Swinging back into things

That's pretty much how I've been feeling the past few weeks...instead of getting back into the swing of things, I've been on a wild swinging ride into and out of them. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to be back, and I love spending time with the people I love, but it hasn't been an easy adjustment. I'm not sure what made it so different this time, I just know that reverse culture shock is not my friend, lol. I've been trying to keep busy, though, and that has helped tremendously!

I've spent quite a bit of time with my friends and family. I've been out in the boat with my dad, enjoying the beauty of a Tennessee lake, and doing a little kneeboarding. I've been chilling with my bro quite a bit since we're now sharing an apartment together, and that's been super fun! I've helped my friend Amanda plan her wedding a little bit...we went dress shopping and had some success, I'm super excited about my bridesmaid dress; it's gorgeous! I've also spent a lot of time with my bud Ellen, chilling, watching movies and such...we haven't done a whole lot of planning for our road trip, yet, but we'll get to it eventually, lol.

This past weekend, I was able to attend the NAMM show in Nashville thanks to my Uncle Sam! The NAMM show is held at the convention center and is basically a "show", exhibits, etc., for small music retailers and stores to see all the latest in technology for musical instruments, equipment, and accessories. It's super awesome!! :-) I got to see lots of really cool gadgets and some pretty talented people.

So...I've done a lot of chilling, visiting, and driving, lol. This past weekend, I drove to Nashville twice and road once to Knoxville, plus a lot of driving back and forth between Cookeville and Sparta...I think I'm making up for the lost driving time while I was down in Mexico, lol.

The upcoming week promises to be fun, shopping with Mom tomorrow, finally doing some work at the Foreign Language department, and more hanging out with friends! My cousin David is coming in next week, as well, so that should be pretty fun!

Hope all is well for everyone out there. I'll update again soon...

Amor y paz,
Amelia

Week 6...VBS...Headed back home

Well, I guess it's taken me a while to update about week 6, sorry about that. I've felt pretty frazzled since returning home. My last week at UTRI was awesome! We helped out a local Spanish-speaking church down there with their VBS, and it was a blast! I ended up leading the kids in worship at the beginning of every night, and that was so fun. I loved singing kid songs again...it's been years since I remembered what it felt like to sing a song as a child. Those kids just loved it! I also participated in the drama part of the evenings...I felt pretty ridiculous dressed in a sack-like dress thing playing the part of Gideon, but God needed us to act out the Bible stories for the kids so I donned that sack with pride, lol. The kids loved it, and I had fun performing the little skits with my fellow interns and staff members of UTRI.

The end of VBS was bittersweet since it was the end of the week and time for me to go. It was definitely hard saying good-bye to everyone. I miss all of them tons! It's been a hard adjustment for me this time as opposed to when I returned from Costa Rica. Everything is new back in TN, and it's taking me a while to adapt. I know that everything will be okay, it's pretty freaky for the moment, though, lol.

I've been trying to keep myself pretty busy. I've spent quite a bit of time with friends and family. I spent one night in Nashville and a day at Nashville Shores (a waterpark) with some good friends. I'll probably be headed back to Nashville next weekend to chill with them again. I currently don't have a job, which is disappointing. The coffee shop I was working at before I left doesn't need any more workers for the summer. I know that God will provide a job for me, so I'm trying to not freak out too much, but I feel restless right now. I should be enjoying the free time since school will be starting before I know it, but I'm stressing out as usual, lol. Oh well, everything will be fine.

I've started planning for my amazing road trip across the U.S. with my best friend, Ellen! We're super excited and can't wait to hit the road. I'm excited for her as she begins this huge chapter in her life...film school in L.A.! I know she's going to do great!

Hope all is well for everyone out there! I'm probably going to be changing the URL of this blogsite soon...ameliaincostarica just doesn't really apply anymore, lol...but I'll make sure to let everyone know about the change before I do it.

Lots of love,
Amelia