*waves*

Found out that Chris actually reads my blogs. Uh-oh *edits past posts*

Hi honey! :D

Bringing Europe home

You guys make me laugh. It's comical to write a post "Weeee....I bought a wedding dress!" and get several comments....then write "Oops....time-out. Post-poned wedding!" and nobody knows what to say. There wasn't a death in the family...so no need for condolences! :) I couldn't be more thankful that I'm in a relationship where I don't feel pressured to follow through with something I may not feel quite ready to do. The situation is really a blessing! So have no fear....I'm not walking around in a fragile state. :)

Anyway...I'm also excited to share that a major opportunity has come my way to head-up a missions program at my church for 2009. Tiffany, another young lady in my congregation, also worked with Let's Start Talking (LST) in Japan for 3 years (for 6 weeks' at a time). She approached me a couple months' ago about the possibility of starting a FriendSpeak program within our community, and knew that I had also had experience with LST. As it turns out, we are both trained LST team trainers, and both miss the work we did overseas. So Tiffany got all the information we needed to get started, presented the idea to our missions committee...and we're off! For a while, I wondered if it was really going to take off....but now I see that it will!

My dad showed a short info video prior to his sermon on Sunday, and gave a summarized explanation of what our congregational goal was. I had also made inserts for the bulletin for people to sign up who might be interested. Then...surprising Tiffany and myself...the elders and mission's committee agreed to let us use tomorrow's adult Bible study hour to present a more detailed powerpoint presentation of the program, to answer anyone's questions.

Tiffany has been amazing at organizing all the details. She created multiple types of flyers, business cards, and informational sheets for members to fill out. When we first sat down to discuss short and long-term goals for FriendSpeak, we wanted at least 10 members to sign up, and at least 25 individuals from the community to show interest. Even after just the short informational video on Sunday, we had 20 people fill out the bulletin insert!! That's so great! Tiffany and I hope that after we present more information tomorrow night, we will have at least that many commit to attending the mandatory training sessions we will hold in January. And our launch-off date will be the week after Valentine's Day.

I'm so excited and so blessed to be part of such a giving congregation. Pray that FriendSpeak will be a success in our community and that we will be able to reach out to those who may feel lost in this world. I'll keep you updated!

An addiction

I've been holding off on writing this post for a while, because I wanted to give time for things to settle down a bit before an "official" annoucement was made. I have the bad habit of "announcing" something and then it doesn't happen. Then I feel stupid. But not this time, friends! :D

After coming to terms with the reality of our financial situation....as well as a few other matters....Chris and I have decided to post-pone the wedding. Several things surfaced while we were looking at buying a house and making wedding plans, and it made us realize that we are not quite ready to make that commitment. We've got a lot of things to work through and get in order before we attempt to combine our two separate lives into one. So no wedding in May. No buying a house. No more wedding plans for now. Just continuing to date and get to know each other better while we work out some bumps in the road. I just wish we had made this decision before I had my wedding dress hanging in my room. :/

So what are my plans for 2009? Well I'm glad you asked!! If you know me well at all, you know that I not only adjust to change well...but crave change. Not just a change of wardrobe or a change in attending early vs. late Sunday morning service. A change that requires me to be in a setting I've never been in before. One that makes me uncomfortable and pushes me outside my everyday boundaries. As I write this, I'm looking around at my office DYING to rearrange all the furniture. And I think I've convinced Chris to stop by later today and help me do it. :) But I try to make change a part of my life. Let's look at the past 7 years, shall we?

