TGIF

Thank goodness it is Friday, this week hasn't been too terribly difficult, but I am definitely ready for the weekend. It'll hopefully be a nice weekend too - tonight we're going to one of the loan officer's holiday parties, tomorrow morning we're going to get as much Xmas shopping done as possible, then go to meet my Dad and Pam at the airport during their 3 hour layover, and then possibly Sunday watch the football (American football in this case) with some friends.

Last week was shortened because Thursday was Thanksgiving, and it was really fun because we got to spend the long weekend in California. We left late Wednesday night,and came back early Monday morning so we were completely and totally exhausted (and I managed to catch a pretty stupidly awful cold), but the trip itself was great. It was so nice being back in the Bay Area again. I know everyone knows how much I miss it, and how much we want to move back there at some point, but that feeling of wanting to be back there is only made so much more intense whenever we visit. And this visit was a good combination of spending time with family and with friends. Thursday we spent Thanksgiving at my Dad and Pam's, with some of Pam's family, Auntie Barb, Grandma, Becca, Annica...it was a small group of us, but just so nice. And the turkey was scrumptious. Dad did a great job! Then Friday, I met up for brunch in Walnut Creek with the "Parkmead Posse." Oh man, I have not seen some of them in years, and it was just so good to be able to hug each other, catch up, chat, eat good food, drink mimosas, and be together again - if only for a few hours (none of us wanted to leave at 1, and we'd been there since 9:30!). I then Bart-ed over to the city to go over to Becca's to hang out for the rest of the afternoon (another thing I miss about the Bay, the wonderfulness that is Bart. I feel as if I would not appreciate it so much after another few years of living there, but gotta admit, after being stuck in the suburbs for just over a year...I long for the type of public transportation that Bart offers.). We went out to grab some warm drinks, then wandered around the neighborhood for a little while, and then went back to hang out at home and eat a yummy dinner and sip on delicious drinks that becca made for us. The next morning I hopped back on Bart to go over to Alameda to meet Annica, because she was taking me out to get a pedicure as a little gifty. So nice of her, especially since it was only a little spa, and the one nail-lady moved very slowly, so we didn't have enough time for Annica to get her toes done too. She let me just get mine, and decided she would come back later. After that, we grabbed some delicious Peet's coffees and headed over to Rockridge because we were meeting Erika to do some shopping at Crossroads. :) Miss Crossroads. Miss Erika. Miss Rockridge. Trying not to get all soppy about the Bay again. ANYWAYS, we met up with Erika at Crossroads, and then my Dad and Mike showed up to surprise us, then Becca came over - and we all decided that lunch would be a great idea, so we went to have Barney's right there on College. And it was delicious. Then, we said our goodbyes to Erika before she hopped on her bike to head back home to Oakland. And of course, I started to get teary eyed. Ridiculous and embarrassing. And yes I miss Erika and that made me sad, but it was just that combined with feeling at home again. Georgia is great in some ways, and Alpharetta does feel like my home in some respects, especially now that Mike and I have our own little home here - but whenever I go back to California, I feel so comfortable, so at peace, so relaxed, and like I can actually be myself - that when I said goodbye to Erika, something hit me so hard and it made me cry because I realized how much I miss this part of my life. Ugh...so cheesy. But true nonetheless. So, however it needs to happen, I am going to try to get Mike and myself back to California. Aiming for the start of 2012. Let's see if we can do it.

Now back to the rest of the trip...I went over to Becca's Saturday evening, and we had a yummy homemade pizza with grilled peppers and onions and mozzarella cheese too. Then Sunday we woke up and went over to Berkeley to meet my Dad and Pam and Mike and Annica for coffee and pastries at Strada. I'm moving much quicker through this part of my Thanksgiving break than I did for the first part...hah! After saying my goodbyes to little sister Becca; me, Mike, and Annica went over to Tia and Doug's for lunch. SO yummy and SO nice to hang out with them for the afternoon. Haven't seen them in what feels like forever, even though it really was just last May. And Tia made some great spaghetti with meat sauce, garlic bread, delicious salad, and also some turkey soup with leftovers. We all just chatted. And Sean and Tanner were so cute. And so grown up. Sean is now 9 and Tanner is 7. I can't believe what little grown ups they've become, it was fun seeing them. After lunch, we went back to my Dad and Pam's, finished up the packing, made sandwiches for the place, and hung out until Annica took us over to the Oakland airport.

