being convinced to do a 12 hour race....we'll see about that. ;) I felt like I had to be holding the guys up the entire race, but they never said it and just told me that I was an "animal" (lol) and that I could race with them anytime. I guess I didn't do too terrible then ;)
There was Papa John's pizza after the finish which was really awesome. =) I wasn't very hungry, but I think the guy's were starving. Then we left soon after that and I made the little over two hour drive home. That is one of the hardest things about racing a few hours from where you live. Sitting for over two hours after that much of a workout on your legs, is quite the killer. That evening was extremely painful. My legs felt hot and they ached so bad when I tried walking that I felt like crying. (lol, and you're thinking I'm crazy to want to do another one;-), but by Sunday, I was doing a ton better and only had a few sore muscles. :) And by Wednesday, I was ready to sign up for another race. There's something really awesome about being so tired and worn out after just doing a big accomplishment. It feels so good even if it hurts like crazy! If you've never had this experience, then you're seriously missing out on a lot. :) So, now you all need to go sign up for a race! ;-)
Alright. I think that's all I'm going to write today. :) I'm gonna hope we don't get a call so I can call my mom. Aren't mom's just the best thing ever? I love mine. <3 br="br">
Thursday, October 18, 2012
The light at the end of the storm
Every time, God brought me through safely and I realized, that this picture is like the storms of life that we go through. They aren't easy, they can be stressful, you may panic that it's too much, but God ALWAYS brings you through. What I love so much about this picture is that it can have so much meaning. You have the storm, but then you also have the light at the end.
In life, we go through many storms. Some harder than others, but every one of them teaches us something and in the end, we know that God was always there and He was the one gently guiding us through the entire time.
As I was driving through the bad part, I couldn't help but think how much I hate driving in storms. They really aren't the funnest thing and there was one point where I wished I never had to drive through a bad storm again. The storms we go through in life, are God's way of teaching us something. We may not know at the time why He is doing it or what is the purpose, but we do know that we can count on Him to guide us. He never gives us anything that is too difficult to accomplish. By His strength, we can get through every storm no matter how hard it may be. We shouldn't hate something just because it's hard. Instead, we should realize where our strength lies and depend on that to get us through.
The light at the end of the storm is like God's promise of being there for us. When I drove through and made it into the light, it shone through so brightly that I was almost blinded by it. (Literally, driving west when the sun is setting is pretty difficult because of the sun being right in your eyes). As the sunshine poured through my windshield, I felt safe, happy, and couldn't help but feel God's love for me as He had brought me safely through yet another storm. Even though that was a weather storm, it's the same for the storms we go through in life. God's love wraps around us and we feel safe and secure.
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Sermons to start you day :)
Alright. So, I thought I could at least keep up with posting once a week, but clearly that didn't happen. Better late than never though, I guess. :)
A habit that I have recently started, is to listen to an Alistair Begg sermon while I get ready for work in the mornings. Most of you probably have time in the mornings to get up and have a quiet time to read you Bible. I'm usually up by 5 to shower and get ready for work, and so I don't think I would be very awake if I got up any earlier and tried reading (that usually puts me to sleep). So, my solution to the problem was to listen to sermons while getting ready. Make the most of the time you have right? :) It's actually been a huge motivator to get up that early. Normally, I have an extremely hard time getting up and I just want to ignore the fact that I have to work. Now I actually look forward to getting up because I love listening to the sermons. I just realized that I must sound like a commercial to you all.... Really wasn't planning to sound like that. In all honesty though, you guys should listen to Alistair Begg's sermons, just because they are that good. :) http://www.truthforlife.org/resources/sermon/call-potential-drifter/. This was the sermon I listened to this morning, very good and a reminder we all need. Also, another one that I really liked was this one: http://www.truthforlife.org/resources/sermon/dangers-jealousy/. So, you should check them out. The sermons aren't too long, just 30-45 minutes. Oh, and it's great to listen to them while driving. :)
Well, that's it for now. I was going to write more, but I'm at work and I'm going to eat some lunch and then work on homework. Fun! ;)
A habit that I have recently started, is to listen to an Alistair Begg sermon while I get ready for work in the mornings. Most of you probably have time in the mornings to get up and have a quiet time to read you Bible. I'm usually up by 5 to shower and get ready for work, and so I don't think I would be very awake if I got up any earlier and tried reading (that usually puts me to sleep). So, my solution to the problem was to listen to sermons while getting ready. Make the most of the time you have right? :) It's actually been a huge motivator to get up that early. Normally, I have an extremely hard time getting up and I just want to ignore the fact that I have to work. Now I actually look forward to getting up because I love listening to the sermons. I just realized that I must sound like a commercial to you all.... Really wasn't planning to sound like that. In all honesty though, you guys should listen to Alistair Begg's sermons, just because they are that good. :) http://www.truthforlife.org/resources/sermon/call-potential-drifter/. This was the sermon I listened to this morning, very good and a reminder we all need. Also, another one that I really liked was this one: http://www.truthforlife.org/resources/sermon/dangers-jealousy/. So, you should check them out. The sermons aren't too long, just 30-45 minutes. Oh, and it's great to listen to them while driving. :)
Well, that's it for now. I was going to write more, but I'm at work and I'm going to eat some lunch and then work on homework. Fun! ;)
Monday, September 24, 2012
Hey, it's only been a week since my last post! I'm doing really good! I'm sure you're thinking the exact opposite.... ;) I think if I shoot for posting once a week, I may actually get it done. We'll see anyway.
This last week has been pretty good. I only worked 40 hours (woohoo!) and only had one test in class. :) My classes are going well, but I still have to force myself to study (I really hate that part about school;-) and try not bake every time I don't feel like studying. That's a terrible thing to do, but it's way more fun! I did it last night. I really should've been studying, but instead I decided to make granola, oatmeal raisin cookies, and banana muffins. Yeah, I don't just make one thing, I have to go all out! But, I did good and got rid of most of it instead of eating all that yumminess (is that even a word, or did I just spell it wrong?) myself. So, I got absolutely no studying done, which was what I was aiming for. Am I terrible or what?! It's amazing I even got through high school! Nathan and I did way too much talking and not of enough school done. Haha, normally school days, all the kids and mom were downstairs and Nate and I had the upstairs.....which meant I went into Nathan's room and distracted him from studying (I guess I was the real problem....not him). We would spend the entire hour or two that we had for math, and spend it talking. :) Such terribly good times! During the times that we were supposed to be doing typing, we learned Morse code instead. Then we were able to write each other letters and no one else could read them. It was fun, except that I don't remember any of it now. :) Ah, I love memories of younger days and home with the family. And I totally went off subject there, but I don't even care :)
Work has been rough/good. Last week, every shift seemed to be busy and most of the calls weren't critical. I know, I should be grateful for that. :) I used to love working Saturday's, but now I'm beginning to hate them. I work almost every Saturday and we have had a bad night each time. I was thinking this last weekend would be pretty good since we didn't have an MU home game, but no, we still were busy (almost) all night long. Makes for a rough Sunday since I normally have to choose after I get off work at 7, whether I'm going to sleep an hour before going to church, or if I'm going to stay up the whole time and try and make it till afternoon. Last Sunday, I ended up coming home and sleeping for six hours straight.... this week, I didn't feel as terrible, so I stayed up and made it till afternoon. I'm working a 24 again today and so far we've gone almost 17 hours with only 3 calls! I think that's a record for this truck. Made me worry a little bit that all of a sudden we were going to get slammed with a million calls.....really hoping that doesn't happen though, so I can get some sleep before class tomorrow. :) I've been averaging 5 hours or less of sleep for the past couple days and it's kinda wearing me out.....it's probably the reason why I'm starting to feel sick too. Yuck.
With that being said, it's almost midnight so I should hit the sack. :) Here's a song though that I've been listening to all evening and think is pretty awesome.....mostly because the guys sing it so well. :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2uduKMe5ps&feature=related
This last week has been pretty good. I only worked 40 hours (woohoo!) and only had one test in class. :) My classes are going well, but I still have to force myself to study (I really hate that part about school;-) and try not bake every time I don't feel like studying. That's a terrible thing to do, but it's way more fun! I did it last night. I really should've been studying, but instead I decided to make granola, oatmeal raisin cookies, and banana muffins. Yeah, I don't just make one thing, I have to go all out! But, I did good and got rid of most of it instead of eating all that yumminess (is that even a word, or did I just spell it wrong?) myself. So, I got absolutely no studying done, which was what I was aiming for. Am I terrible or what?! It's amazing I even got through high school! Nathan and I did way too much talking and not of enough school done. Haha, normally school days, all the kids and mom were downstairs and Nate and I had the upstairs.....which meant I went into Nathan's room and distracted him from studying (I guess I was the real problem....not him). We would spend the entire hour or two that we had for math, and spend it talking. :) Such terribly good times! During the times that we were supposed to be doing typing, we learned Morse code instead. Then we were able to write each other letters and no one else could read them. It was fun, except that I don't remember any of it now. :) Ah, I love memories of younger days and home with the family. And I totally went off subject there, but I don't even care :)
Work has been rough/good. Last week, every shift seemed to be busy and most of the calls weren't critical. I know, I should be grateful for that. :) I used to love working Saturday's, but now I'm beginning to hate them. I work almost every Saturday and we have had a bad night each time. I was thinking this last weekend would be pretty good since we didn't have an MU home game, but no, we still were busy (almost) all night long. Makes for a rough Sunday since I normally have to choose after I get off work at 7, whether I'm going to sleep an hour before going to church, or if I'm going to stay up the whole time and try and make it till afternoon. Last Sunday, I ended up coming home and sleeping for six hours straight.... this week, I didn't feel as terrible, so I stayed up and made it till afternoon. I'm working a 24 again today and so far we've gone almost 17 hours with only 3 calls! I think that's a record for this truck. Made me worry a little bit that all of a sudden we were going to get slammed with a million calls.....really hoping that doesn't happen though, so I can get some sleep before class tomorrow. :) I've been averaging 5 hours or less of sleep for the past couple days and it's kinda wearing me out.....it's probably the reason why I'm starting to feel sick too. Yuck.
