Frozen Tundra, we have arrived!

My goodness, what a week it has been. {to say the very least}

After a horrific bout with the vehicular devices back in my beloved Texas, and getting the call from my new home that, "all systems were go!" Faja and I set-off on the looong road ahead of us...to the Frozen Tundra, my small menagerie (BigBoy, Jake, and Tevye & Little Bubba) in tow. {well, after a slight detour to BRAC for some pain killers for Jakers...his toesies hurt after his traumatic resecting of the toe nails way back - no worries, we knocked him out, but he was definitely feeling it the next day, poor puppy}

Our first stop along the way was at a rest stop just across the OK border from Texas...it was kind of depressing looking back the way we came and knowing that I wouldn't be setting foot on that piece of land for a long time. But, my thoughts were pleasantly distracted by a perfectly timed phone call from Kristen! So great. We stopped another time or two in OK, and then once, I believe, in Kansas. {"stupid Kansas..." - that's for Elaine and Brandon...ah, the great trek to CO!}

Kansas, oh Kansas. I kind of wanted to die whilst driving through that state. {sorry, Sally, the roads are just awful...} I believe we ended up having to take two detours that added, overall, a good 2hrs to our trip for day one, thus placing us at our hotel in Kansas City circa 3am...neat. Ok, a note about our hotel: I don't know if this a Kansas thing or if we just got a crumby Best Western, but they had no bath towels. Dad even went down to the front desk to see if they had any and, nope...they call hand towels bath towels...annoying. My hair took up an entire "bath towel" all to its self! Oh well, it was pretty humorous the next morning, but that night, we were both just thinking, "Really?! You've got to be kidding me..."

So, we set off the next morning sometime around 9am. {we decided sleeping in a little was allowed after the fiasco that was Tuesday's drive} From there we passed through Missouri, then Iowa - the state welcome center was basically a modernized ode to the Amish...kind of weird, I'm not gonna lie. It really wasn't all that Amish, other than having Amish in the name...it was more country knick-knack store. Oh, and this huge German Shepherd {which I'm pretty sure was crossed with wolf}, being handled by this little old man using a gentle-leader, decided he wanted to eat Jake... Puppy dog, as much as I love, and I mean that with all of my heart, shepherds and wolves, I do not take kindly to other critters wanting to eat one of mine. No worries, though, I just took Jakers around to the other side of the u-haul and all was well.

From Iowa we headed to Minnesota... Ok, I must admit that I am most definitely in beautiful country. Positively gorgeous state to drive through, and WAY NICE roads.

Here are some views from the trip:

Choctaw Casino...Ooooklahoma!


Gorgeous sunset in Kansas


Can't see it too well, but that says Fort Dodge and Waterloo!!!
I just love the way they name things...silly Iowans.



Ok, it doesn't come through too well in this, but this is of the gorgeous
fields in Iowa...I was blown away.



Welcome to Minnesota! Love the old grain silos...so neat!


ALMOST THERE! Yuh, that is indeed the u-haul in front of me you see.

We fiiiinally arrived at my new home around 5:30pm Wednesday, August 18, 2010.

We were met by Mark, my new maintenance guy! Way nice - has a direct view of my building door from his unit across the lot, so I know I'll {well, me and the rest of my building, that is} be in good hands should anything happen...not likely, but still. Mike, my property manager came and met us a little while later - he also lives on-site, but he's at the back of the building across from me. He's super cool - we get along great. Liking the on-site staff is always a plus. Just this morning I was taking Jake out for a spell and Mike was sitting on the patio outside his office and we exchanged a nice friendly/neighborly "good morning" wave.

I love my apartment complex. Within an hour or so of being here we met one of my neighbors on my floor. Super nice guy, with two gorgeous puppy dogs, actually moved here from FL to start a Christian non-profit! We ran into each other again this evening when I was on my way down to take Jake out and he asked me if I had found a new church here yet and told me I was welcome to attend with him whenever I wanted. I might go with him next Sunday. This week, I think I still want to lay low and just kind of observe on my own...haven't quite decided which church I'm going to try out, but that is next on the agenda per completing this post! This awesome looking old guy from the garden level hollered to me and Faja at one point to just prop open the doors while we were unloading the truck {we had opted to not do that since it's a secured entry door system...}...we came downstairs from dropping that load of boxes/furniture/whatever it was to find the doors nicely propped open for us - we had to laugh and decided to let it be. {goood decision - made the remainder of the moving-in process so much easier} Another guy from the second floor helped us move the last two {also the heaviest} things in the truck: the kitchen table {solid oak} and the TV {heaviest hunk of electronic ever...ok, maybe not ever, but pretty close}.