Good weekend. I can't believe it was all just last weekend though. Feels like so long ago.

Long time since I last posted

It's a nice lazy Saturday and I'm in a weird mood, upset with myself for a few reasons, so I decided I would post to try to get my mind off things and remember that sometimes people make mistakes. Mike says that he is done listening to me talk about it, and he's right I need to just chill out a bit and enjoy the weekend.

I haven't posted on here since last January! Guess it might be because I've been a little busy since then. Since last January, I have spent almost 7 months apart from Mike during the first part of our engagement. I got moved up from my position as the receptionist at Wells Fargo Home Mortgage to an assistant for one of the branches. More responsibility equals more stress. But it has definitely been a learning experience. Also, in the months since I last wrote, Mike moved out to the US for good (July), we moved in together (basement apartment), got married (ayayyayayayayayayyyyyyyy September 10, 2010), and have basically just been adjusting ever since. A lot has been happening, and I feel like we are mostly just trying to take each day as it comes. It isn't neccessarily easy, but it's good, because we are dealing with it together. That's what we have always wanted.

Right now I am lying in bed, snuggled up in comfy pants and my most recent most favorite hoody, the striped blue, white, and grey one that I bought in the men's dept at Primark on Oxford Street. Good sweater. Mike is laying on the couch across the room (of our studio basement apartment), watching the football on the Fox Soccer Channel which he was finally able to get set up on our tv so he could watch the games. It's really good that he got it set up, but it also means for even more frustration when Chelsea loses terribly. Between that and the Rams losing a lot of the time...part of me wishes he liked a team that won more often whether it be american football or "the" football. :)

Today after we get tidied up around here and dressed and ready to go out, we're gonna go buy tickets to see the newest Harry Potter at the Studio Movie Grill in Roswell because I got some good coupons on Groupon for $5 tickets and a soda there. We're taking my mom too because we all want to go see it. I've already heard that it is very good.

All right, felt good to write, let's see if I can update this more often. Right now, I am going to go tidy up the kitchen with the mess Mike made in there after cooking our delicious English breakfast (fried egg, buttered toast, cumberland sausage, hickory-smoked bacon, beans, & mushrooms...so worth the mess made), and then I will go shower, do my hair makeup getting ready routine, and then get dressed and get Mike started on getting ready so we can go out and enjoy the Saturday.

I need some sort of a change. Not with my personal life. I feel like I'm ready for something more. I want to start trying to figure out what it is I really want.

That's all for now.

Almost the end of January already...

So it's getting to the end of the first month of 2010, and I'm happy when I think that I only have a little bit longer before I get to see Mike again. I'm liking my new job. Today was a good day. I think I'm more likely to blog on good days than I am on bad ones. Which is fine I think, but I might also start trying to write on days where I don't feel so positive about things. But for right now, I am feeling good. The one thing that I keep catching myself thinking about is my birthday. I wonder if it's bad to start thinking about what one wants for bday presents almost 2 months before one's birthday...because I already have decided TWO things that I really really want for my 23rd birthday. Thing one: "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" musical on DVD. My favorite, and I've been realllllly wanting to watch it lately, but I refuse to pay $15 for a DVD. I'm cheap. I know. Thing two: A plane ticket to London. I really miss Mike, and I'd looooove to go see him for my birthday. I know that me writing these things on my blog does not make them actually happen, but I just wanted to get that little wishlist off my chest. Yahhhhhhhh.

Yesterday was nice too. I think yesterday helped to put me in a good mood for today. And Saturday was actually pretty all right too. Saturday I made myself breakfast (fried eggs and sourdough toast) and then cleaned my bathroom with really good-smelling house cleaner from Target. Cleaning your bathroom while listening to good loud music and while using pleasant-smelling bathroom cleaning products makes the whole experience a lot less painful. After cleaning, I went on a brisk walk with mom lady, and then showered and went out exploring for a bit. By exploring, I mean exploring Alpharetta, GA-style: I went antiques shopping (aka browsing and talking on the phone with Mike), to Super Target, and then to Fry's. It was pleasant. Then I came home and drank Corona Light and watched "The Hangover." Funny funny movie, but not as good the second time, since you know where Doug is. Still humorous though.

