I have been waiting. Waiting for literally over one month to hear back about starting the data collection phase of my thesis study. I have been feeling like my whole life was on hold because that's the only thing left to finish my master's program. This morning I even woke up and got coffee, per routine and then climbed back in bed until noon because I can't clean any more things while waiting for the email.
I couldn't book a flight to visit Curtis because I could be collecting data. I was scared to go to the Jamaica wedding because I could be defending those days. I couldn't do anything but wait. However, last week I booked the wedding trip to Jamaica and at 1 AM last night, Curtis and I (mostly Curtis) booked a flight to California in November. I just hoped that the timing would work out.
Last night, I sent another email to IRB asking about my study. This morning, conveniently, I had an email of approval in my inbox. Step 4,632 has begun, folks!
So, Actually, Ashley, just when you think you have time for craft days and long workouts and sleeping until noon. Your whole world changes.
Friday, August 1, 2014
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
Communicating Love
Some of us will feel most loved at the end of a phone call when those typical words, "I love you" are spoken. Others will feel it in a hug, or maybe an affirming "Great job!" Maybe others feel most loved when someone gives them a gift for no reason, or when they spend an entire day doing "nothing."
Just like any form of 2-way communication, communicating love can be a difficult art to master. While many of you are familiar with my current situation, people are often surprised to learn that Curtis and I don't really say that we love each other. In fact, we dated for nearly 3 years before those words were said from his mouth. I actually said it first, something I used to think I would never do. (Read this blog post for that story.) It's not something that I needed to hear in order to feel his love. Actually, I recently learned that "Words of Affirmation" are one of my lowest ranked Love Languages.
Gary Chapman's The Five Love Languages changed the way I think about the communication of love . It's not a book that I was forced to read for a family studies class, it's not some strange thing I discovered because I have had the privileged to go to college. It's an everyday book that has changed the way I understand myself and others.
I learned that I primarily communicate love through what Chapman calls "Acts of Service." I wasn't too surprised when I learned this through the online quiz, but comparing my results to others it made even more sense. I communicate love through my actions. I enjoy volunteering for the jobs others don't want to do, sending essentials when needed, or helping with activities. I prepare freezer meals for Curtis, not because he wouldn't be able to care for himself, but because that's how I communicate love.
It is also helpful to recognize how others communicate love and recognize each others differences to be able to love each other in the ways they feel most loved. That could mean holding your partner's hand on a hot sticky day because they need "Physical Touch" or clearing your calendar on a Saturday and ignoring phone calls for a day because your partner feels loved spending "Quality Time" with you.
How do you communicate love? Take the quiz, and read the book, too!
http://www.5lovelanguages.com/profile/
Just like any form of 2-way communication, communicating love can be a difficult art to master. While many of you are familiar with my current situation, people are often surprised to learn that Curtis and I don't really say that we love each other. In fact, we dated for nearly 3 years before those words were said from his mouth. I actually said it first, something I used to think I would never do. (Read this blog post for that story.) It's not something that I needed to hear in order to feel his love. Actually, I recently learned that "Words of Affirmation" are one of my lowest ranked Love Languages.
Gary Chapman's The Five Love Languages changed the way I think about the communication of love . It's not a book that I was forced to read for a family studies class, it's not some strange thing I discovered because I have had the privileged to go to college. It's an everyday book that has changed the way I understand myself and others.
I learned that I primarily communicate love through what Chapman calls "Acts of Service." I wasn't too surprised when I learned this through the online quiz, but comparing my results to others it made even more sense. I communicate love through my actions. I enjoy volunteering for the jobs others don't want to do, sending essentials when needed, or helping with activities. I prepare freezer meals for Curtis, not because he wouldn't be able to care for himself, but because that's how I communicate love.
It is also helpful to recognize how others communicate love and recognize each others differences to be able to love each other in the ways they feel most loved. That could mean holding your partner's hand on a hot sticky day because they need "Physical Touch" or clearing your calendar on a Saturday and ignoring phone calls for a day because your partner feels loved spending "Quality Time" with you.
How do you communicate love? Take the quiz, and read the book, too!
http://www.5lovelanguages.com/profile/
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
The mysteries you find...
... in the washing machine. Every three months, I take the time to clean my washing machine. While most people are baffled that I would clean something that seems to clean itself, let me share some photographic evidence about why your washing machine needs a little lovin' every once in a while.
 |
| "Did you REALLY just clean that 3 months ago?" |
 |
| After a little love |
It doesn't take much to get this soap scum removed, but let me share the full process of getting a sparkly clean washing machine!
1. Run the hottest cycle until your washer is full and then add 1 quart of bleach. Close the lid and let the machine agitate for about a minute. Open the lid and leave the machine set for an hour, then let the cycle finish.
2. Repeat step 1 using one quart of vinegar. Except..
3. While the vinegar/water is sitting, use a toothbrush, scrubber, or your preferred scrubbing tool. I used a toothbrush to scrub off all of that junk while using a vinegar/water solution on the entire washer/dryer unit as well.
