Back to Busy Life

So this completes my 4th week with ChildServe, and I'm feeling very much employed! I will even receive my second paycheck tomorrow and boy did we miss paydays! Thus far I have been enjoying the job and am attempting learn all there is to know about waiver services for kiddos and their families. Honestly, I was a little worried about working with kiddos that often have some severe disabilities. How do I interact with a child that has little to no communication skills? I always felt awkward talking to them and asking questions, knowing that they can't respond. Through some training and hearing people talk, I've become more comfortable with it. I just imagine myself in their shoes. A functioning brain that is trapped in a sense, inside a paralyzed body. Can you imagine not being able to speak but being able to hear and understand and think inside your head exactly what you want to say, just not being able to???? My job is to help these kiddos find resources to help their families and them have a GREAT LIFE! This is ChildServe's mission statement. Now most companies have mission statements but none are as real and influential in a person's life. I am so thankful for the amazing opportunity to learn and grow while working with these amazing kids. I feel that I learn more from them than they ever could from me and I'm looking forward to being engaged with them for years to come.

I am still going to school to be an elementary school counselor but may slow down classes a little bit to be able to focus on both school and work without one of them suffering. Classes are going well and I have two semesters and a 4.0 GPA under my belt. I'm pretty proud of this, as I have NEVER had a 4.0 in my life and I hope that I can continue to do well, learn and become an amazing counselor for kiddos.

This month, we are planning on traveling to visit Ben's grandpa. The whole family will get together and we'll have to take a picture or two to share. We are going boating this weekend with some friends and hope to enjoy the Labor Day Weekend.

Hope you all have a nice and relaxing weekend as well!

Running...

So my long run on Saturday went extremely well.  I was so excited after the first 3 1/2 miles at a 14 1/2 minute pace I went on to run two more!  I ended up running 5 1/2 miles in an hour and twenty minutes, just shy of my 90 minute goal.  I didn't care, I was sooooo ecstatic to have run FIVE AND A HALF MILES!!!  Three weeks ago, this would have been a dream but now I am actually almost half way to my total mileage of 13.1 for the half marathon.  I was sitting at my parents house today and realized that I actually have to run this thing in two months!  Yikes!  But if things continue the way they have, I have no worries that I will be able to finish the race, which is my only goal.  I don't care about time or if I run the whole thing.  I just want to finish the race.  

In other news, after coming home from a weekend at my parent's house, Ziggy, the cat, was very......hmmmmm.....excited?  This is the only way I can think of to describe his erratic running around the house.  After taking the suitcase upstairs and unpacking it, Ziggy practically flew into the bedroom and onto the bed...but forgot to put on the brakes.  He proceeded to fly/bounce off the bed and straight into the wall, giving himself a fat and bloody lip in the process.  Needless to say, he calmed down a bit after that.  Not sure what got into him but I'm taking it as he really missed us!  

Also, I have my application in for graduate school at Buena Vista, UNI and Drake and am hopeful for someone to think I am worthy of their program.  I am really banking on getting into Drake, as it is close and would make taking classes extremely easy and less stressful, not to mention I would again be a Bulldog.  Ok, I don't really care about the part but it is a really great school and is comparable on cost per credit hour.  Wish me luck on admittance into any one of these programs for Spring!  

Summer...so far

So far, this summer is well under way and it is hard to believe that we are into the month of July already.  We have gone camping, experienced flooding, spent time at Adventureland, grilled out frequently and celebrated the 4th of July festivities.  We also got our new Toyota Prius on June 30th and are enjoying 50+ miles per gallon.  I have put almost 1,000 miles on it already and have been averaging 52 mpg, even though I drive interstate most of the time.  Very impressive in my opinion considering the EPA estimate of 45 and 50, highway and city respectively.  I told Ben that I was in love with this new car but he has yet to feel the same, although he does enjoy getting a chance or two to drive it!

For the 4th, we enjoyed the carnival in Urbandale as well as the fireworks, which was nearly 25 minutes long.  We also primed and painted the upstairs bathroom in a grey color to match the red curtain and dark grey towels.  We will be putting the room back together and hope that it looks a little less blue than it currently does.

We still do not have plans to extend our family for at least a year.  Ben is working on getting a few more programming classes in and I am applying for graduate school at Buena Vista, UNI and Drake for guidance counseling in elementary schools.  Hopefully I will get into one of the programs for Spring 09 and be on my way towards the career I have finally decided on!  

Coda has been improving but still continues to eat his special diet.  He has been using the litter box and doesn't seem to have any strain.  I found that a product called Stink Free Instantly has worked miracles on the carpet that I thought was ruined.  Recently, he snuck past the gate we had put up to keep him away until it got super cleaned and he completely ignored the spot, which I can only assume means that the smell has been removed.  Next, we will attempt a final urine sample to get to the vet to be sure that the crystals are gone before changing his diet back to normal.  

Things are finally getting settled here in Grimes.