That is something I must note, the people here are indeedibly fantastic. As much as I may go on to complain about the place {and the, ehem...drivers}, I don't know that I will ever have a bad thing to say about the people as a whole. Absolutely wonderful. Take Mike, for example, he let me move-in before signing the lease since we got in a little later than we had hoped, "There's no need for you guys to get a hotel when you have a perfectly fine apartment that is ready for you to move-in to...we'll just take care of the lease whenever you guys want tomorrow. Just swing by the office when it's convenient for you." Ummm...my jaw kind of dropped to the ground when he said that. Who does that?! What property manager have you ever known who has been willing to allow someone to move-in before signing their lease?! We were more than appreciative, to say the very least.

I think we finally finished unloading somewhere between 9 and 10pm...yeah, it took the two of us forever. And, we really didn't stop but for a minute or two here and there to catch our breath and guzzle some water. Oh yeah...I chose the "hot" and "humid" week to move up. More like warm and slightly moist, haha. Not awful, but not pleasant for labor intense activity...ah well, we got it done. We thought our bodies were going to fall apart afterwards and for the next day or two. {I'm still a little sore in my arms and back...good indication that I am beyond out of shape...something I already knew, but was not so pleasantly reminded of...}

I didn't do too much unpacking that first night - we were simply beat. But the next day daddy-o and I ran a lot of errands and he hooked me up with some of the home things I was lacking.

P.S. - I have the best dad ever...I mean, he drove across the country with me and then continued to help furnish my remaining needs once we reached our destination: including, but not limited to a full supply of groceries that will definitely get me through the next month or so and my very own vacuum...Lindsey and North Bardell ladies, I returned the qirby to its rightful owners, and so it stayed in Arlington, sad, I know.

So Thursday was busy with errands and attempting to begin to get acquainted with the area {another way that Mike is beyond awesome - he's been telling me/us where to go and how to get there all week - so awesome!}, along with starting the process of washing all of the dishes, cookware, etc. and unpacking. I still have a ways to go in the unpacking realm, due to yesterday being busy and me, essentially, taking today off - much needed.

Friday was awesome and super sucky all at the same time. Our day got off to a great start with Faja dropping me off on campus so I could meet up with some of the new grad students and those faculty members who could make it. So great. I mean, really, really great. SW, my new boss/mentor/adviser/major professor was there, too, so we got to chat and visit. One thing I absolutely love about this woman is that she has, since meeting her in Indianapolis last December, greeted me with a hug every time we have seen each other. I love that, since, as I'm sure most of you know, I am a huge hug person...I kind of, in some ways, live for hugs - they're just great! But anyways, lunch was awesome, and it was really nice to see some semi-familiar faces, as I met a good number of the grad students who made it lunch, back in March at our welcome week(end). Miss Felicia, who has definitely taken on the "mother hen" role for all of us new kids helped me get all of my new employee paper work and health plan paper work settled and we also had a nice little chat...she's great. We hit off really well back in March and she spent a few years in the Austin area, so we have that insta-bond that living in Texas and loving it brings. SO great.

After all of that the pops and I ventured off to find a redbox, to return our rental from the night before, and a petsmart with a Banfield so I could get my city licenses for BigBoy and Jake...fml. Worst adventure ever. We wanted to throw Dad's blackberry/gps our the window so many times! She kept telling us we had arrived and we were in like the middle of an intersection with no Petsmart to be found anywhere...so lame. We finally gave-in to hunger and grabbed some Quizno's. We decided we give it one last go and ask the guy behind the counter if he knew where a Petsmart was, since the gps told us we should have been at one... Not only did he inform us that there was down the road about 1.5-2mi away, but he also gave us free drinks!! See? Minnesotans are nice :) Well, we made it to the Petsmart...only to be informed by befuddled receptionists that you could not simply walk into a clinic with your rabies/vax certificates in hand requesting a city license, but that you had to go City Hall to do that. Well, that's juuuust great. We spent over an hour looking for a Petsmart, and it was now well after the 6 o'clock hour, on a Friday, so City Hall was most certainly closed. We were done for the day. Except I got on a bit of an unpacking kick last night and got a bunch of stuff done around the apartment :)

Today was weird...it almost feels like it was two days. I dropped Faja off at the airport around 5am so he could head back home to the DFW...I was jealous, to say the least. Upon my return, umm, home (still weird), I went back to bed and somehow didn't get up until about 10am when BigBoy decided he was hungry and Jake wanted to go outside. Fair enough. Had I not slept-in so late, I probably would have been much more productive today, but I decided that I would take it easy and just do some research on vet clinics, churches, stuff like that.

