Happy Holidays Indeed

So, as it turns out, Adam was right (I hate admitting this, but it seems so often to be the case). Christmas was wonderful! For starters, we got lots of play time in with our niece and nephew,(I am now a Hungry Hungry Hippos Champion) and my best friend Cydney was kind enough to take them out to her barn to ride her horse and play with her miniature ponies and donkey. We had several nights of staying up with Adam's sister and her husband, whom we love very much! Two nights before Christmas, Adam and I snuck out and set up the tree, which no one had brought down yet, which was one of my favorite thing we did all break, a bit like playing elves!
For Christmas Eve, we were invited to Cydney's mother's house, which was really nice. I even tried some of the tofu ribs and have to say, I'm a fan!!! We did Christmas with them there, Candy gave us all the makings of a homemade date via Williams and Sonoma, and a gift card for a night out, it was very sweet. Cyd & Brandon were a bit more adventurous...we both got one of Cydney's famous chocolate dipped pears, and I got my very own....3 dimensional unicorn mug!!! (You know your're jealous!!) Even better, she got Adam an oil diffuser that's a giant dinosaur guarding its eggs....they make me laugh so hard sometimes. Oh! And in keeping with meatetarian v vegetarian t-shirts, the vegetarians gave him a new one from the collection "I didn't claw my way to the top of the food chain just to eat lettuce." :) Following my family's tradition, Adam and I made it to midnight mass by ourselves, and then quietly snuck in to the house, knowing we only had a couple hours of sleep before the kids would wake us up with the excitement of Santa's visit. Christmas morning was wonderful, Cynthia and I spent a good deal of time getting ready together in the bathroom, after it always being Ry and me, it's fun to have a big sister now, especially one with a sense of humor! Christmas day had the whole family together and presents being passed every direction, Adam surprised me with gifts from Santa, since we had decided to do gifts for our ever-expanding family instead of each other. Imagine my surprise when there were 3 packages under the tree for me! (Don't worry! I have his too, but am saving them for Christmas at my parent's house!!) I was given my traditional Christmas Nutcracker, since I collect them, and this one was beautiful, and my tallest at two feet! Adam also got me a new Steinbach ornament for our tree, "something a little Irish and a little German, since I missed my family", it was the Irish Steinbach. And last, but not least, he managed to find a Lenox 2008 "Our First Christmas" ornament!!! I was so sad no one had gotten us one last year, but felt silly buying one now, it was absolutely perfect!

The rest of Christmas was spent between the McCulloughs with dinner and games and back at the Owens house, where we taught the games to the rest of the family. I forget until I have moments like Christmas day, how lucky I really am to have such a wonderful and loving family, O'Connells, Fishers, Owens, Elliots and the like! It was a very happy Christmas, and one I'll treasure.

Christmas Emotions

So, I am trying hard, hard hard to be excited about Christmas this year, but it's not really happening. While I'm happy we'll get to celebrate with Cynthia & Mark (the best in-laws ever, seriously) and the kids, and I know we'll have fun....It's hard not to be completely disapointed that we're missing Christmas with my family, again, in Hawaii, again...One of the difficulties of marriage I hadn't put too much thought into--not having your parents pay to fly you everywhere (at least when it's the two of you we're talking about). :( To most people, reading that they would think it's Hawaii I'm bummed over, wrong! (well, sort of) I would obviously be crazy not to want to be in Hawaii versus Amarillo (have you been to Amarillo?!?!), but it's the whole Christmas experiece with my family and my grandparents I miss. We were unable to go last year because we had just gotten married, and this year we had to buy a new car...there's always something! My in-laws are amazing, and I feel so blessed to have them, but they're not my crazy parents, and there's no Ryan to tease, no Pappy to call me Geraldine or a Nana to insist we go to Church and bake at every given opportunity. It's not the same. It doesn't feel like Christmas without all that...It just feels like a strange long-weekend. *shrug* I know once we're all together, with Elizabeth & Ethan running through the house, Jacob & Leticia over talking about the baby, and Mark & Cynthia to joke with my sadness will fade and give way to laughter. But I know at one point on Christmas day, I will sneak off to cry quietly and compose myself, missing the holiday I love with the people who understand me best. For now, there are meals to plan, and people to see and the new traditions Adam and I are creating for ourselves. Starting 3 years ago, we began a tradition of stocking-ninjas!!! (yes, you read that right) We go to the store the week of Christmas and secretly buy goodies to pile into the stockings, candy, silly toothbrushes, razors--the important stuff, obviously! ;) We've also continued my family's tradition of midnight mass on Christmas Eve, a lonely tradition when we're without them, as no one else every wants to go. I have to admit though, there's something oddly romantic about being alone with Adam in a beautiful church at midnight, celebrating the birth of the most important child. These are memories I am saving, memories I know I'll appreciate the older and busier we get.

