I Got Engaged....in Ireland!

Yup, you're reading the title exactly as it is!  I know a lot of people haven't heard how this whole thing happened so here's our engagement story :)

Dave and I took a vacation with my family to Ireland last week for ten days and I had been anticipating this trip for months.  My plan was to go there, sample some Guinness and bread pudding, and see the amazing scenery.  Dave wanted to do that too but little did I know that he had another idea in mind.  He had spoken to both of my parents before we left to receive their blessings and make sure we'd get a little alone time for him to seal the deal.  Day 2 of our vacation, we were all jet lagged and Dave kept trying to wake me up at 5 am.  Those of you who know me know that I'm NOT a morning person and definitely not when I'm sleep deprived and jet lagged.  He kept saying he wanted to take a nice morning walk and watch the sun rise but I told him I was tired and to go watch a movie if he's bored (I of course now feel pretty bad about how I reacted lol).  So after a day out with my family (and a manicure that was suggested by my mother to make sure my nails looked pretty), we came back to the house we were staying at to make a family dinner.  Dave came downstairs and suggested a walk again.  This time, I agreed but I got suspicious.  Why was he wanting to take a walk so badly?  And shouldn't we be helping my mom and sister in law make dinner?  As we headed outside, I noticed the house we were staying in had a LOT of property and part of this property was a hill that overlooked a giant green field.  At the top of the hill was what looked like an ancient ruin of an Irish castle!  We later found out it was indeed part of a castle back in the 1600s.  Dave asked if I wanted to go check that out so we began our walk up there.  The whole time, he had his hand in his pocket so I knew something was up.  When we got to the ruin and saw the green field, he began kissing me and telling me how amazing I was and how this year with me has been the best year of his life.  And as he was telling me that there was no one else for him but me, he reached into his pocket, pulled out the ring, and got down on one knee.  When he asked me to marry him, I didn't cry but I definitely said yes and shrieked a little bit (hope I didn't hurt his ears).  We celebrated that night by having dinner with my family (who were all relieved that they didn't have to keep this secret from me anymore lol), taking pictures by the ruin, and calling family members.

I couldn't have asked for a better proposal and how amazing that it happened in Ireland and we got to celebrate with my family, who I don't get to see very often.  Dave and I really appreciate all the blessings, prayers, and encouragement that we've gotten and we praise God for bringing us together as we take this next big step in our lives as husband and wife.

OMG I'M GETTING MARRIED!!!!!! :)

Changes, Big Changes!

I realize I've been away for awhile.  Life has been crazy busy for the past month!  I had family, friends, and boyfriend's family visit for their spring breaks so that kept me occupied for 2 weeks.  During that time, I also received news that Universal wanted to hire me as a dancer/entertainer and better yet, they wanted to hire me as full time!  This was such great news for me because I've been struggling financially for the past couple of months (thank God I have incredibly generous parents who willingly help me) and I needed to find another part time job at least.  I was originally hired as part time but they called me and asked if I'd be interested in being full time instead.  This would mean more money, health benefits, and a certain amount of guaranteed hours every week.  Exactly what I had been praying for since February!

Ironically, when I began searching for jobs, I didn't originally plan on working in entertainment at Universal since I already do that at Disney.  I've always had the mindset that I'm not meant to perform for a living, it's something I do while I'm young but let's face it, I need to get a REAL job one day soon right?  Since hours were slow at my other job, I felt like that was a sign that I needed to switch departments and try something else.  I've always been drawn to hospitality and that's also my spiritual gift so maybe I'm meant to do something in that field.  I began searching for front desk jobs but it wasn't as easy as I thought it'd be.  Most companies were hiring full time and the starting salary was going to be less than what I was already making.  I was getting discouraged and felt like I was stuck.  One day, my boyfriend and I were at Universal and he suggested that I should search for a job entertaining there.  I said maybe but I want to see what else I'm good at.  I went to the website and searched for all kinds of jobs but most of them were for cooking and sound technicians (and I suck at both lol).  So on a whim, I searched under the entertainment tab and badda bing, there was an audition coming up in two days and there was just a few appointment slots left.  I signed up and showed up at the audition.  One month later, I was officially hired in Universal entertainment!

Clearly, God is showing me that I'm not done performing.  It's what He wants me to do and He's providing me with some amazing opportunities to do what I love.  Why go get a "real job" if I'm not going to enjoy it?  My time is better spent acting, singing, dancing, etc in front of hundreds of people.  When the Lord gives you a passion and a desire, go for it!  And pray for me as I begin this exciting new chapter of my life :)

<3 Kate

Geography Lessons

I got a good education growing up.  My strengths have always been reading, spelling, English, and a little bit of history (not to mention I excelled at recess and excessive talking in class).  However, I have never been able to learn my geography the way I should have.  It could be because geography was only a core class my seventh grade year.  Other than that, it's been replaced by various history classes.  Mix lack of geography classes in school and my motor mouth and that'll help you understand this moment I had today.

I was just on Facebook and was writing to my friend Monica, who's fixing to go to NYC (lucky girl!) and is nervous about navigating her way through the city.  I told her that if Joey Tribbiani (Friends character) can find his way around the city, she can too.  Her response was "but Joey lives in NYC."  I responded "not his whole life.  He was raised in Queens so I'm guessing he had to learn his way around the city too."  She then writes back to me and says "Kate......Queens is a part of NYC dearest."

This is just the first of my many Kate Moments.  Many of them have to do with geography (just last month, I asked my boyfriend if you can drive to Puerto Rico since you can drive to Mexico.  Apparently not, it's a full blown island).  There was also a moment I had last year that had to do with Alaska.....but I'll save that story for another time :)

So there you have it.  Do not ever trust me to teach anyone where anything in this world is located lol.

<3 Kate

Trying This Thing Called Blogging

When I was 17, I started blogging on Xanga because all of my friends did it and they wanted to see what I had to say.  Fast forward six years later, I'm now 23, transitioning from college into adult life, and a few of my friends are still asking me to blog.  I've debated for awhile about doing a blog but I have never felt inclined to do so because 1. I don't want strangers knowing my business or my personal life, 2. I'm already on the computer enough for Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. so I don't need to spend even more time on this machinery, and 3. I was under the impression that blogging was only for people who led exciting lives, traveled all over the world, and had some crazy drama in their lives on a daily basis.  However, I've come to see that a lot of everyday people, like myself, find blogging to be therapeutic and a great way to communicate with all the people they love at one time.

A friend of mine had joked with me that I should start a blog specifically for my "Kate moments" and call it Life According to Kate.  Those of you who know me well know that my mouth runs faster than my brain and sometimes, I end up saying things that make me look pretty airheaded.  I've learned to embrace and accept them as a part of who I am and as a result, I will not be afraid to share a lot of these moments in my blogs.  However, I'm also in a season of my life where God is teaching me so much about myself and what He expects from me.  Some of these teachings are ones that I've heard before and now He's "reviewing" them with me but some are brand new.  While it's not always easy to act on what He tells me to do, I do believe that He is telling me that I need to learn to be more open with people and not be afraid to let "strangers" know who I am and who He's shaping me to be.  I always encourage others to open up and express their feelings so maybe I should practice what I preach.

Start with a few Kate moments, mix it in with Godly teachings, and add a touch of Southern girl sass, and bada bing, you've got Life According to Kate <3