We Made It!

Friday was my last day of work in Kerrville, and I was emotional to say the least. I really love all my patients and coworkers and it was hard to say goodbye. Therapy can be a really tough and thankless job sometimes, but on Friday I felt so appreciated and loved by both patients and coworkers and I am so blessed to have been able to spend 4 months with them. A few tears were shed, but as I kept reminding myself (in the words of CS Lewis) there are far better things ahead than any I leave behind.

My sweet coworkers got me a balloon, card, and Lifesaver candy on my last day!

We are officially in California! It was quite a drive, but we were able to make it in really good time over the course of 2 days thanks to 75/80 mph speed limits most of the time.  We packed up the cars Friday night, and Saturday we woke up at 2:30 so we could leave at 3 and be in Phoenix by a decent time Saturday night- a 15 hour drive from San Antonio. As you can see, Macie wasn't quite ready to wake up..

The drive was absolutely beautiful (most of the time) and on Saturday alone we drove almost 1,000 miles, were in 3 states, and 3 different time zones. Macie drove with me and spent most of the trip sleeping in her snuggly warm bed in the passenger seat. What a life. Although she was not a fan of the desert which required her to go potty in the sand. She was like "no way mom!" and held it all day until we got to Phoenix.

A really cool rock canyon in AZ

When we stopped for lunch, Braden said he was disappointed that we were in New Mexico and they didn't have a green chile burger on the menu. I started laughing because we had already been in Arizona for over an hour! We made it to Phoenix at about 3:30, pretty much exactly 14 hours after we set out (with the time change) and with 4 stops too. We were able to stay with Braden's aunt and uncle, and I'm really glad we were able to because we had a really good time with them, and it is always nice getting to spend time with family.  Our internal clocks are pretty confused to say the least, but we tried really hard to stay up 'late' to help our bodies adjust to pacific time. On Sunday we were going to take a detour to the Grand Canyon, but since we were so tired we decided to go ahead and go straight to LA, which was only about 5 hours away from Phoenix. So we slept in, had a nice breakfast with Braden's family, then made our way to LA. 

It was so exciting to finally pass this sign!

We go to LA about 4 PM on Sunday. This time around we booked a king suite, which has a king bed and is bigger than the suite we lived in in San Antonio. We are really enjoying our new set up! The only thing that was a little surprising was that we don't have an oven, and our closet door is a curtain. Otherwise the room and hotel is way nicer than the one we had in San Antonio. It feels more like a small apartment than a hotel room.

Today we "slept in" (by sleeping in I mean our bodies are still adjusting to pacific time so we slept in by central time standards, but woke up early by pacific time) and spent the day unpacking and getting to know the area we are in. We really lucked out because most everything we need (Wal Mart, Trader Joe's, Costco, Sam's, etc) are within a 10 minute drive. We really live in a great area! We keep pinching ourselves every time we look out the window and see the mountains. We can't believe we will be living here 6 months! It feels like we are here only on vacation and in a few days we will have to pack up and leave again.

We also went shopping to get food and supplies, joined Costco (I love wholesale places!) and got lunch at In-N-Out, which was so so yummy. Since we don't have a stove, I bought a toaster oven. I am also way excited to get to play with my other new gadget, a fabric steamer! Even Macie was a beneficiary of our shopping spree, with a new toy- Petco has a line of Star Wars toys and we couldn't resist buying her a Chewbacca squeaky toy! She has the hardest time adjusting to a new place since I adopted her from the pound, she has some abandonment issues and gets nervous whenever we move to a new place. Poor baby! She is doing well though, and is loving the weather here. This week since I am off work we are planning to take it easy, and possibly going to my favorite place, Disneyland.
We are really loving California and can't wait to keep exploring and getting to know the area!
Here's to a great week!

Sic Em Bears!

This weekend was amazing. It was our last weekend in San Antonio and Texas before we move to California. Since we don't know when we will be back, we decided to go to a Baylor football game. Waco is about three hours from San Antonio, so on Friday night we decided to drive half way and spend the night in Austin. We went to my absolute favorite restaurant, the Hula Hut, on Lake Austin. It is right on the water and has a beautiful view. It had rained earlier that day and it was pretty slow there, so we were able to sit down right away, and at a table over the water. The food is awesome- I got my usual shrimp quesadilla which was amazing.

We enjoyed our margaritas on the lake!

The view from our table

Texas state capital at night

On Saturday morning, we met some friends at 24 diner in Austin. It was delicious and great to catch up with friends before we move!

After breakfast, we headed the rest of the way to Waco. Timing ended up being perfect. We arrived in time to walk around campus a little bit and go to the bookstore where we were able to stock up on Baylor gear! I was finally able to find a hat that I liked, and got a license plate holder, t shirt, and v neck shirt.

I forgot that I walked over my favorite verse on the way to the parking garage!

Good times in NoRo 245, my freshman dorm! 

 We also got to hang out with the Baylor bears, Joy and Lady!

 Good old Neil Morris, home of the communication disorders department and where I spent most of my time at Baylor

Hanging out on the Baylor love swings! They have these swings in trees all over campus

Traditional Baylor picture with Judge Baylor, with Pat Neff Hall in the background

After shopping at the bookstore (and waiting in the longest line ever) we headed over to the stadium. We parked on campus and rode one of the free shuttles over to Floyd Casey. This is the last year Baylor will play there because they are opening the new stadium on campus next year. 

 Our seats were in the top corner, which actually ended up working out pretty nice because we could see everything and if you stood on the top row of the stadium you got a breeze. The game was so much fun and it was great being back at my alma mader. Baylor's football team is insane, and scored 35 points in the first quarter! We were getting thirsty so I said after Baylor scored I would go get us water. Baylor scored, I went down, got cash from the ATM and then came back up to our seats and in that amount of time Baylor had already scored again. Crazy. The one thing neither one of us thought about was sunscreen. So both of us got pretty burned. It was so frustrating because we could feel ourselves burning and could do nothing about it. I finally wrapped some paper around my feet, held one over my face, and some over my legs to try to prevent more burning. Braden said I looked pretty ridiculous but I think it helped.

 This is the Baylor president, Ken Star, running and leading the Baylor Line, which is all the freshmen who run the length of the field then make a human tunnel for the football team to run through. It is a lot of fun!

 The band made Dory during their halftime show!

The beautiful Waco skyline from the stadium

After the game, we were able to meet my college roommate Charissa at one of my favorite restaurants in Waco, Food for Thought. Their pizza is amazing and it was even better than I remember.

On the way home, we were sunburned and tired, but got to see this gorgeous sunset!

In other news, we are moving in t-minus 2 days! Bright and early Saturday morning. We are busy packing and downloading music and audiobooks for the drive. I checled the weather for LA once we get there and this is the weather report:

It's ok to be jealous! We can't wait. San Antonio has been great, but we are ready for our new adventure.

#bestdecisionever

It was a year ago today that my whole adventure with traveling therapy and Advanced Medical began. A year ago, I was in a job that I loved with amazing coworkers and patients- we really enjoyed northwest Arkansas and had even toyed with the idea of buying a house. The caseload at work got really low, and I started to get worried about my hours getting cut and/or possibly losing my job- I expressed this concern and was told that I should probably look around. So I did. And the rest is history.
I found Advanced Medical through looking at job listings on Indeed.com. We had previously talked about moving to somewhere completely out there like Alaska, and so I was looking at a listing in Anchorage from Advanced. I filled out their "contact me" form on their super handy website, and was informed that I would be contacted by a recruiter soon. The next day I was called by DJ, and he told me all about Advanced Medical and traveling therapy. I had never heard of travel therapy, and I was intrigued, but thought there was no way we could just pick up and move and move every 3 months at that! What a crazy thought.
Braden and I talked about about it extensively and since I had never heard of traveling therapy before, we had a lot of questions. Luckily, DJ answered all my silly questions and was very nice throughout. I randomly met another therapist who worked for Advanced, and she put me in touch with my current recruiter, Amy. Amy was incredibly patient with me as I asked her question after question (a page front and back!) and supportive throughout our decision and moving ordeal.
Working for Advanced Medical has been an incredible experience so far, and I have been so happy with how much they care about and support their therapists. Looking back on a year ago, I thought there was no way we could be travelers, put everything in storage, and move all around the country, but it turns out it was one of the best decisions we have ever made.
Here's to another great year of adventure with Advanced Medical!

