once upon a little town...

Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Wow!

Thanks, everyone, for your encouraging comments! I love how random the comments were from that last post :)

To answer your questions:

Micki- Yes, it is scary. I had no idea how much went into buying a house and starting over in a new area. We would love for you to visit. Once we get into a house, we'll have a guest room set up and ready for you and your husband!

Melanie- I'm so glad we are in closer proximity... next time we're up in the area we should get some Old Spaghetti Factory. You gotta love traditions that include tasty food.

Zoey- We miss you SO MUCH! Your comments make me laugh, and that is something I need right now. I think we should set you up with a blog of your own, don't you? I LOVE YOU!

Kelli- Thank you for the encouragement. With all that's going on, I have to remind myself not to throw up on an hourly basis. Call me sometime when things aren't crazy- I miss you, friend!

Pete- When you come to visit, if we're living in a cardboard box, we'll put an addition on just for you! Um... do you think you could squeeze into an apple box? (They give those out for free at the grocery store)

Danae- How's the new place treating you? I hope you have some good Nancy stories for us! PS- the phone company said they cut off service October 30th and said, "Maybe the new tenants are a little nutty". I had to agree with her- just a little :)

Wyndee- We are looking forward to hanging out with you guys. If we get this house, you are more than welcome to come on over!

Donna- Bertie STILL carries around that squeaky duck from John... constantly! We're still waiting to hear on the house (our offer was accepted but there is more paperwork to go through before it's finalized), and are in the process of signing over our combined financial future to brokers and lenders.

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

It's a house!


Matthew and I found a house that we will hopefully be putting in an offer on in the next day or so! I attached pictures so please feel free to give us your opinion. At this point, I feel nauseated just thinking about buying something as big as a house, so please say nice things for my sake :) It is a 2 story house with an unfinished basement (great possibilities and a really good investment I've been told). The upstairs has 3 bedrooms, a living room, a little area for our dining table, and the kitchen (about 1235 sq ft upstairs and 1000 sq ft downstairs). It was built in 2004 so it still has most of the clean, new feeling (though we'll have to do some thorough carpet cleaning b/c the single guy that lived there before had lots of parties).

Coming from flat Minnesota, these super tall decks are quite a shock from up there... but it is pretty cool to look out over such a neat area, and suprisingly we'll still be able to landscape a flat area in the back yard.

Check out that view!
It could be quite entertaining watching all of the neighbors from up there.

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Ah.... okay.

Just in case you weren't all aware of this news story from today...


There were protests at airports all across the country on Tuesday against Delta airlines, including one at HIA. Delta is under fire from breast feeding moms and their supporters after kicking a nursing mother off a Vermont flight last month.

”This is just reflective of an overall societal attitude that discriminates against breastfeeding women, and denies a basic human right to a child,” said "Salem," Steelton.

The group of moms and their children are staged a "Nurse-in" at the Delta airlines counter at HIA. It’s their response to delta's decision to kick a breastfeeding mom off a flight after she refused to cover up.

Even the littlest "lactivists" were working hard, but not for long. Security showed up saying they needed a permit to protest. So they all moved outside to continue sharing their message.

”It's time that the entire country wake up and realize that breasts are nothing to be ashamed of,” said Alexis Abeln, Enola. It's the sexual objectification of women- some say- which leads to a lack of tolerance for breastfeeding and its benefits to baby.

While this group is appalled by delta's actions, they believe the airline can still redeem itself. “I would be happy to fly Delta, if I could walk on the plane and see this symbol proudly displayed with a sign that says they welcome breastfeeding moms. I’d fly Delta every time if I saw that.”


Okay, so comments anyone?

My opinion: I think it's great that so many women still choose to feed their babies naturally.... that doesn't mean I want to watch. I agree that it was not appropriate for the airline to kick the woman off the flight, but I don't understand why she wouldn't just throw a blanket over her shoulder.

Is anyone else amused at the thought of walking into an airport today, as an unsuspecting traveler, to hundreds of women staging a 'nurse-in'? Awk-ward.

Monday, November 20, 2006

Authorization To Disclose Health Information.

Right before Matthew and I left Willmar, we ran around town requesting copies of our medical records just in case we need them out here in Oregon. I started reading mine tonight and I have to tell you, it's quite interesting to read how my doctors described me in their reports. After reading the following remarks, you'll understand why I highly recommend you do the same- even if you aren't moving and just need a pick-me-up.

08/28/90
"62 1/2 pounds. Height 55 1/2. This plots out for Cristina to be on approximately the 10th percentile in height and slightly less in the fifth percentile in weight." (In 7th grade- it's no wonder I got picked on all the time!)

