Watcha Think?

I have (obviously) been messing around with my lay-out a bit and am trying to figure out how to spruce this blog up a little. I thought that might entice me to write a bit more frequently...we shall see. One thing I've been trying to figure out is how to create one of those cute headers for my page...you know, so that oreo pic is actually centered and I can do something fun and creative with the wording, etc. Anyone have any tips? I need all the help I can get when it comes to something creative like this :-)

IT'S OFFICIAL!!!

Dan passed his boards!!!

He just called me a little bit ago to let me know the good news, and let me tell you -- that was a very happy phone call :-) I asked him to take a picture of himself to capture the moment...which he refused, so I borrowed this happy picture from a few years back just after he proposed. I figured the sentiment was similar.

We're headed out tomorrow for Shelby's wedding in Lincoln, NE, so I'll be out for a few days again. Not that I've been so wonderful about updating my blog everyday that you'll miss my presence in blogging world...but just thought I'd let you know anyway :-) Hopefully I'll have a few wedding pics to share when I return.

OH....and I think we founda place to live! But you'll have to hold your breath until we get back and nail a few more things down with that. I'll just say that we're VERY excited about the possibility...

Until next time, folks...we'll be out celebrating!

I'm Alive!

Just a quick note to let my faithful reader's know that I'm alive & I think I have finally quit swimming! It's been a long and at times overwhelming month, but I am happy to report that I have survived. Today is my first day back in the office and I can honestly say that it feels good to be back. Here's a quick snapshot of the last few weeks with more details and pictures to follow:

July 25th - last day in the office, pack up and load the truck!
July 28th - said good-bye to Dan & headed to Estes Park, CO
July 29th-August 2nd - Set-up and preparation for our event
August 3rd - 8th - Music in the Rockies!! (you have no idea how loaded those 4 little words are...)
August 9th - Finally - we headed HOME
August 10th - last Sunday for Kingdom Kids (no sleeping in for me!) & a good-bye party for our dear friends Tyler, Annie, & Sam
August 11th - Back to the office to unload the truck, then finally some down time with Dan
August 12th - up early for a trip to the chiropractor, a fun day of hiking with Dan, then our final good-bye dinner with the Jones' -- a very tough good-bye
August 13th - CLEANING, cooking, etc....Mamma Johnston & sister Mandee (Dan's sis) arrive
August 14th - off to Anderson, South Caroline to move Mandee into college! A long but fun day of traveling
August 15th - Orientation Day for Mandee, switch hotels, rent a car, and Wal-mart for school supplies
August 16th - Move in day! Lots of re-arranging, Target-shopping, & putting-together a dorm room...then off to North Carolina for a beautiful wedding & reception in the mountains!
August 17th - Enjoy a beautiful breakfast at the Inn, some pool time, then back to South Carolina to spend some time with Mamma J
August 18th - Finish some final details for Mandee (buying books, Financial aid office, etc.), final lunch together, then the 3 of us hit the road back to Nashville
August 19th - FINALLY HOME...until we leave next week for Shelby's wedding!

Whew! That made me tired all over again just thinking about everything :-) But even though it has been crazy, there were certainly some fun times in there and some very memorable experiences which I will try and recap for you over the next little while. I probably have enough blogging material for a year, but we'll see how much I'm able to catch up on before life speeds up again.

On another note...Dan takes his boards on Friday!!! Please be praying for him as he continues to study and make his final preparations for that big scary thing. While I was away at MIR he spent a week in Chicago in an intensive review course and did quite well on the practice tests he took every night. He feels like he'll be ready by Friday - but it's still a little nerve-wracking when everything you've put into the last years rides on a single test. Anyway - I have confidence in him and I'm sure he'll do great! But we'll both be relieved to have that ugly thing behind us.

Okay, that's all for now. But don't worry - I'll be back this time :-)

just keep swimming, just keep swimming....

So I still haven't posted those pics I promised...but that's because those pics are at home and I really haven't been there much lately. I leave for Music in the Rockies (affectionately called MIR around here) in 1 week and 3 days. That translates to not quite 6 work days left...and on the last day we load the truck. Typing that sentence just about gave me a massive heart attack right now...NOT QUITE 6 DAYS LEFT?!?! Wow, I've got a lot left to do......

I was here (in my office) until just after 10:30 last night filling in housing charts. And I've basically been a travel agent for the past month, booking flights for all of our artists and speakers. (side note...I just went through the terms flight attendant and stewardess before I could think of travel agent...I need more coffee I think) Oh the joys of event planning!

But it's not all sad and stressful...there really is a lot I look forward to about MIR. I get to meet lots of great people, hear lots of great music, work from an office that is actually a cabin, and of course, enjoy the breathtaking beauty of the Rocky Mountains:

I had a dream the other night that MercyMe's private jet landed at my Grandparent's house and I began yelling at them to immediately get back on the plane because they were going to miss their scheduled class time. I'm not sure what that means other than that I've been thinking about flights and schedules far too much lately. Oh, and Keith Urban was in that dream, too. I don't even know what to say about that.

I think I'll just keep looking at the picture and remind myself how wonderful if is to breathe deeply of fresh mountain air completely void of humidity. And it seems to help me to sing that catchy little song from Dori on Finding Nemo - just keep swimming, just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming, swimming....