With that being said, it's almost midnight so I should hit the sack. :) Here's a song though that I've been listening to all evening and think is pretty awesome.....mostly because the guys sing it so well. :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2uduKMe5ps&feature=related
Monday, September 17, 2012
I'm still alive!
Sorry to neglect my blog for so long. I have gotten on a couple times and started writing a post and then ended up deleting it because it just wasn't working out the way I wanted it to. But, I'm going to give this a try and maybe it'll make the post. ;)
I never did finish posting up the rest of my email updates from Africa, but I hope none of you minded. Africa was incredibly wonderful and I enjoyed my time immensely. Would I go back? Yes. For long-term? Don't know. The hardest part about being over there was missing family so much. I missed getting to spend time with everyone and being a part of their lives. Seeing that there really wasn't much communication while I was in the bush, it was hard to know what my family was doing or what new and exciting thing was happening in their lives. That by far was harder than adjusting to the culture or way of life there. There was so much that I just loved about Africa. I really loved the people, the simplicity of their life, the love they had for others, the time they would spend with you, how generous, kind and loving they were, etc. I loved the kids. A lot! I wanted to bring a few of them home with me. But sadly, I couldn't.
There was one precious little guy that I met the day we left Kenya and I would've adopted him in a heartbeat if I could have. He was almost a year old, adorable, and had no parents. Even though I only spent an hour with him, I completely fell in love with his little personality and how incredibly happy he was. When I first saw him, he was lying in his crib watching us. Unlike the other babies who were crying or being fussy, he was content to watch and just smile at us. I really couldn't resist not picking him up, so I did and I kept him the entire time we were at the baby home....which was probably only an hour. It's amazing though how in an hour you can completely fall in love with a little boy who just wants to be loved, kissed, and hugged. I loved making him laugh. He would mimic everything I did and loved being tickled. Just talking about him makes me miss him so much!
I never did finish posting up the rest of my email updates from Africa, but I hope none of you minded. Africa was incredibly wonderful and I enjoyed my time immensely. Would I go back? Yes. For long-term? Don't know. The hardest part about being over there was missing family so much. I missed getting to spend time with everyone and being a part of their lives. Seeing that there really wasn't much communication while I was in the bush, it was hard to know what my family was doing or what new and exciting thing was happening in their lives. That by far was harder than adjusting to the culture or way of life there. There was so much that I just loved about Africa. I really loved the people, the simplicity of their life, the love they had for others, the time they would spend with you, how generous, kind and loving they were, etc. I loved the kids. A lot! I wanted to bring a few of them home with me. But sadly, I couldn't.
There was one precious little guy that I met the day we left Kenya and I would've adopted him in a heartbeat if I could have. He was almost a year old, adorable, and had no parents. Even though I only spent an hour with him, I completely fell in love with his little personality and how incredibly happy he was. When I first saw him, he was lying in his crib watching us. Unlike the other babies who were crying or being fussy, he was content to watch and just smile at us. I really couldn't resist not picking him up, so I did and I kept him the entire time we were at the baby home....which was probably only an hour. It's amazing though how in an hour you can completely fall in love with a little boy who just wants to be loved, kissed, and hugged. I loved making him laugh. He would mimic everything I did and loved being tickled. Just talking about him makes me miss him so much!
How could you ever resist a face like that?! If there's one thing that kids are good at, it's stealing a part of your heart. <3 p="p">
So, what's happening in my life now? Well, I am back to work full-time (and some overtime), and I'm going to school. Life stays pretty busy, but I've made sure I have some free time to spend with friends and can do things I enjoy instead of just working, going to classes, studying, and sleeping. I kinda need to be able to run, bake, shoot, and hang with friends, instead of being a hermit.....which is what I was this spring semester. ;) Right now, I really should be studying Physiology, but I wasn't getting much done and I figured instead of staring at the book for awhile, I would just post on my blog. Maybe once I start feeling cramped for time, I'll actually get some studying done. ;-)
My summer was definitely the most challenging, enlightening, awesome, amazing, life-changing experience that I have ever had. I wouldn't trade it for anything. I love being home and close to my family again, but a part of me still wishes I was back in Kenya. So many wonderful memories....
There were 36 interns that went over to different countries this summer and I loved getting to meet so many amazing people. It was incredible how we all bonded so much after only being together a few days (during orientation) and it was like a huge family reunion when we all returned. As hard as it was to not immediately go home to family after getting back to the States, it was so much fun to reunite with the other interns and hear the amazing stories they had to tell. I feel like I made so many new, and lasting, friendships this summer and for that I am incredibly thankful for. :)
So, what's happening in my life now? Well, I am back to work full-time (and some overtime), and I'm going to school. Life stays pretty busy, but I've made sure I have some free time to spend with friends and can do things I enjoy instead of just working, going to classes, studying, and sleeping. I kinda need to be able to run, bake, shoot, and hang with friends, instead of being a hermit.....which is what I was this spring semester. ;) Right now, I really should be studying Physiology, but I wasn't getting much done and I figured instead of staring at the book for awhile, I would just post on my blog. Maybe once I start feeling cramped for time, I'll actually get some studying done. ;-)
I really hate classes.....or more like, I hate studying. So, classes are going alright, but I'll be happy when the semester is over with. :) Work has been incredibly busy. When I come home from work and feel like I've been run over a million times by a semi, then it's been a bad shift. This Saturday was that kinda shift. Usually I work a 24 on Saturday and lately every weekend there has been an MU football game....which means thousands of more people in town. During the day, it really wasn't so bad. We had calls throughout the day, but never got behind on reports. By late afternoon and early evening it slowed way down and I started to think we may actually have a good night. Wrong. Around nine, we went out for our first call of the evening and we stayed busy with calls till almost four-thirty the next morning. Nine was when the MU game ended, so imagine 71,000 people from the game all driving either downtown or driving home. Let's just say it looked like major rush hour traffic! We of course, went downtown for a very intoxicated patient. She was unconscious and was drunk enough that my partner thought she might stop breathing at some point. Come to find out, she had a BAC of 4.35.....which, for those of you who don't know, is incredibly high. Anyway, getting a mile down to the road to the hospital was a complete joke with all the traffic. I ended up running emergency to the hospital since there was no other way to get through the traffic. And from then on, we ran calls downtown the rest of the night. I really don't mind staying busy and running on drunks all night, but when you're tired and just want to sleep, it's not exactly the funnest thing. By six in the morning, between the three of our trucks, we had run 15 calls after midnight. And that's not even counting the four trucks that University Hospital had in service that night. It was a busy night all around! There are times I really wonder why I do my job as it is the most tiring, unhealthy job out there, but I think it's because I love it. :) I seriously don't know if I would enjoy doing anything else. I mean, not everyone has such an awesome job that you get to pile three people on top of a patient to try and hold them down. ;) That was interesting because we had a fairly calm patient that then decided to freak out and try to punch everyone. The fight started when the patient didn't want an IV in his hand. We managed to calm him down and amazingly enough he didn't pull his IV out. Btw, this guy is extremely intoxicated....which explains the combativeness. We take one of the fire guys with us just in case the patient starts fighting again. I'm driving to the hospital when my partner pokes her head up to the front and says, "Give me small gloves now!" I hand her the gloves and two seconds later she yells from the back, "Stop the truck and turn your lights on!" Alright, so that was completely unexpected. I come around to the back of the truck and find our patient has managed to take off his seat belts and both my partner and the fire guy on top of him. I couldn't really just let them have all the fun, so I join in and try to hold the guys legs down. This results in me nearly getting clobbered in the face by his foot, (this guy was strong and could move!), but after a fourth guy joins us, we finally get him calmed down and head to the hospital once again. Needless to say, I've had some interesting shifts even though we have been busy. :) You really never know what you'll have when you go to work. =)
Alright, that's all my brain is going to come up with for tonight. I'll try and be a little more consistent at posting, but I'm pretty sure it won't be very regular. Maybe once a month....if I'm lucky. ;-)
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Updates from Kenya! =)
Hello from Kenya! I've decided to post up the updates I've been sending via email. So, I'll list them all with the date and end with the one from today. :Sound good? Yes, I thought so. ;)
June 7, 2012
Thank you for all your prayers this week! Our entire team made it to Nairobi, Kenya around 8:30 last night and were extremely excited to sleep in beds instead of sitting in a plane. ;) We had no delays with any of our flights and had some good times even though towards the end we were all pretty exhausted. I found out that I do not do well with having to sleep on a plane and so ended up going over 40 hours with just a few 10 minute naps. That wasn't very fun, but I was able to get 7 hours of sleep last night and it felt so good! :)
Ok, so I really have no clue where to start with everything and I don't have the internet for very long, so I'm going to try and make it pretty brief. Our pre-departure orientation went really well and I met some amazing people. We were kept busy throughout the day, but the evenings we spent playing games and just getting to know each other better. I had an awesome time, but none of us slept very much that week which made our long flight that much worse. Even despite the lack of sleep and feeling exhausted, I am so thankful that God brought us all here safely and for all our answered prayers. :)
Today we went around Nairobi and it has been amazing to see everything! It's so different from the US, but it's been great! lol, actually the driving isn't so great. You really have to be a very aggressive driver and do a lot of praying! We nearly got hit multiple times and made me realize that it would take me ages to learn to drive in this city. ;) We were told that just driving around Nairobi can make you tired as it creates a lot of stress.
