Planning and story time

Wedding planning sucks.

Seriously, I don't understand how some people do this for a JOB.  I like looking at pictures of pretty weddings, but when it comes down to it, all I really want is to be married to the love of my life and have some pretty/goofy pictures to show our children someday.

(I'd also like to dance with my friends and family, but most churches don't allow dancing and I don't want the ceremony and reception in different places so that's a snag.)

We've picked colors, the date and our officiant....and that's about it.  I'm pretty sure I know where we'll end up having the ceremony, I'm just holding off making it official until we talk to them to see if they allow dancing.  It probably won't change anything either way, but it'll make me feel better I guess.

OH!  I have picked one more teensy wedding detail....MY DRESS!!  I did some googling and found a wedding dress consignment shop in Portland.  I'll put a shameless plug here because they were FANTASTIC and the staff were so helpful in helping me find my perfect dress and imagine dress' potential post-alteration (I'm not saying my dress needs to be altered, but some of the other dresses I tried on definitely would have needed some major work to get them to fit my vision).  Brides for a Cause (http://bridesforacause.com/) is a consignment shop that receives used and new dresses from individuals, designers and stores.  They house them in this huge (well, it wasn't that huge) warehouse like store and sell them for a steal!  (I think my dress retails for at least 4x what I paid for it.)  Proceeds go to a charity that grants wedding wishes for couples with terminal illnesses.  What a heart melter!

Anyways, I went to this store with Stephens mom and little sister, Rachel on Sunday.  Honestly, I didn't think I would find anything that day, but I wanted to at least start looking.  When I got to the store I was so overwhelmed I didn't think I'd find even one dress to try on!  Rachel and Gail convinced me to pick a couple out and try them on.  I was AMAZED that I liked them so much more on my body than on the rack!  It ended up being a really tough decision, and I was debating between 3 dresses.  I couldn't choose, it was so difficult...then one of the sales ladies mentioned that I could add a little bling to one of the dresses...and I fell in love.  I knew that sparkle was what the dress was missing and adding that would make it absolutely perfect.  I tried the dress on again with my hair down instead of up.  I almost cried.  I'm not exaggerating when I tell you that this dress is sheer perfection, and was probably made just for me.  It's everything I didn't know I wanted.  In fact, I HATED this dress on the rack.  I didn't want to try it on at all.  I'm so glad I did!

I wish I could post you a picture of the dress, but I've deleted them all from my phone and computer.  I'm just too tempted to show Stephen, even though I do really want it to be a surprise.  I showed him one picture of a dress I tried on and DEFINITELY didn't pick and boy am I glad I didn't pick that one.  He didn't seem impressed even though it was probably the most *impressive and *traditional dress I tried on that day.  It also was not me.  But it's not the one I got so that's Okay.

I'm rambling again.  I should go.  BUT I just want to share one more little story.  Yesterday I got to go home for a bit because one of my clients cancelled.  I went to the store, got my nails done and then went home to drop stuff off before going back for my last client.  Cue ominous music.  The wind had blown my door open.  Bootsie was sitting pretty on the couch as if to say "I'm not going out there again!" but Linus was nowhere to be found.  I ran around outside calling for him for a good 10 minutes before dashing back to work.  I was distraught and 2 minutes down the road when Stephen called to ask if I had let Linus out because he'd found him shivering in the trees.  What are the odds?   This man found my cat before I had even told him he was missing!  I love it!  Then, I got home later that evening to find my dishes washed (I'd complained the night before that I wasn't looking forward to having to do the dishes after work) and the garbage taken out.  I love this man.  He knows the way to my heart.

Ok, signing off for real now.  Ta-ta lovers.

The Flooding of Molly's Apartment

Ok.  So, a while ago I mentioned flooding...and then I got carried away telling the engagement story and didn't really have room in my post to address the water issue.  I'm pretty tired and bored right now, but it isn't really an appropriate time to go to bed so I'll write to you friends instead.  (I know you're out there reading this, my page-views have SOARED recently, thanks!)

I guess it was two Friday's ago.  The Friday after we got engaged.  Stephen and I were pretty pumped, and he was in a mr-fix-it mood.  He came over as soon as I got home from work and insisted that we run to Home Depot to get the bulbs to fix my light that's been out basically since I moved in.  Wow, what a guy.  He then proceeded to fix all the little things that I hadn't noticed were annoying until they were no longer present.  He repaired my fence, installed my fence birds, took out the window AC and even took care of the stink bug infestation we found under the AC.

