home

...and, three and a half weeks later, I'm back.

Goodness.

A quick update that we have officially returned to Oskaloosa, for those that don't yet know. We actually headed back less than a week after my last post (which was much earlier than people were expecting - only our parents knew that we were coming so soon). It was fun to be able to surprise everyone, and we're adjusting very easily to being back in Iowa.

But enough with that. =] What I'm really excited to talk about is my new job.

I'm back at the George Daily Auditorium in Oskaloosa (this is huge for me, by the way)! I could not be more thrilled.

[Again, for those that don't know, the Daily is a "state-of-the-art" (I put the quotes there because I think that phrase is kind of funny, but everyone uses it, so I shall too) auditorium in the middle of little Oskaloosa that brings in the same professional shows that tour all the major venues across the country. For example, earlier this week I was privileged enough to work Cabaret, and in the past I've done shows like Fame, Grease and Man of La Mancha. Fantastic. This is also the same auditorium where I performed all of my plays, concerts, etc during high school, and where I previously ran the summer theatre camp program. Up to speed now? Good.]

Around the time of all the med school decisions, I was discussing with Travis how very much I missed theatre. It really is my passion. You know how some people have that drive, that love, that attachment for something? You can just see it in their eyes, when they're doing what they love...they're complete. That's what theatre is for me. It's a part of me, and I've been dying to get it back.

We'll skip through the specifics of the process but, to sum up, the auditorium's current children's theatre director was leaving, and after expressing interest, they offered me the position. I'm ecstatic. What makes it even better is that I was able to select two of my favorite people to be my counselors this summer. Huzzah!

The camp starts as soon as school gets out, and runs basically until school starts back up again in August. It's for kids in the area who are 7-15 years old, and it runs Monday - Friday from 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Kids sign up for one week at a time (but they can come as much as they want - last time I did this I had two kids that were there every week all summer long). Besides playing fun games and teaching kids about both acting and the technical side of theatre, my counselors and I write a script for the kids on Monday night, and by Friday they're putting on a half-hour performance for the parents and friends! It's amazing what these kids can do. It's a really stellar program, and so much fun.

Last time I did the camp (four years ago now - wow), there was a group of about half a dozen kids or so that I got to be really close with, and I was able to see them shortly after getting back to Oskaloosa. It was so fun to catch up, and I was even happier that they all were saying they wanted to somehow be involved this summer now that I was back (talk about an ego boost, huh?). After doing some brainstorming (as these kids are now 16 & 17 and too old for the camp), we've decided we're going to have an evening program for high-school-aged kids that lasts throughout the summer, where they'll be putting on a full-length play. They're also going to be building their own sets, hanging their own lights, everything. I'm so excited about this! I seriously get to play all summer long, do what I absolutely love, with people I absolutely love, and get paid to do it. Amazing.

I'm already at work planning camp and its promotions, which just has me so excited (why can't it be June already??). I also got back in town just in time for the auditorium's last professional show of the season, Cabaret, as I mentioned earlier. It felt so good to be back in the auditorium, on the catwalk, hanging lights...I can't say it enough - I love it. I'm home. I absolutely loved Arizona, and I certainly miss it. But this is what I need to be doing right now, and it's working out beautifully for Travis as well (he gets to start school in just over a month - yay!).

more changes...

Sorry for the delay there! The last couple of weeks have been truly insane (and we thought that things would calm down after Travis stopped medical school!). But this time it's been a good insane.

We made a quick trip up to Utah to visit my cousin Codie before he enters the MTC (this week!). I can't believe he's old enough to go on a mission! Wow. He's going to Mexico, and I know he's going to be awesome, so here's to Codie! =]

As for the next crazy step in our lives, here it is...we're moving back to Iowa. More specifically, Oskaloosa.

What?

This was not something I ever (mind you, I really mean it when I say this), ever expected to do. I was happy with my upbringing, but I've always been a big city girl, and absolutely despised the weather, too. Especially after we fell in love with Arizona so much, we never imagined that we would leave it (particularly so soon).

