THE LAST TWO DAYS!

Hello everyone! As Katrina has already stated, we have made it back in Elmira safety. The last two days have consisted of traveling and enjoying our last few days together. Saturday was the drive from Berea, Kentucky to Harrisonburg, Virginia. Saturday also marked Katrina's 20th birthday! We stopped along the day to eat at a really amazing food court catered by the GreenBrier Luxury Resort. We all really enjoyed it. We arrived in Harrisonburg, Virginia at around 3:30 and all agreed that we should relax before we head out for our last dinner together. Harrisonburg was really hot and the temperature was close to 90 degrees, so we all decided to take advantage of the pool until our dinner plans at L'Italia at 7:00 p.m. L'Italia had amazing italian food and all of us enjoyed the brushetta, pasta, steak, and deserts we all ate throughout the meal. After dinner we decided to drive through James Madison University (JMU) to take a look at the campus. We all were amazed at how big and beautiful the campus was. Our trip in many ways indirectly took on a new purpose. For all of us it made us start thinking about graduate schools and we were able to visit two universities and drive through two. After JMU we stopped at Starbuck's and drank coffee and chatted about our trip. A good way to end it! We also took a picture together for the last time as one big group for Katrina's birthday. I do not have the picture, but hopefully it will appear on this blog soon! After Starbuck's, we all went back to the hotel and settled into our beds. It was nice to sleep in a big bed, with comfy sheets after being in a dorm bed for the last couple of weeks. We all went to bed early since we had a six a.m. wake up call to head back to ELMIRA!

The ride back to Elmira was long, since we were all so anxious to be reunited with our friends and family. At the same time, however, we were all sad that this would be our last day as one big group. I know we have said it on this blog before, but we really have become a family! We ate breakfast at the hotel and were on the road by 7:30 a.m. The day consisted of Dr. Johnson driving, with the rest of us sleeping. We stopped about an hour outside of Elmira at Taryn's house in Mansfield, PA. Taryn's family made us homemade lemonade and snacks and it was a much needed final break before the last hour to Elmira. Thanks Rumsey's!

We are all back at Elmira. Some of us are leaving in the next couple of days for the summer, while others of us will be staying and working and taking classes at Elmira over the summer. Also for Melinda this is her last week here at EC before she graduates! We all are happy to be back, but also extremely happy that we had the opportunity to go to Kentucky this Term III

SENDING OFF!

Nolan, Melinda, Kara, Taryn, Amanda & Katrina.

We have arrived back in Elmira! Over the last few weeks we have all had a really great time and formed some new friendships as well.

Today was our last day at the Child Development Lab. We re-screened children who had failed the first round of hearing screenings. We soon realized that we have officially had an impact on a child's health! The child saw her pediatrician after we had reported a type B tympanogram (tympanometry tests the condition of the inner ear and the flexibility of the ear drum). She was given antibiotics and just one week later (today), she had a type C tympanogram result. In other words, we indicated that something was going on in her inner ear, she was treated by her pediatrician, and we noted a significant improvement in her tympanogram results after just a week. Pretty cool! :)

We spent the rest of the day taking it easy and soaking in our last day in Kentucky. Nolan, Kara, and I went crawdad fishing for several hours in the creek behind the school. We found stones that were perfect for skipping along the water. After meandering through the local shops one last time, we had a lovely dinner at the Boone Tavern.

Since we were unable to take pictures of the children at the CLD, we decided to take pictures of ourselves undergoing various parts of the hearing screening process...

Otoscopy (looking at the ear canal and/or the ear drum)

Practicing tympanometry

This time on our eagle

For real!

Normal tympanometry results

Audiometer

Conditioning for our game. Kara is wearing headphones attached to the audiometer. (Throw the ball when you hear a "beep")

He earned a sticker!

The crew with Melissa, who helped us very much.

Melissa and Wilma. They did so much for us at the CDL :)

The crew with our new friend, Janice Blythe, Ph.D., Chair, Division III.

After a wonderful dinner at the Boone Tavern.

 Tomorrow we head to Virginia. The day after, Elmira.



