Getting Settled...

Unpacking is HARD!  I have been trying to unpack boxes from a larger space into a smaller space.  The outcome?  Lots of boxes to Goodwill!  Simplification... the new theme of my life.  Since I've been home I have been running around doing lots of random things, but this week I actually don't have much going on so it's time to get completely settled.  School starts a week from today and I need to prepare myself!  (Ahhhhh)  I have also started job training at PureFun for the FunPack!  I will be teaching Hi-Yah! (martial arts... I know...heehee) and Firefly Yoga at daycares to three to five year olds!  It is going to be a hilarious and fun time!  Please pray that I get many things accomplished this week to prepare myself for the semester! 

Talk to you soon!  If you want to get together and hang out, please call me or email me!  I would love to see you!

-Katie

Home at last

Hello!

I am home safely and about to start moving into my new apartment today!  After jetting out of Frankfurt, I stayed overnight in the Vienna airport (it wasn't too bad--- definitely ok for one night) and took an early flight to Milan, Italy.  From there I got off the plane and BOOKED IT to the Delta counter to try to check in for the flight from Milan to Atlanta leaving in an hour.  It was quite stressful trying to navigate around in that airport, but I made it to the check in counter, checked in the business elite line so it was faster, and hurried to the gate!  I made it to the gate right as they were starting to board and since I was flying standby, I had time to spare!  So I just sat around for a bit waiting to see if they would call my name and give me a boarding pass.  Finally.... they called a Misses Baower (which I assumed was an odd translation of my last name... haha) and sure enough, it was me!  So I flew home and was greeted by the sweetest boyfriend ever, and then got to see my sweet Mom and another long lost friend for dinner!  It was a wonderful homecoming and I am glad to be back!  I haven't quite gotten situated yet, but I suppose I will be soon enough after the move and I get settled in.  THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRAYERS!  I am home, my cold is going away, and oh... did I forget to mention that I'm HOME!?!  :)  My American home that is... Kosova will always be another home to me too. 

Hey friends!  

Thanks to those of you who have been updated on the traveling thus far and who have written me a note on facebook or email.  I appreciate your prayers and encouragement.  But I want to assure everyone... I am OK!  It has been a stressful day to say the least, but with the help of a travel savvy friend and God's great provision, I am changing routes a bit and coming home a different way!  The German airlines are PACKED OUT and basically every flight is overbooked.  So needless to say, flying standby can be a tricky task for sure! 

Holding strong for the final stretch!  I hope to be arriving in Atlanta tomorrow afternoon, but if not, then hey-- I'll just have a day to spend in Italy!  DARN!  :) 

-Katie

tung

I am at the Pristina Airport and they have wireless... I am REALLY surprised.  

What I am NOT surprised about is that my plane from Malev airlines is not here yet.  Flying to Kosovo from Germany in June was awful with this airline--- we did not have enough time to get from one plane to the other in Budapest and then it was delayed 3 hours.  Now we are here, the flight is supposed to leave in 25 minutes, and the plane isn't even here.  hahaha I hope I still get to Germany in good time and that I am not too late as to miss my shuttle to the hotel tonight.  

Talk to you all again soon!  Now they're calling my plane!  Maybe it got here after all.  I am still not taking back my rant.  Malev is stinky.  :-)  I am hoping that my flights back to Germany will be exponentially better and that I have a superb flight!

Goodbye Kosovo... 

This is AMAZING

If only I could cook and beat box at the same time...

PRAYER

By the way...

If you could PLEASE pray for my travels back to the States.  I will be flying to Germany on Monday.  The scheduled plan is to stay overnight and then fly back home Tuesday.  However, I am flying standby back to the States and it is kind of looking like there might not be an available seat for me on the scheduled flight.  Please be praying that I make it home on Tuesday still.  I am definitely not wanting to spend all day in an airport on Tuesday, nor do I want to spend countless nights in German hotels spending an arm and a leg!  I trust the Lord for what is best and know that I will make it home eventually, but I desperately desire to be home as scheduled!  But I am still praising God for my ticket to Germany and back!  It was such a wonderful surprise of God's goodness and provision and has enabled me to efficiently use the support money I received for this trip in the best way!

See ya soon!  (Hopefully Tuesday!) 