2001 - moved from North Carolina to Oklahoma to attend college
2002 - worked 3 jobs - Resident Assistant, Taco Bell, and Front Desk attendant in dorm
2003 - got engaged for the first time/broke off engagement/joined LA Weight Loss and lost 40lbs
2004 - took my first trip overseas for 6 weeks/hired as a Freshman Resident Hall Director and Counselor
2005 - returned to Europe initially for 8 weeks....but canceled return trip ticket and stayed an extra month alone
2006 - accepted an invitation to move and work in the Netherlands for a year by myself/sold or threw away everything I owned
2007 - instead of returning to Oklahoma with all my friends, moved to new city in NC with my parents
2008 - got engaged 2nd time/moved in and out of my parents' house 3 times... :D

So what's in store for 2009? Well I don't have a visa to return to Europe for more than 3 month's time....I COULD move to Missouri if I wanted, but probably won't....and unless Chris reproposes this year, I don't plan on being engaged to a third individual. :) So that leaves me with a job change. Much more feasible than the first three, dontcha think? :D And again...most of you that know me know that I've spent my whole life wanting to be a teacher. Some of you may or may not have questioned why 5 years of college has resulted in a secretarial position at a University. And that's a whole other blog in and of itself. However...I think 2009 is the year to go for it! I called the county school system and asked them to walk me through the requirements of becoming a certified teacher in NC. As it turns out, I meet almost all of the qualifications for getting an alternative licensure. I have just come up 3 points shy on the State Education Test. So I have registered to retake it on January 10th....and as soon as I boost my score up 3 points...I'm in! I'll get my results in February, and from there, I look for a job! My hope/goal is to find a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd grade teaching position for the 2009-2010 school year.

*happy sigh* Feels good to know that I will be doing something out of my comfort zone this year. And if Jenny Craig was less expensive, I'd look into losing a sizeable amount of weight again. But there's always 2010.... :D

Follow-Up

As a follow-up to my last email, none of the things we had "hoped" to accomplish (AKA PLANNED) actually happened yesterday. Planning in my life is meaningless. I refuse to do it anymore. *sigh*

Anyway...Kara posted on my last entry that she wanted to see a picture of the dress I bought, and I've already gotten the same request from other people. So since Chris doesn't read my blog, I feel fairly comfortable just posting the link to the dress I bought. Apparently white washes me out, so I ended up buying a "champagne" colored dress....which I happen to think is absolutely gorgeous. Obviously...or I wouldn't have bought it on the spot last Friday! Don't feel obligated to make positive comments if you don't like it...I don't track who reads my blog, and I would prefer sincere compliments, as opposed to forced ones. :D

http://www.davidsbridal.com/bridal_gowns_detail.jsp?stid=2660&prodgroup=10

Don't forget to check out the back of the dress!

Top Reasons Why I'm Not a Planner

Plans for this past weekend were:

• Begin looking for wedding/bridesmaid dresses while my sister is still in town. Look, but not buy.
• Take Chris out on a date.
• Sleep in on Saturday for the first time in weeks.
• Narrow down house-hunting to 3 top houses, make final walkthroughs, decide on a house.
• Meet with member at church to begin getting ideas for wedding cake.

What did happen this weekend:

• Found dress. Bought dress. AND unnecessary accessories.
• Took Chris on date. Chris had major gum pain and nausea. Chris was in bathroom 25% of time on date.
• Got home from date. Chris's face is swollen. Take Chris to ER. Sit in ER till 5am to be given low dose of pain meds.
• Chris can't keep pain meds down. Face gets worse. Pain is unbearable. Call dentists we don't know and beg for help on Saturday.
• Drive like a mad woman to dentist in Raleigh, an hour drive away. Get pulled over in the first 5 minutes of the journey. Cry. Continue on with mad dash to Raleigh.
• Chris has an abscess tooth. Dentist says ER doctor could have worsened the situation. Hate ER doctor. Chris starts to feel relief.
• Get back to Fayetteville at 4:30. Have to babysit at 5:30. Chris stays home and sleeps. Babysit until 1am. Get in bed at 2am.
• Get up first at 7am. Realize it's not really gonna happen. Reset alarm for 9am. Go to Bible class. Make mad dash to Raleigh to meet realtor by 12:30. Spend 5 hours looking through 3 houses. Chris and I choose different houses.
• Mad dash back to Fayetteville. Miss small group Bible study. Meet with church member and design wedding cake.
• Return to house. Surf possible outdoor wedding spots and honeymoon destinations online. Pass out at 11pm.

