week two recap

ok, so i haven't been as up to date with my blogging as i would like... my bad.
this past week was a short week because of thanksgiving. we started off the week with cleaning out the rest of the russian olive trees and then we finally finished our trash barrier fence thing. it's very cool being able to see a finished product and know that i helped make it and that it will last for years and years. :)

tuesday, our team traveled to the mountains where a couple donated wood logs for us to use to make the railing for the stairs at bluff lake.
the day didn't start out too promising, our van got stuck... so we pushed it out.

we then headed into the woods to carry the logs up the hill and load onto the trailer. we carried about thirty five logs up that hill which was really hard considering we were not only more than a mile high walking up hill with a log but we were also doing it in about three inches of snow...

but there were some amazing views that made the whole trip worth it!

wednesday, our team returned to bluff lake for a half day of work (!!!) where we started debarking the logs. i think we got like a dozen done. it's definitely a lot harder than it looks!

thursday, aka thanksgiving, we headed off bright and early to return to the puppy rescue center! we were there for about three hours or so and we spent the morning cleaning the cages, feeding and watering the puppies and also giving them medicine. i honestly don't mind any of the work we do there- it's just so much fun working with puppies and KNOWING they will NOT be put to sleep. :)

 also got to see my favorite big dog bash!

thanksgiving night we spent as a team and had a team meal that was actually pretty good! here are some pictures-

 fire one!

 our team poster :)

 

 friday night, some of the americorps members headed downtown to the pepsi center where we got to watch the denver nuggets kick the chicago bulls booty! it's the first professional basketball game i've ever been too. it was fun! 

saturday i headed downtown with the girls from my team and we checked out the mall. it's MASSIVE! and today i spent most of my time cleaning up my room for room inspections tomorrow and washing clothes! we'll have a team meeting tonight after dinner where we get yummy pies for dessert :)

i hope everyone had a great thanksgiving. i hate i missed it but i smile knowing i'll be home for christmas :) 

CARPE DIEM!

xoxo,

B

week one recap

ok, so i was going to try and update my blog every day; but, then i realized that was sort of impossible and would be seriously boring, instead, i have decided to update it weekly now that i'm doing projects.
so, week one of my project. our team worked at bluff lake nature center and the greenway urban park. the two parks are sort of partners because they're so close to each other and since they're both non profit they work together in order to share materials and supplies and to raise money.
monday thru thursday we worked at bluff lake nature center where for the first two days we cleaned up a field that had piles and piles of russian olive trees everywhere that needed to be moved. we also picked seeds off of bushes and then planted the seeds where the trees had been in order to grow grass and plants.

 

wednesday, our team was asked to build a fence. the park is off of a main road that collects a lot of trash. the trash flows into the storm drain which feeds into the head of the park lake. the trash then flows down the river and all over the lake it almost impossible to clean it all up. so, we dug holes for wooden posts and then a wire netting was attached to the posts and the fence was made. it was located at the very head of the lake so that then it can catch all the trash and still let water flow through but the lake won't be dirty. it took all day and was really hard with tons of big rocks filling the ground but we finally got it done!

thursday and friday we went to the urban park where we were asked to help. this park is also located on a river. this river has tons of beavers and they're becoming a huge problem. the native trees are called cottonwoods and the beavers love them. they chew down a ridiculous number of them every year. the other really popular tree but not a native is the russian olive. unfortunately, the beavers do not eat this trees. at all. and the trees are taking over. so, we went in to help! our first task was to find the cottonwoods that had been fenced off so the beavers wouldn't get them. the trees grow so fast that they often grow over the fences and so they're rather pointless. so, we found the trees, removed the fence and then painted the trees up to our chest. evidently, if you take paint, water and sand and mix it together and paint the trees the beavers will not eat the trees. they hate the sand and the taste of it all so they leave them alone. so we painted i don't even know how many trees! our next task was to remove the russian olives that were taking over the park. the park spans fourteen miles of the river so we didn't get very much done but we did get a nice bit!

 needless to say, by the end of everyday we were worn out!

besides doing our normal work, we also have to get ISP (individual service projects) hours. this can be any sort of working like helping at a food bank, nursing home, working on a house for habitat, or what we did- working at a humane society. the place we went to saved puppies from humane societies that were about to put them to sleep. they take the puppies and then on saturday's and sunday's they have adoptions. there were so many puppies and people who came to adopt them. most of the puppies were adopted and they said the rest will probably be adopted tomorrow. the thing i like most about this place was that they don't put any dogs to sleep. they all get adopted. we liked the place so much that we're going back on thursday to help since we don't have to work and then also on the second weekend of december. we loved it there!

overall, this was a great week! i hope everyone else had a great week too!
xoxo,
B

first day of project one!

this morning i was up at 6:30 bright and early! ok, more like cloudy and snowy but whatever! anyways, i went to breakfast and then our van rolled out at eight o'clock on the dot! it took us about an hour to drive literally the thirteen miles to our site because of traffic. it was crazy. luckily, i had my ipod!

our first project is working at bluff lake nature center. we'll be doing a handful of things in our thirteen days there but today we started with clearing off the land. they cut down a lot of trees that were soaking up all the water in the area and killing other plants so we had to pile all of it together and into a pick up truck. it took all day and we still aren't done with that one field. tomorrow we'll finish it off and then head to another field.
luckily, the park is really pretty. there's lots of trees and grass and the lake.
the not so lucky part was the snow. while it was seriously pretty it is really really really hard to work in... you're cold and so you bundle up and then moving so much you get hot but if you take off your jacket you're cold instantly. it's so confusing! but, colorado is insane- the weather literally almost instantly. it snowed for a couple hours this morning but by the time we left the center it was all melted. crazy!

