The Pacific Northwest has stolen my heart!

I got back a week ago from working for a week in Toppenish, WA. It is a town on a reservation were the people of the Yakama Nation live. And what a week! I had so much fun doing something that I love and meeting great and wonderful people all week. The week included the following activities:

- Flying into Seattle and getting my very own hotel room.

- Taking the s.i.n.g.l.e. most beautiful drive of my life. It was two hours up and over the mountains and man! what incredible views. I found myself saying "is this real??!?!"

- Meeting a very wonderful staff that is going to have a great summer!

- Paying close to $2000 for five flats of food at Costco and making a mental note that we would do the same thing in a week

- Hearing the passing by shoppers at Costco exclaim "what a big party!" or "i wanna come to your party!" or "you guys sure eat a lot" when they get a look at our carts. 

- Constantly being amazed by the surrounding landscape. 

- Meeting students and adults from places I never have before: Idaho and Nevada!

- Making meals for seventy right alongside jr high and high schoolers. 

- Painting some houses

- Meeting a man with a prosthetic leg and hearing all his one legged jokes!

- Getting threatened at kids club one minute and then hugged by the very same kid the next minute!

- Hearing the INCREDIBLE sounds of Native drumming and singing.

- Participated in a worship circle. 

- Did another foot washing club - - these were always my favorite!

- Had a cookout in the park, and watched as the grill almost exploded.... but it did not, no worries mom

- laughed as Jillian (the kids club staff) showed me what was confiscated at kids club. Included were some fake weapons and one very real throwing star

- Friday faxes! I did not miss these. 

- Met probably the most adorable Hispanic neighbor kids who just LOVED to help us unload lots and lots and lots of groceries.

- laughed and laughed and laughed

There was so much in just one week that it is hard to describe and I could not possibly cover it all in one post! However, I will say that it was so wonderful to do another week with YouthWorks. And it felt good going into it knowing exactly what I was doing. I enjoyed being able to lead and encourage the staff and watch them take over as the week went on. I was blessed to help out such a wonderful group of four people and they provided me a week full of entertainment. I have to say that my favorite part, aside from connecting with the staff, was meeting the students and adult leaders. I had forgotten how much I liked working with youth. They are so full of energy and honesty and always manage to teach me. It is always cool to see how they are challenged throughout the week and how they process that. I was re-energized by the week, even though I was exhausted, but you know what I mean. It was a wonderful week. 

I leave you with this true story from my week that makes me laugh every time:

We were getting ready in the kitchen for the community cookout in the park. The students were preparing leftover creations and packing up all the food. Joe, the program staff, went over to a student and told him to fit as many bags of chips into the tub as possible so we could carry them over. Well, a few minutes later Joe and I looked over and just smiled. Because instead of just piling the bags in the bin, he had opened the bags of chips and dumped them into the bin! Doritos everywhere! I mean, hey, he was just doing was he was told right?? ha. ha.

Yakima anyone??

Yes Please.

Because that is where I will be for one week in the middle of June. Yakima, Washinton! How did this happen? That is a very good question. Well, the same day I found out that I did not get the job I interviewed for, I also received another call from YouthWorks. This is the company I worked for a couple summers ago in South Dakota on the reservation. Their summer programing is starting up again very soon and they needed more Starters, so they called me. 

Basically I will be flying to Seattle, driving to Yakima and staying for the week. While I am there, I will be helping the staff with their first week of programming, being a person of support and someone on site to go to for questions. I am V.E.R.Y. excited about this. I mean, it goes without saying that I am pumped to travel, but I am also excited to be back in the YouthWorks life. Even if it is only for a week. I am looking forward to cooking meals alongside students, sleeping on the ground, waking up really early and going to bed late, watching college students do silly skits that the students think are hilarious, meeting people in the community, painting, playing with kids, riding in big white vans, and just serving people. And, it also helps I will be paid for the week. So, I guess I have a job for seven days! This is great. 

Yakima, here I come.

college roommate

Today was the first day I was able to say "I am going to meet my old college roommate!" And yes, it was weird. I found myself stopping in mid-morning getting ready activities to think hmm, I do not know when I got so old. Now, I know that I am not "old" but I think turning 24 (which is almost 25) has got me thinking about how fast time really does go. I mean, I only have one more year in which I will be in my early 20s.... how does this happen??

