Green Bay

The eve before we found out where we would all be going we got together, ate pizza and watched the Oscars. Maybe I should clarify this - the girls watched the Oscars while the guys played PlayStation.

Jesse & Lynn, Ben & Katie,

Natalie with her sweet baby girl (Due in April) & Brandon

This morning we awoke to another e-mail. This e-mail told us where would be moving, or so we thought.

I was very much at ease opening this e-mail. Jesse was a bit nervous. We opened and read Wisconsin Dept of Corrections! This was our 2nd choice. Except we still didn't know where we would be going. They had openings in 3 different cities - Green Bay, Milwaukee, and Madison. Jesse felt very confident that he would get the Green Bay location. About 30 minutes later the Dept. of Corrections called us and offered Jesse the Green Bay site. Whew!

Jesse will start Sept 5th. Therefore, we will probably be leaving July 31st and making that trek back across the states to Green Bay, Wisconsin!!

The fun part now begins - looking for housing and a job for me. Oh boy!

We were matched!

This morning we found out that we have been matched with one of the six sites that Jesse interviewed at. We don't know which site... we will find out Monday morning. I know, the suspense is killing me... actually I thought it would be a lot worse. I actually feel so good right now and I am so giddy!! Just knowing that we have been placed is such a relief!

We got up at our usual time and turned on the computer. Jesse and I opened the e-mail together and my eyes were just scanning looking for the words "you have been matched"!! I soon found Congratulations! And I said out loud "Congratulations!!" We looked at each other and you could just watch the weight being lifted off our shoulders!! I have no idea what else the e-mail said... and I am pretty sure Jesse doesn't know either. We closed the e-mail without reading the rest.

As we were getting ready, making phone calls, and doing the rest of our morning routine, Jesse kept looking at the TV and said "I just want that ticker at the bottom of the screen to read 'Jesse Frey was matched'. I feel like the whole world should know." He was so excited! And said a couple times - I MADE IT!! (He did through a swear word in there - the guy was just so excited!!) I told him that he could stop going to class and practicum - because it doesn't matter anymore!! : ) Not that he has a hard class schedule this semester - he only goes 2 days a week!!

Well that's it! We just wait until Monday morning to see where we have been placed and when our start date is.

Thank you so much to everyone who prayed and was there supporting us through all of this!! You have no idea how much you mean to us!! THANK YOU!!

Until Monday...

A weekend with friends

This past weekend a couple of girls that I went to high school with (Deb & Erin) came out to visit me. They got in late Saturday night and left early Tuesday morning. We had so much fun!

Sunday afternoon we went to Multnomah Falls. I had our GPS (because I didn't know exactly how to get there) and it took me off the interstate and put me on "Old Columbia River Highway" and we saw this waterfall...

We continued on to Multnomah Falls which is still very impressive no matter how many times you see it. We decided to hike to the top!! I had never been to the top before so I was willing and I thought I was able...

Oh, about 1/2 way I start to think that we are not even headed to the top of the fall. We are not even hiking in the right direction! Oh and it is raining on us! We ask a gentleman who was on the trail, how far to the top. He tells us a 1/2 mile! Great!! Not much longer!! WRONG!! It seriously felt like an 8 mile hike (in the rain). It was a hard hike. No one said a word almost the whole way up (except to complain and talk about how sore we were going to be the next day). We needed to focus on getting to the top! Erin owns her own dance studio and teaches dance almost every night so she was first in line and seemed to be having no problems at all! Deb is a nurse and runs around the hospital like she is the only nurse in the whole place!! She is next in line. ME - Yeah, I am last!! I sit and stare at a computer all day!! This hike was a big deal to me!! Anyway we make it to the top. Here is what you see...

and...

and, then you could look out of the very top of the waterfall - all the way down to the bottom. I looked but by that time I was out of memory space on my camera and couldn't take a picture! I guess you all will have to hike to the top now and see for yourselves!! haahaaahhaaa!! (Seriously, I didn't have any more memory on my camera.)

Sunday night we went to Harvey's Comedy Club to watch Spankey the Comedian! He was pretty funny! What we liked the most was he would laugh so hard at his own jokes! Sometimes so hard that he had a hard time telling them! He told us to laugh every day - we had no problem doing that!!

After the show we came back to our apartment and went to the hot tub to soak our soon to be sore legs! Oh my gosh!! My legs were so sore the next 2 days!! It was a great workout!!

Monday morning we got up early, ate breakfast at Starbucks, and headed to Cannon Beach. It is still raining today! Wasn't going to stop us!! We arrived at Cannon Beach and it is raining pretty hard. We walked down to the beach and it was very windy - making the rain come at an angle! In order to get to Haystack Rock we had to walk against the rain & wind. We decided to walk backwards - it worked very well.

