Barely.

I am barely holding it together these days. I wake up anxious in the mornings, just about everything in general. I started crying while reading the birthday cards I got today, and when my cousins were talking about their visit this weekend. It seems like every emotion I would normally be feeling is heightened because I am leaving so soon. I keep forgetting it is my birthday tomorrow, thats when you know your overwhelmed. I am also going though periods of extreme calm which throws everything off. Either way I am feeling, I am always excited, and I am looking forward to this experience. Peace Corps has also been great about sending lots of information for us trainees to look over and that helps divert my attention away from my many lists of things to do. I want time to speed up so I can go already, and I want it to slow down so I can spend more time with my family and friends.

On a side note, I finished my Peace Corps CD I am making for my family!

It's April...

And time for an anxiety attack! Seriously, what just happened, I am gone in just over a month. I have so much I have to do and I have to do it, like yesterday. I have so many supplies I need to buy, professional clothes I need to purchase, and shoes I need to find. I joined a group on Facebook for my Peace Corps training group B26! I think that actually stressed me out more. Somehow, someway I keep putting this in the "reality to come" section of my brain, only causing a little bit of stress, but after reading up on the group page I finally realized that this needs to be in the "get off your a$$ and take care of business now" category. Commence freak out!

Countdown

BULGARIA!!!

May 10th, 2010 I depart for Washington D.C. I will arrive in BULGARIA by May 12th! That does not give me a lot of time to get everything in order but it certainly can and will be done. I can't really describe how it feels to finally have real, concrete answers. I was so tired of people asking me questions without having any answers, now people can ask away!

Please Hold

I got a phone call Tuesday from the Peace Corps. I had a nice chat with my placement officer and we went over a bunch things in order for him to place me where I am most needed and useful. At the end of the conversation he asked me about my timeline and if I would be available earlier than my early June nomination. I told him I could do that, so he told me I would be leaving May 10, 2010! In other words 7.5 weeks! I think I was able to sputter out a few words of thanks and appreciation before hanging up, but I am not totally positive about that. The country will remain somewhat of a mystery until I actually receive the invitation that he said would be here by Friday. Of course as any good Peace Corps applicant knows you can figure out the country pretty easily with a little research. I am keeping my lips sealed until I know for sure!

I can't believe in a matter of hours I went from practically giving up all hope that I was going to make my June departure to leaving an entire month earlier than expected! I think this is going to be really great for me, and with any luck I will make it the entire 27 months! I say luck because sometimes leaving isn't your choice, life still happens. I hope to be able to post very soon where I will be off to, so keep checking back for updates!

Dovizhdane!

Nobunny knows Easter better......

This is always a hard time a year for me, I love all things Easter candy! I load up on candy and then ration it out for the months following Easter just so I don't have to go through withdrawals. Cadbury is some of the best chocolate around and living in the US this is really the only time of year you can find Cadbury on our shelves. A lot of the other candy now comes around for different holidays (e.g. peeps) but I only enjoy them at Easter time. I hit the store and stocked up on my supply today, I am sure I will do that again before Easter, especially if I hear anything from the Peace Corps.

Just as a side note, as I was searching for photos of the deliciousness above, I discovered that you can by a box of these beauties for $59.99 from Amazon. That is a whole lot of creme eggs!

What a week!

I survived! I had an amazing week, but I am exhausted. Here are a few highlights:

• Spent last weekend with my brother and his family waiting for the new baby to arrive.
• Monday, Henry arrived weighing in at 9 lbs 3 oz.
• Spent a few days of quality time with my niece Ivy
• April came to visit me from Colorado
• Girls shopping trip
• Found the North Face jacket I have been wanting to get in my size, in the color I wanted, at less than half the regular retail price at the outlet mall!
• Ate sushi
• Road trip to Seattle
• Weekend with Becky and April in Seattle
• Green lake
• Piroshky Piroshky!
• Saw Mt. Ranier, the Cascade and Olympic Mountain ranges in Seattle for the first time
• Chicken Wings
• Sunday night dinner with April and the family including the little ones
• A week off of work!

I was sad to see April go, but now I can rest and get back into my schedule. What a week!!!

B.L.P.

Today I want to discuss the Biggest Loser Phenomenon or B.L.P. as I like to call it. I am referring to the unreasonable want or desire to consume fatty, sugary, unhealthy foods while watching really fat people work out. For some reason whenever I watch this show I want to eat unhealthy food and I know I am not alone. What is that? I am watching people literally have fat melt off of them, pushing their morbidly obese bodies to the limit and all I want to do is eat a cupcake. Last season I started craving (and making) cupcakes conveniently on Tuesday nights. So far my cravings with the current season are freshly baked cookies. More specifically choc. chip cookies, I made some last week to enjoy during the show. They were great! I inspired a couple other people to join me, I still feel a little guilty for that. Today I start craving fast food, how funny, I haven't had fast food in over a month I wonder why I could be craving.........oh ya, it's Tuesday, Biggest Loser night! But those contestants sure are inspiring aren't they! Perhaps I need to reconsider my viewing of this show.

B.L.P. hitting a waste band near you!