THE PINK FUZZY MONSTER, OLD FRIENDS AND COSTA RICA

Going to the GYM has been great. I’ve been sleeping better and I feel great. I still feel just a little out of place, most of the people there are GYM rats that are in great shape and wear very trendy clothes, but over all I like it. My friend Luis came with me last week to lift weights and thoroughly shamed me; it was fun to have the company though. Although there are some pretty funny characters that go to the GYM, I’d have to say that the funniest thing that I’ve seen so far is the guys outside a particular dancing class. Becca told me that the name of the class is actually “Dirty Dancing.” The walls of the classroom are made of glass and there was a whole group of guys outside drooling inconspicuously. I saw everything from guys pretending to workout while not prying their eyes from the class to others who whistled to their friends across the GYM and motioned to them to come and watch. I chuckled for days.

I just got done writing a two page history of the Chinese language that I was going to include in this post. After I got done, I realized that it would be a bit too long for this blog so I published it on my other one which is dedicated to my ideas about languages anyway. I’ll sum things up for most of you by saying that I am enjoying studying Chinese. For those interested, you can read it here.

Post-college life is becoming a little less of a mystery to me. I’m writing a business plan up to get a loan so I can do some serious advertising and add simultaneous interpretation services and message services in addition to written translation services. It’s been slow going but I think that I’ll be finishing it soon. Fortunately for me, there’s a lot of information about small businesses and business plans on the web that is useful to me. I had no idea that business plans were so long!

Congratulations to my cousin Austin! He just received his mission call and will be teaching the good people of Costa Rica about the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ for two years! Costa Rica got rid of its armed forces years ago and started investing in education. As a result, it has a literacy rate of over 96% and the most stable economy in Central America. Its unemployment rate in 2006 was about 5%. That said, it still has a lot of people living under the poverty line. GOOD LUCK AUSTIN! I’ll probably run into you at the T.R.C. in the M.T.C. on Mondays.

That’s enough from me, here’s the lovely Becca:

So, I figure I should write this week as well. As usual I do not have much to say…at least I never think I do! As Ryan said, going to the gym has been great. I have faithfully gone at least 3-5 times every week for the past 6-7 weeks. Sadly I haven’t lost any weight or inches!!!...not even a little! I do at least 30 minutes of cardio as well as working out my abs, legs, arms and pecs every time I go…Oh well, it still is quite healthy to go as often as I do. We are even eating healthier foods- lots and lots of veggies for dinner! I never thought it would be so hard to get into shape since I was in fantastic shape the majority of my life (up until 5 years ago). If I keep going to the gym, I’m sure I’ll make it to my target weight.

So a couple weeks ago a friend from my home ward in Rochester sent me a message and told me of a get together that was going to happen with some girls from my home ward. I was the baby at the get together...they were all the girls in my sisters group of friends. It was a nostalgic night that I was very happy to be invited to. I have not seen many of these girls for at least 5+ years. They couldn't believe I was married...thank goodness I had my hubby with me as proof! I cannot believe all the little ones that have been born! There were at least 11 children under the age of 7 there!!

Janeen, Sarah, Me, Kristine, Natalie and Debbie

I am so very excited for Garit and Raquel to get married!!! Let me just say that I have been a big fan of hers since I met her! I cannot wait for her to be a part of the family. She will be a wonderful addition! My first sister-in-law…and I love her already!!!! We will have lots of fun over the years!

So, Grandma Barbara gave me a fluffy light pink robe for my birthday this last December, and let me tell you…I love it! I wear it all the time. In fact, Ryan and I have dubbed it the “pink fuzzy monster.” Usually I put it on in the morning before my hair looks decent; also, it has taken over y wardrobe…hence the “monster” part. It is quite useful to have since our dryer stopped working. Doing laundry is a pain since we have to hang everything to dry or lay it out on the furniture. The loads have become smaller since I have the robe...making laundry a whole lot easier! Thank you Grandma! Having a home business means I do not have to get ready for the day unless I want to. I tend to have a case of the lazies in the morning, so I normally get ready in the afternoon when I have to leave to do errands (only if I have to of course).

One of my dear friends Kelly just had a baby girl! I got to hold Lexi when she was a mere 4 hours old! She has a perfect rosy complexion and a very full head of straight black Mexican hair. She is absolutely beautiful! I used to go on walks at least once weekly with Kelly last year during the spring months. We would talk about wanting to get pregnant, and all the girlie stuff that would bore our husbands to death. It was great! We bonded last spring. I was so happy when I got home from Brazil to learn that she was pregnant! It is so unreal that she just had her baby! I am so happy for her!

Ryan and I still love driving our Tuscon! We still have quibbles over who gets to drive it. The move to California in August will be tough since one of us has to drive the moving truck. It will be a long, lonely dive! Maybe we should buy walkie-talkies!! I cannot wait to be in California and have everyone over for dinner! I love to cook!

I have created an incredibly decadent banana brownie truffle. It is to die for! Sometimes I fail at attempts to create yummy things, but this time, I must say…I hit the nail on the head! Bananas and chocolate are two things that definitely need to be explored more in my kitchen…mmmmmm…mmm!

I cam across this design on accident...I LOVE IT!!!!

Despite normal things that can put a damper on your day, life overall is very good right now. Our business is doing well, we have happy clients, our lifestyle is gradually getting better and better and we love each other very much.

Well, that is it for me today. We love and miss you!