Something That Changed Me

Something that changed me as a human services worker was the service learning trip to Jamaica I took last year with a few other people from the human services club. This changed me because it opened me up to a different world than I had ever known. I have never been in the conditions that those people live in and it really made me see things in a new light. That experience is what made me want to have more like it. So that's why I am going to Russia in a month and I have fully fundraised all that I need and more! I am very excited but I am also very nervous and wish I could get in contact with more people that are going to be there the same dates as I am. But I will survive and will probably be creating a blog while I am there to share my experience with people so look out for that in June!

WEEK 9!

Well it's week nine of the semester now and I feel like it's never going to end! It probably doesn't help that I have a lack of motivation to do anything except read my recreational books and play around on my computer. But I have still been trucking through my internship. I'm a little less than half-way with my hours but I'm trying to think of some good ideas that will help me catch up a little bit more. I have really enjoyed my second semester at LSS but some of the things I'm doing now are so repetitive that it's hard to stay completely focused. I've turned to reading books to gain more knowledge on subjects and delve deeper into my true passion of international adoption since the children in special needs adoption aren't that much different it correlates well. It also doesn't help I'm so distracted with raising money for my Russia trip which takes place in two months! I still have $1300 to raise but I truly believe I can do it. The human services club has offered to help sell bracelets for donations towards the trip which will help tremendously! I also have some very generous family members that have donated through the website which the organization goes through and that has helped enormously as well! Between the stress of school, my hours at my internship, and the Russia volunteer trip I think my head may just explode! There are a few good things though that are happening. As far as my internship I will be trying to write a homestudy soon which is what I wanted out of this internship the whole time. I also received a message from a lady who will be in Russia the same dates as me so I know I will not be alone there which relieves much of my anxiety!
So long story short...Is this semester over yet?

A New Semster

Well I am now in my 2cnd field experience at the tech and I am really liking it...again! I am placed at the same agency only this semester I will be able to do a little more hands on things. One thing I learned this week is how homestudies are rated and how families are recruited for children.The assignments aren't anything new so that's nice because I am comfortable doing them and I have a nice routine down from last semester. I also have been adamantly looking for new ways to fundraise money for Russia so that has taken a lot of energy out of me as well. I have less than 3 months to have $2000 paid into my program fee so it shall be an uphill battle. But I am going to be sending out letters within the next two weeks to people who can donate online or by mail and I am going to order some inspirational message bracelets to sell for an easy way for people to sponsor me. I have also been deciding where I will be attending school next year and have been looking at graduate programs that would be good for me since 2 years really isn't that long away! 'm hoping that Upper Iowa will provide me with the knowledge and credentials required to get into some of those programs. But I shouldn't be stressing so much or I will probably blow so now that I have that out in the open I hope the semester continues to go smoothly and I look forward to the experience!

Changing lives

I believe the one time I felt I made a difference in someone’s life was when we painted the schools in Jamaica and gave them school supplies. When we first arrived at the schools we had to clean out the two buildings (two rooms) which we were painting. I had never seen a cockroach before that and I tried not to freak out when they came out from beneath the books or their play things. I didn’t want to make them feel abnormal for having them there. Some of the children even came in the room and helped kill the insects. When we were done with the rooms, there weren’t any cockroach that’s for sure. We had cleaned everything and painted the walls and painted shelves and tables. We also had recreated some of their classroom learning tools that could not be reused after our transformation. When we came back to see the children in their classrooms after they were finished, they seemed proud and so did the teachers. They sang for us and while they were singing I think that’s when I realized how such a little change made by us made such a big difference in their lives. That moment made me decide that I have to take opportunities like more often which is why I am going to Russia in the summer.

How Am I Doing?

I'm not going to lie, I am stressed out. I'm a little behind on hours for field class which isn't horrible just because there are different ways for me to make up that time but I'm starting to check off things I've gotten done and things that need to be done and it's a little unbalanced. First, I'm trying to raise money for this Russia trip and I've been given the opportunity to raffle off some quilts at the international fair at NTC...in 2 weeks. I am trying to complete 3 quilts by myself and my cousin is going to do 2. That's a lot of fabric let me tell you. So on top of that I have all of my other classes and I have a presentation in a couple weeks that I would like to get done before the due date. I haven't gotten to my interview with a practicing professional yet. I need to update my cover letter and resume. I need to write myself a letter of recommendation. I'm hoping I get into all of the classes I need to next semester to graduate and I can't believe it's almost Christmas! Need I say more? : ) Anyway that's how it's going right now but I think I'm going to make it just a few more weeks and I'll be free for a month. On a lighter note, my mom booked us tickets to Florida for February so it's something to look forward to. We are going to be the family that's too old to be in Disney World and all of the little kids are wondering what the heck we are doing there. I will survive.

My Puppy : )

So I was discussing in an assignment about my puppy so I figured I would post the picture on here so everyone could see him. His name is Tucker and he is almost 11 months old. He is a Poochin which is 1/2 toy poodle and 1/2 Japanese chin. I love him!!!

Supervisor Feedback

Feedback is a very important part of this internship. I get feedback every time I go to my internship because we are constantly in people's homes and it requires a lot of travel. I consult with Dawn when we are leaving homes to ask questions and she helps me understand everything that's going on with laws, ethics, and just these people in general. I feel that with what I'm doing right now I am receiving an adequate amount of feedback and good feedback as well. Dawn is constantly trying to fill me with information as well as helping me develop contacts in the profession. I really appreciate all that she does to help me.