I did call Mike and ask him about the city license stuff, and he informed me that he had just gotten his city licenses at Petsmart on Wednesday...and that, no, I do not have to go to City Hall to get them...he was very confused. So, he told me to just run by a regular private practice vet clinic and get one there. I found one I like {and it's only ~5min away!} - the doc seems legit and the staff seem to have a heart for their work - and it says right on their website that they do the licenses! I'm totally a vet clinic snob after working in one for over 3 years...oh well, my pets generally thank me for it ;)

I also chatted with Comcast about my interwebs, 'cause I had forgotten to ask them about compatible wireless routers. The guy was way helpful, and so, post Monday, I just have to wait for the box of stuffs I forgot in TX to get here, complete with router so I can have the wireless interwebs!

Today was good, too, because I actually managed some skypage alllll the way to Africa for a spell before the interwebs I'm currently stealing kicked the connection. I also got to chat with some of my lovelies back home in TX.

Peeps, I miss y'all like you would not believe. In some ways it hasn't quite sunk in that I am in a completely different state on the other side of the country, and in some ways it feels like I have already been here for my 3 year stint, and I am so ready to come home to you. I sorely miss College Station. Like, you would not believe. Kreutter, I am simply not wired for big cities - you would definitely love it here. I, in no way, feel confident enough to make it in this town. It feels like I stick out like a sore thumb no matter where I go. Especially at Cub Foods...ok, I am just not a fan of that grocery store. HEB has definitely spoiled me. When Dad and I were walking around Cub I seriously almost started bawling right in the middle of the store. They don't have the soy milk I buy, the store was less than clean, I felt like I was shopping in a shady Wal-Mart, the layout was ridiculous, they didn't even have the salad dressing I like...it's a Kraft product, for crying out loud! But...to their credit, they do have Dr. Pepper. I am definitely going to try Rainbow Foods next, though...I'll probably go tomorrow, after church, as I forgot to pick up some staples while we were at Cub.

On the bright side, Jake is absolutely loving it here. I think he knows that he is kind of in charge of the safe-keeping of everything, as he is always running a little patrol - checking the balcony door, the front door, the hallway leading to the bedroom...and then finishing it up by coming back over to where ever I am and plopping down at my feet. Have I mentioned how much I love this dog yet?? He got to meet my neighbor who started the Christian non-profit today, when we met in the hall earlier, and Jake seemed to like him - my neighbor cracked me up, "aww, he's so cute...you're a good little cow dog, aren't you, Jake??" Love it! And Jake seemed quite proud of himself, haha. Oh, he had a bit of fun today - my living room now looks as though a snow storm blew through...check this out:

He absolutely devoured his stuffed toy today - so funny to watch


Nom, nom, noms...


Look what I can do, Mom!


Oh...I'm gonna get it!! I'm gonna get it!!!!


Bam! Told ya!


How'd I do, Mom?! Did you see me??

Yeah, we had a good time with that.

He is quite the tuckered pup at the moment...too cute.

Well, tonight I actually, really cooked my first meal here. {the frozen pizza on Thursday doesn't count...} Mmmm, jambalya! So good. A little taste of home :) I also made myself a pretty little salad. Tasty!

Sorry about the cucumbers and mushrooms, B, but some people
actually like things that taste good ;)

Ok, so maybe it wasn't the most complete of meals, but I had proteins and veggies {and fruits, thanks to the tomatoes!!}...that's something, right?

Finished it off with a little bowl of this stuff:

With a name like that, I had to try it out...it's pretty tasty, yo.

Well, kids, I'm calling this post, as it has definitely hit novel length. Happy Sunday to all of you - and thank you all so, so much for the prayers, phone calls, text messages, and comments here and on facebook. What ever would I do without you?!

With love from me, the FT, BigBoy, the hissers, and of course...the happy pup, Jake

Shalom!
~MW

P.S. - I'm hoping that my next post will include "the things I love about my apartment" :)
P.P.S. - My darling Ricci, we have lots of work to do when you get here in October for our best friends-frozen tundra-palooza-extravaganza of 2010 =] Just wait 'til you see what we have to work with...the possibilities are endless!!

The Magnificat

The Magnificat is Mary's Song (Luke 1:46-55). It was the theme of our service at church today. May I just say that I love The Magnificat. I've always loved the services that incorporate The Magnificat, but this Sunday it struck me especially deeply. Take a moment and read this beautiful piece of Scripture:

And Mary said,

My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent empty away.
He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever.