Then we decided to look at the hot water heater.  This was a big mistake.  He basically bumped the pipe where it connected to the wall and the whole thing came off, spewing water everywhere.   After a moment of shock, I called my landlady who came down to try to locate the water shut off.  Apparently no one really knew where the shut off was for my house.  We tried to plug the pipe with fingers, towels and an old cork, but nothing worked.  Meanwhile my floor was rapidly getting covered by more and more water.  Luckily I regained my brain quick enough to move the boxes of Christmas presents from my family out of the flood.  I had to rescue poor Linus from the bathroom where he'd hidden in an attempt to avoid the water.

We opened all the doors and tried to bail water out that way until the shut off could be located.  We called Stephen's dad to come help us and even then it was a good 30 minutes before we finally turned off the water to the entire property, and then eventually located the water shut off 2-feet underground with no mechanism to actually turn it off.  Wow.

Clean up was kind of miserable.  We used a giant fan to dry things out.  We used a million towels to sop up water and wring it out elsewhere.  The rug was beyond soaked.  BUT.  I look at this as a blessing in disguise.  Stephen's dad fixed the pipe connecting the water heater to the wall.  The old work was crumbly and was going to break at some time anyways (at least it happened while all of us were home and not while I was at work or something).  He also fabricated a water shut off so that we can turn off the water should a similar situation arise.  Also, I figure if Stephen and I can get through that ordeal, we can probably get through anything.

Man I love this man.  He's pretty swell.  I'm also so fortunate to have been so readily taken in by his family.  I stayed at their house for 2 days until the glue set and we could turn my heat and water back on.

Engagement & Flooding

So, I kind of left you guys hanging with the promise of an engagement story.  Sorry.  Things got REALLY busy towards the end of the week and I’m only now finding the time to sit down and write it all out!  (You’re probably also wondering about the second half of my title, I’ll get there in due time.)

So, I told you the story about Monday’s adventure to Jared's.  Wow, looking back I really applaud Stephen for not ruining the surprise then and there!

That evening, Stephen told me that the reason he had called me at work that afternoon was because he was trying to surprise me with a special dinner at Multnomah Falls.  (I never mentioned it on this blog, but Multnomah Falls is one of the reasons I fell in love with Oregon.  It's just so beautiful.  Well, as beautiful as it is in the Spring, it's even more beautiful half frozen in the Fall/Winter.)  I usually work til 4 on Tuesdays, but the idea of going to the falls was tempting enough that I worked on finding someone to cover my last client.  Boy, am I glad that I did!

I got stuck in traffic on my way home, and arrived at my house at the time that I had told Stephen that I would be ready to leave by.  I wasn’t sure what to expect from the evening, but dressed warmly (but elegantly) in preparation of hiking the falls.

We got to the Falls with just enough time to walk up to the bridge (which I was OK with since it was a lot colder than I anticipated and I would have frozen if we’d hiked much further).  We took some pictures, said some cheesy things about how beautiful it was and went to the lodge for dinner.  

I had called ahead for a reservation, but it really wasn’t necessary.  We were probably the only two customers in the Lodge.  We sat down and as I hung my coat on the back of my chair Stephen pulled something out of his jacket pocket.  "You always say I don't write to you enough...so here.”  (I will note here that he was wearing a bizarre rain jacket under his nice pea coat.  He had commented about it in the car, but I hadn’t really paid attention to the fact that the jacket was out of place…more on the jacket later…)

Stephen handed me a folded up letter, warning me not to skip ahead and to read it form the beginning (he knows me all too well).  I started reading the letter with a sense of puzzlement and excitement.  I won’t publish the letter on here, but it basically started off with him writing about how much he’d enjoyed our time getting to know each other, that he cared for me very much, etc. etc. etc.

Halfway through the letter he pulled a small box out of his jacket and placed it on the table.  My heart skipped a beat, but I forced myself to focus on reading the letter instead of the ominous box on the table.  Let’s just say the letter got delightfully mushy and  showcased many of the things I love about this man.  He quoted Proverbs 31, noting that he had found that excellent wife.  I was really having trouble reading at this point.  Throughout my reading of the letter Stephen had been silent, and silent he remained.  The letter ended with the million dollar question.  Will you marry me?