Weekend Wrap-Up

How many different titles can I come up with that means "summary of our weekend"? Apparently quite a few!
This weekend was quite busy, yet relaxing at the same time. We are trying to do the last few things on our San Antonio bucket list before we leave in two weeks (!!!!!). I can't believe that it's almost time for us to move to LA!
This week was a very full 45 hour week at work. Friday was a little crazy, which I attribute to it being Friday the 13th. I never was superstitious until I worked in a nursing home- seriously, crazy things always happen around the full moon- and even now, in the wise words of Michael Scott, I am not super-stitious, just a little-sitious. If it had been Friday the 13th and a full moon (which is this week) I probably would not have even showed up to work!
Braden and I have been watching all the Harry Potter movies again, so on Friday night we got a Papa Murphy's pizza and watched The Deathly Hallows Part 1 and 2. Dobby dying and Harry going to meet Voldemort always make me tear up even though I've seen the movie and read the book many times!
Saturday we went to Schlitterbahn, which is apparently the best water park in the world. We were going to go earlier in the summer, but after reading some reviews, it was suggested to go in September when it wasn't as busy and lines would be shorter. We were really glad that we took that advice, because I can't imagine how busy it would've been had we gone in July! We had a lot of fun, and the water slides were really fun. A lot of the rides use natural river water from the Comal River which runs along the park, which was really really cold. Luckily it was hot outside so after the initial plunge it wasn't too bad. I enjoyed  that most of the slides you rode down on tubes instead of body slides. They even have free parking and allow you to bring in your own food which is really nice. We were there most of the day, and since we were so close, we decided to hit the outlets in San Marcos for one last time. I was able to find a few more items for work clothes, as well as some fun weekend clothes. I even found a great dress for when we decide to go to Vegas! Macie wasn't too happy with us for being gone all day, but luckily she doesn't hold grudges!
Today was supposed to be a more relaxing day, but we ended up being gone quite a bit. My phone hasn't been working too well lately, so I wanted to use the warranty on it to get a new one. I ended up switching my Galaxy S3 to my mom's old iPhone, and I am SO GLAD to be back to Apple. I did not like the Galaxy at all.
Next weekend we are headed to the promised land, Waco, TX to go to the Baylor-ULM football game! I am so excited that we will be able to be back at Baylor before we move! Sic Em Bears!
I can't believe that I only have 2 more weeks of work, and that 2 weeks from today we will have arrived in California. Time flies when you're having fun!

Last Trip to Houston

My heart is full. We had a wonderful long weekend in Houston. This visit was our last visit before our big move to California in a few weeks. It was nice having Friday off so we got to leave Thursday after I got off work, and since I got off work really early on Thursday, we were able to make it to Houston at a decent time. On Friday morning I was able to go with my mom to her school where she works which just happens to be my old middle school. Some of my former teachers are still there, including my first ever teacher I had in the fifth grade, so I was able to go and say hello. It was pretty wild seeing them and being at my old middle school again. After a quick trip to the vet for Macie for her yearly check up (the doc says she's in great shape!) I was able to go out to my barn and ride with my long time riding instructor and friend Mrs. Adair. I have been training with her since the 5th grade when we moved to Houston! I was able to ride her horse Zee, who is fabulous. I had so much fun and had a great ride. Zee and I were able to do some passage, half-pass, and part of a canter pirouette which was all really awesome. It had been awhile since I had been in a saddle- I went into semi-retirement after getting really burnt out during my tenure with the Baylor equestrian team. Turns out taking time off has been a really great decision because I've rediscovered the fun in just riding for the love of it. It makes me really want to get back to it consistently, and I am so glad that somehow a pair of my riding pants ended up in the pile to bring with us! I am really hoping to be able to find a place to ride in California since we will be there 6 months.

After riding, I was able to go to my hairdresser and get an overdue cut and color. I was this close to cutting my hair short again, but decided not to at the last second. I am really glad I didn't! Friday night we went into Houston to have dinner at my friend Kyrie and her husband Austen's house. It was great to see them again, and we had a wonderful time making calzones and just talking and catching up.

Saturday we were able to meet my whole family at our favorite mexican restaurant, Molina's. It was nice seeing everyone and getting to catch up one last time before we leave Texas! After lunch I was able to meet up with one of my mentors who mentored me in high school. It was great seeing her and getting caught up on everything going on in each others lives! 

Other than that, we were able to just spend time with my parents hanging out and watching football, which is always fun. All in all, it was a wonderful, much needed weekend with lots of family and friends before we move! I can't believe we are leaving for California in less than three weeks. While I am excited, I am also starting to get a little nervous about the new assignment. We have lots to do before we leave! 

