I wouldn't say I'm really a planner. I mean, I have a planner. But the main reason I have a planner is because I love paper and the Erin Condren planners are AMAZING! (Yep, that's my little plug for them. If you haven't checked them out, you should. They're awesome!) So yeah, I have things in my planner. And I have to admit that over the last few years I've gotten better at planning things out. I have to admit that it's helpful at my job and also for my Thirty-One business. And if you add in my church schedule, I'm not really sure how I lived without my planner before. BUT I still wouldn't say I'm a planner. Yes, there are things I make plans for. But my plans only work like half of the time. And I really don't worry about it. Just like my upcoming vacation. Yes, we have certain days we are doing the big things. But I want to enjoy the vacation and just let things happen.
But planning this vacation was a little different. For the last several years I've been saying that I REALLY wanted to go to Florida so I could go down to Universal Studios. I'm a huge Harry Potter fan. I love the books. I love the movies. I can quote some of them I've watched them so many times. I don't care how old I am. I wanted to see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter!! I would try to make plans and it just wouldn't work. It's not a cheap trip. Friends couldn't go. It just never worked out. When I received my tax return last year, I even put back some money specifically for a trip to Florida. And for the first time in my life, I saved money that I never even thought to touch other than for a trip to Harry Potter world.
Now let's skip ahead to this past summer. I'm reading through the letters that these exchange students had written to their perspective host families. And there was Johanna's letter. There was just something about her letter and her profile. I kept thinking, "this is the one." I can't tell you why for sure. It was just this tug on my heart. I printed out her profile along with two others. And I prayed over these profiles for weeks. I read her host letter often. And one of the things that stood out was this: What I also absolutely love is reading books. My favorite books will forever be Harry Potter..."
HARRY POTTER!!! Well, if nothing else, we'd at least have that in common, right?
But then it didn't work out. The summer went on. Someone had already chosen Johanna. It didn't look like things were going to work for me. In the mean time, a few of my friends and I were talking about what we were going to do this year. I would be 40. Rachael would be 30. We talked about a few things. As I mentioned in my last blog, we even talked about going out of the country. But none of that seemed appealing to me. I wanted Florida. We briefly talked about it but nothing was planned out for sure. But in my mind, I had decided that I was going this year. 2018 would be the year for me to see this Harry Potter world! It was time. Even if I had to go by myself! I would still do a vacation with friends. But for my 40th, I was going to do something that I've been wanting to do for years.
Then God did what only God can and orchestrated this amazing time with Johanna this year. And I immediately remembered her love for Harry Potter. And as my friends and I kept talking about a vacation, I kept thinking I can't do a vacation without Johanna. We talked about going in the summer. We talked about even going in the fall. But I kept saying, "we can but then I'll still take one this spring. I want to enjoy a vacation with Johanna." And now that I think about it, I wonder what on earth was I thinking. Of course I loved this young lady from the moment I met her, but what made me think that we'd truly enjoy a vacation together? I had no idea at that point how well we'd get along. I didn't know if my friends would really enjoy her. I mean, obviously none of that matters now. She's beyond well loved. But still. What made me think it would all work out? I'm going to chalk it up to my optimistic attitude. (But it also shows I really don't plan a whole lot considering I didn't think it through it all!)
My friends and I spent the fall talking about vacation and where we were going to go. And by December we decided that Florida was it. All of this planning was happening and Johanna had no idea. And by time Christmas break rolled around, we had picked the dates and were booking what we could. This was going to be exciting! And I had so much fun revealing to Johanna that we were going to Florida! I remember as she stood on the stairs realizing what was really happening and she said "I just never thought I would get to go to Florida." I can't even begin to express to you how that made me feel. She never expected big and extravagant things. It was clear then that what she expected was just to experience the American culture, make some friends and take a lot of pictures for her memories! She never expected above and beyond. I don't know why that surprised me. But it did. Not that she had ever come across as the type of kid who wanted those things. She never had. I guess it was just a thought I had, that I didn't think I had. I hope that makes sense.
From the moment this fall that I decided that Universal Studios was going to happen, I decided that those tickets would be Johanna's birthday gift. I also knew that meant I would be waiting until March to reveal the surprise. Do you know how hard that was for me? And the people around me that knew!? Ahhhh!!! I was counting down the days to her birthday! I was planning out how I was going to reveal it. I changed my mind, a lot. The full plan really took shape in my mind over the last two weeks. And then I had to find time to pull it all together. We're always so busy!
Her favorite character from Harry Potter is Ginny. So I designed her a shirt with Ginny. Otherwise, those are impossible to find! I got her a bracelet that included a few Harry Potter charms; broom, cauldron and an owl. I made her an autograph book as well. And then there was a water bottle that will eventually have something from Harry Potter on it. Then at the bottom of the box was a picture from Harry Potter world along with a note explaining what the surprise is. Her response was priceless. I'm so glad I recorded it. She almost had me in tears.
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| This picture doesn't do the bracelet justice! |
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| The box all put together! |
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| As she looked at the picture she said, "are we going to be able to walk down this area?" I said "yes." Her response: "oh my gosh!" |
I'm so excited that I get to share this experience with her. It will be just Johanna and I for Universal and as much as I wish my friends were joining us for this, I'm also glad it will be just us. Our time together is coming to an end soon. And the special moments I'll get to spend with her will be harder to come by. I know this is an experience neither of us will forget.
I'm so thankful that God chose me for this part of Johanna's journey. Some days I don't even understand how we ended up here but I am so thankful.
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