Hey everyone!
This week was a FAST one, surely because we didn't have work on Monday, but I think even if we would have worked it would have flown by. It was just that kind of week. So there's not much more to say as far as what we do. It's pretty much been the same jobs...kind of random tasks in the morning and then playing with kids in the afternoon. I still absolutely adore the kids. I don't think I'll ever get over that. My heart goes out to so many of them though. This town is filled with poverty which brings alcohol and drug use. And unfortunately it also brings child abuse and neglect. We've had multiple incidents where the children tell us about something that's happened to them, and sometimes it's really hard to take. Of course we talk to staff, and follow everything we're supposed to do. Nevertheless, it's a really hard thought to shake sometimes. I'm not really sure where I'm going with this, and it just makes me sad to think about. So I'll move on.
It's CRAZY that this round is almost over though. I just can't believe it's almost been two months already. It seems like we just got here and were actually surprised to have TV, WiFi, laundry on site, and all that jazz. It's going to be tough to leave. It really messes with your head to be so familiar with a place and people and then just like that you up and leave. One person in particular is the Unit Director at the branch club that I get to work at on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons..her name is Sara and I have so much respect for her. I think it's hard for some of the staff here to really give effort into getting to know us and make us feel welcome. They're used to so many people coming in and out, it's probably not worth their time to get too invested in us. But Sara treats us different, and I'm so thankful for that. I've gotten so close to her that I actually asked her to write a letter of recommendation for me for graduate school. And while she's pretty much the busiest person I know, she of course got it done in like, 2 weeks. It's going to be so tough leaving her because let's admit it, I'll probably never see her again! I guess all you can do is be thankful for the people you meet and the time you get to spend with them, so I'm sure trying!
On a different note, I read my teamate and friend Alyssa's blog the other day and she did a neat little "Lists of 5" thingys that described our project. I'll copy her and do a few :)
Top 5 names that kids refer to me as:
1. Staff
2. Americorps
3. Teacher
4. girl
5. Abby (if I'm lucky)
My top 5 favorite things to do with the kids (no particular order):
1. Xbox kinect (they usually beat me)
2. Arts & Crafts (glitterrrrr!!!)
3. help them with their homework
4. hula hoop
5. play with them in the park
5 things I typically have on me during work
1. phone
2. chapstick (it's SO dry here)
3. schedule for the day
4. usually some kid's toy, glasses, artwork, etc.
5. there's also usually a kid clinging to my arm or leg
I think that's enough for now..maybe i'll think of some more funny lists and share them. Hope everyone is doing well at home, I've been really starting to miss it lately. I cannot wait to (hopefully) come home over Easter! :)
xoxo,
abby
Friday, February 24, 2012
Monday, February 20, 2012
2 more weeks
Hello all!
Once again, I've been soooo bad about posting. But things have still been going great. We have 2 weeks left, and it's going to be really hard to leave the kids here! So many of them are growing up under such bad circumstances and it's just so sad. But all we can do is help while we're here, so we're trying. I've gotten a lot better at handling big groups of kids...one day I was the lead staff for all of the second graders! Talk about crazy! I've also gotten good at things like jump rope, hula hoop, foosball, all that good stuff. I love that more and more kids are remembering my name, and I actually look forward to seeing them each day!!
We've finished up the senior center project in the mornings that we were doing. It was a LOT of fun to get to talk to so many seniors! In total, we surveyed 140..which our supervisor lady told us was pretty good. We also had the tedious job of tallying them up and compiling all of the data. It sucked, but oh well. They were soo thankful for our help because they really had no idea how they were going to get that project done. After that was finished, I spent one morning working at the food bank with the rest of the team. The work there is monotonous, but not too terrible. However, they no longer need our help...so for the last 2 weeks here we will just be doing random projects around The Boys and Girls Club. In some ways this is fun...but in other ways it stinks becuase it really feels like we just end up doing their dirty work, but oh well.
Coming up next weekend is our Day of Service! During this round and our 4th round we are in charge of hosting a day of service in order to engage the community that we're with. We've partnered with the New Mexico Chapter of Red Cross, and we are hosting a volunteer fair! About 15 non profits have confirmed to come and have a booth at it. The idea is that community members come and browse the fair and learn about ways to get involved and volunteer in their community. We are also having a blood drive which will hopefully bring in more people. We've also gone out to local businesses and got prizes to give away for raffel drawings. I think it's going to be really neat, but Farmington is a tough community to get involved in things, so I just hope people show up!
