Thanksgiving Update +

A quick update on my Thanksgiving situation...

I finally made it to Anchorage on Friday around 2:30. After spending all day alone on Thanksgiving I was ready to get to the city. I was on standby for the Friday afternoon flight and when they announced my name I was on the plane in 5 minutes! I sat in the very first row of the plane so I could get off right away and get my luggage that I was missing for two days! When I first called the Anchorage baggage claim desk they said they didn't have my bags. I was worried someone took them or they were misplaced somewhere. However, when I got to Anchorage and asked if they had my bags, a man brought them out! I was thankful for my luggage that afternoon. You never realize how much you depend on those small personal things. 

I had all of my belongings and I was in Anchorage. It couldn't get much better! I rented a car and booked a hotel room for two nights and was on my way. It was fun to drive a car again and listen to the radio! I stayed in downtown Anchorage at the Voyager Inn. It's one of my favorite hotels in Anchorage. The room is big, they have a small kitchen area, and great views of downtown Anchorage! They even gave me the government rate because I am a teacher!

 

 

 

 

After I settled in a bit it was time to get busy! I went to Walmart, a thrift store for my students' Christmas gifts, and dinner with my roommate from last year and her family. It was nice to see them again. It was fun to do simple things, like go grocery shopping. It's great to walk around a store full of food...which is fresh!

Saturday I got to watch the Penn State game!! It was disappointing, but it was the first game that I got to actually watch all season. Saturday was my last full day in Anchorage so I was busy shopping and visiting with people all day! I finally made it to the post office at 10:40pm to mail some totes back to Napakiak. Here are a few more pictures from my short time in Anchorage...

 

 

This is from the airport! 

I was sad to be leaving Anchorage, but knew I would be passing through to get to Portland in a week. When I was waiting for my flight to leave they made an announcement that said the flight was on weather hold because the weather wasn't looking good in Bethel. After 30 minutes they said the weather cleared and we could leave! I was lucky and made it into Bethel. Some teachers were on a different flight from Anchorage to Bethel and they didn't make it. They had to turn around and fly back to Anchorage because it was too foggy to land. To my surprise, only my suitcase showed up in Bethel. The airline had to hold back some luggage because the plane was too heavy, and my cooler was one that they held back. The airline told me they would get it to me as soon as it arrived. Luckily, it showed up on a different flight later that night so I was reunited with my fresh food!

I went to the next airline for my flight to Napakiak, about a 5 minute drive away. I was on the plane with my luggage and we were getting ready to take off when the pilot canceled the flight! I was so close, yet so far away. However, I was glad we didn't fly. The fog came back into Bethel very quickly. I would have been a little scared if the pilot decided to take off. So, I was stuck in Bethel for 1 more night. There were 10 other teachers from around the district that were also stuck in Bethel. We all had to sleep at the District Office for the night.  I spent more time in Bethel than Anchorage over my Thanksgiving break!

School had to start late on Monday because so many teachers and staff members were missing from Napakiak. We started school at 10:30, but I still didn't make it back until around lunch time on Monday. Again, my cooler didn't fit in the small plane so it had to stay in Bethel until later in the day. Finally, at 4pm Monday, I was reunited with all of my fresh groceries! Nothing went bad inside the cooler. After all, it is below freezing here now so that's not a problem. Yesterday the real feel was -16!

This weekend we had a movie night at the school. We watched the movie "Home" and sold popcorn! The kids got some mats out to lay down and it went smoothly! There were about 30 kids who came.

Here is a great picture of the sunset a few days ago. 

I will be leaving Napakiak tomorrow to go to Portland! I'm traveling with our principal and one other teacher. We will stay in Bethel for one night, then leave early Tuesday morning to go to Portland! It is a full day of traveling, but I'm excited! I've never been to Portland before. The hotel where the conference is located is about an hour away from the Portland airport. It looks beautiful. It's a mountain lodge and located near the Columbia River Gorge. We stay in Portland for 3 nights before returning to Alaska. Then, we have to stay in Bethel for one more night because we aren't able to fly back to Napakiak in the dark. So, I will finally make it back to Napakiak on Saturday at around noon. That means I will be in Napakiak for less than a week before returning home to Pennsylvania!

I will be home in 13 days! I only have to work 6 more schools days before I travel home. I'm in the process of writing sub plans for the 4 school days that I'm missing this week. The time is going extremely fast. I cannot wait to be home! I'm excited to meet Porter. Here is a picture of him dressed up on Thanksgiving. I keep hearing stories about him. My dad said that yesterday he opened up a 20 lb bag of cat litter and had it all over our kitchen and bathroom floor!

