Hey there. So much has happened since I posted last! Most importantly, I'm engaged! Jacob asked me last Thursday when we were in Texas. About 13 years ago our friend found out we liked each other and locked us in the NFWBC gym together. He took me back to where it all began and got down on his knee! After I said "yes!" he surprised me with dinner at Mercado Juarez with both of our families. It was dang sweet. The trip home was crazy and busy but it was wonderful to see family and friends.

 

Here are a few pictures... some old, some new. Enjoy :)

  

Amorele's shop is a work in progress!

New Orleans

Shopping day with the girls.

Ranger game with Dad, S-K, Kyle, and Jonesy.

Ring!

My sweet Raleigh friends threw a little lingerie shower on Monday. Our friend Alyssa is also getting married so they organized a party for the both of us.

Love you guys.

WELCOME TO TEXAS!

Grandmother Red,
This is my blog and how I am able to keep my family updated on my life.  I would love to be able to keep you updated on our Japanese adventures and our lives. 

Good morning! Just wanted to post a quick hello from Texas!! After some standby flight craziness, I made it to New Orleans yesterday morning where Jacob picked me up. We took our time exploring the city, ate some gumbo (my first time and it was great!), and almost got a parking ticket.  We made it to Houston around 9:30 last night.  After a good night's rest I get to meet even more of Jacob's wonderful family.  I look forward to it and am excited about getting to know them.  Can't wait till I get to see my family!

Happy Birthday, Dad!

So I have exciting news... I'm coming home! At the end of the month I'll get to visit for about 6 days. I can't wait! I've been in Raleigh for about 7 months now and it's definitely time for some Texas. :)

I also wanted to let y'all know that my friend and roommate, Anne Marie, and I are starting our own Etsy shop! We're planning to sell handmade cards and possibly expand to bunting as well. We're really excited and have been gathering supplies here and there. This weekend will be our first opportunity to actually sit down and craft so hopefully I'll have a link and samples to post soon! We're going to call the shop "Amorele Handmade." After brainstorming names and trying to combine our initials or personalities somehow, she suggested Amorele. It combines our initials and is actually her grandma's name! We love it and are looking forward to getting the ball rolling. Having an Etsy page is something I've wanted to do for a long time and it's actually happening!

I've been a little bit overwhelmed with all the blog updating I have yet to do. I think I'll mix past with current and maybe someday I'll be all caught up! Can you believe it's already September? I can't. I'm going on 7 months here in Raleigh. Soon it will be fall again! I had my first pumpkin spice latte of the season this afternoon (iced because it's still hot outside...fingers crossed for cooler weather). I remember craving them in Germany and there was no pumpkin to be found. My sweet mama mailed me cans of pumpkin and all the fixins to make my own pumpkin syrup.

I wanted to say just a few more things about our family vacation to Sapphire Valley. It was the highlight of my July. It was so wonderful to see and hug them. L never fails to make me laugh so hard I cry. Among other things we explored some small towns, visited lots of antique stores, went tubing down the river, ate some of mama's homemade food (mac&cheese!), and played mini golf in the pouring rain. Probably my favorite part, though, was renting a pontoon boat and spending the day on Lake Jocassee. Apart from the crazy storm around lunch time, it was a gorgeous day and we had a fantastic time!

As I mentioned, I took two trips to Florida last month. The first was to visit Jonesy in Pensacola. He was the perfect host and had an incredible weekend planned out. To name a few...We went on a private ghost tour of a haunted lighthouse, out to fancy dinners, to the beach, and out on his boat. He even surprised me with zip lining. Here are some of those pictures...

The following weekend I went to Naples to visit the Kruegers. I cannot believe how grown up the girls are! We spent lots of our time at the beach and the pool and I got all the updates about life in Neckarbischofsheim.

So there's another little glimpse of what's been going on lately. Life is good!

Hello friends and family! I've missed my blog... I can't tell you how many times I've sat down to work on this post and been distracted. So, finally, here are some highlights of life lately.

-My wonderful little brother turned 13!

-I spent a beautiful Saturday at the beach in Wilmington.

-I'm going through the membership process at an incredible church out here called imago Dei.

-We had a family vacation!!!!

-I've taken two fantastic trips to Florida.

More pictures and stories soon. I'll try to be a better updater!

Time for an update... Last weekend was wonderful. I drove up to D.C. and spent the weekend with my grandparents, aunt, uncle and cousins. I can't even tell you how good it felt to hug family. We stayed in amazing National Harbor and explored the city (often taking the scenic route). It stormed like wild but that didn't stop us from taking a ferry and trolley to old town Alexandria. So cute. The National Arboretum, National Cathedral and the monument night tour were wonderful. Being in D.C. again was so much fun... It's really a beautiful place. (Can't wait to go back to the arboretum when things are blooming!) I wish the weekend could have lasted much longer but I'm so grateful for my family time.