Hopefully my roommates will be so excited the washing machine is clean that they won't be upset I shared our "dirtiness" with the world!
Happy cleaning,
Ashley
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Student Loan Debt
I'm here to tell you that debt happens, and as much as you can try to avoid it and think it's stupid (See, Daivd Ramsey),
I didn't have another option. My parents provided me what they could, I
had ample scholarships, but I was willing to take on the debt because I believe in the power of higher education in society.
In the end, I graduated with a little over $27,000 in debt from attending a private liberal arts institution, with an AmeriCorps Education Award and my assistantship at Iowa State plus some scholarships to pay for graduate school.
What wasn't the best choice for me was taking a TEACH grant. After deciding not to teach at a specific school for a specific number of years, this was converted to a high-interest loan, which is what I have started paying off. I'm not paying it off because I have to, I'm paying it off because I want to and because I have been blessed with a wonderful job and part-time job that have enabled to me to so.
I have committed myself to making these loan payments after researching, thinking, and calculating if it would be worth it, and for those specific loans that are already collecting interest, it is. For those not collecting interest they can sit there and be all beautiful at the original balance.
I'm sharing this because I know many people google for hours trying to figure out if they should be paying off their debt. It's a very personal situation and the people who write blogs about it are typically the ones that are to one extreme or the other. Hopefully, I can offer you some questions to make the decision a little more concrete, no matter what you choose to do with your debt.
Here are some questions I asked myself before I began the journey of paying back some of my loans:
1. Can I manage to continue to drive my shitty Sunfire for a while longer? (Relate this to anything you have that you have been dying to upgrade.)
2. Will I put myself at a disadvantage? Will I have to eat ramen and never go shopping with my friends because I am financially strained?
3. Could I survive with the money I have in savings if I lost my job? (It is recommended to have 3 months of living expenses in savings, someday I will make another post about savings.)
4. Are there any major expenses coming up?
Answer these questions for yourself in an honest and open way. Your responses will lead you to your decision to put some money towards those loans, or to wait.
And a few strategies...
1. I was offered an extra 10 hours of work per week, I decided to put those dollars directly toward my loans because I had been doing fine prior to having them. If you find yourself in this situation, I think it has been a huge relief to me to see that debt go down every month.
2. Start with the smallest loan that accrues interest. I had three TEACH grants. The three values were about ~900, ~1600 and the other is ~4,000 at 6.8 percent interest. I was able to pay off the $900 in about two months and feel accomplished before jumping the next loan. While it would make more sense in terms of savings to pay off the 4000 dollar one, I wanted to feel accomplished and not drag myself down over it.
Share your experiences, thoughts and decisions toward student loan debt, comments are appreciated!
Always,
Ashley
In the end, I graduated with a little over $27,000 in debt from attending a private liberal arts institution, with an AmeriCorps Education Award and my assistantship at Iowa State plus some scholarships to pay for graduate school.
What wasn't the best choice for me was taking a TEACH grant. After deciding not to teach at a specific school for a specific number of years, this was converted to a high-interest loan, which is what I have started paying off. I'm not paying it off because I have to, I'm paying it off because I want to and because I have been blessed with a wonderful job and part-time job that have enabled to me to so.
I have committed myself to making these loan payments after researching, thinking, and calculating if it would be worth it, and for those specific loans that are already collecting interest, it is. For those not collecting interest they can sit there and be all beautiful at the original balance.
I'm sharing this because I know many people google for hours trying to figure out if they should be paying off their debt. It's a very personal situation and the people who write blogs about it are typically the ones that are to one extreme or the other. Hopefully, I can offer you some questions to make the decision a little more concrete, no matter what you choose to do with your debt.
Here are some questions I asked myself before I began the journey of paying back some of my loans:
1. Can I manage to continue to drive my shitty Sunfire for a while longer? (Relate this to anything you have that you have been dying to upgrade.)2. Will I put myself at a disadvantage? Will I have to eat ramen and never go shopping with my friends because I am financially strained?
3. Could I survive with the money I have in savings if I lost my job? (It is recommended to have 3 months of living expenses in savings, someday I will make another post about savings.)
4. Are there any major expenses coming up?
Answer these questions for yourself in an honest and open way. Your responses will lead you to your decision to put some money towards those loans, or to wait.
And a few strategies...
1. I was offered an extra 10 hours of work per week, I decided to put those dollars directly toward my loans because I had been doing fine prior to having them. If you find yourself in this situation, I think it has been a huge relief to me to see that debt go down every month.
2. Start with the smallest loan that accrues interest. I had three TEACH grants. The three values were about ~900, ~1600 and the other is ~4,000 at 6.8 percent interest. I was able to pay off the $900 in about two months and feel accomplished before jumping the next loan. While it would make more sense in terms of savings to pay off the 4000 dollar one, I wanted to feel accomplished and not drag myself down over it.
Share your experiences, thoughts and decisions toward student loan debt, comments are appreciated!
Always,
Ashley
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Communication
In both my personal life and my professional life as a Teaching Assistant for Human Development across the Life-Span, relationship health has been a major topic of discussion. Couples. Husbands and Wives. Friends. All of the interactions we have on a daily basis.