BUT. Once Travis started looking into nursing programs, we realized that all of the programs here in the valley had a waiting list. A long one. As in, a minimum of one year. Ugh.

That being said, we were still planning on staying here, and Travis would just work for that one year. Simple enough, yes?

Then, for completely unrelated reasons that I will at some later point reveal, we started looking at the Indian Hills program near Oskaloosa. Just to see. And we found out that there was, in fact, no waiting list for their program. He can start June 1. That's only two months away!

We were a little shell-shocked. Was this divine intervention leading us back to Iowa? We didn't know what to make of it. But the pieces were just falling into place too quickly and too perfectly for it to not mean something.

So. We prayed and talked and prayed and talked. And we're moving to Oskaloosa! Wow. The both of us are extremely excited about this too, which is also a sign to us. We figure we're feeling this way for a reason. =]

So what of the house? We're in talks of either renting or selling it. And we'll see how that goes. But everything has worked out so well for us this far...we have complete faith that this will work out too. We'll be living with my parents until we get this house squared away, which will be fun. We're excited to be back near both of our families, and to see all of Travis's siblings' sporting events and concerts (there are two still at home, and one will be attending UNI next year and playing rugby). Hooray!

Oh, and another part of our motivation came from the fact that I have landed my perfect job. Really! I can't even begin to express how excited I am! BUT. I'm not sure if I can really make it public news or not yet, so I'll have to keep you waiting! It's worth its own post anyway. =]

Until then!

crazy...

Oh goodness me. It's been a solid...two and a half months since I last wrote. I've thought to myself several times that I should get on here and update, but I obviously was never motivated enough to do so. Until now. =]

It has been a whirlwind few months for our little family. In a somewhat traumatic, ultimately very good way. A few very major things have happened...and even bigger things are in the very near future.

Where to begin? I'll suppose I'll just tackle them one at a time, post by post.

So, the bomb? Travis is no longer in med school (before anyone gasps in shock and dismay, please note: this is a good thing). I don't think I'll worry too much over the details here, but expect something on my other blog in the next few days. What is important to know, though, is that this was a very carefully considered decision, and one with which we're very comfortable. Something else important (that I want people to know)? This isn't because it was too much for him. He was doing just fine with the coursework. This decision was based entirely on different factors. And we're very much at peace with the new direction our life is taking.

When making the decision to withdraw, we obviously had to figure out what career path Travis would pursue instead. Because he does still have a great interest in medicine, he's decided to pursue nursing. He'll do a two-year program to get his RN, and then, because he's already got his bachelor's degree, he'll be able to go right into getting his master's. Fortunately, most master's programs are offered online, so he can work while he does it. He'll get to his career sooner than he would have as a doctor, certainly be making more money sooner (without anywhere near as much debt), and, most importantly, he'll still be able to spend time with our family.

Short and sweet, eh? In my next post, I'll discuss the even crazier decisions that have been made in the last week. Our heads are spinning right now, but we're both happier than either of us has been in a long time (and that's saying something!).

december's done

It seems like December is always a busy month for everyone. I'm sure that's mostly to do with the holidays and vacation time, but there's always something else going on too.

For us, there were three main things that dominated our December, so I'll focus on those.

First, of course, was the house. Omigosh. I already updated you on a lot of that, so I won't have to do a full run down now. Which is good, quite frankly, because I don't think I have the energy for it (and I don't think you want to hear me complain anymore, either!)!

We were told we absolutely would be able to close the week of Christmas. And we almost did. We actually went to the title company Christmas Eve morning to sign the paperwork, hoping to get access to the house that day (the office, by the way, is pretty far south in Mesa, so it was an hour drive. Not a huge deal, but not exactly convenient either). When we started going over paperwork with the escrow officer, I noticed that our bank (who else?) had the property address wrong. I mentioned it, not sure whether it was really that important.

It was.

