After the Party

T minus 10 days to my departure for Philadelphia, then for Mali. My family hosted a big going away party for me last night, which was a ton of fun. We had around 70 people at the beach house, a huge pig roast, and some front yard gaming before the night was over. Thanks to everyone to could come, it was great to see you all. It was an emotional night, saying goodbye to so many family members and good friends, but I'm really happy I got to see so many of you before I left.

I'm headed home tomorrow to pack up all my stuff, then back to the beach for one last week. I'm worried that I'm way over the 80 pound weight limit, so this will be an interesting packing job. My mom is an expert packer, so I'm not too worried and gracious to have her help.

This blog is a work in progress. I'm sure there will be another rainy day before I leave to work on making it look a little better. I look forward to updating the blog as often as I can while I'm abroad.

Again, thanks to everyone who could come to the party. I will miss you all!