¿Cómo se dice...head over heels?

Tonight I met my host family for the first time.

I am in love with them. Completely, perfectly, and incandescently happy to be placed where I am.

OH MY GOSH you just have no idea. Soooooooooo in love. Like 50 billion times more than Google. Do I even have to go on?

I didn't get to take any pictures yet besides this snapshot of my room. You might be shocked to see what you're about to see. And that's probably because they live in the most gorgeous Spanish-esque villa that you would never picture when you think of Mexico.

Amigos, am I right or am I right? Not what you imagined? Told you so!

Love at first sight. Oh, and did I mention that I have the most ADORABLE little host brothers in the universe? Do they remind me of my own half Mexican brothers back home? Absolutely. And my host parents! Those spanish speaking cuties put on a live concert dvd of Phil Collins after I arrived. Need I say any more!?

You just have no idea, amigos. Take my word for it. This is literally THE. BEST. TIME. OF. MY. LIFE. Hands down.

I will leave you with this video one of the brothers came to show me before I went to bed. I live in America and I haven't even seen or heard it yet. But then again, I'm quite often out of the loop. I just really love the monkey masks and whistling and the sweet action dance moves at 1:57-2:14. WARNING: there are mabes a few inappropriate references and gestures at 0:35, 1:34, and 2:33, so just skip those parts, duh!

little letters

(emily just posing so i could attempt to capture the essence that is the DCC)

Dear Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders,

Thanks so much for being our pre-flight entertainment at the DFW airport. You all looked FABULOUS. Keep on doing what you do, blessing us all with your beautiful presences.

Love,

The sisters who could not stop staring at your pink suitcases and perfectly perfect outfits

(fresh off the plane before being admitted through the declarations line. if you think you've seen this outfit before, you're right. if you think i got a trim and my hair is that much prettier than before, you are also right.)

Dear Tehuacan,

I love you already. I hear you get flooded when it rains in June and July. AWESOME. And thanks for being much safer than everyone thinks. Really.

Love,

The girl who only brought flip flops for waterproof shoes. Oops.

Dear Dramamine,

I should have taken you when my mom offered before I walked out the door to the airport. Very shaky 4 hour bus rides agree with me.

Love,

Nauseous Nancy

(look, Dad! they even have 7-11 at the Mexican Airport. And look, Dad! We didn't get our laptops stolen!!)

Dear Men in Light Blue Bowling Shirts on the Prowl at the Bus Station,

I know you are just dying to help me (us) with all of our thousands of American bags, but we just don't want to pay you. We will struggle up broken escalators and navigate around huge bus stations before we tip you! Sorry charlie.

Love,

The one who ended up paying $3 American dollars FRESH OFF THE PLANE to someone just like you because she didn't know any better.

(pierna torta in downtown Tehuacan. DELI.CIO.SO. don't worry momma, i won't drink sugar at every meal. just the ones that require more than just luke warm water to enjoy.)

Dear Tortas and Tacos,

Can we please be BFFLS for the next 4 months? Meaning, you will let me eat as much as I want of y.o.u. and not gain a pound. And in return I shall tell all my American friends about you causing them to be eternally jealous. Deal? Deal. Thanks a million.

Love,

Hungry Hannah

I wish I could post more and more and more about every single thing. But then I wouldn't have time to be doing these things. And Emily may or may not have much better quality photos, but WHO CARES.

SYLYB

Cutie cutes, I'm leaving on a jet plane in approximately 9 hours for Mexico. Then I will be there until August 17.

Will you miss me? Will you write me? Can we still Gchat? Can we still Skype? Can I still stalk your FB? Will I still update my blog? Can you still text or call me?

The answer should be yes to all but the last one. I am not on a Mormon mission and I am not dead. The internet is alive and kicking even in Mexico, so you best be keeping in touch and keeping it real.

See Ya Love Ya Bye!

sisters do as sisters should

This girl is hilarious. Obviously. And if I can't bring all my other best friends with me to Mexico, I am very glad I will have her. She redesigned my blog header for the occasion. Isn't she talented? It's kinda not fair that her new one is actually way cuter than mine, but what can you do?

We leave on Thursday. It's okay if you're a little bit sad. I'm a little bit sad too. (But mostly excited.)

Happy Easter!

I know that my Redeemer lives.

and this is how it feels

Oh, hey. I officially graduate college in 8 hours.

Please, OH PLEASE don't make me leave my happy little bubble yet. I am not readyyyyy.

I am supposed to take all of my friends with me in my pocket to Mexico, right? RIGHT?!?!? Even the ones I have baby crushes on, RIGHT?!?