Research shows how unhealthy it is to bottle up our emotions. We talk about how to communicate our anger from a very young age. We teach children how to say "I feel sad when you call me mean names because it hurts my feelings." Instead of saying "You are a jerk!" Research shows that these statements, known as I-statements, are more effective in healthy relationship development. Partners can communicate, "You never take me on dates anymore," more effectively by saying, "I feel like we aren't spending as much quality time together anymore."
We talk about the importance of not bottling up our feelings because it's not healthy and can often cause an unhealthy eruption, as well as lead to adverse health effects. Primarily, these feelings are noted as being anger, frustration or other negative feelings that need to escape our hearts.
One I-statement personally overlooked, held-back and bottled up in my own life is an important one that is too often forgotten.
I love you.
It's awkward. Uncomfortable. Maybe a little disappointing if we are expecting a similar response that doesn't come. The dictionary definition of love is an intense feeling of deep affection. That's a pretty abstract, relative, ambiguous, and subjective feeling. However, just like it's not healthy to bottle up our anger, it's also not healthy to bottle up our love. If you have been thinking for days, months, weeks, years, eons... that you could be in love with someone. Let them know. Give them that I-statement, without expecting a response. Get it off your chest.
Always,
Ashley
Research shows how unhealthy it is to bottle up our emotions. We talk about how to communicate our anger from a very young age. We teach children how to say "I feel sad when you call me mean names because it hurts my feelings." Instead of saying "You are a jerk!" Research shows that these statements, known as I-statements, are more effective in healthy relationship development. Partners can communicate, "You never take me on dates anymore," more effectively by saying, "I feel like we aren't spending as much quality time together anymore."
We talk about the importance of not bottling up our feelings because it's not healthy and can often cause an unhealthy eruption, as well as lead to adverse health effects. Primarily, these feelings are noted as being anger, frustration or other negative feelings that need to escape our hearts.
One I-statement personally overlooked, held-back and bottled up in my own life is an important one that is too often forgotten.
I love you.
It's awkward. Uncomfortable. Maybe a little disappointing if we are expecting a similar response that doesn't come. The dictionary definition of love is an intense feeling of deep affection. That's a pretty abstract, relative, ambiguous, and subjective feeling. However, just like it's not healthy to bottle up our anger, it's also not healthy to bottle up our love. If you have been thinking for days, months, weeks, years, eons... that you could be in love with someone. Let them know. Give them that I-statement, without expecting a response. Get it off your chest.
Always,
Ashley
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
Goals
"Goals. Why are we talking about goals, again?"
In graduate school I am learning we talk about goals quite a bit. For myself, I always have a long list of goals I am working toward. Mostly personal, some professional. I used to always think "Why are we sharing goals? These are MY goals."
There's a reason we share our goals. It helps us stay true. It holds us accountable. So, in lieu of being held accountable, I am sharing with my 70+ readers my current goals.
Professional
No terse emails. Yay to not sounding rude, mean, or short in emails!
Propose my thesis. 'Cause it's that time.
Personal
Quit drinking pop. For realz this time. If you see me running in some new shoes after October 21, that means I didn't drink pop between now and then.
Exercise at least 4 times a week, and vary the workout, so far Zumba, running, weights and biking. I get in such a "rut" of only running. Only running, terrible right? I find that if I run everyday, I get unmotivated because it's the same thing all the time.
There's more, but this is a good start to the accountability factor.
In other news, we made the Iowa 4-H Foundation blog!
In graduate school I am learning we talk about goals quite a bit. For myself, I always have a long list of goals I am working toward. Mostly personal, some professional. I used to always think "Why are we sharing goals? These are MY goals."
There's a reason we share our goals. It helps us stay true. It holds us accountable. So, in lieu of being held accountable, I am sharing with my 70+ readers my current goals.
Professional
No terse emails. Yay to not sounding rude, mean, or short in emails!
Propose my thesis. 'Cause it's that time.
Personal
Quit drinking pop. For realz this time. If you see me running in some new shoes after October 21, that means I didn't drink pop between now and then.
Exercise at least 4 times a week, and vary the workout, so far Zumba, running, weights and biking. I get in such a "rut" of only running. Only running, terrible right? I find that if I run everyday, I get unmotivated because it's the same thing all the time.
There's more, but this is a good start to the accountability factor.
In other news, we made the Iowa 4-H Foundation blog!
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
Grad Life
As I almost have "Week 2" in the books, I thought I would take some time
to share my experiences with being at ISU full-time as a graduate
student. I gave myself a little too much caffeine today, so I made lists
so my brain would focus better for all you lovely readers.
Life:
Life. Life. Life. It's different being on campus this year, but so far I like it! I have people around to remind me when I forget to do something, and I have the chance to go to research presentations and such. Also, I am only working 20 hours a week for my assistantship so that's supposed to leave me tons of free time, but I'll let you know where that time has been going once I figure that one out. I miss my AmeriCorps position and the youth, but
For those who know about the food count I was doing, so far I have had free meals seven times. So graduate school has other benefits as well. ;)
My classes:
Statistics 401: Well, our professor likes to talk about falling cats and lets us out of lab after thirty minutes. So there's that!