overall it was a great day. i'm a little sore from all that lifting and cutting but i know i'll get used to it.
hope everyone else is doing great and enjoying south carolina's amazing weather!
xoxo,
B

send off day

this morning we had room inspections again before everyone left. we met outside around 7:30 and we listened to a speech from the lady in charge of the campus. then, everyone loaded into their vans and the groups that are staying on campus waved them off.
after that we had a little break and my group met up to leave for the zoo at eleven. the denver zoo is amazing! and i had a ton of fun. it was really cold and we didn't get to see it all but saturday's are free so i plan on making a trip back soon!

i hope everyone had a great day too!
let's go gamecocks!!!
xoxo,
B

induction

ok, i know i haven't updated my blog in like a week but that's because this week was a transition week so we hardly did anything at all. i think i mentioned last time about my team and how we're staying in denver for this round so we don't have any packing or anything to do.
today was induction day. we got up and have one massive group picture of everyone from this campus.

after that we went and had induction which is just where they announce what each group will do and where they'll be. then we had a reception with some surprisingly really good food! it was yummy!
last, we had room inspections where our unit leader, her two aids, and all the tl's come in our rooms and check everything to make sure it's all clean. luckily, our room was great!
tomorrow morning we have to go see everyone off and then tim is taking our group to the zoo. tomorrow night we're having a group sleepover so hopefully it will be a great day!
hope everyone is going wonderfully
xoxo,
B

my weekend

as i said in my last blog, thursday we got assigned our permanent teams. friday we had meetings going over what the different roles in the team are. i have three roles- capper, media rep and food prep. CAPper stands for something but i forgot what! pretty much what a capper does is go around to schools or events where we can spread the word about americorps nccc. there are three cappers on each team. so, we could go to a school and give a big presentation to the whole school letting them know about it or we could set up a table at a college and explain to people as they pass by. the media representative is the person who would talk to a reporter or someone from a news station. i would act as the spokesperson for our team. and the food preparation means i will be in charge of getting menus made for the week, putting together a shopping list and then getting the food.
saturday we had team time. so, tim our tl took us to this really great family owned pizza place and we had lunch then went next door and had ice cream! after that we went to the park right down the road and did games and things that of course all had a learning experience. it was a really fun afternoon!

 saturday night i went downtown for a little while with some friends.

today i had a day off so i headed into town to go to the denver art museum and check out the king tut exhibit. it was SO cool! :) i spent more than two hours walking around and checking everything out. i would just love to go back! and even better, to go to egypt! unfortunately i couldn't take pictures inside but here's a picture of my stuff! in the book it shows all the things inside the exhibit.

overall i had a wonderful weekend! :) hope everyone else did too!
xoxo,
B

got my permanent team!

today was a very crazy busy day! we had meetings all morning about healthy living and how to live together. we also got to ask the tl's questions which was very helpful.
after that i had a break for a couple hours so i headed back to my room for a nice nap! which was very beautiful! after that my team met up and went to visit with the leader of our unit. she was really nice and i'm glad we got that opportunity because i know she kind of makes a really intense first impression.
next was our first baseline pt test. i did ok. i'm definitely looking forward to taking it again and seeing improvements. luckily i can say i wasn't the last to finish though. hiking is ok for me. trying to run up a hill not so much. we'll do a baseline test each time we get back from spikes so we can see how we're doing.
after that we had to get back in uniform and go on a hunt for our new permanent team leader! so our group found each other and then we went looking for our tl. i'm glad to say i got one of the two i wanted- tim! he was my first tl and is really laid back and easy going but wants us all to have a good time and a great experience.
for our first spike we'll be stationed in denver. so i won't have to pack up or live anywhere erm... difficult. we'll be staying on campus so i'm definitely happy i decorated my room!
our spike will be split in two. for the first project we're going to bluff lake nature center to build a trail. that project will last about three weeks. after that we're working at project cure which is a non profit medical supply place. i think we'll be doing inventory the whole time which won't be great but it will be warm!
overall i'm happy with what i've been given. my team seems nice and so far we all get along really great. i figure, if i wasn't supposed to be doing this then god would have sent me somewhere else so i might as well enjoy it! and i love denver so i'm happy!

xoxo,
B

certifications

today was a long and surprisingly tiring day. we were required to spend eight hours training to get certified in cpr, first aid and how to use an aed. after practicing multiple times, watching countless videos, listening to three really old funny ladies talk, and taking four tests i finally got my certificates!

now i know how to save a life! well, until the ambulance gets there at least... and assuming i can stay calm enough to remember all that training.
maybe we should pray for my possible victims... and me too...
:)
xoxo,
B

i think i have a new hobbie!

well, today we had unit time which is my favorite thing because it's SO relaxed. we don't have to wear uniforms, we don't meet until nine so we get an extra hour to sleep in and we always do something fun!
my team met at nine this morning outside and we played a really fun game (guys vs. girls and we won!!!)
oh and on a random side note- yesterday was diversity training and it lasted all day. we did get to make crafts and here's my team with our models that represent our lives.

and here is my model- the pink is supposed to be the state of south carolina because i think the south has played a big part in who i've become, the yellow is the sun because i do like being outside, the blue is for water because i love being in the ocean or the pool, the green cross represents god and church, and the purple person represents all my family and friends.

anyways! back to today! we went back to red rocks as a unit and went down to the bottom for a group picture.

we checked out the museum...

then we went to the general store for lunch...

 and then it was off to hike! the trail i hiked was called red rocks trail and it took me like a little under an hour and a half to hike to the top. it was hard at first but once i got going i actually did pretty good! i had a wonderful time and the view from the top was most definitely worth it!

i had a really awesome day! but, now i'm so sleepy i think i'm going to fall straight to sleep!
hope everyone had as good a day as i did
xoxo,
B