Spring Break

It's been a while since I last updated.  Becky called me out on it while I was in Auburn for Spring Break.  So, B, this is for you. :)

I want to relive Spring Break ALL over again.  From start to finish.  I had so much fun being back in the South and being with my friends that were my age.  I did not want to pack up on Friday and leave to come back up here.  Recap of the week...

Lauren's Wedding.  Amazing.  She was beautiful.  Darryn is a sweetheart.  I'd never met him before... I had only heard stories of him.  Tons and tons of stories.  I got to Excel later than I expected because I slept in on accident (I really needed the sleep, though, so I wasn't too upset with myself) and I had errands to run in Auburn before heading to Lauren's parents' house.  I got there around 5:30 and got to catch up with Lauren for a bit before leaving for the church for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner.  It was so nice seeing Lauren's parents again, and meeting her sister and brother-in-law, as well as Darryn and his family.  Everyone was so sweet, and they were so glad that I traveled from Alaska to be part of their special day.  Darryn's mom's side of the family is from New Zealand, so some of his family members traveled from there to be part of the day.

After we got back home Friday night, Lauren and I were sitting in her room coming up with a list of poses that she wanted the photographer to take.  She saw my bridesmaid dress laying on her bed, and the expression fell from her face as she asked me, "What is that?"  I told her it was my dress and all she could say was, "No.  No.  No it's not."  I said, "Yes... Yes it is."  Turns out... When I ordered the dress, David's Bridal told me the WRONG COLOR.  Oh yeah.  My dress was Sangria instead of Lapis.  Fuschia-ish instead of a deep, dark purple.  I burst into tears and Lauren burst into laughter.  I was SO upset, but she kept assuring me it was ok and that no one would think anything of it because they'd think it was on purpose.  Darryn happened to call during my meltdown and talked to me.  "I don't know what Lapis is, and I don't know what Sangria is.  But I do know you're going to look fabulous.  And we're just glad that you traveled all the way here to be standing up there next to us."  I felt a little bit better after that, but I still felt so bad.

On the day of the wedding, the dress fiasco had turned into a conversation piece.  "So, you're the one with the odd-colored dress..."  "You're the one who is going to stick out..."  And once I saw the professional pictures on Facebook, I definitely stood out, haha.  Oh well.

The ceremony was quick and beautiful.  Darryn's grandmother blessed them during the ceremony in her NZ native language, while his aunt translated.  I thought it was such a neat way to tie in his background into the ceremony.  Lauren and Darryn also used the traditional NZ wedding bands instead of regular gold or silver bands.  I can't remember the name of their rings, but they look like jade.  It's some kind of green stone.  It's really pretty.  After the ceremony, everyone gathered in the reception hall.  There was a whole bunch of food, which was great, because we were starving!  I left around 4 to go back to Lauren's parents' house to pack up and head to Birmingham.  I was planning on staying in Excel until Sunday, but I thought the reception was going to last longer than it actually did.

Birmingham.  I went to Birmingham to see the boy.  I think the last time I mentioned him on here, I wrote that I thought things were over because he had chosen to date some other girl, and I wasn't going to be the girl he talked to on the side or whatever.  After thinking about it a lot, I decided that I still wanted to have dinner with him, at the very least, because we did talk for so long and whatnot.  Well, then he and this girl quit seeing each other and our conversations picked up again and things were going well.

I texted him as I was leaving Excel and told him I was driving up early because the wedding finished a lot sooner than planned, and I told him I'd let him know when I got to the hotel.  I spent the whole drive thinking about what things were going to be like between us... If they'd be just as good in person as they were online and over the phone.  I wasn't nervous at all.  Even when I let him know I made it to the hotel and he asked if I wanted to go to his place and do dinner.  I was really excited, but not nervous.  Then I got there and rang the doorbell and waited an excruciating 15 seconds for him to open the door... I was nothing but nervous.  But then I saw him and he gave me a hug and the feeling of nervousness turned to butterflies.  And the butterflies didn't leave until I was driving back to Auburn on Monday.

He showed me around his house (which is really nice, by the way) and we talked for a bit, and then we went out for dinner.  We went to a Japanese steakhouse called Sumo (or Sumo's?).  He was such a gentleman... Opening the doors for me and everything.  So sweet.  I thought our conversations went well, although I think I was a bit quiet.  But I think part of that was because, after a year of talking, I was finally sitting next to this wonderful man and I had a circus of butterflies in my stomach.  After dinner, we went back to his house and watched a movie and some TV before I left to go back to the hotel.