Here's to a great week!

Making The Cut

Since we are in Houston this weekend, we had to go back through all our stuff in order to downsize again before we move. Since this was our first assignment, I really had no idea what things we would and would not use. Here are some of the things that didn't make the cut:

1) Our stemware- while we like to be classy when we drink wine and martini's, solo cups will have to do

2) Sheets and towels-originally we weren't sure where we would be staying, and if we were staying in an apartment we would actually need these. However, since we are pretty sold on long term stay hotels, (paid utilities, provided towels, linens, and maid service can't be beat) we don't really need to bring our own.

3) Extra clothing- some dresses and t shirts had to stay in Houston

4) Panini maker- who doesn't like paninis? We sure do, but using our panini maker once in 4 months doesn't warrant taking it with us

5) Christmas socks- apparently, I thought bringing all twenty or so pairs of my Christmas socks was an absolute necessity. In fact, when I pulled the bag of socks and was like "Why did I bring all my Christmas socks?" My husband replied, "Do you really not remember this conversation? Because I clearly remember you going through your stuff and saying 'I really need my Christmas socks'" As much as I really love Christmas socks, they aren't coming with us to California

6) My sewing machine- I love my sewing machine, but unfortunately it takes up too much room so we can't bring it along.

Some things that we added to our inventory:

1) Braden's snowboard- a necessity for the winter! We will be those people with a snowboard on the roof of our car in September.

2) My horseback riding stuff- I am hoping to be able to find a place to ride in California, whether that be taking lessons or volunteering at a therapeutic riding center. Either way, I'll need my helmet, riding shoes,and half chaps. Luckily these won't take up too much room.

Since we are taking both our cars, Bruce and Robin, to California, we should have no problem fitting everything with some extra room for growth if needed. Here's to making the most of our last 3 weeks in San Antonio!

Whistle While You Work

As if you haven't heard me say it enough, I love my job. It is such a huge blessing to work with my geriatric patient, and I think I am way more blessed by them than they could ever be blessed by me. Last Thursday, the rehab department put on a fundraiser in order to raise money to help provide funds for residents who don't have any money to be able to go on outings out of the facility. Some of the residents there don't have family nearby, or don't have money so they are unable to go out to events like lunch at Cracker Barrel or to the movies. We wanted everyone who is able to leave the facility to be able to go out on an outing and money not be an issue, so we had a nacho lunch back in the rehab gym in order to help.

One of my favorite parts about getting to work so early in the morning (by 7:00) is that I get to see beautiful sunrises!

Yummy nachos!

As the only member of the rehab team with a Sam's membership and living near a Sam's Club, I got all the nacho yumminess. The fundraiser was a huge success! We enlisted several patient's help in serving the nachos, taking orders, collecting money, and adding up how much money we had (a great real life cognition activity!). They had so much fun, and so did we! It was a great break from normal routine. The fundraiser greatly exceeded our expectations, and we were able to raise over $250 dollars to help take residents out of the facility on fun outings! One of the biggest surprises of the day is when my recruiter, Amy, called me and said that Advanced Medical wanted to help and would be sending my facility a check put towards the fundraiser. I am so blessed to work for such an awesome company- they not only care about their employees but also care about the people their employees are serving. Even though I am not a permanent employee at this facility (my contract is up at the end on the month!!) I love knowing that after I'm gone, my patients will be able to get out of the facility and do something fun.

In other news, I can't believe that my contract is up at the end of the month! It has gone by so fast, and I can't believe that we have been here for almost 4 months already. While I am excited for our new adventure in California, it will definitely be difficult leaving behind all my patients and coworkers from Kerrville. 

I didn't have a weekend update post this week because I worked all weekend (waa-waa), so we really didn't do much except watch football, which don't get me wrong is awesome! All three of my teams won- Baylor, Arkansas, and Texas, so it was a good weekend for me, although I did want to punch every person who told me that they hoped I had a nice long weekend.

Since I worked this weekend and all week, I was able to get this Friday off, so are going going down to Houston to hang out before we move to Cali. I have to do one more sweep through all our stuff to see what will make the final cut to travel with us. Unfortunately my sewing machine has to go back to mom and dad's house :( Macie will probably have to make some cuts too!

Tomorrow is hump day! Since my department at my facility reached our productivity goal, the company is  providing us with lunch tomorrow- I am probably more excited than I should be about my lobster ravioli! Yum!