Washington

Puyallup, Washington, here I come!

I have verbally agreed to work at Good Samaratan Hospital in Puyallup, Washington! Yes, I know, that name looks really strange! I've learned it's pronounced like the the thing we sit on at church each week, "pew-al-up". It's a suburb on the southern end of the whole Seattle/Tacoma metropolis. I have a lot of family and friends on the northern end that would've been fun to be closer to, but this was the best fit of actual jobs out of what was available right now.

It's been a busy week with getting my WA state license (still in process), doing interviews, and now all the other paperwork involved with this state and facility. For the WA state license, everything was in line except that they have a specific requirement which means I have to take a 7 hour online course. Being interrupted for about 25 phone calls today means it's taking a while to finish up!

It looks like I'll start in Puyallup in mid-September, so I'll be leaving in just over a week and a half in order to drive, see a few people along the way, and get into my apartment. It seems like these last few weeks have gone really fast and really slow all at the same time, but now it sure feels like there's a lot to do in order to move again! One great thing is that I'll be done mid-December, so at this point I'll plan on being home again for Christmas and then start my next position after the first of the year. Maybe California in January? Anyone want to join me?

That invitation also stands for right now. If you want to visit Seattle, come on over! I'll be working nights, and the job includes every other weekend, but I don't know my specific schedule yet. But, apart from work, I'm there to have fun! I love Seattle, and Washington in general, and hope to really explore and get to see all sorts of things I haven't seen on my many trips there. I'd love the company!

I'd love prayer for all the MANY, MANY details that need to happen in a short period of time. And one selfish prayer request: Puyallup is pretty close to Mount Rainer (maybe 30 miles!), so I'd love a great view from my apartment!!

Minnesota Zoo

Yesterday, my friend Carrie and her boys, E and N brought me to the zoo with them! It had been a REALLY long time since I had been there, so it was great to walk around and see the animals again. Some animal areas looked the same as when I was a kid, but there were new or updated areas as well. We got to see the Coral Reef Shark and Fish Feeding, in the Tropical area. E had a great time pointing out all the fish, and loved it when the diver swam by!



Here's happy N enjoying a little mid-morning snack.



E told me that his favorite animals are the dolphins and monkeys, so here he is watching the monkeys. We even got to see a little baby monkey! We also saw a silly otter, playing in the water; colorful turtles; a bald eagle (who wouldn't turn around, even when E called out his name!); flamingo's; sharks and other colorful fish; and some bobcats (both the four-legged kind and the construction kind!). There were lots of other animals as well!

Carrie, E and N, thanks for bringing me along to the zoo, and for being great tour guides!

My Little Buddy

I realized it had been a while since I last posted pictures of David. Don't worry, though, we've been having a lot of fun together! It's been great getting to see him every couple of days. He comes over for the whole day on Wednesday's, and we usually see him a few other times during the week.

Please ignore the stuff on the wall that looks like it's coming out of his head... Isn't he a cutie?! And you've gotta love that red hair!



He's so good at playing with us, and loves all his toys. They usually end up straight in his mouth, but then the pictures don't turn out the best. He's been teething so he chews on EVERYTHING!

It's been SO good to have this time with him! There are still no jobs posting in my specialty in the Twin Cities, so yesterday I had my recruiter send my profile to numerous hospitals in Seattle and also Spokane. I'll keep you updated on what's going on!

the Nilsen's

I had the great joy of being able to visit the Nilsen's in Iowa! It was a short trip, but one I'm really glad I got to make before they move to CT at the end of the month. I hadn't gotten to meet Elsie and Clara yet, and they are now five months old! It was really fun to play with Owan, who is now 18 months old. He is so animated and loves to be active. I knew it must be busy for Ryan and Kjirsti, but I have a new appreciation! It was really fun to see what incredible parents they are!


We thought we'd try and get a picture of me with the three kids. It was hard to get everyone looking all at the same time!


Then it was hard to keep everyone in the picture!



Owan LOVED riding on his rocking horse!



Someone from church had given Owan this tractor. He can't reach the pedals yet, but he loved to sit on it! We got it packed up for them today, so it'll be fun for him to unpack it in Connecticut!

Thanks for the great visit! I can't wait to see you again sometime soon, maybe when I head East for an assignment!

Ansel Adams wannabe

Ansel Adams has always been a favorite of mine. I wish I had his talent! I've always really enjoyed black and white photographs, ever since I've gotten to dig through some of my grandparents old stashes. My dad really enjoys them as well -in fact, back in his younger days he used to develop his own!

Well, ever since I realized that my digital camera has black and white or sepia options on it, I've wanted to get to Glacier and see what I could do. Here's a sample of pictures I took either at Blacktail Mountain, Flathead Lake or Glacier.

Beautiful Glacier National Park

These are all pictures I took at Glacier (except the first one was near Flathead Lake). Since there were so many pictures between all my family members, I figured I better just stick to my own!

Looking at these, you can see why Glacier is called "The Crown of the Continent". She's just so incredibly beautiful!! Really one of the best places on earth! We bought a week-long pass (which only costs $20 per vehicle!) and were able to go maybe five times? I guess I'm losing track since it's been a while now! You can never get tired of looking at the amazing scenery. And it seems like each time we were even in the same place we had been the day before, there was something new to notice!

If you've never been there, I highly recommend it.

