Thanks!

Thanks to all who left birthday greetings. As you can tell, I haven't been on pleo in a while. Life is good. Busy, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I am getting more clients at work, and trying to convince everyone to work out on M, W, and Saturday, so that I only have to drive to "The Island" three days a week. In other news, we are getting to use the sunglasses. It has been realy pretty here lately. Actually, one of the locals told me that there are more sunglasses sold in the state of Washington than any other state. Their theory was that since sunglasses are used so infrequently here, Washingtonians misplace the sunglasses in between uses- and have to buy new ones. We had a great trip to Texas. I enjoyed soaking up the vitamin D, and wearing short sleeves. We are looking forward to the next few weeks when we will be able to show some (FL) friends and (TX) family the joys of life in the Northwest.
  • themother
    Enjoy your company and the weather! Hope it will be nice for them while they are there!
    by themother at 06/14/10 11:37AM
  • mrs_rosshead
    Glad that the weather is good enough for those sunglasses! Enjoy your marathon in a couple of weeks!
    by mrs_rosshead at 06/14/10 10:58PM

Essentials for life in the Northwest

Essentials for life in the Northwest: A portable heater, Hot chocolate, Multiple umbrellas, A rain jacket, Multiple pairs of gloves (One pair will get soaking wet on a morning run. An extra pair is useful.) , Multiple pairs of shoes (Same wet concept as the previous item), Vitamin D (I have been told by countless people that this is a neccessity), A rain jacket, long sleeve shirts, an electric blanket.....and various other things that involve cold, wet and dark weather.

Non-essentials: Sunglasses
I miss wearing my sunglasses.

Actually, Life in Washington has been very good. I have enjoyed getting to spend time with the Turners. Most of the days the weather has been about 40 degrees and a bit drizzly. When you know to expect it- everyday- it is not so bad. You know exactly how many layers of clothing are neccessary to stay warm all day. We have had several very pretty days. When the sun is out and the sky is clear, you really appreciate the beautiful weather and the beautiful scenery.

I teach a step class on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 5:45 AM here in Poulsbo. That has been quite fun. I had forgotten how much I enjoy taking and teaching step. I am working at another fitness club about 25 minutes away as a personal trainer. I enjoy the club and the people, but my schedule is not as full as I would like it to be. I have to continually remind myself that it took a while to build my business in FL, and it will take a while to build it here. The good news is that I have fitness consultants who are helping match me up with people who want to train. So I do not have to do as much of the sales part of the personal training business that I had to do in FL.

Tuesday, John will get here with the cat and we will get our apartment. John's parents will arrive with car # 2 around the end of January and the pod with the rest of our possessions will arrive in February. This move has made me realize exactly how much stuff we have. We have a lot of stuff. I did a lot of cleaning out and throwing away in FL and plan to do the same when the Pod arrives. It will be really nice not to have a lot of things. I have discovered that when I have less stuff, I have less clutter. I like less clutter. That means that there is less to clean. However, everything from the essentials list- and the sunglasses will stay.
  • jaydon
    I hope you get to use your sunglasses!
    I wish I were taking your step class - we stopped going to the gym in order to save money - I miss the gym.
    by jaydon at 01/19/10 9:36AM
  • theaunt
    Definitely keep the sunglasses! You'll need them when you travel....ha! Tim said he had to go home to Washington to get warm again. It's been a weird winter. Hopefully things can start feeling like home when John and Pod arrives. Take care. Wish we could come visit!
    by theaunt at 01/19/10 9:52AM
  • jlmanager
    The sun is shining outside right now, the sky is clear and it's a beautiful day. Come anytime - I've still got connections. :)
    by jlmanager at 01/20/10 12:10PM
  • bonkrs5
    It is good to hear that things are going well, praying that continues.
    by bonkrs5 at 01/20/10 3:41PM
  • themother
    Glad you're settling in and getting the hang of things! Looking forward to seeing you soon!
    by themother at 01/21/10 6:54PM
  • schmidtkins
    You will need those sunglasses when it SNOWS! The sun shines on snow and makes it so bright, it hurts the eyes!
    by schmidtkins at 01/21/10 10:26PM
  • mrs_rosshead
    Keep the sunglasses! You'll eventually need them, and when the sun comes out, you'll be surprised how fast you are reaching for them! When we moved to Oregon several years back, I thought that our outside thermometer had broken because every time I looked at it, it read 40 degrees until about March or April! :)
    Vitamin D is good stuff to have! Enjoy the weather, embrace it!!! And don't wait for the rain to stop to do things, or they'll never get done! ; ) Glad to know that your just a few hours away! Welcome to the PNW!
    by mrs_rosshead at 01/21/10 11:48PM
  • black_n_black
    So I am sure we have been out of the loop. You guys have moved to WA right?
    by black_n_black at 01/31/10 3:00PM
  • bonkrs5
    I am sorry, but I do not know who you are talking about? Can you help me get in contact with her?
    by bonkrs5 at 04/12/10 10:03AM
  • marla
    I can't remember if it's today or tomorrow, but...HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! :-)
    by marla at 06/03/10 8:19AM
  • curlie
    HAPPY BIRTHDAY! :)
    by curlie at 06/03/10 2:09PM
  • ucnclmeal
    Happy Birthday!
    by ucnclmeal at 06/03/10 2:15PM
  • turner120995
    Happy Birthday!
    by turner120995 at 06/03/10 3:37PM
  • jaydon
    Happy Birthday Jen!
    by jaydon at 06/03/10 4:10PM
  • derbydi
    Happy Birthday!!!
    by derbydi at 06/03/10 5:10PM
  • matthew_and_brooke
    Happy Birthday, Jen. :)
    by matthew_and_brooke at 06/03/10 7:45PM
  • mrs_rosshead
    Happy Birthday! Have a great day! :)
    by mrs_rosshead at 06/04/10 12:05AM
  • bruski
    Yes indeed, it may not be your birthday HERE (Kentucky) right now, but it is still your birthday THERE! Happy Happy! Hope it was a good one!
    by bruski at 06/04/10 12:21AM
  • schmidtkins
    Happy Birthday!
    by schmidtkins at 06/06/10 1:11AM

