Hi Everyone,
It has been a couple weeks since I, Kara, have blogged so I thought I would update you all. 2 weekends ago we went on a hike to Bird Island which is a nature preserve area. I had no idea that you could go on a hike there since it is protected, but a girl that has lived here for awhile showed us the way. We met a couple through the church, Brian and Rachel and then Jen from church came too and we spent the day hiking. The best part about hiking in Saipan is you always end up getting to go swimming. We hiked down to the bottom and there were parts that we held onto a rope while slipping in the mud. At the bottom you can see a beautiful view of bird island which you can not see from where the tourist section is. We went climbing around and then started snorkeling. We ended up seeing a shark in the water, it was a small one and harmless to us, but so neat to see. It was great getting to see some beautiful fish too. We had a lot of fun that day. Then at night we went to a housewarming party for people from the church. They just bought a house and we wanted to get to know more people in the church so we went. It was a fun night of talking and playing with their puppies. The puppies are "booney" puppies which means that they were found and nobody wanted them.
This past week of school has been a lot of parent conferences due to progress reports. You definitely see parents true colors when you meet them for a conference. I had some good ones and bad ones and some in between. It was stressful though knowing I would have to be prepared daily for what they could say. Nevertheless I have learned a lot and it has made me even better with conflict. I do have grace with my 1st graders and I accept late work so that way they can practice what they need to for the test.
This past weekend we went out to dinner at an italian place called Shenanigans. It was pretty good and then we went to the I Love Saipan store and were tourists for the night. It was fun buying souvenirs and talking about presents we should get later on for family and friends. Then since I have netflix now I invited the girl teachers Anna and Amanda over for a movie night, The Back Up Plan which I had already seen, but enjoy it!
Then on saturday grant and i had a date for the day and we went to wing beach where we snorkeled around. You can go right up to the reef and snorkel so it is pretty easy to do. We saw some huge fish and just enjoyed each others company. Then at night we went to Solomon and Jill's house to get to know them better and had fun talking to them. Then Jill said that she was having contractions and needed to go the hospital. I had told her awhile ago that I love to babysit and could sometime. I had no idea it would be right then:) So Grant and said yes to staying with their two boys and their puppies and had no idea how long the night would be. I fell asleep after watching the puppies and then Grant stayed up till 2:30 when Solomon came back. The baby was a healthy one and they named him Niko Takota. So now they have 3 boys. They were really appreciative of us staying and we really did not mind it at all and had some fun while we were there. We wanted to show them what being a Christian is all about and that is helping others when they are in need.
Yesterday was sunday and I chatted with my family in the morning which was so nice. It was a Husker day and so we chatted after the game. It was funny to see myself on the big screen. Having skype is so nice, because you feel as though you can still see your loved ones. Then we went to church and then to Bobby Cadillac's which is a pizza place in town. I invited some new friends of ours and had a great time there. I had not gone out for pizza since I have been here so it was about time. Then we headed to the beach with some friends and just chilled out in the water.
School and teaching has been getting easier and I have a new system of discipline where if a student talks they go stand by the wall. It is working like magic and I am able to get through the material with less interruptions. They still are only 5-6 so it is not perfect, but a lot better. I am so glad to be making new friends and seeing more of the island every week. It is a tiny island and we get to go for free since we have local ids. I also am enjoying going to bible studies here and getting to know more people in the church.This next weekend we are going to Managaha which is an island off of Saipan.So more to come then.
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