Thank you to my mom for the package she sent me last week. She sent some goodies and fruit snacks for my students and they all really enjoyed eating them. :) I wish I took a picture. 

I'm excited to start a new project with a school in Pennsylvania. Shawn Green, who is a librarian at a school near my hometown, is planning a unit for my class and a Pennsylvania class to work on together! We will be researching information about our school, community and our lovely state of Alaska. We will also be Skyping! I think my students will really enjoy this new opportunity!

Here are my students at library on Friday.

Thanks for reading!

Murphy's Law: Thanksgiving 2015

Let me tell you a quick story...

I woke up excited to be making my way to Anchorage today. My plane was supposed to leave Napakiak at 10am and Bethel at 12pm. I got a call at 9:40 saying the airline was being placed on weather hold because there was some fog in Bethel and it wasn't safe to fly. 

So, I waited at my house for another hour or so. The airline said it would be about 30 minutes until the weather cleared. I decided to walk to the airport so I would be ready to go when my plane arrived. It was cold, but sunny and the walk was refreshing. I was so ready to get to Anchorage! However, when I got to the airport the airline said the weather got better for a short time, but then got worse. They still couldn't fly! Luckily, there was a different plane at our airport waiting to take off. I asked if I could hop on and there was one extra seat. My lucky day. When the weather cleared we left Napakiak. This was at 11:30...only 30 minutes before my plane to Anchorage was supposed to leave! I was a little stressed at this point, but I called the airline and told them that I was weathered in my village and I might have to change my flight to the evening flight. They told me that the flight was a little delayed, so I might still make it. I was crossing my fingers. 

The small plane from Napakiak to Bethel had to circle around for 30 minutes because so many planes were trying to get into Bethel at the same time. We finally made it to Bethel and I got a ride to the airline I was taking to Anchorage. I saw the plane still there, so I thought I still had a chance! The plane was delayed, and I was 50 minutes late. I asked if I made it in time and the receptionist told me I hadn't. I had my hopes crushed. I was added to standby for the evening flight. I sat in the airport for 7 hours playing the waiting game. Luckily, they had wifi there so I watched Netflix and read a book. 

It finally came time for the evening flight. I was seeing other teachers arriving from their villages and they said they were on the evening flight. It was exciting to talk to some other people I knew and tell them my situation. The plane ended up being late so we were waiting around for awhile. I went up to the ticket counter and asked how the standby situation looked and what number I was on the list. She took a few minutes to look it up and I was number 1 on the list!!! I was so excited. I thought for sure I had a chance to get out. (By the way, there are usually only 5 flights per day to Anchorage on two airlines. When they are all full it's a difficult situation, as you can see.)

After another 30 minutes, an announcement was made. "Attention standby travelers"... that was me! I was ready for them to call my name. "This flight is completely full. We will not take any standby travelers for this flight. Please make reservations at the desk to be rescheduled." What a disappointing moment. The other teachers apologized, but it wasn't their fault. It wasn't my fault. That's just the way it worked out. 

So, I made my new reservation. The airline isn't flying tomorrow (Thanksgiving), so I am schedule to fly on Friday. I'm on standby for the noon flight incase anything opens up, and I definitely have a seat on the evening flight. There are only 37 seats on these planes! 

It was time for me to collect my luggage. I asked a worker and she said that it would be right out. After waiting patiently for about 15 minutes a man asked if he could help me. I told him I was on standby, but didn't make it so I was trying to pick up my luggage. He let me in the back area and.....IT WASN'T THERE. He said, "Yeah, we don't have it. I don't know where it is." He was nice, but how do you not know where my luggage is?! I was just a little mad. (My luggage ended up making it to Anchorage without me, apparently. I'll find out when I get there on Friday.)

Now, I am without any of my luggage. I don't have a toothbrush, hairbrush, deodorant, or any clothes besides what I am wearing! Luckily, the school district I work for allowed me to stay in one of the offices. It's better than paying $200 a night for a bad hotel. So, I save $400 and sleep on a couch for two nights. I can sleep anywhere. 

I will be spending Thanksgiving alone. I'll talk with my family on the phone and probably watch movies. I will eat a microwavable meal. However, I have food, water, and a warm place to sleep. Things could be worse. I'm trying to make the best of it. 

