Where in the world to go????

My Community Health Nursing Master's Program requires that I do a practicum. The professors are pretty open to a variety of experiences so that we each are able to find opportunities that will provide up with experiences that are applicable to our future interests. I started out thinking about going to Uganda and was excited about the prospect of being able to go to this country. However, the pieces weren't really fitting together just right, so I had to start embracing the idea that I would have to go somewhere else. There are lots of places that I would love to travel to and see and explore, however I knew that I would have to be pretty particular about where I go so that I can get a good practicum experience. I started thinking about ways to go back to Guatemala. My heart is there, however, I just wasn't sure about organizing the details of an internship. This semester is quite busy and I'm not sure that I'm going to survive it, so the thought of trying to organize my own internship just seems impossible. So, another option that was presented to me was going to Mexico and working with a partner university to Indiana University. One of my professors is working on a community based program that they are trying to implement. So, I am going to start incorporating research on the program and program implementation into this semesters assignments and then follow through with a potential 4 week internship with this mexican university. I'm still a little torn by not going back to Guatemala. However, God is giving me peace that I am making the right decision. The best thing is that I'll still get to use my spanish. I feel like I hardly get to speak spanish anymore these days. I am taking a spanish class this semester but it's online so I still don't get much of the conversation part. Anyway, that's the projected plan. Still have to make sure that I will be able to get the time off work but I will start working on that soon! And, I'm going to look into some scholarships and grants through the university as well. There are still some other countries where some of my friends are living that I really need to go visit, unfortunately now is just not the time . . . hopefully one day soon!!!! But for now I have the prospect of going to Mexico, and really I haven't seen much of Mexico so this could be very interesting!!!

January 2009

So, I'm feeling very behind in blogging . . . so much is happening, it's just hard to find the time to write about it all!!! Maybe a monthly blog update seems pretty reasonable??? I enjoyed a nice Christmas break from classes, and although I was still working at the hospital I had a great schedule over the holidays thanks to being on orientation. My mom was able to spend some time in Indianapolis and was an amazing help to me as I unpacked and settled in to my new apartment. I had the last minute opportunity to get up to Chicago for a visit just after New Years. My friend was having a baby shower which I was able to go to. I also got into town on Friday and spent some time at Pacific Garden Mission where I use to work - what a wonderful blessing it was to reconnect with former friends and co-workers!!! I was also able to see a few other friends, have dinner with my old housemates, visit my spanish church (which I miss so so so much!!!), and have lunch with some friends. I couldn't believe how many people I was able to visit with - it was definitely a huge encouragement!!!
Classes have started back up and I was feeling behind the first week of classes and still not sure i'm feeling as though it will be possible to catch up. Especially if I keep procrastinating by blogging =) I decided to accept another teaching assistant position which should only be about a 4 hour a week commitment, but I have a feeling it could easily be more! Work at the hospital is going well, I'm feeling more comfortable in my new position and am in an off orientation phase before going back onto orientation in March. There have been lots of classes and trainings as I'm new to this hospital, and some of my certifications had expired.
Here is a photos on Mass Ave., which is a fun street a about 2 blocks from me, looking toward downtown:

Here is my street under a foot of snow during the recent snow storm:

until next month . . . maybe =)!!!

I'm a little less stressed than the last update, however a lot has been going on!
I've finished up the fall semester - projects completed, tests finished, and TA position ended. I'm still trying to figure out the best classes to take for the spring semester which starts back up in January. Along with that I'm trying to decide whether or not to accept another TA position along with a heavier class load and my full time job???
There is a good chance that I'll be taking a medical Spanish class which I'm super excited about!
I'm enjoying my Emergency Room job - it's fun to be working with children again!!! I haven't decided yet whether I think that I'm a good fit for the ER, but I've been learning a ton!
Thankfully some things with the identity theft problems have been worked out and money credited back to my account, although there are still some loose ends to figure out.
I'm also officially moved into my own apartment - thanks to help from my grandpa, mom, brother and sister-in-law, and a few friends on a very cold December weekend!!! Still have some unpacking, organizing, and decorating to do, but it's quite livable and even has some Christmas decorations up - and lots of room for visitors!!!
I'm also very thankful for having some time off around Christmas - it helps to be on orientation during this time of year because I'm not obligated to work anytime holiday pay is offered!!!
I'll try to get some photos posted soon!
May your Christmas be focused on our amazing Lord and Savior . . .
And may your New Years be one of seeking God's will for each new day!!!

