Dear host family, My name is Maria Valentina, and my friends call me Mava or Mavis. I live in a city in South of Brazil. My parents got divorced when I was younger, so I have two houses. Actually I live with my father and my stepmother until I end 9th grade. My mother moved to a near city because of her work and we spend time together on weekends, and we are very close to each other. By this way I can be closer to my friends that are very important to me and can end school. My mom and my dad married other people, and I have a big affection for my stepmother and stepfather. Both of them had other children, so I have two little sisters. I always liked kids, so being an older sister is the best thing in my life. I love my sisters so much, and I can't imagine my life if I was an only child. I live in a big apartment with two dogs, Amora and Murici. Some of the responsibilities that I have in my house are taking care of the dogs, giving baths, taking them for walks. I also help with the dishes, and help taking care of my sister, and keep my room organized. I'm very disciplined, I've always been very independent about my responsibilities. My school is near my house, so I wake up early on my own and go walking to school on the mornings. On week days some of the afternoons I have Jiu Jitsu or English and math classes. I do my homework, go for walks with my dogs and play with my little sister. Sometimes I have lunch with my friends or have time to go to their houses to hang out together. I consider myself an extroverted person, sometimes I'm a little shy at first, but don't take much time to be myself, because I really like to meet new people and make friends. I like to draw, read, watch movies, go out with my friends, have conversations, write little stories and I really love listen to music. One of my favorites are “Blackbear” and “5 seconds of summer”. On weekends I like to go out with my friends or stay with my family. We go out to eat, go to the mall, watch movies and mostly to have conversations with them. I am a good listener and like to share my life and things that happen in my daily life with people I love. I think conversations are very important to solve problems and we can help each other. I consider myself a good student, the only subject I have some difficulty with is math, but I am studying with a tutor to improve at school. My favorite subject is History, I really enjoy studying it. I like science too, biology and astronomy. I am very excited about the exchange program. My mother encouraged me to do it since I was little, and I feel very happy I have this opportunity. This is a dream for me. I know it will be difficult to be away from home and I’ll have challenges, but is very important to go through it grow up. My goals for the exchange are to meet new people, make new connections and build relationships, mainly with my future host family. I want to do things that I never did before, and live the American teenage life, go to a prom, enter clubs, and have the best time of my life. I am very open to live this experience and am looking forward to be a part of your family. Best regards, Maria Valentina.