Let our advance worrying become advance thinking and planning.

For those of you who I don't talk to on a regular basis you probably do not know I have been having kinda of a hard time here in Munich. I am having a hard time with my house mother who feels that it's okay to treat people any way she likes and say things that are hurtful with no concern for human feelings. I have been struggling as to whether I try and stick it out, because I absolutely adore the children, or to move on to a new family and start all over. In the last couple of weeks I have been feeling like it might even be best for me to just call it a loss and move back home. I feel like staying here in this house with her is not an option anymore. I have tried talking to her and have tried to voice my concern hoping for some change. However, things have not gotten any better if anything it has gotten worse since our talk. I feel as if I just give up and go back home I will always regret not giving it one last shot. So today I went to an au pair agency and filled out an application to find a new family. I am going to try my best to stay positive and make the most of my time here in my current house. I want to enjoy the children while I'm still around them. I however, I can not wait til I get to leave this house and maybe work for someone who can have respect for others feelings and appreciate the hard work I do for them. I do believe that God has a plan for me and whatever is meant to be will happen will.

spring is in the air

Well nothing really interesting has been going on the last couple of weeks. I am 100 percent back to healthy after my hospital visit. That's a good thing. :) The weather is much nicer here and there are some wonderful sunny days. I can't wait until those days are more frequent and I can start ridding my bike everywhere. I am just very impatient and really wish for summer to be here now. I really want to wear summer clothes and sit outside and read a book. :) Hope things are going well for all of you back home. Miss you guys!

The good, The bad, and The Ugly

My trip to Austria started out really great. The house the family owns in fabulous. It's a two story cabin that includes four bedrooms and three bathrooms. The entire inside was a beautiful wood finish and smelled so wonderful. The snow there was amazing. I have never seen so much snow in my entire life. It was taller than me. The little village we were staying in was adorable. It's exactly what you think about when you think of a ski resort village. Just picture perfect. The weather was fantastic the entire time we were there. It was sunny and beautiful. The second day the kids and I decided to dig an igloo. We had to jump down from the second story to reach the snow to start digging. It was such a blast. Unfortunately I didn't bring any snow gear with me from home due to lack of space in my suitcases so I was in the snow with a couple pairs of leggings and my jeans. It was freezing. We didn't get to finish the igloo but it was fun attempting it.

I really wish I had proper snow gear because I really wanted to rent a snowboard and take advantage of some wonderful snow but without snow gear it's impossible. I really wish my brothers and sister were there to go snowboarding with. You guys would have loved it.

One of the days we went on a 14 kilometer sled ride down the Austrian alps. That's a little over 8 and 1/2 miles long.  When we got to the top of the Alps the sun was just setting and it was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. I can't even put into words just how absolutely breathtaking it was on the top of that mountain. Unfortunately, again, because I didn't have proper snow gear I couldn't take my camera. My house mom took a picture but I haven't had a chance to get it from her yet. The first half I had my own sled and it was so much fun. I seriously felt like I was a figure in Mario Cart. Speeding past everyone and jumping through ditches. I was the first to arrive at the half way point. I was flying down that mountain like a champ.  I will never ever forget that experience. The second half of the Trip Elin and I had to share a sled. Lets just say we barely fit and we would crash every 50-100 feet or so. It was so funny but it was very painful. I really don't think I have laughed that hard in a very very long time. So fantastic! I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Basically my Austria trip consisted of reading (Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), playing board games with the kids, and drinking nice warm tea and snuggling under a blanket. It was wonderful.