-Katie

107 deg F

Yesterday was an extremely HOT day, perfect for a trip to the pool with students!  I had a kind of "going away party" at the pool yesterday, seeing the students all together one last time before skipping town Monday.  It wasn't really a party, but it was a good excuse to get everyone together!  It was super hot, but we all had a really good time and enjoyed the cold water.  It's funny the things I hear here when the Albanian pride factor seeps out into conversation.  Most Albanians are very proud of their nationality and their country, and I have experienced many students telling me flat out that the people and things here are superior to other places in the world--- oftentimes these things are stated to make foreigners from other countries and even people from other cities in Kosova feel lesser and it is something that I hope will change in the future.  I know that Americans definitely have their pride and their flaws as well, so I want to note that I am not speaking for ALL Albanians or ALL Americans.  I just hate it when superiority is used to belittle others, and I don't believe it benefits anyone.  For instance when I was putting on sunscreen at the pool (and this happened last year as well) all I hear is "Katie, WHY are you putting THAT on?  Your sunscreen won't work here in the ALBANIAN sun... it is too STRONG for that cream."  No smiles.  No laughter.  It wasn't a joke.  It may be a small example, but it is something that really bothers me.  Pride.  Something we all struggle with in one way or another.  Some just don't see it as a weakness at all, but only as a strength and THAT is where the problem lies.  As for the sunscreen... not 15 minutes later were they all asking to have some and I was not sun burned in the sweltering Albanian sun.  Sunscreen people.  Wear your sunscreen.  

Here are more pics to check out on my facebook!  

Old food...

So the team from the University camp is back down from the mountain after a week of camp.  On the day of the hike, we always take up qebap (che-bap) sandwiches to eat when we've made it up to the top.  Well, Lynn (One of the trainers for the Uni camp) spent the night with me last night and found a special surprise in the bottom of her backpack.  heehee

Our poor kitchen sink...

The land lord has been here on

3 different days within the last 

5 trying to fix our sink.  He just 

walked out of the house with 

our kitchen's hot water heater 

saying that it's broken too!  

*sigh...* It's been quite hilarious

 though sitting in the living room

and being scared half to death 

because the kitchen sink has 

decided to spit out hot water 

like a sudden cannon blast! 

It's been keeping us on our 

toes. :-)

Another Exciting Day in History!

Mom, today in history Crayola announced the introduction of scented crayons, videotapes were released showing the Titanic's sunken remains, and Beverly Lynn Burns became the first Boeing 747 airline captain, but none of these compare to YOU!  Maybe the scented crayons come close...  (KIDDING!)  I love you bunches!   HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Pictures

Here is a link to more pictures from yesterday and today.  We went to a big pool with the students from camp, had lunch today with a student, Landon, and Lacey at his family's bakery, and tonight we had an appreciation celebration for Mark.  Mark has worked with our leadership club here for the past year and is moving back home in early August.  

I'm tired!  Good night!

 

Safety First

So there is a daycare down the street that has a really cool playground!  Just make sure your tetanus shots are up to date and watch out for the nails... 

terrifying. 

Magnum

Ok so today I found the best ice cream bar in the world.  Literally.  The world... and it's in Kosova... 

This is the closest thing I have found to Chocolate Raspberry Truffle ice cream from Brusters here in Kosova and I am so glad April (my roomie) told me about it towards the END of my trip, because I think I would have gained at least 20 pounds had I known about it sooner!  Now I am going to go running... seriously.  But it was SO WORTH IT.  It's a thick chocolate outside covering with crushed raspberry filling in between another layer of chocolate with a vanilla ice cream center.  OH MY GOODNESS--- SO GOOD! 

Finding joy in the small things, 

Katie ;) 

Integrity and Transparency

Hello!  The team and I are almost back to normal speed after our week of camp.  We have been sleeping in the past two days and I think we are finally caught up on sleep!  As I said before, camp week was really awesome!  Every day we had breakfast, team time (just the small teams split up by colors--- my team was the red team!), then group time (with all teams together).  Group time was really great this year because instead of a different speaker each day, there was only one speaker for the whole week.  I think this was a really good way for the kids to get to know one main person, understanding his teaching style and learning how to listen and relate.  Landon spoke this week and because he comes from an Albanian background himself and is fluent in the language, he was able to create power points and to pick topics that were really applicable to the students.  One of my favorite days was the hike day because Landon's lesson and the activity we did up the mountain related completely and was an amazing way of driving the ideas of integrity and transparency home with the students.  The example is as follows:

Imagine a water bottle with water in it.  You have four choices: 

1. Clear bottle + clean water

2. Dark bottle + clean water

3. Clear bottle + dirty water

4. Dark bottle + dirty water

If you were to pick one to drink, obviously you would pick option #1.  Even though option #2 has clean water in it, you wouldn't know for sure since you can't see through the bottle to the purity of the water.  In this example, the water represents our integrity and the color or opacity of the bottle represents our transparency, or the amount to which we allow others to see our integrity.  When we hiked up the mountain, we played some fun games, but we also brought up a bunch of clear water bottles so each person could do an activity: creating their own bottle based on each individual's integrity and transparency (We had a lake with water and some sharpie markers to make the bottles less transparent if we so desired).  

