Overdue Update from the 713
That's right...we made it safely to Houston, and are getting settled in nicely. Packing up, we quickly realized the abundance of crap we've collected over the years...way more than any two person household could ever possibly need. We left a truck load full of stuff with my parents (a couch, computer desk, book shelf, grill, and even dear Juba (the snake)), had 2 bookshelves 'accidentally' fall apart and trashed, stored a washer, dryer, and microwave at my father-in-law's house, filled a Uhaul, Chance's truck and my car to overflowing, and still had to leave behind 2 plants and a drying rack! We made the drive in 2 days, stopping in Palestine for the night. Altogether driving time was about 17 hours. A few pics to document the trip:
Sorting thru mountains of junk
So hard to say goodbye to Dereck and the new little one
And to my brother who is already stationed and ready to ship out
Probably the half way point of loading
Exhausted on our last night in KC
We REALLY needed a bigger truck!
Lots of questions about Chance's job, and for good reason. It has been quite the mess getting it all figured out, so here's the full story:
Chance was hired as the Fitness Director for Bally Total Fitness is Sugar Land, which is a suburb just near where we're living. So he would be in charge of all the personal trainers at that club. Unfortunately, a week before our move, Bally decided to start closing clubs all over the country. We get a call from his boss who says that the Sugar Land club is not closing, but the club at the med center was closed, so the fitness manager from that club would be moved to Sugar Land, bumping Chance out of the job. He was pretty devastated at that point, and I put packing aside and helped him send out his resume and start working on some back-up plans. Worst case scenario, he could still transfer in to the Sugar Land club as a trainer and try to rebuild his clientele. A few days later, he gets another call from the boss-man who offers his a part-time director position at the Galleria club, so Chance takes him up on it. This position would be quite challenging, just to balance booking his trainers and keeping himself booked too. Soooo...we get packed up and moved down and Chance starts this job. He was really enjoying it and all the trainers really liked him. A few days into the job, you-know-who calls again. He says, the original job in Sugar Land has opened back up and it's his if he wants it. So we had to weigh the options of sticking with the people he started with or switching to better hours and pay. So finally, he is now the full-time fitness director at Sugar Land. He seems to be enjoying it, but he has his work cut out for him learning all the paperwork and computer systems. His hours will typically be 9am-8pm, but the past few nights he hasn't come home till 11pm! One thing for sure, he puts his all into everything he does!
Now, what about me, you ask? I have a preliminary schedule of orientation dates, etc, but I'm still unsure when my first classes will begin. Program Orientation will start on August 14, and the Grad School Orientation will be August 24-28th. However, some of my classes will be taken through the Medical School which will begin before that Orientation. Registration is set to start on Monday, so I'm sure I will be getting more details in the coming days. Meanwhile, I've ordered most of my textbooks and have had 3 arrive so far. I'm getting very excited and starting! I'm also still waiting (impatiently) for my financial aid letter. I'm thankful for the scholarship they have offered, but not sure it will be enough. Our last taxes were based on both of us working full-time, so we're worried we won't qualify for much. I'm in desperate need of some new clothes. We have to dress professionally every day, and I'm afraid my work wardrobe consists mainly of jeans and T-shirts. Ah, the joys of working in a lab!
I have received my first assignment already...one that I was actually pretty happy about. We must read and watch (new movie out in theaters) "My Sister's Keeper." I read the book a couple years ago and loved it, so I was excited to see the movie. I told Chance is was his homework assignment to go with me :) So, we saw it last week (there's a movie theatre right down the street from our apartment) and it was great. Not as good as the book of course, but had us both leaking from the eyes a bit. Made me miss my little sis a bit too. Speaking of sisters, we have a new nephew on the way! Fortunately, from Chance's side of the family this time...his older brother Brandon and his wife, Daisy, are expecting in November (I think...correct me if I'm wrong)
Let's see, what else? Yesterday was our 3rd Anniversary. We've survived each other so far! Lots of ups and downs, some way ups, and some way downs, so I'd say we're a pretty normal, healthy couple! LOL!! We've had a lot of fun choosing anniversary gifts...we've gone the "traditional" route so far, so this year was leather. On a budget too. So we had a good time, being a bit creative with it. I ended up finding him a business card holder and a pen cup for his new office and he got me a cute, summery purse. And the best part, he didn't work till 10:30pm!!! He got home around 8pm, so we had time to go out for a nice dinner and bottle of wine before ending the night with our favorite, "So You Think You Can Dance"!!!!
I'm still working on getting the apartment finished up, but I'm almost there. I'll be sure to post pictures when it's complete! In the meantime, I've been working on all the little joys that come with relocating, like finding new doctors, insurance, bank, hairdresser (!!!), grocery stores, etc. And if you haven't moved in awhile, you forget the little things, like that the water tastes different, or which way to turn the shower knob for hot water vs. cold. And finding new radio stations that don't suck. Let me tell you, there's certainly no Johnny Dare or Church of Lazlo down here. I may just give my old cd's a good workout for awhile. But seriously, the neighborhood is really nice and we have anything and everything we need within a few minutes drive....5 choices of grocery stores, a ton of pharmacies, plenty of restaurants (some new favorites, and some old), plus an odd abundance of donut shops and preschools, and we can be downtown in about 20 minutes. We have a guest bedroom....and we love having company!!! Hint, hint!!
