Minor Detail

Clearly I forgot a minor detail.

I'M GETTING MARRIED!!!

I know a lot of people are either holding their breath or rolling their eyes but you know what?

I don't care

I'm so happy.

I already found my dress and it's beyond perfect and we already set a date.

The best part is that my family is totally supportive and excited which was unexpected but a great surprise.

Not to mention, I'm marrying into a pretty awesome family.  I get butterflies knowing that I get to marry this man I am so in love with but I get really excited knowing I get to be a part of his family.  

THEY ARE SO FUN!

(now i'm sure the eye rolling has increased)

But in true Bode form, the proposal was

1. unexpected

2. funny

3. unconventional

The "BIG QUESTION" came in a series of smaller questions and extended periods of silence.

Laying in bed, pitch black, 1 am......

......It went something like this....

Bode: I want YOU to ask ME to marry you

Morgan: Not going to happen sweetheart.  Goodnight

.....5 minutes later....

Bode: Should I turn on the lights to ask you?

Morgan: (laughing) You do whatever you want.

.....5 minutes later....

Bode: Will you?

Morgan: Will I what?

Bode: Marry me?

Morgan: (still laughing) Of course

.....5 minutes later.....

Bode: Sooooo should I put the ring on your finger?

He's so cute :)

Obviously there is a lot more to the story but that is the short version.  Everything about it was perfect.

(I love this picture of him)

It's been 9 days since Bode left for Portillo, Chile

It's the longest we've been apart

I don't like it one bit

But I get to pick him up tomorrow!!!!

A full 6 days early.

Oh, and I got my wedding dress today.

Went back to The White Dress in CDM for their sample sale and found the most gorgeous gown which I am going to alter and make short!  The best part is that I got it for a fraction of the original price.

Such a deal!

I'm feeling pretty successful at the moment.

Life On A Boat

The boat life is.....interesting.

It's growing on me.

The constant rocking, even when walking on dry land, took a little getting used to.

The room service to the boat from the Marriott, I adapted to quite well.

Waking up on the water, I LOVE.

And our unobstructed view of the sunset every night is like adding an exclamation point to the end of each day.

(girls love that crap)

Blasting my music and not having to worry about anyone hearing it is a total blessing, minus the fact that my walls are glass and everyone gets to point and laugh at my super white girl moves.

Having a captain's quarters as a "dog house" for Bode provides some laughs and some peace of mind.

The one thing I don't think I will ever get used to are the people who think it's totally okay to just come on the boat and start talking to you.  

I'm pretty sure I never walked into a stranger's family room to start a conversation and introduce myself.  

Especially when the opening comment usually falls along the lines of, 

"Oh, I haven't seen this boat here before. Is it new?"

.......Well sir, I'll give you one guess.

And I am willing to put money on your answer being correct........

I think a bell on the outside is going to be the next installation on this massive piece of floating metal.

Other than the lack of privacy, I guess it's not all that bad.

Hope everyone has an INCREDIBLE weekend!

I'm planning on it.

Things Are Not Quite Going According To Plan

Soooo we started the week coming off of a couple crappy losses in Santa Barbara

Normally I try to let previous weeks be history but I still had a bad taste in my mouth....that's probably why this week (all two days) has gotten off to a bit of a rocky start.

1. My darling kitty got fleas.  Lots of them. In my bed.  In my house.  On my clothes.  

YUM!

After a few baths and some flea treatment, my next step was to flea bomb my apartment.  So little miss Harper and I went to my aunt's house.  On the way home, she thought it would be funny to

2. Pee on my clean laundry that I did at my aunt's and poop in the back seat.  Cleaning that up was fun. And then, the next morning I began to pack for my move to San Diego.  I woke up to begin packing and 

3. Found little sesame seed type balls all in my bed and around the house.  I vacuumed it up and then picked up my kitty to check her for fleas only to notice a worm on her butt.  It turned out those "seeds" were dried up segments of tapeworms that had been coming out of her behind.  Obviously, I immediately took her to the vet and then raced home to pack.  I was out front in my yard staging everything to go into the moving van when the woman parked in front of my beautiful car

4. Backed into it and crunched the front because it was "a tight parking space." Then SHE TRIED TO DRIVE AWAY!

I couldn't decide if I wanted to laugh or cry at this point.  

I mean the peeing on the clean laundry....

....funny.  

I laughed

Pooping in the back seat.....

.....giggle.  

I saw it coming

Tapeworms.....

....eye roll

Hitting my car.....

.....OKAY! ENOUGH ALREADY! 

When is it going to stop?

Back to the story....

We exchanged information and I ran inside to shower for my two meetings in LA

5. NO WATER!

No kidding.

6. So now being late to both my meetings, I'm stretched a tiny bit thin.

Thankfully the day ends without any other issues. However, my Tuesday morning comes dark and early at

7. 1:30 a.m. I couldn't sleep.  I decided it would be perfect to finish up my packing so when the movers got here at 8 am, I would be ready to go.  7:30 rolls around and I get a message from Bode saying that 

8. The work on the boat wasn't finished so it won't be in San Diego for me to move my things onto today.  So now my move date has been pushed to tomorrow.  Here's the catch.....