Sunday was nice too. I went with my mom to a bridal faire in Atlanta at this fancy schmancy hotel downtown, and she was very pleasant to hang out with, and we enjoyed ourselves and taking free samples and meeting crazyyyy wedding vendors. Actually found two photographers who we really liked though, which made me happy. Afterwards, went to lunch at California Pizza Kitchen back in Alpharetta, then explored Pier One Imports, then went to go see the 4:40 showing of "Leap Year" with Amy Adams. Gotta love Amy Adams, she is totally precious, and it helped that the movie was a silly romantic comedy about an American falling for a guy from the United Kingdom. Ireland, not England...but you see why I liked it. :) The guy also had a beard with a little spot in it where no hair grows...like Mike. I liked that. I'm such a freaking goober. Anyways, Sunday was nice and I actually got to bed a little later than I'd planned, but it was ok because I slept really well.

This morning I actually woke up feeling well-rested, which doesn't happen very often. It carried throughout the rest of the day as well, which I was VERY pleased about. I also had a good day at work, followed by a nice conversation with the wifey (who I haven't gotten to talk to in awhile), and then a nice convo with the fiance, and then a lovely workout at the gym where I got a free 7-day pass to use. So it was good. I'm a little worried that with all this positivity and happiness, tomorrow is gonna suck so bad. But I'm happy now and therefore I am going to enjoy that. I am just going to deal with right now for right now, and see what tomorrow's about when tomorrow comes.

2010: A new year, with so many new and wonderful things

Well, I know that it has been a very long time since I have posted on here, but I figured that it was probably about time that I did, because so much has been happening since my last post. And I realize that someday I am going to want to remember exactly how I was feeling at this point in my life and without writing on here, I really would have no other way to document what is going on at this time in my life. So here we are again!! At my semester abroad-turned living with my boyfriend abroad-turned ENGAGED-turned filling out Visa applications-ever exciting Withlovefromlondon blog. :)

The last time I wrote, I was still living with Mike in Milton Keynes, and at the end of my allowed time there in the UK (end of September). After leaving England, I came back to Alpharetta to move back home and live with my Mom and Bobby and Jim. I missed Mike, but fortunately, our new plan included him moving to live with us for three months in Alpharetta. Which turned out to be really nice. Mike was able to help around the house and the yard with stuff to make the house all pretty for when my parents decide to put it back on the market again. And I started the job search, which was pretty slow-going, so in the meantime I got a part-time job at Gap at Northpoint Mall. I kept on looking for another full-time job, and ended up getting a position as a receptionist at a Wells Fargo Home Mortgage branch here in Alpharetta, which is not only a great starting position for me, but it's also really great because it's only a short commute.

I had just started working at Wells Fargo, and time was passing so so so quickly, and then Mike had to go back to England at the end of the month - when Mike surprised me with a weekend away to Nashville. He picked me up from work on Friday and told me that we had to stop by Trader Joe's for some special juice that my mom wanted...so we started driving in that direction, and when we passed the store, I asked him why we didn't stop and he said because we're going somewhere else. I guessed Nashville, and he was like YES!! So we drove the 4 hours up to Tennessee, and got a room at America's Best Value Inn (aka really cheap). The next morning, we ate a yummyyyyy breakfast at Waffle House down the road from our hotel, and then set out for a day of sightseeing. It was soooooo cold in Nashville, but it was nice to just bundle up and enjoy a day together with peace and quiet because there weren't really very many people around. We first went to go see the Bicenntennial State Park, which was pretty, but it was too cold to hang outside much, so we ended up heading over to the State Capitol Building over across the street.

It was a really pretty building sitting on top of a big hill right in the middle of the city, and we had to walk up a huge flight of stairs, but once we got to the top, the views were so pretty and it was just nice to walk around together hand in hand. We walked around the building to the front to see if we could go inside for a tour, but I guess it was closed for the day, so we just stood out in front looking out onto the courtyard below, with a festively decorated Christmas tree right in the center of it all. I was just standing there taking in the scenery when Mike turned to me and told me that he had a question to ask me. I got really excited, because I had a feeling that I might know what that question was.