I looked up, hardly believing what I was reading.  I looked Stephen dead in the eye and quietly asked if he was for serious.  I opened the box and saw a ring.  Stephen just kind of looked at me, waiting for a reply.  Of course it was a hundred times “yes!”

Afterwards I couldn’t really believe this was all real.  I was speechless for a good twenty minutes; though I did manage to call my family and Karen to share my news.  Even now, almost a week later i can’t believe it.  I know people are concerned that this was fast; after all we only dated for < 2 months.  I guess it’s true what they say though—when you know, you know.  We both feel as if we’ve known each other forever.  Never in my life have I been so sure of a decision.  I knew that God brought me across the country for a reason, and Stephen was that reason.  

Oh yeah, about the jacket.  I guess it was the only jacket he had that would properly conceal the ring/box.  

Well, peace out folks.  I guess the flooding story will have to wait for another day.  This post is getting too long for my liking.  

He's a keeper

Hey friends.  I have an announcement for you.

I'M ENGAGED!

Yes, you saw the facebook post correctly; yes, you read that right.  The girl who swore she'd become an old maid with 20 cats found a man who loves her--not in spite--but because of all her quirks.

This only happened last night and I'm still kind of blown away.  He totally blind-sided me and I didn't see it coming (if you know me, you know how hard it is to surprise me.  Somehow this man manages to surprise and amaze me every day.).

So, don't you worry, the full story and details will be up soon.  I want to tell my parents the details before I blast them over the internet though.  :)  I can share one short story though, to explain why I am not wearing my ring right now...

So, Monday night Stephen and I go to Sushi Land.  This is the restaurant we went to on our first date so it holds a special place in my heart (and I assume his).  It's not a fancy place, but we love it.  As we're driving up he casually asks if I want to look at rings at Jarods just for funsies.  Of course I said yes.  I've always wanted to shop for things I can't afford while convincing the sales person that I can afford it.  We went in and I tried on a bunch of rings and the sales man tried to convince us to get a ring right then.  "Ha ha ha.  Just kidding, we're looking for funsies!"  We went back to his house, hung out then went our separate ways for bed.  I couldn't stop thinking about one ring though, and had to look it up at like 3 am because I didn't want to forget which one I liked (you know, just in case).  I screen shotted the ring and texted it to Stephen "In case you want to remember the ring. ;)"

Well, it turns out he'd had my ring for a week already (the rose gold one posted on facebook).  We had both fallen in love with the one I tried on that night though.  So...long story short, he's returning the original ring today and getting the one we picked out "just for funsies".  So don't be alarmed when you see a different ring in all the other pictures.  He did good, he just didn't anticipate us falling in love with a completely different style ring.  He could have given me a twist tie ring for all I care; I'm just excited to start this journey with the man I love.

Turkey day and smiling

So.  My last two posts were downers.  Sorry about that.  This week was weird since we had/have Thursday and Friday off, so it felt longer than three days should have felt.  However my week got progressively better since my last post.

Stephen surprised me with flowers again on Tuesday.  I'd had some particularly rough sessions that day, and the flowers are beautiful.  I can't even express how much little things like that mean to me.  Ugh.  So mushy.  Much feelings.

I'd fully expected to be sad all day on Thanksgiving, but it was actually a great day.  I skyped with my family in the morning and it was almost like being at home, except that I could only see a couple of them in the frame at a time.  Haha.  I also got to facetime with them while they were at the neighbors house, and Stephen was able to join me for that.  It's kind of bizarre introducing people over video chat, but it's also amazingly cool.  Isn't technology great?

My new glasses came in the mail on Wednesday, but I wasn't able to get them from my landlady until yesterday.  I am totally obsessed with them.  They make not having contacts okay (I just have't gotten around to ordering them yet).

Stephen had been growing this weird beard/mustache thing for the past few weeks.  Usually I'm a fan of facial hair, but I'm just not sure how I feel about it on him.  Luckily he shaved yesterday, but I must say, I could get used to just the mustache...maybe...

