I'm Baaaacck!

So, I decided that I would start blogging again. I really enjoyed blogging while I was in Spain. I didn't do much after I got back (wedding planning + school = no blog time), but now I think it's time. There are exciting things happening in our life, so please be excited with us as we share!

P.S. I think I deserve points for learning how to import all of the posts from my old blog to this new one....

100 years is a long time

Last weekend I made a trip back home to Chatom. I've been making a lot of those lately, and will make a lot more in the next 4 months. In the first few years of college I rarely made it back to Chatom. Going home usually meant going to the beach! I'm really glad that I've been able to spend so much time in my hometown recently, though. It's been so nice to soak up my last few months in Alabama while remembering growing up in that small town. I know I'll always be able to come back, but DC is much farther away than Auburn!

This time I went home to celebrate the 100th birthday of Chatom Baptist Church. Should it be anniversary? Either way, 100 years is a long time! It was so much fun to sit in that church and just listen to the history. It was especially neat because so much of the history includes my family. My great-great-grandparents were founding members of the church and set an example of faithfulness that has continued until today. I'm so thankful that the Lord continued to call the Schells/Hensons/Smiths/etc. to himself! I certainly hope and pray that he continues to do so for another 100 years!

6 months....

... since I last posted here. I miss it. I'm going to try and start writing again. Granted, I don't think anyone will be as excited about my life in Auburn as they were about my life in Barcelona, but it will get me in the habit again. So, I'm going to use this space to write about my last 4 months and 29 days as a single lady, wedding planning, and all the tears I will shed about leaving Auburn. Maybe, just maybe, after January 1 there will be a new blog to go along with my new last name... :)

P.S. Jan. 1, 2010 is the big day... PTL!!!

Life since Spain...

#1: This is mostly so I can look back and remember the last couple of months. It probably won't be entertaining.

#2: I already know that it will be horribly written.

I've been meaning to write this post for a while, but have only now taken the time to do so. Granted, it's 11 PM and I should be doing homework, so this should probably be classified as "procrastination tool." I've officially been home almost 2 months, but it has seemed so much longer!

I think I've gotten to the point that I can look back on Spain with fondness. It's not that I didn't enjoy my time there, but it was difficult. I have such a busy/fun life here in the States and many friends and family. I was harder to be away from them than I thought it would be. The last 4 weeks were really hard! It was not fun to watch my new fiance hop back on a plane to the States. I was definitely ready to be home after that! However, in the past week or so, I've been thinking back to specific days or trips with much fondness. I keep retracing my walk to school, the walk to the peanut butter aisle in El Corte Ingles, the walk down La Rambla... as much as possible. I can tell I'm losing the vividness of some of those sights. I know I have to get back there one day.

After I flew home, I was of course bombarded with, "How was Spain?" I really appreciate everyone's interest in the trip, but how to you answer that in the 3 sentences or less that they will listen to? "Um, it was different but good." "I enjoyed it." Those can't adequately describe the emotions and experiences that I had there. I don't really know if I had the wonderful experience I thought I would. It was fun and I would definitely recommend it to anyone (just not through KEI), but I don't think people want to hear, "It was alright."

Christmas break was excellent. I got to spend much needed time with my family, friends, as well as with Joel and his family. I think I was a little awkward around everyone at first, but it doesn't take long to relax when you are home. However, that doesn't mean that I wasn't busy. I came home and immediately launched into Christmas mode. After that made a trip to B'ham and brought Joel back to Chatom with me. We then spent a wonderful New Year's Eve with Kinzie, Adam, Virginia, Sarah, Shane, Brenna, and the star of the night, Savannah, before the Sasnetts came down for the weekend. Then it was back to Auburn to start a new semester!

Now I know why most people don't take 18 hours in a semester. It's hard! I am guaranteed at least 2 tests and an essay every week until May. On top of that I'm taking an 8 hr/week LSAT prep course. On top of that I'm also trying to plan a wedding. My anxiety issues have already started to kick in. I know they're getting bad when I wake up anxious. Worry/anxiety is something that is a huge struggle for me. It's a sin that I constantly battle. If you think about it, I could definitely use a prayer or two.

I'm really tired and I have no clue what to write about next. So, I'm going to go to bed. Maybe you should suggest a topic for me, and I'll use it for my next post.

A Domino effect.

Well, my favorite magazine is closing its covers. I read People is the magazine that I read most often (maybe because it's weekly), but I'm always a sucker for Domino. I've read several stories of magazines having to stop their print because the economy sucks, but this one makes me really sad. I really like interior design. My mom definitely passed that on to me. Domino is one of those magazines that you can look through to see beautiful rooms, but they're accessible. It's like mixing Oscar de la Renta and Oscar's flea market. You think it would be bad, but it's oh so good!

If you've never experienced the wonder of Domino, click the link to check it out. I'm not positive, but I assume the website will live on.

I know that I'm pretty crappy at writing the blog entries that I say I will, but know that I have the best intentions. Soon, friends, soon.

Thank you, Joel, for pointing out my grammatically incorrect first sentence.

New year, new president

As we all know, at 12:00 PM today Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th president of the United States. At this point, it doesn't really matter if we agree with him or not. He is our president, and there are two things that we must acknowledge.

1) Today is truly a historical day. Tears came to my eyes as I watched the Obama family stand on the Capitol's west side. It really was only a generation ago that segregation was alive and strong. I am certain that God doesn't see race, and I don't think we should either.

2) As Christians, we have the privilege and duty to pray for our country's leaders. Southern Seminary president, Dr. Al Mohler, encourages us to pray, and shows us his prayer for President Obama here.

I encourage you to take a moment today to pray for Barack, Michelle, Malia, and Sasha Obama (by name:)), and for wisdom for our nation's leaders.

Toledo!

So after stuffing our faces with tapas the night before, we arose pretty early Saturday morning and walked to the train station.



Our destination was Toledo. This little city is about a 30 minute train ride from Madrid. Like Granada, you instantly feel like you're seeing the real Spain when you're there. I don't really remember all of the history, and I would botch it if I tried... look it up on Wikipedia. Trust me, you might be amazed :)

It's one of those cities that you immediately feel cozy in. I think there are only about 80,000 citizens, and it has definitely maintained that village/small town vibe. Unfortunately, it was REALLY cold and windy that day, so parts of the tour weren't very enjoyable and I didn't "absorb" it like I should have. I really should have done this a long time ago because now I can't remember much! I'll just let the pictures do the talking :)





The next to last picture is most of the group at lunch in Toledo. It was in this restaurant that I discovered a hole in the crotch of my favorite pair of jeans. Awesome.

The trip was really fun though. Now I'll leave you with the view from the room Porschia and I were in.

That crazy lit up roof is the roof of a club in Madrid. We were told that it's "where all the pretty people go."