I'm excited to get to Anchorage on Friday, whatever time I get there. I will post pictures when I return! It will be a quick trip. I'll get there Friday and return on Sunday. However, it will be a nice weekend away. 

Also, I just found out I get to go to Portland with my principal and one other teacher in 2 weeks! We are going for a professional development conference. I'm eager to go!

The snow has arrived!

It FINALLY snowed in Napakiak! The river is slowly starting to freeze. I haven't walked down to the river in about 2 weeks, but I saw it from the air on Saturday. 

Here is what it looked like on November 5.

I ran into some students down by the river.

Here is the snow! This is the view from my house. The red building is the school. 

Last week the snow was perfect for snow balls. I told my students to meet me by the school at 5 o'clock for a snowball flight. Only one student showed up at first...and he was early! Finally a few more came. It was fun! 

One family was giving away puppies and they brought one to the school! It was tiny.

On Saturday I got to travel to Bethel (5-6 minutes away) for second year teacher training. I was so excited to go because I hadn't been there in over a month! I was missing simple things, like real milk. I captured a few quick pictures on our ride back to Napakiak from the air. 

I'll be leaving for Anchorage on Wednesday morning. I'm so excited! It's currently snowing so I'm hoping that the weather is good enough to fly on Wednesday. A few flights were cancelled last week because the weather was terrible. Luckily, I wasn't scheduled to fly on any of them. 

One of our older teachers was playing volleyball with some of the students last week. He dove for a ball and ended up falling...breaking his hip! He had to be medevaced from Napakiak to Anchorage that night! My class made him get well soon cards and they also told me I should buy him cookies to make him feel better. I'll be making a trip to see him either at the hospital or his hotel. When someone gets injured in the bush it can be a long process to get to the correct help you need. 

The sun is rising around 10am here and setting just before 5pm. It still takes some getting used to, but I try to enjoy it while I can. We are also bundling up. Students are wearing all of their snow gear to school now. The average temperature is usually in the high 20s or low 30s. Still cold!

Check out one of my student's earrings she wore last week...

When I get back from Anchorage we have 3 more weeks of school and then I will be heading home for Christmas break! I'm leaving Napakiak on December 18 after school and I will arrive in Philly on December 19 in the afternoon! I also booked my flight home in May already because I found a really great deal. I will be home May 22...a day before my birthday! I can't wait to see Hunter!

Here's a nice picture from a sunset a few weeks ago.

Thanks for reading!

Halloween!

Halloween is over! I can't believe it's already November. I'll be in Anchorage in 3 short weeks enjoying Thanksgiving and soon after that I will be on my way home to Pennsylvania for Christmas! The year is flying by. I'm definitely busier than last year. There is something going on at the school every weekend. Basketball tournaments with the village, volleyball tournaments with students, student council events, or village meetings! Here is a cute picture from a basketball tournament with the referee...

Halloween is always fun. It was especially busy this year. We had a haunted house on Friday night and then a Halloween Carnival on Saturday afternoon. We spent all week preparing for the events by baking cakes, frosting cakes, making posters, and going through costumes! It was fun but I was exhausted!

 

 

 

 

 

Trick or treat was after the Halloween Carnival. We rushed around to clean up and I made it home just in time for the first trick or treaters! We had over 50 kids come to our door. My roommate made homemade cookies and I bought candy when I was in Anchorage to hand out. The weather was perfect for the night. It was just getting dark out as we had the last small knocks on the door.

Here are some Halloween pictures from my classroom. I completely forgot to take a class picture, but many of my students wore costumes. We played BINGO, painted scary pictures, and watched Hotel Transylvania. We also enjoyed gummy vampire teeth, popcorn, cupcakes, and pumpkin seeds.

 

 

We carved a small pumpkin last week and each student got to either draw part of the face before carving or help take the seeds out! They loved playing with the inside of the pumpkin and thought the texture was funny.

Today we needed a break so we did some crafting.

Yesterday we had an important bullying presentation. The presenter traveled all the way from Dallas, Texas! My students kept asking, "How many planes did he take to get here??" It's a big deal when someone comes from that far away. He kept the students attention by doing some magic tricks. It was entertaining. One student even said, "Wow, he's like Houdini!"

A few things I'm looking forward to doing when I'm home for Christmas break..

Traveling to watch Penn State Football in a bowl game wherever it may be, seeing Kevin Hart, meeting our new puppy, enjoying Christmas with my family, and eating homemade meals again!

Thanks for reading! :)