We drove 45 minutes south to his sister's house in Salem.  There seem to be several repeat town names out here that remind me of home.  I actually had someone comment to me the other day (a grown adult, mind you...with a child) that they only recently realized that the Salem witch trials didn't take place in Salem Oregon.  HAH.  Was Oregon even *discovered back then?  I should look that up at some point...Anyways...

Above is Stephen's sister Sarah with her cutie-patootie baby.  She is seriously one of the happiest babies I've met.  SO cute.  It was really great meeting more of the clan, and eating delicious food.  I can't stop thinking about how blessed I am.  I knew God was orchestrating my cross country move, but wow, His plan was much more detailed than I initially thought.  To think that I was originally going to move in with a craigslist rando but instead ended up next door to such a fabulous family?  What would my life be like right now if I had stuck with my original housing plans?  What if I had stayed in Boston?  

I don't want to think about that.  I am perfectly content with how my life is right here, right now.  

God is good.

Life is great.

Today

Today I miss home.

I miss my family.

I miss my friends.

I miss rude Bostonians.

I miss my Karen.

I miss Dunkin Donuts iced coffee.

I miss my students.

I miss familiar streets.

I miss Machine Mondays.

I miss a lot.

Molly had a bad day

So, I started thinking of this post last night, but it's taken me a full 24 hours to think clearly enough to actually write it coherently.

Yesterday I had a bad day.

So there's this guy..

Ok blog-o-sphere.  Those of you who follow me on twitter, instagram or facebook have probably been wondering this for a while, so I'm just going to put it all out there.  Literally the day after I decided I would give up on the male-species and become an old lonely cat-owning spinster, I met this guy.  The details would probably bore you, but let's just establish that he's quite a nice guy.  He also happens to live precisely one backyard away from my front door which is pretty convenient.

His name is Stephen.

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Now, you all know that I'm not the kind of girl to just randomly talk about guys, so you can probably guess that this is going to be a short post.  There really isn't much for me to say that wouldn't be overly personal or just plain weird...but yeah.  He's a pretty great guy, he loves God, is great with little kids and makes me laugh pretty much all the time. He also makes more strange faces than I do, which is a pretty rare find.

The cat still doesn't know what to think, but has gradually grown to accept Stephen as an acceptable visitor in the house.

I don't know where this post is going; I'm pretty tired because I woke up at 4:30am because of the time change (don't ask me why my brain was ready to wake up at 5:30am, it just was) and had a pretty full day.

Stephen was too engrossed in watching Vine videos to notice (or maybe care?) that I graffitied his legs.  I'm so clever.

We skyped with my parents this afternoon and that was pretty terrific.  I think when I lived away from home, but still in MA, I took for granted the ability to drive 45 minutes and visit with my family.  I've been trying to make a more conscious effort to schedule times to facetime and skype with my family, and it's been totally awesome just getting to see their faces and hear their voices.  The internet/technology is not always our friend (either my end or their end causes the picture to blur and the signal to stall out) but that only makes the moments it does work seem all the more precious.

Oh yeah, and I also got to dress up at work this year for halloween.  You know how much I love dressing up in costumes!  I totally forgot that I would be able to dress up this year, though, and didn't think about my costume until Thursday night.  I ended up going to a thrift store and buying a child's cat costume for $1.50.  The tail was small enough to make a comfortable headband for a small child, so I just wore the ears and bow tie.  I think I turned out pretty darn cute, if I do say so myself.  I got to wear the costume a second and third time at my church's harvest festival and again at AWANA tonight.  I also went grocery shopping in my costume (tonight, so days after Halloween) and no one seemed to care because Oregon is cool like that.

So, yeah...there's this guy, and we make each other laugh and each think the other is a pretty swell human being.  Now don't get all excited, we're just dating, but I thought you all should meet him.  Maybe I'll try to talk him into doing a guest post, but considering the kindred spirit that he is, it would probably just dissolve into rambling like my posts inevitably do.

Ta-ta, you beautiful person, you.

LINUS

So.  I got the cat!  He's a 5 month old brown/black shorthair cat.  He is the absolute cutest kitten I've ever seen (see Bootsie, you can still be the cutest adult/elderly cat).  Stephen came with me to pick him out, it was SUCH a difficult choice.  If I'd had the room (and disposable income) I totally would have brought home 2 or 3 cats.

