BBQ'ing

Beer holders?



Kansas style!

Some boys in my life

Super heroes of the world...I'm their teacher...


At a BBQ with a Raintree family, some of the boys discovered the hidden stash of costumes, and it looks like we had a super hero convention. Maybe a secret meeting?


Tanner, after some quality time with Aunt Ashley. He will look back at this and hate me.


Owen and Grant, such serious faces, not so sure about the shark with the sword. Gotta love summer, bare feet on mulch!


Of course, the best boy of all! This picture is so us! :)

Swedish Ivy

With tomorrow being my last day at Raintree, I found it necessary to buy a gift for my class. One they could use and when they use or look at it, they will think of me. Haha. I don't want my kids to ever forget me! I want them to ALWAYS think about me! The best teacher they have ever had! So anywho, I thought "hanging plant! Great idea!" So I wandered on over to some really great nursery here in Lawrence and found the best hanging plant. It's green, leafy, big, hangy, and I bought it! While the girl was loading it into the car I asked her if it would have any flowers. She said no, just some little buds here in there, beause SWEDISH IVY doesn't have many flowers. How perfect is that?! I, unknowingly, bought Swedish Ivy to give to my class! I'm so excited about it. My kids have been "researching" Sweden since we told them I am moving there. They know what the flag looks like, where it is on the globe, that it has some mountains, that I'll live by the ocean, etc. etc. I'm so excited about this fortunate coinsidence! So tomorrow being my last day, I'm excited and really dreading it. I love my kids so much and have seen lots of them grow up so much in the 3 years I have known them! 3 years in a 5 or 6 year olds life is a LONG time! So hopefully this Swedish Ivy will remind them of me! Cause I certainly will think about them all the time!

Whimsical

Downtown Boulder has the most amazing flowers I've ever seen. I couldn't capture what it really looked like with my rinky dinky camera, but I think this kind of depicts how beautiful they were!



On another Boulder note, I just passed my final exams! Now I just need to get through 6 hours of lectures, and then tomorrow my mom and step dad will fly in! I'm so happy they are coming, how great are they?! And my baby sister, Emily graduates today! Way to go, seester!

Boulder

Just a nice morning of waking up to the mountains, fresh air blowing through the open balcony door. Ate at Moe's Broadway Bagels and drank a coffee. Lolligaged over to Montessori Education Center of the Rockies, took a dandy little final, and talked about culture all afternoon. Could Boulder be any more pleasant? For those of you who have been, can attest to this. It's just such a relaxing town. You are working, going to school, but still feel like you are relaxing. How is this possible?! Everybody is riding their bikes, sitting outside, walking along Boulder Creek. I miss my 2 and a half months I spent living here.

Tomorrow it is off to my favorite place in Boulder, the Redstone Meadery. It's a quant little shop, with the brewery in the back. They sell Mead, which is "wine" made from the nectar of honey. And if you are frowning to the sound of that, don't knock it untill you try it! And from experience, I know for a fact, a bottle will definitely do a little ditty on you. It's some potent stuff. I brought my beautiful blue bottle back to Boulder with me, to fill er' up. You get a little discount if you bring you bottle in. So I will be enjoying a bottle of Redstone Meadery, Boysenberry Nectar. Delicious!

As you can see, on the left is their wide variety of different kinds of Mead. You can go in and have a free tasting! I strongly suggest that! It made it hard to chose which to buy though!

But before the Meadery, it's tests and presentations. So close, yet, so far away! The countdown to Sunday is ON! Graduation is looming!

A Hair Raising Question...

So "why Sweden" is a good question.

I was there for a couple of weeks in the summer of 04' as a high schooler. I did nothing all day long, hung out with my Swedish friends, drank beer, BBQ'd and watched soccer. It was the good life. So now that is my view of Sweden. I imagine myself sitting about doing these things, all day long. Which I really know is not the reality, but it's nice to imagine!

After those beautiful couple of weeks, I really fell in love with everything about Sweden, maybe a little bit of an unatural unhealthy love. Regardless, I actually fell in love with something real, and that would love me back, and that would be Fredrik. He's the best Swedish thing I know (aside from Swedish fish)!

After choosing to partake in a ridiculously long distance relationship (which is the healthiest relationship I've ever been in!) I thought, "hmmm, one of us is going to have to take action to at least be in the same...continent as each other". So I started researching being an Au Pair in Sweden and found the perfect family! And best of all, they live 30ish miles from Göteborg! So I applied for the visa, got it, bought my ticket, and here we go! July 31st!

So that's why Sweden. I didn't really pick it, it just sort of...came to me. And now, I'm the luckiest girl I know!

A lovely view of the Baltic Sea at Jakob's summer house in the summer time...mmm...ahhh...

79 Days...

79 days untill the big move, and the first day of blogging. I figure it's a seemingly hassle free way of keeping up with my friends and family while I'm gone on my big girl adventure. Here's the proof, a one year visa, with my beautiful picture on it. It would have been nice if the guy taking the picture would have told me my hair was flat to my head! Thanks Wal-Green 1 hour photo passport photographer! So...read, laugh, cry, and enjoy!