I hope not!

Stephanie is safely installed in her hotel, registered with her study abroad group, and still hasn't figured out how to use the shower, but is ok with taking baths instead. Our entire family has stopped holding it's collective breath and can finally relax.

Her journey was not without obstacle.

• Yoli had to run out a few hours before Stephie's flight to buy her a new, more manageable suitcase.
• Her flight to London was delayed several times.
• When she finally arrived to Madrid (after a 12 hr flight with a screaming baby) all of her luggage was lost, leaving her with a breath mint, some make up, and a comb for the next 2 days.
• The hotel lost her reservation.
• She still can't figure out how to use the shower.
• She thinks she may have insulted a cab driver when he told her that she'd return to the States speaking like a Spaniard and she replied, "I HOPE NOT!"

Despite all of that, she is happy to be in Seville (and have clothes to change in). She has made new friends and has already begun making good decisions for herself. By now, she has met the family that she is to stay with and we are all hoping that they will be kind and gracious to her.

This trip has been a big deal for our family. It's been difficult for each of us, in our own way, to let her go. We are tight knit and will come to each other's rescue at a moment's notice. It won't be easy for us to do that when she's a continent away. The program has warned her that she may change quite a bit, and that readjusting to American life, and reintegrating into the family may be a challange too. We want her to grow and to expand her horizons. We want her to gain a larger perspective on the World and to see and experience new things, but our hope is that she remain the same at her core.

We are proud of her. The program was not easy to get into. I worried with every quiz and test she took that she would come down with an ulcer. She gave up coming home lots of weekends to finish assignments. She swallowed her pride when she had to ask us for money because she turned down hours at work in order to do homework or prepare for tests.

She had to work harder than most, because let's face it, even though she was an "A" student in highschool, the School City of Hammond isn't exactly focused on churning out the Ivy League level students. She's a smart girl, that silly little girl. She may have loved her Winnie the Pooh teddy until she was a senior in Highschool, and she really loves to play the roll of helpless little baby, but she has really taken charge of her life and that is something to be proud of.