We Arrived

Then we left and celebrated Christmas with the parents. Saturday was a semi-short travel day. We left the hotel around 11 ish after a morning run, breakfast at the hotel and the regularly schedule Starbucks stop. The ride through Oregon was pretty. John and I both saw the signs for Crater Lake and were tempted to stop. I didn't say anything, because I knew he was tired and wanted to get on with the trip. He didn't say anything because he thought there might be a lot of ice on the ground (I think he wanted to avoid the potential fall number 2). So neither of us found out til after the trip that we had each been tempted to stop. I guess we will have a good excuse for a road trip sometime. We stopped in Portland for lunch. He suprised me by stopping at Sweet Tomatoes. Sweet Tomatoes is a salad buffet restaurant. It is one of the places that we both enjoy. I didn't know there were any in the Northwest, but now I know we will be able to visit Sweet Tomatoes if we decide to take a trip down to Portland. Portland is 3 hours away from Poulsbo.
We enjoyed AM services in Bremerton, then made a mad dash back to Poulsbo to drop off the apartment application, and reorganize our possesssions for the trip to TX, GA, and FL. We took the Ferry across to Seattle, then took the light rail to the airport. We took a flight that got us into Houston about 1 AM Monday morning. We enjoyed a great visit with my parents. Now we are in Atlanta visiting with John's family. He was able to lead singing at Embry Hills this AM and his uncle preached. It has been very nice to enjoy a relaxing time with our families. We will fly back on Tuesday. This is when the massive packing (or throwing/giving things away) begins.
  • themother
    We enjoyed having you here -- hope to see you a week from tomorrow! Maybe we can help with that massive packing (or whatever).
    by themother at 12/29/09 10:18PM
  • schmidtkins
    Wow, you have had quite an adventure. So glad for you that you took this trip... you will never forget it, and have made some special memories together.
    by schmidtkins at 12/31/09 9:32AM

Day 7- Almost there!

Day 7- Today was another well deserved slow morning. We just got on the road, after a good nights rest, a good breakfast and the regularly schedule AM Starbucks run. Now we are driving through the hills of Oregon. It is beautiful! It was very nice this morning when we were able to set Poulsbo as the final destination. Tonight the little white car will be in Washington. Although, at this point it could be the little gray car. We are almost there! Tomorrow, we will go to church in Bremerton and the fly out to Texas after evening services. It will be great to enjoy the holiday time with our families.
  • matthew_and_brooke
    Abigail looked at a map, and was very impressed with how big your trip was.
    by matthew_and_brooke at 12/19/09 6:09PM
  • mrs_rosshead
    Glad the weather wasn't difficult for your drive up I-5 through Oregon! : ) The first time we drove that, I brought a book to read, but couldn't stop looking at how beautiful it was!
    Glad you arrived safely in Poulsbo. We'll thank our Father for those answered prayers. : )
    by mrs_rosshead at 12/20/09 11:53AM
  • themother
    Glad to know you're safely in Texas! Looking forward to having you here later in the week!
    by themother at 12/21/09 10:05PM

Wow, Are we really going to be traveling for 7 + days?