Our host missionary family have been awesome! We stayed up till almost two in the morning just getting to know each other better. Oh, and eating food. ;) We've eaten so much food this week! I guess it's in preparation for what's to come though. Shelby and I will be making all our food and we only have a stove top. No oven, so kinda limited on what we can make. I'm really looking forward to it though. I think that means I'm still in the "romantic stage" of culture shock. ;)
Ok, so best part of the day was when we went to the grocery store. The stores here are different and sometimes they have some pretty weird wording on the items. We spent nearly two hours in that store and were laughing so hard we were crying. I have some pretty good pictures that i took, but those will have to wait till the end of summer. ;) Not sure if we were laughing so hard because of lack of sleep, but we got a huge kick out of "Knobbly sticks of corn", which were actually just cheetos. And they also sell "human food", which set us all to laughing again. I'm sure you're thinking that it's really not that funny, but if you could've seen it, you would've laughed too. :)
We have picked up on some Swahili and have been practicing on each other. Shelby (the other intern who will be living with me) and I will be speaking Maa and not Swahili, but it's still been fun learning it anyway. Tomorrow we're leaving Nairobi and will be headed into the bush (sorry, it's a long name and I can't remember it) and will spend a little over a week learning the Maasai culture and language. We'll then come back to Nairobi and then head to an area by Narok where we will spend the next six weeks working in the clinic.
So, be praying for safe travels as all four of us, Shelby, Branden, Caleb and I, will be headed out to the bush (Branden and Caleb will be in north Kenya in the Turkana area), and be praying that we adjust well to the culture. It has already been quite the adventure and I'm really looking forward to all that God has planned next! :) We serve such an amazing God and I'm so humbled that He has given me this chance to serve in Maasai. :)
Sorry this is so rushed, but it's after 11 here and the others need to use the internet. I love you all! And thank you again for praying!
June 17, 2012
Well, I have successfully survived my first week in the bush! ;) Friday night, the Cazier's (our host family) came and picked us up and brought us back to Nairobi to spend a few days before we head to Ewaso Ngiro on Monday morning. It's so weird to be back in the city where there's white people, running water, and a bathroom in the house! It makes me realize how very privileged we are. I told Shelby that I felt rich being back in Nairobi. ;)
It's hard knowing where to start, but I suppose it's best to start at the beginning. ;) Last Friday, the Cazier's took us to Ngatataek where we spent the entire week learning language and culture. Our place was very tiny and would be considered like a small bedroom for most people. In it we had our kitchen, our table, fridge, and there were two bunk beds. Yes, we were very much crammed in there. I do have pictures, but you probably won't see them till after I get home in August since I have no way of getting them on the computer. There was no plumbing, so we got used to washing dishes in buckets, taking "bucket showers" (that's what I call them), and washing our clothes in buckets. If you haven't caught on to it yet, we use a lot of buckets in the bush. ;) We did have electricity and that was the one normal thing we had.
On Saturday (last weekend), we went to Minton with Paul and Rose. Paul is a pastor there and they were gracious enough to let us stay the weekend in their home. Minton is 40 kilometers from Ngatataek and it took us 2 hours to get there. That gives you an idea of how terrible the roads were. They didn't have plumbing (not surprising since we were in the bush), but they didn't have electricity either. Lets just say, it was really dark in the evenings. ;) I really have no clue what my dinner looked like that night except that it tasted really good! It was cabbage (tasted way better than any cabbage I've ever eaten) and chapatis...for those wondering if it was something weird. ;-)
Oh, and I milked my first goat, sheep and cow that evening! And I got laughed at a ton. ;) I really wasn't that great at it, but at least I tried. :)
Sunday we went to church and that was definitely different. A lot of singing, dancing and a sermon that was yelled. It was a good experience even though I didn't understand really any of it. :)
Most of our mornings were spent learning the Maasai langauge with three of the woman there. They taught us quite a bit about the culture and also how things are done....they also laughed at us a lot. We learned to hand wash our own laundry, cleaned one of their houses, went to the market to buy food, cooked over a fire, etc. The list could seriously keep going on but I'm now drawing a blank and don't want to bore everyone to death. ;)
Oh, driving back to Nairobi on Friday night, i saw my first zebra! Yep, it was lying dead in the middle of the road. I had to laugh though, because back in the States it's usually a deer you see along the side of the road, not a zebra. :) I've been told I'll see a lot of zebras so at least I should see some live ones! ;-)
Interesting fact about the people who live in the bush: they have cell phones and use them ALL the time!!! It seriously cracked me up to see these woman cooking their meals over a fire and then to have them talking on their phone. That was something I was not expecting to see. ;)
We got to hang out with the school kids a couple times and those were the best times. They loved to have their picture taken and would scramble around us trying to see their picture. They also loved to play with our hair and touch our "soft" skin. It was awesome and I loved every minute I got to spend with the kids. I had several that would grab my arm and say, "You are my friend." We didn't get to spend as much time with the kids as I would've liked, but I'm glad for the little bit we did have with them. :)
Thursday, we went to the medical clinic in Kumpa and that was quite the experience! It was their vaccination day so mother's brought their babies in to receive their immunizations. That's the first time I've done something without training. I watched the doctor give several shots before I tried it and I guess I did all right because they didn't tell me to stop. ;) Thankfully, it's not really that hard to do and so I wasn't too worried about it. I'm sure we'll be doing more of this once we start working in the clinic at Ewaso Ngiro.
The scenery was absolutely gorgeous in Ngatataek! We were surrounded by mountains and so I felt like i was living in Colorado. ;) I told Shelby several times this week that i could get used to waking up every morning and seeing the mountains. Unfortunately, Ewaso Ngiro will not have mountains and so I'm a little disappointed. Our living conditions will be nicer though as we will have a duplex instead of a one bedroom house. Oh, we'll have an oven which means we'll be able to bake! ;-)
I would ask that you all pray for my teammate, Shelby. She has been sick since Wednesday and we think it's probably giardia. She's on medication for it now and we're hoping and praying she starts feeling better. She was up during the night vomiting and so we're not sure if she may have picked up something else along with the giardia. So, be praying she improves and that we stay healthy for the next six weeks while we're in Ewaso Ngiro.
Thank you all for keeping me in your prayers! I have been enjoying my time here and I'm so thankful for all that God has done. Time moves very slowly here and that has been the most difficult thing for me so far. I'm used to a very fast-paced life where I always have something to do and so this is very different. I'm trying to adjust to it though and I am enjoying learning so many new things. :)
I was given a Maasai name (Naserian) while in Ngatataek which means "blessed one". I think it fits very well, because God has blessed me with so much. We serve one amazing God. :)
I miss everyone so much and it's been great to get emails from some of you! Even though I can't always reply, it makes me so happy to read them. :)
Sorry for such a long email. I hope you all enjoyed reading my ramblings and that you didn't fall asleep. ;)
Thanks again for all your prayers! =)
June 23, 2012
Thanks for the replies! I enjoyed reading each one of them. :) Thank you also the prayers for Shelby. She started feeling a little better on Monday and is now completely back to normal.
The Cazier's brought us to Ewaso Ngiro on Monday afternoon and then stayed with us till Wednesday. We've worked in the clinic several days this week, but it's been slow and so we've been done by early afternoon. Wednesday is the well baby clinic and so we stayed very busy from 10 to 4:30 with mother's bringing in their babies to be immunized. We saw a lot of young mothers and a few were as young as 14. That's been really weird to see as they're still kids themselves and yet now they're mothers.
We've been able to work in the pharmacy, the lab, and then seeing patients. Things are done very different here, but they have a good system down that seems to work very well for them. We were given lab coats to wear, so we feel very important even though we're not really. ;) We're hoping to come to the hospital in Narok so we can see how things are done in a more hospital setting and to maybe see some babies born. :)
Our evenings are still slow and long, but we've tried to keep ourselves busy by cooking, reading, doing puzzles, etc. It gets dark by 7, so we're stuck indoors all evening long. We've had some good times though and have been making lots of messes in our kitchen. ;) Which kinda stinks because then we spend an hour trying to wash all the dishes. Some of you were worried I would lose weight while here, but I have a feeling I'll be gaining weight. ;) So far, I've liked all the Kenyan food I've eaten (well, I didn't care for goat meat that much) and then I of course love anything American.... and I've eaten plenty of desserts! Since Shelby and I will have so much time in the evenings, we'll probably be doing lots of baking. ;) We did go running yesterday and today to try and make up for it though. ;) We actually didn't run very much yesterday as all the kids were getting out of school and proceeded to surround us, each one fighting over who was going to hold our hands. :)
The temperature here has been awesome, if even on the cool side of things. Because it's winter here, it's been about 60's most days and very cloudy. Yesterday the sun came out and it was probably 70's; definitely need more of those days! :) I'm not really a huge fan of cloudy weeks.... I much prefer the sun. :) Nights are pretty cool and so we're usually wearing sweat pants and hoodies by evening.
