I have the BEst BEST FRIENDS!

We had a best friend reunion 2010! yay! This is going to be a pictorial... you know, a picture speaks 1000 words!

We had some fun with the camera timer... and our bed & breakfast hostess.
Jo needed some help with a fantastic new hairdo.
twirls.
dance party.
sic em bears!
delicious breakfast!

the toggggggle board! oh no, don't break!!!!

Re-America

This is my first blog since being back in America... and Wow! It just took about 45seconds to upload pictures... amazing!! I can't get over how fast it is. That means more pictures!

I've been back about a week now, and I think my head is still spinning and my heart in all different directions, but I'm doing well. I'm trying to take the transitions slow and restful... but neither of which are in my personality, especially if there are things to get done! I'm happy and thankful to be back in America!
Here's me arriving at DFW. My mom bulldozed over my dad to give me a hug. Supposedly, there was much previous discussion about who would hug me first, and all had decided that my Dad would be first... because he rarely is and it was so close to Father's day. But when the moment came... mom's maternal overdrive threw dad 5 steps behind as she ran down the little aisle. Haha

Best friend Jolynn. She lives in Dallas now!!!! Yes!! She's no longer 30 hours away! By the end of our 3 day adventure across europe, we were greased out. My hair is greased out.
The men rolling out my pink and purple luggage. Thanks dad and Deff!
My big little brother... he's lookin good!!
My best friend Amanda... she's pregnant! She's still glowing. And we matched!
The guys made it back, too. We're all pooped as you can tell.
Reunited with my sis!! I missed this one.
If I'm laying on the couch, and my brother sees me, he likes to sit on me.... it's this weird thing that he has to do, only this time he had a camera.

I do live in a family of odd-balls... but we like it. LOL. I think we've all embraced our odd-ballness. haha

Saying goodbyes

Saying goodbyes has been so sad!!

I'm so sad to leave these sweet people.

Here's one of my favorite, heart-melters... I've come really close to stealing her... oh, she's so cute! Her name is Lavine.

Her mama taught me how to make kifta. Yumm!! It's good, it's like the Iranian version of meatloaf, kinda.

This is one of my students from the university last year. I wanted to get a picture with her, so we picked the most beautiful spot around, in front of her wardrobe. But after looking at the picture... and seeing how monstrous I look next to her, I suggested we take another one.

So we go out on the roof...

for a MUCH better picture, lol. (not really).

Rafting

I can't even describe how hot it is here....

It's 7am and I rolled out of bed sweating, and realized I can't sleep anymore because it's too hot.

By 10am it will be 115. But 1.... hotter. There's not always power... so often times I sit in my house, just dripping sweat, sitting in my living room. My peanut butter is like liquidly... at room temperature. Candles are beginning to melt.

But we're found one way to cope with the heat.... swimming!!

We went swimming and rafting yesterday. It was a blast to swim, the rafting a little scary, but the day was totally fun. We went rafting down the same stint that we did last year, although we all noticed how much faster the water was moving than last year as we drove up. Carol and I bought entertubes and were enjoying the cold relaxing water. We know the rapids are coming up around the bend. We can hear the roars, exciting.... Although I was afraid...... it sounded LOUD! I didn't remember that from last year. I jump in the littlest boat of the three, with the littlest people of our company, Elijah and Rizgar.

So we go down the first dip of the rapids… and I’m now really afraid and quickly begin to formulate a plan in my head of what to do if the boat flips… cause I was pretty sure it was going to flip. I decided that my plan was 1. Get to the surface. 2. Let go of the boat cause the life jacket could save my life. 3. That’s all I had. It seems logical to let go of the boat as opposed to being trapped under it.

So we get through ½ the rapids, I’m still AFRAID. I’m so afraid… it’s beyond that funny scary where you laughing and maybe cussing, and kind of enjoying the thrill, it’s just scary. I’m also in the back of the boat, which I find out later is the driver. But each wave is huge!! Like 6-9ft dips in between waves. We made it through one vortex even… where it looked like three currents were coming together....meanwhile Jesse is buzzing through on an entertube! What!?!

So we’re coming up to the last of the big rapids, I can see the calm waters ahead. We go down, we come up, we’re vertical, then water, rapids, wet, cold, loud, under water maybe 15 seconds or so realistically. I emerge, gasp, jump unto something that seems to be floating… the entertube attached to the boat. Rizgar. Elijah. I see Elijah. I look back for Rizgar. Don’t see him. "Rizgar!" I yelled. I thought he was dead… I did. I thought he got sucked under and is gone. NO!!! But then I saw him like 30 yards back… and is swimming towards the bank. Elijah had flipped the boat back over… somehow, adrenalin, and we’re both hanging over the side, not even fully into the boat, talking about where Rizgar is. You saw him? You saw him?

So we all made it back in the boats and finished the trip--- praising God with a little more conviction and a bit rattled from that experience. Praise God! LIFE! Elijah had a couple of trophey wounds.

Entertubing with Carol. Oh, and we did find out that they are letting water out of the Lake Dukan dam... so the river is a little full.
The Meldrums sporting hot life jackets!
Carol cooks a good burger!! She's getting good at that!
I will miss Carol sooooo much!!! Crapa.
"All the single people, all the single people". "Get closer!!" yelled Paul who was taking the picture. None of us moved. "Get closer!!"... haha. I guess we're not used to touch, we've had to totally cut that off entirely because of culture.
I love the Tilman family. Wow, they have taught me too much and blessed me tremendously.