It was a really cool exercise because it was a chance to be completely honest and let the students know that I am NOT 100% perfect just because I am leading a group and am older than them.  

My bottle was water from the lake with many imperfections in it.  I put rocks in that sunk to the bottom, as well as flowers and a couple of spiky flowers that floated to the top.  My bottle was transparent except for the bottom where I marked over the rocky area so it was harder to see them.  

Here a synopsis of what I said about my bottle in my group that day: I got my water from the lake and as you can see, there are many little things floating in it, though it is still clear enough to see through.  If you look at my integrity, it's not always the best.  There is a saying in a famous book that says "Everything I do want to do, I do not do, and everything I do not want to do, I do."  This is how I am most of the time throughout my life; I have many struggles and seem to keep coming back to the same ones.  The rocks on the bottom represent these struggles, and as shown by the marker around the bottom, these are the things about myself that I do not willingly show to the people around me.  If you ask me about them I will openly tell you about them, just as flipping the bottle openly reveals the rocks, taking them away from the covered area.  The flowers floating at the top represent the good things about myself, the strengths that I willingly share with others in my daily life.  Unfortunately, there are also a few prickly things in there as well, representing the times when I am not so pleasant, such as when I am easily angered or say something I wish I hadn't said.  The thing about me is that although my water contains dirty water and isn't completely transparent, it is on one thing alone that makes me clean and gives me strength to keep fighting for integrity and transparency to others, and that is Christ.  

Hope you enjoyed hearing about my bottle as much as I enjoyed making it!  It was a really great visual to remember such important topics and I would highly recommend it if you are ever leading a group on these subjects!

Don't forget to check out my pictures! 

 Here's a LINK to my camp pictures for the week! 

We're Back!

Hello Everyone!  

I can't update much right now because I am exhausted (I need to catch up on some major sleep! haha) but camp was GREAT!  We are back safely and there were no injuries this week, so praise God for that!  Above is a picture of the team that I was leading this week.  We had some really great discussion about servant leadership and how to apply this topic to our lives.  It was really interesting to hear their comments and to see them working as a team throughout the week.  I will update more soon!  We have another busy day tomorrow with a visit to the market, a team lunch, another student activity, and a team celebration dinner.  Sunday is completely free so I will be glad to have a day of much needed rest.  

Talk to you again soon!

-Katie

Happy Birthday Dad!

Today is my Dad's birthday!  He is actually spending it on vacation, so lucky him!  I just wanted everyone to know what an amazing dad I have and how blessed I feel to have him as my father.  He is always full of kind words of wisdom with a twist of humor.  He has kept me laughing my entire life and has loved me unconditionally, a picture of my Heavenly Father for sure.

Love you, Dad!

Egg Drop, Fourth of July, and Needed Prayer

Hey all!

The past few days have been busy, but have been fun and a good time with the team.  I forgot to mention our game night with the high school students last Tuesday!  We gave teams the same materials (6 balloons, some straws, 2 plastic cups, one sponge, some scrap paper, paperclips, a few rubber bands, a small trash bag and a large piece of plastic, and a few other things I can't remember) and had them build something that they could put an egg in so that when we dropped it off our balcony, the eggs were to stay intact and not break.  All three teams  came up with different ideas and none of the eggs broke, even when we dropped them off an even higher balcony for a second test!  It was really fun and such a team building activity for the students!

Thursday we had training with the trainers, junior trainers, and translators on the week's schedule, events, and themes. It was really helpful to meet the translators and to connect with our teams before Monday.  We also had "Big Game" training on Friday with the junior trainers so they could become familiar with how to lead the "Big Game" this week.  The "Big Game" is a fun event that the campers look forward to throughout the week where we spend an afternoon playing set games.  The teams compete for the best times and at the end of the day we announce the winner.  There isn't a prize or anything--- team glory.  That's it. haha they LOVE it though!