HDFS 504: Qualitative Methods. It's seeming really awesome. We get to conduct interviews and spend hours coding them!
HDFS 510: Family Theory. Theory classes, yay! We will be writing a theories essay, and I think my partner and I are focusing on the perceptions of substance use among emerging adults. Stay tuned! \
YTH 501: Foundations of youth development. A one credit course to knock out of the way.
My Assistantship(s):
Teaching Assistant: I am spending 10 hours a week with Dr. Baltimore and two other graduate students teaching HDFS 102, Human Development and Life Span... from womb to tomb as we call it. As you can see in the photo, there has been a lot of paper grading so far, but it goes pretty quickly!
Research Assistant: I am also spending 10 hours a week with Dr. Susan Maude working on a program evaluation. It's pretty exciting, and I get to work with some pretty rad undergrads (see what I did there!).
I hope you all love my amazing desk, and if you are in Ames, stop by MacKay 34 to say hi. I have already gotten rid of two cockroaches, so it should be safe!
Love always,
Ashley
Life:
Life. Life. Life. It's different being on campus this year, but so far I like it! I have people around to remind me when I forget to do something, and I have the chance to go to research presentations and such. Also, I am only working 20 hours a week for my assistantship so that's supposed to leave me tons of free time, but I'll let you know where that time has been going once I figure that one out. I miss my AmeriCorps position and the youth, but
For those who know about the food count I was doing, so far I have had free meals seven times. So graduate school has other benefits as well. ;)
My classes:
Statistics 401: Well, our professor likes to talk about falling cats and lets us out of lab after thirty minutes. So there's that!
HDFS 504: Qualitative Methods. It's seeming really awesome. We get to conduct interviews and spend hours coding them!
HDFS 510: Family Theory. Theory classes, yay! We will be writing a theories essay, and I think my partner and I are focusing on the perceptions of substance use among emerging adults. Stay tuned! \
YTH 501: Foundations of youth development. A one credit course to knock out of the way.
My Assistantship(s):
Teaching Assistant: I am spending 10 hours a week with Dr. Baltimore and two other graduate students teaching HDFS 102, Human Development and Life Span... from womb to tomb as we call it. As you can see in the photo, there has been a lot of paper grading so far, but it goes pretty quickly!
Research Assistant: I am also spending 10 hours a week with Dr. Susan Maude working on a program evaluation. It's pretty exciting, and I get to work with some pretty rad undergrads (see what I did there!).
I hope you all love my amazing desk, and if you are in Ames, stop by MacKay 34 to say hi. I have already gotten rid of two cockroaches, so it should be safe!
Love always,
Ashley
Friday, August 16, 2013
Using your education award
Hello,
This blog hasn't had any posts in quite some time, but there are a few tips I would like to reflect on as my year of service has came to a close.
My education award of $5,550 will be applied to finish my Master's at Iowa State. I have requested my payment, and it is being processed. It won't take the full amount, but I will use whatever is left over to pay off some student loans. The interest rate for student loans is doubling, so it's smarter for me to use that award for graduate school.
Hopefully all AmeriCorps members know they also have the option of paying back the accrued interest from your student loans. My loan provider switched during my year of service, but I was already in an up-hill battle since I wasn't in forbearance. I will make another post once this gets (or doesn't get) approved to fill you in on this process. UPDATE: I got my interest payment!
Many of you are or were AmeriCorps members, feel free to post your own experiences with your education awards and ask questions! The awards are handy, and should be used to their full potential!
I have a few other life updates to share as well. :)
1. Curtis has accepted a full-time offer in San Bruno, CA with Google. Yay! I am so proud of him for following his dream and living the life! He will start in March.
2. Babies! My older sister (Crystal) is having a girl, and my step-brother (Matt) and his girlfriend (Kyla) are also due around the same time! Looks like the Kinkade family Christmas is going to expand quite a bit!
3. Once the State Fair is over, I will on campus full-time at ISU. I have been lucky enough to get both a teaching and a research assistantship to fund my course-work to finish my Masters. Spending ten hours a week as a Teaching Assistant for Human Life Span (HDFS 102) and ten hours doing research with Dr. Susan Maude will be a great addition to my experiences. I will also be taking 13 credits in the fall and hopefully whipping out my thesis by next December at the latest.
This blog hasn't had any posts in quite some time, but there are a few tips I would like to reflect on as my year of service has came to a close.
My education award of $5,550 will be applied to finish my Master's at Iowa State. I have requested my payment, and it is being processed. It won't take the full amount, but I will use whatever is left over to pay off some student loans. The interest rate for student loans is doubling, so it's smarter for me to use that award for graduate school.
Hopefully all AmeriCorps members know they also have the option of paying back the accrued interest from your student loans. My loan provider switched during my year of service, but I was already in an up-hill battle since I wasn't in forbearance. I will make another post once this gets (or doesn't get) approved to fill you in on this process. UPDATE: I got my interest payment!
