It's Been Long Enough

Well, after seeing that neither Lisa nor I had posted anything on the blog since March 19th, I decided it was time for another post to keep everyone updated.

The San Antonio Relocation stuff is in a holding pattern right now. We know all of the details of what the company is willing to pay for and we know what we need to do to get our stuff ready--mostly getting the house ready to rent out. We are looking at our rental options for our house here. If we can find someone that we know and trust to treat the place well, then we will act as absentee landlords. If we can't find someone that will treat the place well, then we will have to go with a rental management agency. I really want to avoid this if possible, since it would mean less rental revenue each month. However, if that's what we have to do, then we will do it.

Stuff down in San Antonio is looking pretty good. I have found internet listings for several different places that would meet our needs, and would fit our budget. I have no idea what they are like in real life, but I will be flying down there pretty soon to get that part sorted out. You know, check out neighborhoods, see how loud the planes flying overhead are, see if we are likely to be shot in the face in the neighborhoods where I have seen rental listings, etc.

This has been the Winter of Illness in our household, and the official onset of Spring did nothing to stem the flow of viral issues. Joshua picked up a cold and a nasty cough (that was later determined to be croup) from some of the kids that Lisa babysits. After a trip to the pediatrician and instructions on how to treat the croup effectively at home, he is doing much better. Thank goodness. He is such a happy, fun little guy when he is not sick, and I miss that when he is not feeling well. Also, I picked up whatever nasty bug started Joshua's cold and croup issues. Since adults almost never get croup, I didn't have to worry about that. However, it resulted in just about the worst head cold I have ever had. All the congestion and runny nose issues were very annoying. Thankfully, it looks like much of that has passed, and my ears are the only congested area still (which makes everything sound like I have cotton balls in my ears). But with the help of some Sudafed--the real stuff that you have to ask the pharmacist for now--and a couple of sick days from work, this is clearing up.

It is fun to see things starting to come back to life around the house. The tulip bulbs I planted a year and a half ago are sprouting lots of tulips, the daffodils are coming up again, and the rose bushes are starting to get their groove on. Which reminds me... I need to prune those bad boys before they get too much going. We plan on replanting the lawn within the next couple of weeks so that all the spring rain can give it a good, healthy head start for the summer. I hope that whoever rents our house when we move will appreciate and enjoy all the work that we are going to have to do in the yard.

Things to think about...

So...here's the deal. Adam has been asked to relocate to San Antonio, TX. There have been rumors of this happening for a couple years, and now it is a reality. He will do the same job with the same department with the same people, just in the company's new headquarters building in San Antonio. Tesoro will pay for our moving expenses plus some more for incidental moving expenses (like driving down to Texas). We have until May 6th to decide what we're going to do.

If we go, Adam has to start in Texas on July 1st.

If we don't go, Adam's job here ends on Sept 1st, with a severance package.

As hard as it is to think about moving away from family, the more we think about going to San Antonio, the more we like it. The biggest bonus is that Adam would still have a job (YAY!) and there would be more opportunities for him to get into the IT department at the corporate office. As much as we don't want to leave Washington, it is really scary to think about not having a job, or trying to find one in this economic climate. So, we are leaning more and more towards going to San Antonio. Our biggest obstacle now is figuring out what to do with our house. We are hoping to find good renters. Does anybody know anyone who is looking for a house in the Tacoma area?

22 months old!

Joshua turned 22 months old this past week. Aside from a weird puking and diarrhea phase he had a couple weeks ago, he has had a good month. The adventure continues as we get closer and closer to two years old. He has become more interested in his shape sorters lately, and he's doing pretty well with getting the right shapes in the right holes. He still loves Elmo, but his new favorite is Curious George and he is constantly asking to watch Curious George on TV. It's pretty cute the way he says it. I've been doing a little more babysitting lately and Joshua loves to play with the kids that come over. I love his big hugs, hearing his cute little giggle, and watching his short little legs move as fast as they can when he tries to run.

Baby Kara's Blessing

On March 1st we went to see our friends' baby be blessed. They are from here, but have lived in Iowa the past 3 years or so for school. They were back in Washington interviewing for jobs and we were so glad to be able to spend a little time with them. It was a beautiful blessing and we felt privileged to be part of it.



Adam, me, Josh, Sean, Anika, Tarryn, Dean, Kara and Michelle.

The next afternoon, we all met up at Sean and Anika's house to have dinner and play games. It was so much fun hanging out with everyone and playing with the babies. We can't wait until they move back here in a few months! We also send them our love and prayers as they go through some tough times right now. We love you guys!

Seaside

I know it's been a couple of weeks, but here are some pictures of our trip to Seaside, OR for our anniversary.


This was the view from our window in our hotel room.









This is the view from the boardwalk of our hotel. It's the tall one in the middle.






Our room was on the second floor on the right side.








Views from the boardwalk.

Views from the beach.

Indian Beach.