It's kind of a creepy picture of me, but boy does Linus look GOOD.  He's such a handsome kitten.  He has both stripes and spots, so he's kind of like a....chee-ger?  Ti-tah?  Whatever he is, he's just amazing and so cute and cuddly.  I could go on forever, but then you'd just laugh at how much of a crazy cat lady I am (though I've been told that 3+ is what makes a person a crazy cat lady, so I'm not quite there yet).

I haven't been studying as much as I should be this past week or so, so I'm going to take advantage of waking up early and get to studying!!! (After a cuddle break....)

Kisses, peace.

October, Exams, and turning 25

I warned you I'm terrible at these things.




October has been a big month so far.  I spent something like 15 hours studying flashcards, and at least that much reading my graduate textbooks in preparation for this BCBA exam.  I don't quite know how my brain hasn't exploded from the sheer amount of information yet.  I finally scheduled my exam, which is on the 29th of November.  Yes, I am freaking out, but I also recognize that I am likely over preparing and will probably do fine/great/fantastic.

I went to an Anberlin concert with Ariel.  It was so epic, I can't even put it into words.  I wish I had seen them sooner rather than on one of their last stops of their last ever tour.  I really appreciated how sincere the lead singer (and really the whole band) was and how much he was in awe of how much the crowd loved the music.  Ugh.  I wish I could go back and relive it.  Hands down, this was the best concert I've ever been to.  I wish you could have been there too, because it was truly just that epic.  I'm probably repeating myself a lot here, but YOU JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND...THEY WERE THAT AMAZING!!!!

This month I rejoined AWANA as a leader.  I didn't realize how much I missed working with/hanging out with typical children until I was inside a swarm of them.  I love my special needs kids, but typical kids are great too.  I remember being in AWANA, youth group, sunday school, etc. and being in awe of the "adults" (college age kids, really) who were just SO COOL.  Not to toot my own coolness horn, but I feel like I've finally achieved that status among children.  I finally look old enough (seriously, until recently, some people were convinced I was 18 or whatever) and am weird enough that I'm kind of cool.  

I also turned 25 this month.  It was kind of really sad.  Like, much sadder than I expected.  Of course I realized what I was doing when I moved 3000 miles away from 90% of the people I know and love, but I didn't really think about how that would affect days/events that I take for granted.  If you know me, you know that I'm not really a birthday or celebration person.  I LOVE celebrating other people.  I LOVE finding gifts that are just so perfect for someone I know.  BUT I HATE being the center of attention on my birthday or Christmas or any other gift-giving holiday.  It just makes me feel so awkward.  Don't get me wrong, I really appreciate what people do for me, I'd just rather do it for them rather than them for me.  That being said, I was kind of surprised by how much I missed being near my family for my birthday.  I got to skype with them a couple days before, and that was great, but I do miss them (more than I would probably admit outloud, but I know some of them read this blog so they'll find out that way I guess) and it was weird being away.  I went out for a birthday drink with a couple co-workers after work (turns out 3 of us share the same birthday!) and went home, ready to just wallow in misery.  Flash forward to the evening.  I'd just like to send a shout out to my homeboy Stephen who managed to accomplish a feat no one has ever accomplished in my 25 years.  He and his family somehow managed to throw me a surprise party on my actual birthday and I had NO clue that was going to happen.  It wasn't a huge ordeal, it was his family and Bryce's family, but it meant so much to me.  It was a genuine surprise and really made my day.  

A year ago today I adopted my first cat, Bootsie.  I love him so much it's almost embarrassing.  I thought I had lost him forever when he escaped the other day, but thank God he returned to me.  I'm not altogether sure (or as sure as I was a year ago) that I'm going to become a crazy, lonely, cat lady, but I do know that my family is not quite complete.  I plan on getting Bootsie a pal sometime this month or the next, and it's going to be fantastic.  Stay tuned, the next time I update I will probably have this cat and it will be so cute.

Happy Halloween!

Update

What's up nerds!?  Portlandia is still as wonderful as ever and I'm really starting to get into the swing of things.  Things are still a little hectic at work since I don't have a set schedule yet (but I've been told it's coming soon!) but I'm gradually learning how things work out here and getting used to the new programs and adjusting to the younger, smaller, clients.  It doesn't hurt that they're all so stinking cute that I just want to bring them home in my pockets (is that a creepy thing to say?  Oh well...).