Many of you are or were AmeriCorps members, feel free to post your own experiences with your education awards and ask questions! The awards are handy, and should be used to their full potential!
I have a few other life updates to share as well. :)
1. Curtis has accepted a full-time offer in San Bruno, CA with Google. Yay! I am so proud of him for following his dream and living the life! He will start in March.
2. Babies! My older sister (Crystal) is having a girl, and my step-brother (Matt) and his girlfriend (Kyla) are also due around the same time! Looks like the Kinkade family Christmas is going to expand quite a bit!
3. Once the State Fair is over, I will on campus full-time at ISU. I have been lucky enough to get both a teaching and a research assistantship to fund my course-work to finish my Masters. Spending ten hours a week as a Teaching Assistant for Human Life Span (HDFS 102) and ten hours doing research with Dr. Susan Maude will be a great addition to my experiences. I will also be taking 13 credits in the fall and hopefully whipping out my thesis by next December at the latest.
Monday, April 29, 2013
AmeriCorps hour 1287
Just thought I would drop by and provide a few updates!
1. Today, Collins-Maxwell IMPACT completed their service learning project for Global Youth Service Day! A few months ago, they identified cooking, sports, and iPads as their interests, and chose to collect canned goods for the food pantry in exchange for a healthy snack and the option of playing some bags. The youth collected 28 cans and $4.00!
2. Tomorrow is the Risky Business conference. I have the opportunity to present with a co-worker and staff from VolunteerLocal. Our presentation focuses on volunteering and social media and I have the opportunity to promote AmeriCorps while talking about the differences between service-learning and volunteering. This is a great example of how AmeriCorps members can expand their experiences through professional opportunities!
3. I have finalized my graduate committee! We are hoping I can finish my masters and certificate program by the Fall of 2014 at the latest. More details regarding the focus of my thesis to come! Since AmeriCorps terms are only a year long, next year I will be working on my masters full-time in order to take advantage of ISU's campus and the professional opportunities provided though assistantship programs.
4. As you can tell, I am closer to being at the 1,700 hours required for my education award! I am ahead, so I am hoping to spend some time in the lovely state of Washington with Mr. B over the summer before I finish my year of service on July 31st.
Good night for now!
Ashley
1. Today, Collins-Maxwell IMPACT completed their service learning project for Global Youth Service Day! A few months ago, they identified cooking, sports, and iPads as their interests, and chose to collect canned goods for the food pantry in exchange for a healthy snack and the option of playing some bags. The youth collected 28 cans and $4.00!
2. Tomorrow is the Risky Business conference. I have the opportunity to present with a co-worker and staff from VolunteerLocal. Our presentation focuses on volunteering and social media and I have the opportunity to promote AmeriCorps while talking about the differences between service-learning and volunteering. This is a great example of how AmeriCorps members can expand their experiences through professional opportunities!
3. I have finalized my graduate committee! We are hoping I can finish my masters and certificate program by the Fall of 2014 at the latest. More details regarding the focus of my thesis to come! Since AmeriCorps terms are only a year long, next year I will be working on my masters full-time in order to take advantage of ISU's campus and the professional opportunities provided though assistantship programs.
4. As you can tell, I am closer to being at the 1,700 hours required for my education award! I am ahead, so I am hoping to spend some time in the lovely state of Washington with Mr. B over the summer before I finish my year of service on July 31st.
Good night for now!
Ashley
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
GRIP
G.R.I.P. (Great Relationships in Pairs) is a program through YSS that
has given me the opportunity to work with an amazing 8th grader.
Recently, we were featured in the G.R.I.P. blog! Check it out!
http://gripmentoring.blogspot.com/
http://gripmentoring.blogspot.com/
Friday, November 9, 2012
Non Profit Summit
Wednesday and Thursday I attended the Iowa Non-profit Summit in Des
Moines. The Summit was a great place to network with other non-profits
as well as other AmeriCorps members. I came back with new ideas for
things to implement at Youth and Shelter Services (YSS) as well as some
ideas that will carry over into future work.
Things I wish I knew:
1. One of the sessions was focused on service-learning. I thought it was the type of service-learning done with high-schoolers and middle schoolers, but it was actually college service-learning, which is pretty different. This session was still interesting, but the knowledge will be filed away for a couple of years. :)
2. To bring snacks. It's always about the snacks.
Major take away messages:
1. Whats your 50? Iowa's Governor has released the challenge for all Iowans to volunteer 50 hours in one year! That's about an hour a week for those math wizards out there. Mentor a youth, check out the volunteer opportunities in your county, or become a 4-H volunteer! The average Iowan already volunteers 34 hours per year, so why not step-up your service! Make the commitment to make Iowa the healthiest and most dedicated state today! Share what you are doing in your community below!
2. Handing out dollar bills increases participation in discussion.
3. Public value is important to stakeholders. As I write my Great Stories and talk about my program, I need to talk about the works importance to the community and state as a whole, rather than just the participant value.
