Me. :)

Update!

Sorry I havent wrote in a while, I sort of just forgot to. Well last weekend we went to the Warrumbungle Mountains for the Crooken Mountain concert. It was alot of fun, We went camping and so we got there on Friday night and set up the caravan and I had my own little tent and the boys had swags which are like sleepingbags and a tent in one. So we just had dinner and then hung out with some other kids that were there and just kind of ran around the camp ground it was alot of fun. Then Saturday was when I got my first sunburn in Australia, the concert wasn't until four so we just chilled at the camp site and I got water poured on me haha so I changed into my swimmers and in about three hours I was crazy red. :P  I now wear sunscreen, I did learn my lesson. So then we all got ready for the concert and we were with a big group of people from Gilgandra so we got to the concert and layed our blankets on the ground, our spot was right up front so it was good. And the music was good too, some people went to the front of the stage to dance. I went up for the last song and that was fun. So then it was sort of late when we got back. But it was a fun night hanging out with friends. And then Sunday we packed up kind of early and came home and slept almost all day everyone was so tired. But was a good weekend thats for sure, :)
School has been going great, I actually like going to school to hangout with friends. Ive made some really close friends which is good. All the tenth graders are now done with school for a few weeks so Ill be  going into eleventh grade to finish out the school year, I enjoy year eleven also. :) It is good to be around different people and make more friends.
On Tuesday Vik, Cam, and I went to Wellington for a Rotary presentation. Wellington was about an hour and a half away. But it was worth it, they appreciated my presentation very much. My counselor said it was the best one I had given. :) And the dinner was really good so it was a nice night. When it was time to leave a Rotarian came up to me and told me that I was amazing and was an inspiration for being so young and being such a role model for my country. That probably made my day. :) But anyways they all really really enjoyed it. I also gave the presentation to year ten in English yesterday. All the kids and the teacher liked it. I found out it is alot harder giving a presentation to a room of people that you know and are close to than a bunch of random Rotarians. But anyways I got through that and it went well. :)
This past week the boys, a mate, and I went down to the river to go "golf fishing". It was so much fun! What golf fishing is, is where you take gold clubs and go down to the river and smack fish that swim through. We only hit carp because they are a big pest to everyone here and there is no limit onto how many you can kill. Plus the water doesnt get to deep so its pretty easy too. I think we got a total of twenty for the two days we went out. Its a pretty crazy site, seeing four kids sprinting after these fish swimming so fast and then belting them with golf clubs. Haha. It was a good time. :)
Tonight we are going to go ten pin bowling in Dubbo so that should be good too.
This past week I have experianced a little bit of homesickness but I will get over that. :) Just part of being an exchange student.
Christmas is coming up! I cant wait. Im going to send home a box to my family so its been fun getting presents. :)
I dont for sure have a next host family, they were talking about me living in Nelsons Bay instead of Newcastle. Not one hundred percent sure of what is to happen, but whatever does happen I know it will be an amazing experiance. :)
Well I guess that is about all I have to talk about.
Ill try and update soon!
Love you all! Thanks for reading! :)
Xoxo.

If you have never been an exchange student..

"How do you know what is a dream if you never accomplished one? How do you know what is an adventure if you never took part in one? How do you know what is anguish if you never said goodbye to your family and friends with your eyes full of tears? How do you know what is being desperate, if you never arrived in a place alone and could not understand a word of what everyone else was saying? How do ...you know what is diversity if you never lived under the same roof with people from all over the world? How do you know what is tolerance, if you never had to get used to something different even if you didn’t like it. How do you know what is autonomy, if you never had the chance to decide something by yourself? How do you know what it means to grow up, if you never stopped being a child to start a new course? How do you know what is to be helpless, if you never wanted to hug someone and had a computer screen to prevent you from doing it? How do you know what is distance, if you never, looking at a map, said “I am so far away”? How do you know what is a language, if you never had to learn one to make friends? How do you know what is patriotism, if you never shouted “ I love my country” holding a flag in your hands? How do you know what is the true reality, if you never had the chance to see a lot of them to make one. How do you know what is an opportunity, if you never caught one? How do you know what is pride, if you never experienced it for yourself at realizing how much you have accomplished? How do you know what is to seize the day, if you never saw the time running so fast? How do you know what is a friend, if the circumstances never showed you the true ones. How do you know what is a family, if you never had one that supported you unconditionally? How do you know what are borders, if you never crossed yours, to see what there was on the other side? How do you know what is imagination, if you never thought about the moment when you would go back home?
How do you know the world, if you have never been an exchange student?"

Hickeys Falls. :)

My update.. on life. :)

Well this past week went by so fast! It was a little crazy at school with some drama so glad that's over. I got my package from home and that was one of the highlights of my week. :) I was so excited! The smile on my face couldnt have been bigger when I was opening that package! :) Thanks again for that mom! This weekend we went to go see Paranormal Activity as a family plus Stevie, and Jonah (friends from school) . :) That was pretty good, except for all the girly screams from row of girls behind us. Kinda ruined the movie, but anyways it was a real good night. :) Then Saturday I had a nice sleep in and then went and did some softball pitching at the brick wall in our tennis court, then we got the pool area all cleaned up and ready for summer. The brothers, Stevie, and I went for a swim. Felt good. Then I made dinner. And we just watched movies all night. Sunday was another relaxing day. Slept in and then we decided to go to Hickeys Falls for a swim. It is really beautiful there. And then we came home and I went for a run had tea and now Im here writing in my blog, really tired I think Ill be off to bed in a little bit. This will be my last week of tenth grade. Its crazy to think about because my tenth grade was so short, just under a term. Haha. But its kinda cool. Next week because everyone here will be taking state exams and that theyre moving me up a year. And then it will be work experiance pretty soon. Im really excited for that.
Got to skype the family earlier today. :) That was good, they seem to be doing well. Was nice to see them all. Last night I was skyping with a friend living in Germany for a year and we started talking about how much an exchange changes a person. It truly is amazing, like if I would look back on myself three months ago I wouldnt even recognize that Bailee. Ive become so different. An exchange makes you so much more independent, more social, more open to different things. Im more adventurous and love meeting new people. My shyness has slowly dwindled down, which is a good thing! Im eager to learn, I actually like school and get excited to do little projects and stuff. My sense of humour has become so different too. Ive got the full Aussie humour. :) I love it. Haha. Its alot of fun. As my host mum would say, I am very cheeky. Which means like I am sassy. Haha. But yeah anyways Ive just been becoming a new person and I am a little excited to see what I become when this whole experiance is over. I know that it will change me for life. :)
Making the decision to do Rotary Youth Exchange has been thee best choice I have ever made in my life. Its just undescribable. I cant even describe my feelings, its just that great. Ive had to complete Aussie experiance and its just been so good here in Gilgandra. Its going to be so hard to depart when late January comes around.. Saying goodbye to friends, family, Gilgandra.. it will be hard. But will also make me that much stronger. This has been the ultimate Aussie Adventure. <3
Thanks for keeping up to date on my blog! Good to know people appreciate me blogging. :) Hope all is well! As you can see Im doing great.
So thats all for now. I will blog when I feel like it next. :P
Love you all! :)
-Bailee Jo
xxxx

Overlooking View of Sydney.

Bondi Beach Lifeguards. ;)