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| It's starting to look like winter! |
I would have added November to the title, but it just didn’t sound as nice. Also, to be honest, I am having trouble remembering what the month of November consisted of other than a nice Thanksgiving gathering, snow, and continuous loss of daylight. There was a site visit to Igiugig at the end of the month which also carried into December, and as always that was productive and relaxed. Overall, it seems to me as though November was just another blurry month, but I suppose it is a positive that I cannot remember anything particularly awful occurring during the month.
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| Christmas Eve<3 |
Alright, on to December because December got the honor of being the month in this post’s title. It took me about a day and a half to come up with the title for this entry, or this would have been worked on yesterday. In most cases, I get a mental block on a post until I can come up with a title. I had every intention of blogging yesterday, but no title meant no cohesive linking of thoughts coming to mind to make up a post. Anywho, one of the most rewarding parts of December was finishing class for the semester at the beginning of the month. It was SO refreshing for the following Wednesday to come and go without having to log on to class or work on any assignments. I am happy to say that I earned “A’s” in both of my courses for the semester and have been enjoying the break before the next semester begins. I have about three weeks until class starts again and the break has allowed for some much needed time dedicated to catching up on reading that is not related to educational administration or curriculum. I got a nice little stack of books for Christmas and I am looking forward to being able to continue my “book binge” until things get chaotic again.
Another fun part of the month was getting a visit from our friend Jon, who lives in one of our
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A beach walk with Caitlin,
Sam, Jon, Aspen & Cessna |
district’s southern villages. His wife, and my friend, Elisabeth was back on the east coast waiting for their little one to make her appearance into the world. We were lucky enough that Jon could stop in Nondalton on his way to the Lower 48. Something that is difficult to really cover in words is describing how refreshing it is to have someone new or different in the village, even for a short time. On any given school day, I interact with the same 45 people and on the weekends the number drops down to 10 people at most; those 10 people are also from the pool of 45 people I interact with on school days. What I’m trying to explain is that adding a new face and personality into those numbers allows for new conversations, differing opinions, and even simple experiences such as playing games at home are rejuvenated by adding a new player. Jon’s visit was just what we needed as the days became shorter and colder and the feelings of monotony that can arise in the winter months were starting to set in. With that said, I am grateful that his daughter waited until after his visit with us to grace everyone with her arrival (Momma and baby are both healthy and happy!).
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| Flying home from Iliamna |
Once Jon left, or maybe while he was here, I developed a yucky cough that has not wanted to go away. After a week and a half and no improvements, I finally broke down and scheduled an appointment at the clinic in Iliamna. Getting medical care out here is an adventure all on it’s own. Due to our insurance company not covering the health aides in my village, a medical visit requires a flight to Iliamna or in some cases, to Anchorage. Luckily, I was able to hop on the mail plane to Iliamna where I was seen and sent on my way. Another flight later and I was back at school with only two hours being taken from my day. The provider I saw told me I have a less severe form of pneumonia which can be treated with antibiotics. I came home to an “I told you so” from my caring fiance who all but forced me to see someone when my cough wouldn’t go away and I had no interest in taking a sick day to be seen. I think I will link my stubbornness in trying to wait out the sickness to my father, but he’s stubborn so he might not agree.
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| Six Mile Lake with 50mph winds |
Unfortunately, a bad reaction to my first dose of antibiotics caused me to miss school on Tuesday which also happened to be the last day before break. I was upset to miss out on the holiday festivities at school, but Sam kindly stepped in as “Mr. Paige” at school so my students did not have to miss out as well. Better yet, he sent me pictures throughout the day so I could experience a bit of what was going on during the day. Sometimes, I find it hard to believe that I am lucky enough to have found such a caring and selfless soul to go through life with.
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| Six Mile Lake |
Needless to say, last Wednesday, was a day of low-key celebration in Nondalton as it meant the start of two and a half weeks of being able to sleep in, not do lesson plans or school work, and to be able to binge-watch tv shows and movies without guilt because “it’s winter break”. That saying is probably the equivalent to “diet starts Monday” in that if Caitlin and I don’t want to go for a walk one day, it’s okay because “it’s winter break”. Watching five movies in one day? It’s okay, because “it’s winter break”. Pancakes for dinner? “It’s winter break.. and the diet starts Monday”.. I think you can get the theme but if not, just find a teacher over winter break and listen because I can almost guarantee those words will flow from their mouth to justify at least one action (a day) during their school break.
