What were you grateful for this week?This week I am grateful for laughing.

What was the most difficult or challenging part of this week?The most challenging part of the week was the rain, which was also the most beautiful part.

Tell us about a “wow” moment you had this week. For Valentine’s Day, I left the boys Valentine’s and American candy. My mom also wrote a note for [my host mom], which I coincidently found in my bag just in time for Valentine’s Day morning.

Tell us about your week!This week was more relaxed for me. I went to the phone store to get my phone service renewed, the grocery store to get coffee to take home with myself when I leave this beloved little coffee country, went for a run, and saw Black Panther (this time in English with Italian subtitles). I slept in a lot, and it rained and stormed for a couple days out of the week.

On a nice sunny day, I played soccer with the older boys at the park. Unknowingly, I did wear high heel booties and a dress with tights. Let’s say my booties are real muddy and the tights destroyed.

I tried homemade lasagna, and it is something to die for! The tomato sauce ended up having carrots in it, which gave it a mild sweet flavor. For dessert, grandma brought frappas. Frappas are a delicate dessert prepared around Carnivale time, they are similar to fried tortillas with powdered sugar on top.

This week I got to see a lot more of my family’s personality and it was one of my favorite things. To see that people everywhere around the world enjoy to laugh and make jokes.

I made little flashcards with basic English phrases to help the older boy get down the basics of a conversation.

My one touristy thing for the week, was watching the sunset over the Spanish Steps. To say it was breathtaking would be an understatement. It was partially cloudy, which made me expect nothing as lovely as I found. The sky danced with the last licks of sunshine as the pink creeped slowly to a harsh red against the blue clouds overhead.