Well, here are my two roommates and me on our first day of the 2010-2011 school year. I have been soo busy but soo happy this year. I am being blessed by God. I have a great class and its fifth grade. I got the most beautiful, colorful classroom in the school. I come home to two teachers that are fun to be around and are making me younger by the day. We eat together and chat about the day. I am having a great year so far.

For those of you who haven't heard, two friends of mine from College are first year teachers and living with me. One is from Oregon and the other from Montana. I am populating North Dakota one Warner student at a time.

Time is slipping by me. We have been in school for 8 days already. I did not realize I had not blogged for over a week. This has been my first weekend off in a couple of week because I have put together my room and helped put together on of my roommates rooms because she arrived the day before school started. I have been so busy I have not been able to watch TV or have down time. I have already paid for it because I got a cold a day before school started and I am finally over it.

I only got to one powwow and I forgot my camera. We went to the "big city" of Minot. It has an air force base near by. We went shopping at the mall which is a great treat out here. Minot is a two hour drive from my house. One of my roommates has a car so I am not doing a lot of driving. I will be moving into a double wide manufactured home which has three bedrooms, propane heat and stove, a garden tub and two bathrooms and ac. Only thing it does not have is a garage and it is directly across the street from the school. I will need to get a block heater which, attaches to my car and I plug into an electrical plug and it heats my car block to prevent my car from freezing in sub-zero weather.

Well, it is Sunday evening and I am finally able to rest and I am going to stare at the TV and not think for about an hour. I will post more later.

Okay so I have a few new things to share.

These are pictures of my new room. Note the beautiful crown painting. I have the fifth grade, which is the grade I wanted. Thank you God. I wanted this room because it is the only room that is has this beautiful paint job. The rest of the classes are white. I have it almost set up. I am just waiting for the old teacher to come get her stuff out and the room is mine. I am well organized and I am now working on planning and procedures. I am so much farther ahead and prepared than last year. I am also excited (not anxious) and looking forward to this year. God has changed my heart in that I am not so homesick and I am willing to live here at least another year. I am positive and happy which is tremendous considering a month ago I was devastated when I knew I was returning to North Dakota. God also showed me part of why He has me here. I find when you know the why, or even a little part of it, its sooooooo much easier to be obedient and surrendered. I truly feel God is rewarding me for my long hard year last year. He has answered my prayers just not where I wanted them to be. I wanted 5th grade and my roommate back. Well, as you know, I have fifth grade and I have a roommate only not my best friend.

A girl that went to Warner Pacific and graduated this year called me asking if there was a job here for her. I told her yes and how to get in touch with the Superintendent. She did and was hired for the sixth grade. She asked me if she could live with me because she wasn't sure about living on her own. Then she discovered how much it cost me to move out here and realized she could not afford to move all her stuff out here yet. I told her she could take the train with all she could pack and I had the rest. So she came out with her clothes and personal items. We went to Walmart and got an air mattress and food and she is settled in. I wasn't sure about having a roommate I did not know well at first but we get along well and I really like having someone around. I am not so lonely. Then came another change.

We needed a fourth grade teacher and no one had applied. My new roommate called Warner Pacific and told them about the opening and messaged a few other newly graduated teachers from Oregon. With all the budget cuts and lack of jobs in Oregon paired with the fact that Oregon colleges spit out a ton of teachers to fill those non-existent jobs. North Dakota has a deep pool to fish in for teachers. But still no takers. Then, I text a girl that lives in Montana who also went to Warner and graduated with me. I knew she did not have a teaching job and had subbed last year and was looking at subbing again this year. She said she was interested but did not know how she could possibly move here before school started (which is this Thursday 8/19). I told her just pack what can fit in her truck and drive out I had the rest. I was thinking wonderful my new roommate and Miss Montana could move in together and live just down the street from me and I would enjoy having them close but I would go back to being a hermit. Which I prefer. You know when you live alone you have a place of your own to be selfish. When you have a roommate or mates you have to work on sharing the space and everything else. It is much easier to be selfish. Then my sweet, young, smart, roommate had a wonderful idea. We could move to a three bedroom and split everything three ways. I asked her why she wanted me to move too. One reason is because I have a house full of stuff, the other is because she did not want me to be alone. Another change.

Of course, I am old so at first I said "I am not moving, but you two can live together" next day after thinking on it I said "The manufactured home has central air, a dishwasher, two bathrooms and a garden tub not to mention propane to heat and cook with so if we our electricity went out we would still have heat and be able to cook. However, I would have to pack my whole house just to move down the street, I would live directly across the street from the school, and most importantly no garage to protect my "Baby" (my car) in the winter." I am still sitting on those thoughts.

I think the reason God has me here is because I am paving the way for these girls. They are young, in their early twenties. I have a fully equipped house, and I am their security. So I should move with them. But God gave me this house and it is the nicest, newly remodeled house on the campus. I like where I am. I like my house. My sisters unpacked and decorated my house. I have not moved a thing except to move things out of my art studio/guest room for my roommate since they did the unpacking. (insert whinny voice where you see fit) I am not making any rash decisions. I will pray about it and let God change my mind and heart and then I will let you know when I am moving. Oh boy I don't like change. I am a rubber band and God has two hands to stretch. Here goes more stretching.

Fort Mandan and more meanderings

Flowers in North Dakota. Rare sight.

I know I said I would put some pictures on and blog at about Fort Mandan so here it is. First I want to say that I am really excited for this year of school. After much tears and disappointment I started praying to God to change my heart if He wanted me to stay. He was as good as His word. He change my heart and gave my the fifth grade. He has been very busy around here while I was off playing in Oregon. I am really walking in His favor all around. I have the classroom I wanted its bigger and has this beautiful border of native design all around the top of the walls. It is set up the way I wanted my old room last year to be set up. I am really getting excited to start the school year. Next week is a new thing at our school but other schools have done this for years. It is a new teacher seminar where new teachers are taught the curriculum and the policies of the school. They also teach the software for grades and attendance. I am self taught on all of this so I am going to get a better understanding of how things should work and hear of all the new changes. They are setting up a Positive Behavior System in the school which I am excited about. Most Oregon schools already of these procedures and they are school wide so all the teachers and staff use the same vocabulary and rules and the students know what is expected of them. This helps in behavior and discipline. This is going to be a great year.

One more change that God blessed me with is a roommate. One of the students I went to college with got a job here as well and she is moving in with me. She is a year younger than my youngest son and this is her first year teaching. I think God has me here this year to be a mentor for her and help her adjust to living in North Dakota. I am not one for roommates. The only people I have ever lived with apart from my family are my ex-husband and my best friend. Living with people is a challenge but as a friend of mine said "God had two hands and I am His rubber band, and that is all we will say on that subject." I am feeling awful stretchy. Now about Fort Mandan.

This is a replica of the fort. Louis and Clark made this fort in order to survive the winter in North Dakota. It was erected quickly and not made as a lasting trading post. After the expedition to the West Coast they returned to find the fort had mysteriously burnt down. The actual location of the fort was closer to the river and the river has moved and eroded the bank covering most of the area the fort stood.

Here are the sleeping quarters. The ever necessary blacksmith shop

I leave you with a real treat. A part of a thunderstorm in my neighborhood.