Thankfulness and Randomness

Thankfulness:
There are a lot of things I have been thankful for lately and many things God is showing me that I should be thankful for.
1. Walking in the cooler mornings with my parents dogs, who enjoy walks so much I envy them for their excitement to go outside, and watching colorful leaves fall through patches of sun.  I don’t know why but it just makes me want to sit next to someone playing classical guitar and just be.  And somehow I always start to smile like a little child.  Maybe it’s cause I’ve missed out on so many Autumns or maybe it’s just cause, but I’m very thankful for it.
2. Thankful for my parents generosity and patience as Calin and I are still in their humble abode at Sweet Bottom.  However, we are looking at different places and possibilities which is fun to dream and see different options.
3. Because I don’t have a job yet I have been able to take care of my Mom this week because she sprained her ankle.  It has reminded me of the patience she had when all of us were sick when we were little.  Now it’s my turn to doctor my mom and give her flat soda.  Speaking of flat soda, did anybody’s mom give them flat soda when they were sick?  I was told that it was good to settle your stomach.
4. Thankful for how Calin is PUMPED about Christmas.  This was our conversation Monday morning:
“Hey Thanksgiving is next week you know what that means Campy (he calls me Campy sometimes)?”-Calin
“That means we’re going to have turkey?”-Heather
“Noooo…well yes…but it means that your family gets their Christmas tree the day after!!!”-Calin
Oh how American traditions are rubbing off on him.
5. I’ve applied at a really wonderful organization and I have my fingers crossed in hope that I might get the position.  I’m just thankful I applied and thankful they’re taking a little peek of interest at me.

The Goldfish Lady

I have been meaning to tell this story for such a long time.  So finally here I am to tell my sad sad story.

It all started out with Calin needing a haircut.  We’re still blown away with how much haircuts cost here in Atlanta but it was definitely time for him.  It was getting long and big.  And there was a place right next to Publix so we thought we’d give it a try.  We walk in and there’s two seats waiting for us to sit down.  I end up sitting next to this little old lady eating her goldfish out of a ‘fun-size’ box.  Next thing that happens is she offers us some of her goldfish.  Politely I told her no thank you but Calin was all over getting some goldfish.

When a hair dresser was open she asked who was next and I told the lady to go ahead, and she replied, “no no I’m just hanging out go on ahead.”  So Calin was next and goes up to get his haircut while I sat next to my new goldfish friend.  We sat there quietly until she broke the silence:
Goldfish Lady: “So what grade is your son in?”
Me: “…………….(my son? really?….well let’s have some fun with this)…….oh he’s not in high school anymore”
Goldfish Lady: “REALLY?!  I was thinking he was in 9th or 10th grade……………well where is he going to college?”
Me: “Oh he already graduated…just trying to get on his own feet right now and find a job.”
Goldfish Lady: “REALLY?!  I thought for sure he was just starting….Where did he go?”
Me:  (big smile comes on my face)  “Oh he went to a university in Peru”
Goldfish Lady: “REALLY?!  That’s different is the education better there?”
Me:  “It’s really not that bad but mostly it was a really good fit for him…he got along with everyone and spoke Spanish like a native!”
Goldfish Lady: “Well good for him.  You must be proud of him.”
Me:  “More than you know”

So there you go folks…I have been officially asked if I was Calin’s Mom from the crazy Goldfish Lady.  Nothing makes a wife prouder.  But honestly I can say that I had fun in that conversation and I’m sure this lady needed someone to talk to.  Maybe next time I’ll try to tell the truth…maybe.

