2 Days until departure....

It's getting incredibly close to GO TIME!  I feel ready to leave, but have tons of things to finish up before I head out.  Leaving the USA (and work) for a whole month is a bit tricky logistically, but thankfully I work with amazing adults and kids who are incredibly supportive.

Today I spent some time packing.  For the past few weeks I have been accumulating all of the gear, food, meds, sanitation and first aid items, and camera gear that I need.  A long, lengthy list of stuff.  I set it all out in the spare room, and it looked like this:

Gear galore!

Luckily, I am a pretty expert packer by now, and was able to pick through my stuff and take out non-essentials. Do I really need that extra pair of pants? Extra socks? 2 jackets?  Nope, nope, nope. Good news people, I do have some clothing wash with me so I can clean clothes in between climbs.  I will also bathe when possible, so shouldn't stink too badly. :)

Pretty much finished packing, and it looks like this:

 

 

Not half bad, eh?

I'll have one carry on and one checked bag.  I'm wearing my boots because they're heavy and take up a lot of room, and I would hate to not have them in case my bags get lost!  Other essentials being carried on: down jacket, one full extra set of clothes, contacts, glasses, reading material, plane snacks, and my trusty headlamp. Had to remember to get my Swiss Army knife out of there...I have made it through security in Germany with a knife before (whoops), but TSA would probably have a fit if they found one in my bag.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

A Very Merry Christmas From Skarbs

Hello FRIENDS!  I am blessed to have all of you in my life...it has been a remarkable year, and has flown by so fast.  So many things have happened, the only thing I wish is that it could have  s l o w e d  down a bit more so that I could soak it all in! Here is an update of things I've done and people I've gotten to spend time with in 2011.

In JANUARY, I found out I would be participating in 3 Peaks, 3 Weeks.  December 2010 found me applying for the trip sort of on a whim, and I quickly put together a submission video and application.  I was excited to be chosen to say the least.

 

 FEBRUARY saw me starting up soccer season again full swing! I coached 3 teams, a U9 Boys team, U10 girls team, and U13 Girls team. More on these crazy kids later.  I also was living in a house with some great girls, and we ran out of oil for our heat more than once. It was cold when we ran out. That could be an understatement.

Me waiting, in my indoor gear, while our oil tank gets refilled.

3 of the girls I lived with over the course of the year...missing Kelsey and Meesh!

MARCH was a month where I worked a lot, coaching, and then at the end of the month went to the Grandest of all Canyons with my good friend Janel and her cousin Katie.  We had a great time hiking around in the beautiful canyon, and spent some time in Flagstaff, Sedona, and at a really cool Brewhouse in Phoenix before we left to come home! The Grand Canyon is a place I definitely want to return to.

At the top of the Trail at the start of our 4 day trek.

Somewhere in the middle of our hike...

Scramblin'

Post hike, absorbing the view from the rim of the canyon.

 APRIL saw soccer season winding down.  My older team had a challenging spring, but are an absolute spectacular group to work with!  The academy kiddos (8, 9, and 10 year olds) are always a hoot and it's refreshing to see so much joy from players when they're out on the field!

Action shot

Crazy, Amazing, '97s.

My parents and Chewbacca came for Easter!

MAY...Carl graduated from Macalester College.  Not that anyone is surprised, the kid is smart!  He's actually in Rostok, Germany right now on a post-grad scholarship doing research on plants at a botanical garden and enjoying life.

Awwww, family.

Me with Carl and the proof.

Grams, Me, and Mom. No resemblance.

JUNE was pretty relaxing. I went up to DC to watch some soccer, which was rad.  My two fabulous cousins Kathleen and Peter went to the game with me.  The US Men's National Team won, 2-0 in the Gold Cup Quarterfinals.

Nice body paint, Pete.

 I also read some good books over the summer.  Highly recommend "Cutting for Stone", "A Glass Castle" "Half Broke Horses, and "Little Bee".  All very engaging reads.

JULY is always, always family reunion time.  I look forward to the summers every other year when my mom's side of the family gathers together for fun times.  What a FABULOUS group of people.  I love every single one of them.

Goofy Family Photo 2011

Skarbek Family Photo 2011: Christmas Card Quality!

Thanks Henderson cousins for introducing me to "Kan Jam".

