Berlin...

It's an illusion!! She is flying!


What Berlin looks like through my eyes. (3 pics below)



German junk food...Julia and I endulged.

Graffiti everywhere. You just get use to it after awhile.

Bullet holes from the war...the buildings that are left standing, in Berlin, remind us daily of the past.

Some of us got together to go to the Sony Center.



SO Humid! ^

Our apartment!!



Fun in Berlin

Holocaust memorial in Berlin

I love the trains!


Mercedes Taxis!! :)

One of my German tutors mission buddies!! Ah! He thinks highly of Dan!!

WE ARE HERE! Welcome to Berlin!

Airport in NYC!





Hello New York!

Calling our mommies and daddies

Flying into the east coast.


Waiting for the plane!!

The Perfect Picnic

We are sooo healthy...not so sanitary though. :)


The perfect picnic spot!







He loved my choice of lettuce. hehehahaha.

Over all...one of the best nights I have had in a very very long time. What a sweet surprise.

48 Hours

The count down is down to the hours now. Between work and packing and shopping I have not had a lot of time for socializing. Sadly. I am just about done doing laundry though! Phew!! It takes a lot of effort to put your entire life on hold for awhile to leave the country. Missionaries in my church do this when they turn 19 all the time. They leave for two years to a thoughtfully and prayerfully chosen (by our Prophet) destination to teach.
What do they teach? Hope to the lost. Faith to the confused. Compassion to the lonely. Service to those in need. And much more.
Our missionaries are placed in the "MTC", (Missionary Training Center) for a very short period of time to sometimes learn foreign languages. A missionary could be sent to Tiawan, Japan, Germany, or even California.
I am only packing a few weeks of my life away. I can't imagine packing 2 YEARS of my life away. What would I bring? Only things that I would totally NEED right?
1. Contacts and Glasses
2. Clothes
3. Bathroom supplies/grooming
4.My lap top (Missionaries cannot bring these though. Nor cell phones.)
5. My PHONE (Even though it doesn't work in Germany)
6.My scriptures
7. The ankle braces that Melissa let me borrow for my sprained ankles. Yup. I have TWO.
8.My Ogio backpack for school
9.Work out clothes. Duh.
10.An umbrella...it is Europe.
11. My stuffed animal bunny that my mom sent me about 3 Easters ago. I sleep with it still haha.
12. Mace... ...what? Yeah I saw "Taken".
13. A towel...or two...or five?
14. My fuzzy slippers and robe
15. Face towels
16.My journal
17. A bunch of granola, Power, and Cliff bars.
18. Ipod
19. A picture of my boyfriend and family.
AND 20. Lots of defrizzifying hair product. You have NO idea what my hair can do...

Okay, so maybe some of those things are a little unnecessary. But some of them are VERY necessary and very needed!!
Emily had to talk me out of a panic attack last night when I realized I had nothing packed and I am leaving in less than 48 hours. We did a little shopping, bought a few last minute items, and figured out what I NEED. She was great at Target, "Girl, you don't need that...", "ummm yeah that would be NICE to have, but it is 40 dollars. Do you need it? Really??"
haha. Sometimes I said, "no, you are right" and put it back.
...and sometimes I said quite frankly "YES" and tossed it in my little shopping basket.
The camera is charged, suitcase is almost packed, and I haven't eaten anything all day because I have been working from home and doing laundry all day. mehh!
Here are a few pictures from our packing extravaganza.






Needless to say...we didn't get a whole lot done. :)

An Interview with God

Inspirational Videos

"You cannot make someone love you..."
A coworker shared this with me today and I thought I would share it with you. Enjoy the pictures and the words of inspiration.You must watch the whole thing to capture the point of this presentation.
Enjoy! (And don't forget Mothers Day on Sunday!! Send your cards out tomorrow!)

Always

(I like this piano piece.)
There are a few different versions of this song that I love. I am officially converted to "Barbershop" music thanks to my German tutor. :)
My favorite song that he introduced me to is called Always. When I went to his performance this weekend I about fell off of my chair! I couldn't believe I had forgotten about this song. There is something so sweet about music written in the 20's. While he sang I watched as elderly people in the crowd held each others hands and tapped their shiny shoes to the beat. (awww)
It really was sweet.


Tonight my girl friends and I are going shopping for Germany. I need a few more things before we leave! AH! I can't believe it is finally here!
Enjoy this music from an incredibly classy generation. We really can learn a lot from our ancestors and elders.

Spring Is Here And Love Is In The Air.

I have loved this song for many many years. Here is the John Mayer version. LOVE it. I, of course change the words around a little when I hear it...but you get the idea.

She's a good girl, loves her mama
Loves Jesus and America too
Shes a good girl, crazy 'bout Elvis
Loves horses and her boyfriend too

It's a long day living in reseda
There's a freeway runnin' through the yard
And I'm a bad boy 'cause I don't even miss her
I'm a bad boy for breakin her heart

And I'm free, free fallin'
Yeah I'm free, free fallin'

All the vampires walkin' through the valley
Move west down ventura boulevard
And all the bad boys are standing in the shadows (YUP!)
All the good girls are home with broken hearts (NOPE! Not anymore. But whatever.)

And I'm free, free fallin'
Yeah I'm free, free fallin'
Free fallin', now I'm free fallin', now I'm
Free fallin', now I'm free fallin', now I'm

I wanna glide down over mulholland
I wanna write her name in the sky
Gonna free fall out into nothin'
Gonna leave this world for a while

And I'm free, free fallin'
Yeah I'm free, free fallin'



I got all moved into my new place this weekend, and I love it! Way nice. I took a bunch of pictures that I will post soon.
Ahh! Spring is here and love is in the air! Utah is more green and beautiful then I have ever seen it before.
I LOVE living here!
OH! I got a new laptop!! Check it out. Super light weight and the battery life is awesome. Over 5 hours! I am going to have fun in Germany with this thing.
Luckily I have an awesome German tutor helping me out. :) We met every week before my final...sometimes two or three times a week...
I will be sure to send a post card while I am abroad. ;p
That also reminds me...I have family in Germany that I will meet for the first time. Everyone is going to come together to meet me! I have never felt so connected to my family or my heritage.
Let the count down and the packing begin!

4

The Count Down Begins!

10

9

8

7

6...

...Only a few more days until my journey abroad!!
I will be uploading pictures a long the way so stay tuned!!

I am moving into my new apartment today!! Hurray. New friends, new ward, new adventures. :)
I don't think I have ever been as happy as I am today in a very long time. My family life is great, friends are all doing well, and I am happy to report that I came out on top in my finals this semester. I didn't do as well as I had hoped in German...but...it is German. I don't think they hand out A's.
Next semester I am taking piano lessons! My goal is to be able to play a piece in church someday. I want to express my testimony through music and what better way than the piano?!
So, between moving, work, and Germany I wont have a lot of blogging time, but I will however post pictures along the way.
PS. I am getting a new way cool computer today! Eek. Really excited about that.