lo siento, perdóneme, estoy aca.

Hi Everyone -
I am so embarrassed, and sorry that I have not written in.. 2 months? Forgive me? :)
I have no excuse for the lack of writing, but to say the least, the past 2 months have been FILLED with many fun, sometimes scary, silly, crazy, and memorable adventures. I have traveled to different cities, gone to party after party, faced problems and have over come them, and have truly become a part of an Argentine family.
For the people who have not heard yet, I have changed the length of my stay in Argentina from the 'One year program', to the '6 month program'. My feelings change every single day living here, but I am certain that this is what I need to do. Argentina has been an incredible experience, I have learned more than I thought I could even comprehend, BUT I also was given many, many, different situations than I thought I would have to face, and think enough is enough. I am a very lucky girl that I have been able to live abroad, meet SO many people that I will NEVER forget, and to have been given an experience and the opportunity to live something I had dreamed for all my life.
I have thought a lot about my decision to return home early, and although I am split in so many ways, I know myself incredibly well now, and know this is the right thing to do.
So, with my decision made, and both my families up to date as well, I am trying to enjoy and thrive in every moment I have left here in Argentina. Beside that, of course I am so excited to return home, hug my family and friends till they are tired of me, and START SKIING! Haha :)
I leave Santo Tomé, January 17th, at the night time on a 12 hour bus to Buenos Aires where AFS will meet me, and take me along with 50 other students to a 3 day closing-orientation. Unfortunately AFS was not able to get me a plane ticket with the other 6 month students so on January 20th, when all the other students leave to go home, I will stay with another host family for 4 days in Buenos Aires. I don't have very much information about them, I know there is a Mom, Brother, and a Sister! Although I'm really eager to get home, I think it will be fun to live in the city for 4 days!
My plane leaves from Buenos Aires at 4AM January 24th, and I will arrive in New Hampshire at 4 in the afternoon, the 25th. The following day, the 26th, I need to head back to school! Im sure I will be SO tired, but excited to see everyone!
I have been told I speak Spanish 'beautifully', I would completely consider Justina to be my real sister, and I dance in the streets on the summer nights with my friends every night! I feel like I have lived, and seen what I have been able to see in Argentina, and am looking forward to returning home, STAYING IN TOUCH WITH EVERYONE IN ARGENTINA, and planning my next big adventure.
ALL my love,
Abigail Mauck
Ps. Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays! It feels weird saying that.. I am sunburned, and in shorts, it is so hott here! How strange :)

no ingles por dos semanas!

hola :)
at midnight tonight, I am officially not speaking ANY English for two weeks.
I will not be using my facebook, email, telephone, watching English TV, and unfortunately, not even using my blog :(
I just recently got really fed up with my lack of Spanish, and decided that I wanted to take a 2 week break from everything in little USA, and completely, COMPLETELY, immerse myself in the argentine culture. I'm sure in the next 2 weeks I'm going to get REALLY frustrated sometimes, but now that I am in a safe environment, I have people around me that I love, I feel it is time to buckle down, and complete a mission :)
tomorrow, October 19th is two months since I have left USA, and that I have been in Argentina. WOW! So cool.
I have struggled so many times in the past 2 months, and so much of my accomplishments here, have come from the letters, notes, and vibes you all have sent me. I'm trucking along, and having a really great time in Argentina, I just cannot believe it has already been 2 months...
My family situation is still great, and everything is good down here in little, baby Santo Tomé, Argentina, and now it is time for a really big challenge. My whole class, friends, and family (both in USA and Argentina) know about this, and are completely supporting me!
Anyway, talk to you guys in 2 weeks! And hopefully, if all goes according to plan, I will be THAT much more Argentine, and speaking much better :)
LOVE!
Abigail.
ps. a photo of my family! My Mami, Nazarena, Sisters Justina, and Esperanza, and my Brothers Octavio, Mateo, and Alejo! Unfortunatly, Papi is not in the photo :(

Abigail Michelini!