Saturday we drove up to where camp will be and set up the room where we will all meet as a large group as well as the room where the staff will meet.  We carried all the supplies upstairs and ate lunch at the restaurant there.  For some reason, I think the road to the camp has gotten bumpier... :)  It was a vicious road driving up and down the mountain! 

Saturday night we had another meeting with the high school students telling them what to bring and where to meet on Monday.  And afterwards, we had a fourth of July celebration at the apartment.  We had some cheeseburgers (with actual Cheddar cheese--- a big deal here), macaroni and cheese, watermelon, and the most amazing cheesecake you will ever eat (courtesy of Jo and ETC for having cream cheese).  We played catch phrase and it was a hilarious night, full of great fellowship.  The only thing we were missing: fireworks!

And as for prayer, obviously for camp, that things will go smoothly and that we won't have any injuries, etc.  But also for our staff, particularly Seth and Ken.  Seth and Ken (related: nephew and uncle) are both having to leave Kosovo to travel back home because of a really serious sickness in the family.  I know they are both sad to be leaving right before camp starts, and I am just praying that they can make it home in time to say goodbye and to comfort and be comforted by family and friends.  Please pray for their safety and for their family during this time.  We will be making changes and arrangements for the teams at camp, seeing as they were both team leaders.  I know that God is in control and will work things out for His ultimate glory though, so I have no fear!  I will praise Him through whatever comes my way... as hard as it may be sometimes to do when we just simply don't understand why bad things happen to "good" people.  The thing is, none of us are good!  We all fall short in one way or another, making clear our reason and need for a Savior.  And without my Savior, there would be nothing good about me.  My strength is from Him alone!  

Nutrition

Hey!  Today I gave two more talks on nutrition, one at a women's club (there were about 20-25 women there), the other with a smaller group of women (around 8 women) at the women's gym I spoke at last week.  Both talks went extremely well and I was SO thankful for that!  I went into the meetings feeling exponentially more prepared and I had an interactive activity for them to put different foods in their respective food groups, and then arrange them from highest fat/calorie content to the lowest.  Some interesting thoughts: 

Ice cream is a fruit.

One egg has more calories than beef, chicken, or fish.

Coffee will make you fat. 

It was a very interesting time and I was so glad to put to rest some really big misconceptions!  Not everyone thought the above statements, of course, but I just wanted to help you to see the mentality of some of the women here.  We are so blessed to have health in schools.  Even though we don't all FOLLOW the food guide pyramid recommendations, at least we can basically decipher good foods from bad foods, high calorie vs low calorie.  Well, I don't know... there are many people in the States who may not know as well.  I have just been reminded today not to take an education for granted.  I am glad that I can use my knowledge to help educate others here in my specific field.  What a blessing! 

By the way, Happy July!  Tomorrow we have all day training for camp, we take supplies up the mountain on Saturday, and then camp starts on Monday!  Ahhh!  I will post again before I am void of outside communication for a week, but until then... tung! (bye!)

The last few days...

Happy Monday!

To update you on the last few days...

Last Thursday I spoke at a women's gym on nutrition.  It was a crazy experience because I was expecting maybe 5-10 people.  I think there must have been 25-30 people at least.  I spoke on the basic subject of the food guide pyramid, noting how many foods you should eat out of each food group, etc.  It was honestly a really nerve-racking ordeal because I had never met these women before and didn't know their knowledge levels or what they wanted to talk about.  I had just heard that there is a basic LACK of knowledge on nutrition in general, and so I took the ultra basic route.  It was even more difficult because the methods of measurement are in different units here as well.  Lacey and Landon (a couple that just moved here recently--- Landon speaks fluent Albanian!) translated the USDA food guide pyramid into Albanian for me and I was able to give them a visual in their own language, but it was still very hard.  I think it was just hard for me to feel like I did a good job, knowing that the information was so basic.  But it's what they needed... so I should feel accomplished, right?

  *sigh*  

Afterwards, I spent the night at Senada's house and we looked through just about every picture on my laptop.  haha!  They wanted to see pictures of other places and of my home.  I didn't have too many of my home, so I will have to be sure to take some when I get back.

Friday we had a game night with the high school students and we played CLUE.  The first game was fun and went by fairly quickly.  The second round was full of intensity; no one talked to each other except to drill them with questions or repeatedly ask what someone just said, and everyone was taking crazy notes on everything anyone was saying.  Literally... it took 2 hours.  I now hate the game CLUE.  haha seriously it was the most stressful 2 hours of my week!

