The School Bus Hit My Car!

Hello friends! So the past week has been rather eventful. Where should I start???

Well, the internship was rather uneventful this week. Actually, boring is a better descriptor of my week. Monday, I had training in the morning which was okay. After that, I went on some home visits with a girl (who was super nice) and then I was supposed to drive across town to get a flu shot. Well, at that same time a downpour/monsoon started here in Houston. It was 3 and I needed to be in another part of Houston before 4 to get my flu shot. No big deal usually. Well, it took me longer to get across town than normal but I got there at 3:50. Just in time, right? Ha! They had already packed up and gone home for the day with the flu shots. Argh! So I had risked my life in a monsoon to get this shot and didn't even get it. And now I had to drive back across town to home in the still persisiting monsoon. It took me 2 hours!! Ugh. On Tuesday, the rain had stopped, but the day was not so good either. I was supposed to meet the same girl from the day before at 8:00 a.m. to follow her around some more. Well, her car got water in the engine so she couldn't come in. So I sat there in the office for a couple hours (mind you, when I'm not following someone or in a training class, I have nothing to do at my internship - and this happens rather frequently) and finally found another girl to follow for a bit. But she didn't have much either. So we sat some more with nothing to do. I was supposed to go to a visit later in the day with her, but we got there and the mom had forgotten about the important 2 hour meeting that was supposed to happen. So we left and went back to the office and did nothing. A horribly monotonous and unproductive day. Wednesday, I had more training which was okay. I had jury duty that afternoon but that was uneventful and I was dismissed 45 minutes after I got there. So I got home and started doing things around the house. Which leads me to my next story.

So, I normally park my car on the street outside my parents house. Thats what I did on Wednesday. Well, later that evening, my mom and I were going to meet my dad for dinner. As we went by my car, my mom goes, "Look! There's a huge dent in your car!" Oh dear. So, I called to file a police report the next morning and that guy just treated me like I was stupid and was like go solve it with your neighbor across the street because clearly someone backed out and hit it. Well, talking with our neighbor across the street is just something no one does. The police are very familiar with him (but apparently not this policeman). He just causes a lot of issues. Has had several loud loud loud drinking parties on weeknights keeping the whole neighborhood up. His son is involved in a gang and drugs and there has been a drive by shooting across the street from our house. His son is now on the run from the police for a drug charge. We just really didn't want to confront him. Luckily, our next door neighbors helped us rule them out. Apparently the damage had been done between 2:30 and 4:00 when the buses bring kids home, a landscaping truck had been parked across the street partially blocking the street and making it a narrow squeeze on our street. The paint on my car is black and yellow and my car had been moved a foot and suspended against the curb. Clearly something large couldn't get through the opening and nudged my car a bit. We got the police back out (a nicer guy this time) and made a report, so thats getting resolved. I called the school district and they are being super nice about working with me so far and I'm meeting with them this week to see if it really was one of their buses. Here's a pic of the damage:

Thursday, I got my haircut (sorry, no pics). Its okay. Shorter than I like but I still like it. It'll grow eventually. Nothing else really eventful happened that day besides dealing with the police and insurance company.

Friday, my brother came home and we did things to celebrate his and my dad's birthdays (Kyle's was the 15th, my dad's is the 22nd). I made two cakes this weekend which was wonderful. I haven't gotten to do that in a long time (maybe since May!). They turned out pretty decent. Nothing too fancy, but I liked them. Here are the pics of the cakes:

Saturday, I got to do my favorite thing each week. For the month of October, I have been volunteering to be a buddy for a soccer league in Katy for kids with special needs. I've also got my dad going too because he can't go on rides on Saturday mornings for a while because of his collarbone. I love it! This week, I was buddies with this precious little boy named Ben who has Downs. I'm not sure why, but I'm really passionate about working with kids with Downs. He had no interest in playing soccer besides reading the letters on the soccer balls, but I still had a good time with him and his dad. Next week is our last week which I'm very sad about. There's an awards party the following week, but I will be in Waco for Baylor's homecoming (so excited!). I'm so glad I found out about this opportunity because its brought a great deal of joy to my weekends! It also has made me lean towards getting certified to teach special ed. I really think thats what I might do. I've thought about a lot of options and I think despite the hard job that it is, I really want to do that. I'm researching the different alternative certification options and am praying hard about what to do. I really miss working with the kids I worked with last year (way more than I thought I ever would).

This morning at church was pretty good. I went back to a church I had tried like 6 weeks ago. I was not impressed with the service then and I really wasn't this morning. However, the singles group, although small, was FANTASTIC! They teach the Word, pray for each other, go out and do fun things and the people (mostly girls - they were so fun!) were great! I can't wait to go back. What an answer to a prayer that has been on the forefront lately!

I think I'll end with a prayer request. My sweet friend Audrey (we've been friends since we were like 10!) is going through a really hard time right now. Her dad has stage 4 liver cancer that has spread and at his last appointment, the results were not good. She is also a first year teacher so that has a lot of stresses. Anyways, if you could just lift her and her family up, that would be great.

So, I'm off to start another exciting week. God bless! Here's a pic of Ella helping Kyle fix dinner that will make you smile: