Appreciated.

Well, I have officially been back in the USA for seven whole days. It's a little weird, but also super great, to be speaking English full time again. Even though the ads on the side of my Facebook page are still in French, but then again sometimes I don't even notice. It takes some getting used to!

However, there are other facets that don't take much getting used to again. France taught me to appreciate many little things that I take for granted in my daily life here in America. For example...

• Showers. I'm sure you all guessed this would be on the top of the list since I was whining about it for four weeks straight. Seriously, though, is it really that hard to attach the nozzle to the wall? Come on, France. Keep up with the times.
• Ice. This little, often overlooked luxury was nowhere to be found in Europe. I just wanted my water to be cold!
• Water. Not that water is hard to come by there, but I'm just used to my water glass never even getting close to empty at restaurants. I'm such a spoiled brat.
• Driving. Even if I had a car in France, I would never ever drive it. That terrifies me. But I was so happy when I got behind the steering wheel of the Darth Evader for the first time in over a month. I love driving.
• Closets. As much as I love living out of a suitcase...

That being said, there are a few things I miss a lot about France:

• Crepes. No explanation needed. I'm an addict.
• Walking. I walked everywhere and I walked so much that I feel like I can't stop. I have taken my dog on one to two hour walks a couple times and he is dying by the end of it. I could keep going for like four, probably.
• Humidity. My hair hated it but the rest of me loved it!
• Nude beaches. (Just kidding!)
• French. I actually do miss speaking it all the time. There are some things that just can't be said as well in English as they can in French.
• The food in general. Also known as the real reason I went on that trip.
• What am I talking about? I miss it all. (Except the showers.)

My life back in good old Sandy/Draper sadly is just not as exciting. I started my new job at Cowabunga Bay serving food to waterpark goers. It's pretty fun.

I have also gone rock climbing, seen a couple movies, and made s'mores. Seeing all these faces again was probably the best part. (Note: None of these pictures were taken this week. I'm sure you can tell by the fact that my hair is a different color in every single one.)

It's weird going from nonstop new and captivating experiences all day every day in Europe, to coming back to my parents' house and not having much to do but work. I plan on making the most of it though, which is why Danielle and I made this summer to do list that we can turn to in our moments of extreme boredom.

• Tennis
• Swimming
• Draper Park
• Draper trail
• Geocaching
• Scootering/Ripsticking/Biking
• Learning to cook
• Floating the Provo River
• Hiking
• Dance Central
• Make videos
• Rock climbing
• Cowabunga Bay
• Drive in movie
• Camping

Also, I am adding on paragliding and skydiving, since they are on my lifelong bucket list and what better time than this summer? So, if you're ever bored in June, July, or August, and within an hour of Draper, let me know! I have a plethora of fun things for us to do.

PS: I forgot to mention that I have a new little thing on my sidebar! I finally got rid of that music playlist because it stopped working, and let's be honest, it was kind of annoying anyway. So I made a little list underneath the follow button (which you should click) that lists my five favorite songs of the week, with links to YouTube so you can listen to them with the click of a button! I will be updating it every Sunday. Just because, you know, I like good music, and other people like good music. So we should share our good music.