Bye Kentucky!!! <3

Tennessee

This morning we did not go to the CDL, however we did not sleep in late. We got up and headed off to Tennessee this morning. We arrived at the Museum of Appalachia around 11:30 and explored until about 3:30. Around 1:15 we ate lunch at the little diner at the museum. At this museum there were many different buildings that ranged from homes to school houses. This was a very interesting place to attend not only were all the buildings we saw interesting but about halfway through the little 'village' there were two people playing instruments and singing. This was Appalachian music, as they so said. While walking to the different buildings we encountered a few animals. There were roosters, peacocks, salamanders, and goats. We all got excited when it came to seeing these animals that we tried feeding them, which worked and kept us busy for longer. We finally gave up on the animals and explored the gift shop then went back on the road to Berea. Once back to Berea we had a little time off until Taryn, Katrina, Dr. Johnson, and I attended the Berea Alumni Bluegrass concert on campus. They even sang one of our trip songs, "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive', which we all loved. After the concert us four went to Papalino's for a late dinner because we did not have dinner yet. The pizza was the best that we had yet. We are all preparing now for our last day at the CDL.

Mark Twain's Family Cabin

Small House

Peacock

Goats

Berea Bluegrass Alumni

The Fork and Flick

The CDL was a little bit slower today, however we were still able to screen a few children.  The children we screened were younger, therefore it was more difficult to keep their attention. This really enforced the idea we need to be energetic and animated to put the children at ease and keep their attention, which is an area we keep improving upon.  During the screening today the way in which we worked  truly seemed professional, I feel that we really have grown as individual students, and as a group.

After the CDL we took a small break to relax before heading off to Fort Boonesborough.  Fort Boonesborough is the Reconstruction of the fort which was once built by Daniel Boone and his follows.  Daniel Boone founded the site when we was working for Richard Henderson clearing a way through the Cumberland Gap.  We really found interest in the site.  It was almost like a reenactment village because in some of the log cabins there were individuals dressed in clothing from the original time of the fort showing traditional skills such as woodworking, candle making, ceramics, and weaving. Dr Johnson, Melinda and I also attended an orientation video on the fort which gave us a basic overview of the fort and the surrounding troubles. 

After Fort Boonesborough we went to Richmond were we had some ice cream shakes and caught a Movie. Finally we ended the night by going to a local eatery which really exceeded our expectation from when we first arrived.

Eating Our Way Through Eastern Kentucky

The CDL was in full swing this morning and we were able to screen five children. We were able to screen a pair of two brothers, both  with PE-Tubes in their ears. It was a great experience for all of us to see what these tubes look like and their effects on the screening process. Also today we screened a wide age range. Two of the children were over five years old, well others were two. Especially with the two year old's, we had to stay pretty lively and animated, and Ted reminded us to always be energetic and enthusiastic when working with a young populations. As we left the CDL, we all agreed that we have gained a lot of experience throughout the trip and that we have truly grown into a great team that can naturally work together each day. 

After the CDL it was time for us to embark on our journey to UK. We hoped in the car at 11:15, so that we could make it to Lexington in time for our 12:30 appointment. Lexington is one of the largest cities in Kentucky and has a population of 300,000 people. We all know UK for it's amazing basketball team, but I was very excited to see what it's College of Health Science's had to offer. We met with Sharon Stewart, Ed.D., the Interim Dean and Professor of the University of Kentucky College of Health Sciences. Dean Stewart gave us a great overview of the Lexington area and UK in general, and ultimately discussed both the masters and doctorate programs available at UK in the field of Communication Sciences and Disorders. Her overview was very detailed and gave us a great feel for UK. After the overview,  Dean Stewart showed us around the entire Speech and Hearing clinic and even brought us into one of the classrooms. It was a great tour and all of us felt as though their clinic was HUGE. It was a nice, brand new facility. After the tour we all set out to explore the campus and, naturally, hit up the bookstore. We all got various UK items for both ourselves and our families. 

After UK, we went to Hall's on the River, which is a restaurant that claim's it serves southern food with a twist. We all were very hungry and were able to sample a ton of great foods. We were able to eat such things as, beer cheese nachos, Hot Brown's, fried pickles, deep fried oreos and tons of sea food. One thing is for sure, we have never had a bad meal in Kentucky. After Hall's we returned to the campus and throughout the night talked, watched movies, and laughed. We are all having a lot of fun, but naturally the night ended early, as we all went to bed to be rested for our early hearing screenings the next day!

