No, you did not read the title wrong. I was back in
the U.S. of A. for Christmas! The “original plan” was for me to the Ukraine to
visit one of my friends but I really had been staking out in Cincinnati since
the 17th. I was given the opportunity to come home and see my loved ones, I
couldn't say no. For those who know me, I'm the surprise QUEEN. Throughout
college I was always able to surprise my family on the holidays and birthdays,
you already know I couldn't pass this opportunity for the ULTIMATE surprise let
alone swallow the thought of spending Christmas away from my family.
Keeping this surprise was very hard due to the
large amount of travel it required. In order to make it work I had to create a
fake itinerary to send to my family and alert them that my phone wouldn't work
outside of Finland in order to make up for the time I would be spending on the
plane without wifi. Well, my cover almost got blown when my travel day turned
cray. Between boarding planes, maneuvering foreign airports -- literally -- and
the lack of wifi, my family started to panic when they hadn't heard from me for
about 12 hours. I usually text everyone when I board and land so they know I'm
alive...thought I'd stir it up a little by not having a moment to contact
anyone until I landed in Chicago. Whoops. Anyway, it all worked out! It was so
weird being back in the States; seeing a normal outlet and hearing English. I
think what I was most glad to see was the dollar sign!
While at home I made sure to take full advantage of
everything I missed. Chipotle, naturally, was my first stop followed by sushi, Jimmy John's, Cheesecake Factory and
Mama's cooking. The first surprise was for my sisters in Cincinnati. They came
down for a Bengals game where I surprised them at the hotel they would be
staying at the night before the game. Lots of screaming and tears. After a
night out and the game, my sisters headed back to Cleveland to get everything
into place to surprise my mom. My mom didn't expect my boy to show for
Christmas dinner, let alone her own daughter, so my sisters had to make sure
enough food would be prepared. On Christmas Eve morning I boarded the Greyhound
up to Cleveland where my sisters scooped me and we headed home for the biggest surprise.
Now, my mom is pretty hard to catch off guard but BOOOYYYY did we get her!! In
order to get my mom out of the house we acted like one of our dogs, Bella, had
ran away while my youngest sister was walking her -- this actually happens
pretty often with our dog. My mom came out of the house, lounge clothes and
all, to find me holding our beloved Bella. Shocked is the only word I can use
to explain her reaction. I've seen my mom cry one time I'm her life, you can
imagine my joy when I saw tears start to form in her eyes as she realized I was
actually home for Christmas. The best part: when my mom said "I don't have
any presents for you". Hahaha, priceless.
Truly, this Christmas was the best
one as far as I can remember. To be able to spend time with my family and my
awesome boy made my week perfect. When I first thought I wouldn't be able
to come home I was really excited to travel throughout Europe and see my
friends but as December crept closer and our break was in sight, I was very
glad to be going home. Being able to simply relax in a familiar environment
isn't only reenergizing, it's motivating.
Since I pulled of the most epic
surprise I've ever planned to this date, I'm not really sure how I will top
this one...but I'm sure I'll think of something.
Hope everyone had a great
holiday!
NOTE: If you want to see my sister's reaction to my surprise at the the hotel or witness my mom shedding a few tears of joy hop on over to my FACEBOOK PAGE ! Videos have been uploaded!
No comments:
Post a Comment