Hey Everyone!
Last thursday at about 8:30 at night, i was switched from the Pawluk family, to the Michelini family! I had been experiencing a lot of trouble with my other family for many different reasons, and i thought it would just be a better decision over all, for not only me, but the Pawluk family as well, that i switch. The process was difficult, and at times really hard, because as you can imagine, the Pawluk family was pretty hurt and upset that i had wanted to switch. But AFS was supportive, and i was given such a great family in return!
My family consists of 5 kids, and now 6 with me! My brother Octavio is 17, and attends a private school in Misiones, where he rooms for the week, and returns home for the weekend. My sister Justina, who is 15, was one of my best friends in school before i became part of the family! We share a room, and love saying that we are now 'sisters' to everyone :) I have a 10 year old brother, Mateo, and he is one of the sweetest little boys! My other brother is 5 years old, Alejo, and Mateo and Alejo are best friends. Mateo helps out alot with Alejo, and is always asking me if i need anything. I love my little brothers :) Lastly, i have a little 5 month sister, Esperanza (Hope, in english) and yes, i am in heaven. Haha, i love my little sister so much. Yesterday morning, i woke up before anyone in the house, and Esperanza and I spent time sitting on the porch together in the sun, smiling, and having cuddle time. It was so great! My mamí's name is Nazarana, and she is a really good mom to all of my siblings, and me too! Unfortunatly, my familys dad, Enrique, passed away about 4 weeks ago to cancer. As you can imagine, this is extemely hard for my family, but much to my suprise, the house is still so bright and fun. There are people coming and leaving constanly at my house, and just because my family has lost someone SO important to them, does not mean their world has stopped. They carry on, and are doing so well. I am really proud to be a part of the Michelini family, and love them a lot.
Thank you so much for all your support! The past week has been really hard, but now i am with a family with so much love, and im really starting to be happy again :)
I will keep updating!
Amor y Paz,
Abigail.
ps. Photos arent working right now :( I will put some up later!

