Okay, now I'm just about caught up on blogging...
When I decided to trust what I believed God to be telling me, to leave the Salesian Lay Missioners, say goodbye to my comfy room above a bunch of crazy, energetic but beautiful girls, say goodbye to healthy meals cooked for me and my community with which I ate those meals and my job as full-time "Super mom" to 40+ girls, so to speak, BUT come back to Bolivia "por mi cuenta," I was excited and knew I'd prob. have some challenges, but had NO idea it would be like this...

I've already learned a lot.
 For one, things do not always turn out as you imagined...
1) Job I thought I had in the bag.
  When I arrived back in Bolivia, I wasn't sure if I actually had the position offered to me just 2 months prior. I figured it would work out bc it was such a perfect transition job for me so after a week of waiting, I found out it was a go! Whew!
    (Last week, I took English Club outside the classroom walls. We made tacos and the most delish fruit salad everrr-fruit + yogurt + coconut shavings = fruity heaven :).
I have a great working environment in both my jobs and making enough to survive, so all good).

2) Housing
I thought it would be easier to find a place. I was basically homeless when I got back to Cochabamba, living out of a backpack. I had my things between the hogar and amber's place and nowhere to call mine. A friend of a friend helped me out for my first 3 nights and just when I was starting to get comfy, they told me they were unable to rent to me for some odd reason and I had to leave. Then came the volunteer retreat, so at least I had a place to stay until the end of my first week back. I can't lie, I was a little worried. I knew I'd find something, but didn't know when and I even had second thoughts about staying in Bolivia.
I continued searching, asking everyone I know to help me find a simple room with fair rent in a safe area of town. I followed any lead and looked into student housing by the Univ.
The secretary at the institute I teach English at was doing all she could as well...
   -"Fijate en Ejercito de Salvacion, son Cristianos, tal vez te puede ayudar"
   -"ooh salvacion means salvation, nice"
...when I get there I remember ejercito means army, aka salvation army
  -"Well, you have to be out by 6am and home by 10pm, I'm not sure this is what you are looking for..."
Confirmed, she sent me to the Salvation Army homeless shelter (I hope it was a mistake on her part...haha).

Thanks to good friends, cheap food, and a great cooks (aka Amber and the volunteers),
I didn't starve. Thanks to another amazing friend and his family,
I WAS OFFERED A PLACE TO STAY, just in the nick of time.
I am still living here, happy, safe, and doing well.

So after I figured out the big things, job and housing I had to think about...
 Life in Boliv...real life in Bolivia haha, ok i don't mean real life but adult, independant life.
Life is more simple in many ways, things easy to find, transportation readily available at about quarter per ride. Work is laid-back, but can include long hours when deadlines come quickly and changing or making plans at the last minute is acceptable.
Food is fresh, cheap, and abundant, but you could end up lugging produce blocks and blocks until you've found a truffi to take you home (nothing like carting your groceries to your car, no?). I definitely have an active lifestyle and although I work in the office, we are constantly getting out to do interviews, turn in paperwork, etc.

 Now in order to eat, pay rent, get to and from places, you need...
 $$Money and a good budgeting skills
Dealing with money and budgeting pre-first paycheck can be daunting, but luckily I have enough savings to be fine until I get paid, without delving into what I need to fly home.
  Working for a non-profit on a missionary visa means I won't be making much, even with my few hours of english a week, but I have enough to get by. It is a lot to think about, though, buying healthy foods, paying rent, transportation (those quarters really do add up), having a little to spend on fun each month and saving a little more incase of unexpected illness (so far so good in that dept).

So yes, definitely learning a lot! Although I'm living with a family, they let me do my thing. Of course we share food, chores, space, but I am able to come and go as I please.
I have a place to stay, the jobs I wanted, I'm dancing a LOT, visiting my lovely girls in the hogar 1-2 a week, I feel safe, I am happy and healthy.
I am ready to see what more God has in store for me on this 6 month journey
(whoops did I say 6 months...??well uh...we'll see ;))