This past weekend, I traveled with the youth to Kansas City, where I got to have a lot of fun with my kiddos. It will be incredibly weird to not hear their voices/see their faces/receive a text message from them multiple times a week...so I fully treasured my time with them this past weekend. No youth trip is complete without a little shopping...to the North Face store I went! I actually tried on the Arctic Parka in the store, and was so glad that I ended up going with the Mountain Hardware version of a down jacket. The parka was AMAZINGLY warm and would be great while I'm over there, but it is also not compact at all. I also tried on these boots, which almost come up to my knee. The downside? They're not fully waterproof. My shins started sweating in the store while I was walking around in them...it's literally like having a down jacket on your feet/shins. If I freeze in my first winter in Ukraine, I may be purchasing these bad boys for the next winter :) Also while in the North Face store, I tried on some amazing long underwear. One of my PC comrades (who lives in Ukraine now) has a great blog and informed me that she wears her long underwear nearly every day. Great advice! I had purchased some long underwear locally, but may return it and get this North Face long underwear. It felt warm and fit well...sounds like a winning combination to me!
Sidenote: The blog I listed above is by Jing. Her facebook status the other day was too funny not to share with everyone in the states who wonders if I will in fact survive a Ukrainian winter. Here's what it said:
"I never thought I'd say this but I wish it was -25 degrees outside so school would be canceled again... its only -23 and its freezing in the classrooms! Hopefully this will be the "last strong frost" of the winter!"
My jaw dropped after reading that statement. But I'm excited and can't WAIT to go. My parents came over to my house today to help me sort through stuff for the garage sale we're having on Saturday. If you live in the area, please come see what we have! I'm basically getting rid of everything I can...home decor, clothes, shoes, accessories, furniture, etc.