A Young Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving is normally a holiday my family travels for. Not to visit family, usually, but to get away from it all. In high school, it was typically Italy we went to, later when I was in college it was New Orleans, or somewhere else across the US. Last year, we were in Amarillo and had a great time. We had a full house-my cousin and her husband came down from Oklahoma, and Adam's parents and oldest brother joined us too. This year, with the O'Connells in DC, we were invited to join Shannon and Kyle once again for Thanksgiving, this time at their place in Oklahoma City. We were all a little nervous since it was four 20-somethings with no Thanksgiving experience making everything. We soon discovered our apprehension was unfounded---Shannon did an amazing job with all the food, just look at that turkey!!!

I was very proud, because this year I attempted to make a pumpkin cheesecake, my first ever. It turned out to be fabulous!!! I think I found a new Owens tradition!

The weekend was so much fun, Adam and Kyle conquered a puzzle and braved Black Friday for a new one (yes, really), we had hobo dinners in their backyard firepit, and even went out to find their very first real Christmas Tree. We also discovered the magic that is Ghirardelli peppermint chocolate coffee! Meg was a doll the whole time. I couldn't believe how much bigger she had gotten in the last 3 months! She just quietly sits and observes, taking everything in.

Of all the pictures I caught this weekend, this one was definitely my favorite....

We had a wonderful time, and it lasted just long enough. On the drive away, I immediately popped in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's Christmas Album, and began dreaming up our plans to hang Christmas lights and put out all our Holiday decorations. I LOVE this time of year!

Ghosts, and Goblins, and Trick-or-Treaters Oh My

Halloween--easily one of Adam's favorite holidays, and who can argue with that? You get to dress up, act ridiculous, dance around and be silly---people expect it of you! We had grand plans for this years costumes, but they turned out to be a bit too grand, so we stepped it down a notch and went with our backups. The week before Halloween, every year, our friends the Leslies have a big blow out bash in honor of Matt's birthday. The only rule, you MUST dress up. (Let me remind you, that within our circle of friends, we tend to be the youngest, these are our heroes, people in their 30s committed to dressing up for Halloween)This year Adam and I went as Bunnicula and Raggedy Anne--a total success! Adam even went so far as to wear prosthetic vampire teeth! On the way to the Leslies, we were stopped at a stoplight when a car next to us motioned for us to roll down the window so that they might take our picture. It took me a minute to figure out why, I had forgotten for a moment that I was wearing yarn hair in pigtails and Adam was sporting some bunny ears as we made our way down Seminary.

The party was great, as it always was, dancing, a fire in the backyard, and as many taquitos as you could possibly want, haha. Of our friends who attended, we had, Super Woman after 3 kids, Michael Jackson (obviously my favorite), Wall St, Lady Gaga, Rosie the Riveter, and Marla via Fightclub.

Though there is no telling where we will be for Halloween next year, our costume plans are already forming and we will only be going for bigger and better!

U2 Concert

For Adam's birthday, my parents got us tickets to see U2 in Concert in Arlington!!! It was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!!! Muse opened for them, and it was at the new Cowboy's stadium, which was really awesome. My parents and Ryan had gone the month before in DC, and told is it was one of the best concerts they'd ever been to. That's a pretty big statement, but means a lot coming from my parents, who are concert experts. :) We danced and sang through the concert, and enjoyed what awesome performers U2 is.

The best was how they used the concert venue to try and bring awareness to social issues around the world. After the concert, we went out for drinks with our friends Jen & Pat, and were laughing as we heard a girl inside singing "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" in bad karaoke. *shudder* All in a all, a wonderful night!! Adam and I had a blast, "Thank you Mom & Dad!!!"

A Year of Wedded Bliss

Yesterday marked our 1st Wedding Anniversary!!! It went by so, so fast!! We had a wonderful day. We slept in, and I woke to find Adam had brought home pink & yellow roses (my favorite) and was making Eggs Benedict (another favorite!) We spent the day together at the Botanical Gardens, walking, talking and reminiscing. The best part of the evening, is when we got all dressed up and went out to dinner at the amazing Old Warsaw in downtown Dallas. They've been in Dallas for over 60 years, and they're wonderful! They're also the restaurant that catered our wedding. We were seated in a corner booth and sipped our wine while being serenaded by a violinist. We were there almost 3 hours! I wish I had thought to bring my camera, but I didn't, so, no pictures of our magical night. We spent most of the evening talking about what we wanted the next few years to look like, and all the plans we wanted to make. It was completely romantic and perfect, I couldn't be happier. Happy Anniversary Adam, I love you!

Happy Birthday

Happy 24th Birthday Adadadadadadam!!!!

Miss Margaret

My cousin, and friend, Shannon had her beautiful baby this past Friday, 8/28/09. They chose not to find out the sex of the baby and rather be surprised. Shannon was convinced she was carrying a little boy, but surprise surprise, it was a beautiful baby girl! Margaret Lillian VanHeest came into the world at 9lbs 13oz and 22in! She is gorgeous, and is going to break all sorts of hearts! Adam and I were able to go up Sunday and visit them all. It was especially exciting since my Aunt and Uncle were in town from South Carolina and visits with them are rare. Shannon looked beautiful and Kyle was beaming--they are going to be incredible parents. That little girl is so lucky to have them.

