november, already?!

time flies when you are a teacher and living it up on the weekends :) today i finished parent/teacher conferences and i had to remind myself that i had a life and a home to return to that didnt involve school. the past few days i have been waking up around 4:45 am to get to school bright and early to get some things done..and didnt find myself walking home until around 7pm. yes, procrastination pays...and i am exhausted.

the past couple of weekends, a lot of things have been going on...well, not really...but i have been to Quito a couple times...and that is exciting! especially when you live in Shell, where there is nothing, i repeat nothing to do except watch movies, eat, and get hit on by random american guys on couches (thanks! :) hehehe) the first trip to quito was to attend a womens retreat put on by the English Fellowship Church in quito. it was a weekend to get away and relax. i was able to experience a turkish bath! it was really cool...and i cant wait to do it again! the trip was great and it WAS great to get away! i even met with a counselor about my decision about whether to stay another year or go...it just helped to talk to someone with an objective opinion. but no, i do not know what i am going to do yet. Walk with faith.

this past weekend was a long weekend due to an ecuadorian holiday, so--me, beth, and spencer (our bodyguard) took the bus to quito for a get-a-way. we went to otavalo (a large market) climbed a huge cathedral (which i was scared for my life to do (see picture below..looks like a chicken cage..but its the very top level!) (above clock picture was taken when we were inside...almost to the top--it was pretty cool to be at the same levels at the clock!...it was scary though because one of the guards caught me changing the hands on the time...he had me in handcuffs..but i then spencer beat him up and we ran for it. (just kidding :) heheh)





me, scared for my life. why?
1. im at the very top level of a cathedral with flimsy wires holding me up
2. i dont trust ecuadorian architecture
3. im a baby (my dad and brother would probably 2nd that)





here is beth and i sitting in a huge window carving type thing. it was fun taking pictures...think: senior photos :)












here is tunguragua..the volcano that recently exploded...this is what it looked like when we came back from the womens retreat. we had ash in shell from this volcano! one morning i woke up and the driveway, bridges, everything had a layer of ash on it! pretty wild!

sorry if this is scatterbrained..im low on zzzzzzzzzzs. more later :)

my grandmas are coming next thursday and my mom on tuesday!! party!