Back to life, back to reality...

This year's Christmas break flew by! Where did it go? I have no idea. This year was the first year I wasn't taking classes. Usually, when you're in college, classes finish up a week or so before schools let out, so things progressively slow toward the holidays but not this year. I'm done with classes! It was weird to work full steam ahead until 12/17 night when we packed up the dogs to the dog sitter and packed our own bags to head out first thing the next morning. We flew to Arkansas without a single hitch. Amazing! I know. We've had so much trouble traveling the last few years that we've just come to expect it.

In Arkansas, we got to spend some much needed time with friends and family. My sister and her husband made it in from Kentucky where she is now taking up residence and working as a surgical technician (much of my dad's family lives there, still), so we celebrated Christmas eve with my parents and sister. It was small and nice. Then we drove to Ricky's parents on Christmas Eve evening to spend the night and celebrate with Ricky's family on Christmas day.

Detour...Did I mention that it rained about 12 inches in less than 36 hours Christmas Eve and the day before? Oh, I didn't? Well, it did. And we found the remnants of a flood. The highway (67/167 near Redmond Road) was flooded. We didn't know it was flooded there (traffic was going really slowly prior to approaching the flooded area). There were no signs and once we came upon the water, we really just had to go through. When you're on a divided highway, there's nowhere to go with cars in front and behind you but forward. We did. It was scary. Probably 18 inches of water for a quarter mile or so. Believe me: I will NOT ever knowingly get in a car going through a flooded area. It was scary. We were fine, the cars kept moving, and we made it to Ricky's parents but it was not a preferable activity at all!..end detour!

We spent Christmas day with Ricky's family, and it was great. We enjoyed time with his parents, brothers (and Susan), Granny, and aunts. We went (Ricky's parents and brothers and wives) went to see Avatar. It was great. Really well done, and a good story...new version of Dances with Wolves but great. In addition to Christmas celebrations with family, we squeezed in several visits with friends.

We had lunch with Dinah, Mike, and Garrett (who I used to work with prior to coming to graduate school). We hung out with Kyle, Laura, & Abby on two occasions. We hung out with and got "shot" by John Newberry and Brittany (He's a photographer...I'll post some of those pics soon). We also met up with our friends Josh & Danica Smith (who also became a couple in Colorado summer of 2002). We made it to New Life Church, and Ricky learned the coveted salsa recipe plan from Kim Allen while I got to catch up on all the exciting things in the life of being a mom of an American Idol winner.

On New Years Eve, we traveled to Orlando. We made it after quite a bit of stress (our flight from Little Rock was delayed quite a bit, resulting in a connection that would've been missed but Southwest was gracious enough to hold our connection). We had an amazing king suite in Orlando and spent some really nice quality time with just me & Ricky. We watched new years eve fireworks from our balcony, worked out in the nice fitness center at the hotel, ate waaaay too much amazing food, visited Sea World, and laid around the hotel room watching football bowl games.

On Monday, I grudgingly came back to rainy Oregon and started back to work yesterday. Ricky is exploring the world of Professional Umpiring. It seems he's enjoying himself for the most part. It is pretty intense, though. They start at 8am and go until 5 or 6 everyday, eat dinner, do homework, and start it all again. The dogs are enjoying quality time with me, and I'm making the most of my time with just us.

Well, I hope you had a safe, relaxing, and fun Christmas break. It's crazy that it's a new year and that year is 2010. That marks the year of Ricky's 10 year high school reunion...and 10 years since we all stressed over the coming of 2000.

;-)

Letter from Chip

So we made it to Arkansas (with very smooth traveling for once) and are now enjoying time with family. We left Chip & Cooper with Maggie, our wonderful dog sitter, on Thursday afternoon. The following was the email I received this morning from Chip. (Thanks, Maggie!)

Dear Mom,
Well, I was sad when you left, but Maggie picked me up and hugged me and then played with all of us. Then we went for a walk; Cooper still thinks he's some sort of sled dog with all that pulling, me I just meander here and there and Howie (Maggie's dog) just walks by her side. (I don't think he "gets" what walks are all about yet.) Then it was time for a nap. I had to teach Maggie the wedge thing and that she should never stop rubbing/petting/stroking me, or I have to nudge her hand with my nose. Don't worry; she gets it now. Cooper takes his "front and center spot" and hogs up most of the room. We did leave room for Howie, though. We slept just fine down in her room but not on the bed. The next day we had another walk, more playtime, and helped Maggie work out in the yard, followed by a nap and more play. It's exhausting. I do miss both you and dad but since we dogs only live mostly in the moment, I'm doing just fine. Maggie is quite amazed with how fast Cooper eats and then falls in love with his empty food bowl. She wants to know if you've ever tried a puzzle cube? It would slow him down and provide some mental stimulation. Hope you're having a good time, we sure are!
Love, Chip

PS Cooper will write next!