Adam painted a ceramic elephant bank for Margaret and we brought champagne for a toast. As Margaret began to cry, Kyle toasted "May she grow to be all the more intelligent, all the more beautiful....and...." then my Aunt Becky jumped in to finish it off "and out of this stage!". It was funny, every so often someone would joke "I guess this is pretty good birth control, huh?" but the thing was, it had just the opposite effect, it made me ache to be ready for that part of our lives.

Now, before you panic--read that again,I know we're not ready, and we won't rush into a lifetime commitment prematurely. Still, it's hard knowing so many of our friends are in that place already and we're not. When we left that night, our conversation in the car almost immediately turned to having children. We've had the conversation before, but it seemed alot more relevant this time. How many did we want, what were our hopes for our children, how did we think we'd handle pregnancy and parenting? I know Adam will be an incredible father, but I don't know what parenting will have in store for me...

Birthday

Happy Birthday to Me! :) Today was wonderful. Although I feel like there is nothing glamorous about turning 23, Adam made it a wonderful and special weekend. We spent the morning in Corinth at Cynthia & Mark's (his sister and brother-in-law) hanging out and eating lunch. For as close as we live, we never get to see each other-which is especially lame since we always have fun when we get together with them. At 2pm, we went to see the Broadway Tour of Mamma Mia--Adam's birthday surprise for me. Do gifts get any better then that?! No, they don't! Afterwards was dinner at....Piranhas (we're so predictable!) and an August birthdays party at the Reagans. We ended the night with a treat--live Mariachi music down the street. I am so not kidding, this guy was using a keyboard, microphone and speakers (facing out to the street)at 3am. Yes. So, we danced and hung out with the Mariachis. Good Day.

I quit

Well, I did it. I quit my job. I even cried a little bit. But he was really understanding--I think he kind of saw it coming. He'll be out of town the next 2 weeks, so that will be exhausting, but after that I'm done. I did tell him I will work a couple weekends if he needs me to until he finds someone else.....

YAY!!!!!!!!

Quitting

I could cry. Well, more accurately, I want to go back to crying again...like I was earlier tonight, but I will act like a grown-up, I will...I will... We've come to an interesting intersection for us. I have been working at PM for almost 3 years now, and I have LOVED it! My boss is the kind of boss you spend all your time wishing you had, thinking about while you secretly curse your evil manager when he's not looking. My boss actually cares about me, is incredibly generous with time off, and insanely fair in the work place. The problem is...I've reached the point in our work-employee relationship that PM is no longer the place for me. Not only no longer the place, but it is actually starting to make me an anxious, irritated mess. Not exactly what I need. AND, I was just given a revised job offer, originally meant to be part-time my new job offer is for a full-time position...one that actually pertains to what I want to do after I have a Masters, mastered. Not just a job either, but one I really REALLY wanted! The problem is that while the employee is ready to quit and leave, I harbor major guilt over abandoning my friends and boss. I've discovered that's the problem about having a job you love, you can't just nonchalantly walk to the back and tell em "thanks, but I believe I'm done here". I have actually shed big, sad, crocodile tears at the mere thought of having to tell them "these next two weeks will need to be my last two". I feel guilty, ungrateful, irresponsible, and half-crazy. *sigh* But I am writing it out here, hoping for some kind of release. Maybe if I write this I will not cry half as much tomorrow when I try to explain my thought process and needs to his confused and worried face.

Or maybe I'll get lucky, and find out I don't mean half as much to him. Maybe he'll just say "alright. two weeks", turn and go on about his business. Then I could move on about mine.

...........except I think that would be much, much worse.......

Mongolia Pictures

I can't figure out how to add this to my sidebar here, so instead I'm just posting the link....here are all 379 Mongolia Pictures, should you care to look!

http://picasaweb.google.com/kissykeikocakes/Mongolia2009#

Post-Mongolia

So....since making it through the 30+ hours of travel back from Mongolia, I have had no luck beating the jet-lag blues. Perhaps some Ambien would have been a good thing...I have been using the 'NyQuil' approach, but am having trouble staying asleep through the night. Today I couldn't fall asleep until 8am (yes) and woke up at 4pm. Blerg!

Sadly enough...I find myself missing Mongolia. Or our experience there. I feel a little hollow and purpose-less without a daily agenda and 15 other people to share it with. *shrug* Odd. I really, really want to go back and make it some semi-regular part of my life. Somehow.

I've been a lot quieter since getting back. (this is truly shocking) I've felt like blogging, and reading, and journaling....sitting in silence and thinking. I finally called my mother today, but other than that the only person I've felt like talking to is Adam. Maybe because I don't want to break the trip's spell?

My house in little Mexico has never seemed so glamorous and inviting as after this venture to Mongolia---with tiny hard beds, bad water, lack of plumbing, lack of electricity, and no Adam! My bed has been a wondrous hideaway for my aching, confused body these past days...trying to figure out "what time is it?" and "where am I?".

I am happy to be home. Very happy. But, I miss Mongolia.

