Riding Fly, Hunger, Good-byes, and Moving Up (err....over)

It's Friday, Friday....gotta get down on Friiiiday...yes..sorry I went there! Totally outdated and was never even cool in the first place, right? (And to those who don't know what I'm talking about....Friday. But I'm warning you, don't watch it; it will be stuck in your head and the song is heinous.  Don't. Do. It.)

But it's a THREE day weekend for you guys!! :] I'm pretty excited because Tyrel has his first pre-season game TOMORROW in HOLLAND!!!! Crazy right?  Too bad I won't be making it to away games.  That's ok, though!  And on Sunday I'm going to skype with my family and see my cousin's new baby! Jenn and Evan had sweet baby Amos on the 18th of August and I never got to see him before we left.  I heard he is a charming little chunk :] My fave.  I can't wait to hear how Natalee copes with having a new baby; she has been the center of attention for a year and a half...let's hope this goes well!

I have PLENTY of pictures for you today; get excited! Here are some long-awaited pictures of our new car.

The VW Golf. She's a beauty.  You'd never be able to tell this car was owned by the team or anything ;]

And Tyrel wish his tricked-out ride.  She's a monster ;]

For as long as I can remember, I've given names to our cars.  My car I have in the States is Greta the Grand Prix, my dad's white work truck is White Lightning (it is HUGE and definitely not as fast as lightning), his old work van he had was The Great White (also a monster), and the Dodge Ram I drove in high school is The Ninja.  I'm still trying to decide on a name for this bad boy.  I was thinking along the lines of The Batmobile or the P-Machine.  Obviously, it looks fast and dangerous like The Batmobile ;] so that's pretty fitting. The P-Machine...well...no offense intended toward anyone out there...but it's a pretty pimped-out car and gets all the ladies.  Also, the town the team's actual gym in is Pepinster...part of the team name (Voo Verviers-Pepinster). I guess it could also be the Voo-Wagon.  Ideas from anyone out there are appreciated, too. 

So I have this terrible addiction.  And no, I'm not talking about my addiction to all things chocolate or carbohydrate-y.  I'm talking about reading.  I get a book...I can't set it down!  I will literally go without eating or sleeping so I can finish that dang ole book.  When I was younger, it was Harry Potter.  My mom used to make me delicious sandwiches and bring them to me because she knew I wouldn't eat.  My friends wouldn't even call to ask me to come over because prior experience told them I wasn't moving from my couch/bed until I completed my book.  Well, I picked up Redeeming Love Wednesday afternoon....I put it down yesterday afternoon.  Poor Tyrel has been neglected because of my insatiable need to read.  Sometimes, I wish I could savor a book and make it last; but no, I am far too impatient and have to know what is going to happen.  I'm surprised I don't read books from end to beginning.  Anyways....Redeeming Love....WOW.  It is so heart-wrenching.  At first, I wasn't sure if I'd enjoy it.  The main character of the book was sold into prostitution when she was 8 years old.  I was sick and didn't want to continue, but it had great reviews and, truthfully, I had to know what happened.  But it gets so much better.  So that is my minuscule review of the day.  I don't want to ruin it for anyone and I know if I try to write more about it, I will. 

I also have some news for you all.  It is bittersweet, my friends.  I told you earlier about Dan, one of Tyrel’s teammates, who helped us out when we first got here.  He showed us where the store was and what to do, let Tyrel use his car if he needed it, and was extremely kind.  Well, our friend Dan has been having some knee problems and has to get surgery to fix a torn meniscus.  He is going back to the States for surgery and won’t be rejoining us this season.  He would have made a really great friend for Tyrel, but I know they’ll still keep in contact :] Even after helping us, he left us another gift... 

WE GOT HIS STINKIN’ APARTMENT!

I’ve been sitting on the information for a day or two, wanting to surprise you all.  I’m sure you are completely as excited as I am, right?  Dan lived right next to us…just the door down the hallway…but for some reason, his apartment was on a completely different level of awesomeness. Haha It has more updated furniture and appliances.  The layout is a little better and the apartment is in a little better condition.  It just feels a little bit homier than our other apartment felt.  This is kind of odd for me since I tend to get attached to the places I live, even if it’s for only a couple of weeks.  It may be because of the house I grew up in.  We moved into our house the day after Christmas when I was just three years old.  It is the only house I know and remember, because really, you don’t remember much before the age of three.  This year, my parents bought land to build a new house on and my childhood home is now up for sale.  It is kind of sad, but I know mom is ready for something new :]  I just hope that a really kind family buys our home and their kids are raised to love it like my siblings and I did.  So I’ve never moved around much and tend to think of all the places I live as home.  Even my apartments in college, I was always sad to leave them.  But I settled in fine into my new place and made those feel just like home, as well. 

Now apart from that sappy home bit, here are some pictures of our new place for you:

Coming in from the door, this is looking to your left.  Here is the sitting/living area.  Beyond that is the dining and kitchen area.

Here's another shot of our living room.  These couches are nicer than our old ones, but they make me feel like I'm back in the 60's or something.  Does that seem like the right era?

View of the living room from our dining area.  

Dining area.

The best room in the apartment...the KITCHEN.  We have a nicer/new microwave.

Check it, Ladies and Gents, a fridge AND a freezer.  No more cramming food into ONE mini fridge.  We now have a separate freezer, my friends.

This is looking to your right when you're at the door.

Here is our guest bedroom.  It's the first door on the left and right next to our room.

Guest room, again.  Looks like I need clean the carpet...

Looking down the hall. Bathroom straight ahead.

Yep, just what you wanted to see.  Our tiny little commode area.  This is separate from the main bathroom. 

The bathroom.  Loving the pink tub and sink.

We need to find a screw driver at the store tonight...the shower head points practically right at the wall :s

NEWER washing machine and dryer.  Dan showed us the ins and outs of it last night.  Haven't had any problems or floods with it...yet.

Our bedroom.  They must have had a deal on those slip covers...same as our old one but in purple.

Closet-ish area.  We have a ton of room in there.  Shelves and hangers...the works.

Planning on taking those posters down.  Gives a nice college dorm room vibe ;] And one is from 2001, I think.  Definitely new.

There you have it, a lifetime's worth of pictures of our new apartment.  Tonight, Tyrel and I are going to the grocery store so I can feed that crazy, lovable man and he is going to rest up for his game tomorrow 

Speaking of food.  Today we went to the Aldi in town.  They have them in the US, but did you know they originated in Germany? Pretty cool.  Well, if you've ever been to one, you know you walk in one door and have to walk out another.  We didn't find anything we wanted and there was a huge line at the register and didn't see a way out.  We tried to go out the entrance.  Alarms sounded. People stared.  It was pretty funny having people tell us we couldn't do that when we couldn't understand them.  So then we had to try to get out the exit...but all the cashier lines had things blocking them and the only register open had people in it.  So we had people trying to tell us in french what to do, again...we had to resort to pointing and gestures.  We finally made it out with no more alarms sounding.  And here's a nice picture for you:

Mmmm...fungus pizza.  Really makes you want some mushrooms now, huh? :D

:] Keep sending us prayers! Have a fantastic weekend.

Lots of love.