lookin at the view
heather, me, casey, mary
an apostle
the view
me jumping!
the girls
awesome view from the road
wow...the curvation of the earth!
us in front of the fire/camping spot
me and casey skipping about
the view from the road!
me in front of the 12 apostles...or the 7 apostles
We took a weekend trip on the Great Ocean road. It was such a good time, more to come later!
Sunday, January 18, 2009
great ocean road
Week 2
Our team in capture the flag with Heather!
my group at the zoo!
playing a huge game of capture the flag (Mel and I)
me and tristyn in the moonbounce or "jumping castle" as they call it
I wasn't ready for that, Sebastian laid one on me!
Week 2 at camp sunshine
So this week opened my eyes to new things. I began to feel like it was more of a routine…but in doing this I was not stressed and it allowed for my time to really be focused on the kids. We also did a lot more as a group. I could just hang out and be with my kids, learn more about their life and situations.
A lot of the kids at camp go for free through social work agencies or through government support. We have kids whose parents are in jail, who come in and haven’t eaten, whose mom died last week, children with cerebral palsy, autism, aspersers, and learning disabilities. The kids here come from all different religion and backgrounds, but they all understand love. It has been great just getting to love these kids. Its been hot, we’ve been tired, but we have pushed through and this is the last week!
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
the first hot day/cricket pics
at the cricket game, look at the skyline!
I was decked out in Aussie gear! and they won!
THE FIRST HOT DAY!
Ahh today was 37 degrees C which is HOT! I think its like 99F or so. It is a different 99 though. The wind is very hot which makes it harder to stand. There is no humidy though. If there was, you wouldnt be able to go outside I'm sure. We had to change our plans and do a mall scavenger hunt. People really think that we are crazy...even more so than in the states!
So a cool story from today...there is this kid's mom and she is so funny! I love talking to her just becuase she is not like any other mom that I have met. Anyways...we have some cool things at Camp Sunshine AU. To name a few, we have the Flying High Award and the camp sunshine post box. This woman's son won the Flying high award. When you win, you get to help pick out other people that deserve the award. She told me that in school this kid is bad and gets in alot of trouble. She said that he does not respect others around him....but that is not how he is at camp! She told me that he said he is good at camp becuase everyone follows the rules and are nice to eachother. She was shocked when he explained why others deserved the award. This mom didn't think her son was capable of noticing things that other people did that deserved recognition. She asked me if she could take her kid out of school and enroll him in camp all the time! She loves who her son is when he is at camp!
Ah, stories like that are so amazing. They just make me smile. :-)
So, did I tell everyone that I am leading asseblies? haha. It is pretty ridiculous. I like it becuase I am totally in my element. If you don't know what that means, it means that I lead songs and dances and basically just act really excited to get the kids pumped for camp. Clayton has set up a disco ball and lights and a full sound system. It is so much fun, but def requires alot of energy. I never led them at camp...but it has been great leading them here!
K, well its late here and its time to go to bed for me.
love you all!
p.s. Cricket was fun!!
Saturday, January 10, 2009
one week down...
our team in the city!!
Sunset at our place
this is what we see driving in to work in the morning
The kids one day at camp
Bailey and Tristyn
Rosie and I
me and ali
My group bowling
1 week down, 2 to go...
Camp Sunshine AU is heaps different than Camp Sonshine Silver Spring... (do you like my Aussie lingo?) I reckon you should haha...
Anyways, whats so different? First, the parents here are not used to people playing with their kids or getting to know them period. They just expect to drop off their kids and pick them up. They weren't expecting the relationships that we build. We seriously have the best team ever. Each person is here for a reason and make such a difference. We had about 20 kids everyday last week...which is nothing compared to America but it was great because we could really talk to the kids like all the time and invest in their lives.
Even though the kids get attached to you easily it is still hard to feel like you are making an impact because the kids can sign up for only one day. In the states you have to sign up for a 2 week period. Here the kids may sign up for two random days and that is all!
It is easy to feel like you dont make a difference for kids that are only at camp for a short time. But God works through us and affects the kids around us. I met a girl named Rosie who was much older than most campers. She had only been in Au for 3 months and she moved from England. We clicked right away and now her mother is talking about sending her to Camp Sonshine US when she is 15! She was lovely and made me a friendship braclet on the last day she was there (which was the third day of camp!).
It is also so much more laid back here than in the states. We go with the flow. If the kids like an activity we stay there longer...oh and thats another thing. They never seemed to get bored like the kids in the states do. They are satisfied playing a game of tag or tiggy as they call it here. It is such an overall different attitude.
The weather here has been really cool. They said that it has been unusually cool for this time of year. We have to wear sweatshirts in the morning and night. But the days are beautiful not humid at all.
Yesterday we went into the city. It was really cool to explore Melbourne and get out because where we are seems so far away from civilization. haha. Tonight we are going to a cricket game, which should be fun!
Allright, I dont have internet for that long so that is my quick update. I love and miss you all. My favorite thing ever is to have messages and emails when I get to check it so keep me updated!! Sorry for the scattered thoughts!
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Here and settled
Me and the girls at sunset!
VIEW FROM MY HOUSE!
So I am here and settled in where I will be for the next 3 ½ weeks. It is absolutely beautiful (as you can see from the picture, that is the view from my house!). I am in a house that is very remote and run on solar power! This means that I will not have internet access very often so my updates may be scarce. The house is full of windows so when you are upstairs and falling asleep at night it looks like you are directly under the stars. The stars are completely different here. I knew they would, but when you actually look in the sky it is amazing! The lingo here is funny as well. Did you know that they call a sandwich a zinger and a moon bounce a jumping castle and cotton candy, fairy floss? And bad words here are not bad words in the US and vice versa. Haha.
Camp starts tomorrow! I can already tell that it is going to be so different. Camp is about 30 minutes from where we are staying. Training here has been fun too. We had to go across a lake as a team to retrieve an “Eskee” (a cooler). We used a bathtub, two mini pools, floating devices and a blow up mattress. After about 1.5 hrs we made it! On the way back we were singing the star spangled banner.
Afterwards I overheard 2 people talking. Person A: “Those people were singing the star spangled banner.” Person B: “But how did they know it?” Person A (In surprise): “I DON’T KNOW! But they knew all the words!!” It made me laugh!
Anyways I love you all. Thank you for all of the emails and encouragment!
Bula
Bula! (thats what they say in Fiji for hello!)
So I finally made it to Melbourne after many days of traveling. I
left Dec 29th at 4pm flew to LA. At 10pm left LA flew to Fiji. I had
a 12 hour layover in Fiji...where I got sunburnt, even though I stayed
in the shade. At 6pm I left Fiji and made it to Melbourne! It was
New Years eve when I arrived, and by the time I got to my hotel it was
midnight! I was welcomed by fireworks and cheers (I would like to
think that they were directly for me). As of now, I am waiting for my
friends to come pick me up. It is about 8:40 am here! Once I get a
chance, I will update my blog with pictures from my travels. Thanks
everyone again for everything, I wouldn't have been able to make it
here if it wasn't for all of your support! God bless.
Anna <3
p.s. Did you know that they have two buttons to flush the toilet here
(one has a half filled circle and the other a filled circle)? I never
know which one to press!
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