The Waiting Game

Alex and I put an offer on a house a couple of weeks ago...and we're still waiting. It is bank owned so there is no telling when the bank will respond to our offer. I didn't think it would be this hard to wait! The thought of spending that much money all at once is terrifying, and not knowing whether or not it's going to happen is annoying.

The hardest part is dreaming about all the changes we want to make to the house and not being able to buy stuff for the house! Alex and I were in Nashville for a couple of days and went to an antique mall with two of our friends. I found so much stuff I wanted to get to decorate with and after begging Alex for one thing after the other, he gave me the steps...

1) actually get the house!
2) repaint the walls in pretty much every room and paint the cabinets in the kitchen.
3) replace carpet upstairs and put hardwood downstairs or just put hardwood floor throughout, tile in bathrooms
4) move in (we hope that we will have this convenience)
5) refrigerator and possibly other appliances that may disappear between now and closing (awesome part about foreclosures...not)
6) new furniture
7) DOG!!!
8) decorating...

All while praying that nothing is wrong with the house inspection/termite inspection and the roof doesn't fall apart in 6 months! [**Just FYI: a baby was like step 25 :-(** ] The one awesome thing is that our apartment lease is through the end of September, so if we get the house, we have plenty of time to do some quick changes and move in without being rushed, and if we don't get the house, we have plenty of time to look for another one--all while saving money, money, money!

Here's what we're waiting for!



Cute, perfect size for us, fenced in-decent sized backyard, 3 bedrooms/2 bathrooms, and a two car garage in East Brainerd!

Fingers crossed!

Life As We Know It

Foreword: I am terrible at blogging regularly...not like anyone reads my blog but I hate seeing that it's been so long since I have posted something.

Probably the biggest thing that has happened since I last posted is me getting my dream job as a nurse in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. It has been a struggle adjusting to a different work schedule and getting used to a new job. I am still working as needed, usually one time a week, at The Allergy and Asthma Group where I was. They started training me to work in the office part, not just in the shot lab, so at both of my jobs I am learning new things! I work nights at the hospital which is 6:30 pm to 7 am. Completely opposite of my husband's, our families', and friends' schedules so I feel like it's a small miracle when I can hang out with friends. That's a little dramatic because sometimes I get 5 days in a row off and I'll get to do a lot. Usually the way it works out though, everyone is busy when I'm off and free when I'm working; then I feel really left out and lonely. Night shift sleeping schedule is not a breeze either. I don't sleep nearly as well during the day. I usually wake up every hour scared to death I've over slept or my cat wakes me up or a text message will wake me up or a leaf blower or someone's washing machine...I could go on and on. AND when I can sleep at night, I don't sleep well either because my body has gotten used to working at night. I barely ever get a solid 6-7 hours of sleep. That I'm sure will at some point start taking a toll on my body but for right now I feel pretty good despite the lack of sleep. The worst thing about night shift is not being at home with Alex at night. That used to be my guarenteed time with him since he's also super busy. We have to go week by week, day by day and plan our time together. Sometimes we'll go three days and see each other maybe three hours. It stinks. Great birth control...it would seriously be a miracle if I were to get pregnant any time soon.

I have to remind myself every day, especially when I'm driving to work knowing that my husband is hanging out with our friends without me, or going to church without me, or my brothers are home from school and it will be three days before I get to spend time with them, that this is God's plan and SO many people prayed that I would get this job! I begged God for this job, knowing this is what I wanted to do all through nursing school. Alex has to continuously remind me to be grateful to even have a job and to have a flexible job and a job that I usually love while I'm there! I also have to remind myself that I'm still pretty new at this job and am still learning the ropes and eventually there will be an opportunity for me to move to day shift. God has a purpose and a plan for me, and it is not an accident that I am where I am! Easy to say, hard to live out.

Alex and I are starting to look for a house! It's stressful knowing how much money it will cost, especially if it's not exactly what you want. Sometimes I feel like it's like picking out your wedding dress. You have to stick to your budget but it's hard to pick out the one that's perfect for you. And once you've bought it, that's it! No more hunting because you can't exchange or return it. I'm looking forward to having something more permanent than an apartment, and making it our's. Alex and I really love HGTV and home repair/renovation so there's already been a trip to Home Depot to pick out flooring we like and paint colors and granite countertops. It's fun to plan. I'm also looking forward to getting a dog!