I'm also adjusting to my new church.  I wasn't sure if this would be the one when I first arrived, but so far it's seeming like a good fit.  There aren't a ton of people my age, but there's a decent group to hang out with.  I'm also so busy studying for this BCBA exam that I don't have an abundance of time to hang out anyways!  Haha.  Speaking of which, I signed up for the absolute LAST possible date to take the exam in my area, so November 29th it is!  I am excited and terrified at the same time.  So much is riding on this one, four-hour test. I know that all of the information is in my brain somewhere, it will just be a matter of calming down enough that I can make use of that information.  Prayers, hugs and encouragement is, of course, appreciated!

I finally met my backyard neighbors this past week.  They're pretty great, plus they have the cutest (sorry Bailey!) golden retriever who just so happens to love me.  He's seriously such a sweet dog, I love being able to hop the fence to get my dog fix since I don't have the room or time for one in my house.

Seriously, look at this cutie!  Awwwwww.

One scary event that's rapidly approaching is my 25th birthday!  Oh.  My.  Gosh.  I can't believe it.  I'm going to be a quarter of a century.  I have like 35 years left before I consider myself too old to function (no offense to those 60+ year olds out there.  I just don't think I'd make a very good old person).  I looked up a bunch of bucket lists and challenges of what to accomplish before 25 and I haven't finished many of them...obtain a bachelors degree, check.  earn a masters of science, check.  get married?  nope.  own stock?  nope.  have your finances in order? NOPE.  AHHH.  I'm running out of time!!!  In all seriousness though, if I honestly look back on my last 25 years, I have accomplished a lot....I just traveled across the country without a job or solid plan and everything worked out.  I know a lot of people who haven't lived outside the zip code they were born in, so I guess taken from that perspective that was a HUGE deal.  Hmm...  It's still a scary thing turning 25...but I suppose I'll just have to check in with you again once I'm actually 25.  2 more days, yo.

1 month

This past Friday makes exactly 1 month since Bootsie and I arrived in Oregon.  I don't think it's a coincidence that it was also the first day Oregon really felt like home.  Yeah, my house still isn't quite set up (I may finally have a kitchen table, but I'm still sleeping on a floor mattress and storing socks and underwear under the sink!) but I finally feel like I've arrived.

I managed to drive to and from work on Friday without my GPS (which is a HUGE deal!) and am slowly settling into what I think will be my home church.  I still don't know a ton of people, but I've been able to catch up with old friends and it's been truly refreshing to see the ways we've all changed over the years, yet in some ways remain the same.  I'm also tremendously grateful to these old friends who have welcomed me with open arms and open invitations, and incredibly blessed to have found new faces who have welcomed this strange Bostonian into their lives without batting an eye.  Yes, it's been a little strange trying to explain exactly why I left a stable job, circles of friends and my entire family to move 3000 miles without a job...but whatever.  I don't think I'll even know why I'm here for another few years at least.  I just know that I'm here, and now I'm finally here.

My immune system was pretty shot from having such little human contact for the past month, plus the fact that all the little cherubs at work have snotty noses (OK, not really but put 10+ children together and one of them is bound to be carrying some sort of germ) meant that I caught a terrible cold this weekend.  I was out late on Friday and felt fine, but work up at 11am on Saturday feeling like I'd been hit by a truck.  8 cups of tea, 1/4 cup of local honey, 7 hours of Netflix binging and 12 hours of sleep later and I was feeling Okay enough this morning to go to church.  I cleaned the entire house when I got home, drank at least a gallon of tea, studied Ethics in the sunshine and prepared most of my lunches for the upcoming week.  I don't want to jinx myself, but I think I may kick this thing if I get a good enough sleep tonight.  (Which also means I should stop rambling and just go to bed already, even though it's only 8pm.)

I'll leave you with a picture I took this afternoon.  Lately I've been obsessed with the Oregon sky.  It's probably the same sky as back home (in fact I know it's the same sky, even dumb Sarah from Newsies makes the astute observation that NY sees the same sky as Santa Fe) but I just can't stop looking at it.  I think I'm mostly just nervous that one of these days I'm going to look back down at the road and realize I'm driving to work on route 9 and all of this has just been a dream.  If it is a dream, I really don't want to wake up.  I never thought I could actually do this, but somehow I am.  God gave me a dream, He drove me across the country, found me a house, a job, and lots of new people to meet.  I can't wait to see what's next.

