Goodbye Philadelphia...

It's weird how moving somewhere for a year seems like such a long time when you are there, but then when you know it's time to leave you suddenly feel as if you wasted so much time. We leave tomorrow morning at 3:00am and I feel the urge to eat every cheesesteak in sight, visit every water ice stand, and take another long walk down south street just to savor these last moments. I honestly don't know if I am ready to say goodbye to such a cool city or goodbye to the people I have met this year. But I do know that it is time to move on to the next stage of life. Time for a new adventure. New people. New places. New experiences. It terrifies me. I can't wait! So as this day comes to a close and all my shoes are neatly (or not so neatly) tucked away in suitcases and my room is stripped clean, my three roommates and I prepare for our first adventure: a cross-country roadtrip!!! We board a 30 hour bus ride (yes, 30 hours, please kill me now) tonight and hit Oklahoma City on sunday. From there we drive me and all my stuff home to california, where we are all fully prepared to do nothing but relax on the beach! So goodbye philadelphia. You and your loud noises, humid weather, amazing people, and beautiful buildings will be missed. :)

Preparing for our traveling adventures!

All the girls on our last night together!

Playing musical chairs with the kindergarten class!

Logan Hope Day Camp

My girls from camp. I'm going to miss them like crazy!

Me and Shakira!

Goodbye Party with friends and neighbors!

Love Drive.

Hey Everyone!


For the month of February missionyear is doing a Love Drive to help support some of the most under-resourced neighborhoods in the country. The money will be going to help support some of the volunteers in MissionYear who are serving at schools (such as Logan Hope =D ), health clinics, shelters, youth centers, and more! If you feel like you have some extra love that you want to share consider making a special donation toward my year in philadelphia!!!


To make a donation go to:
www.missionyear.org/love


 Annnnd if you donate $50 or more, you get a sweet special-edition t-shirt!  Thanks so much everyone! Hope you have a great week!!! :)

Back in the Big City!

So I've been back in Philly now for almost two weeks, and I don't think I realized how much I missed it! Being home for christmas was awesome! It was definitely a much needed break and such a good time with family and friends! But being back at Logan Hope and back with my roommates and back in my neighborhood, just feels right!

I flew into Philly last week with a fever and a sinus infection (a great way to start the new year right?) and ended up missing my first few days at work. When I finally got back to Logan Hope, I received an excited welcome back and several questions from students very concerned for my health! it was really cute! But I love being back at the school and just started an art section on color theory with my kids. I also found that I  somehow end up with more paint on me than the students do! This monday, Martin Luther King Day, will be a school service day. The kids wont have regular class but will spend the day learning about MLK and doing different things to help and clean up their school. The other art teacher and I will be painting a mural in the hallway with some of the kids! I am really excited about it! I've never painted a mural before!! Don't worry...pictures to follow! :)

As for the rest of my life here in Philly, I didn't realize how relationships with people I have built in my neighborhood until I came back from break. It's kind of easy to feel out of place in such a tight-knit neighborhood where everyone knows everyone by name! But being back I have really realized that I have made some awesome friendships! Last saturday, I got to visit a new restaurant that my neighbor Nikki opened over christmas! It was such a cool place (with delicious clam chowder!) When we visited her she gave us a tour of the place and sat down with us for awhile. I had no idea how much i had missed her company while I was home for christmas! Seeing her that saturday and several of my other friends really made me realize how much I enjoy being here in Philadelphia. and how much I am going to miss it once i'm gone!

Celebrating my 21st Birthday!

Family Photo! It was great to be back with my whole family for awhile!! 

He (Danny) gave me these sunglasses for christmas! if you can tell they are pink with bling on the sides!!!

Christmas Party!

Christmas eve with my siblings!

Found our my brother and his wife are pregnant with their first kid!!! yay! auntie rachel!

Christmas Morning! I love these boys soooo much!

A project about health I did with some of the kids that we entered into a contest!