Monday, June 28, 2010

Party Time!

A weekend of friends, family, BBQ, amazing Sangria, and Nona's Cheesecake... there's no way Guatemala can top this! After a year of research, studying, and being over prepared, this is what occupational balance is like!

On Saturday we had an impromptu Bon Voyage party at our new place in Smithville. Brian got a chance to show off his grilling skills on his new webber grill, a reminder of our time in CA grilling pineapple with old friends on the deck and hanging out by the fire. The BBQ we hosted on Saturday felt similar, only with more food, more friends, and more prep work. It's the first time in awhile that we weren't searching for reminders of set up we had in Huntington Beach... it's starting to feel like home.

We spent Sunday in Sea Girt with the fam. More food, sangria, and fun. Gluten-free cheesecake, jalapeno burgers, and sausage and pepper... so good!!! My mother in law, who always finds the most perfect gifts, gave me the cutest bag as a bob voyage present. In addition to being insanely cute, the tag says it also feeds a child in Guatemala for a year. How cool is that?!

In addition to this, I received an email from a cousin, Raynara, who has been helping me with a mission I'm on in Guatemala, something I'll write about in more detail at a later time. Briefly though, we have a 29 year old cousin, Kike (Kee-kay)  who lives in a small town in Guatemala and he broke his neck in January at the C5 level. I asked one of my professors for some advice on how I can help him and she sent an amazing slideshow with tons of assistive devices. I forwarded the show to my family, and Raynara replied saying we've helped open the family's eyes to a world of possibilities that they never imagined existed. Kike is more hopeful now that he'll be able to have a more normal life... This is why we do what we do... It's pretty cool!!