Monday, February 25, 2008

Keeping up

Well it has been a few days since my last post of any sort, so I figured I better add some new stuff. Ashley and I lead fairly hectic lives, with school and work and all that fun stuff, although this semester has been my easiest in a long while now. I attribute that to the fact that I have been accepted to dental school and no longer have to stress or worry about making sure I get the best GPA possible and staying on top of all my applications etc. Ashley however is very busy these days. It is her last semester of tennis, plus she has to do 24 student hours a week at the hospital and then she both works at the hospital for pay as well as teaching tennis at a club near by one night a week. She has had to work or been gone for tennis for the past 6 weekends, and that trend seems like it is going to continue. We are both looking forward to finishing school and moving to Philadelphia where we will have less things to consume our time. Ashley will just be working full-time, and I will only be doing school and not working. Sure there will be other responsibilities we have to take care of, but it will definately be a reduction in the amount of things we have to stay on top of. Ashley and I are beginning to try and plan out the move across the country and we have started trying to think about what we would like to do for housing. We would really like to buy a place, whether it be a condo, or townhome or even a duplex. We are getting tired of renting, not to mention that renting for the next 4 years would mean we put 50 to 60 thousand dollars in someone elses pocket. We will have to see what we can find. We would like to have more space for sure (who wouldn't) and we are planning ahead for when we starthaving kids. I think a 3 bedroom place would be great, but we will see what we can find I guess. We have a few contacts that we can work with back at the school, some friends and old classmates I had. It seems like more and more people tells us they know someone back there everyday, so I think we will be able to find something with their help.

As for my family, everyone is doing well. Dane just got engaged this weekend, though we all knew it was coming. Still, it is now official. They are planning the wedding for the end of June. That will be a good time for a wedding. Too bad Neal won't be here. Neal is doing well in Mexico and having alot of success it sounds like. He did mention that he is now at 16 months, so I think he is beginning to realize that the end is getting closer. He is trying hard not to worry about life after the mission, but I think now and again it creeps into his thoughts. Hey, I remeber the feeling though. It is exciting and a little scary to think that you will be returning to "the real world" again. He will do fine though.

Well that pretty much sums things up lately. I am counting down the days til I graduate, and so is Ashley. She is having a great year with tennis, which is good. She has had to overcome a lot of obstacles in her tennis that last few years, so I am glad things are going so well. In short, life is good. Busy, but good.

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Saying goodbye to Shadow.

I just found out from my dad today that our dog Shadow passed away today. She has been a part of the family for a long time, so it is kind of weird to think she is gone. She hadn't been doing very well recently; she lost her hearing, had arthritis and had a growth on her back. So it is probably better that is passed on rather than suffer any more. She will be missed. She was a good dog.

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Neal in Mexico

Here are a couple of pictures Neal sent me of him down in Mexico.

Trip to Portland

I just got back from a trip back home to Oregon. Ashley was playing in a match and I flew out to surprise her. She was pretty surprised! My dad came up too and took some pictures at the match. Here are a few shots of Ashley in action.







Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Here is a picture of my wife Ashley and I. This was taken on our recent cruise to Mexico.

Joining the Club

Ok, I have been thinking of doing it but now I actually have done it. I made my own blog. More to come soon I hope, so check back often.