Where does it go?

Time...has anyone else noticed how elusive it is? My goodness. In some ways, blogging has made me see more than ever how quickly the time goes. I look up to do a post, and it's already a new month. How does that happen? Sheesh! Well, anyway, I guess a lot has happened since my last update, so I'll just go over a few of the highlights.

November...really is a great month. Not only do I get to celebrate my birthday for a whole week, but I also get to celebrate the birthdays of two of my favorite people in the world...Susan and Laura. Susan is my amazing sister-in-law who just happens to be pretty high on the friend list (even before she was my sister-in-law). Susan is one of the sweetest, hardest working women you will ever meet. During November Susan booked a plane ticket to come see me in January for almost a week while Ricky is in Orlando at umpire school. I can't wait for that girl time. :-) Laura also celebrated her birthday in November, and she is one of those people who was put on the planet partly so I could live a more full life. She and I are like the same person in many ways (majored in psych, graduate degrees in school psych, fourth degree black belts, conducted research projects involving peanut butter...the list goes on but you get the point), but we are different, too. And that makes things perfect. She is more artistic and creative than me while I have the organized and planning pieces down a little better. Oh, and she married Kyle who is one of my other favorite people in the world, too...and pairing Kyle and Ricky with me and Laura...it's pretty close to perfect. Now Laura and Kyle have added Abby to the mix, and it just couldn't get any better.:-)

Speaking of Kyle, he and Ricky are contemplating applying for the amazing race...two men whose wives are best friends all of whom are black belts in taekwondo (oh, and kyle's legally blind)...think it could be a good sell, what about you?

Back to my birthday. I had a great birthday week. I got a new water bottle, a little travel purse, an itunes gift card, Kris Allen's CD, two pretty lanyards for my work ID, a new sport watch, a trip to Cheesecake factory, AND tickets to the Trans Siberian Orchestra. (I've wanted to go for several years). It was great. We had a very fun time at the concert. I have such a thoughtful hubby. The picture above is a quick self-pick at the concert.

Well, there we are... a quick update. In less than two weeks, we'll be traveling to Arkansas for a good visit with family. I'm looking very forward to it, despite the bittersweet fact that I will be returning without my husband for a few weeks. Sigh. Life will fly by, though, I'm sure.

I HAVE to get my dissertation written up in January. :-)

"There could never be...

...a more beautiful you."

Recently, I added a few new songs to my i-tunes collection, and one of them has really spoken to me. As Ricky and I have worked to get back in shape over the last few months, I've found myself thinking a lot about my body image. I realize that I am in no way the only one who has struggled with this. In fact, I'm guessing pretty much everyone has. But God has been changing my perspective, and this song by Johnny Diaz "A More Beautiful You" is just right. I think we can spend our whole lives never being satisfied with who we are or how we look, but if we do that we are likely missing out on what God wants us to experience in life. I'm not saying we shouldn't strive to be healthy or make good choices; we should do that, too. But, I'm really working to be happy with who I am and to focus, instead, on what it is that God created me to do...and let's face it, it wasn't to be a supermodel! ;-) That being said, Ricky rented a fancy camera lens a month or so ago and took some "practice" shots of me.

So, I leave you with some of the lyrics from Johnny Diaz's song and some new photos of me...learning there could never be a more beautiful me.

Little girl fourteen flipping through a magazine
Says she wants to look that way
But her hair isn't straight her body isn't fake
And she's always felt overweight

Well little girl fourteen I wish that you could see
That beauty is within your heart
And you were made with such care your skin your body and your hair
Are perfect just the way they are

There could never be a more beautiful you
Don't buy the lies disguises and hoops they make you jump through
You were made to fill a purpose that only you could do
So there could never be a more beautiful you

So turn around you're not too far
To back away be who you are
To change your path go another way
It's not too late you can be saved
If you feel depressed with past regrets
The shameful nights hope to forget
Can disappear they can all be washed away
By the one who's strong can right your wrongs
Can rid your fears dry all your tears
And change the way you look at this big world
He will take your dark distorted view
And with His light He will show you truth
And again you'll see through the eyes of a little girl

There could never be a more beautiful you

Don't buy the lies disguises and hoops they make you jump through
You were made to fill a purpose that only you could do
So there could never be a more beautiful you

On the home front

I've been meaning to update a couple of random things that have happened around here. I announced a while back that I got my fourth degree, so here's a quick picture of me in my updated taekwondo uniform (new black stripe on the pants leg and wider black collar).

Shortly after we moved into the new house, Ricky and Tim added this beautiful gate to our front yard so that the dogs can safely be in the front or the back yard for playing. We still need to stain it, but it turned out pretty nice.