Today, we HOPE to accomplish:

• Chris returns to dentist for follow-up work. Pain is much less. Left side of face is still swollen.
• Set up joint banking account.
• Discuss 3 houses and make plan of attack.
• Get letter from lender.
• Call/visit possible locations for wedding.
• Double date with Josh and Brianna.
• Retire to bed early.

I need a day off.

Plans for the Future

A lot of people have been asking me what our plans are for the upcoming year, and after we get married. Well...let me tell you!

Last weekend, we started house-hunting. Chris plans on going back to school to get his master's degree either in January or August in mechanical engineering. Right now, his job is based out of Raleigh, so he has to commute over an hour to work. So we are looking to move to the Triangle area, to make things more convenient for Chris with his schooling, as well as his work. Good for me...away from Fayetteville, near a big city, but still close enough to family if I need to make a trip home. I will quit my current job 2 weeks before the wedding, and worry about finding another one after we settle down in our house.

If we happen to find a house now, Chris is able to move in at the end of December, if necessary. That will give us 5-6 months to get the house ready for me to move in after the wedding. Yay! I'm so excited! I still want to do some traveling before settling down, so I really don't know how long we'll be located in the Raleigh area. Chris says he is able to transfer his job overseas, after getting his master's degree...which I would LOVE. But we're buying a house with the intention of being there long-term, so we won't have to move again if unexpected circumstances come our way. We'll just wait and see.

Any advice on buying a house? We're going "shopping" again on Saturday...

Bling-Bling!

So I found out that Chris asked my dad permission to marry me at the beginning of August. Didn't know he was thinking about asking my dad at all...didn't know it was coming...and didn't find out until after my dad had told him yes. So naturally, I expected him to ask ME soon after. Within a week or two, I began getting a bit impatient, and to try and figure out what was going on, I jokingly said "so when do I get my bling-bling?" To shorten the upcoming story, "bling-bling" became a frequently used joke between Chris and myself. I would harass him a lot, and he would pretend he had no idea what I was talking about.

So the night I flew in from Holland, he was there to pick me up....in my favorite shirt of his, and smelling all nice. I didn't think twice about it, as I knew he had missed me, and figured he just wanted to look good upon seeing me again. When we were walking out to the parking lot, I jokingly said "So which dark corner did you park in?" He laughed and said "Actually...this parking lot is pretty well lit...I couldn't find one. So I just parked over there." I thought it was odd he actually had an answer for my sarcastic question, but went with it. We walked to the car, and it was parked further away than I would have thought. He usually parks as close to the door as he can, for me. Still...I didn't make anything of it. He unlocks the car for me, and when I open the passenger door, there is something laying in the seat. I can't tell what it is, but I assume that it's my roommate's (as he had used her car to come pick me up). Then I hear him say "Do you like your bling-bling?". I was confused, so I picked it up to find fake gold, diamond studded teeth. I laughed...thinking "Okay...okay. I got it. I'll leave you alone about the bling-bling." I figured he was trying to get me to stop harassing him about proposing, and just giving me some "bling-bling" to shut me up. Regardless, I thought it was funny, and asked if he could open the package for me. He began to open the package, then handed it back to me. While I was focused on opening the package, I heard him say "What about this bling-bling?", and I turn to see him down on his knee, holding up a ring. I look at him, and he says "Babe, will you marry me?". But I think he's joking. I figured he was REALLY trying to get me back now, and had gotten a ring out of a bubblegum machine as payback. So I just stood there and said "Are you serious? Is this a joke? Are you for real?". He laughed at me, smiled, and said "Yes, I'm serious". But because he laughed, I couldn't tell if he was still pulling my leg or not. And I was in shock, so I repeated my first line of questions. Then he asked me again, and put the ring on my finger. When I semi-realized he was serious, I bent down to kiss him, and he stood up. A couple minutes later, he said "You never really answered my question". Then I said yes, of course!

