Cha cha cha chaaanges!

Many new things happening in our lives right now! Some exciting, some a little daunting, all of them a new chapter.

Patrick officially accepted his position at Charles Schwab as an Estate and Retirement Specialist. We're both thrilled about this opportunity for him to move closer to the focus he's aiming for! He's already given the recruiter some grief-as Patrick does. She's been negotiating with him for so long (and I'm sure gets a bonus for every employee she signs on). She called him to "up" the deal a little and he said, "You know, I've been thinking a lot about this...and I've decided to stay with Wells Fargo....................nah, I'm just kidding." She said, "Patrick?! You almost made me lose my lunch!" Already making friends in the company-that's what he does :o)

Now that Patrick's job will be in Phoenix, and mine are in Phoenix and Glendale, we've started looking at houses in south Scottsdale. It's the perfect location to still be "where the action is at," close to lots of freeways, the SAME distance to church and my parents house (add 4 minutes), gym close by, dog park less than a mile away, and we'll significantly cut down our commute time (mine especially). So we have a couple picked out, and one specifically that I'm a little attached to. But they're mostly short sales so we're not expecting a quick answer. If we get a house out there, our plan is to rent our house out in Mesa. Right now there are lots of renters in the market with a turn around time of only 2 weeks. Sweet deal!

I'm in the process of applying to USC's Social Work Graduate Program. They have an online medium, called their Virtual Academy, and the curriculum is every bit as rigorous as the traditional lecture classes on campus. In my experience, online classes are actually a lot harder than on-campus classes. I was a little hesitant about doing my whole degree online, but after talking with the admissions counselor found out that I could transfer to a campus easily if I needed to. So I'm going to give it a shot! I think this degree lends to a lot of flexibility in the kind of job I'll be looking for in the future. I'll be able to work in a school, be a director of a non-profit, advocate, get a certificate to be a therapist, the possibilities are wide open! (Plus I have some ideas for the near future regarding social work :o) I told Patrick that I will be walking in my black cap and gown across the Trojan stage. He said, "Of course."

Something that hasn't changed? We still don't have kids. But that's ok because our plan was to be married for 5 years or so before we even start trying, and we're doing good so far! I think we'll have to push our timeline back about 7 months so I can finish my master's and then Mr. Stork you're welcome into our home. Not that he's not welcome in our home, he's just not our preferred guest at this point in time. Man, that thing is ugly. Whoever made up the story about the stork delivering babies didn't see the real thing. Yuck! Plus we don't want to steal anyone's limelight. On Patrick's side Sheena and Jake just had baby Allison in January, Rami and Dave had baby Bo in February, and on deck we have Beth and Josh with another baby Jones and (drum roll please)........Krista and Jace with twins-coming soon to a hospital near you! Yes, it's a busy year for the Jones family. Patrick and I see this as a great opportunity to celebrate with them, hold babies, and go home to our dogs :o) Hey, you would think the same thing if your probability of getting twins was more than 50% too. Yes, that's where the 5 years comes into play. Of course with all these new things happening, I should probably knock on wood...Whatever happens, don't believe a word Patrick says. He's the boy who cried wolf. I see why he always teases people though. When he even hints around (falsely of course) that we're pregnant, he gets a big rise out of people. Oh Patrick.

I'm not really one for change, and this season in our life has been quite a struggle for me. I think God just decided to dump it all at the same time so I'd get over it. Way to be God, way to be. You'll be happy to know that I'm a little more fond of new things now than I was before. It's all about the growing process...