Mom and Dad in Portugal!

My mom and dad were able to come visit during my last 2 weeks in Portugal. It was great to have them come. I was really looking forward to their visit. I enjoyed showing them around Cascais and other parts of Portugal. We did some day trips to Boca do Inferno, Sintra, Belem, Obidos, and Castelo do Sao Jorge in Lisbon. My dad and I got to join some friends and their church canoeing down the Teju River! It was very fun. It's hard to narrow the pictures down but I've included a few from their visit.


During our last week my parents and I rented a car to drive down to the Algarve. We enjoyed the hotel there that was just a few minutes walk from the beach. The weather was beautiful and the scenery amazing. We did a LONG day trip to Algeciras, Spain where we caught a ferry across the Strait of Gibraltar to Morocco. That was an experience all in itself...if you'd like to hear the story I'd be happy to share it! After arriving back from Morocco we drove the short distance to Gibraltar which is owned by the British. It was fun driving up the rock, seeing the apes, the amazing views of southern Spain and across into Africa. We finished off the night with a delicious dinner of kebabs before driving back to Portugal. I had to introduce my parents to kebabs (Anna I did think of you)! As my dad likes to tell people - we hit 4 countries and 2 continents in one day!!

After such a long day we took a day to rest and then made a day trip to Seville, Spain. It was a hot day in the upper 90s but the beautiful city of Seville was worth it. We spent most of our time in the Santa Cruz area of Seville touring the cathedral, Alcazar, and wandering through the streets. I think my favorite part was wandering through the Alcazar which was huge. Walking through the castle and gardens made me feel like I'd been transported into the pages of a story from the past.

Our time in Portugal finished off with seeing a sand sculpture exhibit made out of 35 tons of sand! There were lots of different scenes made by different artists - it was pretty impressive. We also stopped by a castle in the town of Silves that has withstood the years pretty well - it dates back to about the 11th century! On our way back to Lisbon we drove the the southwestern point of Portugal - Sagres. It was considered the end of the world to explorers heading out the Mediterranean.

It was great to have my parents come and see Portugal. I will miss the friends that I made while I was there but look forward to new opportunities and adventures in Rochester. God has been good and I'm thankful for all I've learned and experienced!!

Endings... and New Beginnings...

Endings...
Today was the last day of school! It was a mixture of happy and sad. I will miss the students that I've had the privilege of working with the last year. It seems these past few days and weeks have gone by so quickly. I'm thankful for the chance to have taught them, but in some ways I think they've taught me more. What a privilege to have the opportunity to share about God and teach about the world He's created. One of the biggest rewards of being a teacher is seeing students' lives changed and the growth they make throughout the year. It was also exciting to learn about their home countries. Without fail in each year of teaching my students help me learn more about myself - this year was no exception. Yesterday we made pizza for lunch and today was filled with laughter, games, and goodbyes.

Not only will I miss the students, but I will also miss the wonderful teachers that I got to work with. The staff at ICSC is small, which makes it easy to get to know everyone. I was welcomed onto the team back in August and treated like family. I'm thankful for the friendships that I have made and will certainly take many happy memories with me!

New Beginnings...
In a previous post I had asked for prayer as I searched for a new job back in Rochester. God had everything planned out long before I even began my search. My faith has grown through the process and it was exciting to see the pieces begin to fall together in the past few weeks and rejoice in God's provision. I'll be working in the office at my church - Northridge. The current secretary has decided to retire after 22 years. I certainly have some big shoes to fill, but I am confident that she will train me well and help me learn the ropes. I'm excited to try something different and look forward to a new beginning.

Madrid, Spain

This past weekend I had a quick get away to Madrid, Spain to visit my cousin Katrina. She and her husband are studying for a year in Madrid. Since we're so close I got a plane ticket and made the one hour flight to visit her. It's a bit of a production to get to the airport (without using a taxi or going by car). First there is a 25 min walk down the hill to the train station. After that a 40 minute train ride into Lisbon and then catching the Aerobus for about 40 min to arrive at the airport! It's always fun to people watch and I got to see new sights in Lisbon from the bus on the way!

It was well worth the travel time. I had a great time with my cousin and enjoyed seeing some more of Madrid. My sisters and I had spent about a day in Madrid back in 2006. It was fun to see some familiar places again. On Saturday we took a 45 min bus ride to Toledo, located southwest of Madrid. Toledo used to be the capital of Spain until one of the kings decided to make it Madrid! The city is walled and has lots of charm inside. The town was decorated with many flags, flowers, and banners. I even found a knight in shining armor!

It was a beautiful sunny day with temps in the 90s! A nice breeze helped keep us cool along with some cloth that was hung overhead down many of the main walkways that provided nice shade.

After the tour of Toledo we rode the bus back to Madrid and went through a floor of the Reina Sofia Modern Art Museum. It was fun to see work of some famous artists and feel cultured discussing different paintings.

Sunday we toured around Madrid and ended up doing quite a bit of walking. Katrina and Jorge live right in the center of Madrid. We walked to the neighborhood La Latina - one of the historic older sections. It was fun to see the narrow winding streets, artwork painted on buildings, and the colorful architecture. There was an open air street market - El Rastro -that seemed to stretch for many blocks. We enjoyed walking through. Plaza Mayor was a familiar sight from my previous trip. A highlight of Sunday was lunch...Katrina and I enjoyed Kebabs (I hadn't had one since the previous Europe trip - DELICIOUS). What better place to enjoy lunch than in Reteiro Park.

My flight left Madrid about 6pm and landed in Lisbon at 6:30 (there is a one hour time change)! I made my way back to my apartment in Cascais and was thankful that the bus and train were all ready within 10 minutes of arriving at each spot! It was fun to get away for the weekend and do something different. I'm so glad that I could go and spend the time with Katrina!

Aren't Kids Great!

In the past 2 weeks I've had the chance to spend some one on one time with some kids who are pretty special to me. The high school students took a 4 day field trip so the Lenardson's went with them. I stayed with their girls - Ezri and Shyanna. The girls were great and we had lots of fun together playing games, making up stories, and cooking in the kitchen. The days slipped by quickly and I managed to not take any pictures... but we still had a blast!

 Friday after school Lucas and Daniel got to go home with me since their parents had some meetings. We decided to have Hawaiian pizza for dinner. The boys helped me make the dough and each topped their section with what they wanted. It turned out delicious. We spent the night playing different games. I think Dutch Blitz was the favorite. As the night went on the boys picked up the game and were starting to give me a run for my money! I enjoyed having them over and spending time with them.

How could I not love mixing together two things I enjoy - kids and cooking! I'm thankful for the fun kids that I get to spend time with (and their parents too)!