Close Your Eyes...And Leap

We were halfway into our flight to our new home in the Caribbean when I lost my marbles. Whether in the stinky lavatory of the plane or somewhere between the scratchy airplane seats, my emotional marbles had gone missing and everyone on flight 2171 was about to feel the repercussions. I had just finished reading Atlas Shrugged while listening to the beautiful violin music from a Civil War documentary. The combined forces of a deep love for my country and the realization that I was leaving her for a long while made me suddenly burst into tears. I tried to conceal the silent tears streaming down my face and swallow hard to dissolve the lump in my throat, but to no avail. Blair looked over at me and asked, "Oh no. What's wrong, sweetheart?" The lump wasn't going to let any words escape through my esophagus and Blair knows me well enough to recognize those moments. He didn't ask anymore questions. He put his strong arms around me, pulled my head into his neck and kissed my forehead. Everything is going to be fine.

Later, once I gathered a few of my marbles that were rolling on the airplane floor, we landed on the island. Imagine the smallest airport you've ever seen in your life and then divide that in half. Welcome to the Grenada International Airport. We picked up our luggage, paid the customs people $200 to get our laptops in the country, and hailed a taxi. By the time we arrived at the hotel, it was midnight. We were exhausted and the personnel at the front desk weren't exactly moving quickly. After waiting around for someone to show up, a man told us that the hillside room we reserved was not available. He looked at us and said, "We have some large tents that we can set up outside for you until your room is available." We were stunned. Flabbergasted. My emotional marbles started to roll out of my pockets. The man started laughing and said, "I'm just kidding! We'll take care of you." Our faces regained their normal pigment and we let out a chuckling sigh of relief. We walked up to our room, washed our faces, and snuggled away our worries.

Since then we've toured the gorgeous campus and searched for housing. So many kind people have helped us and we're excited to get into our new place and get settled. We're trying to decide between two apartments right now. One is above the US embassy in a great house on the hill. The other is in a nice neighborhood right next to the beach and the LDS church. I'll post pictures and let you know what we decide...

I haven't had any more emotional outbursts...since yesterday :)

We're getting really excited and I think this will be a wonderful adventure. Thanks for your love and support. We love you!