It's more flat here than in Ngatataek, but it's still pretty. If you ever come to Kenya you definitely have to drive from Nairobi to Narok as the scenery is simply gorgeous. :)
Shelby and I are spending the day in Narok because it is the only way we can get on the internet. This is the first time we've gone out into the town without someone along with us. So far we've done pretty good and haven't run into any trouble. :-) Oh, and we've seen 5 mzunga's (white people) so far today! It was pretty funny when we were getting out of the matatu (taxi/bus) and I said, "Shelby, look at the white guy!" Then we laughed at how excited we got over seeing white people. :)
We woke up this morning to no electricity, so we're hoping it's on by the time we get back. It makes cooking and washing dishes difficult when you don't have hot water. Oh, and it's always nice to have a hot bucket shower. ;)
Our duplex is very nice compared to where we were at. It's a cement building so it stays very cold, but it has a kitchen, living room, and two bedrooms, and a bathroom...only the toilet doesn't work because there's no plumbing in the house. We don't have to use a squatty potty anymore though (unless we're in town) because our outhouse is made so you can sit instead of squatting. :) lol, not that you all probably really cared, but now you know! ;)
Well, that's all I can think of to say at the moment....my brain is fried and so is this internet, I think. It really has been terrible. ;)
I can't begin to say how thankful I am for all your prayers. It's been a great adventure so far. :)
June 30, 2012
Well, another week has gone by and I can't believe that there's only 28 days left until our missionary family come pick us up for the safari. I already know I'm going to hate leaving here. Shelby and I have started spending our afternoons with the kids when they walk home from school and we have already started to become attached to them. Even though we don't speak Maasai or Swahili, the kids speak enough English that we're able to communicate with them a little. And boy do they wear us out! ;) Walking with the kids means that we run, we dance, we sing, we take pictures, and we do a lot of laughing. It usually takes us a couple hours to walk with the kids and it's something that we look forward to every day. :) Yesterday, we watched a soccer game and were soon surrounded by young boys (ages ranging from 10-16 yrs) who all wanted to take pictures and have their picture taken. I wish I were able to send out the pictures that they took, because they would seriously crack you up. :) I was laughing and smiling so much that my face hurt! =)
Work at the clinic has been pretty busy this week. Monday we were able to see a couple guys who had been attacked by a lion. It had happened a week ago and so they were mostly healed up (really wasn't gruesome at all and I was kinda disappointed), but one guy's leg was pretty swollen and infected. They did tell me they had killed the lion, when I asked. :) It takes about five guys to kill one, so apparently, it isn't very easy.
Then on Thursday, we saw a patient who was so skinny that we were able to see her intestines. I'm not even joking. It was the weirdest, coolest, saddest thing ever.
We're allowed to do quite a bit at the clinic, from performing patient assessments to writing up prescriptions and giving injections. They don't do a lot of IV's here, so I haven't been able to do any yet, but I'm hoping I'll be able to at some point. :) I've given a ton of "in the butt" injections and would be okay if I didn't have to do anymore of those. ;-)
Wednesday was the well baby clinic and Shelby and I were left on our own to do it. Surprisingly enough we did pretty well and didn't mind at all. :) It is kinda sad that the babies all come in smiling at us and then leave screaming. They probably hate mzungu's now. ;-)
Have I mentioned that Kenyan's drink a lot of tea (it's called chai here)? Because they do. They usually have chai twice a day, morning and evening. It's mainly milk, so it tastes pretty good and even after having it every day, I'm not sick of it yet. ;) Actually, I'm really going to miss the chai and food here a lot when I leave. Shelby and I have tried to cook the food here, but so far we've failed. lol, we're determined to keep working at it though and hopefully I can make some real Kenyan food for my family when I get home. Haha, be prepared guys. ;-)
My dad asked if we had seen any exotic animals and so far all we've seen have been: zebras (alive ones!;-), baboons, wildebeests (really ugly creatures), and gazelles. I'm sure once we go on our safari at the end of the summer we'll see a lot more cool animals. And hopefully they get up close to the vehicle so I can get some good pictures since I didn't bring my telephoto lens. :)
I am constantly amazed at how many people they manage to fit into one vehicle here. Last weekend, when Shelby and I took a taxi back to Ewaso Ngiro, they managed to fit 11 of us in. We were crammed in pretty tight and I couldn't help but smile while we were driving because this would never happen back in the States. I wish I had gotten a picture because it would've been pretty comical. :) Coming back from a mobile clinic, they managed to cram 13 of us in a land cruiser. It's crazy, but I think it's funny. :)
Be praying that we stay healthy for the rest of our time here. Shelby has had a hard time with staying healthy and now has strep throat. Thankfully, since we work at a medical clinic, she was able to get on antibiotics right away and seems to be feeling better now. :)
Feel free to write and ask any questions you have and I'll do my best to answer them when I send out an update. :)
June 7, 2012
Thank you for all your prayers this week! Our entire team made it to Nairobi, Kenya around 8:30 last night and were extremely excited to sleep in beds instead of sitting in a plane. ;) We had no delays with any of our flights and had some good times even though towards the end we were all pretty exhausted. I found out that I do not do well with having to sleep on a plane and so ended up going over 40 hours with just a few 10 minute naps. That wasn't very fun, but I was able to get 7 hours of sleep last night and it felt so good! :)
Ok, so I really have no clue where to start with everything and I don't have the internet for very long, so I'm going to try and make it pretty brief. Our pre-departure orientation went really well and I met some amazing people. We were kept busy throughout the day, but the evenings we spent playing games and just getting to know each other better. I had an awesome time, but none of us slept very much that week which made our long flight that much worse. Even despite the lack of sleep and feeling exhausted, I am so thankful that God brought us all here safely and for all our answered prayers. :)
Today we went around Nairobi and it has been amazing to see everything! It's so different from the US, but it's been great! lol, actually the driving isn't so great. You really have to be a very aggressive driver and do a lot of praying! We nearly got hit multiple times and made me realize that it would take me ages to learn to drive in this city. ;) We were told that just driving around Nairobi can make you tired as it creates a lot of stress.
Our host missionary family have been awesome! We stayed up till almost two in the morning just getting to know each other better. Oh, and eating food. ;) We've eaten so much food this week! I guess it's in preparation for what's to come though. Shelby and I will be making all our food and we only have a stove top. No oven, so kinda limited on what we can make. I'm really looking forward to it though. I think that means I'm still in the "romantic stage" of culture shock. ;)
Ok, so best part of the day was when we went to the grocery store. The stores here are different and sometimes they have some pretty weird wording on the items. We spent nearly two hours in that store and were laughing so hard we were crying. I have some pretty good pictures that i took, but those will have to wait till the end of summer. ;) Not sure if we were laughing so hard because of lack of sleep, but we got a huge kick out of "Knobbly sticks of corn", which were actually just cheetos. And they also sell "human food", which set us all to laughing again. I'm sure you're thinking that it's really not that funny, but if you could've seen it, you would've laughed too. :)
We have picked up on some Swahili and have been practicing on each other. Shelby (the other intern who will be living with me) and I will be speaking Maa and not Swahili, but it's still been fun learning it anyway. Tomorrow we're leaving Nairobi and will be headed into the bush (sorry, it's a long name and I can't remember it) and will spend a little over a week learning the Maasai culture and language. We'll then come back to Nairobi and then head to an area by Narok where we will spend the next six weeks working in the clinic.
So, be praying for safe travels as all four of us, Shelby, Branden, Caleb and I, will be headed out to the bush (Branden and Caleb will be in north Kenya in the Turkana area), and be praying that we adjust well to the culture. It has already been quite the adventure and I'm really looking forward to all that God has planned next! :) We serve such an amazing God and I'm so humbled that He has given me this chance to serve in Maasai. :)
Sorry this is so rushed, but it's after 11 here and the others need to use the internet. I love you all! And thank you again for praying!
June 17, 2012
Well, I have successfully survived my first week in the bush! ;) Friday night, the Cazier's (our host family) came and picked us up and brought us back to Nairobi to spend a few days before we head to Ewaso Ngiro on Monday morning. It's so weird to be back in the city where there's white people, running water, and a bathroom in the house! It makes me realize how very privileged we are. I told Shelby that I felt rich being back in Nairobi. ;)
It's hard knowing where to start, but I suppose it's best to start at the beginning. ;) Last Friday, the Cazier's took us to Ngatataek where we spent the entire week learning language and culture. Our place was very tiny and would be considered like a small bedroom for most people. In it we had our kitchen, our table, fridge, and there were two bunk beds. Yes, we were very much crammed in there. I do have pictures, but you probably won't see them till after I get home in August since I have no way of getting them on the computer. There was no plumbing, so we got used to washing dishes in buckets, taking "bucket showers" (that's what I call them), and washing our clothes in buckets. If you haven't caught on to it yet, we use a lot of buckets in the bush. ;) We did have electricity and that was the one normal thing we had.