08/27/94
"Chief Complaint: Foreign body, stepped on pencil.
History: Bottom of her right foot. She has a laceration .5 cm long, it is fairly deep...x-ray confirms foreign body presence... a t-shaped incision is then made...small fragment of lead is then removed, but more is suspected to be there."

05/03/95
"Cristina is a very pleasant young lady. She is thin and small with very fair skin. She has dark hair and numerous pigmented macules studded across her posterior shoulders." (macules=freckles)
"No evidence of scabies" (Wow, what a relief!)

02/01/98
"A 19-year old white female, college student, who was seen in the emergency room because of abdominal pain and found to have a presumed appendicitis and being admitted at this time."

01/15/03 (from an East Indian doctor to my normal family practice doctor)
"I had the pleasure of seeing Cristina in the GI clinic regarding her recurrent episodes of abdominal pain... thank you very much for letting me participate in her care. As you are well aware of, Cristina is a pleasant 24 year old white female..."

Aww... thanks, guys. Your reports gave me all sorts of warm fuzzies.

Sunday, November 19, 2006

House hunting

Matthew and I went house hunting with my parents yesterday- man, that was crazy! We looked at so many places that my head is still spinning. Being here is still so surreal (we HAVE only been here 2 days). I find myself missing all things Willmar. I'm sure that's normal when nothing is familiar. At least I'll try to convince myself of it.

Today we went to church with my parents, which was neat. When we got there, a woman named Sharon was greeting people as they came in the door. I noticed she had part of her arm missing, and when I approached, she took me into a big, enveloping hug. It was perfect and needed. She pressed her cheek up against mine, and I felt like I was back in Willmar getting a hug from Kathy Palke or Gail Nelson. I'm sure she has no idea how much God used her to bless me today- someone she'd never seen before.

It's raining today, so I'm not sure if we'll go out house hunting again today. I'm starting to get a little nervous about us being able to afford a house of our own- I'm sure another normal feeling for first time home owners. The housing market here is so strange- new houses are the same price as older, fixer uppers. What's that about!?! So we'll probably end up getting a new home, which I totally don't feel like I deserve, especially since my parents are currently living in a fixer-upper. We are looking forward to having our own space to decorate, after several years of ooing and ahhing at Jon&Kelli's house :)

Mike and Sally- you two are amazing! Last night we got back to my parents' house after 9 hours of house hunting, to find flowers waiting for us on the porch. We miss you! Maybe we could convince the next door neighbors to move out so we can be neighbors again. The flowers are beautiful- thank you!

Saturday, November 18, 2006

WE MADE IT!!!

So here I sit, in my parents' living room in Oregon, incredibly disoriented. The last couple of weeks were a whirlwind, but we have been so blessed throughout our journey. 3,100 miles of driving in a truck, hauling an incredibly heavy trailer was a little stressful with all of the mountains we had to pass over, but we made it in one piece without incidence! It was so wonderful being able to visit friends and family along the way.

After several nights of motels, we stopped in Phoenix, Arizona and had a great time with Rachel Ledeboer and all of her friends. We were also able to see my grandparents that I haven't seen in 6 years, and Matthew had never met- so that was pretty special. We then headed to Rebecca DeHoog's house in Southern California, and stayed with her family on their dairy. The next day we drove to Los Gatos, California to stay with Donna and John Jackson. We fell in love with that city, and had a great time with those two in their apartment. John gave our dog, Bertie, a stuffed duck that she is completely obsessed with (thanks, John)!

Thank you for your hospitality- we had a blast with all of you!

Bertie loved sleeping on my lap all 3,100 miles, and waking up to a new home everyday. Being litterbox trained, she was just getting the hang of finding patches of grass to potty on... then we take her to the southwest where grass doesn't seem to exist. The poor dog kept holding it until she'd find a suitable place. We're hoping that we'll find a house here with a big, grassy backyard just for her.

Speaking of houses, tomorrow we are going house hunting! We have some good prospects, and are excited to start the process. Until we find a place, we'll stay with my parents, who have been so welcoming. We have only been here a few hours, though!

Willmar friends, we miss you. Thank you for the amazing send-off! Jon and Kelli, thank you for inviting us to stay with you and Rayna during our final days in Willmar. Erica, Kristina, Leah, Micah, and Kelli, thank you for helping us clean our apartment before leaving... as well as the guys that helped us pack our trailer (Jon, Mike, Shane). I can't even begin to tell you all how much you blessed us- especially when I was so sick and not able to work as hard as I wanted to. Jennelle(Zoey and Jake too) and Alyssa- thank you for the sweet care packages you sent along with us! We can't wait to see you all again!!!

In the meanwhile, we'll keep you all updated on what's happening here. Lots and lots of changes!