I was SO lucky to have my parents come and visit me this weekend!! They took Caroline and I out to eat on Friday night at Three Rivers Brewery which was neat...then they came and picked us up on Saturday morning and we went to the Grand Canyon!! It was so amazing..it didn't even seem real! We watched the sunset from one of the best viewing points....and the next morning we woke up for the sunrise. Unfortunately, it was cloudy and there wasn't much of a sunrise. Instead, we got to watch a snowstorm move in over the canyon..which I think ended up being just as cool! From there, we packed up and drove to Durango, Colorado. On the way, we stopped at Four Corners! We got to stand in Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado all at the same time! It was so neat! They have it marked where you can put a foot and a hand in each state. They also had little stands there of the Ute and Navajo tribes selling jewelry and trinkets. After four corners we made the rest of the trip to Durango..we had dinner there and chilled in the hot tub for the night. In the morning we got up and did some shopping in Durango..and in the afternoon we went to Trimble Hot Springs Spa! The one pool was 84 degrees, one was 104 and one was 110! We spent most of the time in the 104 one...it was like a giant hot tub. We'd never been to hot springs before so we were looooving it!! I am so thankful my parents came to visit me! It was a nice taste of home :)
On Friday we found out our 3rd round assignments!! It's shuffle round, so it's a new team and team leader! But, I'll be local in Denver working at an assisted living center..which was my number 1 pick! How awesome is that? I also have Caroline, Dave and Alyssa all on my team too! AND a team leader that I'm really excited about! I just know that next round is going to be great. Even though it's local, the assisted living center houses us in an old administrative building. I heard that almost all of us will get our own rooms! We'll still be sleeping on cots but...oh well. I survived this round so far, I can survive it again :) I am just SO excited for another good project. I feel like I keep getting so lucky!
So I'm hoping these next two weeks go fast..even though I know leaving will be tough. I'm going to miss the kids so damn much. But, I'm also excited to see my friends on other teams when we all get reunited again in Denver!! That's all I have for now. :)
Love
Abby
Once again, I've been soooo bad about posting. But things have still been going great. We have 2 weeks left, and it's going to be really hard to leave the kids here! So many of them are growing up under such bad circumstances and it's just so sad. But all we can do is help while we're here, so we're trying. I've gotten a lot better at handling big groups of kids...one day I was the lead staff for all of the second graders! Talk about crazy! I've also gotten good at things like jump rope, hula hoop, foosball, all that good stuff. I love that more and more kids are remembering my name, and I actually look forward to seeing them each day!!
We've finished up the senior center project in the mornings that we were doing. It was a LOT of fun to get to talk to so many seniors! In total, we surveyed 140..which our supervisor lady told us was pretty good. We also had the tedious job of tallying them up and compiling all of the data. It sucked, but oh well. They were soo thankful for our help because they really had no idea how they were going to get that project done. After that was finished, I spent one morning working at the food bank with the rest of the team. The work there is monotonous, but not too terrible. However, they no longer need our help...so for the last 2 weeks here we will just be doing random projects around The Boys and Girls Club. In some ways this is fun...but in other ways it stinks becuase it really feels like we just end up doing their dirty work, but oh well.
Coming up next weekend is our Day of Service! During this round and our 4th round we are in charge of hosting a day of service in order to engage the community that we're with. We've partnered with the New Mexico Chapter of Red Cross, and we are hosting a volunteer fair! About 15 non profits have confirmed to come and have a booth at it. The idea is that community members come and browse the fair and learn about ways to get involved and volunteer in their community. We are also having a blood drive which will hopefully bring in more people. We've also gone out to local businesses and got prizes to give away for raffel drawings. I think it's going to be really neat, but Farmington is a tough community to get involved in things, so I just hope people show up!
I was SO lucky to have my parents come and visit me this weekend!! They took Caroline and I out to eat on Friday night at Three Rivers Brewery which was neat...then they came and picked us up on Saturday morning and we went to the Grand Canyon!! It was so amazing..it didn't even seem real! We watched the sunset from one of the best viewing points....and the next morning we woke up for the sunrise. Unfortunately, it was cloudy and there wasn't much of a sunrise. Instead, we got to watch a snowstorm move in over the canyon..which I think ended up being just as cool! From there, we packed up and drove to Durango, Colorado. On the way, we stopped at Four Corners! We got to stand in Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado all at the same time! It was so neat! They have it marked where you can put a foot and a hand in each state. They also had little stands there of the Ute and Navajo tribes selling jewelry and trinkets. After four corners we made the rest of the trip to Durango..we had dinner there and chilled in the hot tub for the night. In the morning we got up and did some shopping in Durango..and in the afternoon we went to Trimble Hot Springs Spa! The one pool was 84 degrees, one was 104 and one was 110! We spent most of the time in the 104 one...it was like a giant hot tub. We'd never been to hot springs before so we were looooving it!! I am so thankful my parents came to visit me! It was a nice taste of home :)
On Friday we found out our 3rd round assignments!! It's shuffle round, so it's a new team and team leader! But, I'll be local in Denver working at an assisted living center..which was my number 1 pick! How awesome is that? I also have Caroline, Dave and Alyssa all on my team too! AND a team leader that I'm really excited about! I just know that next round is going to be great. Even though it's local, the assisted living center houses us in an old administrative building. I heard that almost all of us will get our own rooms! We'll still be sleeping on cots but...oh well. I survived this round so far, I can survive it again :) I am just SO excited for another good project. I feel like I keep getting so lucky!