Anyways, today I was able to spend some great and wonderful time with Crystal (Ice) Thompson. She was one of the very first people I met at school and we lived together for two very fun years. She is a wonderful woman who has taught me, supported me, and encouraged me throughout my time in Minnesota. It was great to see her and talk to her and reminisce and catch up. And to be honest, I was also excited to see a familiar face - one that I have known for years at least. I told her that I felt as if she represented all of Minnesota and man was it good to hear that accent again! Crystal, I had a wonderful time! It was so refreshing and wonderful to see you! 

In other news: My interview went really well and I was very optimistic when it was over; however, I did not get the job. Yes, disappointing. But through the experience I am that much closer to finding what is right for me. So, I am still optimistic.

And the garden? It is doing so, so, so well. I will post some pictures soon. And the first "fruit" of our labor is growing in the form of Tomatoes. Yes, I dislike them, but hey, I feel very attached to those little green guys and maybe I will try one..... maybe. 

job status

I have an interview! This is very exciting. On Friday, May 15, I will have the chance to interview with a wonderful organization called Starfire U. It provides relevant educational opportunities to young adults with disabilities (and so much more, but if you want to know more just click HERE! I am just so encouraged by finally getting an interview and am excited to see how it goes. So, after Friday I will let you know how it goes! Yay!  

a wonderful surprise...

About two weeks ago I got this package. Well, it was actually funny because Sara and I usually see the UPS guy go by our house every day and usually I like to say "man! I hope we get a package today" and we NEVER do. Then one day, the truck stops in front of the house and I yell "Sara, we are getting a package!" and then I look closer and yell, "Sara, we are getting TWO packages!". Anyone who knows me well enough knows that I love getting any type of real mail and packages are just that much better. 

So, one box was for Sara and one was for me.

And when I opened the box, this basket was staring at me from inside! My dear friends and roommates (I refuse to call them "ex-roommates") Jenny and Lindsay sent me this basket full of things I love. And I have never gotten a basket of goodies before, but let me tell you, it is exciting. It contained my two favorite things: chocolate and peanut butter. There were chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter cookies, AND chocolate peanut butter cup cookies! Do they know me or what??

Thank you, you two. You have always been so good to me, and it was such a wonderful blessing. I love you both and miss you even more. I am glad Katesister is getting married so I get to see you guys in a few months!

Projects all around!

Spring is officially here! Well, it has been for a while now, but I want to formally announce it because summer will probably come faster than it is wanted. I have so enjoyed being here for spring. In Minnesota, I feel as if it goes from snow to spring for two days and then summer. Not the case here. All of the flowers and bright colors have been such a blessing. Just the other day, all the dogwoods bloomed (yes, I am learning the proper names for trees, not just saying "the pink ones"). They are such a bright, vibrant pink it really is incredible to me. So, I guess I just want you all to know, I LOVE SPRING. It makes me very excited. 

As for me. We have been busy with projects here. Sara and I tackled the basement while Kyle and Linda (his mother) "plowed the land" as I like to call it. I think I mentioned before that Sara and Kyle and the family decided to plant a garden. Also, I decided to try my hand at planting flowers as a surprise to Sara and Kyle when they got back from their vacation. And I have pictures!! So.... here they are. Enjoy.

(A before shot of one of the areas Sara and I scraped, scrubbed clean and then painted...)

(Ahhh.... so much better! We even got to throw those little flecks on the floor!)

(A fusion of two projects in one day. Notice the pre-cleaned wall to the left and the people outside are "plowing the land"! And yes, I know it is not "plowing", but I have fun saying that...)

(The garden! Soon we will have real things growing in here!)

(Our seedlings when they were first planted. They are just little seeds and I think that part of me did not actually believe they were going to grow. That is the tomato plant in the back, we bought it already started and it has doubled in size and now lives outside)

(And then they grew!!! Every day when we would water them we would inspect the dirt to see if we could see anything green.... and then one day, there was a green sprout and then they just kept coming. It was one of the most exciting things, growing something!)

(Here is another shot of a few. They are bigger now with "hearty" looking leaves!)

(Planting number one...)

(Number two...)

(And number three!)

