The end of my first full work week has come to a close. Work has been very busy establishing a caseload, and orienting myself with people and the facility. Everything is going very smoothly and I am really enjoying my new work environment.

A few of my work days have been shorter, giving me time to really explore different trails and recreational activities around the island. We have gone to Volunteer Park, Pat's Lake, Muskeg Meadows Golf Course, and spent clearer days watching the sunset off the city dock while we enjoy coffee from The Stikine Inn. Everywhere you look it is absolutely breathtaking and you are more than likely going to see a bald eagle or five.

In fact, Wednesday afternoon, Jim and I took my beagle puppy, Beatrice, to Volunteer Park. The park has awesome walking trails of different lengths and tee-ball fields where we like to let Beatrice off her leash to run and burn off extra energy before or after our walks. We generally take a toy for her to fetch, or sometimes she just has so much puppy energy that she will just run circles for nothing in return. After a few minutes of playing, Jim and I turned to the sound of 5 eagles calling and circling a neighboring field. If you have never heard a group of eagles "communicating" it is quite fascinating. They are so loud! They also have a very distinct call that always catches my attention. We grabbed Beatrice, who is only 25 lbs., slightly afraid of her being eagle bait, and waited for them to fly back to the trees. They did after a few minutes and we released Beatrice to continue playing. A few minutes later, 2 eagles came back to our field in full force. They were swooping low, with obvious sights on my puppy! Luckily, I have a level headed fiance that picked Beatrice up while I screamed and panicked. After we had held her and guarded her for a few minutes the eagles flew off. Needless to say, we are a little more hesitant to let her off her leash at the park now.

Jim protecting Beatrice at Volunteer Park

Below are beautiful pictures of the parks and other views we have seen this week.

Sunset from the City Dock

Sunset from the City Dock

Sunset from the City Dock

Muskeg Meadows Golf Course

Muskeg Meadows Golf Course

Pat's Lake

Pat's Lake

My weekly "God thing": 

This week I have met wonderful and interesting people. One specific wonderful person is a patient of mine. She is so excited to be receiving new therapy services. She is so delightful and happy and grateful. This week she provided me with reassurance that I am where I am supposed to be. Mid-session she said, "I am so glad you are here! It is a God thing that you are here. I just praise the Lord everyday that you and Jim moved to Wrangell to give me just what I needed." It was all I could do to hold back my tears. For me, the services we provide are typical everyday work for us. But for the people here, it is the first time they have had access to these rehab services available on the island without having to fly off the island or do without. 

I know there have been times in the past when God has put specific people in place to help me when I was in desperate need. Little, everyday things that the givers probably didn't think twice about, have often made a big difference in my life. You never know when and how God is using you in other peoples lives to make a big difference. It's a good feeling to know I am a piece of His plan. 

We are nearing the end of our first week in Wrangell! This week's theme is entitled, "I can't believe I get to live here!" Jim and I have been overwhelmed with Wrangell's since of community, hospitality, and beauty. It has rained everyday since we arrived, but the rain does not put a damper on the gorgeousness of southeast Alaska.

Monday and Tuesday of this week were spent adjusting to the time difference by trying to establish normal sleeping patterns again, becoming what I keep referring to as "real people" by getting a license plate, driver's license, insurance, PO Box, and groceries, and preparing to start work on Wednesday at Wrangell Medical Center. They were a busy couple of days, but it was a nice way to get acquainted with the town and orient ourselves.

Wednesday was the big day. We began work at Wrangell Medical Center as the only practicing Speech-Language Pathologist and Occupational Therapist on the island. It is somewhat of an intimidating undertaking, but it is also a fun experience to see a rehabilitation program built from just Physical Therapy services. I think we have a strong dynamic and team set up and I am very excited to see what becomes of the services there. This week was mostly orientation to the facility and setting up documentation, and training opportunities.

After our first day of work, I was downstairs playing with my puppy when I heard a knock on the door behind me. I turned and saw my bright-eyed co-worker with a headlamp on, muddy boots, and wet jacket holding a large blue pail that appeared to be somewhat heavy. I opened the door and she said, "I hit the mother-load and have more clams that I will need for my chowder!" Denise, Jim, and I followed her upstairs to the kitchen and she proceeded to show us how to shuck clams. What an experience! We opened up about 15 clams, cleaned them, and froze them to make clam chowder next week. It's so funny and different when events like that happen here (and they supposedly happen a lot) because there is not really a way to compare it to anything I have experienced. The spontaneity and simple pleasures that are going to come with living in Wrangell are priceless.

Along with the spontaneous clamming, orientation, and work, we spent time walking the dog during breaks in the rain. We discovered a wonderful walking trail that was breathtakingly beautiful. Pictures just could not capture the beauty. I also enjoyed FaceTiming my "Raleigh Family" and seeing my growing niece and nephew. I love them! It is amazing how seeing faces can make 3,000 miles seem not so far away.

