It's been four weeks since I started with the Shelby County Extension Office. It should come as no surprise that I have been just as busy as ever! I got to lead my first real program at an adult daycare center. We focused on nutrition and, more specifically, the secret behind fast food salads. It was an awesome experience! Along with a PowerPoint presentation I put together for them, I also made a fresh fruit salad and homemade, mock Thousand Island dressing with veggies. The seniors really seemed to love the new wealth of information, but they loved the food even more.
In addition to my teaching experience, I have pulled a number of 12-13 hour days at this point. Most recently, I assisted in putting on Shelby County's 75th Annual Homemaker meeting. Our homemakers really put their heart and soul into making this year's meeting something to remember. The current president, Brenda Phillips, created a timeline stretching from the start of homemakers in the 1930's up to present day. The timeline was handwritten and included every piece of information you could have ever wanted to know about each decade, from the cost of cereal to the national news that was making headlines at the time. Once the other homemakers arrived for the event, they had the opportunity to write their name and the year they joined homemakers, and post it all along the timeline. It was really amazing to see how long these women had been dedicated to the organization, and see how much it meant to them. We also had an excellent dinner and a performance by an impersonator of Grandpa Jones--another one of those "new experiences" Sheila is always talking about!
One thing I am really excited about is the new fitness challenge I have gotten a lot of the office to participate in. For the next four weeks, a number of us will be supporting each other in our pursuits to adopt a healthier lifestyle! We will focus on having a better diet and increasing our physical activity. Each participant has a journal in which they record their initial weight and the pounds they lose over the next four weeks, along with a food log and physical activity log. Along with this, we have a poster board that is hung on a wall in the office that allows each person to mark every day they perform some type of physical activity. Each week, we will weigh in. The goal is to start practicing healthier habits, lose a few pounds, and work together as a team to do it! I'm excited to see what the next four weeks will bring!
Now, we are gearing up for county fair. All hands are on deck, and we are all preparing ourselves for the hectic week. Life in extension is never boring!
-Kameron White
No comments:
Post a Comment