Ramblings from Romania: 5 months!

So exactly 5 months ago today, I landed in Bucuresti, Romania and thus began my adventure of living and serving in a foreign country. Some days it feels like I just got here, and others I feel like I've lived here most of my life. But thinking back, the time really has flown by and I'm so grateful for the time I've had here & all that God's been teaching me & how He's been using me. The part I don't like thinking about though is that I only have about 3 or 4 months left here, and they're going to be the fastest ones yet! For all of you in America, this doesn't mean that I'm not anxious to be "home" home, and that I don't miss all of you dearly. And honestly lately I've had moments where I just about go crazy when I can't escape the sirens, car alarms, people yelling, and street dogs barking, and when I start talking about the country life, the pool in my backyard, and the strawberries that are in season & waiting for me right outside my bedroom window in my parents' house. And there's so many times after skyping with y'all and hearing about your lives & the big changes happening that I can't be present for physically, that I just want to get on the next plane home and give you a huge hug. But, at the same time, this has become my home. The people here have become my friends, and even like family. I've grown & learned so much here, and leaving is going to be one of the hardest things I'll ever have done, especially not knowing when or how I can come back. (But don't worry y'all, I'm coming back, Lord willing!) And when I get back, it's also going to be one of the hardest times in my life, feeling that everything there has changed & moved on without me, and that no one can really understand the experiences I've had, let alone all the decisions I'll have to make about my next steps. So yeah... that's my emotions about all that.

Last Sunday was a fun one, I mean they always are my favorites, but I have some fun pictures to share! This is my Alfa Omega family, which just celebrated it's 8th year as a church today! Lisarius even wrote an awesome song based on the church's mission statement, and we all got riled up today praising God for our family of believers and singing "I am Alfa Omega!" But last Sunday, 2 orphan girls in our church got baptized! They literally brought in a big bath tub and baptized them in that! After church, I went to the park with my American friends and along with people watching & eating park junk food, we actually studied our Romanian. Then I went to another park to hang out with the girls and watch the boys play fotball, which is the summer version of sala de sport (which is kind of not as fun because we don't have a volleyball net & only the boys get to play soccer).

The 2 with the big flowers in the front got baptized!

Gotta have a jumping picture :]

So you know how I was talking about what I was going to be doing in the next couple weeks before camp now that school's done & the baby hospital is too busy for me? Well of course, God's got it all planned out, but after my "last day" at the baby hospital, I got a friend request and a message on facebook. I met a girl at the baby hospital named Sarah, who turns out is an American, but you could never tell with how awesome her Romanian is, and she actually went to Liberty and we have a bunch of mutual friends both here & in Lynchburg. She's been working at the baby hospital almost every day & wanted to know if I had any other friends who might want to come and help out too. So this means I can still go help out pretty much whenever I want, and even more now than before! :]

She reminds me of my baby pictures all dressed up exactly like this!

Estera's big brown eyes make me melt!

Briana is one of the one's I'm stealing :]

They love to hold hands :]

Andrei is my little buddy who cries every time I put him down, so thus he usually falls asleep like this.

Even Catalin sleeps with a body pillow!

This is Corny who works with Heart to Heart & is the one I help out .

BCA is completely over and they're moving into a new building. I went over a couple times to attempt to help packing up the insane art room, and whatever the teachers could find. We had field day Thursday morning, which started at 9 and ended soon after due to the torrential downpour. My team was called the Pink Panthers & we totally would have dominated if we could have finished out the day! When it started raining, we all crammed under 2 tents, and then half of the kids decided to just get soaked and play in the rain and use up the rest of the water balloons. I would have definitely joined them if I wouldn't have had to spend the next hour getting home on public transportations while soaked to the bone! I sure do miss those kids, but thankfully I'll get to see most of them at the beginning of next school year when I go visit!

Claudia & the Postema's

We had some hula hooping experts.

Jucam, Luptam, o sa Castigam! PINK PANTHERS!

Leah was our dedicated & prepared fan!

Oh how I'll miss my hug buddy Abby when they go to the States!

Best buds!

Love these girls!

Random insert here... Bucuresti sure does know how to do their flowers. All spring the tulips, pansies, & whatever other flowers that I don't know the name of have been planted and blooming everywhere. And now the roses are in full bloom! I've never seen so many roses as I have in this city & it makes me so happy! Also fountains make me happy, and I'm just waiting to get a picture of the street kids playing in them!

The fountain at Obor aka my neighborhood piata.

There are literally like 50 fountains like this in a straight line from the People's Palace.

A first for me this week was the civil ceremony of Vera & Simon! For some reason, the legal wedding and the church wedding are separate things here, but it's kind of fun you get 2 celebrations & reasons to take pictures & get dressed up! The whole Alfa Omega gang gathered at Obor all dressed up and with flowers in hand. We waited our turn while another couple was finishing up, and then all went inside to a big room with a desk on a small stage in the front. The mayor's (or whoever the chick was) little speech was less than 5 minutes, then they said "I do," signed the papers, kissed, and it was over. Then we all formed a line and congratulated the couple then went outside to wait for them to come out under our bridge of flowers. Of course, the guys all pelted them with rice. Poor Simon on crutches with his broken ankle, but they still were an adorable & attractive pair!