I really need to fly more...

Flying the friendly skies takes on a whole new meaning!

FLASHBACK to Sept. '07 - Almost exactly a year ago, I was on a 6am flight to KS to visit the fam. Now I fly quite a bit, but I'm usually stuck next to business men, elderly couples, etc. so when a SUPER cute guy my age sat down next to me, I was pleasantly surprised! This boy had the most beautiful blue eyes I have ever seen and HUGE biceps (which I'm a complete sucker for). But I'm not much of a talker, especially on those early morning flights, so I put my headphones on and crashed shortly after we took off. Once it was time to land in Denver, we both woke up and started chatting a bit. He was in Portland visiting friends, but is originally from Jersey and lives in NYC, working as a psychiatric nurse. After we landed, we walked off the plane and he stopped me at the gate and asked for my number! Ha! Too funny!! I, of course, gave it to him and we ended up texting while we waited for our connecting flights. I didn't think much of it, but we actually talked for a few months after my trip home. And even now, we'll send each other random texts every once in awhile. We always joke that you never know when one of us will end up texting and actually be in the other person's town!! LOL!!!! SO anyway... that's the quick version of my friend Blue... or as I like to call him, Jersey Boy.

So, here I am a year later on my way to Salt Lake City to visit Lily and her fam! I'm getting settled in my seat and I shoot Lily a quick text to let her know I'm on the plane and that I'm pouting because there are no cute boys! I shut off my phone and get settled in with my book and headphones. Well, when it came time to get a drink my flight attendant asked what I wanted and I replied a Dr. Pepper. He responds "with vodka?" Um. No, that's cool. He asks again "with vodka?" I laughed and said "nah, I'm cheap! I'm going on vacation, I've gotta save my money!" He said don't worry about it and what did I want to drink. I'm more of a beer snob & don't drink liquor so he made a suggestion and ended up bringing me a gin & tonic. I'm not sure if there was any "tonic" in it, tho. Thank goodness it was free... I'm definitely not a gin & tonic fan. Anyway, when he was done serving everyone else, he stopped back by and we chatted for a bit. He was actually from Portland, so we chatted Ducks and Blazers for a bit and then he was back to fulfilling his duties. (FYI... it wasn't a full flight... so I was in the window seat, the middle seat was empty and the dude in the aisle seat was passed out... so it's not like this flirtacious exchange was in front of a bunch of people!) Anyway, I went back to enjoying my book and trying to finish my drink... meanwhile pondering if I should slip him my business card. Ya know... just in case he needs some new Docs!? :-) LOL!!! I have to admit, I did notice him when I initially got on the plane... he was kinda cute & it's not that often that you see young, male flight attendants. And he was funny! He was the one talking us thru all the safety stuff before we took off and definitely added some humor to the drill. ANYWAY... we landed and I chickened out about giving him the business card. But as I was walking off the plane, he handed me a slip of paper with his number... in case I was interested in getting together the next time he made it out to Portland. I said thanks and walked off the plane, grinning ear to ear. The skies sure are friendly in the month of September!!!!! LOL!!!!!

I didn't think twice about it when I was in SLC because I was so busy enjoying my time with the Taliulu (and Fotu) crew!!!! But when I got back to Portland on Monday, I shot him a text... so he'd have my number and we've been chatting ever since. Now before you all start heeding your warnings... I'm fully aware that this probably isn't the first time that he's done something like this!! LOL!! And I'm not really expecting anything from it... but it's something new and fun to think about... and someone to chat football with!!! :-) And if he makes it up here to Portland again, yeah, I'd probably meet up with him somewhere... but most likely Violet would be hiding in a back booth somewhere to keep her eye on me!! LOL!!! So never fear!!!

So at this point, it's just been a week of texting, so I don't know much about the boy yet... but being where I am in life (31 and single, while all my friends/fam are married or in serious relationships), I'm not going to count him out just yet. I'm interested in having some conversations... to see where he's at in life, what he believes... those sorts of things. But at the same time, I also know what I'm looking for and I'm not willing to settle anymore. I've made that mistake too many times in the past. And it's awesome how God works, because in the midst of all this... one of my devotions this week touched on God's love. Here is an excerpt from "Time To Get Serious" by Tony Evans...