On Saturday (last weekend), we went to Minton with Paul and Rose. Paul is a pastor there and they were gracious enough to let us stay the weekend in their home. Minton is 40 kilometers from Ngatataek and it took us 2 hours to get there. That gives you an idea of how terrible the roads were. They didn't have plumbing (not surprising since we were in the bush), but they didn't have electricity either. Lets just say, it was really dark in the evenings. ;) I really have no clue what my dinner looked like that night except that it tasted really good! It was cabbage (tasted way better than any cabbage I've ever eaten) and chapatis...for those wondering if it was something weird. ;-)
Oh, and I milked my first goat, sheep and cow that evening! And I got laughed at a ton. ;) I really wasn't that great at it, but at least I tried. :)
Sunday we went to church and that was definitely different. A lot of singing, dancing and a sermon that was yelled. It was a good experience even though I didn't understand really any of it. :)
Most of our mornings were spent learning the Maasai langauge with three of the woman there. They taught us quite a bit about the culture and also how things are done....they also laughed at us a lot. We learned to hand wash our own laundry, cleaned one of their houses, went to the market to buy food, cooked over a fire, etc. The list could seriously keep going on but I'm now drawing a blank and don't want to bore everyone to death. ;)
Oh, driving back to Nairobi on Friday night, i saw my first zebra! Yep, it was lying dead in the middle of the road. I had to laugh though, because back in the States it's usually a deer you see along the side of the road, not a zebra. :) I've been told I'll see a lot of zebras so at least I should see some live ones! ;-)
Interesting fact about the people who live in the bush: they have cell phones and use them ALL the time!!! It seriously cracked me up to see these woman cooking their meals over a fire and then to have them talking on their phone. That was something I was not expecting to see. ;)
We got to hang out with the school kids a couple times and those were the best times. They loved to have their picture taken and would scramble around us trying to see their picture. They also loved to play with our hair and touch our "soft" skin. It was awesome and I loved every minute I got to spend with the kids. I had several that would grab my arm and say, "You are my friend." We didn't get to spend as much time with the kids as I would've liked, but I'm glad for the little bit we did have with them. :)
Thursday, we went to the medical clinic in Kumpa and that was quite the experience! It was their vaccination day so mother's brought their babies in to receive their immunizations. That's the first time I've done something without training. I watched the doctor give several shots before I tried it and I guess I did all right because they didn't tell me to stop. ;) Thankfully, it's not really that hard to do and so I wasn't too worried about it. I'm sure we'll be doing more of this once we start working in the clinic at Ewaso Ngiro.
The scenery was absolutely gorgeous in Ngatataek! We were surrounded by mountains and so I felt like i was living in Colorado. ;) I told Shelby several times this week that i could get used to waking up every morning and seeing the mountains. Unfortunately, Ewaso Ngiro will not have mountains and so I'm a little disappointed. Our living conditions will be nicer though as we will have a duplex instead of a one bedroom house. Oh, we'll have an oven which means we'll be able to bake! ;-)
I would ask that you all pray for my teammate, Shelby. She has been sick since Wednesday and we think it's probably giardia. She's on medication for it now and we're hoping and praying she starts feeling better. She was up during the night vomiting and so we're not sure if she may have picked up something else along with the giardia. So, be praying she improves and that we stay healthy for the next six weeks while we're in Ewaso Ngiro.
Thank you all for keeping me in your prayers! I have been enjoying my time here and I'm so thankful for all that God has done. Time moves very slowly here and that has been the most difficult thing for me so far. I'm used to a very fast-paced life where I always have something to do and so this is very different. I'm trying to adjust to it though and I am enjoying learning so many new things. :)
I was given a Maasai name (Naserian) while in Ngatataek which means "blessed one". I think it fits very well, because God has blessed me with so much. We serve one amazing God. :)
I miss everyone so much and it's been great to get emails from some of you! Even though I can't always reply, it makes me so happy to read them. :)
Sorry for such a long email. I hope you all enjoyed reading my ramblings and that you didn't fall asleep. ;)
Thanks again for all your prayers! =)
June 23, 2012
Thanks for the replies! I enjoyed reading each one of them. :) Thank you also the prayers for Shelby. She started feeling a little better on Monday and is now completely back to normal.
The Cazier's brought us to Ewaso Ngiro on Monday afternoon and then stayed with us till Wednesday. We've worked in the clinic several days this week, but it's been slow and so we've been done by early afternoon. Wednesday is the well baby clinic and so we stayed very busy from 10 to 4:30 with mother's bringing in their babies to be immunized. We saw a lot of young mothers and a few were as young as 14. That's been really weird to see as they're still kids themselves and yet now they're mothers.
We've been able to work in the pharmacy, the lab, and then seeing patients. Things are done very different here, but they have a good system down that seems to work very well for them. We were given lab coats to wear, so we feel very important even though we're not really. ;) We're hoping to come to the hospital in Narok so we can see how things are done in a more hospital setting and to maybe see some babies born. :)
Our evenings are still slow and long, but we've tried to keep ourselves busy by cooking, reading, doing puzzles, etc. It gets dark by 7, so we're stuck indoors all evening long. We've had some good times though and have been making lots of messes in our kitchen. ;) Which kinda stinks because then we spend an hour trying to wash all the dishes. Some of you were worried I would lose weight while here, but I have a feeling I'll be gaining weight. ;) So far, I've liked all the Kenyan food I've eaten (well, I didn't care for goat meat that much) and then I of course love anything American.... and I've eaten plenty of desserts! Since Shelby and I will have so much time in the evenings, we'll probably be doing lots of baking. ;) We did go running yesterday and today to try and make up for it though. ;) We actually didn't run very much yesterday as all the kids were getting out of school and proceeded to surround us, each one fighting over who was going to hold our hands. :)
The temperature here has been awesome, if even on the cool side of things. Because it's winter here, it's been about 60's most days and very cloudy. Yesterday the sun came out and it was probably 70's; definitely need more of those days! :) I'm not really a huge fan of cloudy weeks.... I much prefer the sun. :) Nights are pretty cool and so we're usually wearing sweat pants and hoodies by evening.
It's more flat here than in Ngatataek, but it's still pretty. If you ever come to Kenya you definitely have to drive from Nairobi to Narok as the scenery is simply gorgeous. :)
Shelby and I are spending the day in Narok because it is the only way we can get on the internet. This is the first time we've gone out into the town without someone along with us. So far we've done pretty good and haven't run into any trouble. :-) Oh, and we've seen 5 mzunga's (white people) so far today! It was pretty funny when we were getting out of the matatu (taxi/bus) and I said, "Shelby, look at the white guy!" Then we laughed at how excited we got over seeing white people. :)
We woke up this morning to no electricity, so we're hoping it's on by the time we get back. It makes cooking and washing dishes difficult when you don't have hot water. Oh, and it's always nice to have a hot bucket shower. ;)
Our duplex is very nice compared to where we were at. It's a cement building so it stays very cold, but it has a kitchen, living room, and two bedrooms, and a bathroom...only the toilet doesn't work because there's no plumbing in the house. We don't have to use a squatty potty anymore though (unless we're in town) because our outhouse is made so you can sit instead of squatting. :) lol, not that you all probably really cared, but now you know! ;)
Well, that's all I can think of to say at the moment....my brain is fried and so is this internet, I think. It really has been terrible. ;)
I can't begin to say how thankful I am for all your prayers. It's been a great adventure so far. :)
June 30, 2012
Well, another week has gone by and I can't believe that there's only 28 days left until our missionary family come pick us up for the safari. I already know I'm going to hate leaving here. Shelby and I have started spending our afternoons with the kids when they walk home from school and we have already started to become attached to them. Even though we don't speak Maasai or Swahili, the kids speak enough English that we're able to communicate with them a little. And boy do they wear us out! ;) Walking with the kids means that we run, we dance, we sing, we take pictures, and we do a lot of laughing. It usually takes us a couple hours to walk with the kids and it's something that we look forward to every day. :) Yesterday, we watched a soccer game and were soon surrounded by young boys (ages ranging from 10-16 yrs) who all wanted to take pictures and have their picture taken. I wish I were able to send out the pictures that they took, because they would seriously crack you up. :) I was laughing and smiling so much that my face hurt! =)
Work at the clinic has been pretty busy this week. Monday we were able to see a couple guys who had been attacked by a lion. It had happened a week ago and so they were mostly healed up (really wasn't gruesome at all and I was kinda disappointed), but one guy's leg was pretty swollen and infected. They did tell me they had killed the lion, when I asked. :) It takes about five guys to kill one, so apparently, it isn't very easy.
Then on Thursday, we saw a patient who was so skinny that we were able to see her intestines. I'm not even joking. It was the weirdest, coolest, saddest thing ever.
