lovely sights

i never expected to have snow during spring break, but today was the third day of snow. i love big flakes falling from the sky.
another fun sight this break was a few deer in the backyard.
after giving rob the grand tour of our town and enjoying these lovely sights, i have had a new appreciation for this town. i love where i live.

i brought a boy home

i brought a boy home for easter. and for the record, he isn't my boyfriend (which rob pointed out, could be worthy of even more gossip than if he was just my boyfriend.) =)

rob is one of my favorite guys at school. we get along really well. but i have to admit, i didn't really think about all the implications when i asked rob if he wanted to come home with me, in response to his lack of easter plans. i asked. he said "sure." and then just a few days later i was sitting in a pick-up truck, listening to country music and heading home.

even though i'm sure i subjected myself to countless stares and gossip at church, i had a great weekend with my family and rob. i'm glad he came home with me

favorite moments from my easter weekend-
losing monopoly (if only we hadn't bought the utilities!)
batman
strawberry allergies
the dice game
a certain camo easter basket
enchanted
the tour of our fair town
dying eggs
walker park
catch phrase with aunt connie, lorie and grandma
gluten free food
the egg hunt
rob in a shirt and tie
mission impossible
uno attack
late-night conversations
four-square with a basketball

peeps

according to my room-mate, you tell alot about a person by the way they eat peeps.
tail first? head first?
i eat peeps by biting off their head first.
this prevents them from feeling any pain as i destroy the rest of their body with my teeth.

east to west

today i was listening to my songs on shuffle. and then this song came on.
good friday is today-a remembrance of one of the most brutal, horrible, sacrificing events in human history.
as i read the account of jesus' death today, i wondered how we can call this day good.


we can call it good
because without jesus' death, we wouldn't have life.
that is why it is good.

jesus can you show me just how far the east is from the west?
‘cause i can’t bear to see the man i’ve been
rising up in me again
in the arms of your mercy i find rest
‘cause you know just how far the east is from the west
from one scarred hand to the other

thank you for your un-repayable, beautiful gift of life, jesus.

slip slop slap

i finished reading our book for my australia class last night.
man. now i feel quite ready to experience this country/continent.

on wednesday night, the group presentation taught us, among other things, that australians don't value tanning the same way americans do. i hope that is true, because i'll fit right in then with my pale skin! =)
the group also showed this video of one of australia's campaigns in the 80's, complete with its catchy tune, teaching its citizens to use precautions when spending time in the sun.
apparently, it has been one of the most successful campaigns in australia's history.
and besides, its great fun.

slip. slop. slap.
it sounds like a breeze
when you say it like that. =)
slip. slop. slap.

savoring today

my fears are scattering.
God is giving me strength.
i am showered with blessing.


i visited taylor today and saw her face light up.
we ate suckers.
i got beat at sorry and connect-four.


i met with four beautiful people today for more one-on-ones:
i ate breakfast with linsey.
i had a lovely conversation with ben.
i laughed over a milkshake with brent and his buddies.
i went on an adventure to find a travel mug with jacob.


what a wonder it is to have one of the desires of my heart given to me.
i am filled with dreams for next year.
new staff.
new room-mate.


yet, it is bittersweet.
the days seem to go by so quickly.
i'm going to miss living with my room-mates.
i'm trying to savor the days i have with my staff now.
the thought of only three more staff meetings breaks my heart a little.


but i praise God for the gift of these dear ones in my life.
i am so blessed.
past. present. future.

passing the torch

tonight was our version of initiation.
we wanted to bless the staff for next year.
no blind-folds.
no early morning wake-up calls.
no grumpy people.

instead we offered them
t-shirts
human bingo
treat bags
the human knot
prayers with the current RAs

it was a little overwhelming to see so many people that i have grown to love/am starting to love all in one place.

