Year 2 semester 2: April and May

April 3rd, 2015
Hi everyone,
This past week was Spring break for me and probably for a lot of you guys too. This past Sunday was also my 21st birthday. I had a great spring break, it was a great break from the craziness going on at school that comes with finishing up the semester. Believe it or not I only have three weeks left, from the time that I am writing this( which includes finals). My last day is May 1st This year has gone by too fast. I must say that this year has been an interesting one. This year has brought a lot of emotions that I was not expecting such as homesickness, fear, and nervousness and later on stress.
               So much has happened and I feel as though I have grown up a lot this year. I'm progressing in my major, I am going to have an internship next year along with living off campus. So much has gone on, however, that also means that I am learning more to think for myself and make my own decisions about what happens instead of someone else. That alone is a big thing because I feel like while I have been able to make decisions. I have generally relied on others to make the decision for me.  Within the last week or so I realized that I am not a kid/teenager anymore. I am an adult whose decisions mean something in the future.  The last thing I wanted to say is that the last couple weeks to a month have brought more stress than I am used to. It reminded me that the decisions I am making now are and will affect my future. This will probably be the last update until after summer begins. Thank you to everyone who reads these posts. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy writing them. This blog gives me the chance to vent/ say some of the things that are on my mind that feel I can't say out loud.
Hope you all have a great easter,
The lord has risen
From Allison

Year 2 semester 2: January-March

Friday: March 6th 2015
         Hi everyone,
   I haven't updated everyone for a while on whats going on. I am excited to say that life has had many great things thrown its way the past couple months.
My semester started on January 12th and the remainder of January was pretty hard for me. I had a hard time adjusting to getting back into school after Christmas break. Thankfully this only occurred for a couple weeks.
          February I have to admit was such a great month. So many exciting things happened that lead me to believe that I am finally taking major steps in my major. A few weeks ago as many of you may know I was accepted into the Social work Program. The next step after that is the Social work Internship fair which happens on Monday the 9th. These are for our internships for next spring but we have to do orientation hours so we technically start in the fall.
          On February 13th I"celebrated" 14 years since my leg lengthening/ bone straightening surgery when I was six years old. Even though this surgery was extremely painful and uncomfortable. I am very grateful in the long run that I had it done because without it I would be unable to walk and not as independent.
          March is going to be a fun month. The week after next I will be coming home for spring break. During that week is my birthday. I'm turning 21 this year its a big deal. One big decision that I made in the last couple months is that I have decided to live off campus next year in a house with my current roommate. I feel like this is a big decision as it means more independence.
       I'm going to say good bye for now but I will talk to you guys soon. Only about 1 and 3/4th months left of school til summer how exciting.
Adios
Allison
     

Year 2:semester 2 January 12,2015

Monday 1/12/15

Hello again everybody.
It feels like a while since I sent out a report. Christmas break went by so fast. I have to say I wasn't thrilled with the idea of coming back to school. However now that I'm back and with my friends it's not so bad. I've had one class so far and so far so good(even if it is only the first class). One interesting thing that happened over the break was that I got a biopsy done on my thumb. It's all healed up now and my thumb looks pretty normal again. Isn't modern medicine great.
I hope you all enjoyed your holidays.
Talk to you later
Allison

October/November: Month 3 of year 2

hello everyone,

           Thanksgiving is upon us. A lot has happened this month and it was a lot of fun.  I got my certification in first aid in CPR. Along with this came the ending to the class. I am glad to be gone with one class as this gives me plenty more free time.
         Next is Halloween. For Halloween I slept over at my roommates house. This was a lot of fun because I got to take my first trip to Powell's bookstore. This was very exciting because I feel as though it is an important landmark in Portland.
         Now, for November events. I hope everyone is enjoying their extra hour of sleep. Last weekend my dad came for a visit and it was a good visit. I was really needing the visit. We had a good time being together. We had lunch with my roommates family, got some sushi, and even set up a printer(that works!). We celebrated my nieces 2nd birthday(how time flies).  Last night I enjoyed a dinner play that my roommates sister's high school put on. They preformed a play called Promity. It was about high schools and their experience going to the prom. At the end they invited people to come up and dance with them. I went and it was fun.
    I will be going to my grandparents for thanksgiving. I will meet up with my parents there. Its hard to believe but after thanksgiving I only have one more week of classes and then finals and I will be home for Christmas. This has been a good semester.
See you guys soon,
Allison

October: Year 2 month 2

Hello everyone,
Well October is here and fall weather is just starting to hit here in Newberg, Oregon. All my classes are going well. It's hard to believe but as I am writing this I am enjoying my mid-semester break. It seems like just yesterday I was moving in to my apartment.  The box trolls came out and I was able to see it with my roommate and her family. If you haven't seen it I recommend it. Just a heads up it may be somewhat scary for young children. In my ethics class we watched the Truman show. I'm sure some of you have seen it. Personally, I thought it was a little weird. Overall things have been pretty quiet. Our campus has had quite a few burglaries the last few weeks,thankfully none of it was mine. My drawing is Improving in my drawing class we did a midterm still life, this is a composition of non living things. I  enjoy updating you as it gives me a chance to reflect on what has happened the past couple weeks. I will talk to you later or as Truman from the Truman show says if I don't see you good morning, good afternoon, good night.

September: Year 2 Month 1

     
        Well, I am happy to say that I made it once again through the first month of the semester.  This has been a good month.  On September third, George Fox had our annual Serve day where we all go out and serve at our assigned areas.  My apartment was assigned to work at a homeless shelter and we ended up cleaning out their walk in freezer which ended up not being so bad.
     
          I usually am not a big reader and therefore don't normally have book suggestions. However this time I do. I am taking a Christian discipling class. This month we read this book called In His Steps by Charles Sheldon. I'm sure some of you have heard of it. I was impressed by this book. It is defiantly a must read if you are looking for a book to read.  I am learning so much in this class. Its teaching me the value of small groups it allows me to get to know a group of people really well.
     By the end of the month Ill be CPR certified through the red cross. I know doesn't seem like that big of a deal but its a good thing to do. This will be through my first aid and safety class.
 
           Two weeks starts Dwarfism awareness month. My favorite month of the year.  I had my first exam of the year in Music and didn't do as badly as I thought that I would.
 
          My drawing Class is going well. Although it is very frustrating when you look around and everybody's art is like ten times better than your own.  On Thursday the 18th of this month, Urban Outreach started up again.  This is something that I participated in and mentioned some last year. We are going to a new location and working with different people this year. I have to admit that I was pretty disappointed as I had made some  friends with the people at the old place. My hope is that I will like the new place too and make some new friends and be able to serve these people.
     Well that is all that happened this month. It was mostly just getting into the swing of school and getting into the groove of classes.

Thank you for reading and your thoughts
Allison

On my own again-first week of school

Hi everyone,
Welcome to round 2 of my college adventures. Today is August 24th,21014,the last day of summer, and classes start tomorrow. Needless to say I'm on my own again. My parents and I flew back to portland,Oregon this past Friday August 22nd and left yesterday Saturday the 23rd. I'm all moved in to my on campus apartment and have met 2/ 3 of my roommates. I believe this will be a good semester.
    The first week of school is over and classes have started.  I feel that I can admit that this week I have had some moments of homesickness.  However, I am loving my apartment and the people that I live with.
Thank you for reading these blogs over the past year. I hope you enjoy them.
Allison