Breathe In, Breathe Out...

So I have bronchitis. Blech. I've never had bronchitis before. I've had pharyngitis, which Stuart so lovingly calls "Erin-gytis", which was hell on earth, but never bronchitis. I was not prepared for the way it feels to not breathe at full capacity for days and days. It's unnerving and uncomfortable. Luckily, though, I caught my bronchitis early and got on antibiotics right away, so I do not have the hacking cough that normally accompanies this lil' respiratory problem. Thank goodness. I am, however, constantly tired and missing my real breathing patterns. And for the first couple of days, I had regular hot and cold flashes, which was a fun preview of menopause!





But, I digress. The real reason I brought you all here today was to tell you about my engagement party!





We had an engagement party. And it was SO much fun. My parents were kind enough to let us yet again take over their house and yard and fire pit. We had a beer potluck and made a hairy buffalo. Our friend Justin brought 8 pizzas. I brought snacks. Kyle brought me owl shorts.





Everyone brought the good times.

There was such an out-pouring of love for us at this party, it was awesome. People brought us presents, and even more importantly, people came despite bronchial pneumonia, sick relatives, and family drama involving a black eye, among other things (side note: this last part makes me wanna exact revenge not suitable to put in writing on the intra-web). And the next morning, we were left with 3 coolers still full of beer and bottle upon bottle of liquor that was gifted to us the night before. Then I got bronchitis and didn't feel like having a drop of any of it- but all in good time, dear friends.

All in good time.

P.S. I did a spell check on this blog and apparently, blogspot.com doesn't think "Erin-gytis" is a word. Pssht! Whatever, blogspot. Whatever.

More Exciting Than Watching Grass Grow...

You've seen it on The Simpsons. You've seen it on the 1990's Dennis the Menace movie. And now, it's coming to you straight from my parent's backyard.

The Queen of the Night. The flower that only blooms for one night a year. Yes, a few weeks ago, we sat and watched a flower bloom.

It was a bit tedious at times, but the end result was worth it:

Pretty thing, ain't she?

P.S.

Reactions to our engagement:



Dad: "Wasn't he supposed to ask me for your hand and like, slip me a check under the table?"



Stu: "So are you gonna have an open bar at your wedding?"



Holly: "I thought you were gonna tell me you were pregnant!"


Angel: "I talked to Erin, guess what?" Angel's Mom: "Is she pregnant?"



Everyone's reactions upon seeing me in person when we got home from Hawai'i: "Hey! You aren't sunburnt!"

I'm so responsible.....

Aloha!

Cory and I are back from our trip to Hawai'i! We had SOO much fun! And...we're engaged!! Cory proposed to me on top of Diamond Head! We haven't made many wedding plans just yet, but it'll be sometime within the next year! I'm super excited!!

Anyway, back to the trip. It sounds cliche, but Hawai'i seriously is paradise! Everything is so beautiful! And there's tons to do...which means, here are some pictures... :)

Inside the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor...

A Hawaiian rainbow at the beach...(see, paradise!)

The view from the top of Diamond Head...where Cory asked me to marry him! :)

Another view from the top of Diamond Head...

Kualoa Ranch...

Me at the Kualoa Ranch, on Hurley's Golf Course (as seen on LOST!)

Me on a dinner cruise, going past Diamond Head...

Cory and I at the Polynesian Cultural Center Luau...

Most delicious smoothies ever!!

Now we're back home, and of course it was raining and cold as soon as we got off the plane in Detroit. But, such is the Midwest! And it is beautiful outside today...and now we get to plan our wedding!

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Waiting for a Star to Fall...

Only one week to go before Cory and I are outta here and on our way to Hawaii!! I seriously can't wait!! But to help me pass the time during my Countdown to Hawaii, 2 of my cousins from PA and one of their girlfriends are coming to visit this weekend! So I will have lots of family fun and then off I go for sunshine beach time!!

We visited our PA cousins last month for my cousin David's high school graduation party. I LOVE my PA cousins, they are awesome. There are 6 of them. The two who are coming to visit are Johnny and Stevie. They are tons of fun.

Johnny and Stevie with Kyle in the middle...

They build bonfires this big for celebrations...

Good times.

Other than vacations and visits, not too much has been going on, except that I started my new position last week. I am in the stage where I don't know how to do anything and that's always frustrating to me cause I like to know everything about whatever job I happen to be doing. But that won't last forever...

Oh, and my mom and I went to the fair last weekend and a llama stole an ice cream cone out of my hand. And when I took it back, he spit on me. Then I saw a kangaroo.

Have a great week, everyone!

P.S. There is a meteor shower tonight, keep your eyes to the skies!

P.S.S. Cookie Monster's body was finally hauled away during the night, but the culprits haven't been caught and prosecuted. And one of them set a fence on fire in our parking lot a couple of days later. Maybe as a warning to me to keep my mouth shut... Sesame Street just ain't what it used to be....

Neighborhood Watch, Failed Again...

There was a serious crime committed in the parking lot of my apartment complex...

I know who did it, but I'm a little nervous about coming forward...

What if they come after me next??

P.S. Dibs on the leftover cookies...

Yay!

This will be a quick one cause I'm on the iPod touch and it's tedious to type this way but so many good things are happening, I had to share! First, cory and I booked our vacation for next month. Destination? Hawaii!!!

Second, I sold my car!! The grand am, not my new one. I sold it to a really sweet teenage boy who was super excited about it so that made me happy.

Third, I interviewed for a promotion this week and found out Friday that I got it! And I got so many work-related compliments on Friday, I'm still blushing a bit.

And yesterday, me, cory, lauren, Kyle, my mom, and my grandma headed out to Pennsylvania for my cousins grad party. Right now we're at our hotel and we are being lazy but we need to check out so more later!