But before you think I'm a jerk, telling him that I think the ring he's given me is a bubblegum machine ring...it actually wasn't real. He proceeded to tell me that he had specially designed my ring, and it was currently being made in California. But he didn't want to wait for the ring to be finished to propose. So right now I'm wearing a "pseudo" ring, waiting for my real ring to arrive! They said it would take 4-6 weeks to make, and it's been 2-3 weeks....so hopefully we're halfway there. I can't wait to see it! From what he said...it's gonna be absolutely gorgeous! I'm gonna get my 'bling-bling" after all. :D

Now we're planning a wedding on May 16, 2009...somewhere here in Fayetteville, NC. Willemijn, Sheritha, and hopefully Harro are flying in from Holland for the event, and I couldn't be more excited about that. If you're up for flying in, as well....know that you will have a place to stay, if you do! Just let me know! :)

By the way....in case you were wondering. His last name is Davis. By the middle of next year, I will be known as Amber Davis. Weird.

3 Weeks Overseas!

Time to play catch up! I got back from my "3 week vacation" (which happened to be a surprise visit to Holland, in case some of you missed that), and have been busy trying to get back in the groove of things. So much has happened! But I'll back up to the trip, first.

I flew out on a Tuesday, and arrived Wednesday morning. Willemijn was there to pick me up from the airport. We spent several hours catching up at Starbucks (only one of those in the Netherlands!) and took the train to Eindhoven, the city I used to live in. We grabbed lunch at our favorite "hot guy chinese place", and walked 30 minutes to Sheritha's house, where I stayed for 2 of the 3 weeks I was there. That night I got to see half of the church members again. It was good catching up and seeing how everyone was doing.

The following day, I sat in the center of Eindhoven for 4 hours, having sent an email to my old students to stop by and meet me, if they could. I had 4 show up that day, and 4 contact me, letting me know they wanted to meet up with me later. We had a great time, and the weather was fantastic. I went to Eindhoven without any "touristy" plans, so that I could spend the majority of my time with friends and old students. For the first weekend, I attended a singles' retreat in Germany that I used to attend when I lived there. That was absolutely fantastic. There were 7 countries represented by 38 attendees. And I even met someone who has been reading my blog for the past year! Hi Sue! :) That was crazy! But mostly, aside from my 3 day trip to Germany, most of my time was spent having lunch with that student, and dinner with this friend. It was fun! I got to meet up with Harro, my old flatmate, and truly enjoyed myself. He is such a great person...and we always had SOOOO much fun together.

The third week I was there, a woman from church told me that I could borrow her husband's car for the week, as he was in Germany on business. I was ecstatic! I knew I would need to travel back and forth from Willemijn's to Sheritha's house (an hour drive) several times, and it would save me lots of money on train tickets. So Willemijn and I planned a "touristy" day and drove to see "Ark van Noach". A Dutch man built an ark, half the size of the measurements given in the Bible, and just finished it last year. It was very cool. I have lots of pictures to show, of course...I'll try to relocate my Flicker account and post the link to all my trip pictures soon.

All in all....the trip wasn't anything new or exciting...just a lot of time spent with old friends. We went to the beach one night, and I made sure I got my share of fries with mayonnaise and ketchup chips while I was there. And I brought plenty, plenty of amazing tea back with me. I have plans to go back in the future, but my 3 weeks' there will sustain me for a while. :) Who doesn't love Europe?

Weekend Plans

Seeing as how this weekend will be our last weekend together for the next month, we're looking to do something fun!

For the past month or so, every time the trailer comes on TV for "My Best Friend's Girl", Chris gets real excited and says "I wanna see that!". It's funny to me...because he never gets excited about movies. I'm always the one saying "c'mon....it'll be gooooooood!" Every once in a while that comment will convince him. But mostly, he knows only one of us will come out of the theater feeling fulfilled. :) But given his excitement over this newest release, (don't get me wrong...I want to see it, too!) we've got date night planned at the movies tomorrow night. Typically, I'm not a fan of going to a movie on the opening night. But I'll make an exception!



Saturday, we're supposed to have beautiful weather, so we're trying to plan a bike ride somewhere nice. Unfortunately, the last trip we took to Murtle Beach (3 hours one way) about killed my rear end. As you can see, I don't have a backrest, and the pegs for my feet aren't so great, either. So we're trying to find a nice location within a 2 hour drive. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!