Carl and I then took a cool trip into the Boundary Waters of Minnesota.  We spent 5 days canoeing around some lakes with a bazillion mosquitoes.  We had a ton of fun, saw some great sunsets, and got some good brother sister bonding time in before Carl left for Germany!

Happy Paddler.

Packing up the Bear Barrel.

Sunset on a lake....peaceful.

AUGUST was all about summer and soccer.  I sat on some ice to raise money for the Shalom Project, an outreach mission based in my church, Green Street UMC.   It's hot here in Winston-Salem, and in August I feel like  I am constantly sunburned if I don't put 70spf on, and I sweat like crazy.  One week was spent getting my National Diploma (a coaching certification), and I was the only female in the group!  I got a new team, 99 LT White, who are super fun to coach, and are a team of great kids.  We won our preseason tournament to start the fall!

Sitting on an ice sofa for a good cause! 

 Hanging out with my neighbor Nick, and The Great Dog MAURA.

'99s...a truly spectacular group of goofy and great players!

 SEPTEMBER was a lot of time on the road for coaching.  I spent a lot of time in Charlotte, got to visit Asheville twice, and listened to a lot of "Wait Wait Don't Tell Me!" and "Car Talk" in my trusty Honda Fit. I also played some soccer with my Hispanic women's team, United FC.  I am an honorary Hispanic.

'99s go 4-0 to win in Asheville!

Post-game BOJANGLES!

OCTOBER saw the weather turn "cold" here in Winston Salem.  Again, soccer dominated the month.

8am game. Obviously not prepared with the appropriate attire...

My FAVORITE place to go warm up and catch up with friends.

NOVEMBER started with soccer, and ended with family.  3 of my teams were finalists in very competitive tournaments, and Thanksgiving was spent with parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins in D.C.

'95 Blue team, a SPECIAL group I got to coach for 3 years!

'97s went 2-0-2 in Greensboro Cup to be finalists!

'03 (yes, '03) Academy Girls went 3-1 to be finalists at CUFC Cup!

The fam Skyping with Carl on Thanksgiving...from Oakton, VA to Germany!

DECEMBER has been a whirlwind.  Indoor training for soccer, getting in some practice hikes, working at the Soccerplex, playing on 2 teams for the winter, packing, and preparing for my trip!  I look forward to this coming week with friends coming into town, and then being at home in Louisville, KY for Christmas.  In this Advent season, we (I) always get distracted by what I will call "Commercial Christmas".  At church today we prayed these words:

"...our minds are distracted by the season, 

instead of focused on your coming..."

It was a great reminder for me that while I am preparing to head home, battling crowds in Target, baking cookies, and putting up a Christmas tree, this whole SEASON was built up around an EVENT...the arrival of a SAVIOR.  Whether you believe Jesus is a savior or not, I am sure you can agree that our culture has a way of distorting things to make us misplace our attention, and forget what we are actually celebrating in the first place.  So I am doing my best to remember Jesus in everything leading up to CHRISTMAS.

It's been a crazy amazing year...I have learned a lot, had a ton of fun, and spent some quality time with lots of different really cool people of all ages.  I already know 2012 is going to start out of the gate quickly, as I leave for KENYA on January 2nd.  I cannot wait!

Thank you friends and family for your love, support, kindness, and guidance.  I appreciate each and every one of you.  And remember, anything given to support 3 Peaks 3 Weeks this month is matched 2 to 1.  Go ahead and donate!

Click here to donate!

Love, Peace, Grace, and Blessings,

Or Skarbs...or coach...however you know me!

Amazing Mountain Picture from Peru!

I know this isn't Mt. Kilimanjaro, Mt. Meru, or Mt. Kenya, but this picture is so great I had to share it!  It's a mountain near Puno, Peru, and obviously the picture is taken from a moving train.  Pretty spectacular.

Makes you just want to get out and go somewhere, doesn't it?

Just signed my life away

Sent in my forms that say "if you hurt yourself, or meet you demise on this trip, you're ok with that". With the quality of Adventur International's trip planning I have full confidence that we'll all come back with only excellent and awesome stories to tell!

21 Days: 3 weeks UNTIL 3 Peaks 3 Weeks

You know you're getting close to leaving when:

You start having dreams about items you forgot to take with you!  Unsettling to say the least.  I dreamed last night that I forgot not only my rain-pants (waterproof pants), but my sunglasses.  Two essential items, but if I had to pick one to bring it would definitely be the sunglasses.  I have had the same pair for the past 2 years or so, and cannot imagine being out in the sun for long periods of time without them! Polarized sunglasses are an absolute eye saver.