what i needed

today was pretty tiring. i had a patient with dementia who was pretty confused and required alot of my time. i enjoyed being able to serve my patients in such tangible ways, but by the end of the day i was drained. i had a one-on-one at 7, which i was looking forward to, but i wasn't sure how much energy i could contribute to our time. as i was getting ready to meet with rebekah i prayed that our time together would be a blessing-that whatever she needed that night would happen. whether she needed encouragement or just a fun hour, i asked that God would give me the energy and the words to bless this girl. God not only answered my prayer, but provided encouragement and excitement for me through my time with rebekah.
i felt like we were instant friends, with lots in common. her smile and enthusiasm was contagious.
each one-on-one has different, but i'm finding myself in amazement at God's goodness at giving me more beautiful people to be in my life. his grace still amazes me.

doing a dance

my tests are done!!
now i just have to make it through a few days of clinicals, some homework...and of course the one-on-ones that i'm quite enjoying...
and then spring break!!
this is how i felt after my two tests today-

muffins

i made cranberry orange muffins tonight. i'd never made them with egg replacer or gluten-free flour, but i thought it was worth a try.
and it was.
they turned out quite nicely. in fact, the whole ordeal was rather successful, except for the sensation of my thumb being grated instead of the orange. that was not so nice.

the beginning of one-on-ones

i sent out an e-mail last week asking to meet with all the RAs from my new staff individually, in order to get to know them better. this week was the beginning of the one-on-ones. with six down, i'm excited for the ones to come, and thankful for the opportunity to work with these lovely people next year.
this week included:
swinging with rebecca
ice cream with chris
laughing with alyssa
cards, tea and dice with j
the triplets of belleville* with devan
*this was the most interesting cartoon i've seen, but not one i would necessarily want to watch again. but i suppose i can be thankful to have experienced it, since it is devan's favorite. and i do agree with devan that the grandma is "rad."
nursing talk with rebekah
with more to come!

oh, nursing

today i had my 2nd pediatric patient-a sweet two-week-old baby girl. and i had a 69-year-old man who reminded me of poppop. they both demanded alot of my time, but it made for a busy and good day. i didn't count the hours, because i was kept occupied. i had a baby smile at me (or at least in my direction.) i got to hold a baby. i got to joke and tease me other patient. and best of all, i get to take care of them both tomorrow.

when i got home from clinicals, i had an e-mail waiting for me. it told me that i'm having my preceptorship in the fall, which wasn't my preference, but it should work out just fine...

but i get to have my preceptorship as my first choice: pediatrics! 

today made me really hopeful that i would get to work with children for more than just a day. 

and now, i know that i do! =)

penelope

i've been wanting to see this movie since john first told me about it.
last night, martha and i went to see it. she was a perfect movie buddy.
we both walked out of the theater charmed by this modern fairy tale.
beautiful life lessons woven through this charming story-
i enjoyed this magical tale immensely.

eternal perspective

after two thursdays of missing the chance to meet with taylor, i finally got to visit this sweet fifth grader this week, at last. when i was first paired with her, i wondered if God knew what he was doing. but now, two and a half years later, i can see God at work in the situation.

my heart swells as her face lights up when she sees me. 

she eagerly tells me about the triumphs and trials of being in fifth grade. 

she beats me at candyland. 

i beat her at connect four. 

sometimes i get discouraged as i hear the hurt and pain behind her words, but i know God has put us in each other's lives for a reason. in bible study this week, we looked at the story of stephen. something that really impressed me was stephen's inability to see his impact. yet, he was obedient and was given an eternal perspective in the last moments of his life which allowed him to pray for his persecutors.
i really feel like i can't see my impact, but i hope that my obedience in this little girl's life will draw her closer to Jesus.
give me your perspective, Jesus.


our christmas picture-

a year ago

a year ago today i started blogging. it was the day after i met my new staff (for this year), the day i started my first clinicals-so much has changed since then and so much has stayed the same. God is still teaching me to trust. God is still revealing himself to me in new and personal ways, that continue to amaze and bless me. 

tuesday night was beautiful. i wondered if i could find room in my heart for a new staff, and God showed me that he would make the room. i anticipate great and glorious things from what God has called me to in the days to come. 

learning names, hitting each other with the cheer stick, laughing...

i don't think it will be hard to fall in love with this group either.

ready or not

its hard to believe that tonight marks the beginning.