Hope you've enjoyed my novel!!! More pics soon...
Sorting thru mountains of junk
So hard to say goodbye to Dereck and the new little one
And to my brother who is already stationed and ready to ship out
Probably the half way point of loading
Exhausted on our last night in KC
We REALLY needed a bigger truck!Lots of questions about Chance's job, and for good reason. It has been quite the mess getting it all figured out, so here's the full story:
Chance was hired as the Fitness Director for Bally Total Fitness is Sugar Land, which is a suburb just near where we're living. So he would be in charge of all the personal trainers at that club. Unfortunately, a week before our move, Bally decided to start closing clubs all over the country. We get a call from his boss who says that the Sugar Land club is not closing, but the club at the med center was closed, so the fitness manager from that club would be moved to Sugar Land, bumping Chance out of the job. He was pretty devastated at that point, and I put packing aside and helped him send out his resume and start working on some back-up plans. Worst case scenario, he could still transfer in to the Sugar Land club as a trainer and try to rebuild his clientele. A few days later, he gets another call from the boss-man who offers his a part-time director position at the Galleria club, so Chance takes him up on it. This position would be quite challenging, just to balance booking his trainers and keeping himself booked too. Soooo...we get packed up and moved down and Chance starts this job. He was really enjoying it and all the trainers really liked him. A few days into the job, you-know-who calls again. He says, the original job in Sugar Land has opened back up and it's his if he wants it. So we had to weigh the options of sticking with the people he started with or switching to better hours and pay. So finally, he is now the full-time fitness director at Sugar Land. He seems to be enjoying it, but he has his work cut out for him learning all the paperwork and computer systems. His hours will typically be 9am-8pm, but the past few nights he hasn't come home till 11pm! One thing for sure, he puts his all into everything he does!
Now, what about me, you ask? I have a preliminary schedule of orientation dates, etc, but I'm still unsure when my first classes will begin. Program Orientation will start on August 14, and the Grad School Orientation will be August 24-28th. However, some of my classes will be taken through the Medical School which will begin before that Orientation. Registration is set to start on Monday, so I'm sure I will be getting more details in the coming days. Meanwhile, I've ordered most of my textbooks and have had 3 arrive so far. I'm getting very excited and starting! I'm also still waiting (impatiently) for my financial aid letter. I'm thankful for the scholarship they have offered, but not sure it will be enough. Our last taxes were based on both of us working full-time, so we're worried we won't qualify for much. I'm in desperate need of some new clothes. We have to dress professionally every day, and I'm afraid my work wardrobe consists mainly of jeans and T-shirts. Ah, the joys of working in a lab!
I have received my first assignment already...one that I was actually pretty happy about. We must read and watch (new movie out in theaters) "My Sister's Keeper." I read the book a couple years ago and loved it, so I was excited to see the movie. I told Chance is was his homework assignment to go with me :) So, we saw it last week (there's a movie theatre right down the street from our apartment) and it was great. Not as good as the book of course, but had us both leaking from the eyes a bit. Made me miss my little sis a bit too. Speaking of sisters, we have a new nephew on the way! Fortunately, from Chance's side of the family this time...his older brother Brandon and his wife, Daisy, are expecting in November (I think...correct me if I'm wrong)
Let's see, what else? Yesterday was our 3rd Anniversary. We've survived each other so far! Lots of ups and downs, some way ups, and some way downs, so I'd say we're a pretty normal, healthy couple! LOL!! We've had a lot of fun choosing anniversary gifts...we've gone the "traditional" route so far, so this year was leather. On a budget too. So we had a good time, being a bit creative with it. I ended up finding him a business card holder and a pen cup for his new office and he got me a cute, summery purse. And the best part, he didn't work till 10:30pm!!! He got home around 8pm, so we had time to go out for a nice dinner and bottle of wine before ending the night with our favorite, "So You Think You Can Dance"!!!!
I'm still working on getting the apartment finished up, but I'm almost there. I'll be sure to post pictures when it's complete! In the meantime, I've been working on all the little joys that come with relocating, like finding new doctors, insurance, bank, hairdresser (!!!), grocery stores, etc. And if you haven't moved in awhile, you forget the little things, like that the water tastes different, or which way to turn the shower knob for hot water vs. cold. And finding new radio stations that don't suck. Let me tell you, there's certainly no Johnny Dare or Church of Lazlo down here. I may just give my old cd's a good workout for awhile. But seriously, the neighborhood is really nice and we have anything and everything we need within a few minutes drive....5 choices of grocery stores, a ton of pharmacies, plenty of restaurants (some new favorites, and some old), plus an odd abundance of donut shops and preschools, and we can be downtown in about 20 minutes. We have a guest bedroom....and we love having company!!! Hint, hint!!
Hope you've enjoyed my novel!!! More pics soon...
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