April

So this has been a busy month. My last day of Americorps was April 1st and Dad and Eben came down to get me on April 3rd. We drove to Pensacola, Florida and hung out there over night and swam in the ocean and ate really good seafood and then we began our long trek home. We stayed over night in Paris, IL with my aunt and uncle and then the next morning our van broke down and we got stuck there for a few hours. It was frustrating but it all worked out ok (and hey, it's not a Trygg road trip without a little car trouble right!?) We made it home without any further problems and I had a week to clear out Jonno's old room and make it mine (he moved into my old basement room). Bobby joined me here on April 15th. He drove straight through which was really tough and I'm so thankful that he made it here in one piece. I started work on the 18th with a week of orientation and then this week I just got thrown in. I'm working with adults with mental illness and/or traumatic brain injuries. The office that I work at is the step between a group home and living on their own. Our consumers are very independant and I pretty much just remind them to take their meds and then use the company car to drive them to any appointments they may have or shopping trips they need to do. It's boring and slow at times, but my bosses realize that its boring so we get to watch movies and play games and just do whatever. It's a pretty simple job so far. Bobby started his job this last week. He's still with Wells Fargo but he's moved from being a teller to a phone banker so he has a lot of training to complete.

The tornadoes in Alabama have really tugged at both of us. Tuscaloosa had an F4 tornado and that's the town that Bobby lived near and worked in. We spent a lot of time in Tuscaloosa. There's a video of the tornado heading toward the mall and you can see where Bobby and I had our first date and where we used to meet up and then the tornado went into the mall where he bought my engagement ring. Thankfully his family and friends are all alive and well. There was one friend that he couldn't get ahold of and worried about. His house was completely destroyed and he's in the hospital with a punctured lung and a smashed leg, but he's going to be ok. I'm thankful that I got out of Birmingham before all of that because tornadoes are way bigger there than they are here so it's pretty scary stuff.

In other news, Bobby and I found a place to live after we get married! A friend of mine is renting a little two bedroom house and she's friends with the owners. Her family has grown out of the house and they're looking for new renters. So Bobby and I are getting a great deal on renting an adorable 2 bedroom house! We're very excited!

Last Week

So this was my last week with BirminghamREADS Americorps, and it couldn't get over with fast enough. I made bookmarks with my kids and since that didn't take very long I did a lot of sitting around doing nothing which is, of course, the Americorps way.... Ha ha... I didn't really feel that attached to any of my kids so I thought that saying goodby wouldn't be that hard, especially since they didn't really seem that attached to me. But then there were a few moments with certain kids that made me laugh or made me realize that they'd miss me and it made me a little sad. One little boy wrote "Thank you for letting me read Ms. Trygg" on his bookmark which was a big awww moment for me. My after school kids are going to be the hardest to say goodbye to. A couple of weeks ago Tracy was going through some stuff and I wanted to cheer her up, so I had the after school kids make cards for her. They said things like "gone" and "it hurt" and "I love you so much and I miss you but I know that you're gone" and it made me see that it does hurt them when we come and go. So I made sure to talk with them about my leaving and they all wanted to know if I was leaving to get married and they were disappointed to hear that my wedding isn's until September. One even asked "When you get married is your husband gonna make you pregnant the next day? Cause that's what you're s'posed to do. Then your  belly gets bigger and bigger and bigger until a baby busts out." Ha ha. They have such a way with words... Today will be my last day with them and Tracy is going to make an appearance and it'll be a bug reunion and a bittersweet goodbye. I'm very excited to go home but there are many kids that I will always wonder about. I promised my after school kids that I would give the librarians my email address so that they can write me notes and everthing. I also plan on sending them cards and postcards as well. I also have to email them a few wedding pictures because they are obsessed with my wedding!

I don't really know what I was expecting to get done this year, and I had fully expected to be here until September. I am glad that I came here and I feel like I learned a lot this last few months about myself, about Bobby, about Birmingham and about my family. I learned that not every place is the same as home, even in the U.S. there are places and kids that are suffering. I don't have to fly across an ocean or even the Gulf of Mexico to find someone who needs to be loved on, they are right here at my doorstep. I've learned how broken our education system is and how dangerous it is to the kids involved when adults shrug their shoulders and say "this is just how it is, deal with it.". I've been united with the love of my life. I've promised to marry him and share my life with him. I've learned that my family will drive across the country on 2 weeks notice so that I can be at home with them again. That's real love. I've learned that I can talk to my mom on the phone for 3 hours and not run out of things to say. That's real friendship. I've learned that being apart from your first niece for the first 7 months of her life is torture. I've learned that even with all the ways that I had a hard time really falling in love with Eagle Brook Church, that now I miss it and I can't wait to get to go back every week.

I'm excited for all of the things that are to come this year and in years to come. I'm starting a new job in 2 weeks! I'll be working with adults with brain injuries or mental illnesses and teaching them life skills such as doing laundry or making and keeping appointments. The company I'm going to be working for also always has openings working with open child protection cases which is what I've been wanting to go back to school for. So I'm excited to go to school and then move up into that job. I'm getting married in September and starting the greatest adventure of my life with the man that I love (and my little puppy!). I've been really feeling more and more interested on going to Haiti with EBC. It sounds like an amazing mission trip. I love Nicaragua, and it will always hold a special place in my heart, but I want to see and experience other places as well and I definitely think that Haiti is next on my list. So stay tuned to my blog because I will definitely keep writing!