New Job

It has been too long since my last post, but mostly because there has been a severe lack of excitement when it comes to our lives. There is one thing that is worthy of mentioning, and that is my new job. I applied for a different position (still with Saint Martin's) a couple weeks ago, and had an interview last Thursday. It turns out I was the top candidate, and the office I will be working for is excited to have me, and I'm excited to join them. My new title is Student Loan Specialist. This will have to do with what I've been doing the last year, but will include additional responsibility: including billing, and in-house collections. Along with this responsibility comes a larger desk, my own filing cabinets and...a pay raise! I probably won't get to start for a couple weeks because of internal complications (the transition isn't perfectly seamless on both ends, but it will work). So wish me luck as I move from one side of the building to the other, and from giving money to taking it. I'm sure I'm going to get yelled at, but I'll also get the satisfaction of turning delinquent accounts over to collection agencies. This could be fun!

Today is a special day.

Today is a special day. It marks the two year anniversary of when Daniel and I got married. There are many things I remember about it and I love looking back and remembering the happy moments. Here are a few highlights:

The sealer told us that it was crucial to our happiness to say "I love you" at least 100 times before we were 50. (I'm pretty sure we took care of that during the first week...maybe two)

I felt like a princess all day with my dress and tiara.

Daniel had roses for me when we got to our hotel. The next day we used them in my bouquet.

Daniel knew how much breakfast meant, so he had my favorite breakfast foods ready for me.

My wonderful uncle Don drove my grandparents all the way from eastern Washington to Portland. I will always be grateful for this, especially since it was the last time I got to see my Grandpa alive.

Before we all left the dinner after the wedding, my Grandma Brinkerhoff said quite loudly (but surprisingly innocently): "Alicia, now the next time you two come over, you can share a bed."

My Grandma Green flew in from Idaho (After she said she'd never fly again!)

My parents stuffed my childhood stuffed animal "Thumper" in my suitcase as a stow-away.

There are a lot more memories and things I could share, but these highlights are enough for a blog. I loved Daniel then, and I still love him now. Enjoy some pictures!

Parenting

This past weekend Daniel and I watched our two and a half year old niece Emma, and I have to admit, the whole parenting thing is a lot harder than I thought it would be. Emma is by no means a difficult child, but it was almost exhausting trying to keep up with her. Perhaps it's different when it's your own child, or when you've had it since it was a baby, but jumping in head first with a toddler was a lot of work.

Yesterday we were at the point where we were ready to send her back, see her in a couple weeks, but never babysit again, (and rethink having children ever). The funny thing, is that as soon as she left, we missed her and felt like we were missing a new part of our family. How does it work that we were so ready to be done, but the moment she was gone we missed it. She drove us crazy for a few hours, but one sweet hug and we were all hers. Is this what parenting is? Moments of complete adoration intermixed in the chaotic happenings of life? I know babysitting for 48 hours is a lot different than parenting, but I think I got a glimpse this weekend, and it was an interesting mixture of experiences and feelings.

Normalcy

I've been in a bit of a blogging rut as of late. There hasn't been anything really blog-worthy going on in our lives, so there has been a distinct absence of posts.

There are however several small things that I will use to make this post an attempt at interesting.

I have been crocheting. A lot. I've gotten half way through a baby blanket I'm making for a friend, and I'm about a foot maybe more into a regular sized blanket for me. I've gotten into this crocheting thing mostly because I've also gotten into Gilmore Girls. I know I'm about seven or eight years too late, but Rachel had borrowed season 1 from a friend, and while house/Pippin/garden sitting for my family while they're vacationing, I have been watching episode after episode, finally understanding why everybody loves that show. I now need to see if I can track down season two so I can finish my projects.

I have also been enjoying my parents garden. Their blueberries are perfect right now, and I LOVE having access to fresh fruit!

Daniel and I were called to teach the sunbeams class at church. This has been an interesting experience to say the least. Yesterday was our second class together, and I feel so inadequate as a teacher. I have no idea how to teach squirmy little three year olds (even if the topic is just "I'm thankful for my ears"). Especially when they're all boys...and when there are seven of them. It was somewhat more chaotic than I thought church would be, but I guess that's expected.

All in all, we're doing well. Daniel is still enjoying his classes, and being in school. I'm loving my summer work schedule. Last week the Dean was gone, and the Director began her cross country road trip, so the assistant director gave me a very flexible schedule which involved me leaving 2-3 hours early most days last week. I've also got a flex day tomorrow, so Daniel and I are planning on meeting his dad at Intel for lunch. I've heard they have an excellent cafeteria...and we're going to discuss Daniel's options about whether computer engineering or electrical engineering would be a better choice for the long run. I tend to tune out most of the conversation when they get talking about things like that (it gets a little too technical and over my head) but I should probably try to pay attention tomorrow.

Enjoy the sun, and stay tuned for more posts this week (hopefully)!