The day after the sledding trip is when things started to go bad. I woke up the next day with the worse sore throat I have ever had. So I went back to bed and slept all day. I had 104 degree fever and was absolutely miserable. Because I didn't feel any better the next day and still had a really bad fever we all packed up and went home so that I could go to the hospital. When I got to the hospital they took some blood and I waiting for what seemed like forever for the results. Unfortunately for me, my blood work came back very abnormal and I had a very high white blood cell count. Because of this they wanted to keep me in the hospital to give me antibiotics through an IV. I was a little scared because I have never stayed in the hospital before and It was not at all comfortable because I felt like shit,  hardly anybody spoke English, the bed sucked, and all the entertainment I had was German T.V. which I of course did not understand. At that point all I wanted was my mom there with me and to be in an American hospital where I could at least know what the hell was going on. I just wanted to cry. I had to stay in the hospital for two nights and three days with a needle in my arm. Not at all how I wanted to end my vacation.

I was released from the hospital yesterday and I am feeling much better now. I'm not at all 100 percent but everyday I feel better. I happy to be alive and okay. I'm happy to be home in my own bed and getting things back in order. Here are some pictures I had taken while I was there. I really wish I would have taken more but that will not be my last trip to Austria with the family. Enjoy

Baby it's cold outside!

Okay so this weather is outrageous. It is seriously the coldest I have ever felt. -15 degree's Celsius feels like someone is stabbing you all over your body. Other than the cold things are going great here. I have made some great friends and have started practicing my German. I can count from one to ten.  I have been going out with a great friend named Molly and it's been wonderful. It's great because she lives just down the street from me. We have had some great times together so far. :)  More to come I'm sure.

I had my first Starbucks since I left the U.S.A and unfortunately it was not nearly as good as I was hoping. I also got my first European hair cut and it turned out great. I am very happy with it. The lady who cut it was very sweet. The one thing I love most about Munich is the variety of people you can meet here. I have meet people from all over the world and It's amazing. I do miss many people though and most of all my mom.

My first Starbucks in the city

                                                       

Molly and me on the train home eating gummy bears

some great friends I have met so far

Molly, Jen, and me                                                              

Molly and me                                                                     

Günter and me at karaoke :) he is great

Somebody that I used to know.

So I haven't written in a while sorry about that. I have been busy working and hanging out with the children. They are so great! I have had a couple adventures. I met up with some awesome girls for karaoke on Tuesday and had a blast. I'm so happy I found a place to do that here because I couldn't live without it. :) Then on Thursday I was suppose to go to a cooking class with my friend Molly but we ended up being super late and then gave up finding the place. So we went out and had some drinks instead. Let's just say the German beer is much stronger than the American beer I'm used to. We went to a Australian bar that had karaoke and had some drinks and sang some songs. Then we went to a club and had more drinks and after that I really couldn't tell you what we did. I had way to much to drink and I was a goner at that point. I didn't make it home until 5:30am the next morning and I paid for my actions the next day. ugh! I had a blast though and it was worth it.

On another note I am addicted to a song here and can't get it out of my head. I don't know if it's playing in America or not but it should be. Let me know if you have heard it. I'm posting the video for you guys. :) Love and miss you all!

Winter Wonderland

Today the girls and I went out in the snow storm and made some awesome snowmen. It was so much fun. It took the dad, Elin, Merit, and Me forever to roll the second piece of the snowman onto his lower body. We used an old door they had in the shed and rolled the body portion up it. It was a blast. I got extremely soaked because I of course do not have proper snow attire. It was worth it though.

Nuts?

Okay so Amy and I went to Shamrocks again tonight and it was so much fun. We sang some karaoke and she poured her cider all over me. Then we got super drunk and laughed all the way home. I video tapped some very interesting parts. By the way Amy is awesome and I love her. I don't want her to go. Unfortunately, I can't get the video to upload at the moment so I will have to post it later. On the way home we also ran across a transvestite on the train. He was wearing the most ridiculous outfit.  It was like a mixture between bondage, hooker, and goth. lol. It was quite hilarious.

Tomorrow is Amy's last day here and I'm sad to see her go. We have bonded so much in the time we have had together and we have had so much fun. I don't think I have laughed this much in such a short period of time in my life. Now I have a reason to visit South Africa, which is one of the places I have always dreamed of going, so that's awesome. :)

Amy you will truly be missed!