Don't tell.
PK

Blerg

I have accomplished nothing today. Yesterday looked like this "a hair cut"....today was "post office". Blerg. I have absolutely no desire to go to work at Piccolo Mondo, mostly because I'll telling them that my time there has come to an end and the following weeks will be my last there. :( I'll be happy to be done working there, but I feel really guilty quitting....I've worked there just short of 3 years, and my boss has been I-N-C-R-E-D-B-L-E but it really is time to go. I just dread telling him that.....and all my friends I work with....

Ick. It makes my chest hurt thinking about it.



Anxiety stinks.

Just two more weeks....

Day 4 in Mongolia

My Tuesday began at 6am today. After some much needed coffee and toast, I was able to capture this wonderful picture that's the view from outside my room. The walls everywhere are fences around the properties. In Mongolia, having a fence is a trump card. You can have the proof you bought the land, but if someone else comes along and fences it before you, they own it. The round tent you see in the picture is a yert, here they call it a ger. Many people use them as homes, though they are only ever 10* cooler or warmer than outside-nothing but a large tent-type structure. At wealthier homes, many people have yard guards living in the gers, to keep people from breaking in and stealing. In other yards, you see multiple gers for multiple families on one property.

After breakfast, we headed out to the grocery store to get some juice boxes to take as a treat to the kids at Mitch & Baljamaa's feeding center by the dump. The grocery store really was a lot like our grocery stores back home...until you round the corner. There, staring at me, was a large collection of sheep heads and sheep hearts. Not something we through in the cart! We headed out to the 2nd feeding center that Mitch & Baljamaa run. This one was out by the city dump where the kids are unable to go to school because their parents have them work in the dump for $1-$2 a day sorting through the trash to find recyclables. The kids were older then the other center, about 10-15 and really spent little time at the center aside from lunch. Mitch had raised enough money together to do some construction at the center, making concrete walls and a sections for the kids to bathe since they're covered in so much filth. After we helped serve lunch and played with the kids-painting nails and passing out gifts, we headed over to see the conditions these kids are living in by working at the dump. This was the first time I cried. When we pulled into the dump we saw a 10 year old run and jump onto the back of a running dump truck and climb up the back. He immediately started sorting through all the trash and when the truck began to dump they didn't wait for the kid to jump off, he just tumbled out with the trash. Around the dump, kids were scattered everywhere. The smaller ones were playing in the trash while their siblings
worked.

We made a drive outside the city to the Orphanage summer house they rent for $150 a month. Out in the country, the kids are able to run around and play without running the risk of being hit by a car or being in as much filth. The kids at the orphanage were almost totally different then the city kids. Most of them had been in the orphanage since they were infants, abandoned roadside. Brought up by the 3 ladies who work there, they get more consistent parenting, balanced meals & plenty of time to run and play. The majority of the kids were little babies & toddlers, the oldest was about 9.

Most of the little ones were napping when we arrived, like little dolls. We were able to tour the house and meet the workers before playing with all the children. The balloon animals were a major success, thanks to Tim & Joey, although the kids were small enough that throughout the afternoon there was a pretty steady *pop* *pop* as they kids squeezed or bit the balloons while they played.

Face painting went a lot smoother than in the city, with drawn up templates they could point at & choose.

At one point I could no longer hold it, broke down, and used the 'outhouse'. These are basically 3 sides of metal, tied together with a deep hole beneath a squat board, lots and lots of bugs down there. N-A-S-T-Y. But, I survived. (barely) God bless hand sanitizer and baby wipes! After spending the afternoon playing with the kids, we drove back to the city for a second English lesson. After practicing quick introductions, one of the students, who was about 18, suggested we discuss our dreams, "because dreams are a good thing, right?". No one had really prepped us for what would be discussed, and we found this a bit strange, but went ahead and talked with them. When it came time to leave, it was explained to us that the concept of having a dream or life goal is very new. Until about 3 years ago, no one even understood the concept. They associate Americans with dreams & life goals, and wanted to hear about them, because it's so foreign to them to have a plan for their lives since Communism hasn't been gone for long (it's still not really gone, it's just not the official government, but the party is still often in power and the government controls like everything). With the lesson over, we headed back to the house where we were treated by Mitch making us all some gumbo, and spending time talking to the four of them about their life in Mongolia.

Today we piled into a spall local cafe to enjoy some Western breakfast at a popular spot owned by a Cuban man & a woman from Camaroon. I was a little disappointed that breakfast wouldn't be some extreme foreign fare, but I was appeased with an enormous potato pancake. They are my new favorite...I can't even remember what else I ate, excpet that it was all accompanied with a nice, cold (rare here) Coke! We then headed to Stephanie & Chris's feeding center to see what they do, help out & play with the kids. When we arrived, I was amazed to see a tiny building with a big yard. For some reason I was expecting a large, fancy building with an industrial kitchen and shiny linoleum floors. The entire center was about the size of my living room. Evidently, even when you own the property it is really really difficult, especially as a foreigner, to get the clearance to build, hook up water, anything---so they have a small pieced together building with no running water. The main line literally runs along the back of the building, but they are still waiting to get hooked up. (they've been here 2 years) In the meantime, water for the center must be carried up in barrels from the well, just like everywhere else. Here, they feed anywhere from 10-60 kids every day, generally for only about $15. When we arrived the kids were shouting in Mongolian, "oh no! so many teachers!!" We took a very brief tour (as you can imagine), and met the woman who does the cooking, then turned our attention to the kids. As soon as they spotted cameras, many were striking "American" poses, arms flexed, or rock & roll hands. Chris, who runs the center began telling us about some of the children there.