For those of you who would like to shower us with gifts from the lower 48, our mailing address is:
PO Box 1813
Wrangell, AK  99929

My weekly "God thing":
Earlier I mentioned that my theme for the week has been, "I can't believe I get to live here!" I can't believe that this place even exist and that they needed a Speech Pathologist, and needed an Occupational Therapist, and they offered the jobs to both of us, and we are able to travel, and the list goes on and on and on...
Lots of things happen that we "can't believe" and we talk about it all the time; but I have noticed that we usually talk about things that we do not like. "I can't believe the Panthers lost!" "I can't believe all this rain!" Or earlier this week... "I can't believe I failed my driver's test and have to go back and take it again tomorrow." Why is it that we do not take time to recognize all the awesome things that are happening, even if they are "typical" or "everyday things". I wish I heard people say, "I can't believe I am lucky enough to have food everyday." or "I can't believe I am fortunate enough to put on clean clothes in the mornings." What a different world it would be.

My post is late! It has been a busy few week with our arrival in Wrangell, limited internet access due to the Alaska Marine Highway travel time and all the last minute chores and errands during our time in Bellingham, Washington.

Last I wrote, we were in Idaho. Since, we completed our drive to Bellingham, Washington. Idaho, Oregon, and Washington are so beautiful! We were blessed with continued excellent travel conditions and only minor traffic congestion in Seattle, which was expected. We were greeted in Bellingham, Washington by my cousin, Melissa, and her wonderful family, who welcomed us into their home for the week, fed us, and assisted us with our many last-minute errands. It felt so nice to be out of a hotel and eating home-cooked, delicious (and healthy) meals. We found a little extra time to hike, and see Bellingham; however, most of the time was spent getting new tires, oil changes, hair cuts, air filter changes, and other maintenance that is more convenient in the "lower 48". 

After 5 days in Bellingham, we boarded the Alaska Marine Highway System on the Malaspina. It was an older vessel and one of the original "larger vessels" that was introduced into the system in 1963. The best way I can describe my experience on the Marine Highway is just a less-luxurious cruise, but with more beautiful scenery. The route was along Alaska's Inside Passage of the Southeast, making most of the trip smooth sailing. I was not a fan of the rolling feeling we experience in the few instances of open water. We spent 5 hours in Ketchikan, which was the first and only pit-stop for us before reaching Wrangell. The Malaspina continued to travel to Petersburg, Juneau, Haines, and then west.

We have now been in Wrangell a little more than 24 hours and it is so relieving to finally be here, knowing that we travelled about 4,000 miles with no injury, mishaps, or even minor trouble. What a blessing!

We both begin work on Wednesday - mostly with introductions, training, and program building and marketing. It will be yet another chapter on this exciting, new adventure that we are still uncovering.

My weekly "God thing":
In this small town, I no longer have the ability to listen to K-LOVE on the radio, but of course could still stream the station. I do still follow the station's facebook page and love seeing their daily and weekly posts. So maybe I am slightly cheating by stealing this, but I found it to be extremely relevant to my current "first steps of faith".

I am sitting in my hotel room in Burley, Idaho trying to remember the whirlwind of traveling I have experienced since Monday morning. Our long journey began in Marion, Virginia after a wonderful going away party given by Jim's parents. My sister and brother-in-law stayed with me to see me off Monday morning after beating us in Scrabble. I love spending time with these two.

Monday morning was emotional. We had a breakfast with our families and then immediately said good-bye and went to get my little car on a trailer. Looking back, it is amazing how clean my car looks. Both vehicles were completely packed to the brim with the items we deemed most important and necessary for the move. It is a miracle in itself that we were able to fit (most of) what we wanted and needed in the cars. It was so cold in Virginia when we left and the wind was so strong traveling on the 77 turnpike. That was probably the most challenging part of our long drive. 

Our first night was spent in Indiana and 5 inches of powder fell on our nice clean cars. The weather luckily did not delay our travel and we got on the road the next morning. 

I know not all of you reading have traveled to Iowa, but for me it was old news. My father grew up in a small town called Ackley, Iowa. Most of his family is still in Iowa. My Grandma still is in Ankeny, Iowa. Ever since I can remember, I have made relatively frequent trips to the midwest to visit family and we generally traveled by car. One thing that is still exciting to see between Virginia and Iowa is the Great Mississippi River. The cold weather had turned the surface of the river to ice, but it was still beautiful. Pictures just do not do it justice. 

Once we arrived in Ackley, Iowa, we spent two nights and visited my Grandma Hazel. She is an amazing woman and role model. I love learning from her and hearing her stories. Jim and I were put in our place in cribbage. She beat us both with every game we played. We also enjoyed going with Grandma to her exercise classes, bingo, and sharing our meals with her. 

All the land I saw west of Ankeny, Iowa was new territory to me. So far, we have had unbelievably perfect weather and easy travel days. Seeing everything beyond my previous exposure was so humbling. I was literally left speechless by the beauty and vastness of the western part of our country. So far, new territory to me has been Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah, and Idaho. I took more pictures that I would dare try to put up on my blog. With every turn and new view I felt the need to try to capture the beauty unfolding before me. I quickly realized that it is impossible to represent God's beautiful creations on a 2D space, but the following pictures were my best attempts. 

My weekly "God thing": 

My theme and underlying thoughts this week have all revolved around "new territory". My most obvious new territory is geographic. I have seen more of our country in the past week than I have in my entire life. I also have covered new territory emotionally by leaving everything I have ever known about having a home. I also have found new territory spiritually by getting a better understanding of the vastness and beauty of God's creation. We, as humans, are so small and our world is so big. This sounds like a simple idea; however, I have been challenged to realize how little I know and have experienced in comparison to just how big His plans can be for us.  It is incomprehensible and I love it.