Speaking of pets, I forgot another big thing that's happened since I last blogged. Alex and I took in a stray cat. Her name is Carla and she is about 2 or 3, according to the vet. She can be very sweet and snuggly when she wants to be, but she is usually very loud, meowing for no reason at all, and sneaky. She really likes to hide under our bed and dart out from underneath when I walk by, giving me a heart attack. She seems to prefer Alex much more than me, as she will sit in his lap and snuggle with him while he sleeps. I'm still getting used to her and so ready for her to have a puppy friend to play with.

I'll try to post some pictures later. I should also do a post about Disney, Passion 2012, and my awesome new scar and bangs! That should be fun.

Devastating

Alex and I returned from Rock the Universe last night, and I will unfortunately post about it later. My mom told me today that my cousin's nephew had passed away after a devastating, unexpected, cancer diagnosis ten days ago. My cousin is Cody, who is married to Sara, who have a little boy of their own, just a few months older than Marco. Sara's sister and brother-in-law, Emily and Chris, are baby Marco's parents. Marco was just nine months old. Although they are just barely family by marriage, my heart is broken for them. Today is also the day my uncle Ed passed away, my cousin Cody's father, two years ago which I'm sure is making this day even harder for them. I'm praying that they turn to God during this difficult time because there is no one else that can provide answers, healing, or peace. To read Marco's story you can visit: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/marcogiovinazzo

Job Search

Hello strangers...it's been a busy summer. I am so happy to have Alex back at home but this by far was the best Fuge experience we've had. Things really do change when you get married, maybe not as far as convenience goes since I wasn't there all summer; but within the staff, they treat you so differently than what we experienced when we were engaged. I really felt like I was apart of the staff, especially when I visited, because everyone knew so much about me and really cared how we were doing. Not to say that didn't happen the last two summers, but there's definitely a "we take you seriously" tone towards married staffers. I met some wonderful, supportive, amazing friends and am a little sad that I won't be escaping to PCB any time soon.

Here's the deal with my job search. I passed the NCLEX (scary nurse licensing board test) in July and have been actively looking for jobs since FEBRUARY. Yes, February. Now I didn't expect to hear anything back until I had passed the NCLEX but I just thought I should put it out there that I have been on the search for 6 months. After I took the NCLEX and passed (woo hoo!), I started getting very, very hopeful. I had applied for several jobs at Erlanger by then. Weeks went by and I still heard nothing. I began applying for any job with RN in the description including Memorial Hospital as well. More weeks have gone by and still nothing. I've started including Parkridge Hospital now. I have now applied for 27 jobs at 3 hospitals and still heard nothing.

It is beyond frustrating, especially knowing that pretty much everyone else in my graduating class (nursing class) has a job. I don't know if I'm doing something wrong, or if it's just because I'm not going about this the right way. I don't know a lot of people so I don't have a whole lot of connections, which is also frustrating because that seems to be the only way people get jobs.

I'm praying for something to happen.

Wedding Pictures

Bethany and Kyle's Wedding in Memphis:

Collierville United Methodist Church; Mary, Molly and I with the bride and groom

As the professional wedding attender, I had to take pictures of the tables. :)

Wedding cake! Yum!

Katie and JT's Wedding in Ooltewah, TN

Best friends and our wedding rings!

The bridesmaids' bouquets

Glendra and Chris's wedding in Rising Fawn, GA

Behind the huge mansion!

General Woods Inn

Oh Boy!

This weekend was CRAZY. That is the only word to describe everything that happened the entire weekend. Crazy fun, crazy scary-at times, crazy weird, crazy happy-friend time!

