Yup, it's still freezing here! It is definitely so much better than before though, plus I really do well with cold temperatures (unlike others in the apartment... cough cough) and we're learning how to keep warm Romanian style :)
P.S. I want to throw a shout out to Lisa for the blue pashmina from London that has been my number one clothing article for years now, and you may have noticed is in almost every picture. Love you sis!Wow, what a week it has been! A wave of sickness hit us full force, I was the first last Saturday night when I was hit with a fever, and pretty much every person has had a roller coaster of a week with their immune systems. It was super frustrating to miss working at Section 2 both Monday and Tuesday, because those kids are the most important thing to me. Plus, Monday night was so hard for me to fall asleep because I felt...unclean. I sleep on a floor, on a mattress with mystery stains and sheets, blankets, and a pillow that just aren't...mine, and have been used by countless people before me. But even that I've obviously overcome and had a "meh, I'm fine!" attitude towards the whole thing so far. What really got to me was...dun dun dun... the mold. Yes, I found mold in the apartment and I thought, "Holy cow!! This is why I feel terrible every morning!!" So falling asleep on Monday night was difficult because I couldn't help but stare at the little spores growing on the ceiling above my head...shudder. Tuesday morning after being told to stay home for one more day, Erika and I decided enough was enough and we went on a four hour cleaning rampage. Here's a video Erika and I made of her jumping on my mattress trying to destroy the mold right above my bed.
P.S. I always sound like a chipmunk when I hear myself on videos...do I seriously sound like that all the time? Anyway, we couldn't get it all gone without completely taking the whitewash off of the walls, but after vacuuming my mattress, washing everything I sleep with, and cleaning every surface of the apartment, including all the mold I could see, I felt so accomplished and it was a wonderful feeling. I woke up the next morning feeling marvelous! Since then I haven't felt perfect every day but I am definitely past the killer bug that got a hold of me last week. Woohoo!
So as I've thought about what I wanted most to share with all of you for this week, I thought about these five girls I'm living with. I can honestly say that being here with them has already taught me so much about myself, and each and every day I am filled with a bit more love for each girl individually. We are all so different, something that I think all six of us can agree has been the number one biggest challenge for each of us in this new environment. But we are gaining sisterly relationships (aka love each other even through the arguing etc.) that are really blessing my every day. So if you'll stick with me for a few minutes I'd like to tell you a little about each of these girls that are teaching me so much.
First there's Erika, our very own Alabama girl. We're going to travel the world together!! Ok, we're going to backpack Europe which doesn't quite equal the world, but it'll be awesome all the same.
I got to know Erika probably better than any of the others before leaving Provo and yet as we all know, you don't truly know a person until you've lived with them right? Erika is an amazing person! And genuinely obsessed with Nutella :) while looking up recipes she discovered that this week on February 5th is "National Nutella Day" and proceeded to make pretty much the most delicious cupcakes ever...seriously.
I've also learned that Erika, with her "y'alls" and southern stubbornness (which I love, no way is that a derogatory title) is so good at enjoying life. The other day after our cleaning rampage she treated me to a gogoshi and we sat with the sun on our faces on a park bench and I just...love this girl. I think my favorite thing about her though is her love of her future profession. She is such a teacher in every way and the way that she loves the kids at Section 2, and the way I know she'll do so much good for so many in the future just makes me want to be better. She will make an incredible missionary come August. Love you Erika!
Next is Abby, or Abbster as I've often called her. Filled with fun and a classic Abby wink every time I make eye contact, this girl brings us all together for a lot of fun! I mean, take one look at this self portrait she made the other day, and you'll know exactly what I mean :) Oh man, I love this picture! It's just so...Abby!
Although Abby and I talked about how we sometimes hate to be stereotyped by our hometowns, I hope she'll agree that I love the California girl inside of her, and I agree that I'm definitely a Utah girl. Abby is her own person, but that Cali sun has helped make her what I'm so grateful for. What most people may not get to see about Abby is her incredible maturity. She studies harder than almost anyone I know, and has a way of connecting with anyone in any situation that is truly incredible! As Abby herself sings in the shower (in an awesome high pitched tone), "I wish they all could be California, Minnesota, Utah, Alabama girls!" :)
Why yes, she is in fact wearing a diaper. We found adult diapers in the apartment that girls in the past have used at hospitals and of course I had to put one on her! I'm grateful to have Abby there to listen to me anytime of the day, and give to me an encouraging wink when I look her way. Te iubesc!