On Sunday, I went over to his place around 1 and we watched the Mississippi State-Kentucky basketball game on TV and then went to Moe's for lunch.  I still couldn't believe he was right there in front of me, and the butterflies were still kicking... So much so that I couldn't finish my lunch.  After lunch, we went for a drive around his area of Birmingham.  He showed me the schools he refs at, the country club where he was working and the one he was hoping to get a job at, the neighborhoods he looked at for houses when he was looking last year... We spent maybe an hour and a half doing that, and it was wonderful... I really just enjoyed being in his company.  Our last stop was the grocery store.  We went in and picked up some things for dinner and then headed back to his house.  We watched TV for a bit before making dinner since we'd had a late lunch.  He had said he was going to make me dinner, but it ended up being the two of us making dinner together.  I loved that.  Again, it was just being in the same room with him... It was calming and comforting, and something just felt right.  We watched The Hangover as we ate our teriyaki shrimp and chicken.  After the movie, we did dishes and he took the trash out while I was watching something on his computer upstairs.  When he got back from taking the trash out, we stayed upstairs and watched things on YouTube and a couple comedians on CMT.  Around 2:00 in the morning or so, I left and went back to the hotel.

On Monday, I let him know when I was heading downstairs to check out of the hotel.  I was supposed to be in Montgomery taking the GRE, but decided that, since things between us were going so well and I didn't want to leave him and I had already decided on getting my Master's from Walden (where I don't need the GRE), I was going to skip the test and spend some more time with him before I had to go back to Auburn.  We met up for lunch at Cracker Barrel (my favorite restaurant) and enjoyed one last meal before I had to get on the road and he had to head to the golf course.  When we were leaving, we gave each other a hug and held each other for a bit.  For that moment, I wish time could have stopped.  I want a lot of things in life, but leaving him was not one of them.  It was awful and I hated it, and I started crying as soon as I turned around to walk to my car.

Auburn.  I loved being back in Auburn!  Heather and I hung out for a little bit on Monday when I got there, and then I went to dinner with Sara and two of her friends at Niffer's.  Oh, how I miss that place!  No meal at Niffer's is complete without corn nuggets, fried pickles, and fishbowls.  We played a little bit of trivia before we left.  I went to get ice cream with Heather and Megan after dinner because Megan was leaving the next morning.  However, while eating our ice cream, we decided to meet up for brunch with Megan and her boyfriend before they left for the lake.   We met at IHOP for brunch and had a nice meal.  I'd never met her boyfriend, and he is so sweet!  Heather and I had dentist appointments right after brunch.  The rest of the week was spent hanging out and not doing a whole lot.  I went shopping for some clothes and things I needed for my house up here, and I bought so much stuff, that I had to buy a box and mail some stuff back to Alaska because it wouldn't have fit in my suitcase.  It should be here this week, hopefully.... I stupidly packed my outfit for Caitie's rehearsal dinner in the box instead of in my suitcase, ha.  I went with Becky to buy her a new bed on Wednesday or Thursday.  Her mattress was so old, it had bed bugs, and she'd had an allergic reaction to them.  Bleh.  We found her a nice, soft mattress, and it really wasn't even that expensive because it was on sale.  On Friday, it was SUCH a nice day out, Heather and I took the dog she was watching, Begley, for a walk on Auburn's campus.  I took a bunch of pictures, and then when I got to the airport in Atlanta on Saturday morning, I realized I left my camera in Heather's car.  She's driving over to Atlanta in a couple weeks while I'm down there for Caitie's wedding, and she's going to bring my camera to me.  Since my plane doesn't leave Atlanta until 4:something on Sunday, she's going to drive over so we can eat lunch together at the airport, lol.  What a sweet, sweet friend she is. :)


All in all, the week was amazing.... in more ways than one.  I've already contacted several principals about job openings and I'm hoping to get called for an interview.  I know that staying up here another year is a possibility... I have until June 30th to find a job down there so that I can get out of my contract here for next year without the state revoking my license.  I am looking all over AL and in the New Orleans area.  Pray and cross your fingers that I find something for next year...