The escrow officer (poor dear. It wasn't even her file; she was just filling in for someone else who was already on vacation) called Wells Fargo just to check, and they said that they would have to print out all new documents. The biggest problem? Travis's dad is cosigning the loan, and he has to sign the same documents that we do. Which meant that instead of getting everything done that day, we had to overnight them to him in Iowa again, and he would have to send them right back (again). And with the holidays, that wouldn't all be finished up until  Monday or Tuesday (another four or five days).

The bank made new documents right away and emailed them to the escrow officer, so we could at least sign them since we were already there. When the new documents came through, they had Travis's dad listed on the deed as well, which he wasn't supposed to be on. When we called the bank again, they said he had to be on it (...but he hadn't been on it the first time around!). Wow. So we were calling everyone we could think of (at 11:45 on Christmas Eve morning...when everyone was either already closed down, or 15 minutes away from it) trying to get this figured out before the holidays.

Eventually, we did. And we signed our part and went home and tried to not worry about it so that we could have our little Christmas.

Which, by the way, was wonderful! We decided that our Christmas Eve tradition was going to be making homemade pizza (we thought it would be nice to actually have the whole family cooking together, rather than the mom slaving away in the kitchen all day!).

So we made one regular pizza and one lobster pizza (see above). I know it sounds strange, but Red Lobster makes it, and we've always been intrigued, so we decided to make our own. And it was fabulous! We'll definitely be making it again (we also made an apple dessert pizza later that evening). Yum. All in all, I'd call the evening a wonderful success!

It was fun for us to be able to have Christmas in our own home too (even if we didn't make it into the house in time). Our biggest present this year was the television (which is amazing, by the way!), but we still got a few things from family. We had a great day just playing games and watching Christmas shows! Hooray!

Three days later, of course, we celebrated another momentous occasion - our two year wedding anniversary! On December 28, 2007, we got married in the Mount Timpanogos temple at 11:00 a.m.

It's certainly been a whirlwind two years for us, but we wouldn't trade it for anything! I love my man, and he still treats me like a queen!

We were hoping that we'd get to move into the house that day (what an anniversary present, huh?), but no dice. We did get to go out to a nice dinner, though, at Cheesecake Factory, which was amazing.

Neither of us had ever been there before, and were totally surprised by the atmosphere, but we love it! It is now, hands down, my favorite place to eat. If you haven't been before, go. If it's been a while, go back (fyi, their pineapple upside down cheesecake is to die for!)!

The next day, we were really, seriously, major league hoping to get the house. We were told there should be no problem (is it sad that we were still believing them?), and so we went ahead and loaded up the Uhaul in the morning (scary, I know!), and huzzah! at 2:00 p.m., we got the call! It was officially recorded at county, and we were homeowners! And we drove right to the house to start unloading.

It was exhausting moving in, but who cares? We have a house! It's so beautiful, and having our things in it has made it even more so. We're really settling in, and we could not be happier here. We're down to just the little things that need to be unpacked now, and we're going to take that slow...



Oh, and I can't forget one more exciting thing that happened this month. We booked our tickets to New York City this summer (and yes, I'm very excited)!

This is going to be Travis's last summer off, and it's also going to be the last time he can take any vacation for, oh, about ten years, so we wanted to make sure we did something special. We both love the city (me more than Travis, but he still really wants to go), and we are soooo excited. We leave the day before Memorial Day, and have five days and four nights there. Aah!

There'll be plenty more updates on that event in the coming months, I'm sure.

We can't wait to see what January brings!


Happy 2010!

are we done yet?

Argh!

That basically sums up my thoughts on this whole housing process. We really thought when our offer was accepted so quickly that it was going to be smooth sailing from there.

Wrong.

We really should've known.

Our bank has been completely ridiculous about the amount of paperwork they wanted from us (and hey, even Travis' dad, who's like the head of the division, thinks they're being totally unreasonable), which slowed us way down. We originally were going to close over the Thanksgiving break, but had to move it back. We were expecting then to close the week after we got back into town.

