Month 1= roller coaster

So I guess it's probably obvious by the lack of blog posts that we've been busy. We just started the 3rd full week of school, and we've been here a month as of Saturday. I can't believe that it's only been a month when I think of all the people we've met and the things we've done since we got here. At the same time, it doesn't seem like it can have possibly been a whole month since we last saw all of our friends and family in the US. Probably because we see them on Skype and FaceTime regularly! Which is so amazing and lucky. I thank God for technology every day, haha. But seriously, it makes the transition so much easier when I can download the newest issue of a favorite magazine or see my dogs playing in the backyard via FaceTime.

I feel like I've experienced every emotion possible in the first month. We have met some amazing people who have made the transition a billion times smoother than we could have hoped for. The other EAC teachers have been so welcoming, helpful, and fun. And then there's Brian's family. A blog post really can't do them justice. They are beyond amazing. Even though I can't effectively communicate (yet) with many of them, I instantly feel home when we're with them. They have helped us do so much, and I truly feel like there are people here who really care about me. I love them!

At the same time, I've felt a little more homesick in this first month than I thought I would. I don't know why I didn't anticipate it...maybe because I really felt good about the decision to come here when we made it. I felt really good about it until a few days before we left. Then, it really started to sink in. I really miss familiarity. I miss being able to hang out with my family and friends whenever I want to. I miss the dogs. I miss my car and being able to communicate with everyone. This is normal, right? I just don't want the homesickness to effect my time here. I want to enjoy everything here, because hey...I'm here for at least 2 years, so I might as well have an awesome time. It's a waste of time to mope about what I miss, because it's not like anything is going to change. I'm committed to being here. Besides, if I sit here and whine about what I miss, I'm truly missing what's actually going on around me.

Besides the people (which is big), there is really nothing sad about leaving the work and life situation I was in in the US. Things are dismal there. I'm just romanticizing it in my mind because I miss familiarity. It turns out that changing countries, languages, apartments, and jobs all at the same time could be mildly stressful. Even if it's all good stuff. I feel like I'm starting to break through the homesickness though, and I'm starting to see the experience for what it is. I really like the job. Of course there are things to complain about, and I still feel like an idiot teaching 4th grade, but my kids are awesome!!! I have never had such nice, calm, and hard-working students ever. It's kind of amazing. Of course, it's only week 3, haha.

I'm also getting really excited about the traveling. We haven't made any firm plans yet, but we are going to try to travel throughout Brazil and maybe into Argentina throughout the course of this school year. We're definitely going to Rio for Carnaval (though I can't wait all the way until February to get to Rio!), and we'd also like to visit the South of Brazil. Also on the wish list (some may be trips for future year(s): Bahia, Manaus, Belem (both cities in or near the Amazon rainforest), Recife (northern Brazil), and, um, every other country in South America! Okay, yeah, that's pretty unrealistic. I just can't wait to get this silly teaching stuff out of the way so we can go visit places!

Well, this post has gotten quite long enough. I guess it's time to face reality: to-do lists and papers to grade!