We're allowed to do quite a bit at the clinic, from performing patient assessments to writing up prescriptions and giving injections. They don't do a lot of IV's here, so I haven't been able to do any yet, but I'm hoping I'll be able to at some point. :) I've given a ton of "in the butt" injections and would be okay if I didn't have to do anymore of those. ;-)
Wednesday was the well baby clinic and Shelby and I were left on our own to do it. Surprisingly enough we did pretty well and didn't mind at all. :) It is kinda sad that the babies all come in smiling at us and then leave screaming. They probably hate mzungu's now. ;-)
Have I mentioned that Kenyan's drink a lot of tea (it's called chai here)? Because they do. They usually have chai twice a day, morning and evening. It's mainly milk, so it tastes pretty good and even after having it every day, I'm not sick of it yet. ;) Actually, I'm really going to miss the chai and food here a lot when I leave. Shelby and I have tried to cook the food here, but so far we've failed. lol, we're determined to keep working at it though and hopefully I can make some real Kenyan food for my family when I get home. Haha, be prepared guys. ;-)
My dad asked if we had seen any exotic animals and so far all we've seen have been: zebras (alive ones!;-), baboons, wildebeests (really ugly creatures), and gazelles. I'm sure once we go on our safari at the end of the summer we'll see a lot more cool animals. And hopefully they get up close to the vehicle so I can get some good pictures since I didn't bring my telephoto lens. :)
I am constantly amazed at how many people they manage to fit into one vehicle here. Last weekend, when Shelby and I took a taxi back to Ewaso Ngiro, they managed to fit 11 of us in. We were crammed in pretty tight and I couldn't help but smile while we were driving because this would never happen back in the States. I wish I had gotten a picture because it would've been pretty comical. :) Coming back from a mobile clinic, they managed to cram 13 of us in a land cruiser. It's crazy, but I think it's funny. :)
Be praying that we stay healthy for the rest of our time here. Shelby has had a hard time with staying healthy and now has strep throat. Thankfully, since we work at a medical clinic, she was able to get on antibiotics right away and seems to be feeling better now. :)
Feel free to write and ask any questions you have and I'll do my best to answer them when I send out an update. :)
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Ok, so I know it's been a really long time since I last posted and that I also need to change my background.... I need a summer look. I feel cold every time I look at my blog now. Ok, so not really. ;) I do need to fix it though....
Well, to fill everyone in, I finished my first semester of college last Friday. Woohoo! It really was an awesome feeling. There were many times that semester that I felt like I was going crazy and wanted to give up, but by God's grace I was able to stick with it. It is extremely difficult to work 40 hours, go to classes, and have time to study. Some days were better than others, but there were some really tough weeks. This next semester, I'm taking fewer credits and I'm hoping that will make me feel a little less stressed.
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So, that was a mixture of last night and this morning that I wrote that. Better late than never, right? ;) So, today, I got up late, went running and now I'm making a huge dinner for a couple of guys. Which I'm really hoping turns out.... I'm trying out a new recipe for fudge cake and it didn't cook long enough the first time so I stuck it back in (after it cooled!) and now I'm hoping its done. lol, really not the way you're supposed to cook, but I just have to learn from your mistakes. ;) I'm also making rolls and I hope they turn out too....and aren't nasty like some recipes are. Basically, these guys are going to be my guinea pigs and yet they don't know it. :)
I moved into a new apartment this week (I'll only have one roommate now), and so one of the guys (he's older, have no fear;-) I worked with one night offered to bring my bed over after we got off work that morning. It was extremely nice of him to do that and so I offered to make dinner for him since he was working the fire department today. SO, it would really stink if the whole meal is a flop.
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Yep, so now it's evening and I still haven't posted. I was crazy busy though with all the cooking, so I do have a legit excuse. :) Oh, and dinner was an amazing success! It was so awesome to take the food over to the guys and see their excited faces. I had made meatballs, rice, rolls, salad, and fudge cake. Literally took me all afternoon to cook everything, but I am so glad I did it. Just seeing how happy they were with it made it so worth it! I really love cooking and baking for other people and would do it more often if it wasn't so expensive. The guys actually offered to pay me for making everything, but really my payment was seeing how much they loved it all. :) Seriously, if you've never done something like this before, you should. Believe me, it's very rewarding and addicting! =D
Twelve more days and I'll be in Indianapolis getting ready for Kenya! I'm so amazed how God has worked everything out and has blessed me with so many wonderful friends and family who were willing to support me financially. I have 83% of my budget raised which means only $908 to go! It's still hard for me to believe sometimes that I'm actually going to Kenya. I don't think it will fully sink in until I'm on the flight there. :)
This coming week, I work my last shift at work for the next 2 1/2 months! =) It'll be 4 years in October since I first started working at Boone, so it'll be strange to not work on the trucks. Thankfully, I have enough ETO (earned time off) built up to last me two months. And after a little scare where I thought I wouldn't have my job when I got back, my boss told me that he was going to hold my full-time position for me. A great answer to prayers! :)
Pretty sure there's more to talk about, but my brain is shutting off because of all the food I've eaten.... ;) So, hopefully it won't be too long till I post again and I will try and get my background changed before I leave. :) Hope everyone is having a lovely evening!
Well, to fill everyone in, I finished my first semester of college last Friday. Woohoo! It really was an awesome feeling. There were many times that semester that I felt like I was going crazy and wanted to give up, but by God's grace I was able to stick with it. It is extremely difficult to work 40 hours, go to classes, and have time to study. Some days were better than others, but there were some really tough weeks. This next semester, I'm taking fewer credits and I'm hoping that will make me feel a little less stressed.
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So, that was a mixture of last night and this morning that I wrote that. Better late than never, right? ;) So, today, I got up late, went running and now I'm making a huge dinner for a couple of guys. Which I'm really hoping turns out.... I'm trying out a new recipe for fudge cake and it didn't cook long enough the first time so I stuck it back in (after it cooled!) and now I'm hoping its done. lol, really not the way you're supposed to cook, but I just have to learn from your mistakes. ;) I'm also making rolls and I hope they turn out too....and aren't nasty like some recipes are. Basically, these guys are going to be my guinea pigs and yet they don't know it. :)
I moved into a new apartment this week (I'll only have one roommate now), and so one of the guys (he's older, have no fear;-) I worked with one night offered to bring my bed over after we got off work that morning. It was extremely nice of him to do that and so I offered to make dinner for him since he was working the fire department today. SO, it would really stink if the whole meal is a flop.
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Yep, so now it's evening and I still haven't posted. I was crazy busy though with all the cooking, so I do have a legit excuse. :) Oh, and dinner was an amazing success! It was so awesome to take the food over to the guys and see their excited faces. I had made meatballs, rice, rolls, salad, and fudge cake. Literally took me all afternoon to cook everything, but I am so glad I did it. Just seeing how happy they were with it made it so worth it! I really love cooking and baking for other people and would do it more often if it wasn't so expensive. The guys actually offered to pay me for making everything, but really my payment was seeing how much they loved it all. :) Seriously, if you've never done something like this before, you should. Believe me, it's very rewarding and addicting! =D
Twelve more days and I'll be in Indianapolis getting ready for Kenya! I'm so amazed how God has worked everything out and has blessed me with so many wonderful friends and family who were willing to support me financially. I have 83% of my budget raised which means only $908 to go! It's still hard for me to believe sometimes that I'm actually going to Kenya. I don't think it will fully sink in until I'm on the flight there. :)
This coming week, I work my last shift at work for the next 2 1/2 months! =) It'll be 4 years in October since I first started working at Boone, so it'll be strange to not work on the trucks. Thankfully, I have enough ETO (earned time off) built up to last me two months. And after a little scare where I thought I wouldn't have my job when I got back, my boss told me that he was going to hold my full-time position for me. A great answer to prayers! :)
Pretty sure there's more to talk about, but my brain is shutting off because of all the food I've eaten.... ;) So, hopefully it won't be too long till I post again and I will try and get my background changed before I leave. :) Hope everyone is having a lovely evening!