Thoughts on Oregon

Now that I've been in Oregon for a couple weeks, I feel compelled to publish some of my random thoughts regarding the differences (or at least my subjective impression of differences) between here and Boston.

• Drivers are much more courteous here (like, people STOP to let you make a right or left turn out of a driveway...what's up with that?!?!?!)
• There is no humidity.  Stop, I know you're going to try to convince me this is the most humid Oregon's been in years, but just stop.
• Roads can be VERY steep.  My poor baby car hates it.
• A lot of roads have very abrupt deep ditches on either side of them (especially out in the boondocks where I live).  It's kind of scary, but I assume they're for drainage purposes?
• I live in the boondocks (like, dirt roads, farmland, cattle and horses boondocks) but can reach downtown in maybe 15 minutes without traffic.  If I drive 20 minutes in the other direction I can see beautiful trees and waterfalls...WHAT?!
• There are a LOT of churches out here...like maybe 100 within 7 minutes of my house.  It's really bizarre.
• Everyone loves the Ducks.  I've heard some people like the Beavers (rival football team) but I've seen maybe 1 Beaver hat for every 100 Ducks.
• Boston is OLD.  In fact, Massachusetts in general is old.  I just found out that the town I live in has only been a town for like 7 years.  I didn't even know we were still naming new towns!!
• You can't pump your own gas in Oregon.  I knew this from my previous trips out, but it still confuses me.  Why can't I pump my own gas?  Are you afraid I'll do it wrong?  How much trouble will I really be in if I just sneak out and pump it myself?

I'm sure I have more random thoughts...but I can't think of them right now.  I'll let you know.

Also, I can officially go to work in 8 days.  I'm so excited!

Football

Tonight I was invited to watch a football game with an old friend.  It was tough giving up my nightly visit to the gym (HAH!  not tough at all) but of course I had to go.  Silly me, I thought we were going to watch a game on TV, but we actually went to a high school game!  Now, I haven't been to a college football game since...well...high school...and I haven't been to a live sports game since that time I watched hockey in Canada on our Quebec exchange trip.  HOWEVER, it was actually a lot of fun and our team SMOKED the competition.  (It was actually kind of sad, they didn't score until the 4th quarter, and they missed both field goals.)  I feel like I'm finally settling in here, and that's pretty great.

Oh yeah, and I finally got the job!  I'll be working at BB as an ABA Therapist.  I'm super pumped, I'll be working with the little guys, which is different from what I've been doing for the past 3 years, but it's an age that I absolutely adore, and early intervention is super important when addressing individuals with autism.

I told you I was bad at writing blogs...

So, guys, I apologize.  I warned you that I wasn't very good at keeping up with blogs.  I'm really tired right now (my body hasn't quite adjusted to the time change) so I'm just going to upload all the photos from my trip and caption the ones I feel like captioning.

From my lovely roommates in 115!

Ohio!

Safely arrived in Ohio with this bundle of joy. :).  Tomorrow is St. Louis!!!

MONDAY!

Well, 1/5 of my journey is complete, I can't believe it! It still feels kind of surreal, like tomorrow I'll wake up at my parents house and realize these past 3 years have been a dream...but they're not! I'm really a MS-ABA and am moving to my dream location, OREGON!! 

My day started REALLY early, like, 3am and I can't sleep early. I did the most logical thing I could think of, and packed my car and left Newton MA at 4am--running on nothing but a glass of water and 3 onion rings (Mmm, wish I had more of those). I am so thankful to the people (cough, Chris, cough) who encouraged me to make an early start. I hit ZERO traffic and made such good time on my drive that I was able to stop and nap in PA twice (that state is so freaking huge, I could have taken a third nap before finally getting to Ohio)!

Bootsie was a little angel, except for the part where he cried for an hour straight, while cuddling with his favorite toys. What a spoiled brat. Haha. All things considered though, he did so much better than I could have expected. He sat nicely with me at all the rest stops, and only managed to hide under my seat once (when I stopped to eat lunch). I wish he would walk with me at the rest stops, but I'll take what I can get. I'm sure he's so freaked out wondering what the heck I am doing and where I am taking him. (I don't even want to know what he's going to think if he realizes I had to leave behind his favorite scratching posts because they didn't fit in the car!). 