Saturday I had coffee with my sweet friend Arzana.  She says hello to all who know her back home :)  Late Saturday night two more students came from the US to help with camp next week. 

Thera and I also ate at a place up the hill called "Old Time."  It was a really cool place and you sure got your exercise getting up to it!  The view was phenomenal and I ate a calzone that was bigger than my face... literally. 

Sunday I visited bedside baptist and listened to a John Piper sermon on my computer on the woman at the well.  I really like his insight to various topics.  I am also reading a book by him called "When I Don't Desire God" and it's all about how to fight for joy.  It's good so far and I have really enjoyed it!  After lunch with the team, I took them to Senada's for another home visit!  We came bearing lots of food and had a great time playing Twister and Dutch Blitz.  I was so glad to share my Albanian family with them and I know that Senada's family really enjoyed having us.  It was a good afternoon! 

 Joanna returned from her conference in Greece late Sunday night and it was SO GOOD seeing her!  It's been raining all week (literally ALL week) and I just knew that when she came back, she would bring the sunshine with her.  Sure enough, it's a sunny day today!  YES!

Today (Monday) is the halfway point in my trip!  It's hard to believe that I have been gone about 4 weeks.  I will be home 4 weeks from tomorrow... so crazy!  This week will be full of camp meetings and preparation, then the following week (July 6-10th) is camp week for the high school.  Lots to do, but somehow I don't feel a huge sense of pressure or urgency.  Things are more organized this year and it's a nice change of pace.  I worked on my nutrition talk for this Wednesday and I am already feeling more prepared and ready for the challenge.  I am thankful for that!

Until later!

-Katie

 

 

New Pics!

I added new pictures to two different albums on facebook so check them out! 

Here...

and here...

Enjoy!  

P.s. Camp is in less than 2 weeks! Ahhh!  I have already been here almost a month.  I can't believe it!

Oh Alaska...

Please be praying for Gabe's safety in the next month.  He is in Alaska working as a fisherman with a few friends for the next three weeks and hiking for a few days afterwards.  I like that our summer occupations are now the same.  We just aren't exactly fishing for the same things!  His is more of a literal translation of the word... :)  

I think he is in the Bristol Bay area, but I have to admit, I really don't know much about where he is or what exactly he will be doing.  Alaska + fishing in the middle of nowhere = no cell phone service. 

 So you can pray for us both as well, that our personal walks would grow in the next month so that when we get back into the swing of things again in the States, that our relationship would be completely and totally edifying!  I will miss talking to him in the next few weeks, but I am really excited to see how God uses it for His good and for His glory!  Thanks friends!  

NO JOKE

So work ethic is apparently dead in Kosova.  Today I was in a store that is basically the closest thing to Walmart you can find in my city.  Yes, it's a big deal.  Well, all over the store there are people stocking the shelves.  Normal.  I was in an isle and not 3 feet from me was was a young woman, probably in her mid-twenties stocking deodorant.  Well I thought she had found an opened container and was trying to fix it.  OH NO.  She was proceeding to USE the deodorant under each armpit.  I thought, "Oh surely she isn't going to put it back on the shelf..."  

She clicked the deodorant back down, put the plastic casing back on the top as if it had never been used, put the cap back on, and put it back on the shelf--- right in the front.  

SICK!  

Long overdue update

Hey everyone!  

Sorry I haven't updated the blog since getting back from Greece.  It was a good weekend, full of fun, lots of crazy and unexpected adventures (flat tires, you name it), and a WONDERFULLY unexpected 2 precious hours at the beach.  I wasn't planning on going outside of Kosova this summer, but my roommate Thera was going with a team there,

 and I was able to tag along!  What a complete blessing!  Please check out more pictures and captions with this LINK.  

Right after getting back from Greece, we had another Girl's night.  It was amazing!  We tested out the idea of a scavenger hunt here, not knowing how well it would go over, and it was really fun!  We had the girls in two teams and had them walk all over the city, doing various tasks for different point values, all of which had to be documented by a picture to be valid.  Tasks included things like picking up bags of trash, taking pictures on 5 different bridges, getting into a public pool without paying just to stick their feet in (no, not breaking and entering.  They had to ask... haha), and eating an entire bag of cherries.  It was a really good time!  (And my team won! yes!) 