I mean, wow. My dad's sermon was based on The Magnificat, too. So uplifting! Totally picked me up and gave me an awesome renewed perspective. Made me ask myself some very simple, yet often times difficult questions. For example:

When God challenges me and commands me, when He turns my world upside-down, do I respond in humble faith and obedience, like Mary?

Too often, the answer is, "no." Sometimes I try to convince myself that I am responding in humble faith and obedience, but more often than not I complain. I cry. I whine. I ask, "Why me? Why now?"

There is absolutely no reason, whatsoever, that I should respond to my Heavenly Daddy in this way.

He will give me faith, courage, and joy as he turns me into a person I never planned to be.

He is faithful. He will provide. His plan is perfect. He is all knowing, all powerful. He's my dad!

Perfect example of all of this: for those of you who haven't heard, I have found a home in the FT! It seems like a pretty legit little set-up, COMPLETE WITH DOG PARK for Jakers!! Whoop! FTW!

I'm so excited about the move now...'cause I have a place to move TO! God is SO good.

So, kind of a scattered post, but wow, God blew me away today. Totally reminded me that I'm kind of an idiot when it comes to relying on Him...'cause, yeah, He's got this. :]

And, this weekend has just been way fun. I got to hang out with some of my lovelies from high school Saturday morning - so great. And then, Saturday evening I got to visit with my darling Humphreys. They. Are. Wonderful. Especially because we got to spend our last dinner together at CHUY'S!! WIN! So good. And, there have been wonderful skype dates scattered around in there - so, so wonderful. I am so blessed.

Well, I apologize for the somewhat scattered post, but my head is kind of spinning, in a good way! But yes, things are looking up, and I'll be on my way to the FT here in the next few days.

Blessings!
Shalom!
~MW

Never fear, Jake is here!!

Haha...depending on who you are, reading that title might be a wee bit confusing.

Am I talking about a person?

Am I talking about a dog?

Hmmm...who/what could I possibly talking about?

WHO is Jake?

Jake is this sweet thing:

Pampered much?
{Please excuse the mess of a desk in the
background...I'm mid packing, and it's not pretty}

He's my new puppy dog!! And by puppy, I mean, seasoned adult of a dog...but you know, "they're always babies to us..." Or something like that... But, that's beside the point.

I am absolutely head-over-heels for this dog, second to BigBoy (of course)...

...Sorry Grimm, my love,

you're gonna have to slide down spot #3, but don't you worry, Fun Aunt Heather will always visit and take you to the park - maybe you and Jakers can have a play date someday! {Yes, Ricci, I totally stole this from your blog...}

Jake is definitely one of the few things I have at my fingertips that brings me instantaneous joy. Now if I could just get BigBoy to hurry up and like him...there's the kicker. He'll come around, he always does - it just takes him a little while to warm up to new critters.

So, yes, even though the new addition to my menagerie is proving to be a little bit of pain on the search for a new home, I couldn't be happier.

We already have a little routine going. Every morning we wake up and go play some fetch and then we play another round in the evenings before dinner. Sometimes we play a few more rounds during the day...it's just been so hot this week - we haven't done a lot of that.

So, there you are my lovelies. A cheery post for your reading pleasure :)

I'll let you know as soon as I find a little home to nestle my menagerie into...only time will tell.

Hope your week has been a blessed one.

Shalom!
~MW

P.S. - thanks for all of the encouragement. I'm so blessed to have it pouring in from seemingly all corners of the earth. :]

[Edit: I totally forgot to thank Patrick and Sarah and Zach for sharing Jake with me and letting me take him up to the FT with me - y'all are the best cousins a gal could ask for. I will miss you so, so terribly!!!]

Insomnia, dreams, growing pains, etc.

Ok...if you haven't caught on yet...things aren't exactly going all that smoothly as far as the move to the FT is concerned...

And...apparently...I'm stressed?

Yup, I do believe 'tis true.

How is it that I came to this conclusion, you might ask? Lots of little clues.

Clue #1: My insomnia has indeed returned...what fun, what fun.

Clue #2: When I can sleep I can sleep for hours and hours and hours and I am still exhausted...

Clue #3: I've started having dreams (or at least remembering them). Yes, I am well aware that for the majority of the human race it is perfectly normal to dream on a nightly basis, and yes, even remember said dreams. Well, not for this gal. I am fully convinced that part of the reason that I am always tired (even when I'm not stressed) is due to my not making complete sleep cycles...I'm just sayin' I NEVER have dreams...like, ever. Buuut, of late I have started dreaming on an almost nightly basis, and sometimes multiple dreams in one night and I wake up remembering them fairly vividly, or at least remembering that I had a dream...weird. And these dreams are insane...I mean, way weird, kids. Way weird. And, a fair number of them are those dreams that feel so very real that when you wake up it take you somewhere in realm of 20min to and hour to shake yourself out of that weird dream haze.