University of Kentucky!

The observation hallway in University of Kentucky's Speech and Hearing Clinic

The gang with Dean Sharon Stewart in one of the classrooms used for the SLP Master's program.

Outside of the Bookstore.

The UK Bookstore. Just a little bit bigger than Elmira's.

I finally got to have a Hot Brown. Delicious!

Of Course we had to finish the meal with some deep fried Oreos. 

 

 

 

 

We're back at it!

Today we continued our hearing screenings at the Child Development Lab. We have become an efficient team and are completing the screenings much faster and with ease. Today we saw four children. Three of them were very cooperative. The forth child was a bit uneasy and clung to his mother for the entire process. Even though he was less than excited to let us look in and touch his ears, we were able to complete otoscopy, tympanometry, and otoacoustic emissions-- a success!

Afterwards, we visited the Buffalo Trace Distillery, an interesting and important part of Kentucky history. The distillery began in 1787 and currently consists of 119 acres and 114 buildings. It is located on an ancient buffalo migration path (hence the name). The cool thing about this particular distillery is that it is the oldest continually operating distillery in the U.S. and was operational even during Prohibition. Locals were only able to purchase whiskey if it was for "medicinal" purposes and they had a prescription from their physician. Those of us that are 21 were able to have a taste. It was quite an experience. :)

 

A Winning Sunday

This morning we hopped in the Suburban and left Berea for Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby in Louisville. The two hour drive was well worth it, many of us were much more surprised then expected We started out our time by going to watch a short video which talked about the history of the derby and then shortly after headed out on a behind the scenes tour. The driver took us the other side of the tracks most people do not get to see. In this back area we not only gained further details in to the Kentucky Derby, as well as all the races that take place but we also saw thousands of horses in their stalls, along with a beautiful view of the complex. After the tour we headed into the gift shop where Kara bought a Kentucky Derby hat and then to the cafe for a lovely lunch. We then headed to the Derby Museum where we viewed clothes worn by the famous to the derby, trophies, statues, informative display and we also got to have a chance at horse racing ourselves through numerous games. Our time in Churchill downs ended by going into the stands and experiencing a race. Our tour guide previously informed us that the 5th race { 1 1/16 mile} is the best one to watch because it starts at the crowd side as opposed to the other side, so that is the one that we went to watch. During the race our legal half of the group experienced mint juleps, Nolan, Melinda, and Kara all agreed that this drink was not to their liking but they had to try it because they were at Churchill Downs. We had such a great time and none of us wanted to leave. I personally loved Churchill Down and have found it to be one of my favorite parts of the trip thus far, and most of the others feel the same way!

On our way back to Berea we drove through the campus of Louisville, which was beautiful and finished our day together with dinner at Mariachis Mexican restaurant for dinner.

Renfro Valley

RENFRO VALLEY

Back Porch for dinner

Artisan Center (one of the small shops)

Asleep at the Wheel

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

Today we all took advantage of sleeping in as long as we could.  Once we all got up and ready we went to Berea Coffee & Tea for breakfast/ lunch around 2.  Then we went off to Old Town in Berea and went to the little shops that were around town.  We realized we did not have enough time to hit all the shops before we had to leave so we decided that we must go back.  We left and went to dinner at the Back Porch, which was a barbecue.  After dinner we looked around the cute little shops at Renfro Valley.  At 8 we all went to the concert and first enjoyed Asleep at the Wheel, then after intermission came the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.  We all sang along to the songs that we knew and we enjoyed ourselves with the songs that we did not know.  After the concert was over we all came back to dorms to get ready for another fun filled day tomorrow!! 

Will The Real Dr. Ted Johnson Please Stand Up...

                                                       

                                             

Well... At dinner tonight Dr. Johnson left our table for a moment. Melinda took the opportunity to try on his famous hat and it turned into us all trying it on for fun.  This truly shows how much of a family we have become on this trip and how much fun we have together!