4. Rumor has it, drinking from a camelback straw could cause wrinkles.
Things I wish I knew:
1. One of the sessions was focused on service-learning. I thought it was the type of service-learning done with high-schoolers and middle schoolers, but it was actually college service-learning, which is pretty different. This session was still interesting, but the knowledge will be filed away for a couple of years. :)
2. To bring snacks. It's always about the snacks.
Major take away messages:
1. Whats your 50? Iowa's Governor has released the challenge for all Iowans to volunteer 50 hours in one year! That's about an hour a week for those math wizards out there. Mentor a youth, check out the volunteer opportunities in your county, or become a 4-H volunteer! The average Iowan already volunteers 34 hours per year, so why not step-up your service! Make the commitment to make Iowa the healthiest and most dedicated state today! Share what you are doing in your community below!
2. Handing out dollar bills increases participation in discussion.
3. Public value is important to stakeholders. As I write my Great Stories and talk about my program, I need to talk about the works importance to the community and state as a whole, rather than just the participant value.
4. Rumor has it, drinking from a camelback straw could cause wrinkles.
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Me: "Can you tell me how to put out a grease-fire?"
911: "Address."
Me: "sharing... So how do I put it out? Well, it's bigger now."
911: "someone is on the way..."
Outside:
Me: "Well, now I can't make my potatoes in the microwave."
Later:
Me: "I'm cold and I want this blanket."
Sarah: "That's too bad."
Me: "I'll start another fire."
"There's soot on our dishes in the cupboard."
Tonight I started a grease fire I didn't know how to put out. It was a very contained fire. It never left the pan. I was making caramel corn for a 4-H event on Thursday. Building 4800 was evacuated and I met some friendly people. My apologies to all of those who were outside. I can't write real sentences right now because I just want to drink milk.
The rest of the night shall be spent drinking whole milk.
Maybe I should make cookies for the people who live in my building...
This is the microwave after Sarah cleaned it.
911: "Address."
Me: "sharing... So how do I put it out? Well, it's bigger now."
911: "someone is on the way..."
Outside:
Me: "Well, now I can't make my potatoes in the microwave."
Me (text to room mate): Fire in our apartment. It's under control. Don't call me yet.
Me: "For the reference, I wasn't making a BAG of popcorn."
Me: "I'm cold and I want this blanket."
Sarah: "That's too bad."
Me: "I'll start another fire."
"There's soot on our dishes in the cupboard."
Tonight I started a grease fire I didn't know how to put out. It was a very contained fire. It never left the pan. I was making caramel corn for a 4-H event on Thursday. Building 4800 was evacuated and I met some friendly people. My apologies to all of those who were outside. I can't write real sentences right now because I just want to drink milk.
The rest of the night shall be spent drinking whole milk.
Maybe I should make cookies for the people who live in my building...
This is the microwave after Sarah cleaned it.
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Randoms of Niger
Dearest Readers,
It’s been awhile. Tom got the wireless internet working, but there’s a funny thing about wireless, it only works with power! However, we have had a lot of power outages recently, so the internet hasn’t really had the opportunity to show us its best, but it’s still a huge blessing!
Blessings are typically accompanied by prayers… Prayers for our water pump would be much appreciated. I don’t know much about the situation, but I think the Pastor said it would cost around 500,000 francs (1 USD= 460 francs) to get a new pump for the village.
Here’s a bit of humorous pieces for you... (maybe you won’t think they are as funny as I do, so I used asterisks if there is a side story)
1. Last night at dinner we were reading our devotions, and it talked about Mary Poppins*. As soon as Tom closed the devotion, Laurey whispers to Marie, “Can you believe Mary Poppins is in the Bible?”
*The girls really enjoy Mary Poppins
2. I have discovered it’s much more exciting to take a bucket bath in the dark. On the same note, I have decided to not shower bucket bath on the days we go to the swimming pool in Maradi. Actually, to get really personal, I bet I only bucket bath on the days I run jog until I see something that’s demanding to have its picture taken.
3. Every day, the guard greets me in Hausa, the guard and I exchange our greetings, which is actually like a paragraph.. and then the girls laugh because I said something wrong. I’m learning Hausa is tonal, but the tones are much more difficult than Mandarin Chinese. Hopefully next week I’ll be able to surprise the guard by asking him something.
4. Running in sand is a great way to exfoliate your feet at the same time! I always have to dump my shoes when I get back!
5. Ellie always loves to ask me “Does you mom make ____?” Almost every night before dinner, Ellie will ask me if my mom makes whatever we have for dinner.. Sometimes I can say yes. “Yes, my mom can make pizza!” But usually, that is followed by “Well, my mom makes it best!”
And some fun facts:
1. The Tureg people (in Northern Niger) can survive on nothing but camel milk for days! Actually, camel milk has full nutritional value! I can’t wait until I can try some camel milk, but if it tastes better* than whole milk, I’m not sure what to do!
*I love whole milk.
2. There’s a chance I am going to get to learn how to make yogurt! Making yogurt is on the list of things that I have always wanted to know how to do!
I hope everyone is doing well! Send me updates: kinkadea1@gmail.com
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Typical Day
Yesterday, someone asked me what a typical day consisted of here in Niger.. So, here it goes.