argentine niña

Breathe. Deep Breath. Focus, and Move On. Today, September 27th, is now 5 weeks that i have been with the Pawluk Family, in little Santo Tome, Argentina. I have already learned so many things about myself, and cannot imagine what more i will learn in the many months of this journey yet to come. Similar to last blog post, I am struggling with SOMETHING everyday. Wheither it be stopping the tears, or trying to communciate to my 5 year old sister that you cannot put your finger in the bird cage, because they WILL bite you.
In the past 2 weeks i have really made a stronger bond with my Mami, Claudia. I had spent 3 weeks trying to figure out why this woman wasnt treating me like my mom in the USA, and finally realised it was because i wasnt treating her like she was my mom. I had depended on letting all my feelings and sadness out 'the next time i talk with mom, dad and tam' UNTIL i figured out, i needed to let this new Claudia into how i was feeling. I now know how my Mami and Papi met, that my Mami's parents have been married for almost 60 years, and in January my family and I will travel to Brazil for 20 days, in a beach apartment, right on the brazilian beach. I was quick to ask 'and all we do is sleep, and go to the beach for 20 days, right?!' (in spanish, of course). My Mami laughed, and anwsered yes. It should be really fun :)
I have now gone to the disco 3 times, and love it more and more each time. When i have a really hard day with the language, my family, or anything, it feels so good to enter a room where there is no speaking. It is all about dancing, and it is where i always feel home. I am taking a dance-aerobic class with my Mami right now, and our dance instructor is known in my town for her dancing. She is really great. So i pulled her aside after one dance class, and asked if possibly REALLY soon, she would teach me how to dance like an argentine girl, because it is the first time that i can remember that i truly feel challenged with dancing. I CANNOT dance like an argentine girl. BUT, with that said, not many people in the disco can dance like an american girl :) so at least i have that going for me...
School is still really hard, but i am begining to build relationships with my teachers, and am also starting to not feel as scared to raise my hand, and flat out tell them i cannot understand anything they are saying, and if they could have someone explain it to me SLOWLY. all my teachers are nice, and compassionate, but we dont understand eachother very well. Except, english class. I love english class so much. I actually taught english class last week :) it was really fun.
I have taken SO many pictures, and want to show all of you! But unfortuantly the 'kids' computer in my house is broken, so i cannot upload my photos, but im trying to upload them at some of my friends houses, and when i do, you will get to finally see my little kitchen, ALL my new friends, my town, my family, and all the animals in my house (14 in counting, now counting the fish)!
When talking with my mom (in the USA) the other day, i was explaining to her that being here for only one month, i already have so many habits that will be hard to shake when i go back to the USA. for example, everyday of the week, in the middle of the day after lunch, i take a 2 hour nap, wake up, and make myself my favorite drink of milk, chocolate milk mix, and coffee mix. it is fantastic.
yesterday i traveled with my family to the capitol of Corrientes, Corrientes. It was a 10 hour trip, all together, in one day, but i had alot of fun shopping, and going to the movies with my mom, alone. We also traveled to Posadas, the capitol of Misiones 2 weeks ago. We travel alot because my town is so so small that we need to have fun somehow :)AND my Mami really loves to shop.
As it is begining to get colder in New England right now, it is begining to get really hott in Corrientes, Argentina. When New England is getting snow, i will be stuck in my pool because of the heat. I cant say im ready for this, but im gonna try and enjoy it :) haha.
DID I SAY I HAVE HAIR EXTENSIONS?! i love them :) they are blonde, my hair color, and pretty long! my Mami gave them to me as a present, it was so nice of her. Thats one way of my Mami showing me that she cares about me, whereas my mom in the USA would just give me a big hug, and tell me she loved me. Its hard, and very stange to get used to, the different ways of showing love between my two families.
I still love all my friends so much and thank them everyday for all the time they are taking to teach me new words, and how they take the time to pick apart my rocky spanish. They are such a huge support system without even knowing it. BUT, sometimes i forget that they wont understand my strange squeaky noise, or crazy faces, because they dont honestly know Abbie yet, but im really looking forward to learning so much from them, and hopefully i can teach them a little something too.
To everyone who has sent me a card, letter, hug, thought about me, sent me positive vibes - i have recieved it all, and want to thank you so so so SO much for all of it. I know its really inpersonal thanking you in a blog, but even sitting down for this half an hour to update my blog is a little hard. Your cards, and letters have made me cry, laugh, miss home, and sometimes appreciate that im NOT home :) some days i wake up, and miss home and everything along with it immeditatly, but i get up, maybe do a quick cry (im good at those now), walk outside, skip, sit, think, and try to find the beauty in everything i see, think about, and talk about.
i miss home so so much, but im still laughing, dancing, and sqeaking and speaking and speaking, so i know that im okay :) i have a family that i think really cares about me, i have friends that i have already planned my trip back to Santo Tome, Argentina for our class graduation and trip with, and when all else fails, i have you guys, email, blog, and thankfully, my music to keep me going.
I just re-read my blogs before i left for argentina, and man... i had no idea what i was about to do. Its funny :)
Again, Thank YOU for all your support, and i promise to do another update SOON!
Love, amor, and some more love,
Abigail.
ps. no spell check :( sorry. with spanish running through my mind now, along with english, there is bound to be many mistakes :)
pss. In the first photo, that is a picture of the girls i go to school with, and almost all of the girls i hang out with all the time (a couple are missing) from the left - Anita, Me, Marian, Beluu, Karen, Eli, and Anyu (Mica, Justina, Eli, and Flor are missing). The other photo is me and some friends at the disco :)
MORE PHOTOS SOON!

