Ch-Ch-Changes

Well, Renard and I made it to Dubai in one piece.

The month I spent in Omaha was so much fun.  I am so happy that I was able to spend time with my mom, dad, and sister before I left.  Plus, I got to see my aunt Kim, Grandma, and cousins, Carsen and Alex, in Spokane, WA.  It almost made it harder to leave, but I wouldn't trade that time for anything.

Some highlights:

• Running a half marathon with my dad.  My dad, who is an avid runner, talked me into running the St. Louis Go! Half Marathon.  I really (thought) I hated running, but was determined to train and finish the race.  I ended up realizing that I actually kind of like running.  And it was the perfect stress reliever during such a challenging time (thanks, Dad!)  I haven't run for a few weeks now and I'm really itching to get back into it.  I finished in 2:01:52.  Not too bad for a first timer?

I didn't even trip!

• Seeing a bunch of movies in the theater.  That sounds so silly, but Ryan and I never go to movies in Chicago.  I saw Titanic in 3D, Jeff Who Lives at Home, The Five Year Engagement, Hunger Games, and 21 Jump Street.  It was fabulous.
• Seeing Ryan's parents, Jess and Sheri, his brother and sister in law, Mike and Becca, and Ryan's adorable neice, Ivy.  I missed Ashley, Jed and Henry, but will hopefully get to see them soon!  
• Visiting old haunts in Washington.  My sister and I spent all of our summers there.  We'd fly from Hawaii to Seattle, where our grandma and grandpa would pick us up and drive us to Cheney, WA for a few weeks/months.  I have so many great memories of those summers.  It was fun to revisit Lake Chelan, a really cute little Bavarian town called Leavenworth, and most especially eat at this amazing wonder of a fast food place called Dicks.  Best. Food. Ever.  Oh!  And the best thing about fast food places in Washington is fry sauce.  Look it up.

 Try the Whammy.  And FYI, the pizza takes FOREVER.

• Shopping with my mom.  She's the best shopping partner ever.  We went to Target like a hundred times.   She really helped me develop my new Dubai style (inside joke.)
• Vampire nights with my sister.   Red wine, Vampire Diaries and the Twilight Saga (and a Costco documentary thrown in for good measure.)  
• Renard's favorite part of the trip was definitely hanging out with my parent's cat, Ned.  They were seriously BFF's.

Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria!

So now Renard and I are in Dubai, reunited with Ryan.  I can't believe we went three whole months apart.  I miss my family and my friends so much (Pam and Jenny - hi!)  I'm still trying to process everything.   (Driving here scares the crap out of me.  There are no left turns!  I miss my Chicago grid system.)  And I'm still super jet lagged.  But I'm beyond excited for our new adventure here!  I'll post again soon with some tales of Dubai experiences.