I spend my entire day fighting off ear wigs.
I’m joking, but have you ever seen one? We just sprayed for them yesterday, but the spray made most of us really itchy.
Here is a more accurate description of my “typical” day:
Occasionally, the wonderful Mr. Boyfriend calls me just as I am waking up. Then it is time for breakfast before school starts at 8:00. Marie and Laurey have Bible/Prayer, History, Hand-writing, Language Arts and sometimes Literature/Reading before our 10:30 break. After break, we have Science, Math, and anything that wasn’t done in the morning. We usually also do some activities depending on the day and lesson.. Fridays is piano day! It’s usually a pretty full morning for school. Each day, I am surprised at the depth of Sonlight Curriculum. How many of us learned about Ancient World History in 2nd grade? I don’t even think I could locate the 7 continents.
After school, we have lunch around one.. My afternoons currently consist of picnics, trampolines, preparing the next days lessons (though I struggle to pronounce many of the Historical names), reading (for myself and sometimes to the girls), reading the Bible, checking my email to see if I have a student teaching placement, and lastly learning/practicing piano. The last one is quite the task, but I think it’s a great thing for the girls to learn, and I can’t expect them to learn without staying ahead of them!
Dinner is around seven, and following dinner I usually watch some Gilmore Girls on my computer and reading as well as working on a few special projects... We are still lacking running water, so if I’m feeling dirty enough I might take a bucket bath.
Weekends here are really relaxed compared to my 12 hour Fareway days. (I miss you all!) On Saturdays we usually go to the pool in the early afternoon and eat lunch there. On Sundays church is around 9:00 with a Bible Group in the evening.
I have also been using the “More with Less” cookbook a lot, but I’m afraid my English Muffins will never work out in my favor.
Other typical day things may include:
…Going to Maradi
…trying to use my Hausa with the guard (or others)
…Running (this is interesting considering the amount of sand that accumulates in my shoes)
… waiting for the power to come back on
For those on the count-down, I think we are down to 90 days left in Niger.
I spend my entire day fighting off ear wigs.
I’m joking, but have you ever seen one? We just sprayed for them yesterday, but the spray made most of us really itchy.
Here is a more accurate description of my “typical” day:
Occasionally, the wonderful Mr. Boyfriend calls me just as I am waking up. Then it is time for breakfast before school starts at 8:00. Marie and Laurey have Bible/Prayer, History, Hand-writing, Language Arts and sometimes Literature/Reading before our 10:30 break. After break, we have Science, Math, and anything that wasn’t done in the morning. We usually also do some activities depending on the day and lesson.. Fridays is piano day! It’s usually a pretty full morning for school. Each day, I am surprised at the depth of Sonlight Curriculum. How many of us learned about Ancient World History in 2nd grade? I don’t even think I could locate the 7 continents.
After school, we have lunch around one.. My afternoons currently consist of picnics, trampolines, preparing the next days lessons (though I struggle to pronounce many of the Historical names), reading (for myself and sometimes to the girls), reading the Bible, checking my email to see if I have a student teaching placement, and lastly learning/practicing piano. The last one is quite the task, but I think it’s a great thing for the girls to learn, and I can’t expect them to learn without staying ahead of them!
Dinner is around seven, and following dinner I usually watch some Gilmore Girls on my computer and reading as well as working on a few special projects... We are still lacking running water, so if I’m feeling dirty enough I might take a bucket bath.
Weekends here are really relaxed compared to my 12 hour Fareway days. (I miss you all!) On Saturdays we usually go to the pool in the early afternoon and eat lunch there. On Sundays church is around 9:00 with a Bible Group in the evening.
I have also been using the “More with Less” cookbook a lot, but I’m afraid my English Muffins will never work out in my favor.
Other typical day things may include:
…Going to Maradi
…trying to use my Hausa with the guard (or others)
…Running (this is interesting considering the amount of sand that accumulates in my shoes)
… waiting for the power to come back on
For those on the count-down, I think we are down to 90 days left in Niger.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Beauty
This weeks lesson…
Find beauty in everything.
Did you know a single ant can carry an entire peanut quickly across a picnic blanket?
Did you know you can laugh for countless hours while playing various versions of Duck, Duck Goose?
Did you know you can also laugh for countless hours watching three children jump on a trampoline?
If anyone can learn from God though the beauties of Niger, they can also look into their own lives each day. I’m going to pose a challenge for each of us this week. Find beauty in something you have never made the time to notice. When you find yourself frustrated with the world take a look around and discover something beautiful. Take note of what you discover, and return to it each day.
Also, studies are wrong… never go to bed angry. The Bible says, and I trust the Bible more than a study.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Cats & Lizards
As I was typing this in a email to Curtis, I decided everyone might like a little humor in the middle of the day… (some will not find this humorous, and I think it would be better told in person.)
