Surprise, Surprise

Wow, where do I start!!?? There is SOO much to tell, so many stories to write about! Okay, so about two weeks ago, Jade and I moved into our new apartment! It's really big, especially for Mexican standards, has two bedrooms, and a new kitchen. We don't have a washing machine, but we do have a sink with bumps made in it so we can hand wash. ha That's pretty hard work actually. I love our new place! It's in a safe area, but still only a 20 minute walk to downtown, and only two blocks from a main strip with tons of shops, restaurants, and anything else we could need. Check out the new place!

That week, Heath came for a visit too! He helped me move and get settled in. I can't put into words how great it was to have him here. Love is an amazing thing, I'll just leave it at that! That weekend, we took off to Peurta Vallarta, which is one the coast, about a 4 hour drive from here. We rented a car and hit the road on Friday. THe drive was absolutely beautiful, it made the time go by quickly. We rode through mountains, and rain forests, and even passed a valcano, I think. While there we had some amazing time on the beach and the pool, went to dinner on a pirate ship! and just enjoyed our time together. It was the PERFECT weekend :)
I got back into normal life Monday when I started my first day of work. I got a job with ICI teaching English. They are a company that mainly sends teachers out to big companies and businesses, but they also hold classes at the school too. I was assigned my first class at a pharmacy company in the city. All my students are chemists! They all seem like wonderful people who are eager to learn. Unfortunatley, that was the only class they had for me, so I would only be teaching one hour a day. However, today my boss called me with an offer to teach from 10:30 to 2 Monday through Friday at their kindergarten. I will have two classes, one class of 3 and 4 year olds, and one with 4 and 5 year olds! I start tomorrow... WISH ME LUCK :) Anyway, back to last week. Tuesday we had a really nice dinner and then went downtown to enjoy the fireworks all for Mexico's Independence Day on Wednesday. It was so much fun! At the restaurant we posed with fake mustaches and sombreros. ha it was a blast! We also toured a lot of the cathedrals in town and finally made it to the VIP movies! Check out all the pictures.

Some whacky statues in front of the art museum

Inside 'our cathedral'

The outside of our cathedral

Behind the theater downtown

The front of the theater

One of the side courtyards of the cathederal

The cathderal at night!

heath in the VIP movies

"Waiter, my popcorn please."

Peurta Vallarta!

Wearing Forest Gump's tennis shoes

I love orange sherbert!

The drive to the beach!

My honey :)

The view from the resort was gorgeous

On the pirate ship!

They locked me up...

But they locked him up to, so its okay

Going down below for dinner!

"give me 5 bucks and I'll choke him for real"


Inside the Cathedral

Outside the Cathedral

Independence Day!

Let's celebrate!

Think I could pass for a local?

The best thing that I've done since I moved to Mexico, I didn't actually DO in Mexico, at all. This past Thursday, Heath and I flew home. I didn't tell anyone but Brandi (my best friend- she's the pepper to my salt haha), but I still surprised her by coming in earlier than expected. My mom opened the door Friday morning at 645 with udder confusion on her face. Then quickly that confusion turned to recognition and tears sprang to her eyes! Of course, I cried too then! It was so great to just show up like that! She kept saying, what are you doing here!!? Then, I told her to go get dad and tell him to come into the kitchen. I hid behind the door as I heard his shuffling feet come into the room. "I thought you said we had company? I didn't hear the doorbell," he said. Then I showed my face and he looked like a kid on Christmas morning! It was priceless!! I snuck up on Sarah and Brandi at work, too. They were equally shocked, Brandi nearly fell out of her chair trying to get to the door! But Josh, on the other hand, reacted in exactly the way I should have expected.. I woke him up, "Hey bro." Through a peep eye, he waved, then just closed his eyes. HA He wasn't even surprised enough to open his eyes all the way, let alone speak! haha only Josh :) We had a great weekend, visiting and enjoying our time together. Friday night we went out to eat, and Saturday mom cooked the BEST chicken and dumplings with all my favorite vegetables. We played the Wii for hours and relished in each others company. It was so fantastic to be home for a little while, I didn't realize how much I had missed small town life until I got back. As much as I enjoy the big city, I don't think I'll end up somewhere like here long term. I'm definitely enjoying the time I do have here though!

Hard to tell, but that blurry image is Mom, freaking out that I'm on her doorstep.

Dad's face is so sweet!