For the past week or so, Mike and I had been talking about our plans for when he left on December 29th. And although we had talked about marriage before, it never was something we actually had started making plans for. Except this time it was for real. We were really serious and we were really ready and we were so excited about getting to spend the rest of our lives together. So, we told my Mom and Bobby about our plans the weekend before we went to Nashville, and Mike was able to ask my Dad for his blessing when he had a layover on that Monday in Atlanta. After much searching, we were able to find a ring that I loved and that he could afford right now, and put it on layaway. But earlier that week, Mike had told me that when he'd gone to pick up the ring, it hadn't been sized yet and it wouldn't be ready for a few more days. I was bummed, because although I didn't know about Nashville yet, I'd figured that Mike would probably propose that weekend anyways.

So, needless to say, when Mike said that he had a question to ask me, I was pretty excited, because I had seen him clutching at his sweatshirt pocket all day, like he was trying to hold something in there. I thought that it might be the ring, but I didn't want to get my hopes up because I knew it was still in the shop getting sized. But then, as he turned toward me and got down onto one knee and pulled the ring box out of his pocket, I knew that it was really happening. I knew that he was asking me to marry him. He held out the ring box and told me that he loves me so much and he can't imagine not spending the rest of his life with me and then he said, "Simone, will you please be my wife?" And I just could not stop smiling. I said yes, of course I will be your wife. And he slipped the beautiful ring onto my finger and stood up and pulled me close to give me the warmest and biggest hug ever. I held onto him and just could not stop smiling because I was so happy that we were going to have this future together.

The rest of the weekend was really fun too, because Mike surprised me with Ashley coming down to celebrate with us!!! It was awesome, she came to surprise me on my happy day! So that night we all got gussied up and went out in downtown Nashville for a looooot of beer (PBR) and good live music. It was a great night, followed by a lovely breakfast the next morning at Waffle House and then Ashley hit the road for Louisville, and we headed back down to Atlanta because we had to go see a show with the family that night. But I couldn't have imagined a better weekend surprise.

Christmas came and it was really great to have some time off work and eat yummy food and spend time with the family altogether. And then, that Tuesday, Mike had to go back to England. It was sad to see him go, but a little bit easier than it usually is, because although we knew that we wouldn't be seeing each other for awhile, at least we knew that the next time we were together, it would be for good. Forever.

So, we've started the Visa application process....which is a lot of paperwork, and pretty nerve-racking, but now that I have sent off the first packet of forms and paperwork and evidence and proof, I feel a little bit better because I know that at least we've gotten the ball rolling. The next thing to do is just wait until they've received it, and then there's the waiting time for them to get to our case and start to process it. Then, we wait until they're approved us for a fiance visa, and then they schedule Mike's interview at the U.S. Embassy in London, and then after that goes well (fingers crossed!!), they give a date when he can enter the United States! And then, once he's here, we have 90 days to get married. Which is why we're going to have a court ceremony first, and then our real wedding celebration next summer most likely with all of our friends and family there. Gives everyone enough time to save up to be there with us, and us enough time to get settled and everything and save as well to help pay for the wedding!

Back to the whole visa process though....it can take anywhere from 6-8 months total, which kind of sucks because that will be the longest that Mike and I have gone without seeing each other. We have Skype, and webcam chats, phone calls, emails, letters, and texts to get us through til then though, but it will be tough nonetheless. But Mike keeps telling me to keep my chin up and not to get sad, because when we are together, it will be forever, and we will be DONE with the long-distance thing forever!!! Which makes me really happy.

PHEW. Well, that's it for now. I think that this post was more for myself than for other people, because I just started typing, and then I couldn't stop. haha! So, if you're reading this (and made it this far...), now you're all updated on my life! I'm ready for 2010 to be a year of changes, both good and bad, and for me to continue on my path of growing up...slowly, but surely. It's scary sometimes, but deep down, I can feel that it's a good thing.