9. I leave tomorrow for a volleyball tournament

I'm feeling like telling the universe to "Bring It On!" at this point but I think that's just asking for it.

Weeeeee!!!

I LOVE TUESDAYS!

My weekend in Santa Barbara was not the most successful couple of days.

We didn't play to the best of our abilities and wound up win-less.  Obviously, for me, it was a huge honor to be there and be the youngest of the top 12 teams, but still, I would like to think I could have done better.  I actually know I could have done better.

But on the bright side, the AVP is making a comeback!!!  This means I still have a job!!

HA!

But on another note, my moving date got pushed all the way to this Tuesday!

It's actually quite a funny story.

Hermosa Beach might be the best place in the world to live, but it's most definitely the worst place in the world to park.  So as I am standing out on the corner on Labor Day weekend looking like I'm looking for singles instead of a parking spot, I noticed a girl and her father are wandering around the streets looking at signs and what not.  I didn't think much of it until about 20 minutes later, standing in my house, peering through the window, I see them walk out of an apartment that has a for rent sign.  Without hesitation, I bolt out the door and sprint towards their car.  Reflecting back on my impulsive decision and seeing their faces as this giant girl came running at their car, waving her hands, I could only imagine the thoughts that raced through their heads.  My first instinct would be to save ourselves and plow her over with my car.  Thankfully, that wasn't me behind the wheel.

Anyways, long story short, I asked if they were looking for places to rent and I invited her and her father in to see my place to see if she was interested.  I wasn't surprised when she fell in love with my home just as I had.  She wanted to move in immediately! And because I am soooooooooo accommodating and nice and she wanted to be in by Thursday, I told her I could make it happen.

My first phone call went out to my mother in Chicago to update her on the events and two hours later she was on a plane out to California!  It's pretty safe to say my mom is the best.

Time to pack and get shakin'

It's moving time!

I'm Moving!

Today is a very very exciting day!

Not only am I beginning my training for one of the biggest tournaments of the year but Bode is heading south to pick up our new home!

Yes, I will be living on a boat.....

In the ocean....

I'm beyond nervous!

But isn't she pretty?

We need some ideas for names so start throwing them out there!

I can't wait to show you guys the inside when it's all put together.

Happy Monday Everyone!

Lately....

Sadly summer is coming to an end but, boy, was it eventful.  

Some of my highlights were....

- Going to the London Olympics with my bestest Camilla and my boyfriend Bode to cheer on Cam's super talented hubby Damir.  We found an amazing cafe where we had our morning coffee (Camilla's and my tradition when we are together), played tennis at The Queens Club, ate some of the best burgers I have ever tasted, and filmed some really cool trick shots with Dude Perfect.  All in all, a super special and memorable trip.

- Visiting Austria for the first time with my man and getting to spend time with him in Munich.  Our mini stay in Europe got me super excited to travel with him this winter and watch him ski!

- Getting three of my top finishes this season in volleyball and the year isn't even over!  One of them allowed me to qualify for the AVP Championships in Santa Barbara!

- Attending Preakness in Baltimore and having an incredible trip with some incredible girls.  Met some really amazing people at the Under Armor event and had multiple relaxing evenings lounging by the fire and having "family" dinners.

-Watching Bode's first horse run his first race and WIN!!  Jumping up and down in the box and screaming at that little horse (who was expected to finish last) to run was so thrilling!

- My new little addition to the family.  Harper is her name and trouble is her game.  I absolutely adore my new little kitty!

And there's still more to come....

- Moving to San Diego at the end of the month.  I'm sad to see my adorable little place go, but it was perfect for the year I had it. 

- Santa Barbara AVP Championship which is the top 12 teams to qualify from Cincinnati.  This is such a huge accomplishment for me and it is just a reminder that my hard work is paying off.

- And last but not least, ending my season and my summer by beginning Bode's season and touring around Europe!

AVP is BACK!!!

I know, I know....these posts are starting to become all too common on my blog.

Once again, I apologize for being absent from the blogging world for quite some time now and fairly sporadic in my attempts to post sub par blogs.

Because it would be far too difficult to try to catch everyone up on my life, I guess all I can do is start now with current events and hopefully the pieces will start to come together on my past, present, and future.

Sitting on a plane again, on the way home from Cincinnati, my beach volleyball season is coming to an end.  My new partner, Priscilla Lima, and I just finished the first AVP event of the season with a 9th place finish.  

Our first day of the tournament, we played lights out and won both of our matches.  

The second day seemed to hold a little less fortune and luck than the first.  

To start off day two of our tournament, Pri got a minor concussion after I blasted a jump serve into the back of her head during our warm ups against our Silver Medal team from the 2012 Olympics, Jen Kessy and April Ross.  We played well and fought hard in the first set and lead in the second but didn't come out victorious.  We also lost our second match to end our tournament.

Obviously this wasn't our ideal ending, but we managed to qualify for the AVP Championships in Santa Barbara which is being held for the top 12 teams!

I couldn't be more thrilled!