almost a grown-up

No excuses for not writing. I actually had lots of things to write about lately, so I only have laziness to blame. First of all I wanted to write about China: all the things that had changed and all the things that had stayed the same. I've got some great side-by-side photos I want to post, that really illustrate what's happened in 10 years. And I still want to do that. But there is so much else to say, that today will just be an overall update on the last 6 months.


So let's start with China. Of course there were tons of fantastic experiences with wonderful stories to tell, but the one that wins hands down, is the day of rafting down the Li River - the day that Blair proposed :) I won't lie and say it was a huge surprise. We had already talked about it and decided that we would get married, so it wasn't totally out of the blue. But I wasn't expecting it then! It was sweet and exciting, and even though we both knew the day would come at some point, we both still felt giddy and nervous. So yup, of course I said yes, and now we're engaged! I never thought I'd be so enamored with a piece of jewelry, but it's so sparkly and beautiful!! And as cheesy as it sounds, when I look at it, I really do think about how much we love each other. Groan :p

mandatory cheesy ring shot

Skip ahead to the next big event. When we got back from China, I had a voicemail waiting for me. It was regarding a job I had applied for several months back - a job I reaaaaally wanted - and they were offering it to me! I was ecstatic. But things got a bit complicated when I got back to work and found out that another position I had applied for was going to be offered to me as well! The latter was a job that I thought I had no chance at, as it was quite a step up and there had been tons of applicants. I was shocked that they chose me! Anyway, to cut to the chase, after much fretting and deliberation, I chose that one. It started sooner, and it was a significantly higher position. New job!!

movin' on up :)

A week after I started my new job, my third niece was born. That was also the day I found out that I was pregnant. Pregnant! Of all the milestones, this one is the life-changer. We're going to have a baby!! This was planned; we had decided to just give it a go now and see if it happened. Neither of us care about being married first. And boom - it happened immediately! Wow, life will soon be very different. I keep joking about doing all these grown up things like buying a house and getting engaged. But becoming a parent trumps them all. Just over 4 months before I'm a real honest to goodness grown up.

12 weeks (a little alien inside me!)

All this happened in two months. I got engaged April 4th, started new job at the end of May, and found out I was pregnant June 4th. Given my normally uneventful life, that's a lot going on in a short span of time!

I'm off on a whole new kind of adventure.