A Belle in Boston

The guest bedroom at my parents house looks like a tornado went through it. I am in the midst of unloading and reloading the keepsake chest in the bedroom filled with pictures and special things, mostly from high school, college, and my times living abroad. I’ve got to condense my items to fit into a dorm sized room which is as hard as it sounds. Laundry is in the wash, boxes are all over the bedroom, and then there’s the trash & Goodwill bags.

If you’re reading this, please pray for me as I am getting somewhat stressed as to how I’m going to get all of this accomplished by Thursday morning! We will pull out of the driveway at 7am.

Ok, back to packing……..

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I know I blog about Savannah a lot…but it’s the closest thing I’ve got to having a “home town.”

This trip was longer than others I’ve taken, but felt much shorter, if that makes sense.

Two of my favorite days were Tuesday and Wednesday. Tuesday I got to have lunch at Clary’s with Cathy! I am so blessed that our paths have interwoven again to be able to catch up like we do! She truly is a beautiful person inside and out and her spiritual encouragement was something I really needed to hear that day. Thanks for everything, Cathy!!

Wednesday, Tammy & I went to River Street and ate at Olympia Cafe and then walked up and down the river. I did end up buying a few pieces of salt water taffy…something that I think might have caused my back tooth to get upset now 😦 Anyways, we then headed to Forsyth Park and I was so sad to see the fountain being worked on because I wanted to get a few pictures of it. Instead, I used my camera to snap pics of Tammy swinging on the swingset!!! Classic! Thanks for letting out your inner child, Tamalot!!!

And this morning, I got to have a quick breakfast w/Laura & Noah. I still can’t believe that child is 3 now. I still remember coming to Savannah 3 yrs ago when Laura was pregnant with him! And now she’s carrying his baby brother, Carson, who’s coming in December 🙂

Thank you all for being such a special part of my life. I am blessed!

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I’m in Savannah today. I’ve spent much of the morning just lying around and watching tv. I don’t get to do that very often so it’s been nice. Tammy & I went to Panera for lunch today. Tonight we’re meeting Laura for dinner at Hirano’s. It’s been a low-key trip thus far and I like it like that.

I leave for Boston a week from Thursday. I am curious as to how I’m going to handle being back in school. I was never the world’s best student but I feel like this is my chance to turn that around and be better at academics this time. I’m excited about living in New England (yes, it will be cold as many people have stated, but remember, I survived 3 winters in Europe!) and discovering a whole new world up there.

It’s been raining for most of the day (hence the blog title) but I’m perfectly content snuggled up on the couch and updating my blog 🙂

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pompano
starbucks
disney world
islamorada
kayaking
flannigans
cityplace
hard rock seminole
rainstorms in the middle of summer heat
fireworks in ft lauderdale
jungle queen
happy hour
echo
bits and pieces
contemporary
port orleans riverside
moving on
saying goodbye
packing

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It’s not any surprise that I love Europe. I’ve stated it many times on this blog and if you talk to me long enough, you know that it’s never far from my mind.

I’m going to Seminary in 22 days…yep 22 days! I’ve been asked several times “What do you want to do when you’re done?” Such a loaded question. For one thing, Seminary will take 3 years (though if I take summer courses, I might be done in 2). So what I want to do now will probably have changed by then.

But this is what I’d want –
…to work with kids in some capacity in Europe
RockTrust is an organization ministering to homeless teenagers which I’m very interested in
Being an RA or Dorm Parent (if I meet a Mr. Dorm Parent haha) at a boarding school like the Black Forest Academy in Kandern DE
helping lead a children’s or youth ministry at a church plant abroad
…

obviously, this is what I’d want now…ask me again in 3 years..or 2
if this is what He wants from me, then I’m more than ready…!

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Since I can remember, I have always had a huge desire, wish, dream, what have you, to stay at the Contemporary Resort in Walt Disney World. To those of you who aren’t Disney freaks, this may not be such a big deal. But every time I’ve ridden the monorail through the hotel, a part of me wishes I was staying there and had a room overlooking the Magic Kingdom. I’ve stayed at other Disney resorts-the Beach Club, Caribbean Beach, the Dolphin, Port Orleans Riverside, The Boardwalk Inn…but never a Magic Kingdom resort.

Last week Erika and I found a great deal for Florida residents at the Contemporary and we grabbed it. We were to have a Bay Lake view in the Tower (the main building). We drove down yesterday and checked in and the Front Desk agent told us we had a 50/50 chance of staying on the Club Level. I told Erika that would be the icing on the cake for the trip! Since our room wasn’t ready, we changed into our bathing suits and headed to the pool. We had lunch and while we were sitting outside, a bird came and grabbed a chip out of my hand! This made us move inside quickly! Anyways, we went and enjoyed laying by the pool and taking a dip (the water slide was broken…bummer!) until we got a text message from the hotel telling us our room was ready. Our room number was 4832 so we automatically assumed we were on the 4th floor and not the 12th (Club Level). So we got on the elevator and got out on the 4th floor which is the main floor of the hotel where the restaurants and shops are. We got back on and rode up to floor 5 where we asked the janitor where our room was. He said “Oh you’re on the 12th floor, club level.” I think I squealed aloud and both of us were going “Oh my gosh oh my gosh! I cannot believe this!”

We got off on the 12th floor and when we got to our room, I went over to check out the view, which I still assumed was just of Bay Lake. Looking back at me was Cinderella’s Castle! I think I actually jumped up and down and squealed again. Erika had her back turned and I said “Erika! We have a castle view!! Oh my gosh oh my gosh!!” Yes. I turned 5 again.

Well, we decided to take a nap because we were going to be in the park until late (it closed at 3am). I couldn’t fall asleep. I just kept thinking over and over again of how many times I’d thought about being in that very room, looking out at the castle.

That night we ate at Chef Mickey’s (quite mediocre) and went into Magic Kingdom riding Astro Orbiter, Splash & Thunder Mtns, Pirates of the Caribbean, Winnie the Pooh, & Peter Pan. We left at 1:45am and got back to our room at 2am. Because as stated before, the monorail stops in the hotel!

This morning we ate breakfast at the Grand Floridian and proceeded to ask the Front Desk for a late checkout so we could enjoy the room just a little more. No, we couldn’t, but we could enjoy the Club Floor snacks and coffee until we left.

It was a short trip but so well worth it. Unfortunately, I’ll probably always want to stay at the Contemporary every time I go back. And unless the deal is running like it was this weekend, I don’t know if that will really come to pass any time soon (and also b/c I’m moving to Boston!).

I love Disney. I always have and always will and I don’t care if I sound like a 10 yr old talking about it. It really was a dream come true!

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