We are not even 1/2 way to Haystack Rock and we are soaked! Our pants felt as if we just took them out of the washing machine and put them on!! Our hair was wind blown, wet, and snarly!! We were so beautiful!! We kind of felt like swim suit models on the beach!!! Deb, wanted to pose for us.... minus the swim suit... and completely clothed with her ski jacket on... (Sorry Deb, I couldn't resist!! You are so cute!!)

We finally make it to Haystack Rock and there is not a dry spot on us! I tried to use a Kleenex in my pocket and I could ring the water out of it!!

Haystack Rock...

We thought we still wanted to go into the stores that they had - so we walked the street back to the stores. Thought we might find some dry clothes to drive home in. Even a towel would have been great!! Something to sit on so we wouldn't get the seats wet in the car!

When we got to the stores we were afraid that they might not let us in - because of how wet we were. It looked as if we just came out of the ocean!! We were only able to go into 3 stores before we realized the cop cars and fire trucks. A gas line was broken and they wouldn't let us go any further. We drove home!

Monday night we went to do some shopping at an outdoor mall... still raining. But, this mall offers umbrellas that you can use for FREE!! This was going to be great! We found 3 umbrellas!! We wanted to go into Crate & Barrel and these people stole our umbrellas!! Right in front of us!! We set them down and they took them!! We were so mad!! We made sure to get even!! The next time we found umbrellas we took them and ran!! But, when we went to the movies we did offer our umbrella to a very cute couple and they cuddled under it as they walked!!

Besides the weather we all had a great time! I am so glad they came out to visit me!!

- - Jesse's Trade Show- -

(This picture is taken with our old camera that is why it is so fuzzy.)

He made lots of great contacts and was very happy that he went! He is already planning and plotting for the next show.

Alright - I have to run and start supper!! Have a great night!! We find out tomorrow if we have been matched... on Monday we find out where!!! I'll keep you all update!!

Stumbled across some pictures

I am looking at our pictures on our computer and I stumbled across the pictures from when Jesse's brother, Jerry, stayed with us a for week. Jerry and Jesse spent the time riding dirt bikes, camping, riding more dirt bikes, more camping, and more dirt bikes.

The adventures of the Frey Boys:

And the injuries to prove how hard they ride:

(Those are actual tire marks on Jesse. Ouch.)

An Update

I have been getting the 'ol blog lecture from Brandon... he has been waiting for a new post. The trouble is I don't have much to say. If I start to ramble - blame Brandon!!

12 days until we find out where we are going!!! 12 days!! Now that it is getting closer I have this feeling of - I don't want to know! It is coming way to fast. We have our last lease sitting on our kitchen table waiting to be signed. We have to be moved out by July 31st!!

Happy Valentine's Day!! Tonight Jesse and I are making a supper at home. A new supper, we haven't had this meal before and it is a bit different... wish us luck. It is called Latin Steak. The Steak isn't the scary the part. We are making sweet potatoes with plantains all mashed together. Plantains look like bananas and we all know how I feel about bananas. Yuck! But, I am hoping they taste nothing like a banana!! The picture looked really good. And pictures don't lie!!

Friday morning Jesse leaves for Indiana!! He is going to have a booth at a trade show. This trade show is one of the largest motorcycle trade shows. (I think that is right.) His brother, Jerry, and his friend, Jason, will be meeting him there. I hope they have a great turn out and sell lots of product!!

Saturday night I have a couple of friends from high school coming to stay with me!! I am so excited to see them. One of the girls really wants to go to a comedy club. So on Sunday we should be heading to Harvey's Comedy Club in downtown Portland - if I can remember to call and reserve our tickets. They have a professional comedian and then after that they have open mic... you never know the three of us might get up there and talk about Wisconsin people!! The rest of our time we will be doing a mini tour of the area - check out some waterfalls, a little ocean, and who knows what else. I'll be sure to post our pictures!

I think that's it for now. Have a great rest of your week!

A Sunday Drive

We have been having beautiful weather the last couple of days. On Sunday we just needed to get out and enjoy it. We took the Jeep out and went to Trask Mountain. We were able to see Mount Hood perfectly!! I will definitely miss that Mountain when we leave! The only "mountain" in our area [back home] is Rib Mountain... and it is a big hill. Sometimes in the winter they make their own snow so the skiers can ski!!

There was still snow on Trask Mountain. There were some roads that we very icy and we had to turn around because the Jeep just doesn't do so well with ice, and we didn't have chains. Jesse tells me if he was with a group guys he would have went further. Because he was with me his caution signal went off and he turned around. Aw, what a sweetie!!

Here are some pictures of the mountain...