Here is a link to more pictures of our first Girl's night: CLICK ME :)

Random Things

Here is a picture of one of the streets I walk on to get to my apartment.  I love how the mountains are always in sight!  There is still some snow on some of them, so it's really awesome!

I thought these were funny.  (Laura, I took this for you!)  They hang their mannequins up sometimes by rope and most of the mannequins around town look like they have been through a lot of stress... haha

And below is a picture of the fruit I bought today for 1 euro.  I LOVE how cheap the food is over here.  I could never get this kind of food for such a low price in the States. 

Also, a quick note:  I will be going to Greece this weekend.  Please pray for safe travel!  I wasn't planning on leaving Kosova, but my roommate Thera and a team of people from the States are visiting Greece for the weekend and it's not too expensive, so I can tag along!  I can't wait to see history come alive and I am so glad my college student budget can afford to go!  I will update as soon as I can when I get back on Sunday night!  I will probably update Monday, so talk to you then!

-Katie-

Family Time

Last night I went to visit my Albanian family!  I met Senada last year and fell in love with her family.  Her mother (to the right) worked 3 hours on making fli, a traditional meal here that is basically layers of some sort of dough...it's kind of spongy... I really don't know how to explain it. But the picture is below, so hopefully a picture will be worth 1,000 words. haha

We drank some Turkish coffee and I gave everyone their gifts.  My favorite was the game Twister, a game that they don't have here and most have never heard of it.  So I taught them how to play and was able to practice my Albanian a little bit! (Well... the colors, and the words hand, food, right, and left)

It was a wonderful time with my Albanian family and so good to see them again!  I will hopefully visit them often this summer.

Girl's Night

Last night we had a girl's night, a little tradition we are starting for the summer.  We will have another girl's night on Thursday night and it will be every Tuesday from then on.  We wanted a way to meet the girls going to the high school camp in a setting besides pre-camp meetings.  Girl's night was a great way to get to know them and we had so much fun!  We ate snacks, painted nails, played Twister (a big hit!), and played a version of UNO unlike the usual version.  For instance, you can steal turns, swap hands of cards, acquire the entire discard pile if you're too slow at slapping yellow 2s, and at numerous points throughout the game we all had to stand up, twirl around, and sit back down to avoid getting 2 more cards.  It was hilarious and I think it will be a great summer getting to know them!  I am excited to have more nights like this one and to further the relationships even more by going to coffee and home visits.  They were all very sweet and gracious to ignore our poorly pronounced Albanian :-)  

Today we have a junior trainer meeting for the high school camp (5 students who have been to the camp before and who will have a leadership role this summer camp), and after the meeting, I will be going to visit my Albanian family!  I will be visiting Senada and her family.  It will be a wonderful reunion and I can't wait to teach them the new game I brought them!  Last summer I brought Dutch Blitz, an amazingly wonderful card game, and this year I brought them Twister.  I had the girls last night help me to write down directions in Albanian!  haha I will take pictures!  I miss you all dearly!  Please feel free to comment and update me on your side of the world! 

bugs. N---O.

I desperately want one of these.  We leave the windows and doors open a lot to keep the air circulating and to keep cool during the evening.  Well... this lets in a few friends that are quite UNwelcome.  Earlier, there was a fly/spider THING that kept flying around the room and it attacked me three times before it finally disappeared.  Well, until we found it on Jo's shirt sleeve that is.  I caught it in a towel and it just wouldn't die.  Finally our roomie Thera came to save the day with her shoe, but seriously: If I had a venus flytrap, my problems would be solved.  haha Look how big they can get!  I want to grow one just to see if it really works!

Flower Power

I thought it would be nice to have a piece of home here with me, so I brought the flower seed that Kaylee and Keith gave out at their wedding, along with two little metal flower pots to plant them in.  I wanted to see how they fare in the Kosovar sun!  I hope they do well and that I have beautiful flowers by the end of summer!  I know that Kaylee wanted to be here so badly this summer, but couldn't be due to something equally awesome... MARRIAGE.  So Kaylee, you're here in spirit, living vicariously through flowers on my balcony. haha! (Të dua shumë, Kaylee! Call me on Jo's phone when you get back!)

I love the idea of planting a small seed and seeing a large harvest over time!  It's funny because today I read Matthew 9:37-38 and the world was referred to as a harvest field.  I love that!  It makes me think, "Am I sowing good seeds into the harvest field throughout my life?  Can others see what I am really living my life for through my actions?"  I think a little introspection every now and then is good for the soul... I'll let you know how my little flower babies grow.  I hope that I will have good reports by July!

