Busy, busy, busy

Life - wow! What a whirlwind it's been recently! In the past 3 weeks, I've been able to see more people that I love and participate in more unusual activities than I have in probably the last 3 months combined - seriously. Let me try to give you a summarized version of all of the wonderful people I've seen and things I've been up to as of late.

On June 11th, I ended my 4th year of working as a teacher/teacher assistant and went straight to my parents' home to celebrate my dad's 57th birthday. I was able to spend about 5 days with my family, which was great! We spent some time at the lake, during which Otter, Bethany and Dustin's dog, had his first swimming lesson. Obviously, he didn't like it.;)

After returning to Raleigh from my parents' home, I went to a former student's house for an authentic Mexican dinner. The meal was complete with macaroni and cheese made from spaghetti noodles, velveeta cheese, and topped with ham. Needless to say, it was a tasty and cultural experience.
The next thing on the agenda was a wedding on the beach. It was a two day event during which I got to take a long run on the beach, swim in the waves, and fight selfishness.
Yeah, nothing like a wedding to expose stuff in your heart.
Immediately after the wedding was a trip to WI where I got to meet my new second cousin, Joey, and catch up with some old family friends.

After a couple of days in WI with the relatives, I took an Amtrak train down to IL. I was quite nervous about my first training experience, but I passed with flying colors - well, except for when I almost got out at the wrong stop simply because we were at that particular station when I was supposed to be arriving at my station - which was really another 15 minutes down the track. The best part of training you might ask? You get to read while you wait for your destination to creep around the corner. While in IL, I got to visit these guys. We spent some quality time together eating icecream, sewing, and playing bean bag baseball. (Who knew it could be so hard to get a bean bag in a hole that's less than 10 feet away?!:))
I flew back to Raleigh on Saturday, June 26th, and got to go to Char's going away party.While it's a bummer that she's moving to Richmond, I know how much she loves her job so there are big pieces of me that are excited for her too.
On Sunday, June 27th, I participated in the BASF Smile Train Sprint Triathlon and met my goal of completing it in 1 1/2 hours, which was super exciting since it was so hot! It was really fun to compete in with Kristin and Candace in that it was their first ones, and they both did so well! Candace came in about 5 minutes after me and Kristin came in two minutes ahead of me!


Shortly after completing the race, it was off to church and then Bethany and Dustin's house for dinner prior to leaving for the airport for my summer in Massachusetts. Bethany and Dustin had a wonderful surprise up their sleeves by decorating their house for my birthday, making a great dinner, and inviting Mom and Dad along for the fun. Mom and Dad drove about 5 hours round trip in order to see me for an hour prior to me boarding the plane. It was such a special surprise, and I couldn't have asked for a better birthday present! (They even sent me off with flowers.;))

And now.... I'm in Massachusetts living the high life of having my possessions in a closet and a dresser. I even have a shelf in the fridge and pantry.... oh, the beauty of "belonging" somewhere after so much traveling! This is my sweet little room complete with two beds - just in case anyone wants to visit.;) Though, I promise, I'm okay by myself too. I have been able to see Bernard every day since coming to Mass. which has definitely been the highlight of my time.

So, yeah, it's been busy, but, wow, it's been good. I'm thankful that I've been able to see as many people as I have who I love so much and that I've been able to be a part of so many fun things. And, I'm thankful that I'm here in Massachusetts now. To think, I have six weeks of getting to hang out with Bernard.... among many other fun things. Now, that's what I call "summer"!:)