And this next pitiful picture was of my excitement a couple of Fridays ago. Cooper managed to pull out a toenail. We aren't sure how it happened but suspect it may have gotten stuck in between one of the slats on the back deck. Cooper came in to the house wagging his tail and acting totally normal except that every time he moved around, he left a bloody paw print on the floor. I picked him up and noticed he was missing his toenail. Luckily, our new vet squeezed us in an emergency visit just before they closed at 7pm! He wore the bandage over the weekend and was a good sport about it. The vet took it off and he has been such a trooper (leaving it alone for the most part). Our new vet is so great they even called to check on him later in the week (post bandage removal). AND they are open on the weekends. Hopefully, these hours will result in fewer emergency vet visits with Cooper...we'll see. :)

In other news, we ventured to the Oregon zoo recently as well as spent some time exploring the Columbia River Gorge. Stay tuned for those stories and pictures. I only have a few from my iphone but Ricky has some on his camera to pass along to me.

Here are a couple teaser pics...

A scenic overlook of the Columbia River Gorge. We are standing in Oregon, Washington is across the river.

Ricky and a lorikeet at the zoo. They were pretty fun to interact with.

I've missed you.

It has been a while since I've updated my blog, and I'm not sure why. I really think it's because the end of the summer wasn't super eventful and then work started and I was so busy and overwhelmed that I didn't even want to think about something else. As I've eased into work, I've wanted to work on my blog again but have felt like I "needed" to update 5 plus weeks of my life--which feels overwhelming. So, sitting here on an evening that is becoming damp and cool (really feeling like fall), I've decided to at least say hi again without trying to play major catch up. Instead, I just want to see what ramblings appear and enjoy blogging again. :)

Where to start? Well, this fall has turned into a much more busy fall for our "family" than Ricky or I anticipated. We moved to Portland thinking he would just do some "on call" athletic training and odds and ends until he goes to Umpire school in Florida for 5 weeks in Jan-Feb. Ricky committed to some Saturday work to help pay the bills and then an athletic training position opened at Clackamas High school (5ish minutes from my work). The high school operates differently from his previous job, a lot of which he doesn't care for, but it worked out for him in that they were willing to take him until December (knowing his umpire plans for January). We really felt like, financially, it would be best for him to take the position and it has, ultimately, been what's best for us. But that has meant we have both been working A LOT and our schedules aren't lining up very well (I leave at 7:30 and get home around 4:30, he leaves at 2:30 pm and gets home between 8-11pm). And I miss him. I know it's for the best, and we are thankful that God has provided for us in every transition. But the selfish side hates that he's working so much, and I know he feels the same way. On the fun side, he's still been able to squeeze in some senior picture taking, and I think that's been an enjoyable experience for him.

My job is going great. It's the same and different from what I expected, but all the important pieces are there. I have a great supervisor and a great working environment. I'm getting to do a wide variety of things and expand my skills in lots of directions. I think I'll probably stay in this position one more year and then look for positions in academia. Hopefully, I will have the luxury of targeting my job search to the "region" closer to home.

It seems like now, more than ever, for a lot of reasons Ricky and I are looking forward to moving closer to home. We are in a big transition time in our lives right now but can see the light at the end of the tunnel. We always said we'd start trying for kids once I finish school, which (hopefully) will happen in June. Crazy!! I really can't believe that we are nearing our 10 year high school reunions (Ricky's in 10 and mine in 11). Where does the time go?

In the taekwondo realm, I've been able to start learning some of my new form. I think I like it, but learning new black belt forms is always "interesting." I really miss having a taekwondo school close. I especially miss the teaching piece. It's been such a joy to be a part of so many people's lives (little kids, big kids, and adults) through taekwondo. I love, love, love teaching and watching the students grow. It is my favorite part, and while I'm able to continue to work out with Mr. Duer and learn new material, it is not the same. It confirms in me my desire to keep the teaching part of taekwondo a big part of my life in the future. While I've never really wanted to commit to owning a taekwondo school as my "Job" (because it's my fun thing), I really do miss the "human/teaching" part of it. I have been able to take some fun classes at my local gym (kickboxing and power) that keep me busy, but it doesn't quite fill the void.

Well, this was a longer ramble than I intended. I promise to update more regularly again. :)

Passed!

I passed my fourth degree testing!! It only took about 2 months for me to get the results, which makes things a little anti-climatic. However, I'm still really excited about getting to advance in rank and learn new material (and even more excited about avoiding another fourth degree testing). ;-) I also get to put a cool black stripe down my white uniform pants! Oh, the little things in life.

In other news, things are falling into place in Portland, and Ricky & I are enjoying the new city. He's taking off with his photography and is learning to ref football for the fall. He's also done a pretty good job of rounding up random athletic training work to help us pay the bills. I still need to take some pics of the house and get those uploaded...it's in the works.