Spilled food, Sweet Students, & Sharski

Last night we hung out with some other people and Joanna made a rockin fruit salad (Thanks to Pam for the recipe!).  Well, one of the girls (we won't mention names but scout's honor: wasn't me) decided to set her plate on the top of the couch.  Well, all of a sudden I hear a big commotion of squeals and Matt giving her grief because her fruit salad plate and muffin had fallen behind the couch.  Much to her dismay, I took a picture.  It was just such a perfect SPLAT on the floor/wall.  Hilarious! 

We had our first camp meeting today with the high school students.  I was able to see some students from last year, but also saw many new faces.  After the meeting, we went for coffee with a few of them and it was a good time!  

Ok now Sharski.  Today Joanna and I went to a local restaurant here for dinner.  It's funny--- all the tables had a reserved sign on them, but they said we could sit anywhere.  They kept changing the lighting about every 5 minutes, darker, lighter, blue lights, yellow lights.  They had wine bottles and wine glasses on every table with candles.  A very romantic setting for Joanna and I. hahaha except for the constant inhalation of people's nasty secondhand smoke.  I am still not used to that.  bleh.  So I decided to get shoppe salat (of course) which is a salad of chopped cucumber, tomato, sometimes onions or green peppers called speca (spay-tza), and cheese, and I tried broccoli soup.  Well Jo decided to be adventurous and order sharski, a traditional food eaten in a different part of Kosovo.  "You know, it's in mountains, and it has those things [insert bizarre hand motion here].  They have too many of them."  Well, it was some kind of meat stuffed with cheese and another type of dried meat.  Basically, it was nasty.  I tried it and the taste was just funky.  She hardly ate any of it.  

The kicker: WE THINK IT WAS A TYPE OF DOG.  OH MY GOSH I HAVE EATEN DOG.  SICK!!!!!! 

Germany Pictures

Please visit HERE to see my pictures and additional comments of my Germany trip!

My first 3ish days: Germany

Hello!  I wanted to update you on the first few days of my trip in Germany.

 After being hugged and kissed goodbye by these two fabulous people in Georgia, I hopped on the plane across the ocean.  It was hard saying goodbye to people so sweet...

My flight from the States to Germany was pretty nice!  I sat next to a man that taught me many things about German history, ate some pretty amazing food (no joke), and was able to sleep for oh... maybe 2-3 hours.  I 

was thankful for that, because when I landed in Germany, it was 7:30am in Germany, but my body was on 1:30am time.  From Dusseldorf, Katinka and I drove to Koln (Cologne) to spend the morning sightseeing.  

Before we started our walk around town, we stopped at a familiar friend's house and ate a blueberry muffin.   (You'd think I was sick of them from all that baking from Kaylee's wedding, but it was still YUM)

Well, after we had out little

 breakfast, we walked to Cologne Cathedral, a REALLY huge establishment that just about took my breath away.  It's been around for-e-ver, but it's still amazing.  We walked to the top of it (our legs were burning) and got to look around.  The walk up was in a narrow spiral staircase, and it was so sad because there was graffiti all over it!  An ancient building, vandalized like it means nothing!  We got to the top, took some pictures, and tried to not blow away in the cold wind.  It was a wonderful view from the top.  

 

After we walked around, ate an amazing lunch of qebap (not sure of the spelling, but it's a Turkish food that is very popular there I think?) and Mezzo Mix (coke with orange...tasted mostly like coke to me) we drove to Aachen, where Katinka lives.  It's such a beautiful town!

Things to note: Every May 1st women wake up and if they are dating someone, they will most likely find a tree adorned with different colored paper outside their house/apartment.  On the last day of April, guys go buy or cut down a specific type of tree, decorate it, and set it up in front of the house of the girl that they love.  The tree stays there for all of May, and when the guy comes to remove it (by the time I saw them, the trees were all dead looking, but still awesome!) the father of the girl traditionally gives the guy a case of beer.  haha I think the tradition is really unique and I like it!  On leap years, the girl has to take her turn at tree decorating.  :)  

 Also, apparently German swans like to eat shoes. Specifically black ones belonging to Katinka.  We had quite the time in the park!  It's getting late where I am, so I will have to finish this post later.  It's more time consuming than I thought!