Trial and Error

So apparently you have to hit "publish post" in order for it to be put on your blog... oops. I had 3 posts waiting for me when I went to type one this morning, hehe. :)

This is all still new for me. Its just one more piece of evidence to back up the theory that I do not belong in this technology-driven world.

New House, New Niece, New Job

I would say we are officially moved in, but that isn't quite true if you count all the boxes that line the halls and fill the rooms. Joel may be an official resident of Michigan now if you count the fact that he registered his car and had his great Arizona driver's license voided (the tragedy of it all!)... I may try to hold out a bit longer and try to prevent reality from sinking in full force. It has definitely been hard to live in the same house you are trying clean and unpack. It made me realize what a blessing it was when we moved to Phoenix that my parents were so close by that we could eat at their place until we were settled.
On the positive side, when I made a mess of the kitchen looking through boxes ("where did I see that food processor?") to make dinner, and couldn't fully clean it (on account of neither having dishwasher cleaner or a dishwand to put the soap in)... you really can't tell!! :) Once I line the shelves and find the silverware holder, I will be well on my way to a unpacked kitchen!! It will be a blessing having my mom out here for the next week to watch the baby so that I can be more productive and efficient.

Mark Savoury. Our amazing real estate agent.

Not an inch to spare when an engineer(ing major) packs the vehicle.

We ate Panera three times in two days. We ought to buy stock.

My first home cooked meal. Daddy is using his new Father's Day mug with Liam's footprint (It took me forever to find the box I packed it in!


New Niece

On our way upto Michigan, we stopped in South Bend to visit my in--laws. I was fully excited to see Natalie have her baby that day, as she had been in labor. Unfortunately, she decided it was time to get her revenge on not seeing Liam for his first month of life, and gave birth to little Cosette Marie the evening we headed up to Farmington. I can't wait to go visit :)

Cosette Marie Virkler. Born 19 June 2009

New Job

Yesterday began the beginning of my husband's new job at Botsford General Hospital. Its actually only orientation, which I consider a preparation period for the wives, as we become used to not seeing our husbands around anymore- a thoughtful gesture as opposed to the sledgehammer that will be swung July 1st when true residency gets underway.

Traveling the World...

...well, at least a good part of the United States that is. By the time Liam was 6 weeks old, he had already traveled over 3,500 miles.

Over the past month, we flew (successfully, I might add- but only by the grace of God and many wonderfully, helpful people in the airport) to Knoxville, TN where Joel and his brother, Nate picked me up to take us to Gatlinburg, where we met up with the rest of the Virkler family at a huge 4-story cabin up in the smoky mountains. It was a fun week in which we all went to the aquarium, and bonded together through evening devotions, meals, and time spent together. Some of us (Joel) went whitewater rafting, biking in a cove, and extreme hiking, while others (Amber) stayed and nursed the baby, while hanging out with Natalie at the cabin (we were trying to make sure she wouldn't go into labor early). It was still eventful for us though, as we learned all about the friendly black bears in the area, as well as the New Year's festivities- all courtesy of the jacuzzi repair man. I also got to spend a wonderful afternoon shopping at the outlet mall with my sisters-in-law: Miranda, Rachel and Natalie, where I learned how to correctly operate a stroller; later on that evening, we met up with Nick and Sandra Waibel for dinner- they also have a new baby boy named Liam!
Gatlinburg wasn't what I expected at all. For some reason I had pictured a little quaint German town in the mountains. Although the cabin met this expectation, the town itself turned out to be a big, cheaply expensive tourist trap. Much to my chagrin and disappointment, it was littered with Ripley's museums, candy shops, knick-knack boutiques, hollywood and horror galleries, rides galore and more pancake houses (I counted about 15 within a few miles just on the main strip in Pigeon Forge), icecream shops (we walked past 3 BRs alone our night in town) and mini golf courses (some were right next to each other, but I must admit, they were a lot more creative then any others I've ever been to) then one can imagine.
I found it all rather appalling, but then realized that they wouldn't exist without constant business (I don't see a problem with a little outing every once in a while, but not a whole vacation devoted to it). It made me wonder if this is what America has come to- we seek quick, cheap, hedonistic entertainment, rather then marvellling at the beauty of God's creation and focusing the attention inward, upon strengthening the family, rather then outward. Isn't this also true sometimes with our relationship with God? Would those 5minute devotionals exist if people didn't think that giving anything more then .3% of their day to dig into the Scripture and spend time meditating upon their Creator was too much? Being critical, I must first admit that I can point the finger at myself for this, as I also wonder whether I will fall into the same routine with our growing family.

