Sweet Home Kentucky!

I'M BAAAAACK! :)

I've been back in the States for a little over a week now and it's been incredibly bittersweet.

It was so wonderful to arrive at the Louisville Airport Sunday night and be surprised by so many friends that were all anxious to welcome us back with lots of hugs and CHOCOLATE COVERED STRAWBERRIES!! :) And I've so enjoyed getting to spend time with some of my very best friends, catching up on life and eating all the American food I can get my hands on! I loved getting to talk to my Aunt ON THE PHONE--not just over email! And I'm also keeping busy with moving into my new apartment with two of my best friends! Needless to say, I'm really excited about this new change! :)

But I've missed Africa so much. I miss the people mostly... I've already cried my eyes out in my first breakdown, struggled with jet lag, and dealt with many weird experiences and emotions. For instance, I freaked out (in a good way!) the first time I realized I could put dishes in a dishwasher (as opposed to filling up two buckets with soapy water and bleach and scrubbing and drying everything by hand.) I'm not usually so attached to my dishwasher, I promise! Or, there have been many times when people will say things in English to me and I won't comprehend it for a second--it takes a moment to process that I actually understand what they're saying. And of course, thanks to my henna "tattoos", five guys with ear gauges have hit on me since yesterday. Little do they know that I have about ten guys in Africa are expecting me to come back and marry them. The ear gauge men will be sorely disappointed I'm sure. ;)

America is strange. And all these emotions are strange.
But I've missed home. :)

When I talked to my Aunt, she encouraged me to write a follow up of sorts to conclude this blog. I'd really love to share with you all the lessons that I came to learn this summer and just write a little bit about what God has changed in my life.

At the moment, I'm not near my journal (which is key to helping me phrase this last blog post) but I figured I could let you all know that you can be on the lookout for the final post!

Thank you for reading this blog. I hope you realize that by reading this account, you were able to share in one of the most important milestones of my life. (That's a big deal to me!) I love you all and it means the world to me that you cared enough to keep up with my life this summer. I pray that God took my words and made them truly mean something to you...I hope they'll stay in your hearts for a very long time. :)