Plans, Food, Emotions. Alles Möglich

 Guten Tag!

        So let me catch you up on all my crazy adventures here on the farm!

    These past couple of days I have been doing a lot of planning. My mom wants to come and visit at the end of August and do some traveling. So, I have been assigned to a lot of the planning. I never knew how much planning a vacation needs. I send musch respect to everyone who plans out entire vacations! But, it's all coming together and I'm really looking forward to it! On top of that, my oldest host sister adn I are making alot of plans together. For example, in August, we want to go to three weekend festivals together. Open Flair, about 5 days long, Stemweder Open Air Festival, a Friday and Saturday, and Wonderland, another weekend festival. So, August is going to be my festival month with lots going on! Plus, we were also talking about going to the Ruhrgebiet during the Easter break. So basically to Essen, Dortmund, Bottrup and all the cities in that area. So, my little country life is getting more and more plans everyday!

    Besides that, we have been doing a lot of wood cutting and bush trimming since we are only allowed to to that until the beginning of March. Why? There's apperently a law say this because birds start to make nests and lay eggs around the beginning of March and we have to save all the baby birds from losing their homes in the trees and bushes. Interesting, I had never actaully thought about that. My host dad explained this after pushing my host siblings to get outside and do some work.

    I have also been working on ideas for my ambassador project. Through this program I have to do a type of project for my community to connect our cultures and give back. SO, since I was really involved with band back home, I am thinking about getting my friends and my Posaunenchor together to play some marching band pep tunes! I could talk a bit about how football is a big thing and the band is always there to support the football team and show off the music and the a little bit of my conducting stuff. I think that would basically combine everything I really send time on. So I'm pretty excited about that,

    Back home, my family and I cook a good bit. Usually not really typical foods either. For example, Kale Chips. You take kale leaves with a little bit of oil and salt and bake them and they become thin, crunchy chips! One day I came home and saw a whole bunch of kale and I asked if my family new kale chips. They didn't believe that you could make chips out of kale. So, I made a couple trays of kale chips! They were really surprised and really excited! I may not cook much here, but what I do make, they really really enjoy! (Remember my christmas cookies?) My roomate from camp, Hannah, and I met up and tried to make funnel cake too. My host brother came with me because he was curious what two american girls were going to cook. We didn't have a funnel, or a deep fryer. But somehow we managed. And everyone LOVED them. We downed probably 10 all together (Hannah, my host brother, Hannah's two host brothers, my host mom and I). That was such a great time. We are just the goofiest bunch of all.

        Now kind of a state of mind update:
    When you live abroad, life gets normal. You come in thinking every day is going to be exotic and action-packed, but that isn't the case. You get a routine, you have friends, you siblings get on your nerves, you don't want to get up for school; the list goes on and on. But that's the point, I think. You get to know what it's like to LIVE somewhere else, live that lifestyle and that routine. When you realize that you feel all these 'normal' things, you realize that life is still life, even though you're far away from what you know. Germany and America have their differences, of course, but they are still so similar. I don't feel like I'm just the exchange kid anymore. I feel like I am a part of everything that goes on here and I feel like I've really gotten to know what it's like to live in rural Stemwede. It feels normal; it feels like a home. And sometimes, you forget somethings about where you came from and don't even notice it until it comes up. For example, it came up yesterday that I completely forgot what the doorknobs in my house back home look like because I got so used to the ones here. At first, I came in and thought, 'AWESOME! Old style keys to lock every door!' but now, I don't remember anything different. I looked up picture online of doorknobs and now everything else looks so bizarre and uncomfortable. You see? You adjust and you become a part of the area. It become normal; it becomes your life, just like home was your life. Point of the story is, life is life. We have a lot more in common than you think!

 Simple vaccum. Proven with stabilo pens, thank                                            you host brother.

 First full cake, too thick.

 Mini test cake, how cute!

 Looking a little better

 Clean up, clean up, everybody do your share!