January

Has it really been all month since I have posted anything on my blog? I just can't seem to post anything worthwhile to me. Although this blog is really for me to remember things that have gone on since we moved to Illinois and to remember our life as we are really "on our own". With no parents or siblings close by to help us out. Sure, they are a phone call or a text away - but it just is not the same. For example - I have a pile of clothes I have been collecting that need mending. Just waiting for my mother to come visit so she can fix them. :) She's great like that.

Our newest thing around here is playing our Wii. We bowl, we race, we play Mario. It's fun.

Our cats are preparing us to have children someday. They wake us up in the morning to play. They whine for food, and then whine some more after we feed them anyway. When I close the bathroom door for privacy - they scratch at the door and stick their paws under (hilarious). They scratch and bite at my nice furniture. Parker got his claws clipped this morning for that reason. Oh - and they are also cute :)

And so, the month of January has consisted of me going to work, Brett spending most of his time at school with research/teaching labs/studying/grading and then us sleeping! So, all in all not much has changed around here for us.

2011 and 2010 Reflections

So much has happened in this past year! I feel like I am in a completely different place right now then I was a year ago. Last year at this time I was just about ready to start my last semester of nursing school, looking at homes to buy in Illinois, scooping piles of snow, and studying like crazy for my nursing boards. Well, the snow melted last year (and this year too!), I graduated from nursing school, took my boards, turned 23 years old, found out I passed my boards and bought a house. It really is quite amazing how I was able to keep my cool during that crazy time in my life. I'm thankful for Brett and all he did to help me through nursing school and allowing me to constantly study and not care if the house was clean. :)

Now, we live in Illinois and have lived here for nearly 6 months. Brett and I were having a discussion yesterday about how we feel about living here and whether or not we would move "back home" someday. Our thoughts are as follows: we like it here, but don't LOVE it. I miss the grocery store in Orange City where everyone is super friendly and your groceries get carried to your car for you. :) (lame, I know). We miss our small group friends from Dover! We like living in a bigger city where basically everything we need is right here. The amount of money we spend on gas is much better since moving here! We hardly use Brett's car since he walks to school and I only drive maybe a mile to work. Most days, I like my job - and I have met some great nurses on the night shift on my floor. We love our home and our yard. :)

So we really don't have a conclusion. I have a stable job, so we'll have to see what kind of a job Brett will get after graduate school.

In the meantime - 2011 will bring Brett's second semester of grad school and I will continue to work nights. My schedule might change to working 3, 12 hour night shifts instead of 4, 8 hour shifts. We hope to finish up our yard work this spring and get some plants planted. This year I also hope to finish my quilt I started many moons ago. Building a 2 car garage would also be nice - we'll see how that turns out!

Happy New Year!