Return of the missing blogger

Well it's been almost 2 months since I posted anything, so probably most of you have written me off at this point (and I don't blame you, I was on the verge of abandoning the blog myself), but one of my good friends Melissa told me I need to update it, so I guess there is still at least one person who is still reading this :)

So here's the update (there's actually a lot that has happened since the end of last semester!)
-First off, the biggest piece of news: Shawn and I got engaged over Christmas break while we were in Maine, who hooo! It happened on Christmas day with my parents and sisters there, and it was very sweet, I wasn't really expecting it so it was a fun surprise too (I knew we were getting engaged, but I thought it was going to be sometime this spring). It definitely meant a lot for my family to be there with us for that moment. So the wedding plans include getting married on the beach in Saint Lucia over Thanksgiving break, I am soooo excited! I'm not sure which day we will tie the knot yet, but I'm guessing the 26th or the 27th based on the marriage laws for non-residents. We are staying (and having the wedding) at a resort called Rendezvous, which is an adults-only, couples-only resort that looks to be very romantic with a very relaxed atmosphere. We have invited family and friends to come celebrate with us, but the cost of airfare is pretty steep, so at this point it looks like my parents and sisters as well as Shawn's mom and brothers are the only ones who can make it. They will be staying at a different resort of course (I mean it is our honeymoon!), but it is just up the road so we can still hang out and explore the island together. We have also made plans to do a day of deep sea fishing, so cool!!

The other big news is that Shawn and I have purchased a '79 Ford truck that is our new project, and all I can say is this thing is HUGE! The headlights are over my head and I can't get in it without a push from behind, which Shawn seems to enjoy thouroughly, :). It really is made for mud and I can't wait to take it around the farm and make a big mess! Our plans are to race it in the mud bog, but that won't be until next summer since it really needs a bigger motor in order to be competitive. Right now we are working fixing some of the safety issues it has, like replacing the entire braking system and putting in some racing seats and 5-point restraints. Once we get all the parts we need to build the motor we will start on that part of the project. We also have yet to come up for a name for it (I got shot down when I tried to name it MissBetty2) I guess he doesn't want to drive around town in a giant truck with a girly name...I can't imagine why!! So if y'all think of any ideas let me know! You are probably wondering what happened to the original MissBetty, and sadly the deal with getting this truck was that I had to sell MissBetty, which makes sense, but was very sad for me. Fortunately, the friend we bought the Ford from actually wanted to buy MissBetty, so at least I still get to see her (and she will run again with his automotive expertise!) but I'm pretty sure he won't be calling her by her proper name...silly boys, I just don't understand why they don't want such a cool name for their truck!

So let's see, what other things have happened....
Well I went skiing for a weekend with some friends from the epi dept and that was an experience! I can't say I've ever been skiing before when it was 65 degrees in January....crazy! Also I managed to get a ticket to the Carolina/Duke game last night, which was really fun until the 2nd half when Carolina totally blew it, but experiencing first-hand one of the biggest college rivalries ever was truly awesome, it's a day I'll never forget. Other than that I have basically been completely inundated with school, but I'm still enjoying it and looking forward to getting through some of this coursework so I can get back into the research world again. I am teaching again this semester to pay my tuition, but I have applied for a summer research internship in New Zealand and should be hearing back any day now, so keep your fingers crossed for me!