Archive for April, 2009

Back in the USA, and it’s my Birthday!

Yay! I am back in the USA! Those of you who faithfully read my blog (Granny, I’m thinking of you~) probably noticed that I missed posting last week. First two days late, and now missing a whole week. Well, it was because I was sick, and I didn’t want any of you guys to catch it, so I decided to wait til I was better first. Isn’t that considerate of me? I thought so too. Here’s the scoop on what’s been going on:

We had a super long trip coming back to the USA. We went from Miri -> Kuala Lumpur (9 hour layover) -> Tokyo (10 hour layover) -> San Francisco (2 hour layover, just right) -> Las Vegas -> 2 hour drive to Toquerville. All in all, it was over 40 hours of traveling. I think in that much time, I got less than 3 hours of sleep. And since I was still recovering, I had a relapse when I got back home (Monday and Tuesday I was pretty sick). The good news is, I’m feeling much better now.

At Kuala Lumpur, we watched a bunch of movies on my laptop at the McDonald’s while we waited. I LOVE MARLEY AND ME! Wow, it is really such a good movie. I really cried like a baby, and that is saying a lot because I hardly ever get teary eyed, and here I was actually sobbing in a McDonald’s with people walking by. It struck a chord in me when I thought of all the good dogs I’ve owned or been associated with over the years (Little Black Sambo ;;).I highly recommend that everyone go see this great movie.

At the Narita airport in Tokyo, we tried to meet up with one of my good friends who is currently teaching English in Japan, Nathan Godfrey. He spent $200 and came to Tokyo via the Bullet Train, but unfortunately we weren’t able to come out of the Airport to meet him, because we had already gone through security and had our boarding passes. So that really stunk. Thanks Nate for coming, it’s the thought that counts, and you’re a really great friend for coming. We’ll have to meet up next time we are in Japan (hopefully in a couple years).

For more details of the trip, I suggest reading Sharon’s blog.

Next big news item: Sharon and I bought a car! I found it on Craigslist for $1000, and Sharon and I split it. It is a 1995 Ford Taurus, in decent condition and running smoothly. Some of the parts are getting old, like the doors, but we feel blessed to have found such a good car for such a good price. We have been grateful every time we drive it. I bought insurance through Geico for it the other day, but I still have to send in the papers for the title and go get it registered under my name. Maybe tomorrow…

This coming week is going to be very busy for Sharon and I, since we are getting MARRIED! (Finally!).  But before I get into that, let me finish last week. After healing up from my sickness and buying a car, I’ve been trying to get caught up in my work (Wildkatana Design, my web-design business). I got a lot accomplished but still have a lot to go. Paul invited Sharon and I to go rock-climbing with him and Nikki, his wife. We decided to go and had a lot of fun. It was the first time for Sharon and I, so we were a bit scared but we made it up our first climb! Paul and Nikki let us use their gear and we found a good cliff and started climbing. Sharon did really well, and we have some nice pics. I’m sure she’ll post some on her blog. I held my own as well, and besides bumping my head made it up relatively easily. Afterwards we learned how to play Texas Hold ‘Em with them (another first). We also went and got a membership at Costco’s and bought some stuff for the Reception. Also, my Grandma Stratford threw a Bridal Shower for Sharon on Friday after we went to get her Endowments at the St. George Temple. We had it at the Golden Corral, and had some relatives and friends come. Lia, Sharon’s friend, came, and so did Paul and Nikki. It was a lot of fun.

Today (Sunday) is my Birthday! I turned 23. It is also Easter, so we had a good Church program. After church we had an Easter Dinner with Grandma and Grandpa Stratford. I got stuffed, it was really good. After that, we had cake and ice cream and I opened my gifts. Sharon gave me a really nice watch, which I’m sure is because I always ask her what time it is, haha. My mom gave me a nice shirt and some cool shades, which is also good since my old shades which I loved got ran over in Malaysia. They will come in handy tomorrow when we drive to Las Vegas to pick up Sharon’s mom. After the gifts, we watched an old recording of my 3rd Birthday Party. Tyler and I were the only ones on the scene and it was really fun to see how we were back then. It also had the Christmas of 1992 on the same tape, so we actually got to see Chantelle and Kendall too, along with younger versions of the Rita and Allen family (everyone was there).

I also got to speak with Tyler, Chantelle and my dad on the phone, who had all called to wish me a Happy Birthday. I will see them all this week at the Wedding/Reception, so that will be nice.

Sharon and I are just settling in to our new life here in the USA, and we are using lots of Chap-stick (Malaysia is very humid, while Utah is notoriously arid). We will undoubtedly have a lot of pictures to post after the wedding and reception. We sent out the Invitations last week so hopefully everone has one now. We are going to be very busy this week getting everything ready, but we are very excited about it. Until next week, Jumpa Lagi!