Well friends,

This is it for the time being. Tomorrow I am off to China and I'll be blogging over here while I'm on my Asian adventure! If you want to get ahold of me while I'm over there, you can email me at chelsieinchina@yahoo.com. I hope you come along with me on my adventure, and I'm so grateful for every single one of yours support!

PEACE, LOVE AND CHINA!

Days in Utah

The past week has been so much fun and I seriously have been living the dream while visiting my friends here in Utah. In the last seven days I have:

1. Gone to classes at BYU with Juli

2. Gotten a new Macbook Pro after mine bit the bucket.

3. Gotten 2 letters from my Missionary and got to write back to him!

4. Eaten at all my favorite restaurants: Denny's, Cafe Rio, Jimmy Johns, Wendy's, In-N-Out, Pizza Pie Cafe

5. Went to my first Collegiate sporting event: BYU Basketball! And we won!

6. I watched Reel Steel with Symone and Ryan. Also, I met Ryan. That was cool.

7. I got my hair cut and had pot roast with Shannon and Jared.

8. I went to the movies with McKell

9. I watched the Superbowl with Brett, Ian and McKell, and although my boys lost, it was still fun to spend time with them.

10. I slept in. A lot. And it's been great.

Basically, my last week in the states has been fantastic and I have loved every moment of it. I'm still in shock that I am leaving for China in two days. I can't believe it's finally here! WOOHOO!

wait what?

I'm leaving the country in four days?
holy Santa Claus crap.

Thrones of Cair Paravel

Sleep will not evade me tonight, for the numbers on my illuminated screen confirm that my words have reached your ears. I have touched you once again, and I can almost feel you, through every single one of the 2500 miles that separate my body from yours. And as I close my eyes tonight, I know I'll find myself wandering through the furs and pines, laden with heavy snow, following the footprints of a Lion who knows my name and my face and my heart. He will lead me where he knows I need to be; and I know that my place is right next to you.

macbook Pro

well, the last 24 hours have been very eventful. After my computer crashed and burned, I spent 2 hours in SimplyMac yesterday, sharing my life story with Dave, the genius guy. And together, we came to the conclusion that: 

1. My computer was drawing it's last breath

2. My external hard drive may not be salvageable, but I won't know until I pay 300 dollars for them to do a recovery data scan

3. I need something reliable for China

And so, I'm now blogging on this beautiful piece of machinery:

I was planning on replacing my computer this year, but not unit the fall semester. But, after everything that went down, I guess it was just time. As my Mom kept on saying:

"The timing stinks, but the timing is great"

because, can you imagine the trouble I would be in if my computer crashed completely while in China?

How on Earth would I complete my homework?

Exactly.

So, I guess it is a tender mercy at the end of the day.

One week until China. 

Um, Macbook, this is not cool

Okay, friends. In the last 48 hours, my computer has corrupted my external hard drive and has possibly destroyed all of my photos, documents and music that is stored on it. It has ejected a memory chip all on it's own in the process of me copying files from it, and that caused it to destroy all of the data on it and made me reformat the card. And it seems as if my charger has become shotty and only wants to charge my computer when it wants to. Also, the internet has crashed at least five times a day.

So basically. I'm freaking. Because I'm about to go to China, and I'm taking on line classes, and if my computer has a melt down over there, I am screwed.

So, what do I do about this? Take it to a specialist and see if they can fix it and make it last? That will cost me money, for sure, especially since I'm out of my warrenty now. Do I just go to a store and buy myself a new computer with my credit card and pay it off in the fall with my loan money?

I'm so stressed out.

WAHHH!

emotions

Long day of traveling.
Heartbreaking loss of photos on my hard-drive.
Stress of having to lose 20 lbs from a suitcase before flying internationally.
Sore from dragging 120 lbs of suitcase weight.
Sad at having to say goodbye to my family this morning.
Content at being here with Juli and Jord for a week.
Hopeful that the mac people will be able to recover my files.
and so unbelievably and perfectly happy about the letter that was waiting for my arrival.

full of wonder

I can't believe I'm leaving New England tomorrow. I mean, I know I've left before to go to school for long periods of time, but I can't believe I'm leaving tomorrow and when I come back, I will have seen the other side of the world. I wonder how I feel, the next time I'm in this bed. I wonder how many new friends I'll have, and if I'll cry because I miss my kids so much. I wonder if I'll have a hard time adapting to America again and if I'll be 10 lbs lighter from weight that I lost. I wonder where I'll be in my life and if I'll still be okay with my career choice after I come back. I wonder what cool things I will have seen and what weird things I will have eaten and what awkward stories I'll be bursting to tell.

I'm so excited to go to China.

And, as weird as this is, I'm so excited to come home too. Because New England sets my soul on fire, and my heart will always belong here.

But I wonder, in six months, if a part of it will belong to China too.

Let's talk about

How I'm leaving for Utah on Saturday to see Jules and Jord for a while before I leave for China. And how all of a sudden I'm realizing I have to say goodbye to my car, my home, New England and my family in a day and a half. Not a fan of that.

Let's talk about how I'm going to CHINA in LESS than TWO WEEKS! And how I still have a buttload of stuff to do; like organizing my paperwork, school work, additional training, last minute shopping, and crafting and typing out detailed instructions for my mom about how to access my different accounts.

Let's talk about how packing to live across the country is basically impossible to do in two suitcases under 50 lbs. Especially when I have to pack for winter and summer. And when I'm expected to bring one suitcase full of supplies for my kids and how I'm pretty sure I have more than that and I still don't think it's enough.

Let's talk about how fantastic my grandparents are. They took me to AC Moore today and helped me finish buying supplies for teaching. And then we went to TJ MAXX and they helped me find some nice dress pants. And then they took me out to lunch. And I love them a lot.

And finally (although I already blogged about this) let's talk about how today marks the half way point for Dustin's mission. And now it's all down hill from here. I'm so excited to know that starting tomorrow, it will be less than a year until he's home. And let's talk about how I have a package from him waiting for me in Utah. And let's talk about how much I love that man of mine. I love him.

okay. with that all said and done, I'm going to bed. I have a ton to do tomorrow.

CHINA CHINA CHINA CHINA CHINA!

One year

One year, 12 months, 365 days, 8,760 hours ago, I made one of the toughest goodbyes I've ever had to make. My life completely changed as I watched my best friend leave for two years to serve a mission for the LDS church and I had to learn how to adapt to his absence after living a life that was used to his constant presence.

And here I am, exactly a year later from the day I told Dustin that through a telescope lens, I'd see him soon. And yes, I'm so different from the girl I was that day. I've grown so much over the last year; I've learned the importance of service and the importance of sacrifice. I've learned how important it is to fight for my dreams and to fight for those I love.

And I know Dusty is different too. He's learned so much from the last year of serving the Lord and through the circumstances he's been placed in. I've seen, first hand, the difference he's had on the lives he's touched and it's been incredible. He's truly making a difference here, in New England.

But here is the thing: we still grew together. And at the end of the day; after a whole year of letters (and five months without anything) I can still confidently say that he knows me better then anyone else. And that he continues to inspire me and teach me every day. I am the best version of myself I have ever been because of him and the profound impact he has had on my life. And I think that's what real love really is: when he helps me to be the best version of myself without taking away who I am on my own. Did that make sense?

Basically, I love him. And now I only have a year left until I get to have him back; and words cannot describe how excited I am for that moment. But, until then, I am excited to see what this year holds for us and the lessons we'll continue to get to learn and teach each other.

Happy 1 Year, Elder Carr!

And through a telescope lens, 

I'll see you soon.