Sure.

The appraisal, which was done on December 2, came back low. Like, $15,000 low. Which meant we had to talk the seller down in price, come up with 15 grand, or walk away. Not cool. We thought the seller was going to flat-out walk away from us at one point, because he was not happy about the appraised value. Which is understandable, I suppose, but it doesn't change anything. Just deal with it and move on, man.

After several days, though, we were able to come to an agreement. We're buying the house for $2,500 more than the appraised value, which means we have to come up with that cash, since the bank won't cover it. But it's worth it. This house is gorgeous, and the only reason it's anywhere near that price in the first place is because we're in a recession. So we're not worried about it.

But that meant more paperwork. And more questions. And going back and forth with the seller's agent who, quite frankly, is a real pain. They are not quick to respond, which is crazy because they've been the ones pushing for a fast close from day one.

At this point, we're basically just waiting for the seller to turn on the water to the house so the final inspection can be done, and then we should (maybe? hopefully?) be able to close next week. But to be honest, I don't like the fact that we're waiting on the seller now...he's been extremely not helpful through this whole process. I'm hoping we'll hear something tomorrow.

According to our contract, we have until December 30 to close, but everyone involved wants to just get this done. If the seller will just do his one little job, we should be fine.

And hey, what a Christmas present, eh?

My parents are coming out for the holidays too, which means we have built-in moving help! Yay for that! =]

Honestly though, one of my biggest problems with this wait (besides that it's just plain annoying) is the fact that it's delaying my getting my Christmas cards out. *major pout*

I know that may not make sense, so I have to admit something. I sooo wanted to be on the ball this year with my Christmas cards, so I wrote out our little newsletter before we left for Iowa in November (and printed all like 80 copies). Knowing that the cards weren't actually going out until December, and knowing (or so I thought) that we would close on the house while we were in Iowa, I wrote the letter as if we'd already moved in.

Big mistake.

Now I've had my cards completely ready (signed, addressed, stamped) for two weeks, and I feel like I can't send them out! I was so determined to get our Christmas cards out early this year, and now I feel like I may not get them out at all. I'm seriously depressed about it.

I'm hoping that we can close on, say, Monday, and I can drop the cards in the mailbox immediately after. *sigh* That's what I get for trying to plan ahead. Word of advice: never plan ahead when buying a house is involved. Unless, you know, you're buying it with cash.

We're supposedly at the end of the road here, but you know what they say,

"It ain't over till it's over."

Wish us luck!

no more november

Ah, a return to my blog! I have missed this, really. I suppose I've been delaying my return partially because I have so much to catch up on...and I didn't know if I wanted to type that much!

So to make it simpler on me, I'm combining news of my trip with my monthly wrap up. And we'll take it from there...

I've got to rewind a little past our Iowa trip to begin with though, and revisit why we were even able to travel in the first place -- Travis finished his first quarter of medical school! Now, that obviously included an insane amount of stress (even more so than usual for med school) and lots of tests, but when it was over, we had two weeks free! It was an amazingly liberating feeling when he came home from that last test Friday morning. Ah, freedom. And yes, as soon as he did get home, we hopped in the car and started driving...

And the weird thing was, we encountered the worst weather while we were still in Arizona (and a little bit in New Mexico). We got poured on from Phoenix to Flagstaff, and then it teased us into thinking it was going to let up. But no. It continued, with serious winds, basically until we got to Albuquerque. It was crazy! I had no idea it could rain that much in the southwest! Fortunately it eased up after that, and we were able to find some ways to entertain ourselves along the drive....

I freakin' love this because it's so skeezy. This is at the old Jack Rabbit Trading Post (calling it 'old' makes it sound like it's closed down now...it's not), which used to be a major attraction along Route 66 (legendary, apparently). But to be honest, I wasn't that impressed. I was happy to show off my mad jack rabbit riding skills, though. And speaking of Route 66....

Yay. I was so adament about getting my picture taken on Route 66. I'm not sure why....