I drove to Memphis along with Mary and Molly which accounts for about 40 % of the craziness right there. :) Most of our friends probably kept up with Molly's Twitter and knew all of this as it was happening, but for blog-sake I want to tell the whole story. Within an hour of driving, right as we passed the Alabama line, I get pulled over...He asks, "Were you wearing your seatbelt before I pulled you over?" Now in my head I just answered the question. But Mary and Molly both heard, in a fairly offended tone of voice, me say, "Yeah, I always wear my seatbelt! It's the first thing I do when I get in the car!" Turns out his car said, "Seat Belt Enforcement." What other state has that by itself?! I get that he couldn't see that I had it on, but I did and I was annoyed. Strike #1 on the trip. We decided early on that we would try going Highway 72 through Alabama instead of up to Nashville and across to Memphis because it's supposed to be shorter. However, we missed the turn to stay on 72 and started heading towards Birmingham before we realized what had happened then got misguiding directions which got us lost for a good hour or so--Strike 2! In the midst of being lost, it stormed really hard with really scary lightning and thunder and crazy loud rain--Strike 3. It definitely put me on edge because I hate driving in the rain (who doesn't?) and I hate lightning. It makes my throat spasm every time it strikes. Molly hates being lost so she was on edge and on the phone with her parents (who live in Virginia) trying to get us back on track. Mary, I'm sure, on the inside was laughing her head off because that's just the kind of person she is. Later, once we were back on track and through the storm, we laughed and sang really loud with the windows down and were a big happy family again.

We FINALLY made it to Memphis, and believe it or not we had not pulled our hair out or killed each other! Listening to Whitney Houston made all the strikes a lot better and the last couple of hours tolerable. We stayed with Mary's awesome friend Carrie, in her sweet apartment, and had a fun night on the town. Fun fact about Friday night: A stranger sang "Part of Your World" to Molly--hilarious and awkward!

Saturday, we met up with Molly's friend Rob who chauffeured us to Graceland!!! I was pumped, and I was very impressed. It took me a little longer to get through the exhibits than everyone else because I was so enthralled. It was so cool to see everything and to think that Elvis lived there. I don't idolize him by any means but the history of Elvis is very interesting.

Bethany's wedding was gorgeous, as expected. The church was huge with big, stained-glass windows. She looked like a wedding edition Barbie doll! Her dress was so pretty and she and Kyle are so sweet together. The reception was awesome at the Pink Palace. I was so excited when we pulled into the drive of a HUMONGOUS mansion. We picked a table that was in the room with the shrunken head. Food was good, cake was good, band was good. We stayed as long as we could and were very happy that we were there when they were announced and to see them cut the cake.

We opted for going the interstate on the way home after Friday's fiasco, so it was a straight shot to Nashville and then to Chattanooga. Mary and Molly were awesome car riders and kept the driving fun and kept me awake! Our jams included as I said before Whitney Houston, Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, Boys II Men, Nsync, Backstreet Boys, Ben Folds, and many more. Overall, a crazy, fast road trip to Memphis that was a lot of fun!

Some of my favorite quotes from this weekend include: (credit to The Hangover for some of our quotes)

"Put your pants on Alan."
"Rebecca, quit being a diva." (after I complained about my hair after we had the windows rolled down.)
"You struck back at the lightning."
"CULLMAN, MOM. C-U-L-L-M-A-N! I feel like I'm talking to an Alzheimer's patient!"

I can't remember all the good ones. :) Lots of fun. Pictures coming soon.

Yesterday was one of my first days off during the week that I've had since Alex left for camp. It was so nice and relaxing. I went to the pool with my mom and brother, then went shopping thanks to my mom :), and had plans to go biking at the River Walk downtown but the rain but those plans away and my family just came over and chilled at my apartment. We watched TV and played games and ate cookies. For lunch, I cooked spaghetti, which I know isn't hard, but I cooked! I'm very proud of myself actually taking yesterday off and not cramming a bunch of crazy plans into yesterday so that I could actually rest and recooperate from the last few weeks.

Alex is doing well. The next two weeks of camp will be a little hectic with not a day off until I get there July 1! :( But they'll be ok. The band is doing well and loving having Johann, their electric guitar player, actually there instead of via computer tracks! It allows them to have a lot more freedom during worship and a lot more fun. I hear that he is doing an awesome job at leading Bible study and having conversations with students--pretty impressive for his first FUGE summer. I think they're all loving being at the beach because it allows for some awesome free time activities. They go sea kayaking almost every day off. I've heard about some awesome "sno-balls" that are made with a little bit of ice cream, and some good Korean food. I'm really looking forward to going down there in a week and a half to experience Panama City Beach and spend some vacation time with Alex.

Until then, I am working, going to another wedding as my last post explained, and taking the NCLEX and passing (positive reinforcement!)! Prayers would be appreciated. :)