Life is Delicious

Life is delicious in so many ways…let me tell you of some of the ways:

Birthday:
Not gonna lie…I had my doubts about my birthday this year.  You see, for the past three years I’ve had my birthday in Peru.  And Peruvians just know how to make you feel and let you know that you are special.  And they know how to party.  SO, here I am in the States, in Atlanta, where I don’ t really know anybody…and I had one of my best birthdays!  Calin started the day out wonderful by singing me a birthday song, giving me my gift Sseko sandals, giving me such a cute card, and just being Calin.  We went to a Cuban place that night and after fighting for a better seat (supposedly when making a reservation you have to specify where you would like to sit, inside or outside, and since we didn’t specify we were put outside…my reaction was this, “well you weren’t specific about needing a specification”)…we enjoyed some delicious food, delicious music, and a delicious night together.  Also, my family and close friends all wished me a happy birthday, it’s the simple things.  The next day was spent with my sister and brother in law early in the morning.  We had a great breakfast, a great hike, a great dinner, and a great time.

Farming (sort of…not really):
I’ve been holding onto some Passion Fruit/Maracuya seeds to plant and see what happens.  They were planted last week!  And I have a confession…I don’t know if these guys are gonna work since the seeds weren’t fresh out of the Passion Fruit and this is the first time I’ve ever tried to grow something from a seed (this is why I feel like a farmer…starting from a mere seed).  I have another confession…I want to, sometimes need to, dig into the soil and see if anything is happening with those seeds.  It’s taking all my strength not to do it.  I have to wait probably a month until I might see something.

Drivers License:
Calin is going to take his drivers test next week!  He has his permit and is doing a great job driving and now feels it’s time to get his license.  You might ask how he learned to drive so well…I honestly don’t feel that I can give myself the credit.  I was mostly hitting the invisible brake, holding onto the side of the car, trying to tell him something but unable to because my reaction started in English, then it turned into Spanish, what actually came out was blurgh!  He is a champ in putting up with me and I admire him so much…I mean come on..he’s driving in another country with completely different laws…what a stud!

Hiking:
I have a love hate relationship with hiking.  Here’s the love part: I love how you feel when you finish!  I love the scenery!  I love the challenge to get to the top!  I love how our parents dog Chance can go FOREVER…I personally think he’s part mountain goat.  Here’s the hate part: I hate the process to get to the top…it feels like the hill will never end.  I hate being reminded on how out of shape I am!  I hate breathing hard and noticing that nobody around me is breathing as hard as I am.  But in the end it’s worth it
Funny story to go with the hiking:
So this past Saturday we went hiking with Davy and Christina and somehow we got lost a little.  We climb up this hill and then Davy tells us to stop there while he went a little ahead to check things out to see if he could figure out where we were.  I stop behind Christina huffing and puffing and say to her, “If you want to feel what it’s like to be out of shape just step into my body (imagine gasping for air in that sentence.”  She looks at me with big eyes and amazement at how out of shape I am and I put my hand on a little tree for a little moral support and what happens?  I pulled that tree right out of the ground!!!  Now there I am with big eyes and look at Christina and say, “Just pulled a tree out of the ground folks!”  So my question is what is in shape and what is out of shape?  I can’t climb a hill easily but I can pull a tree out of the ground.

Working Out:
Calin and I are members at a gym.  We do not go as often as we should but we do go.  And it’s wonderful and needed.  Let me explain something to you about my workout past.  In high school I was involved in sports/ran on my own.  I wasn’t the most in shape girl but…there was some muscle here and there.  Then I went to Covenant.  Still worked out.  Then my internship in the Dominican Republic came before my senior year.  During my 3 month internship I was sick for 2 months.  I was the diarrhea queen who walked at least 5 miles a day and swore that my pants were getting bigger cause I wasn’t using a dryer.  Now that I look back I should’ve gone back to the states.  But, I didn’t and ended up 20+ pounds lighter, yellow eyes, dark circles under my eyes, lost a lot of muscle, and suffering hair from the lack of nutrients.  A very busy Senior year happened and then I went to Peru and broke my arm and was in a plaster cast for 3.5 months.  I finally feel like my body is recuperating.  My hair is getting thicker again, my health overall is much better.  Now comes the uphill battle to get those muscles back.  As my good friend Johanna says…UFFDA!

Jobs:
The place Calin is working at is starting to get more business and our hope and prayers are that they get tons of business and then offer Calin a full time job!  Please pray with us on this!