For those of you who don’t know this, I grew up in the country. I used to put mice in buckets and spun them around so they would be easier for the cats to catch. I know this sounds in-humane, but it was just part of living in the country. Yesterday there was this lizard stuck in the chicken around the turkeys. The lizard was stuck, and I thought he was dead because he wasn’t moving. When I realized he wasn’t dead, I tried to use a stick to get him out, but it wouldn’t work. Tom said the cats eat lizards, so he got this cat to come and get it. Easiest catch of this cats life, right? Not true. The cat tugged on the lizard for a second, and then gave up. I’m pretty sure the turkey ended up getting the lizard in the end, but I thought it was so funny that cats in Niger can adopt the same lazy quality as cats anywhere else. :)
I also need to mention that Laurey and Marie were throwing scraps to the turkey while I was poking the lizard, and if an orange peel hit me in the process, I would scream; which of course made everyone die of laughter.
For those of you who don’t know this, I grew up in the country. I used to put mice in buckets and spun them around so they would be easier for the cats to catch. I know this sounds in-humane, but it was just part of living in the country. Yesterday there was this lizard stuck in the chicken around the turkeys. The lizard was stuck, and I thought he was dead because he wasn’t moving. When I realized he wasn’t dead, I tried to use a stick to get him out, but it wouldn’t work. Tom said the cats eat lizards, so he got this cat to come and get it. Easiest catch of this cats life, right? Not true. The cat tugged on the lizard for a second, and then gave up. I’m pretty sure the turkey ended up getting the lizard in the end, but I thought it was so funny that cats in Niger can adopt the same lazy quality as cats anywhere else. :)
I also need to mention that Laurey and Marie were throwing scraps to the turkey while I was poking the lizard, and if an orange peel hit me in the process, I would scream; which of course made everyone die of laughter.
Monday, September 12, 2011
First Day of School!
Do you know how to tell the difference between an ape and a monkey? A monkey has a tail, but an ape doesn’t.
Science Lesson One: Complete! (among other things!)
The first day of school was a success! We are reading the Red Sails of Capri, and doing lots of other fun (& educational) things! Our classroom has a timeline that we created on Friday, but we haven’t gotten to any figures for it quite yet. I am grateful for my education at Central—it’s tough to teach two different grade levels at the same time! After school, the girls also told me Sylvia would invite them over of an afternoon story… Thank goodness my awesome friends back in Ames got me the complete set of “If you give a Mouse a Cookie!”
In other news, we have been lucky enough to keep our water buckets filled with water from a nearby mission site.. maybe by next week we will have own supply of running water! I also haven’t had the opportunity to talk to my family much, I sent my mom a text, and tried to call Dad last night, but the internet is too slow. (Which is also why I haven’t uploaded any pictures!)
Friday, September 9, 2011
Today the girls and I cleaned up the classroom a little, and did some educational games. Saturday we get to swim at the club, and Monday is the First Day of School! Wish me luck! I also got cooking supplies for breakfast and weekend meals.. I tried to make granola last night, but made some mistake and just made clumps of oats. I was missing some ingredients.. so I will blame that. If anyone has any suggestions of foods that would be easy to make, send them my way!
Things that need some prayer attention:
Pray for the water pump to get fixed. It appears we won’t have running water for over a week. I think we have to get some oxen and pull it up from the well! We filled up enough buckets and bottles, but the swim tomorrow will be a great chance to get the stink away. ;)
Pray for my mother. Her horse passed away in an accident last week. It takes my mom awhile to find a horse she is attached to, and Lucy was a great horse. It’s hard to offer support over the phone while I am away.
Pray for disciples. Always. After seeing pieces of a country that it 99% Muslim, it would be very hard to be a Christian living among this community. Pray the Christians have the courage to stand out and speak about Jesus to the Muslims.
Pictures appear to load a little faster via facebook, so check the link I posted last time for picture updates!
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Maradi!
In Niger, we travel much like my family back in Iowa. We pack snacks, and only stop when someone is yelling “Baba, I gotta go potty now!” We made good time, and I am settled into my apartment. We had some great food, and watched one of the movies Tom’s family sent for the kids and now it’s time to get ready for bed. Tomorrow, I hope to organize all of the teaching supplies as well as stock my fridge for breakfasts and weekend meals! The internet isn’t going to be the best, and I am limiting myself (for budget and practical reasons) but expect to still see lots of updates! Hope all is well with everyone!
I am going to try to upload pictures to facebook... (wish me luck!) and this link can allow you to view them, even if we aren't friends... (it it won't let me know)
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150767535365371.724597.508325370&l=1b82cf2ad6&type=1
I am going to try to upload pictures to facebook... (wish me luck!) and this link can allow you to view them, even if we aren't friends... (it it won't let me know)
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150767535365371.724597.508325370&l=1b82cf2ad6&type=1
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Giraffes!
Today was the day to take the truck on a test drive before making the 10+ hour drive to Maradi. We "test drove" to see the giraffes. They were beautiful, we got to see seven of them in a big open range. Pictures of a giraffe and skull/leg are below!
The two teachers (Anna will come to teach when I leave) are pictured with the kids below! Some of you that know the kids will notice how much they have grown!
The two teachers (Anna will come to teach when I leave) are pictured with the kids below! Some of you that know the kids will notice how much they have grown!
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