Lessons to be learned

Things continue to be crazy - bank account is still a mess, car is back in the shop, homework is endless, and starting a new job is never easy. However, I'm really just constantly amazed at God in the midst of it all!!!
I can tell you though, I've learned some very practical things through all this. For example, the feeling of only having a certain amount of available cash and no other access to money . . .and still needing to get groceries and figure out how to go to the store to pay a bill because checks are not an option. I have a student bus pass that allows me to ride all bus lines for free, but I can tell you how thankful I am for this pass - because even though it's a small price to ride the bus, I would be stressed to have to use that amount of cash daily. It really has given me a new perspective on some peoples lives . . . certain conveniences that I take for granted!
And I've been quite ashamed when I begin to grumble about having to ride the bus and yet there are some people in wheelchairs or who are blind that regularly ride the bus and have to deal with more difficulites and inconveniences that I could ever even begin to imagine!!!

I've also been reminded to be thankful . . . because no matter what is happening there is still always more to be thankful for!

Back a couple weekends I did get to take a fun little break and Maranatha and I drove over to Stacie's baby shower. Unfortunately it was on the same day that I had my sunday class until 1pm in Indianapolis and the baby shower started at something like 2pm in Dayton, OH. We thought we would make it before the shower ended, but with my class running over by about 15 min. for the first time and a few wrong turns we missed the whole shower. Not so bad though because that just meant that Maranatha and I had a couple hours to spend just with Stacie =) It was a fun, quick evening and I'm glad that we had a chance to get over and see her (and "little nugget")!!!
How thankful I am for these dear friends!!!!!!!!

Praying for a safe delivery Stacie!!!!!

Recent craziness!

For some reason life has recently become very overwhelming and difficult to figure out. However, amongst the difficulties I've seen God do the most amazing things! It took me forever and ever to find an apartment that I liked, but after much waiting I've found a great one and will move in sometime in Dec.!!! Over a week ago I found out that my identity was stolen and they were able to gain access to my bank accounts, they stole thousands before I realized it and was able to freeze the accounts. The bank is in the midst of an investigation, so currently everything in my accounts is still frozen. After the investigation I'll know whether or not all the money will be refunded. The bigger problem however is the lack of security that I feel. So much is at risk when somebody has your identity, so I've been trying to sort through how to deal with that and put up safeguards so that more things don't happen. I've also started working at Riley Children's Hospital in the Emergency Department. I've mostly had orientation classes and one day in the hospital. Classes at the University continue to go well, although I've recently been having trouble keeping up with all of the assignments. My TA position at the University has been great and I just found out last week that I actually have health insurance because of working there. Thankfully they refunded me for the student health insurance I signed up for at the begining of the semester because of the insurance they provided me with. Add to all this the car problems I mentioned in the previous post and I've been a little (a lot) stressed. Trying not to be, but I have been! Right now it's just a matter of trying to take things one day at a time and praying that I can honor God through each and every day!

Here is a photos of downtown Indianapolis . . .

modes of transportation

A couple weeks ago my car began leaking anti-freeze . . . not good! I took it to the shop and it's a costly repair, so I decided to wait to get it fixed to see if I could find a better used car. In the mean time I've had to depend on other forms of transportation - mostly the city bus. Thankfully I have a student bus pass, so all my rides on the city bus have been free. Other ways I've found to get around - walking, bike, train, taxi, and begging for rides with my brother or sister-in-law . . .or any combination of them! I can't complain too much because i'm so thankful that I had other ways to get around without my car . . . but if you miss a bus there usually isn't another one coming for a long time and you usually can't catch up to the bus by running after it (i've tried!) =( , and some bus stops are not so great to wait at, especially in the dark! I finally decided that being carless just wasn't for me and will be getting my car fixed this week! However, I hope to continue to use city transportation if possible to cut down on so much wear and tear on my car and gas money!

more fun fall festivals

There were a few other festivals here in Indianapolis that I got to enjoy. Fiesta Indianapolis celebrated the hispanic culture. I only saw one sign of Guatemala which was somebody wearing a soccer jersey from Guatemala. We had some good food and listened to some music - it was a good time!

The other one was the Irish Fest. Chicago hosts the Celtic Fest which is a free event, here in Indy it costs $13 to go to the Irish Fest. Not so sure it's worth the cost, plus I had my weekend course during the weekend of the festival which means I only had a couple hours here and there anyway. So, I waited until Sunday afternoon close to time for the festival to close up and got to go in for free. Some stuff was closing up, but there was still some booths and music. So, I was satisfied just to get in for free =)

Not sure if there are any other fall festivals coming up, but if you know of any and want to go let me know!!! Or, any fall hikes or drives to see the changing leaves would be great as well!