I'm going to be honest, I'm actually writing this post at a rest stop 150 miles from my final destination for the night. I just wanted to have something to do while giving Bootsie a break from his crate. I'll attach some pictures from the day, and maybe add some more information when I actually arrive...or I'll just post this and pretend that I arrived in Ohio at 3pm. Haha. 

Much love readers. Much love. 

PA

Thoughts: every state seems to have a town of Milford; also, PA is huge. I've been driving through here for hours. 

And yes, I am that girl who walks her cat at rest stops. 

300 miles down, 2800 more to go!

First rest stop

Well, almost 200 miles in and we're at our first rest stop in NY! Bootsie doesn't like the car much and cried for the first hour. Hopefully he'll get better as the days pass. Here he is, terrified at the rest stop. :( poor baby. 

Goodbye Massachusetts!

And I'm off!!! Smell you later!! Tonight's stop is Orville OH, 554 miles!!! We can do this!!! 

Time to pack

Well, it's finally arrived...today is Sunday, which means in less than 24 hours I will be on the road traveling to my new home.  It's a very surreal feeling, packing everything up and realizing that I'm driving these streets for the last time (at least the last time for a long time).  I'm currently laying on my couch wondering how in the world I'm going to fit 24 years of stuff into my tiny car.  It's seemed simple in theory, but now that it's time to actually do it I'm dubious.  This is also probably also due to the fact that I'm starving and waiting for food to arrive, and I'm nervous about actually leaving and want to put off the final packing until the last second.  My food will arrive soon, though, and I'll hopefully start moving.

I may be 24, but I LOVE YOU MOMMY.

Last night was my final goodbye to my wonderful coworkers and students.  I have loved getting to know these people during my 3 years at NECC and will miss them greatly!

To the Japanese mother I never knew I had.  Thanks for always being there for me, even when I was super obnoxious or sick or grumpy.  Love you!!!  There will always be a spot for you in my house, wherever I may be!  (Bootsie will keep it warm for you).

I said goodbye to my folks on Thursday and I didn't realize how hard it would be to say goodbye and then have this huge delay before my actual departure.  I though it would maybe make it easier, but it probably won't. I love you guys!

I don't tell my parents enough how much I love and appreciate everything they've done for me.  I would not be who and where I am today without their unending love and support.  <333  

To the best friend I never knew I was missing.  We never take good pictures together, but we sure are swell looking human beings.  

My NEFC children will always have a very special place in my heart.  <3

I still can't believe that my baby sister is all grown up and like a woman now.  I remember when we used to fight, and I wanted to drop her when she came back from the hospital.  I wouldn't trade my friendship with this sister for the world. Love you sis!  Come visit me all the time, I'll even set up a special bed just for you.  It'll be waiting.

I am so proud of my brother and the man he is becoming.  <3

We were the first in Allen's lab; as we go our separate ways, I know that we will all be super successful in all that we do!  ABA!!! 

I don't really have pictures of my sister and her husband, but this sums them up perfectly.  We don't see each other much, but I'll miss your random quirks!

Apt 625--roomies for life.  I don't care that we're going to be 3000 miles away, we're still roommates and I love you.

Cheers to 3 of the most wonderful ladies!

To my wonderful NCR crew, I never got a picture with all of you, but I will miss each and every one of you greatly!  You taught me so much, and <3.

I can't find a good picture of me and Chris, so I'll just have to use a picture of me and Natalie instead.  Thanks for not hating me after I was the meanest shift manager/trainer ever.  You will do great!!!

Goals

What's the deal???

Hey guys!  Bonjour!  Hola!  WoOo!!

So, every 6 months or so, I start a blog.  I never tell anyone that I've started a blog, and I usually post about 2 entries before giving up.  I then delete said blog, create a new one and the cycle continues.  This time is different.  This coming Monday I am starting my 3000+ mile journey from Boston MA to Portland OR. (Well, Newton MA to Damascus OR, but big cities are more relevant.)  I'll probably be posting random updates across my many social networks (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, etc.) but have created this blog to hopefully streamline my updates so that you can stalk me on one convenient webpage!  That is why I have created this blog, and that is why you are here today.  Yay!

Are you intrigued?  Do you want to know more about my journey?  Click ahead to read my full blog-post!