Portia loved "baby Wee-yum" and if we were unsure where she was, we only usually needed to know where he was to find them both!

Anyhow, Joel wouldn't be himself if he didn't try to be efficiently productive no matter where we were... therefore, on our way back to Remington, we made a slight detour to the Creation Museum in northern Kentucky (it was his first time and mine for the completed version- I recommend it!) and then a stopover in Indy where we spent a lovely evening with Clint and Alesa. The next two weeks were spent hanging out and introducing Liam to many of Joel's relatives and friends, as well as closing on our first house :) and then heading to Peoria, IL for Morgan's wedding!

Morgan & Kyra's wedding

Four generations of Virkler boys... :)

I cannot believe we survived the past few weeks, and I am so grateful and feel so blessed that God gave me such a wonderful, easy-going baby that enjoys to sleep at night! Now I just pray it continues as we move in and unpack!!

Last Days in Phoenix

What a sad post (but a cute first pic of my lil ASU stud)!! Really though, it is only going to be the "last days" for 5 years...

I'm really trying to think short term, although my husband didn't help when he commented that "do you realize that residency is twice as long as we've been married?" - Now, I feel like we've been married forever (in a good sense that is ;) So now I'm trying to imagine what [forever x 2] feels like. Wow. ... any thoughts??

My sister only made matters worse when she reminded me that I will be 30 years old by the time Joel is done and we are able to move back again. Ouch.

My last few days in Phoenix consisted of packing and trying to facilitate packing, while working on a 3 hr schedule with 1 hr breaks between each (in other words, nursing a very lazy eating newborn), and watching my whole past two years be summarized in a 16ft Budget truck. The days consisted of trying to cram in as many as events as possible, in as little time as possible, while trying to stay as relaxed as possible (scary... I think my husband is rubbing off on me...)

Joel left a week before I did, and with the help of his parents, Ruth and Tim, moved all our stuff to a storage unit in Michigan, where it would await our arrival a month later. We didn't think it would be wise to travel such long hours with a newborn, so I got to stay behind in the lovely city of Phoenix for another week. What a drag.

A few snapshots of our final days...
Liam's first trip to Sakana. Part of the reason we went (besides to let Liam experience raw fish for the first time) was to see Denise, Katie's boss. We ended up missing her though, because she went into labor that afternoon!

After sushi, we went to Sweet Republic, an amazingly delicious artisan icecream shop. With sorbet flavors like basil lime, yogurt flavors like blueberry cinnamon, and icecream like cheese course (blue cheese and medjool dates)... all made with natural ingredients... what's not to love?!

On Wednesday evening, Timothy spotted a rattlesnake. Because the small children like to play in that area, my super hero dad took a shovel and killed it.

If you had just spent the past two days working hard and packing late into the night, and knew that you were headed out of town at dawn with a long day of driving tomorrow, what would you do?? Well, if you are like my husband, the answer is obvious... watch Tommy Boy, of course!!

Unfortunately, Joel left before the family could organize a farewell party for us. It also ended up being a coming-out party for Liam (as well as his new cousin Connor).

The day before we left, we had our last Starbucks social with the Camerons and the Stones. Sarah also came, and towards the end, Molly randomly came too!

Swedish crepes with lingonberries and lingonberry butter. :)

My daddy rhetorically asked me what I wanted as my last meal in Phoenix. Since we had just had In-n-Out, and I'd been craving these from IHOP since the baby was born, it really was not hard to figure out!!