Clue #4: My "growing pains" are back. I've never really made this connection before, but I think my so-called growing pains are stress related. As a 23 year old, I am proooobably not growing anymore, and certainly shouldn't be growing at such a rate that I am having God-awful pains. Nope. I should probably look into this a bit more, but it just hit me that the last few times I can remember having these pains that, to me, feel just like the growing pains I had as a kid, has been when I've been a little more than normal stressed. Hmmm...

Clue #5: Ummm...I pretty much cry at the drop of a dime. Neeeat. My eyes are tired and burn alllll the time right now. Part of the tears is simply stress. Part is just me being a whiny, complainy sissy who is tired of dealing with being an adult and just doesn't want to deal with what has quickly become a helacious move anymore. Part is out of loss (strong word, but I'm not sure how else to describe the feeling)...not that I'm losing my sweet, sweet friends and family here in TX, but that I will miss out on so much of their lives and I won't get to see their beautiful faces or give them hugs, or just hop in the car and drive a few hours for a spur of the moment visit...or peruse youtube on a lazy weekend/evening, or watch them play volleyball (I know, I'm lame and don't play...but I love watching y'all play...I DO!), or cook with them, or waste more time playing Mario Kart, or just plain hanging out and visiting with them... I won't get to be there to sit with them when they need that shoulder to cry on or just need someone to sit with; I won't get to be there when exciting things happen and they just can't wait to show you or tell you what happened; I won't get to be there when they move into their new homes or make new additions to their families; I won't get to worship next to them anymore; I won't get to go to J-Man's plays or Fariz's concerts... Simple things that mean the world to me... I'm simply going to miss all of you - more than you could ever imagine, but I am so, so grateful that you are all willing to work together the make this soon-to-be long distance relationship work. Y'all are the best friends anyone could ever ask for and Skype = the greatest program ever created (I mean, it could still be better, but it pretty much rocks).

I have been so blessed to have been able to already start Skyping with a few of you - even across oceans! And, to see some of you in person over the last two weeks and I have absolutely loved those precious times together.

Thank you all so much for your support and prayers and for putting up with my crazed self the last few weeks...really, I know I've been a mess and a pain.

Well, I do believe I might be able to fall asleep here in a few minutes so I'm going to jump on this window of opportunity in the hopes that my legs won't hurt anymore than they already do, and my eyes will stay heavy and finally close for the night so I can be at least semi-functional to play with my darling Kacy in the morning.

Love you all SO SO much!

Shalom,
~MW

Frozen Tundra...I want to like you...

...But, you are making it rather difficult by not allowing me to find a place to setup shop!! I mean, come on...I just wanna come and hang out with you and your cool (literally) self for a few years. Is that soooo much to ask?

Ok, I'll grant you that it's not entirely your fault that my roommate changed his mind...he's got a good thing going here in the TX, so I suppose we can let that one slide. But, help a sister out, yo!

All I want is an, at least, semi-affordable (p.s. - grammar gurus, what do you do in a situation like what you just read? Should it read, "a, at least, semi-affordable..." or, "an, at least, semi-affordable...???") apartment/duplex/rental/what-have-you that is within 5mi of my lab, that will let me bring my puppy dog and my kitty, and will let me do laundry in my own unit...without the need for quarters. I know...I know...that's kind of asking a lot, but is it really too much to ask??

And, yes, I am well aware that desiring for all of this to come to fruition within oh...a week and a half is indeedibly a lot to ask...but I'm asking. I'm begging. I'm even throwing in a, "Pretty please!!!" Complete with the cherry on top.

So, my dear, dear, Frozen Tundra, if you could please help me out in this one teeny, tiny way I will indeed love you forever...yes, forever.


Ugh...I need a vacation from life...wait...haven't I been on one of those for the last 7+ months??? Sigh...it just never ends, does it??

Well...I'm off to catch some shut-eye. I have another long day ahead of me tomorrow, a good day - I'm confident - but, long..,

Until next time.

Shalom,
~MW

P.S. - Frozen Tundra, I was serious...please help me out...you won't be disappointed if you let me move in, promise.
P.P.S. - Readers, I'm not actually relying on my new place of residence to find a home for me, but I thought it was worth a try ;) I'm fully confident that God will continue to orchestrate this mess of a move as He has with everything else relating to the reason for the move...He is faithful, and I am trying to let go and rest in that comfort...but man, is it difficult when your flesh tells you to freak out and do it all yourself!!