Seriously, I know six girls is a lot (trust me, we all understand how six can be an overwhelming number) but I have three more girls to write about. Come now, it won't take you that long to read it, ha but I guess feel free to stop here. For those still reading, you won't want to miss hearing about my girl Ally!
Allyson... wow this girl is... beautiful. In all that she does I see her enjoyment of the beauty in things that many others would never see. I absolutely love this picture of her, it totally encompasses her!
She's sitting at the desk she bought (yes she was going crazy without one) and chances are she's adding to the average ten page a day journal that she diligently writes. For her it's a release, and I'm working hard to love it as much as she does, she's a great example to me in so many areas. You will also notice the incredibly cute french beret. She's a french studies major, speaks fluently, and loves all things Europe/artsy. I want her to be my future children's french teacher because she will be wonderful at it! The way she cares about people and each of their stories is something I look up to. I can look at a person on the street, probably think about what they looked like as a kid or what they'll look like as an old person (I know, it's something weird I do in my head) and then hear her say "I wonder what her life is like, I wonder what her story is" and I can't help but smile. We've had a lot of fun one on one times, including getting lost on the tram together :) Ally, je t'aime!
Then there's my Kasey. In the picture below she's hugging our tiny gas stove, but it's a good example of something she probably wins the prize for in the apartment, she's the ultimate hug giver and caring "mother." Ha, she is such a hoot, just the way she talks makes me chuckle because it's just so... Kasey! If you'll allow, I'd like to share a story about her that explains just how much this girl means to me.
Last week when I came down with a fever, something I've dreaded finally happened. As most of you probably know, I've kind of chosen the "hippie" route as Kasey would call it. I don't like to use commercial medicine unless it's absolutely necessary, which it hasn't been for me for almost three years now. Now, I know this is weird, and hard for people to understand at times. But it's who I am and it's something that can create awkward feelings for me when others offer me drugs when I know they just care and are trying to help. I won't get into all of my strong opinions about all of that now though, all you need to understand is that the girls finally found out that I really don't take anything if I don't have to, and needless to say I felt pretty attacked because they were all frustrated with me. I told them that I didn't expect them to understand or even like it, but I asked if they could respect me. That was a rough day for me, and missing church on top of all that really had me down. That same day when they all came home from church I found Kasey in her room furiously looking up "home remedies" for fevers online for me. She kept telling me "Camille, you can take a cool bath, and it says to drink lots of liquids, and I'm sure I'll find some other stuff too. I want you to feel better, I hate to see you sick!" and I left the room practically in tears. She hadn't told me anything I didn't already know but the fact that she had accepted who I was, and was trying to help in any way she could, reaching out to me even though earlier that morning she'd said something like "Camille I will be furious if I have to take you to the hospital because you won't take something." just made me love her so much. It's hard to feel different, to feel like what you believe is strange and maybe even sneered at at times, but her love in that small action is something I'll never forget. Man, I love her!
Last but certainly in no way least is Christine!! This week Christine and I really got to know each other so much better, and it's been WONDERFUL! Here's a cropped picture of her that I love, her face is classic :) plus her hair is gorgeous as always. I'm growing my hair out of course, but so many times I look at her and feel an urge to cut it again. Plus she and Ally are teaching me to french braid like a pro so that if I have any little girls in my future, they won't have ugly hair. Wow, I get off topic fast! Back to Christine, I mean just look at her :)
I share the wonderful mattress on the floor with her, and can't even count the number of funny stories we already have chocked up. Seriously, I laugh my head off when she goes past the room silently jamming to her ipod as she folds laundry. And the things she says in her sleep (including the time she woke me up laughing in her sleep)...priceless! Christine just has a way of making everyone laugh, and one of the greatest things she's taught me so far is not to be afraid of who I am because she is herself 100% and I love that about her. She also has a way of getting out her feelings that oftentimes I'm jealous of, I want to be able to communicate how I feel as well as she does. We have so many things in common, and we seriously have so much fun together, even if we are different in some very large ways. She'll make an incredible and FUN wife and mother someday, not to mention an incredible nurse. Christine, love you, you are truly one of a kind girl!