This trip seems to be never ending. John and I are both getting a little tired of living out of suitcases and constantly digging things out of the back seat. The back seat has so much stuff in it, that when we open either of the two back doors, we have to watch for falling items. We also have to make sure that we adjust the side view mirrors before we begin backing out- sometime you can see out of the rear view mirror, other times- not so much. I have noticed that as we drive the stuff in the back seat tends to slide so at the end of the day, we have more viewing space in the rear view mirror. But overall, it has been a good trip.

Day ?- Thursday. I can't keep my days straight anymore. Trying to keep up with what time zone we are in is almost a lost cause. John has been very patient in helping me remember. Thursday we woke up in Sedona, AR. I went running before the sunrise. As the sun rose, I was able to take in some of the amazing scenery, but I did not get to enjoy it completley until John and I began the days drive. We enjoyed the drive through Sedona and the back roads on the way to the Grand Canyon. To me, the scenery was amazing, but also amazing was the lack of towns and people. The towns were very few and far between in Arizona. This made bathroom/food breaks a little difficult. Dad's cooking saved us for lunch. We were able to eat the Bar-B-Que that he had provided earlier in the week. The Grand Canyon was nice, but I didn't enjoy it as much as some of the other places John and I have visited. I was more impressed with Mount Rainer, Niagra Falls, and the Northeast and Northwest coastline than the Grand Canyon. Arizona is pretty, but not my favorite place. It didn't help that I slipped on the ice at the end of the day. Poor John was looking forward to sunset at the Grand Canyon. I fell so hard, it is a wonder that I didn't break anything. That put a damper on the rest of the evening so neither of us enjoyed the sunset. We drove to Bakersfield, CA after we left the Grand Canyon. We had anticipated a late night, but we didn't expect to get in at 2:30 AM, and that was after gaining an hour for moving into the Pacific time zone. It was very odd to see Al Roker on the early show at 3 in the morning and realizing that the east coast was waking up at 6 AM when John and I were just going to sleep.

Day 6- I think. We got a late start this AM. The late night made it hard to get moving. Both of us are a little sleep deprived. I am a little sore. Moving is possible, but much slower than my normal speed. The internet connection was a little slow as well. It took John a very long time to book tonight's hotel online. We finally left around 11 AM, stopping at Quizno's for brunch. Every day we have tried to find a Quizno's for lunch or dinner, and this was the first time that there was a Quizno's on our path when we were ready to eat. The tomato basil soup was great in the cold weather. Now we are driving through California. So far, I like California. Restaurants are required to provide nutritional information. :) We drove through several different kinds of produce farms this AM. We got to see Almond trees, lemon trees, orange trees and some other unidentifiable plants. We also saw a crop dusting helicopter. John and I both were a bit suprised by it. Now we are driving through the hills of California, there is still some produce as well as a bunch of cows and some fog. Today we are going to stop at a video game store in San Francisco for John, and drive through a bit of San Francisco before heading up to Medford, OR tonight. We had planned to go over the Golden Gate Bridge, but at this point that is going to take us 3 hours out of the way, so we will have to save that for another day and another trip.
  • ttu_brandi
    haha... you like California because restaurants are required to provide nutritional information. Hang in there, your cross country trip is almost over! Sorry you took a fall, hope it wasn't too bad. See you Sunday! Or Monday morning. :)
    by ttu_brandi at 12/18/09 8:08PM
  • themother
    We hope you're getting better from your fall. I'm sure being in the car so much isn't helping the soreness. Hang in there!
    by themother at 12/18/09 10:43PM
  • uptownwmn
    Yeah, moving is still interestng, but not impossible. Just slow. I really hope I didn't do permanent damage, but I don't want to go to a Doctor, because I am in between jobs, so I am in between insurance. Plus, I don't like going to the doctor to begin with. I am just going to deal with it for a few more days. Maybe my chiropractor friend will be able to help.
    by uptownwmn at 12/19/09 2:45PM