Spring!

It has arrived! Today is a lovely sunny day with temps in the high 50s. Although I would prefer 60s or 70s, it's wonderful!

Spring break was a great time to get away from the usual AmeriCorps schedule and do something different for a week. I went with 6 other AmeriCorps members down to Mobile, Alabama for a week volunteering with Habitat for Humanity. We wanted to do service work but somewhere far away, so the Gulf Coast was the perfect place. We drove the whole way which was an adventure in itself (one of the two cars we drove was my tiny honda civic) and made it down without any major mishaps. We stayed in New Orleans for a night and experienced the unique city and its great live music. During the week in Mobile we stayed at an old convent that is now used to house volunteer groups. We were lucky to be the only group staying there that week so it was quiet and relaxing. I had never worked with Habitat before, and it turned out to be a great experience. We worked on a house that was mostly completed, except for some interior work. We had the opportunity to paint the inside, as well as put in flooring for the entire house. I learned how to install laminate hardwood flooring and tile a bathroom. I enjoyed learning new skills and problem solving to make the flooring fit the room correctly. It was empowering to be able to install flooring myself, and we were all proud at the end of the week at what we had accomplished. The woman we worked with at Habitat (named Marci) was extremely grateful and kind and it was a joy to work with her.

Since spring break things have been back to normal, and it has been ideal weather for being outside and playing frisbee, basketball or hiking. We had our first outside dinner last week, which made house dinner much more enjoyable, as it wasn't so loud and crowded in our tiny dining room. On easter we had a nice brunch and egg hunt. There are about 5 eggs that are still missing and are hidden somewhere outside the house. haha. This weekend I am hoping to do some gardening and plant some of my seeds in our greenhouse. I have various greens as well as cucumber and peas. It's exciting!