Nothing better than some Smith District IIs

Also, they are wayyyyy more effective than my other pair of sunglasses:

Good for some laughs and stares, not so much for sun protection.

Rain pants are something I actually wear around here in North Carolina, what with all the coaching I do in monsoons.  A good rain jacket, some rain pants, and duck boots and I stay dry while my players get soaked. I think they'll come in handy on the mountain if it becomes extremely windy near the top...they'll be good to keep out blowing snow!

I am getting my packing pile ready now, and going through my checklist so hopefully when it comes time to go, I will be all set.  Thanks Mom for the good list making skills.

22 days...3 Peaks 3 Weeks Official Website!

Here's the link to our official 3 peaks 3 weeks website...

3 Peaks 3 Weeks Info Site

Peaks Foundation Blog

The Peaks Foundation blog should have some updates while we are away, and I am planning on updating this blog as well.  Our guides will be texting down from the summits when we make it with a satellite phone (I have mixed feelings about this), so I'll let you know when I find out how to subscribe to that.

23 Days...Fundraising Challenge!

As I get closer and closer to the departure date, this trip is starting to feel real!  Both of my visas are taken care of, I got my shots and prescriptions ordered (Malaria pills and altitude medication), paid my final deposit for the trip, have plane tickets, all my gear...etc.  To date, I have raised about $15,000 for the 3 organizations we are supporting in Kenya and TZ.  In the month of December, donations are being matched 2 to 1 by a really cool foundation.  Just this past weekend, I received a $500 donation...which will be met with $1000 from the foundation!  If I can get a few more gifts of support...we'll have a crazy amount to send over and make a HUGE difference for these causes.  As a team, we've raised nearly $100,000!  Help us get farther along and make even more of an impact.  You can visit my FirstGiving page to make a donation.

FIRSTGIVING PAGE...CLICK HERE!

Every bit helps...and remember, a $25 donation turns into $75, so you know what that means for a $5,000 donation.....:)

24 Days...Happy Independence Days Tanzania and Kenya!

Celebrate!

Remarkably, Kenya and Tanzania celebrate their Independence Days within the same week in December.  Tanzania gained independence December 9th 1961 (or 1964), and Kenya gained independence on December 12th, 1963.  During World War II both countries were territories of the British, and transitioned to independence in the 50s and early 60s.

• Tanzania was known as Tanganyika until Zanzibar united with them...the name Tanzania comes from merging the names Tanganyika and Zanzibar somehow.
• Kenya is an incredibly diverse country, with loads of different ethnic groups and tribes represented

25 days until I arrive in Kenya!

I can't believe I'm only 25 days away, excitement is building. Each day leading up to my trip from here on out, you'll get a small update about what's going on with my preparations. I got my passport back in the mail last week, so now I have my Kenyan and Tanzanian visas ready to go. Whop whoop.

Linville Gorge

This past weekend I found some time to take a hike!  Labor Day weekend was my last weekend off until Thanksgiving, so relaxing and finding some time to get out of town was great.  I headed to Linville Gorge, near Asheville, NC with two friends to hike and swim. Located in Pisgah National Forest, the gorge encloses the Linville River for 12 miles.  There's a 1400 ft. drop from the top of the gorge down to the river, so hiking out at the end was a great workout!

This guy freaked me out when he greeted us near the top of the trail.

We had some nooks and crannies to work through.

Someone lost a shoe on the trail.

Made it down to the Linville River!

I did not make this arch. Or bring the tire down.  The arch is awesome. The tire is not.

Arch framing our private swimming hole. And by private I just mean nobody else was there.

Janel adding to the epic rock tower.

We took turns jumping off a giant rock. Robert.

Janel's turn. Shoulda been a cheerleader.

My turn!

This is the only footbridge that crosses over the Linville River in the Gorge.  Naturally, we clamored over rocks in the river to reach the bridge.

Bridge!

Made it back to the top! Great hike!

I always like feeling a "good sore" the next day.  After our climb back up, switchbacks for nearly 40 minutes, we were sweating big time, and my legs were slightly like jello the following morning.  All part of the preparation for some insane Africa hiking.