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
:)
Wow, I am so incredibly blessed! It amazes me how many people took the time to post on my wall to say "Happy Birthday". I kinda feel special... ;) So, I am now 22, whatever that means. I don't feel any older and am still my crazy, normal self. Is it okay to use crazy and normal in the same sentence? I'm going to say it is... ;)
This has been the most unusual and probably one of the best birthdays I've had! You're wondering how that works, so I'll tell you. :) I started my day by working a night shift. Yep, first thing I did on my birthday was wake up at three and run a call. I got a total of 5 hours of sleep which made me pretty happy. :) I got off work at 7, went to the coffee shop and did homework while waiting for my Psychology class at 9. I finished all my classes around 1:30 and then went and had the oil changed in my car. I then came home, took a nap and then listened to music while editing pictures. And that has been all I've done all day! :) I'm sure you're thinking that's the strangest birthday ever... Well, I very easily could've been upset that I had a cold (which has made me lose my appetite for the last two days) and couldn't spend time with my family, but that would've just made me sad and so I refused to dwell on it. :) I instead reminded myself of all that God had blessed me with and that I was going to be thankful for my day no matter what happened. One thing I was very happy to see this morning, was the sun! It seems like the majority of my birthday's have been rainy, so seeing the sun shining made me pretty excited. It did cloud up by later morning, but just seeing the little bit of sun this morning was enough. :)
So, now you understand why it was an unusual, but good birthday. :) Besides, I was given the perfect gift in January when my prayers were answered about serving in Africa. Seriously, God has greatly blessed me and I can't help but be happy about it! =)
Well, I wanted to write more, but my head is bothering me and I'm thinking I should take my 22 year old bones to bed soon. ;) Before I leave though, I will leave you all with a picture. Amazing, right? It's been forever since I posted a picture! ;)
This has been the most unusual and probably one of the best birthdays I've had! You're wondering how that works, so I'll tell you. :) I started my day by working a night shift. Yep, first thing I did on my birthday was wake up at three and run a call. I got a total of 5 hours of sleep which made me pretty happy. :) I got off work at 7, went to the coffee shop and did homework while waiting for my Psychology class at 9. I finished all my classes around 1:30 and then went and had the oil changed in my car. I then came home, took a nap and then listened to music while editing pictures. And that has been all I've done all day! :) I'm sure you're thinking that's the strangest birthday ever... Well, I very easily could've been upset that I had a cold (which has made me lose my appetite for the last two days) and couldn't spend time with my family, but that would've just made me sad and so I refused to dwell on it. :) I instead reminded myself of all that God had blessed me with and that I was going to be thankful for my day no matter what happened. One thing I was very happy to see this morning, was the sun! It seems like the majority of my birthday's have been rainy, so seeing the sun shining made me pretty excited. It did cloud up by later morning, but just seeing the little bit of sun this morning was enough. :)
So, now you understand why it was an unusual, but good birthday. :) Besides, I was given the perfect gift in January when my prayers were answered about serving in Africa. Seriously, God has greatly blessed me and I can't help but be happy about it! =)
Well, I wanted to write more, but my head is bothering me and I'm thinking I should take my 22 year old bones to bed soon. ;) Before I leave though, I will leave you all with a picture. Amazing, right? It's been forever since I posted a picture! ;)
Monday, February 20, 2012
It has been exactly a month since I last posted. Really did not plan to go that long without at least a small post. Oh well. Life has been extremely crazy for me and I don't think it plans on slowing down any. Sometimes I think, "If only I were smarter, then I wouldn't have to study so much!" And though that might be true to some extent, even smart people have to study. You don't have to be smart to do well in school. It doesn't matter whether or not you're a straight A student. What matters is whether or not you put the time in to learn so that you can achieve the goal you've set for yourself. Easier said than done, right? Definitely. I still get upset when I don't do as well on a test as I think I should have. It's easy to beat yourself up about it, but what good does that really do you? In my case, it just makes me more upset. My first Anatomy test I was extremely worried and kept telling myself I was probably going to fail. Does anyone else do that besides me?! lol, I'm such a basket-case when it comes to tests. :) Anyway, as I'm freaking out while driving to class, I realized that God is in control and that if I'm asking that His will would be done, then I need to be okay with whatever happens. Even though I was praying that God's will would be done, I really wanted my will to be His will. God has given me so much and yet I still sink so low as to expect Him to give me everything I "think" I need. So, this doesn't mean I still won't get worried about tests, but when I pray that God's will would be done, I really want whatever His will would be. And for those of you curious, I did not fail my test that day and did better than I thought. :)
Besides going to school and studying, I still work my 40 hours each week. For the most part, I've done pretty well with this and have been able to study quite a bit at work. Unfortunately, this last weekend wasn't so great for studying or sleeping. I worked a 24 on Saturday and got (maybe) a little over an hour of studying done and around two hours (combined) of sleeping. That was probably the busiest Saturday I've had in a long time. We had a little bit of everything on that shift: trauma, cardiac arrest, breathing problems, heart attack, stroke, and a couple intoxicated individuals. Besides being busy, it was also a messy/stinky shift. A patient with a bowel movement that ended up leaking off our cot and onto the floor. Needless to say, we didn't get lost going from the fifth floor to the ER because of the trail we had left behind. Cleaning our cot was gross, to say the least.
Our other messy call was the cardiac arrest that we had around 3:30 Sunday morning. Usually these aren't too messy besides the equipment we have thrown everywhere, but this one was a bloody mess. The patient had blood in her airway when we went to intubate and it managed to get all over our equipment even though we suctioned her. The cool thing is we actually saved her! :) She went from having no pulse to having one, within a few minutes of us being on scene. This would be thanks to CPR, the three rounds of drugs we got in her, and more importantly, because God was not done with her life yet. Last I heard, she was doing pretty well. So, besides having to clean all the blood off our equipment, it was a pretty rewarding call. :)
I worked a 16 yesterday and we slept the whole night which meant that I was able to run as soon as I got off work. So, I am now free to study the rest of the day without interruption! Yeah, that's so not happening. Right now, I'm going to eat lunch and work on making some cinnamon bread...so scratch the studying! ;)
I hope everyone has a wonderful week! :)
Besides going to school and studying, I still work my 40 hours each week. For the most part, I've done pretty well with this and have been able to study quite a bit at work. Unfortunately, this last weekend wasn't so great for studying or sleeping. I worked a 24 on Saturday and got (maybe) a little over an hour of studying done and around two hours (combined) of sleeping. That was probably the busiest Saturday I've had in a long time. We had a little bit of everything on that shift: trauma, cardiac arrest, breathing problems, heart attack, stroke, and a couple intoxicated individuals. Besides being busy, it was also a messy/stinky shift. A patient with a bowel movement that ended up leaking off our cot and onto the floor. Needless to say, we didn't get lost going from the fifth floor to the ER because of the trail we had left behind. Cleaning our cot was gross, to say the least.
Our other messy call was the cardiac arrest that we had around 3:30 Sunday morning. Usually these aren't too messy besides the equipment we have thrown everywhere, but this one was a bloody mess. The patient had blood in her airway when we went to intubate and it managed to get all over our equipment even though we suctioned her. The cool thing is we actually saved her! :) She went from having no pulse to having one, within a few minutes of us being on scene. This would be thanks to CPR, the three rounds of drugs we got in her, and more importantly, because God was not done with her life yet. Last I heard, she was doing pretty well. So, besides having to clean all the blood off our equipment, it was a pretty rewarding call. :)
I worked a 16 yesterday and we slept the whole night which meant that I was able to run as soon as I got off work. So, I am now free to study the rest of the day without interruption! Yeah, that's so not happening. Right now, I'm going to eat lunch and work on making some cinnamon bread...so scratch the studying! ;)
I hope everyone has a wonderful week! :)
Friday, January 20, 2012
It's my dream!!
I'm officially going to Masai, Kenya!!! Seriously, I don't think words can express my extreme happiness. =D I got the call this afternoon and still can't believe it's actually true. Every year since I was 15, I hoped and prayed that I would be able to go and every year God had different plans for me. It's a good thing that we can't see the future. If I had known at 15 that I wouldn't be going to Africa until I was 22, I don't know how well I would've handled that. I knew that I would one day go, but I had no idea how long it would be. Obviously, at 15, I was hoping it would be the next year or so. I'm glad that God is in control of my life and knows what is best for me! I'll certainly be staying busy the next couple weeks with getting all the paperwork figured out and sent in. But it's all worth it! I'm so excited and happy that this dream of mine is actually coming true! It's really the best news ever, right?!?! =D
I finished my second week of school! I really am grateful to get through each week. I'm finding out that working and going to school can be extremely difficult. I really can't rely on getting anything done at work, because if I do, I get upset when we have to run calls. So, if I have the mindset that I will probably not get any homework done while working, then I'll be happy when I do. :) Yesterday, I actually got quite a bit done while working. I did math while on a transport and when I got back I finished up some Anatomy and Psychology. It was actually a really slow day and we only had one call besides the transport. For those of you wondering, I do enjoy school to some extent. I don't like that I can't come home as much anymore. :( Because I have classes Tuesday through Thursday, I end up working the weekends...totally lame, but it'll be worth it once I'm finished. At least, that's what I tell myself. ;-)
Well, I will probably be posting again at some point to let you all know about my latest nephew. :) No, he's not here yet, but I really hope he comes soon cause I want to meet him! My mom will be coming up to spend a week with Elisabeth and Patrick to help them with the baby...but they will have to share her, because I want some time with her too. ;)
Well, I really need to quit procrastinating about writing my paper and just do it. Unfortunately though, these: http://www.ziplist.com/recipes/376122-Cookie_Dough_Dip_Recipe, http://www.somethingswanky.com/2012/01/brownie-batter-dip.html, keep begging me to make them. I just may have to give into the temptation.... ;)
I finished my second week of school! I really am grateful to get through each week. I'm finding out that working and going to school can be extremely difficult. I really can't rely on getting anything done at work, because if I do, I get upset when we have to run calls. So, if I have the mindset that I will probably not get any homework done while working, then I'll be happy when I do. :) Yesterday, I actually got quite a bit done while working. I did math while on a transport and when I got back I finished up some Anatomy and Psychology. It was actually a really slow day and we only had one call besides the transport. For those of you wondering, I do enjoy school to some extent. I don't like that I can't come home as much anymore. :( Because I have classes Tuesday through Thursday, I end up working the weekends...totally lame, but it'll be worth it once I'm finished. At least, that's what I tell myself. ;-)
Well, I will probably be posting again at some point to let you all know about my latest nephew. :) No, he's not here yet, but I really hope he comes soon cause I want to meet him! My mom will be coming up to spend a week with Elisabeth and Patrick to help them with the baby...but they will have to share her, because I want some time with her too. ;)
Well, I really need to quit procrastinating about writing my paper and just do it. Unfortunately though, these: http://www.ziplist.com/recipes/376122-Cookie_Dough_Dip_Recipe, http://www.somethingswanky.com/2012/01/brownie-batter-dip.html, keep begging me to make them. I just may have to give into the temptation.... ;)
Sunday, January 8, 2012
This is THE WEEK! ;)
This is a big week for me. Tuesday, I start classes for the very first time! I'm really looking forward to it and hope everything goes smoothly. Yes, I am nervous. I know the first week shouldn't be too bad, but looking ahead I realized how difficult it will be to work, go to classes, and study. I think it's next week that I'm scheduled to work 8 hour shifts, so five days of working plus 3 days of classes. And I would like to fit in some time to sleep too.... ;) I'm sure it won't take me too long to feel like I'm going crazy, but thankfully, I have a heavenly Father who has promised to be with me every step of the way. I really couldn't ask for anything better. :)
This week is also important because I find out if I go to Africa. I was told that I would know by the end of this week if I was going. I want nothing more than to be able to go and serve, but I realize that God may have other plans for me. If I end up staying in the states this summer, I'll probably take summer classes and move farther along in that direction. I used to hate it when people would tell me that Africa would still be there a year from now and that there's no rush to go. I don't hate it so much anymore, because I know that God will provide a way for me to go in His own timing. I won't make it there any sooner no matter how hard I try. :)
Well, I hope everyone else has a wonderful week! :)
This week is also important because I find out if I go to Africa. I was told that I would know by the end of this week if I was going. I want nothing more than to be able to go and serve, but I realize that God may have other plans for me. If I end up staying in the states this summer, I'll probably take summer classes and move farther along in that direction. I used to hate it when people would tell me that Africa would still be there a year from now and that there's no rush to go. I don't hate it so much anymore, because I know that God will provide a way for me to go in His own timing. I won't make it there any sooner no matter how hard I try. :)
Well, I hope everyone else has a wonderful week! :)
Friday, January 6, 2012
Choosing Forgiveness
So, I'm trying to finish a few books before my classes start up since I don't think I'll have time to do much besides study and work. Anyway, I'm reading Choosing Forgiveness by Nancy Leigh DeMoss. It's a must-read, in my opinion. I think each of us can "forgive" someone without actually forgiving them. You tell someone you've forgiven them and then you constantly talk about the hurt that that person has done in your life. Is that really forgiveness? We're such sinful human beings that we don't want to forget the bad someone has done in our life. We want others to see them as bad as we do. But how is that Christlike? When Jesus died on the cross He died for our sins. Our slate is wiped clean and we're given a fresh start. Why can't we forgive others like that? Well, you may say it's because we're not perfect like Christ. That's true. But, how can you never forgive someone when Christ has forgiven you? What example do you show to other nonbelievers? They see you go about professing to be a Christian and how you have been forgiven, but then they see you can't even forgive someone who hurt you in some way, either physically or mentally. And why is that? It's because we want our friends to see the bad in someone else so we look better and our faults will be overlooked.
