Clothes, clothes, and more clothes

The search is on for good tropical weather hiking clothes. LLBean had some great options, but their sizes run small, so all the stuff I ordered from there has to be sent back. I'm waiting on a package to arrive from REI - hopefully that stuff will fit better. Good thing we decided to order clothes now so we have time to do all the exchanging. The hiking panties and sports bra that I bought fit though, so that's great! (Yes, they do make special panties and sports bras for hiking in tropical climates. Go figure.)

Minus the hiking clothes, I'm good on shirts. I have enough sleeveless, lightweight shirts to last me about a week or so, and I figure I can wear some shirts twice, or wash them in the kitchen sink at our cottage and hang them out to dry during the day while we're gone. Shorts and capris... I need to figure out what I have and what I need to get. Waiting on my bathing suit to get here too. I wanted one that was more "athletic" with the swim shorts instead of just a normal bottom for when we're kayaking, etc. JCPenney had a good option that was on sale, so hopefully it'll fit right and look semi-decent.

Our waterproof camera arrived this week, as did our "neck cool" scarves. You soak them in water for 15 minutes, and then tie them around your neck and it's supposed to help keep you cool all day. We'll see how those work out. They weren't expensive at all, so if they don't work, it's not too much money down the drain.

Not much else has been done as far as the trip is concerned. We need to book our rental car and reserve our "outings". Other than that, I think it's just a matter of going down the checklist and making sure we've bought everything we need, and then packing.

Most of my time lately has been working on finishing up this semester - classes and internship. And also applying for jobs, sending our resumes, etc. I have two interviews scheduled thus far down in Louisiana, and I'm waiting on a job description so I can apply for anothe position that I've been told I'm "perfect" for. Yeah, it's stressful, and it gets even more stressful when I hear of another friend or person in my program/semester getting a job. I haven't even had an interview yet. But I'm trusting God and knowing that He'll provide the right thing for me. His timing is perfect, even when I want His timing to be sooner rather than later!

Only 3 More Months!!!

Or something like that!

I haven't written an update blog in awhile about our upcoming trip to Dominica. Life has been way too busy! I'm finishing up my last semester of grad school, looking for jobs, and trying to keep up with everything else. I probably haven't written a blog in awhile because we haven't done much regarding our trip in awhile.

I don't remember if I shared this bit of information or not, but I'm going to share it again! For our Boiling Lake hike, I was somehow able to connect with the author of the Dominica travel book, and he is going to be our guide for the hike (as it stands right now anyway!). His name is Paul Crask - www.paulcrask.com - and he lives on the island.

Also, for the hike, my friend Michelle who is living in Dominica while serving in the Peace Corps, is going to be joining us! And maybe our friend Courtney too if she plans her vacation to Dominica the same time that my mom and I will be there! I really need to start working out more because both of them are in phenomenal shape and I don't want them to be pulling me up the side of the volcano!!

I don't think I've been thinking about our vacation too much and getting excited about it yet because I've been so busy and excited thinking about graduation, planning my graduation party, and counting down for that! Seven years of full-time college for my Bachelor's and Master's degrees are almost finished! Wow!

Oh, here's some other news. For Christmas I bought my mom a few things for our trip (and some things for myself), and I also received a great gift for the trip. The things I bought for both my mom and me are more Smartwool socks, a deodorant-like stick to prevent chafing/blisters/etc. when hiking, a compact fast-drying towel, and a thing for women to use to help us pee when we're out in nature (it's this plastic thing with a tube... you get the idea...). And I received one of those "gorilla tripod" things for my camera, which I am very excited to be able to use when we're hiking!

That's it for now! I'll try to write again soon (but I'm going to wait until something happens!). Happy 2010!