So! Those are all of our projects. We will be planting and transporting seedlings to the real "farm" (haha) this weekend. So hopefully I will put those pictures up too. We will be planting green peppers, banana peppers, tomatoes, green beans, and corn. I am most excited for the corn! I think my favorite thing to do has been the flowers because it was so relaxing. And it was fun to be able to create any arrangement that I wanted and see how they turn out. I was taught well by mom and so hopefully I can carry that on! Isn't it wonderful to get things done?? Yes, yes it is. 

one year

Really? Has it already been a year? That is what I was finding myself asking a lot yesterday. I cannot believe that I have lived one year with my father in my life. The day actually went better than I was expecting it to, which is a huge answer to prayer. Sara, Mom and I just hung out, got some lunch, ran some errands and then mom made all of us a very delicious dinner. It was a normal day, which is just the way I wanted it to happen. I was not so much dreading the day, just welcoming it to come and go as fast as it wants to. To be honest, I am glad we are past a year. There are officially no more "first" anythings.

When I look back on the last year, I can see where the Lord has been guiding us as a family and me personally. A lot has happened in this past year and I can dare to say He has even more in store for me and my family. One huge, huge thing that God definitely had his hand in happened this past Monday. I started this new class/study called Healing and Deliverance (more to come on that later). Well in the class, you are split into breakout groups. Our group met on Monday and since it was the first week we shared our stories. Sidenote: It is incredible to hear someone tell their story, how they got to this day because it makes you realize there is so much more to people that you could ever guess. I am really excited to dig deep with these girls, they all seem so wonderful.

Anyways, to make a long story shorter, there is a girl in my group that shares in my experience because her father recently made the same choice that mine did. We are the same age, with such a similar experience and when we realized we just looked at each other and I am sure we both felt a little relief. The Lord is good in reminding us that we are not alone and I am just so excited to get to know this girl. There is something so comforting to know that she understands better than most people, not to say that my friends have not been wonderful, because they are, but this is just different. So, I guess I wanted to share this because I am in awe of what the Lord is doing in my life. I am surrendering and receiving what He has planned for me!

easter and poop

We had a wonderful Easter Sunday here in Kentucky! Mom, Sara, Kyle and I went to Kyle's parents house and spent the day with his family. We enjoyed good company, nice weather and good food! I have not had an Easter with young kids since I was little and it made the day that much better. Erin, Kyle's sister, has two boys (Jack and Sam) and they are great. Mom put together these wonderful baskets for them and with wide eyes they played with all their new toys and shoved in as much chocolate into their mouths as they could before Erin took it away.

They also decorated an egg for everyone which were hidden later for the egg hunt. The funny thing about this is that there were only 11 eggs, but they were all found about seven times. The men in the family had fun taking the already found eggs out of their baskets when they were not looking and re-hid them. It was entertaining to hear them yell "there is another one!" about an egg they had JUST found. Something tells me this will not last for too many more years, so they better have fund while they can. Overall, it was a very, very good Easter. I am blessed to have spent it with such wonderful family.

On another note, we have been very busy around the house. We have cleaned and painted most of the basement. And we have tilled "the land" as I like to say. Sara and Kyle have decided they want to start a vegetable garden out back, so Kyle worked the earth and got the area ready. I have vowed to get better at taking pictures so I can put them on here and my hope is that sometime in the next few days I can put up pictures of all our projects.

I leave you with this funny story....

One day when I was watching two little boys, this is a conversation I had with a 3 year old:

boy: I am going to hide from you...

me: why would you want to hide from me?

boy: (pause) .... because there is poop in my pants (runs away)

me: (blank stare)

just a little taste of some of my experiences here in Kentucky!

i think she will get to wear a hood...

I have to send a HUGE shout of congratulations to one of my very, very good friends: Jenny Beth Fraley. She has made it into graduate school! This is very exciting and I believe she is going into something that she is made to do. I am so proud of her and her interviewing skills. And, obviously, all of the other skills that she posses to make it in. Her grades, her ability to not over promise and under deliver, her patience, her true genuine love for the people around here, and of course her ability to know all things. Way to go Jenny!! 

p.s. to be honest, the thing that I got most excited for when Jenny told me her good news was the possibility that she gets to wear a hood when she graduates. I think this is right?? I just always thought those looked so cool on the robes, and she will always have it I think, so she could totally wear it like the professors do and be cool. And besides, hoods look good on her!

the beauty of flowering trees

So, I just wanted to share with everyone my love with what it looks like in this city right now. In the past week, the flowering trees have bloomed. And they are not just here and there; they are everywhere! It is so great to drive around and see all of these trees lining the streets with pink and white flowers. Whoever decided to plant all of them is a genius and I appreciate their planning very much. I wish that you guys could come and see them in their beauty. 

