Off to Japan...

Today I leave for my adventure in Japan. I fly from PDX to SFO at 3:15pm, and SFO to Tokyo, Japan. The flight from SFO to Japan is about 11 hours. I will be arriving in Japan around 8:30am Pacific Time (11:30pm in Tokyo). The time difference is 16 hours so I will basically be losing a whole day because of the time changes. But when I come back I will get my day back! Thank you for your prayers as I embark on this terrific journey. I will do my best to keep you all updated on all my adventures in the east! Love you all!  

Goodbyes In Sweet Home

Tonight was great, my fellow javelin coach and his family graciously opened their home tonight to throw me a going away party. It was great to see so many people before I leave for my adventure. I have truly been blessed these last few years living in Sweet Home and I would not have traded any of it for the world. When I first arrived in Sweet Home i tried my best to skim under the radar, but the people here in Sweet Home have truly embraced me and pulled me into their community. I am so thankful for all the friends I have made here in the last few years, I am so blessed! Thank you all!!!  

17 days...

Well there are now 17 days before I leave. I received some Yen in the mail today, so once I get to Japan I can buy things. 100 Yen is about $1.25.

20 days...

I have 20 days until I leave for Japan. I have sent my things to Japan and have my Visa to get into Japan. Now it seems that I have 20 days to spend time with the people I love and go hiking. I know these next 20 days will go by all too quickly.

Boxes packed and on their way to Japan

Boxes packed and ready for Japan. 

A piece of me is on it's way to Japan, mainly a portion of my shoe collection, clothing, and other randomness I'm not sure I will be able to get in Japan. Most likely my boxes will make it to Japan before I do. The great thing is once I get there all I have to do is call the shipping company and they will bring the boxes to my house... They will even help me unpack them if I need help. But I'm pretty sure I can unpack seven boxes by myself. It's scary to think that I only have about 38 days left before I leave. There is so much that I want to do this summer, but I won't have time to do it all. Next week I have to go to Tahoe for a conference about the International Baccalaureate school system. The school in Japan is covering all the costs of the trip, including my petrol. My mom and I will be road tripping down to California to visit family and then go to the conference. It will be nice to see everyone before I leave for Japan. It will also be great to spend some quality time with my mom before I leave. I am so thankful for my parents and will defiantly miss them both.

One month and two weeks...

I am officially done at Sweet Home High School. Today was a little sad, it hit me today that it was my last time in my classroom. I have had such a wonderful year at the high school. At the beginning of the school year I just thought that I could skim under the radar and do my job and escape for the other half of the day. But the staff and students pulled me in and made me feel like a welcomed part of their family at the high school. I am thankful for all of you at SHHS, thank you for making this an enjoyable ride. I will miss you all!

2 months

I officially have 2 months before I leave for Japan. I think this is the first time it has struck me that I am really leaving. 2 months is not very long, I have so much that I need to get ready and a relatively short amount of time. The main thing I really need to get squared away is my stuff. I need to get motivated and start packing my things, but I will have plenty of time when I am done with my master's degree (one week!!!). 7 days until I'm done with my master's degree, 10 days until graduation, 16 days until school is out, 17 days and I'm done at Sweet Home High School, then I'm off to Tahoe, then Japan... It will go quickly, but I'm going to try to cram as much summer as I can into 6 weeks.