I definitely want to travel it (or what's left of it) someday when we can take our time (and do it all during the daylight hours). Fortunately though, the Route goes right by I-40 most of the time, so we hopped out and took our pics. It made me happy.

That drive to Iowa was also exciting because....

We finally got Chloe's baby sister (Trixi)! We picked her up in Oklahoma (which, by the way, really showed me the positive side of growing up in Iowa) on the second day of our journey. We took them to a little park right after we got her so that the two of them could get acquainted for a little bit. It took Chloe a little while to figure out that this tiny thing was actually a real puppy, but then they started having a grand old time.

The funny thing though was that as soon as we put them both in the car, Chloe started acting very...aloof...toward Trixi. She loved playing with her, but I think she got concerned when Trixi suddenly was in her space and using her toys. She was very hot and cold toward the little girl for most of the ride up. But don't worry, she got over it...

They completely love each other now. They play like crazy, and snuggle like two little babies would. So sweet.

Oh, and on that trip up, we also had the worst drive-through experience either of us has ever had. In our lifetimes. Seriously. We spent 20 minutes trying to order our food. And another 15 trying to actually retrieve it at the window. I know Missouri has some winners, but really, people! Never, ever, go to the Steak 'N' Shake in Joplin, MO (don't worry, the food was still amazing. At that point I was just so hungry that I ate the box it came in, too...no, not really).

Omigosh! I cannot tell you how excited I was to see RENT live at the Civic Center the day after we got into town! And not only RENT, but RENT with Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp. It was completely amazing, and I'm still kinda in awe that I actually got to see these two live. Such a fantastic opportunity. Thanks, honey, for letting me go! =]

We also got to catch a couple of Penn games while we were home, which was way fun (and also meant I got to see a few old friends). My favorite was their face-off against Grinnell. These guys play crazy basketball (or don't even play basketball at all, according to my dad). They go hard and fast, and shoot within seconds of taking the ball downcourt. And after about two minutes of play, they sub in all five players. It's insane. Want more proof? Final score: Grinnell 101, Penn 133. Seriously. Madness.

And yes, we saw the midnight premiere of New Moon. We went in Pella, which was actually fun because I ended up seeing another of my theatre camp kids, and it really was not very crowded at all. And yes, I chose an Edward poster because...that point where Bella meets him in Italy? From there onward is the only reason I can enjoy New Moon. Really.

That being said, I thought the movie was fantastically done (leaps and bounds above Twilight), which really kind of depressed me. I really wish they had had Chris Weitz direct Twilight too, because, sadly, the first is probably my favorite book, and the Twilight movie just wasn't done well. I'm really hoping for a remake.

We also helped my parents set up their Christmas tree, breaking our normal rule of not setting Christmas decorations up until after Thanksgiving. But it was very fun and, hey, I don't mind putting up two Christmas trees this year!

Oh, and we bought a big screen tv (50" to be precise)! We had been saving up for a little while, and asked for Christmas money to help, too. We ordered it on Black Friday, and got a real steal! We set it up over the weekend, and it's fabulous (but don't worry, we don't actually watch golf on it). I swear it takes up half of our living room right now, but you won't hear me complaining! =]

On the way back we also stopped at my favorite little Indian shop in New Mexico (and yes, it's a favorite because we've stopped at several), and got our Christmas presents for everybody! We love this place. It's called Indian Market, and it's about 40 miles from the Arizona border (either exit 42 or 47...there are signs). It's got some of the best stuff. We're saving up to get a couple of nice pieces of black and white pottery for our home next time we drive through.

And we managed to get home just in time to catch the Holy War, BYU vs. Utah. It was a great game, and I'm so glad our Cougars came out on top! Go Blue!

And just as the month came to a close, we started settling back into our routine. Back to school, back to work. But knowing that at the same time, things were about to be changed up all over again (holidays, house swapping, visiting family). All absolutely wonderful things, but things that keep us on our toes all the same! Bring on December!