Hanging out at Glacier

As promised, here are some pictures of Montana! Since I literally have hundreds and hundreds, it's hard to pick and choose a few to post. I decided I'll go with different themes, so here's the first set. We arrived at Flathead Lake near Kalispell, MT on a Tuesday, and met up with my Aunt Barb's family. She's my dad's sister. She and Uncle Gary, and their daughters Kristen and Heather were able to spend a few days with us, and it was SO FUN to hang out together! Their son, Tim, and his friend, Lonnie, were also able to join us for a short time. On Wednesday, we picked up my mom's cousin, Penny, from the airport who had flown in for the reunion we were there for.

WE ALL HAD SUCH A GOOD TIME TOGETHER! We explored the Flathead Lake area, we spent many days in Glacier, we went to the top of mountains and tried to get to the top of others, and we just really enjoyed each other's company and laughed a lot! The time went way too fast!

I really could've picked so many fun pictures to show you, but thought I'd start with these. Some were pictures I took, and others were from my mom, Kristen, or Heather. Thanks, ladies, for sharing!! More to come soon!

Friends

My oldest friend, Jill, came to visit this week. She and I lived together at Hillcrest, our mom's were friends there, and our sister's were in the same class as well. We get to talk every other week or so, but only get to see one another once in a while so it's always a lot of fun to be together again! What a blessing lasting friendships are!

Battle at Kruger

Before I left Fergus, my friend Laura showed me this incredible video shot in South Africa. I've been wanting to post it, but wasn't sure how, so I decided it was finally time to just try it!

It's 8:23 minutes long, but watch the entire thing as there are a few surprises along the way. It really is an amazing video! To be honest, I wasn't sure who to cheer on. Tell me who you picked!

Life in the Cities

Well, I'm working on getting settled into life here in the Cities. It seems like a long time ago that I left Fergus, but part of that is that I haven't really had too many days just being around Burnsville. Our family had the second of two reunions in Montana, we attended the funeral for my dad's Aunt Lila, who was the last of my Grandma's siblings to pass away, and I've gotten to watch David quite a bit. Yesterday I took both of my parents to the airport at separate times. They are both in Seattle this weekend, my dad for work and my mom for my second-cousin Kent's wedding. Strange that they're both there and they won't even see each other!

This past week I had to do something I was hesitant about. I got a new cell phone. This was a decision that I knew I had to make since I'll be traveling now and need a national carrier. I also thought a local number would be nice for my family. It was hard, though, because my old phone was like an old friend. We shared a relationship for six years, knew each other well, and were really comfortable with one another. It really did everything I need a phone to do!

When I showed the salesman my current phone, he agreed that I probably had the oldest one still operating!

I didn't think I needed all the bells and whistles that are offered these days, but you can't really buy a phone without them now... I ended up with a Samsung Sync, which is supposed to be easy to use. We'll see...

I think I'll learn to like this phone, if I can ever figure it out! It's hard to tell in the pictures, but it's smaller and thinner than my old phone, much easier to carry in my pocket. It has a lot of features that I don't understand, so if you call me and I do something unintentional like cut you off, please forgive me and call back! If I didn't have your email address to email you my new number, please leave me a comment with it. I can even delete the comment right away so your address isn't out there in cyberspace.

Good-bye ol' Nokia. I'll miss you!

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The update on my job is that I still don't have one. My current plan is to keep holding out for another two-three weeks for a job in the Twin Cities. If that doesn't happen, I'll go somewhere else first, and those options are wide open, like 20+ jobs in both Seattle and Los Angeles areas, or hundreds of other places. Will you pray for me? Pray that just the right job will open up here, since this is where I'd like to be first. Then, pray that if that doesn't happen, it will be very clear to me what job to take, and when. Thanks for offering up those prayers! I'm still doing okay for now with the money from my house and vacation days at Lake Region that I was able to cash in. By the way, Danny and Mandy Bronson are the people that bought my house, so it's now their house! Many of you have asked which friends bought it, and I didn't really want to post the answer until we closed, in case something fell through! I'm glad to know it's in good hands!

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A great thing I've gotten to do is spend some good time with David! Yesterday he and I hung out in the car driving to and from the airport. On Wednesday, I watched him for the whole day and we had a great time together. When he's here, though, I spend all my time with him and don't to other things. I don't know how mom's get anything done!! Here's a picture of him trying rice cereal. He's only started eating it this week, and I'm not too sure how much he's actually eaten. Much of it ends up on his chin!





He sure is cute, isn't he?! I'm sure I've said that a zillion times by now, but it's hard not to always be cuddling him or giving him kisses. He's just so adorable!! I love that he smiles big when he sees me, and he's got a great giggle!

That's it for now, enjoy your weekend!

Tragedy in Minneapolis

This is a picture I found on wcco.com of the 35W bridge in central Minneapolis, where you no doubt have heard of the catastrophe that happened there tonight. At 6:05pm the 35W bridge going over the Mississippi River collapsed, killing and injuring many people. Out of respect for the families involved, I can't bear to post a picture of the awful ordeal, so instead found a picture of what the area used to look like. This is a main bridge through downtown Minneapolis.

Our family feels very fortunate tonight that my Dad was spared as he travels that road each day to and from work. Based on some cell phone calls he made, and knowing his location when he made them, we know that he was on the bridge at 5:45pm, just 20 minutes prior to its collapse. Praise the Lord for his safe keeping!

Please pray for all the families of the victims, and for the survivors, as they endure these next days and months. Let's also pray for the rescue workers, and the investigation team, that they'll be able to complete their jobs with clear minds.