One boy who was no bigger then an average 10 year old was 15, another about the size of a 6 year old, was 12. Their growth and development had been horribly stunted from lack of nutrition, and many times food in general. When we brought out the face paint, we had their undivided attention. Girls were asking for flowers, hearts and kitty faces, while the boys wanted 'tattoos' like our friend Joey. Soon all the boys had flamed bellies and big anchors on their arms, proudly showing them off. It was amusing that even without being able to speak, they could communicate with us, pointing out others paintings or clasping their hands for "please ONE MORE!!" When lunch was about to be served, we joined them inside to help plate the food and pass it out. I was expecting rice and a few vegetables, but it was 2 scoops of rice, and 3 different dishes with it, a full and colorful meal Through the center, they not only get meals, but they get well-balanced, healthy meals. After lunch, we were able to give the kids coloring books, puzzles and balls, they were very excited when they could tell us "thank you", one of the English phrases they've learned. What's even more amazing about the free center is that the couple who runs it is only a few years older then Adam and I, with two small kids. They knew the kids by name, and were so happy to get to show us what a difference a little help in that community really makes, especially when these kids have little else. What's interesting is that they get a lot of flack from the Buddhists who's temple is by the center. They shout over the wall "GO HOME!" "STOP BRAINWASHING OUR KIDS", but they have no involvement in the community, and are doing nothing to fight the starvation many of these kids face. I knew alcoholism was bad in Mongolia, but Mitch (who runs several centers and an orphanage) told us 80% of Mongolian men are alcoholics, and could care less about caring for their families. It is consider a foreign concept to take steps to care for and protect your family. Many children are left in gutters to die or be taken at as young as infancy. This is exactly what happened to their adopted daughter Mishka when she was 7 weeks old. They also told us that here in Mongolia, the child mortality is 40%--4 out of every 10 children won't make it to 18. By stepping into these communities and providing these children with what their families can't, Manna is literally saving lives.

After our day at the center, we were given the option of going to Mitch & Baljmaa's or recoup at the guest house before the English lesson. Julie, Stacie and I opted to stay behind and wait for the them to pick us up in 2 hours. When 5 o'clock hit, we started looking around for the car to show up...waiting and checking, waiting and checking...we took a trip down the hall to ask the others where they thought the others might be, and realized we were the only ones left behind. And apparently forgotten. What we missed was practicing conversational English with young adults and singing some Beatles hits. Instead, we played a game of hearts and thought of all the ways to taunt Keith when he returned. Tomorrow we are supposed to go out to Mitch's feeding center and then to the orphanage they're running to play with the children and do some construction. Good night from Mongolia, and good morning to you in Texas!

Days 1&2 in Mongolia

Got to the airport at 5am for our 7:45am flight, and was met with a bit of a scare when they told me I had no reservation....at 5am, this sort of thing is really to much...Turns out, Keith has made the reservation under the wrong name, and they went ahead, after some explanation and gave me my ticket. (This was MUCH more interesting once we reached China.) The morning flights were uneventful, our first to Seattle with a 4 hour layover, followed by the dreaded 11 hour flight to Beijing! It really wasn't as bad as expected. I lucked out with 2 seats alone on the side, so I was able to kind of lay down in a ball and sleep part of the way. We had personalized televisions just like first class, though the selection was mainly Chinese hits with some random American hits peppered in like "Sleepless in Seattle" and "Crash"...It was your typical, long flight with minor changes like beef & noodles for lunch, Chinese flight attendants and English translations. When we got within an hour of China things started to get a little weird...Along with our customs forms we had health forms to fill out with questions like "have you come into contact with a sick person in the last week?" and "check any that applies" next to symptoms like runny nose, aches, headache, etc--all fairly common in travelers. This seemed strange but no big deal. And then they came to take our temperature. Yes, you read that right. They scanned us, which was not as invasive, but equally weird. They then announced "all passengers cover nose & mouth" and sprayed down the cabin to disinfect it.... We all kept looking at each other like "are they for real?!" Once we got off the plane, we had to walk through infra-red body scanners that were trying to detect "too high" of body heat. There were signs everywhere for quarantine rooms and all employees wore masks. As we went through to get our passports stamped and turn in our forms, I heard Joey say "just from the plane--I have allergies" and then he was whisked off. Apparently he had made the fatal mistake of trying to be honest and marked the box "runny nose". He was inspected and detained for about 20 minutes, after checking him out they demanded to see his medicine and one man came out triumphantly with NyQuil to show his senior officer. They finally let him go, but Joey had to suffer our teasing the rest of the day. Moral of the story---China is scarier then you thought. (some people can be detained indefinitely) We had a 5 hour layover in Beijing and were able to get something to eat in the airport and explore before our 8:30pm flight. When we went to check in we got yet another surprise, out of the 16 of us, only 7 showed up with reservations and the flight was oversold...We had to wait on the floor in front of check in for an hour and a half before they were able to let us know how many seats showed up available. Luckily we all got on, but we had a serious problem with me. On my passport I'm listed as Kaitlin Owens, middle names Marie O'Connell, but on my tickets Keith had put me as Kaitlin OConnellOwens. Finally after many attempts on my part to explain, the gentlemen said "you Owens?!" Finally! He understood! He smiled, and handed me a printed boarding pass with my name, "Owens, Kaitle". *sigh* Security was also interesting, a scan and then a full body rub down, not the pat down like the US---in China it was grabbing and touching everywhere you never wanted to be grabbed or touched...by the time we got to the gate, we were all half dead and laying on the cold tile in wait. Our last flight was only 2 hours long, though one of the scariest I have ever-EVER been on with awful turbulence. We landed at midnight and had officially been traveling for 30 hours.