So, this week I didn't recount a whole lot about my daily comings and goings. But those haven't been all too extraordinary, and these girls fill pretty much every moment of my day. Although I've only known them for a total of five months or so, I feel like I know them all so well already and can't wait to learn more. We may bicker (a lot) and are such a funny mix of people and personalities, but I love each of these girls like a sister, and am grateful to share this part of my life with them.
Classic picture below!
Long story short, I LOVE YOU ALL!
And to all of you back home, don't feel left out, I miss and love you too. Just be glad to know I'm so blessed to be here with these girls. 'Til next time, cu drag!
P.S. I always sound like a chipmunk when I hear myself on videos...do I seriously sound like that all the time? Anyway, we couldn't get it all gone without completely taking the whitewash off of the walls, but after vacuuming my mattress, washing everything I sleep with, and cleaning every surface of the apartment, including all the mold I could see, I felt so accomplished and it was a wonderful feeling. I woke up the next morning feeling marvelous! Since then I haven't felt perfect every day but I am definitely past the killer bug that got a hold of me last week. Woohoo!
So as I've thought about what I wanted most to share with all of you for this week, I thought about these five girls I'm living with. I can honestly say that being here with them has already taught me so much about myself, and each and every day I am filled with a bit more love for each girl individually. We are all so different, something that I think all six of us can agree has been the number one biggest challenge for each of us in this new environment. But we are gaining sisterly relationships (aka love each other even through the arguing etc.) that are really blessing my every day. So if you'll stick with me for a few minutes I'd like to tell you a little about each of these girls that are teaching me so much.
First there's Erika, our very own Alabama girl. We're going to travel the world together!! Ok, we're going to backpack Europe which doesn't quite equal the world, but it'll be awesome all the same.
I got to know Erika probably better than any of the others before leaving Provo and yet as we all know, you don't truly know a person until you've lived with them right? Erika is an amazing person! And genuinely obsessed with Nutella :) while looking up recipes she discovered that this week on February 5th is "National Nutella Day" and proceeded to make pretty much the most delicious cupcakes ever...seriously.
I've also learned that Erika, with her "y'alls" and southern stubbornness (which I love, no way is that a derogatory title) is so good at enjoying life. The other day after our cleaning rampage she treated me to a gogoshi and we sat with the sun on our faces on a park bench and I just...love this girl. I think my favorite thing about her though is her love of her future profession. She is such a teacher in every way and the way that she loves the kids at Section 2, and the way I know she'll do so much good for so many in the future just makes me want to be better. She will make an incredible missionary come August. Love you Erika!
Next is Abby, or Abbster as I've often called her. Filled with fun and a classic Abby wink every time I make eye contact, this girl brings us all together for a lot of fun! I mean, take one look at this self portrait she made the other day, and you'll know exactly what I mean :) Oh man, I love this picture! It's just so...Abby!
Although Abby and I talked about how we sometimes hate to be stereotyped by our hometowns, I hope she'll agree that I love the California girl inside of her, and I agree that I'm definitely a Utah girl. Abby is her own person, but that Cali sun has helped make her what I'm so grateful for. What most people may not get to see about Abby is her incredible maturity. She studies harder than almost anyone I know, and has a way of connecting with anyone in any situation that is truly incredible! As Abby herself sings in the shower (in an awesome high pitched tone), "I wish they all could be California, Minnesota, Utah, Alabama girls!" :)
Why yes, she is in fact wearing a diaper. We found adult diapers in the apartment that girls in the past have used at hospitals and of course I had to put one on her! I'm grateful to have Abby there to listen to me anytime of the day, and give to me an encouraging wink when I look her way. Te iubesc!
Seriously, I know six girls is a lot (trust me, we all understand how six can be an overwhelming number) but I have three more girls to write about. Come now, it won't take you that long to read it, ha but I guess feel free to stop here. For those still reading, you won't want to miss hearing about my girl Ally!
Allyson... wow this girl is... beautiful. In all that she does I see her enjoyment of the beauty in things that many others would never see. I absolutely love this picture of her, it totally encompasses her!