So I'm hoping these next two weeks go fast..even though I know leaving will be tough. I'm going to miss the kids so damn much. But, I'm also excited to see my friends on other teams when we all get reunited again in Denver!! That's all I have for now. :)
Love
Abby
Sunday, February 5, 2012
The halfway point!!
Hello all!!
I'm so sorry I've been slacking so bad on blogging lately! We've been having such longs days and by the time I'm off I just want to relax and not think about work! Anyways..things are still going really really well. I'm STILL enjoying my time with the kids...every day brings a new challenge, but definitely in a good way. Even some of the troublemakers are coming around to me :)
So we've finally begun our senior center project in the mornings, and I love that too! The old people are sooooo sweet and I love being able to chat with them. We're working with Northwest New Mexico Seniors, Inc. and we're doing a needs assessment of the senior population here in San Juan county so we've been going to different senior centers and things to survey them. On Thursday I surveyed a woman who was 103 years old!! She was sooo sweet, and I only would have guessed her somewhere in her 80's, she was doing great! We've been invited to their senior dances and everything..it's so great! I really like getting to work with older people in the mornings and kids in the afternoons..keeps me on my toes! haha
Aside from work I've been busy with other things! I played in a wallyball tournament this past weekend with jeremiah, katy, and some people we work with..it was soooo much fun. I also learned to belay rock climbers at the college here in farmington. Sometimes the hilltop branch will take kids there for a field trip, and I got to belay some kids on Friday! It was sooo awesome. And I think I'm getting a little better at climbing as well :) We've been keeping our weekends full of ISP...we've been working at soup kitchens and humane society thrift stores and more at the aztec ruins. i'm getting closer to 80 hours!!!
i think that's all i have to chat about for now. i'll try to do better about posting more often on here that way i can tell specific stories and things instead of just an overview. Oh, and here are some pictures that i've been taking so far from this round:
rockclimbing!
aztec ruins..so neat!
a note from latoya :) so cute.
my wall of love :)
hope all is well for everyone at home :) xoxo
abby
I'm so sorry I've been slacking so bad on blogging lately! We've been having such longs days and by the time I'm off I just want to relax and not think about work! Anyways..things are still going really really well. I'm STILL enjoying my time with the kids...every day brings a new challenge, but definitely in a good way. Even some of the troublemakers are coming around to me :)
So we've finally begun our senior center project in the mornings, and I love that too! The old people are sooooo sweet and I love being able to chat with them. We're working with Northwest New Mexico Seniors, Inc. and we're doing a needs assessment of the senior population here in San Juan county so we've been going to different senior centers and things to survey them. On Thursday I surveyed a woman who was 103 years old!! She was sooo sweet, and I only would have guessed her somewhere in her 80's, she was doing great! We've been invited to their senior dances and everything..it's so great! I really like getting to work with older people in the mornings and kids in the afternoons..keeps me on my toes! haha
Aside from work I've been busy with other things! I played in a wallyball tournament this past weekend with jeremiah, katy, and some people we work with..it was soooo much fun. I also learned to belay rock climbers at the college here in farmington. Sometimes the hilltop branch will take kids there for a field trip, and I got to belay some kids on Friday! It was sooo awesome. And I think I'm getting a little better at climbing as well :) We've been keeping our weekends full of ISP...we've been working at soup kitchens and humane society thrift stores and more at the aztec ruins. i'm getting closer to 80 hours!!!
i think that's all i have to chat about for now. i'll try to do better about posting more often on here that way i can tell specific stories and things instead of just an overview. Oh, and here are some pictures that i've been taking so far from this round:
out for rob and anna's bday!
hope all is well for everyone at home :) xoxo
abby
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