(This is a picture of a tulip tree, they are all over the place and we have one in our front yard)

re·ju·ve·nate (verb)

It may be all the beautiful weather, or all the vitamin d I have soaked up from the sun. It may be from all the fresh air. It may be from the fact that I get to spend the day with two wonderful boys. It may even be that March Madness starts tomorrow, but I am feeling so rejuvenated that past few days! I think it is probably from all the good "hang out times" I have had in the past week. Small group last week was wonderful, a real girls night. We made dinner, did our Bible study and then watched a favorite of mine Ten Things I Hate About You. Then on Friday my sister and I went to her friend's house and had Chinese food and watched a documentary on Israel. (we also had a few very good laughs) Sunday was really the start of all the nice weather, so we enjoyed dinner outside and then huddled around a wonderful outside fireplace with blankets. I could have stayed there all night. And then yesterday I spent a few hours with a new friend and had great conversation at a cute, little coffee shop.

Needless to say, I have enjoyed my time with new faces the past few days. I am learning that quality time and conversations are important to me and are a source of refreshment for me, so the last few days have been very refreshing. But now, I am off to play outside...

Give me an "L"!

This is my friend Lindsay. And today Lindsay is 24 years old...

 

Happy Birthday Lindsay!!!!

For those of you who do not know, I lived with Lindsay over the past (lets just say) year. Her and I went to school together and were friends throughout school. Mandatory fun RA stuff will do that to do. However, it was not until we spent some time apart and then came back as roommates did our friendship grow into what it is today. This lady is wonderful and amazing and just so great! She deserves to have a wonderful birthday. She has been a very supportive and solid friend to be throughout the past year. I really cannot imagine what it would have been like it she was not my roommate. (Jenny, you and I would have been fine, but Lindsay was just icing on the cake..... the birthday cake!) It kinda makes me sad that we only had a short time together, relatively speaking, but I know she is a friend for eternity and I look forward to how the Lord is going to continue our friendship.

Here are some things Lindsay and I have in common:

- We have both owned the beloved blue Saturn at one point in our lives

- Our license plates are ONE number apart 

- We are both Sanguines and love to talk about it. 

- Pretzel time is one of the best parts of the day

- We love to make crafts and both have either a craft box or craft corner

- We love watching TV shows where good things happen to good people...

- A steadfast love for "Be a Man" from Mulan!

I love you very much Lindsay and dance well tonight!!!

a little bit of an update...

So, some of you may be wondering "what has amanda been doing since she moved? is she even working yet??" well, no. I am not working yet, but I have been doing a lot since moving here. I have been meeting people, getting my hair cut, going to the gym daily.... important things like that. 

As far as the job thing goes, I am working on that. I have been so blessed to be living with my sister and her husband and because of their generosity, I do not feel pressured to go out and find any old job, not yet at least. I am trying to be smart about this, pursue different paths and opportunities that come up. As of right now, I am just trying to apply to a certain amount of jobs a week. I am looking into nursing, but also exploring maybe a more creative-type job. In the mean time, this week I will start looking after two boys on Wednesdays. A good friend of my sister needs some time during the week, and I happen to be available and I happen to love kids. So, on Wednesdays you will find me hanging out with a one year old and a three year old. I am actually very excited about this because they seem like wonderful kids and I think we will have fun.

So, that is about it. I know it is not much, but I am feeling comfortable and at peace with how things are going. The Lord is continuing to teach me to reset the way I think things should go or will go. And, I am getting more and more excited to see how things are going to pan out and to see the little things that are settling in place...

VHS tape??

A funny story for you: I was on my way to small group a few days ago and saw some kids playing on the side walk. (Well, I heard them before I saw them really.) They were probably no more than ten years old and were screaming every few seconds. So, naturally, I thought something was wrong, until I looked closer and I saw this black, stringy, shiny stuff blowing in the road. It was VHS tape that the kids must have found and taken out and stretched it for a good two blocks, hooking it on light posts and garbage cans. BUT the wind kept blowing it into the road, where cars would run over it and each time this happened they would scream as loud as they could. I do not know if they thought it was funny, or really, genuinely angry at us drivers for running over their VHS tape. But at least they weren't playing in the street. 

spring...