When we came out of the airport we were stunned by the dark silence. There are no city lights except what's on the buildings or coming from the houses. There isn't a single street light or street sign unless you're in the center of downtown--even then they're really seen as suggestions and while you are supposed to drive on the right side of the road, it's not seen as a requirement. Some roads are VERY poorly kept but paved, while the rest are half-gutted dirt roads. We made our frightful way to the Manna Guest House where we'll be for several days. After being up for nearly a whole day before traveling for 32, plus a 14 hour time difference, all I could manage to do was a quick hot shower before sinking into bed. Day 2 we will be heading out to the feeding centers to play with the kids, help serve lunch and get a chance to talk with those who work for Manna.
This was horrible bottled water in Bejiing that was flavored, we didn't see the English name until after purchase...

Mongolia

ACCCCKKKK!!!! I leave for Mongolia for practically forever on Saturday. SATURDAY!!! I'm trying to figure out why I thought it would be fine to go without Adam----WHAT WAS I THINKING!?!?!?!


I'm excited. And nervous. And excited. And scared.


Can I admit I'm scared?

Of course I can, anyone who knows me knows I'm scared.
Ack! I wonder if I can pack Adam in my suitcase.......

Ethan's Birthday!

Happy Birthday Ethan!

I am a terrible Aunt, and did not call.....and I didn't get your birthday card out until today, your birthday. But I figure, since you're only 6, and it has money inside, as well as a huge alligator sticker, you won't care it's late.

The Capital for a Capital Holiday

DC in July is nothing when you're accustomed to Fort Worth in July. It was practically cool in DC!!! Since my parents moved mid-June (did I mention that!?!?!)we decided to make a trip up the week of the 4th and stayed for about 9 days. We did half the tourist crap we usually do (museums, etc) as well as just hanging out. We did a pretty good Alexandria (Old Town) tour, and sat around drinking wine. We made it out to Granio's one night for dinner, and Keith & Debbie were in town so they came over too. It was great to be able to hangout with all the family, to see Keith & Debbie after so long, and to introduce them to Adam.

We also made it up to Ocean City and then Rehoboth for 2 beach days and some time on a ridiculous boardwalk. It was crazy, good people watching, and even better fudge!!! YUM!


A very good, much needed break from DFW life.


Except it made me so ready for a life change.

A move, a job change, a...something!

Summer

feeling anxious


because of the combination of too much diet coke (although, I'm not sure you really can have too much diet coke) and good music, im in the mood to write. FINALLY. can't count how many times ive stared at this blinking cursor - or held my journal in my lap hoping for something to flow... but it never does.

and as cliche as it is, writing was just another part of me that deteriorated through the last semester. for a number of reasons that shouldn't be important anymore. CANT be important. ridiculous how two semesters have enough power to change and shape - and now, after it's all over, im still gathering my footing after being dumped at the end of an emotional rollercoaster.

summer won't be as enchanting as all previous... friends seem more distant, and some just have plans elsewhere. i guess im realizing that i have a life somewhere other than amarillo - home is more of a check point... refreshing.

i guess this is growing up.

so, this summer. im delving into the journal ive barely written in, recovering all the lost hours of sleep, and spending time with people ive spent an obnoxious amount of time missing.

thank God it's finally here.

Austen, Waterparks & Friends

Cyd and Brandon came down for a lovely week visit! I miss them (mostly Cyd) so much, I'm happy we live close enough to see each other every couple of weeks. We headed down to Austen on Tuesday at 6am---waaaaay to early for a bunch of people who hate the morning! We hit up Schliterbaughn and then headed to a house our friend Travis Harsch is watching/staying in. We did a lot of eating, a lot of talking, and a lot of beer sampling. We also hit up a great sports bar on 6th street for a shuffleboard tournament (my newest obsession) and weird wednesday at the movie theatre to see "Super Van" look it up.

Super Van hates jail!

Yes. Summers are good. We talked about them coming to Hawaii next summer. Should be very, very nice.

Two Ends and One Beginning

With the end of May, we have the end of school (hurrah!!!!) ANNNND the end of the Volvo. Damn. So, we bought the Volvo to replace the crap Mazda that died, and did it all by the books. We got her inspected, we bought a reliable brand--we saved!!! And then, she died on the highway on the way to work. An oil leak. A bad one.