Learned, Learning, Will Learn

2010 was full of many experiences…some that we would love to do again and some we hope will never happen again.  Needless to say I am happy that 2010 happened but am sooo happy that it’s over.

Some things I loved about 2010:
1. I would say everything happened one night we read Matthew 21 and were blown away when Jesus said in verses 21 and 22, “And Jesus answered them,”Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. ²²And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”  That night Calin and I realized how much our faith was like a mustard seed and we asked God to grow our faith.  Let me tell you…God answered that prayer.  I can say that I am thankful for that prayer because I have learned so much but uuuuf it’s been painful learning and having God grow my faith.
2. God is good…all the time…all the time…God is good:  We’ve been struggling a bit to find full time jobs but God is so good in surrounding us with people who provide us with temp jobs.  No joke, whenever we start to feel frustrated, forgotten, that everything is hopeless, BAM there’s a job in our lap.  What a blessing to actually see God’s hand providing for us.
3. One of my constant prayers from 2010 that will continue in 2011 has been to ask the Lord to fill my heart and my mind with what is GOOD, JUST, TRUE, basically everything that’s of HIM.  And He is providing that and filling me heart with Him
4. Calin has been so good to me and really has been solid and such a good leader in our relationship.  God is wonderful and knew and knows who I needed and why.
5. Our relationship with God is drastically different than last year.  Through all the craziness from last year God has brought us closer to Him which makes everything worth it.

Funny Story (kind of):
Yesterday we were in the car (Calin was driving by the way and will probably get his license this week!!!) and I told Calin, in Spanish but this is the translated version, “hey I’m going to call my Mom real quick.”  But in the real quick part I said “un toque” which means real quick/fast.  No joke the man burst out laughing so hard.  I looked at him puzzled.  In my head I was thinking…did I say it wrong, how was i supposed to say it, did I say something funny?  Then Calin looked at me and said that’s my Peruana.  I asked him…what did I say?  I don’t get it!  He said, “You said un toque!  That’s very Peruvian and a slang!”  You want to know the funny thing?  I didn’t even know it was slang.  I guess I’ve had such a good teacher for the past year and a half I’ve learned things without realizing that I’m learning something new.

The New Additions

 

About 3 months ago Calin told me for our second first anniversary (or our first second anniversary…who knows) that he wanted to get us new wedding rings since the ones we had were stolen.  It was very easy to find one for Calin…but I discovered that I was very particular to the one I had.  Nothing stood out to me and nothing else interested me.  So after some investigation we were able to find a store that would custom make my ring.  I got my ring about a month ago and LOVE it!  It looks almost exactly like the one I had before and it’s actually made better.  God is good in providing and healing our little hearts.

It’s the Simple Things

Things I’ve enjoyed:
1. Being with Calin in his first car wash.
2. 60 degree weather
3. Going to the outlet mall with Calin two weeks in a row and finding some oober big sales!
4. Sleeping in
5. My mom telling Calin the temperature and he steps back in amazement and says…I’ve never felt that temperature before!

Randomness

Life is starting to get a little normal and I’m super pumped about that!  What has made the change you might ask?

1. Well, on my side I finally let go of my anger towards the men who kidnapped/robbed us.  I wrote them a letter explaining how I felt, what I was feeling, and my hopes for the future.  I also asked for forgiveness and forgave.  Amazing what forgiveness can do…reminds me how much God forgives me and has already forgiven me.

2. We got a camera!  The one we had was taken in that robbery, and we’ve been waiting for I don’t know what to get a new one.  But we finally got one and I’m in love.  I’ve missed the joy of snapping pictures and capturing a moment whether it be nature, funny expressions, or fun architecture.  We now take it everywhere we go!  Here are some pictures that we’ve taken lately.

When I lived in St. Louis people said the hairier the catepillar the colder the winter was going to be...don't know if it's true but found this little guy.

I really don't understand the reenactment of the civil war...Calin had many questions about this people and why they did this.

A trail that goes by my parents house.