Miss Me?

Gosh.  I haven't written forever.  Seems so much has happened that I won't be able to catch up.  Sharon and I had a family wedding.  Our amazing friends and family came together to help us celebrate 15 years.   We went on a vacation to British Columbia sans children.  The kids started school.  Carson in 5th grade and Sam in 2nd.  We are planning for Carson's summer trip to Japan.  Shelby is doing great living in Portland and making her way.  We added a Wiener dog to the family (very bad wiener).  So today I start writing again as a way to procrastinate cleaning out a gross fish tank.  There, you are caught up.  Now I can move on.

Our Sorrowful Lady. I am in LoVe

You are probably aware of my ever so slight addiction to thrift stores. I love finding beauty in others cast aways and chotchkies. This month I found a few awesome gems. We recently got rid of our couch since it had become a glorified dog bed and hair attractor. Carson's allergies seem to have slightly improved since it left the house. I have been arranging the front room weekly to get a feel for how I want to sit in it.
I traded my bike for a velvet chair with my friend, Rosa. Then she gave me a chair to use until she decided what to do with it. I was looking around for a while for a great second hand chair and I ran across it in the Goodwill for 65$.
The same day I saw this painting from the next aisle and my heart skipped a beat. I love Religious art and Idols and this is so amazing. It is a painting of Our Sorrowful Lady by Paul Mihailescu. There is a listing of shows the Idol has been in including The Maryhill Museum, and the Portland Art Museum. Grand total....7.99$

Going to Haiti!

Well, I did it. I signed the papers and started the fundraising. I am going to Haiti the first week of April to work in the Port Au Prince Hospital. The hospital is open and we won't be working in Mash Tents, but conditions are still extremely bad there. The hospital I am going to is the only trauma/ICU center in the country. I am going with a team of mostly adult practitioners, but they are taking a few pediatric folks. I will be working in the pediatric ICU there with my coworker, Bryan and potentially another coworker and friend, Diana.
I am waiting on a passport. I have a call in to the Kaiser travelers clinic to get my vaccines and anti malarial meds. I will have to take chloroquine to prevent Malaria as well as sleep under netting at night. Some of the side effects are common...headache, nausea, etc. But....nightmares? I hope that side effect stays away.
I am overwhelmed by the support I have received from friends and family. I started a fundraising page and within 24 hours received over 700$ in donations from folks just wanting to help. My trip is fully funded and any extra money can be used to help my coworkers pay for their trips. I received a generous personal donation yesterday to use in anyway that will help which is greatly appreciated.
I am planning to have a donation drive at Richmond Elementary and ask for onesies, thin blankets, colored pencils, lollypops and fun stuff for kids to share with the beautiful people of Haiti. I am hoping that the principal will agree to this and that we can get a suitcase full of love for me to take.

I will keep you all posted.