So, we decided this round, to just go ahead and by a new(er) car and go by what JD Power had to say, and experience told us. And since my 16 year old Honda Accord is so great, and JD Power loves Honda in general, we have bought our first new(er) car----a 2007 Honda Fit. White, with a spoiler. What's even better, is because Adam is fabulous, I get to drive it! :)


The circle of life. It ain't half bad.

School

A-L-M-O-S-T T-H-E-R-E............I see summer! I can see it!

RENT

ANNNNNND................


It was even more amazing then expected (both times!). I had gone the week after high school graduation with my Dad in New York, and that was awesome, but going again and seeing Anthony Rapp & Adam Pascal rocked my socks!!!! When Adam & I went, we ate dinner at the Crystal Cafe in Fair Park, and talked about the show and how awesome it was, and the meaningful message behind it the entire way home.

When I went with Chelsey & Jessica (dance friends) it was a little different. We started out with dinner and mojitos at the Blue Goose then talked non-stop all the way to the theater and the entire time we waited for it to start. Like when I went with Adam, I cried, and laughed, and got excited all throughout, and afterwards....we ran like crazy people. We skipped the ovation and ran downstairs to the stage door where we waited like the fanatic fans we are. We proceeded to get every cast members autograph and somewhere I have a ridiculous picture of me posed with Anthony signing Chelsey's program.


This was a good week. A very, very good week.

RENT-The Wonderous Musical

RENT is coming to Dallas and I CANNOT WAIT! Adam and I had already bought tickets to see the Wednesday night show at Fair Park with kick-butt seats, and THEN I'm going AGAIN Sunday night!!!!! The back story of course is that back in the dance-days we were all obsessed with Rent looooong before it became cool and mainstream...I've been obsessed since I was about 12.

Yes, I'm that girl.

Plus, what makes this insanely awesome is that Adam Pascal & Anthony Rapp (the original Roger & Mark) are starring in the roles they created!!!!!!



ACKKKKK!!!!

Change.....Will You?

Found this peculiar poem today....I like it! ....I also have no idea why....what do you think?

Will You?

I am
I cannot change
I love
I cannot change
I have become
I cannot change
I try
I cannot change
I lose
I cannot change
I will die
I cannot change
I am Loved
I will not change

Easter

Happy (Belated) Easter Everyone! Our day was a long one, but a nice long one. We had brunch at the Varnell's with the rest of our Mosaic (Church) family, but missed the Easter Egg hunt to drive up to Corinth to visit Cynthia and Company. We were surprised when we pulled up to see the Red Suburban---Rusty's (Adam's Dad) infamous car! They had been driving through from Amarillo to Houston and made a surprise pit stop at Cynthia & Mark's for lunch! A great Easter surprise! The kids shared their lemon heads with me (my FAVORITE candy!) and we talked about Ethan's big news. He has decided to get baptized, and was very shy, but proud to tell. We were disappointed that while Jacob & Leticia were in town (Adam's brother and his girlfriend) they weren't able to make it to the house. We were bummed not to be able to make it to church, but since Cynthia & Mark live an hour away, and our church is at night, it seems everytime we go to their side of town, we miss service. It was worth it though.

Five Years of Togetherness

Adam and I celebrated the anniversary of our first date yesterday. It may seem a little cheesy to still recognize it now that we're married, but I think it's quite romantic! I cannot believe 5 years has gone by since our first 'tester' date back at 17 and 18! We've been so many places, had so many life changes and challenges-and we're stronger and happier than we've ever been! We celebrated by a night out at our favorite Sushi restaurant, Piranhas. Adam also surprised me with a beautiful bouquet of my favorite flower, pink roses. :) We spent most of our dinner talking about all we've done together; all of our adventurous travels, our big move to the Metroplex (almost 3 years ago!),all the personal changes we've experienced and grown from, our amazing engagement story and fairytale wedding! We also talked allot about all the magic to come for us; what we want for us in the next year, our vision for starting a family, and where we'd like our careers to take us. Saturday will also be our 6 month wedding anniversary! I remember in elementary and high school, time seemed to creep by. A six week period was half an eternity, and 6 months unfathomable! Now, time runs away faster than we can blink. A year of marriage will be in our past soon, and we'll be together, another year older. How is it some people get to be so lucky?

Half A Decade of "Kait & Adam"

Above is a picture of Adam and I back at our high school graduation. Why the vintage picture? Today marks an anniversary most people would no longer celebrate. April 9th has long been the day Adam and I have celebrated each year as our anniversary, and since we're married now, you would think we'd stop, but we think it's fun to have both. Two different celebrations! Most of you know, that Adam and I met back in middle school at church, contrary to what he answered while we were on "The Married Game" back in October, we have been friends since about 1998. Our senior year of high school, the month before graduation, my friend who was tutoring me in Calculus, began dating a friend of mine. They were a terrible fit, and honestly she had a reputation for using guys like Adam after being dumped by jerks, and then getting back with them. We talked more that month, then ever before and decided to go "hangout alone." We both say now this was our "tester" date, though neither of us would call it that then. Viola! The date that started at 7pm lasted for hours and hours, and we've been inseparable since! Here's to five years of Adam and Kaitlin-ness!!!