She's sitting at the desk she bought (yes she was going crazy without one) and chances are she's adding to the average ten page a day journal that she diligently writes. For her it's a release, and I'm working hard to love it as much as she does, she's a great example to me in so many areas. You will also notice the incredibly cute french beret. She's a french studies major, speaks fluently, and loves all things Europe/artsy. I want her to be my future children's french teacher because she will be wonderful at it! The way she cares about people and each of their stories is something I look up to. I can look at a person on the street, probably think about what they looked like as a kid or what they'll look like as an old person (I know, it's something weird I do in my head) and then hear her say "I wonder what her life is like, I wonder what her story is" and I can't help but smile. We've had a lot of fun one on one times, including getting lost on the tram together :) Ally, je t'aime!Then there's my Kasey. In the picture below she's hugging our tiny gas stove, but it's a good example of something she probably wins the prize for in the apartment, she's the ultimate hug giver and caring "mother." Ha, she is such a hoot, just the way she talks makes me chuckle because it's just so... Kasey! If you'll allow, I'd like to share a story about her that explains just how much this girl means to me.
Last week when I came down with a fever, something I've dreaded finally happened. As most of you probably know, I've kind of chosen the "hippie" route as Kasey would call it. I don't like to use commercial medicine unless it's absolutely necessary, which it hasn't been for me for almost three years now. Now, I know this is weird, and hard for people to understand at times. But it's who I am and it's something that can create awkward feelings for me when others offer me drugs when I know they just care and are trying to help. I won't get into all of my strong opinions about all of that now though, all you need to understand is that the girls finally found out that I really don't take anything if I don't have to, and needless to say I felt pretty attacked because they were all frustrated with me. I told them that I didn't expect them to understand or even like it, but I asked if they could respect me. That was a rough day for me, and missing church on top of all that really had me down. That same day when they all came home from church I found Kasey in her room furiously looking up "home remedies" for fevers online for me. She kept telling me "Camille, you can take a cool bath, and it says to drink lots of liquids, and I'm sure I'll find some other stuff too. I want you to feel better, I hate to see you sick!" and I left the room practically in tears. She hadn't told me anything I didn't already know but the fact that she had accepted who I was, and was trying to help in any way she could, reaching out to me even though earlier that morning she'd said something like "Camille I will be furious if I have to take you to the hospital because you won't take something." just made me love her so much. It's hard to feel different, to feel like what you believe is strange and maybe even sneered at at times, but her love in that small action is something I'll never forget. Man, I love her!Last but certainly in no way least is Christine!! This week Christine and I really got to know each other so much better, and it's been WONDERFUL! Here's a cropped picture of her that I love, her face is classic :) plus her hair is gorgeous as always. I'm growing my hair out of course, but so many times I look at her and feel an urge to cut it again. Plus she and Ally are teaching me to french braid like a pro so that if I have any little girls in my future, they won't have ugly hair. Wow, I get off topic fast! Back to Christine, I mean just look at her :)
I share the wonderful mattress on the floor with her, and can't even count the number of funny stories we already have chocked up. Seriously, I laugh my head off when she goes past the room silently jamming to her ipod as she folds laundry. And the things she says in her sleep (including the time she woke me up laughing in her sleep)...priceless! Christine just has a way of making everyone laugh, and one of the greatest things she's taught me so far is not to be afraid of who I am because she is herself 100% and I love that about her. She also has a way of getting out her feelings that oftentimes I'm jealous of, I want to be able to communicate how I feel as well as she does. We have so many things in common, and we seriously have so much fun together, even if we are different in some very large ways. She'll make an incredible and FUN wife and mother someday, not to mention an incredible nurse. Christine, love you, you are truly one of a kind girl!So, this week I didn't recount a whole lot about my daily comings and goings. But those haven't been all too extraordinary, and these girls fill pretty much every moment of my day. Although I've only known them for a total of five months or so, I feel like I know them all so well already and can't wait to learn more. We may bicker (a lot) and are such a funny mix of people and personalities, but I love each of these girls like a sister, and am grateful to share this part of my life with them.
Classic picture below!
Long story short, I LOVE YOU ALL!And to all of you back home, don't feel left out, I miss and love you too. Just be glad to know I'm so blessed to be here with these girls. 'Til next time, cu drag!
testing testing, 1 2 3
ReplyDeletei just read this again. and i cried a little.
ReplyDelete:D