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| Little "icebergs" on the beach |
So how did I spend my first day of winter break? At school, of course! Caitlin and I have had some internship tasks on our list that we didn’t have the time or energy to tackle during the semester, so we slept in on Wednesday and went in to work on some tasks for a few hours. We did the same thing on Thursday and in those two days we were able to cross off two major projects and get a few hours added to our internship logs. Feeling accomplished in doing so, I think we both agreed that we won’t step foot in the school until school starts again on January 8th. But when we do, two of the rooms in our school that needed some TLC will be a welcome sight for all to see. When you get two organized people in very unorganized spaces, a lot of positive things can happen in a short time. Shout out to Sam for once again helping us do some heavy lifting since I barely let pregnant Caitlin lift anything and as for me... well, I am just weak.
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| Cessna & Aspen love tundra walks! |
The days leading up to Christmas brought with them some incredibly strong winds which kept us inside what felt like years. Our weather station was gauging the strongest winds at 50mph, but sometimes it felt much stronger. There were moments when the whole apartment shook as if we were having a large earthquake. On the second day of this, I think we were all feeling a bit cooped up and decided the gusts were worth fighting against to get out for a walk. Sam, Caitlin and I took the dogs for a long loop which didn’t feel difficult until we got to the lake where there were no trees to help block us from the power of the gusts. We had some fun watching as the waves carrying chunks of ice crashed into the ice built up on shore. The ice farther up on the beach was similar to very large pieces of sea glass, as the pieces were all smoothed and rounded out. The sound it made as you trudged through it was a glassy twinkle and it was just a unique experience that I had too much fun with. Our poor pup was so tired from playing and fighting against the wind that towards the end of the walk I had to pick her up and carry her for awhile so she would stop just plopping down for breaks. Thankfully the wind has died down and we will be able to get outside for less tiring excursions.
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| Our 1st Christmas spent together<3 |
Before I knew it, I was getting a 4:45am wake up call from my little sister letting me know that it was Christmas morning and that Santa had come. As this was my first Christmas away from family, and the first I have decided to stay in Alaska for winter break, I had told my mom to let Katie call me in the morning so I could watch her open some presents. I have been home on Christmas morning for all of Katie’s Christmas wake-ups since she came home, so this was a bittersweet absence for me. The rest of the morning was spent with Sam, our pup and many other family members thanks to video calls. I was able to be present at my usual Christmas go-to houses and it made the day so much easier. I was proud of how I holding myself together emotionally, that is until I got a call from Christmas dinner and my Aunt Judy got on the phone. I don’t know who started to tear up first but I finally let loose some tears that needed to be shed and we laughed as others were starting to tear up around the room. My uncles and cousins tried to cheer us all up and I choked out a laugh as I told them I was fine and to enjoy dinner. Though it is tough to be away from home, I am thankful that Sam and I got to spend a Christmas together for once and that it was spent with our pup in our Alaskan home. Change can be hard, but it is so exciting to start traditions with my little family and to think ahead to the future in which we hope to have lots of tiny feet running into our room to wake us up on Christmas mornings.
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| Our 1st Family Christmas! |
As I type this, it’s 10:45 and the sun finally rose about twenty minutes ago. The wind is calm and the temperature is a brisk 13 degrees. Cessna is napping, Sam is watching something on TV, and I am eyeing up which book will be the first to be taken off the stack of my Christmas gifts. Not going to the east coast for winter break was not an easy decision and I miss the chance to see family and friends. However, it is the first time in years that my winter break has actually provided me time to sit down and truly relax. Sometimes, you need to put your health and wellness first even if it means making some sacrifices. Later this week, we are going to fly to Anchorage where we will spend a few days indulging in all the things that we have gone without for four and a half months. I am eager to get a coffee and roam the aisles of Target (with a scanner for our wedding registry!!!), to have the endless options that restaurant menus have to offer, to take Cessna to a pet store for the very first time, and all other experiences that “civilization” has to offer. As winter break continues on for a few days after we return from town, I am sure I will have ample time to sit down and type up another update on our Anchorage adventures.
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| Walking in a Winter Wonderland<3 |
Wishing you a belated Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, and here’s to hoping that the New Year is plentiful in health and happiness! Sending many thanks and love to all who continue to support my writing through the reading of my posts.