Let the sobbing begin.

Graduate Record Examination in Pictures

Listen, you're about to see a glimpse of how I looked and felt the day I took the GRE. This is my journal after all gosh darnit. And you might feel overwhelmed with pictures. NBD. Just sit back, relax, and enjoy the greenness of my eyes, the sunshine of my soul, and anything else I felt like capturing with my camera. Totes sorry if the pictures seem like they are cutting into my sidebar links. I don't know what happened.

Time and time again Katie has told me to dress for success. So I knew I couldn't wear pajamas while taking the GRE. But I knew that I could dress comfortably and wear layers in case it was too cold or too hot. Cute socks and comfy slippers are not the worst fashion decisions anyone has ever made. Sue me!

Had to represent mi padre and get some snacks from hurr. He works for corporate 7-11 and we may or may not get free Slurpees all the time. Jeals?




Can I go anywhere without using my handy dandy Sprint GPS system? No and no. Also, I must note that I left my house at 10:15 for the test that started at 12:30 just 15 minutes away. If you know me at all, you know I couldn't possibly risk leaving any later than that.

This is where the magic happens. So magical in fact a woman actually left crying because she had to forfeit $130 and the Praxis test because her middle name didn't match the one on her drivers' license. I felt so bad!

These next photos are only a few of the many I took of myself to entertain myself so I didn't have an anxiety attack before taking the test. Stress and I are worst enemies.



"Candid" shot at a stop light as it turned green. Livin' on the edge I tell ya.

This face says, "Please, oh please do not make me take this test. WTOML!"

And this is a sample of what I entertained myself with for approximately 3 hours. Much more fun than picture taking, obvi.

And this face says, "My brain hurts lots. SO glad to be doneeeeeeeeeee. I wonder how long my eyelashes look when my eyes are closed."

And this is me talking to my parents afterward so they could validate me and make me feel a tiny bit proud of myself. They are the bomb.com.




And then Katie rescued me and took me to Pei Wei where I looked nuts. So nuts that I can't even keep my headband from sliding off my head causing me to look like a homeless person. And maybe I was a little nuts after sitting for 3.5 hours staring at a computer screen using all my physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual energy. And I was also starving because the last thing I had eaten were a few NUTS from some trail mix 3 hours before. Hence the three fortune cookies in front of me.

And there you have it. Just me and the GRE, just havin' some good times. To be completely honest, I meant to prepare for it months in advance. But life happened. And by life, I mean Senioritis happened. And we all know what a toll that took on me. So, I barely studied the week before. And I'm actually quite pleased with how I did considering I did minimal preparation. It can only get better with more practice! If you are bored to tears after this post, just come back later when I post even more pictures of myself at my Fiesta with Mi Amigos and perhaps Jimmer.

xo

happy birthday momma dearest

Destin, FL 2007 i totes cropped it so it's grainy. totes sorry.

This is me and my momma the summer before I started college. Also the year before she was diagnosed with Stage 3 Breast Cancer. What? You didn't know my mom had breast cancer? Sometimes I can't always tell you about the things that make me saddest. BUT GUESS WHAT? She has beat it not once, but nearly twice as of last month. So you could say she's pretty much amazing. And today is her birthday. I love her so very much and I could write a novel of all the wonderful things she has accomplished and done for me and my family. But then we'd all get a little too emotional.

Instead, I'll just end this post with a little song from my pal Justin Bieber. You may have seen this video before on Katie's blog or wall, but it really never gets old. And it's completely appropriate for these circumstances.

So, here's to many more birthdays, Momma Llama Jomma Romma. (we use silly names in my family and it's fine)

seeyaloveyabye!

we were born to hum

it's 3 am and i cannot sleep. that's usually the case these days. my brain is always thinking of the millions of things i must get done but can't seem to get done before graduation, after graduation, before mexico, after mexico, before grad school, etc. etc. etc.

and i heard this lovely song today whilst listening to pandora for several hours at the biblioteca of HBL. don't worry, i was actually a bit productive. but mostly just keeping the company of my kailey jane johnson barfield.

and then i found this adorable home video montage to go along with it. so of course i had to share.

once in a while i complain to myself. nothing gets done. nothing's in place. i would rather hum.

i would rather hum.

graduation schmaduation

Oh, hi! I'm glad you stopped by. I was just compiling a list via pictures of a few things I want need for Mexico. And they can easily count as graduation gifts. Hokay?

Oh! And this would look awfully nice on my beautifully tanned neckline when I return to the States. Winky face.



Thanks! You're the best!

xoxo