5 years and 6 months

Today, Adam and I have been together 5 years, and married 3 days shy of 6 months!!!! Time has flown by so quickly. I feel like we've been together both 10 years and only a few months....

I feel like this is still us:



Where has all the time gone?! I couldn't ask for a better person to pass the years with though-even if they all will go racing away. We spent our night at our favorite restaurant, Piranhas Killer Sushi and just went crazy!

I love this man!!!

House Update

I had posted a couple weeks ago, some pictures of our house here in Fort Worth. We have since painted! Hurrah! So, here are some pictures of the changes around our sweet abode. :)

Pizzazz & Tang....In the Rain

Yet another pizazzless week...well, pizazz here and there -but not enough to leave a permanent smile on my face. Adam is actually on my computer room floor right now...making googly noises w/Dutchess (our Boston Terrier)...yes, that's what it has come to. Just a second ago he was sprawled out practically throwing a tantrum about the rain....This is sad, too much rain....it's hard to be excited about anything while it's raining.

Rain is best described by Adam- "it's not quite pizazz, not quite tang...but in the middle.....the 'blah'" - ain't it the truth...
[okay, so i guess it's time for a little bit of background informtion]

----pizzazz & tang-----we were tired of the same 'ole same 'ole - we needed to spice things up, we needed pizzazz -and the word came out, and it fit, so perfectly! About a second later we see a girl trip up the stairs -something completely out of the norm- and it was wonderful...i guess the best description of pizzazz would be as- the little sparkly things when you press on your eyes really hard. However, there is tang - tang is the complete opposite of pizzazz. For example, when that girl fell up the stairs - that was pizzazz for innocent bystanders, but bitter tang for that girl - tang is a nerd blizzard from dairy queen - it's that weird taste that gives your tongue goosebumps....Life has shown us that there must be an equal balance of these two figures....so that's the background of pizzazz and tang - just so you're alllllll clued in! hah

...anywho....this rain nonsense....maybe pizzazz is not able to be wet, we may never know...all i know is - summer is coming up, in fact it's like at our fingertips- and this no tang or no pizzazz stuff is gonna have to stop....the "blah" stage sucks.

by the way...Adam is still on the floor....i think he has recovered though. *sigh* soon i will leave my haven at the computer, together we will search for our lost pizzazz....it's probably hiding, probably afraid of storms....

Just leave it up to the rebers...and pizzazz will be restored. ;)



HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Know Your Man

Yet another facebook forward, but posting it here anyhow!

Here's a chance to see how well you really know your husband/significant other. Cut, paste and fill in the answers, then forward . . . shoot, you know what to do. The real challenge is to send it to your husband/significant other to see how right you really are.

1. He's sitting in front of the TV, what is on the screen?
Myth Busters

2. You're out to eat; what kind of dressing does he get on his salad?
Buttermilk Ranch...ick

3. What food he doesn't like?
anything with a 'weird texture'---strawberries, popcorn, oranges...

4. You go out to eat and have a drink?
he'll take a glass of Chianti or a cold St Bernardus Abt 12

5. Where did he go to high school?
Amarillo High School---go fighting Sand Storm!!! (I could not make this up, we'll defeat you by obstructing your vision)

6. What size shoe does he wear?
size 10.5

7. If he was to collect anything, what would it be?
art

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich?
wheat bread with buttermilk ranch spread, provolone cheese, pepperoni, and turkey

9. What would this person eat every day if he could?
Honey Nut Cheerios

10. What is his favorite cereal?
see above :)

11. What would he never wear?
this is impossible to answer, he has no boundaries...haha...

12. What is his favorite sports team?
he doesn't follow sports

13. Who did he vote for?
you could guess pretty easily

14. Who is his best friend?
Mitchell

15. What is something you do that he wishes you wouldn't do?
watch trash tv at night (Rock of Love...Girls Next Door...)

16. What is his heritage?
Irish, Welsh and a lil bit of American Indian

17. You bake him a cake for his birthday; what kind of cake?
Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Icing and Raspberries on top

18. Did he play sports in high school?
he was a band geek :) but he did play city league softball with friends

19. What could he spend hours doing?
Reading or Painting

20. What is one unique talent he has?
he can fold himself into a pretzel...and do pushups or walk that way---aren't I lucky?! :p

Birthday Shout Out

Happy Birthday Mom!!!!

Ski Trip? Yes Please.

Adam and I got the opportunity last weekend to go on a skitrip with some friends from our old church in Amarillo. First Baptist Amarillo actually owns an eneormous lodge in Glorietta, New Mexico (just outside Santa Fe) so we were able to do the entire trip for $25, and the cost of lift tickets! How could we say no?! We seem to get about one ski trip a year, last year was with his family at Wolfcreek in Colorado. We were happy to hit the slopes again, this time with our friends- it had been four years since the group of us had gone together! I thought I would share a couple of the pictures that were snapped this weekend with you!