Always something new to try

From my last blog, you probably noticed that I'm really excited to try new things. Yesterday I went cross-country skiing! I hate the winter. My dad and brothers love it, and go skiing multiple times a year out west, but I've always been more partial to anything that involves warm weather and the sun. But I got dragged into cross-country skiing and I absolutely loved it! Not to mention you don't have to pay to use the trails at the ski resort... talk about a cheap sport! We rented skis in the morning and drove over to the trail, where some REALLY awesome cross-country skiers were making their rounds. At first I was terrified and barely stood up in time for me to fall over. With the help of Tineke I got up and headed around the small practice track. At most ski resorts they make two lines on the trail that you can ski in if you're new to the sport (almost like a train track). I made it half way down a hill before I realized I was terrified and fell over. But after that fall, I decided I wasn't going to be scared and I was going to just do it (thank you Nike for the inspiration). And I did! No more falling (until we got on the real trail, talk about some wipe-outs.. but only 2!)

I'm sad it's the end of the season, I would have loved to go more often, my arms are super sore today, but it feels great! I had a fun day in the sun and beautiful mountains and got a great workout! I left my camera in the car on accident, but I'll post a picture when Jodie sends me some.

I also tried a new recipe last night, I made my own caesar salad dressing last night! The anchovies made me a little nervous but it was great, and surprisingly simple. I've been reading a bunch of new blogs (1.makingahouseahome.blogspot.com-great tips on recipes, etc; 2. bakerella.blogspot.com-mouthwatering, if you love to bake you HAVE to check out her recipes; and 3. thepioneerwoman.com/cooking). I also made homemade croutons, way better than store bought! I added chicken to make it a meal, and Greg even ate 2 bowls!

New Things

Living abroad always teaches you things, and so far for me it has been an exploration of something unexpected.. me.  Although a lot of things drive me crazy about Gijon, my favorite part is that no one cares about how they look (well, they all dress up all the time... so they do care, but no one is trying to be a supermodel).  They're actually happy with themselves.  And I'm sure people are battling their own thoughts, etc.  But it's nice to live in a place where beauty magazines don't drive us all to feel imperfect all the time.  Nobody's perfect.  

So... I've always been super insecure about trying new things because I hate to look stupid.  But not anymore.  I go hiking and pee in the woods, and I'm becoming an awesome cook.  And on Wednesday, I went snow-shoeing.  We went to a ski resort, hitched a ride up the lift (for 5 euros of course) and went hiking on the top on a mountain.  Ours were the only footprints.  I would have never pictured myself as a girl who did that, but I'm finding out how much I love it!  Nature is so beautiful!  And I feel like I've cheated myself from God's creation not having admired it much in my lifetime.  The mountains and the valleys, when I start to imagine God's hands shaping them, it makes me super tingly!  It's so beautiful, and he did it for us to enjoy.  So I challenge everybody to go see or do something you've never thought about before!