bienvenidos a argentina

Hey Everyone! First of all i would like to apologize for how late this blog is. There is no excuse, except for the fact that it is very rare these days that i have more than five minutes to sit, breathe, and talk about my day.
Well, I'M IN ARGENTINA! All my flights to Argentina were fast, nice, and exciting. Saying goodbye to my mom at the airport and walking away onto the plane was one of the hardest things i have ever done. I sat in my seat, with my sunglasses on, trying not to cry. Fortunatly, i was seated next to a Mom and Daughter who immeditatly asked me if i was okay, and offered support. I kept reminding myself (and do EVERYDAY) that soon enough, i will be back in my mom and dads arms, and life will be back to normal, and boring, soon enough :)
I spent 4 days in Buenos Aires with 80 other students from 20 different countries bonding, laughing, and offering support as well as receiving it with other people in the same place as me. My orientation was fun, although everyone was really anxious to get to their familes and sick of hearing, "its not bad, its not good, its just different" over and over again.
At 8:30 PM on August 22nd i got on my 10 hour bus ride from Buenos Aires to Santo Tome, Corrientes completly alone. I was seated next to an older woman who spoke no english, but she smiled at my often because im sure it didnt take any words for people to figure out how terrified and nervous i was.
I arrived in Santo Tome at 6:30 AM and my Papi and Mami were there waiting for me. We gave eachother big hugs, got into the car, and drove to my new house. No one said anything because it was clear we could not understand eachother. We drove through the downtown, and teenagers were just heading home from the saturday night disco. Wow. When i got home, i went straight to bed, and woke up the next morning to my Mami, Papi, and brother starting to prepare for the BBQ they were having for me with lots of their friends. I was SO tried, and didnt understand one thing they said, but nevertheless, it was so nice of them!
My house is beautiful with two cars, a patio, pool, garden, and... MONKEYS IN THE TREE! The monkeys live in the tree in the summer, because of the fruit growing. I think it is the coolest thing in the world, where as my family is so used to it, they think its funny how crazy i think it is! I share a room with my 5 year old sister, which is hard... but an experience. My brother is really nice and in the begining he was the one who helped us communicate. My Papi and Mami are really sweet, and great parents to Milagro and Marco. But of course, they are very different then my mom and dad at home. They dont hug the same, laugh the same, or obviously, know everything about me. BUT, i really like them, and appreciate things about them that my parents at home dont have!
My school is literally 30 steps from my house, and is very small, but cute! It has about 10 classrooms and about 150 students. My class consists of about 15 students, that have all been together since kindergarten, and will be together until they graduate, all day, everyday of the week. I have classes from 7-11:30 and gym at 5 in the afternoon. I REALLY like my classmates, and have made friends with all of them! I do not understand much of ANYTHING that the teachers say, but talk so much with my friends, and they explain alot to me :) I have 8 really good friends that i hang out with everyday, and one of them is my neighbor, i love them!
Each day i have had a different struggle, as well as something great happen. Each day i have thought of every one from home, and about 3/4 of them, i have cried, which is an accomplishment. I have been in Santo Tome for 15 days now, and feel like i have improved SO much from last week. I am speaking the language better and better each day, and even joked with my family about how awful my spanish was my first day!
I PROMISE i will update my blog telling about so much more, but now it is dinner time, and my fingers hurt from typing so much :)
I'm doing okay, but struggling everyday. I like argentina a lot, and remember to keep telling myself to breathe. Write again soon! Enjoy the photos :)
Amor,
Abigail
PS. Sorry about the typos :( the spell check isnt working! I fixed all the ones i noticed :)

¡adiós!

In 8 hours i will be boarding on my first leg of the trip, eyes filled with tears, and a wonderful adventure in front me. I'm not sure i can speak the language, i don't know who my family really is, and i will not know one person, BUT i am so excited, and most importantly, i am ready.
i would like to thank YOU for helping me reach this dream, and for giving me the tools to be successful at it. The feelings i feel right now are overwhelming, indescribable, and extremely new. I am going to miss everyone very much, but this is my new journey and i cannot wait to begin it.
Here i go! I may stumble and fall, but i am ready to stand back up, and keep going. I will see you soon!
Te amo!
Abigail.

¡dos semanas!

Hola! In two weeks i will be on a plane to Argentina! Oh my gosh. I am not 100% ready yet, actually, I'm not ready at all. The next two weeks are going to be lots of packing, hugs, and goodbyes! I cant wait :)
Amor,
Abigail

Un Mes!