it's your happy birthday!

Study break in celebratian of today.


Who would have thought that two of my very best friends were born on the same exact day.


Happy Birthday Kaitlin Jackman & Kristina Hahn!


20..phew. That's old. But guess what, I'm next.


Time is a funny thing. Today we read our 1 year predictions for our group. A year from now you will be (insert ridiculous statement here)..


According to my fellow teachers I will be "living my fairly tale/movie like life" by doing the following in exactly 1 year:
*Married.
*Traveling the Globe & Married.
*Head Teacher for ILP in China.
*Calling Kaitlin a lot.
*Opening a fashion boutique.
*Moving to Utah to finish my degree at USU, after getting married.




I think I got all of them...minus one that said something about me going into some kind of science of evolution or something at school.. I don't think I got any mission comments. Any thoughts?


Who knows if some of these will actually come true but it has got me thinking. 1 year ago, I would not have imagined all of the things I would do in the following year. Holy crap has it been a year! All I knew a year ago, that I would be graduating in two days and I would move to Utah to go to school in the fall.


In the last year I have flown over the atlantic ocean multiple times. I have been to five different European countries- Sweden twice. I never would have thought that I would end up living in a Post Soviet country...or ukrainian hospital. I have survived +9 hour time difference from my awesome family and a 5 month long distance relationship. I have cried, laughed and ate some of the most amazing food ever. I have met people that have changed my life, forever.
Woah. That's a lot of stuff. 


Sometimes I really think that the only reason I came to Ukraine was to meet my lovely Katroosa. Words cannot describe how much I love her. Happy Birthday <3


Ill stop myself before I get too in-depth.. this is not THE post. I still have a few more days to write that. 10 to be exact:]

people stare:]

friday high.

You know how they say that when you get to the end, you are right back where you began? That is how I feel. I am right back to the first week of teaching..minus the awkward name messing up and nervous lessons. 

 This week was rough. The kids are SO ready to be done and they are super hard to keep control of... But guess what! Friday is drawing a close in 30 minuets. That means we only have ONE MORE FRIDAY!

 The spectacular event is soon approaching. Saddle up, its time to boogie! 

Friday highs are fun.

Picking flowers while belting Christmas songs down the street. 

packing dominos with Americans and singing birthday songs. 

Hazelnut ice cream scarfing (no ice cream on the escalators)

Playing "big win" on the escalator in the metro with Kaitlin. 

Being told I dress very good in American style. 

A man being super surprised by hearing me speak english and yelling "American?!". 

A women walking in front of my building wearing one black shoe and one white. 

I love Ukraine. 

This man is wearing a princess hat. 

Can I get a spoon please?

When I think of "life saving objects", a number of things come to mind; Life boats, emergency floatation devices, cardiac defibrillators, seat belts and knee pads... but never in my life would I have thought an every day object so simple, would have such an impact on my short life, all in one weekend.

I love the irony in my life.


This is the story of "Ryan" the Travel Size Hairdryer and how it saved my life and blessed the countless lives of others.

Crimea: The most southern part of Ukraine. I heard it called the "medeterainian of Russia". As you can imagine, after a lonngggg winter in Kyiv, I was totally down for some hot humid play time on sandy shores of Simferopol.

This was definelty not the case.
Long story short- yes, use your imagination....
A small "cabin" (meaning metal shack)
Two wooden plank beds.
Two holy wool blankets.
30 degree weather.
18 layers of clothes.
1 Hairdryer.
2 best friends.

my life:]

Think Green.

Suddenly, it looks like a green leaf monster threw up all over the city! People said Kyiv was beautiful in May, but I had NO idea. It has completely transformed and become a rainy forest wonderland. I am in love. <3


Yesterday, on our day off, we had the intentions of going to an outdoor village museum thing. Well, bad news is..we never found it. BUT we ended up in the middle of nowhere in a small village in the rain..so it all worked out. 

         

 

              

 Tomorrow we are headed to Crimea on the black sea till tuesday! Ryan will be in kyiv when I get back. Im super excited. До свидания!

Feeling radioactive?

Organizing, filing and color-coding potential classes in various excel documents for 5 hours is not fun. I am a little stiff but this slightly painful experience has made me realize, my time here is really running short and it is almost time to go back to reality. Counting down has been my enemy. Five weeks to go. Woah. The last few weeks have been my most  difficult...minus that time I got my appendix out a while back. I cannot deny that I love it here because I really do. So far this experience has been so humbling. It literally has brought me to my knees everyday. I have been faced with the biggest trials of my life here. In light of the Easter weekend,  I have a pretty amazing friend who shared this quote with me;

Each of us will have our own Fridays—those days when the universe itself seems shattered and the shards of our world lie littered about us in pieces. We all will experience those broken times when it seems we can never be put together again. We will all have our Fridays.

But I testify to you in the name of the One who conquered death—Sunday will come. In the darkness of our sorrow, Sunday will come.

No matter our desperation, no matter our grief, Sunday will come. In this life or the next, Sunday will come.

Joseph B Wirthlin. October 2006 General Conference "Sunday Will Come"

Easter came, went and another week is gone. One week closer to home. More importantly, one week closer to sun and sand in Crimea:]

Five weeks to go. Post every week, I promise.