I want it to come. Now, I do love winter and the snow and - if I am being honest - I even like the cold most of the time. But, I am ready for spring to come. I am ready to see green. 

And blue. 

And yellow. 

And red. 

And orange. 

And pink. 

And purple.

And any and all colors that are not brown, white or gray. I know that it is only March, but hey! it is already March, which means we are so close. I am just getting anxious and would like it to hurry up. I want to be able to open the windows and smell fresh air. 

However, while I am just waiting for spring to come, I was able to spend the last few days with my mom. It was so nice to realize "oh! i only live six hours away". So, since I do not have a job and I had some time before my calendar fills up with "plans", I went to see mom. It was such a good few days. The weather was beautiful when I was driving so I was able to listen to music, think and pray a lot. Mom and I just hung out and ran some errands, spent some time with the family, and watched some sweet reality t.v. It was good to spend time with her! They have had such a long winter up there and the snow is finally starting to go away. I think I heard someone say that they have had 180 inches this year. Isn't that incredible? Jenny did the math for me - because I was too lazy to do it myself - and it comes out to be 15 FEET! Man, think of all that snow. I know they want spring just as much as I do. 

But I know it will come soon and so I will be patient... 

King Cake and Sheep

There are two things that I learned about this week....

One day, I saw this bakery with the words "KING CAKE" in the windows. So, I assumed that this was just the name of the bakery, but I was wrong. The above picture is something that is called a "king cake". I am actually interested to see how many of you know about this dessert. Apparently, people eat this cake around Mardi Gras time and it is quite the tradition. This is what wikipedia has to say about the issue: "the cakes have a small trinket (often a small plastic baby, sometimes said to represent baby Jesus) inside, and the person who gets the piece of cake with the trinket (aka small plastic baby) has various privileges and obligations". I have no idea what those privileges/obligations may be, but I am just kinda creeped out by the fact that there is a small, plastic baby baked in. 

Sheep. This is the second thing I am learning. I am learning how to be a "sheep". The first week I moved here, I went to a meeting about shepherding/discipleship/mentoring. The speaking talked about the importance of being mentored by and mentoring your sisters (or brothers) in Christ. This is something that was talked about in a lot of my ministry classes as something to do when in ministry. But I had never really experienced being mentored. So, I signed up to be mentored by someone. And today, I met my "shepherd". I have found that I am excited to learn from her walk with the Lord and have someone teach me in this person way. We talked about our backgrounds and families and what brought us to Cincinnati. It was a very good first meeting and I really feel as if the Lord is going to teach me so much through her. I am ready to learn, I am ready to grow and I think it will be great. I am officially - and forever more - a sheep. 

RESET

This weekend I had my first real "plans"! In this case, "plans" are defined as doing something with people that i have never met or heard of before, plans that I made on my own with someone else. And, the first case was this weekend. So, let me explain:

The church that I am going to does an all-church journey once a year. Everything else in the church stops and all areas - kids club, students and adults - focus on this one study for six weeks. At the same time, everyone is encouraged to join a small group for the six week journey. So, I did and on Saturday I had dinner with the girl who is hosting our group -- meaning that we are just going to meet at her house. There are about eight of us girls in this group and I am really looking forward to meeting more of them. The journey is called Reset (hence the title) and is designed to "reset" what you think you know about Jesus. It should be an awesome six weeks. 

BUT dinner on Saturday was wonderful, it was just good for my soul to meet someone new and start (slowly) forming relationships with people. I know that this may seem insignificant to some people, or maybe you are not as excited as I am. However, it is a very good step for me and makes me very excited about the future! 

p.s. my small group is meeting on Thursday..... maybe this will turn into my new TT?? 

correction.... remember i am new at this

so, I HAVE to apologize to my dear friend Lindsay Marie. In my last post I mentioned that there were people that encouraged me to start this blog and really it was Lindsay and Jenny both. So, Lindsay, thank you for telling me to do this. I think it is fun. 

a day of new things

Today is a day filled with new things. I got a wonderful haircut and since I am feeling so good I have finally decided to start this blog (with the help of jenny and my sister) So, you all know I moved and I think this will be a good way to keep you updated on my life down here. Also, I think it will probably be something that is fun for me while looking for a job. This blog will probably change a lot over the next few days as I figure all this out....but here we go!