"The Bible is absolutely clear on this: There is no definition of love that means anything unless it is rooted in God. No mater how you define love, if it doesn't begin with God, it is flawed. It will either be incomplete or imbalanced, but either way it will be incorrect because God's character defines love."

This pretty much sums up my foundation for a true relationship and what I'm looking for in a potential husband. And ultimately, that is what I'm looking for. I don't want to really "waste" time in a relationship if it isn't going to go anywhere. But that's not to say friendships aren't allowed. But when it comes to relationships, it doesn't matter how flattering their words are, or how their attention may boost my self esteem, or how they might save me from sitting at home on the weekends... if they don't have a relationship with my God, then this chica won't be fallin' in love. God is love. And it can't be one-sided (with me having a relationship alone) Love has to begin with God... it has to be founded on Him if it's going to last. I'm not willing to settle for incomplete or imbalanced love.

My pastor has been preaching a series about Living to Please God, using 1 Thess. 4: 3-12. He's been talking about what it means to be sanctified and this week he really hit hard on the issue of sexual purity. God tells us to FLEE from sexual immorality... we need to be aware of what's going around us, and make sure we don't get into situations where our faith (& purity) could be compromised.

Funny how this boy comes into the picture... and all of a sudden there's all kinds of gentle reminders coming from everywhere. It makes me smile, actually. God knows my track record and He's a loving, awesome God that's cheering me on and wants me to do right. And I'm bound and determined to do just that!!!! One thing pastor said that had me cracking up was along these lines... it doesn't mean anything to say you're sexually pure because nobody wants you! It's when someone IS pursuing you and you know how to say NO!!! Hmm... so being single for all these years doesn't count, eh?! LOL!!! I know that sounds a little extreme, but there's truth to it at the same time. Personally, I'm excited to see how I handle this! I really think I've grown in a lot of ways over the past year... I'm not the same girl that I was in 2007. And I'm thankful for that!!!!

So when all is said and done... after all that rambling... I'm still excited about the boy for a couple of reasons... 1) b/c the attention is nice and he seems like he could be a pretty cool cat but also because 2) I'm excited to see how I handle the whole thing! I want to make my Savior proud!!! :-)

I'll keep you guys updated... and in the meantime, feel free to keep me in your prayers! It's definitely not easy being single and trying to live for God in this day and age!!!

Final day in SLC!

It was my last day, and it was also Lil's bro, Ben's bday... which means family BBQ!!! Woo hoo!!! Sunday also equals football at the Taliulu house... so anyone that knows me, knows I was in HEAVEN!! Not only was it on the TV inside (even if it was the Broncos) but it was also providing entertainment in the front yard... ALL DAY LONG!!! It was awesome!!! Lily keeps saying she wants to move to Hawaii, or New Zealand (depending on the day)... but I don't know how she could ever leave this behind... oh wait, I guess I did. Hmmm. Anyway... Lily got up at 5:30 and met up with some friends to hike to the top of a mountain, but I opted to sleep in and when I got up and around, I took my iPod, book and walked to the coffee shop a few blocks away! I don't know how much time had passed, but soon Lily was sitting next to me... apparently receiving strict orders from her mom to get her butt over to the coffee shop to get me!! LOL!! We went to the grocery store and headed back to the house to get ready for the afternoon festivities!!

Poor Kamia... because emergency surgery just wasn't enough. LOL!
On my last visit, the phrase "Want me to slap you?" was a common theme. I didn't hear it much this time, but apparently Lily felt the need to bring it back!!

Hey Lil... your shirt is wet.

Go Isaiah! Nice D!

Check out Havea's skills... future Hall of Famer right here!!

Notice who's taking down who!! LOL!! Go Havea!!!

Kamia was coaching, since she couldn't join in on the action.

After the BBQ winded down, Lily and I jetted off to her church, The Mount, for the Sunday night service. They were in the middle of a "Jesus for Lovers" series, and had a panel of folks up there answering questions about relationships, dating, guidelines, etc. It was pretty cool! Once church was over, we headed over to Matt & Caprisse's to join the rest of the fam for Smores around the fire pit!


Thank you Taliulu's and Fotu's for making me feel like part of the fam!! I had such an awesome time... and I promise I won't wait 2 yrs. before making it out there again to visit!!! :-) Love you guys!!!!