tonight is the first res. life meeting for next year.

we sign our contracts.

we are together as a staff for the first time.

i'm nervous.

i'm excited.

i'm an AAC.

oh goodness.

i close my eyes and remember the nervous glances, the name games, the hesitant smiles and arms around each other as pictures were taken, when we were still getting used to the idea of this change for the year to come...

the past two years have been better than i could have imagined.

i'm trusting he will continue to amaze me, change me, mold me, bless me with the people he places in my life.

year 1

year 2

















year 3-ready or not, here it comes!

meeting him

not only did i get to enjoy a weekend with dear friends, but God met me on the retreat. full of questioning about next year, he calmed my fears with these words:

"the LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." 

-deuteronomy 31:8

"there is no one like the God of jacob, who rides on the heavens to help you and on the clouds in his majesty. the eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms." 

-deuteronomy 33:26-27a

pictures from the weekend

a few pictures from this weekend-
to see more, go here.

the tractor pose

















the slapping game finalists-sarah, carrie and kaitlin

















gluten free buddies & our clam chowder!

















pizza time

















dancing and dipping attempts with rob























posing-how cute: matt, rob, danielle, cherie, kaitlin

















catch phrase-guys vs. girls























how many people does it take to fix a broken futon?

















dog pile!

















kyle's solution to a wet picnic table

















i took a little nature walk around our cabin and these are the result:








































































































our bedtime story from kyle

















twosies-cherie & lacey and katlyn & devan

















sharing the lazyboy with sarah...and kyle

















group picture on the bridge

a weekend in the woods

this weekend was our last staff retreat. we went here.
the drive was short. the company was wonderful. i got to rest. it was lovely.

my personal highlights of the weekend:

from friday-
-riding with sarah and carrie
-the juke box
-the slapping hands game
-laughing
-delicious gluten-free clam chowder
-wedding plans =)
"you could go on that show, Rob and have a hillbilly wedding." "well, if he does, he won't be marrying me!"
-dancing with Rob and our attempts at dipping
-getting lost with sarah and carrie
-having jared calmly give directions to become un-lost
-catch phrase (guys vs. girls-this turned out to be highly competitive, as i'm sure can be imagined. the girls won the first two games and apparently the third game was declared double-or-nothing, which i am still skeptical about. the boys won that game. the final game started out badly for the girls, with no points and the boys one point away from winning. we made an amazing comeback and were tied, but sadly, the boys won on the final round and were merciless in their joy of winning.)
"what goes hoot?"
"this makes toast." "a toaster!"
-kyle's harmonica
-how many people does it take to fix a broken futon?
-the mind reading skills of the programming committee
-indiana jones (& holding cherie's hand)
-sarah as my sleeping buddy
-sagging mattresses
-pillow talk

from saturday-
-waking up to the sound of rain
-gluten free coffee cake
-helping rob start his day off right
-kyle's lifestory (& being mentioned in it!)
-rob's passion as he led us in worship
-sharing time
-talking with martha about "anne of green gables," next year and "cute boy" while sitting on a semi-wet picnic bench
-making rob a sandwich
"she's a good person, you know that?"
-the crackling fire
-homework fest
-my walk with kaitlin
-finding a newt
-my nap by the fire
-tacos for dinner and cutting up apples
-superuno and jared's inability to slap =)
-TP hunting with jared
-dancing in the kitchen (including the kyle-dance)
-"shape of my heart" with martha (dancing by kyle)
-country music
"you have to accept all parts of us, since you're on staff with us-and this is part of me!"
-uno and matt's determination to make cherie lose
-floor dancing during uno
-top gun
"doesn't this make you cry? even a little?" "well, i yawned and my eyes watered."
"you are now a complete person."
-kyle's bedtime story, complete with wilbur, the midget and the diaper swing
-the kid and rob's commentary during it
-hugs

from sunday-
-packing up
-pumpkin muffins
-being photographed by kyle as one of his favorite people
-namky's lifestory
-sharing the lazyboy with sarah
-group pictures on the tractor and the bridge
-the drive home
-hugs
-walking home with carrie