Neuschwanstein Castle!

I finally went to the castle today :) We drove through Austria and it was gorgeous! The castle was stunning and the weather was finally beautiful. Woohoo :)Pictures are worth a thousand words so here they go....

some people's kids.

I never thought I would miss my kids. Really I didn't. I haven't even left yet, and I already miss them. There have been moments when I sit in class and watch them and I find myself tearing up out of pride for them and knowing that I am leaving them before they are leaving me. My kids have grown so much since I have been here. They are turning into little pre-teens, but not too much, they still gossip about their older siblings doing the unthinkable, making out! They informed me that they are definitely going to wait until they are old enough (16) to ever do anything that brash. And people wonder why I want to be a teacher. I don't, not today at least.

As my semester is coming to a close I am thinking about all the people here I would like to thank, and there are so many! I really have been blessed in my 4 1/2 months here. They say going overseas changes you, I guess I didn't believe them before, now I do. I feel like I have gone through several life changing experiences in college. It makes me wonder who I would be had I not gone to college. Yikes!

If you were in anyway a help or encouragement for me to go to Europe thank you. Thank you a million times. Once again I have found myself, found me and who I think I am growing up to be.

Weather Update: Still 40 degrees and rainy. Going on three weeks now.

Countdown: 10 more days of student teaching, 11 days until Mediterranean Cruise,21 more days until my Momma's 50th birthday, 27 more days before I go home and get some REAL hugs

Lesson learned this week: Never stop praying for someone. There is no such thing as a lost cause.

I miss the sun

I would like to put out a missing sun report. It's big, yellow, full of gas, and warm. My guess is that it is behind these layers of rain laden clouds, but I wouldn't know. Every once in a while the sky illuminates, but not with a yellow glow of comfort, more of a blanket of lustery white.

Germany is growing on me more and more as spring sneaks in and out. It is funny how I have had a love/hate relationship with it this entire time. I can't wait to go back to the states, this week my 5 close girlfriends are leaving, watching them go makes me want to leave more. I hate goodbyes, but I feel that they are easier when I am also on my way out. Watching everyone graduate from NAU and talk about leaving Flagstaff for good this time, breaks my heart, the other part of me rejoices that I do not have to be there for the extra tearful goodbyes.

I feel like I should give some sort of farewell tribute to Flagstaff and NAU, but I don't feel that I have the strength for that now, maybe in a few weeks.

For my last 3 weeks in Garmisch I hope the sun comes out, I hope to take a few more bike rides, I hope to go on a few more dates, I hope to go to the castle, but mostly I hope to truly enjoy it, not just partially, but fully.

My goal for this week is to book my cruise for June and have a good week with my fifth graders. This will be a week where I win them out with love. I am determined for us all to have a good week. It is going to happen. So long for now.

Spring in Bavaria!

My oh my! It is so beautiful here :) When I first moved here I was walking around town with someone who had been here a bit longer and he said, "Just wait, come spring you will really believe you are living in a fairytale." Haha... yeah right I thought, this town is frozen over and the people are mean. I was so wrong and he was so right.

Yesterday was May Day. I rode my bike to a neighboring village ("willage" as my Germans friends pronounce it in English) to take part in their May Day ceremonies. It is strange going to events like this, because I do not know the language, I feel that I don't really experience it, I watch it happen. I like it though, I like the having the opportunity to use what little German I know to get a brat with sauerkraut and find a rock to sit on and watch. I watched the kinders run around in their dirndl’s and lederhosen. Not only were the kinders in the traditional dress, but so are the Grandma's and Grandpa's, and well everyone in between. There was a little 5 piece band playing traditional music and everyone was walking around in good spirits. I can't think of a better place I could have spent my Saturday afternoon.

One of the fairytale like qualities of Garmisch is that it does not have to be a festival day for people to bust out the lederhosen and dirndls. Any day I go out walking I am sure to find someone in traditional dress going about their business. Yes, I do live in a fairytale land, even the houses all seem to possess potential for some sort of magic.

Spring is effortlessly coming alive here, it is fabulous. Every day I walk by the same trees as they fill out, fluffing their leaves and brightening the fairytale land. Going anywhere now takes twice as long with as many gorgeous tulips that are popping up. The colors are brighter than anything I ever imagined Germany could produce. Along with the vegetation sprucing up it's appearance I feel that the moods and disposition of the German people around me is doing the same. Yesterday more than 5 people smiled at me. That is definitely a record for here, I almost felt welcome.