Is this not true? Haven't each one of us fallen into this snare before? As much as I would love to say that I haven't, I can't. I have said that I've forgiven and then I will constantly bring up how that person hurt me. I don't want it to be like that anymore. I want to say to others that when I forgive someone there's a sign that I hold to that says "No Fishing Allowed". And what that means is that I won't go fishing to bring up all the past hurt and mistakes that someone did to me. I will leave it and move on. Start over and make a fresh start because Christ did the same for me.
I know I make mistakes and it won't always be easy to forgive others and not go "fishing", but by God's grace, I will do my best.
Here are some quotes from Nancy's book:
Is this not true? Haven't each one of us fallen into this snare before? As much as I would love to say that I haven't, I can't. I have said that I've forgiven and then I will constantly bring up how that person hurt me. I don't want it to be like that anymore. I want to say to others that when I forgive someone there's a sign that I hold to that says "No Fishing Allowed". And what that means is that I won't go fishing to bring up all the past hurt and mistakes that someone did to me. I will leave it and move on. Start over and make a fresh start because Christ did the same for me.
I know I make mistakes and it won't always be easy to forgive others and not go "fishing", but by God's grace, I will do my best.
Here are some quotes from Nancy's book:
Every time I refuse to forgive , anytime I hold a grudge, I am like the man who grabbed his debtor by the throat, demanding, "Pay back what you owe me."
One Definition of Unforgiveness: Like drinking poison and hoping someone else would die.
The Devil always wins when we fail to forgive.
As believers, we are told that God has forgiven "all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross."
At one time, the "record" was right there, accusing us, exposing us, vindicating His righteous anger against us. But with one press of the delete key, our holy, merciful God erased the whole thing. Nothing was saved on a backup disk. Nothing printed out in hard copy. Nothing stored in a separate folder or filing cabinet in case it proved useful to whip it out again someday.
All of it, deleted. Forever. All because of Christ's death on the cross---in our place. Debt canceled.
This was God's way of dealing with what we had done to Him. And that is what He asks us to do with others' sins against us.
We of all people should appreciate the joy of forgiveness. . . by knowing what a treasure it is to be purely and perfectly forgiven.
. . .when we extend to others the forgiveness that Christ extended to us on the cross, we reflect the mercy and grace of God to a world that desperately needs to be forgiven.
When it comes to forgiveness, our Lord would not command us to do something that He would not enable us to do. Or that He hasn't done Himself.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Christmas, New Years, and sickness.....
Wow, didn't realize it had been so long since I last posted! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, cause I sure did! :) I was able to be home from Friday to Monday and I enjoyed every minute of it. It's so much better than being stuck here in Columbia.... ;) Columbia is a cool city to live in, but when you don't have many friends that live here, then it can just be plain boring. Right now I'm sitting all by myself in the apartment, listening to music and being a bum. My roommates went home for Christmas so it's kinda strange to not have someone to talk to. It's probably a good thing they aren't here though, because I have made an incredibly big mess in the kitchen and haven't cleaned it up yet. I'm procrastinating since my bedroom really needs to be picked up too. It looks like a tornado came through my bedroom and the kitchen without tearing up anything else. Strange, right? ;) Despite what you may be thinking, I'm not really a dirty person. I like having things clean and so as soon as I finish writing this I'll be cleaning everything up. :) Oh, and if you're wondering why I have a dirty kitchen, it's because I'm baking things to sell. :) I have several people signed up for cinnamon rolls, cookies and cupcakes. Hopefully, tomorrow I'll be able to get all the orders done by afternoon. :)
Does anybody else hate being tired? I feel like I've had little sleep this last week or so and yet I have been able to get 8 hours of sleep some days. There has been days though that I've gotten 3 and 4 hours of sleep though too and I think that's what's messing me up.
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So, that was written last week and I never got around to finishing it up. We hadn't even gotten through New Years when I posted that....weird how time flies sometimes. Anyway, I had a wonderful time home with my family again for New Years. Us kids stayed up till midnight and we rang in the New Year by drinking sparkling grape juice from wine glasses and listening to Auld Lang Syne. Mom and dad had gone to bed and so we tried being quiet, but I don't think we succeeded very well. ;) lol, I wish I could remember all the quotes that people said that night. Some were pretty hilarious! I do remember one between Jacob and Nathan. And btw, this is probably 10 minutes or so before midnight... ;)
Jacob: "So, are we all going to say what our New Year resolutions are?"
Nate: *rubs his belly* "Mine is to not get fat this year."
Jacob: "You can't say until after the New Year! Now you are going to get fat."
Haha, I thought it was hilarious anyway. ;)
This week hasn't been my greatest.... I've gotten a cold and it's a little stinker! It refuses to go away and I'm really starting to dislike it. I made it through my 40 hours for the week and so now I can rest up and hopefully get better before school starts. I hadn't been sick since last summer, and so I was kinda disappointed to not make it all the way through winter without getting anything. It's actually been a long time since I've been this sick.... Fever, neck pain and a really bad sore throat. There were a couple times at work that I had trouble talking with my pt's because my throat hurt so much. Let's just say that it's probably the quietest I've ever been at work...since first starting out. I didn't tell anyone at work that I wasn't feeling well, so they probably thought I was just mad about something since I didn't say a whole lot. ;)
School starts on Tuesday and I'm excited and pretty nervous. I keep hoping that I didn't take on too much. The good thing is that God can provide the strength I need to get through... We really can't do anything without Him.
Well, I'm going to get some more water and finish my book.... maybe I'll be better at posting this year. No promises though.
Does anybody else hate being tired? I feel like I've had little sleep this last week or so and yet I have been able to get 8 hours of sleep some days. There has been days though that I've gotten 3 and 4 hours of sleep though too and I think that's what's messing me up.
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So, that was written last week and I never got around to finishing it up. We hadn't even gotten through New Years when I posted that....weird how time flies sometimes. Anyway, I had a wonderful time home with my family again for New Years. Us kids stayed up till midnight and we rang in the New Year by drinking sparkling grape juice from wine glasses and listening to Auld Lang Syne. Mom and dad had gone to bed and so we tried being quiet, but I don't think we succeeded very well. ;) lol, I wish I could remember all the quotes that people said that night. Some were pretty hilarious! I do remember one between Jacob and Nathan. And btw, this is probably 10 minutes or so before midnight... ;)
Jacob: "So, are we all going to say what our New Year resolutions are?"
Nate: *rubs his belly* "Mine is to not get fat this year."
Jacob: "You can't say until after the New Year! Now you are going to get fat."
Haha, I thought it was hilarious anyway. ;)
This week hasn't been my greatest.... I've gotten a cold and it's a little stinker! It refuses to go away and I'm really starting to dislike it. I made it through my 40 hours for the week and so now I can rest up and hopefully get better before school starts. I hadn't been sick since last summer, and so I was kinda disappointed to not make it all the way through winter without getting anything. It's actually been a long time since I've been this sick.... Fever, neck pain and a really bad sore throat. There were a couple times at work that I had trouble talking with my pt's because my throat hurt so much. Let's just say that it's probably the quietest I've ever been at work...since first starting out. I didn't tell anyone at work that I wasn't feeling well, so they probably thought I was just mad about something since I didn't say a whole lot. ;)
School starts on Tuesday and I'm excited and pretty nervous. I keep hoping that I didn't take on too much. The good thing is that God can provide the strength I need to get through... We really can't do anything without Him.
Well, I'm going to get some more water and finish my book.... maybe I'll be better at posting this year. No promises though.
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