Goodbye July!

Today marks the end of another July. As a kid, the end of July meant back to school shopping, which was my favorite kind of shopping. I LOVE the crisp new notebooks waiting to filled with math problems or history notes and the new pencils that I always lost. And the best part of back to school shopping was getting the brand new backpack. My favorite backpack growing up was my Elmo backpack that I used in 3rd grade. It was all black expect for the embroidered Elmo on the front. Well, it was my favorite until the day I pulled it out of my locker and found an enormous spider in it. I really don't like spiders. The whole idea of them have 6 eyes creeps me out to no end.

I was always excited to go back to school. I was one of those crazy kids that loved school and enjoyed doing homework. When I got into college, August meant getting away from my parents and crazy sister! Going back to Eastern was the best part of the year! I got to see all my friends again, be a broke college student, and not worry about trying to find a meal. Kristin (my younger sister) is leaving for her freshman year of college in 2 weeks and she is very nervous. It's fun to watch her anticipation build as her departure comes closer. And I couldn't be prouder that she found a school that she will love and will help give her the tools she needs to bring God's love to every corner of the globe.

I'm also blessed with the opportunity to take her to school in 2 weeks and I get to see where she will be spending the majority of the next two years. She's going to school in Ozark, Missouri (which is located near Springfield, MO) and although I'm not excited about the 8 hour drive, it will be fun spending some quality time with my sister.

I'm kind of sad July has ended because I had the MOST epic July ever! I spent three weeks tramping across Europe with my two crazy sisters and got to watch first hand as the Rupert Murdoch scandal unfolded (which was kind of cool from a journalistic standpoint). And somewhere along the way I turned 23. Europe taught me a lot about myself and strengthened the relationship between me and my siblings. I still think it's weird to wake up every morning and not want to throw Kristin's screaming alarm clock out the window.

Although July has come to a close, the wonderful memories remain and I look forward to the adventures of August. My summer travels have not ended since I will be going to spend 5 days with my boyfriend and his wonderful family. I haven't seen my boyfriend since the middle of June and I miss him a ton! He's very sweet, cute and all sorts of gushy stuff and he's turning 22 on August 4. I promised him we would go play golf on his birthday (I promise I will try to go easy on him... I may even let him win). We're also planning to go to a drive-in theater because he promised me two summers ago and I'm still waiting.

I also will be traveling to Springfield, MO for a few days to help my sister get settled at college. I'm also super excited to see my sister from another mister, Nichole Steber, who left me in May to move all the way to South Dakota to be with her boyfriend. I miss her SO much and can't wait to see my better half.

Another exciting thing is the long awaited marriage of my very dear friend Ms. Lauren Delaney... who will become Mrs. Lauren Osters on August 28th. I'm VERY excited for Lauren and Stephen (both of whom I grew up with) and I can't tell you how excited I've been since I learned that they got engaged in February. No seriously... Kristin called me on her way to pick me up from work and was like... GUESS WHAT???? LAUREN IS GETTING MARRIED!!!! I was like "That's not funny Kristin. Don't joke with me about that." And Kristin was like "No Alison... THEY'RE GETTING MARRIED!!!!!" She was like yelling into the phone and she was so excited that she convinced me. I was jumping up and down outside in the Jewel parking lot from excitement. I'm so excited for you my dear dear Lauren! You deserve the most perfect of days!!!!!!!

So farewell to July! You have been glorious and wonderful and I shall never forget the pure awesomeness! And welcome August... I anticipate more warm summer days and more awesome memories!