As most of you know I had been waiting since early spring to find out if the Rhode Island School for the Deaf's Summer Work Experience Program was actually going to take place this summer or not, as I had been asked to be a job coach for some of the upcoming seniors. Well, the program is up and running as planned and has obviously been taking up much of my time lately ... not to mention my energy! I'm delighted to be a part of such a valuable program though and despite it being a bit difficult to get out of bed some mornings I never dread going in to work with these eager young minds! The program is designed so that the students get a taste of several different jobs in order to gain a better sense of what they might like to do in the future, in addition to giving them an opportunity to "practice" working before actually going out into the work force on their own. Now before the students began working we (the three job coaches, Cynthia, Jodie, and I) started off with a full week of orientation that covered all the basics of how to go about getting a job, how to keep it, manage your wages, and most importantly, what not to do in the work place. Needless to say It turned out to be a pretty intense reality check for most of the students! For the past two weeks, Monday through Thursday, my group (Adam, Electra, Jake, and Joe) has been working in Providence at the Department of Administration, each of them experiencing two days in the cafeteria, daycare, mail room, and the Commission of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. (Fridays are reserved for field trips to different locations that the students have expressed personal interest in.) This coming week will be a bit of a treat for me, as my students will all be attending NTID's Explore Your Future program up in Rochester, which means I get the whole week off! (A much needed vacation too I might add!) The following week we will be working at Miriam Hospital performing various tasks in the kitchen including, making meals for the patients, washing dishes, etc. The last two weeks of the program we'll be working at two different farms, where the students will weed, compost, collect eggs, clean, and learn a little bit about agriculture. I must say, I'm most excited about these last three weeks of having these kids experience some actual manual labor (which most first time jobs usually are)! Right now they mostly express boredom working in the lovely air conditioned government run building. I've been trying to impress upon them that it's actually a great thing to be able to land such a (office-type) job where you get paid for just being there. I emphasize the importance of taking initiative and checking to see if the boss has any projects to be worked on of course ... however if there really is a lot of down time, to be thankful for it because the clock doesn't stop ticking until you punch out at the end of the day! Somethings you just can't appreciate until they're gone though. It will be interesting to see if the students wind up enjoying the manual labor as opposed to the office work ... but I wouldn't put money on it!
The students with Judge Darigan during a field trip to the Superior Court!
The students taking pointers from a former classmate who is now working as a web designer at AAA, and will be attending NTID this fall!
Yet another big change around here has been the completion of the nursery, and a new bed for the parents to be ... sleep will soon be of the utmost importance after all! After 4 months of rearranging, cleaning, hunting down furniture, and then incorporating our own creativity into our under water fantasy land, little EJ's room is finally finished! Oddly enough once the finishing touches had been added, reality suddenly hit full force! Over the past few months the different projects Michael and I have tackled in pulling this room together occupied our thoughts much more than we realized, and now with no more projects left to be done, the only thing left to do is wait, wait for the one whom which we made this tiny sanctuary for. I found it strange to all of a sudden feel overwhelmed when I had expected to have feelings of relief once the nursery was complete ... I've been carrying now for 31 weeks, heard the heart beat, seen the ultrasound images, and felt the wriggling inside me, but none of that seemed more real than the completion of this room devoted entirely to another person who we've yet to meet. I let the rush of nerves and excitement get the better of me for a day or so until the reality of it all at last sunk in. Now I'm just filled with gratefulness ... I walk back and forth between the nursery and our room (with our luxurious bed) and am in awe of much life has changed in less than a year. Although money has been somewhat tight this spring, I have honestly never been happier! I have a man in my life who understands me without my even saying a word, and loves me just as I am, a baby on the way as a result of that love, and a beautiful little home that weaves us all tightly together!
A few glimpses of our handy work ... More on Facebook if you're interested!
That said, realistically we cannot survive on love alone and in Michael's pursuit of finding a new job he has at long last landed a significant position ... in of all places, Alaska!
Mike and I before going out to celebrate his upcoming adventure ... and the great dress he bought me JUST BECAUSE!
He leaves this Sunday and although we've been apart before for extended periods, we have not been away from each other for more than a night since our wedding in March. Life for us has changed drastically for us in the past six months and seeing him off this time around will be ten times as difficult as it was before when we were just dating. In addition to producing an income, this job opportunity will be an irreplaceable experience for him as well as a great asset to his future career goals. With that in mind my dread of missing him, and fear of possibly being without him during labor is drowned by my excitement for him to advance as a scientist and grow as a man!
So, move over Sarah Palin my liberal, geologist husband is coming to town!!! ... Who knows, perhaps little EJ and I will be next!
But for now, this pregnant lady needs to get to sleep because she tried to be super woman today and has simply run out of steam ... so goodnight, sleep tight, and hopefully it won't be another month before I share my thoughts with you all again!
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