Sunday, November 29, 2009

Who Knew Life Could be SOOOO Interesting?!

Here I am again! Still alive and well, although you would never know it since I have been slacking on my blog updates.... Again. Wow, where to start? It certainly has been a while, so I know a lot has happened.

I had a visitor a couple weeks ago!!! My boyfriend Matt came down to see me, and after 3 months of not seeing him, it was like a dream come true! So, there I was in the airport, and I was walking toward what I like to call the "receiving line". The "receiving line" is this HUGE crowd of people that stand on either side of the area where people come out of customs. I don't know if you feel like you are on the red carpet as you emerge from behind the glass doors or if you feel like you are in a football stadium about to get smacked on the rear end by your fellow players... But there are a bunch of people out there! Yeah... Anyway, I was walking toward the huge crowd and talking to my friend Erin because I was so excited, and this guy starts walking past me. I totally didn't see him until he whistled, and I flew around to see Matt! Hahaha, I totally didn't even see him. Well, he got into Honduras on a Tuesday (none other than 1/2 price movie night!), and we had to get going if we were going to catch 2012. It was an incredibly speedy round of "Hi, this is Erin, we have to go catch the movie!" So, that was the start of Matt's 5 1/2 day Honduras adventure.

Not much else really happened the whole week because we all just sort of hung out all the time. Sunday afternoon was the first time we had any "alone" time together. We were sitting in William and Erin's apartment on the couch, and I was trying to take a nap. Unfortunately, Matt just kept talking, so every time I closed my eyes and came close to falling asleep, his voice started me back awake; he was being overly chatty. Then, I noticed his heart start to beat really fast, and I asked him about it. He said it was the caffeine from the coffee we had been drinking. *Shrugs* Whatever. I didn't think much of it. I just continued to try and sleep. Suddenly, Matt was actually quiet for a little bit, and he just said, "I love you." So, I looked back up at him and told him that I loved him too. Then he kissed me, and when I opened my eyes, there was a ring next to my face, and Matt silently asked, "Will you marry me?" I think I probably had a look of shock on my face at this moment, but I smiled HUGELY and said, "Yes!!!" Then, I kissed him again, and pulled away to ask, "Wait, are you serious?!" It was a priceless moment.

After that, Matt put the ring on my finger, and I could not stop staring at it. It is beautiful, and it is mine! I sat there and just looked and looked at it. Matt kept trying to kiss me, but I kept pushing him away and saying, "No, no, no, I just want to look at it!" We sat there looking at it for like an hour and a half, until Erin woke up from her nap. I showed her my hand, but since she was sleepy, I got a delayed reaction, "....... *pause*........ Congratulations!" Then, I started talking to William (who was sitting in the other room) on Facebook. I was like, "Guess what?", and he asked, "What?" I responded, "I'm engaged!".... His only response was, "Is there a ring on your finger?" When I said yes, he burst from his room and said, "That wasn't there before I took a nap." Another priceless moment...... I think I could be on one of those Mastercard commercials right now.

So, that was my BIG DAY!!!! Unfortunately, Matt had to leave the next morning, so I didn't even get to spend 24 hours with my fiance before he was gone. Oh well. Now I am just closer to Christmas break (less than 3 weeks!)

This week was Thanksgiving, which is not a huge holiday down here. On Thursday, we still had school, but we took the kiddos to KFC. They got to play in the big play area that is shaped like a chicken bucket, and we all ate chicken and fries. Mmmmmmm... Gourmet Thanksgiving meal. I even got to eat one of those little apple pies, so it felt like home..... *wink, wink*. Nah, we are actually going to have a Thanksgiving meal tomorrow because we don't have school. We also didn't have school on Friday, so it has been a great long weekend!





Friday, I actually got to go to Telamar with a mission team that was down here. We stayed at this BEAUTIFUL resort that is right on the beach. It was going to be a nice day of relaxing and chillin' on the beach. Unfortunately, it was raining nonstop the whole day. We didn't let that stop us from having fun though! We TRIED to swim in the ocean, but that was a little difficult with the thrashing waved and trash that was floating all over, so we went to the pool instead. We all took turns going down the water slide, and then we played several games of volleyball. All the while it was still raining. Once we were finally done swimming, we all went back to our rooms to get a shower. Wow..... it was the first time in over 3 months that I had a hot shower. AMAZING!!!! I stood there for a few extra minutes just to let the hot water run. It felt wonderful. I was all nice and pink afterward. Hmmm... Heavenly.

In short, that has been my life the past couple of weeks! Now, I only have a couple more weeks before I am home for Christmas break! WOO!!!!!!!!!!!!! 3 weeks of being at home and loving every minute! I cannot WAIT!

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Another Ode.... To My Long, Lost Buddy...

Oh how I long for thee..... my long, lost buddy that makes me feel so warm and fuzzy on the inside. Just the touch of a button, and everything is all better. It makes life so much simpler.... and less work..... and less dishes. Oh to have a microwave again!

They have made a BAZILLION different types of tupperware or plasticware that can go through the microwave, but for me, down here, that is all useless. Everything gets reheated by the stovetop or the oven. I do have to say, however, that I have a brand new appreciation for the oven. I never realized just how many things you could really do with just an oven to make food. I also never realized how dependent I was on the good ol' microwave.... Do you know how much easier it is to THAW things with a microwave? All I have down here is cold, or lukewarm depending on what day it is, water that does not thaw anything that has been truly frozen.

I have to say, I've never had that truly intimate time with my chicken before as I sit there and watch it thaw when I take it out of the freezer. I now have time to name the chicken, give it a whole life story, bond with it, teach it a few tricks, and give it a funeral before I finally have the chance to cook it and eat it. It might be quicker just to raise my own chicken from an egg. Or I could just buy a live chicken and do the whole butchering thing myself... Although, that seems a little cruel and a lot messy. No, no... I prefer this way. Me and my pieces of chicken get along wonderfully. And it is surprising how lippy a frozen chicken isn't. You can pretty much discuss anything, and your chicken has to listen to you without talking back. Seriously, what is it going to do? Thaw itself, come back to life, and tell you to shut up? No. Actually, if it thawed itself, that would be pretty cool....

Anyway, I miss my microwave at home. I never realized how much I miss popcorn until I didn't have it anymore. So, just for all of you who never thought about living without a microwave for an extended period of time.... Just remember the chicken! And popcorn... You gotta have your popcorn.