Celebration!

As you've all probably read by now, Dan secured his first official job as a Physician Assistant this past week! He will be working at a Dermatology clinic in downtown Nashville as of September 3rd, and we could not be more excited. It's actually the same clinic he worked at during his last rotation, so it really is a blessing that he knows a bit about what he's walking into. He still has to take his boards next month, but after that, he's home free! I'm not sure who is more excited/relieved that we've made it through this process - me or Dan! But we are so incredibly grateful that God has seen us through, and all in all, it has really been quite smooth. God has provided more than enough every step of the way, and he has proved he is faithful yet again.

I guess I didn't fully realize how ready I was to know even a little bit more about our future until I got that phone call from Dan on Friday. This past year has really been lived in 6-week increments for us as Dan has moved from one rotation to another, with sometimes no idea where or what the next rotation might be. Now, starting September 3rd, he has a plan and a schedule and a routine...and yes, even a paycheck :-) What a huge sigh of relief to have that big piece of the puzzle filled in! And what a blessing to have a job in medicine with a fairly normal schedule, no nights or weekends, no time "on call", and even Holidays off! And another huge perk for both of us is that his office is only a few blocks away from mine...which means there will be plenty of opportunities for car pooling and lunch dates. Ahhhhhhh....thank you LORD!

We went out to celebrate this weekend, and I took some pictures specifically to share with you all, but for some reason they don't want to upload right now. Perhaps I'll try again tomorrow.

UPDATED: The pics finally uploaded!

King Dan enjoying the evening

A blurry nighttime vew of downtown Nashville after our wonderful dinner

By the way...I leave for Music in the Rockies 2 weeks from today...so things are a little crazy at work right now. Please be patient with me if my posts are few and far between for the next few weeks!

Say a Prayer...

I'm probably a little late in posting this, but if you happen to read this between 1:30 and 3:00 today (Friday), would you say a prayer for Dan? He's going to be talking to a Doctor here in Nashville who has offered him a position at a Dermatology office. It's actually the same clinic he worked in during his last rotation, and he really enjoyed it. They've been talking all week about the details and have all but shaken on this...with just one (hopefully minor) hang-up. The Doc really wants him to promise him at least 3 or 4 years...and Dan just doesn't feel like he can make that promise with integrity. So we'll see what happens! I'll keep you posted...

UPDATE: HE GOT THE JOB!!! I'll write more about the details later, but I just couldn't keep you all waiting like that :-) Thanks for your prayers - God is so very faithful!

(A Belated) Happy Fourth!

Have I mentioned on here that I am SO EXCITED to have Kelsey & her new husband Brent living so close?? I haven't?? Well, I am beyond thrilled that the new Mr. & Mrs. Irwin now live about 2.5 hours from where I sit, and we had the pleasure of having them here in Nashville with us to celebrate the 4th of July! Brent & Kels came down Thursday evening & were able to stay until Sunday morning, so we packed a lot in to those few days. Probably more than they are accustomed to...and probably less than we typcially shoot for...but that seems to be the difference between Irwins & Johnstons :-) Nevertheless, we enjoyed every minute!

On Friday, we headed up to Gallatin, which is a smaller town about 40 minutes outside of Nashville. We have a family friend that has a beautiful home there on some gorgeous property, and Dan periodically makes the trip out to help with some of the landscaping & upkeep. Anyway, they were out of town this weekend and we asked if we could borrow their back porch - seriously - because it's amazing. So we got out of the city and enjoyed the lulling of the waterfall in their backyard.
Dan & I decided it was finally time to invest in something we've wanted for a long time now - a Smokey Joe charcoal grill! So we grabbed one at the local Wannaberts (that's Walmart, by the way...I think my sister use to call it that when we were little) before heading out and decided shish-kabobs were appropriate for the innagural grilling.

I must admit - they turned out pretty yummy! We all enjoyed a great 4th-of-July picnic on the beautiful deck, soaking in as much peace & quiet as we could before heading back in to Nashville that evening.

After a pit stop at the Dairy Queen to try the new GirlScout Cookie Blizzards (AMAZING, in case you were wondering), we headed back into the big city & enjoyed a great firework display from the parking lot of our campus...a safe distance from all of the crazies downtown :-)

For some reason I seemed to abandon my camera for the majority of the weekend...I don't even have a picture of Kelsey & me together...but I swear we had fun! We were asked to house/dog-sit for some friends of ours, so we also were able to enjoy a little extra space than our "cozy" apartment has to offer. It was fun to be in a home for a couple of days - thanks Amy & Ben (& Scruffy!).

All in all, we had a wonderful time. It was fun to be with my sister on a holiday as we share many of the same memories and traditions. There aren't many people who feel like a 4th is incomplete without a shot from a musket & a tri-corn hat! We both talked about watching Grandpa light some crazy-big firework he had bought (because Grandpa always bought the biggest & best) & and run back towards us - me squeeling with giggles & Kelsey plugging her ears. Where does the time go? This year we sat hand-in-hand with our husbands, talking about years gone by and years to come. Times have changed, but at least I know this - we'll always be sisters :-)

We're so glad you guys made the trip - we had a blast!