Our Wedding

Lucas & I were married on June 11, 2011. The pictures tell a good story. :) All photos courtesy of Kate Botwinski Photography.

Move #2

At some point in the early spring of 2011, a bank took over ownership of the duplex we were renting. Several months went by where there were no changes. We continued paying rent, obviously, just wrote the check out to someone else. We had several interested buyers come through and view the duplex. It wasn't until May that we received a phone call saying they have an accepted offer and though our lease was good through September 2011, the gentleman purchasing the property would really like for us to be out by June.
Perfect. Timing. Not. :(
So, as if we didn't have enough stress at the time, with our wedding right around the corner (6.11.11) we decided to move. But where? We had looked around and didn't really find anything. We didn't want to make a rash decision because we were in a hurry. We weren't in a position to buy what we wanted yet. So, we moved in to Nana & Papa's basement. With a lot of help from our family, we packed everything up and made the move over Memorial Day Weekend. At that time, the plan was for this to be rather temporary. We stayed there from The end of May to mid December. As always, it turned out God had a special plan in us being there. Those six and a half months were very special times spent with Nana and Papa.
It turns out that if you are surrounded by love, you have everything you'll ever need... And the best is yet to come...

Along Came Max...

Meet Max. He's a German Shepherd and is cute as ever. We think. And spoiled. And sometimes sassy. :)

We got him at the end of September 2010. Looking back now, we have no idea what we would do without him.
Shortly after we got him, I accepted an offer to help out another LivingCenter in Tomahawk on an interim basis, so most days, he was my traveling buddy. He loved going to the Nursing Hone and seeing all the "old people" & they loved him. For Halloween that year, we dressed up as Dorothy and Toto from the Wizard of Oz.

Because he's our "only child" at this time, you will read many more stories about him in the future, but in the meantime, here's some pictures of him. :)

Move #1

In September 2010, Lucas & I moved into our first home together on the outskirts of Marshfield. It was a three bedroom duplex (more than we needed, but the space was nice). It was a quick 5-10 minute commute to work for me and about a 15 minute commute for Lucas.
In this house we celebrated our first Christmas (under the same roof) - this included our first Christmas tree & our first Christmas decoration experience. We did our own lawn care & snow plowing... So Lucas lucked out and got a new 4-wheeler for Christmas that year! :)
In this home, we were fortunate enough to receive several hand-me-downs to get us started:
*Our kitchen table was thanks to Nana & Papa - the kitchen table I used growing up.
* Our couches came from Julie & Duane (which allowed Julie to pick out NEW furniture!).
* Our recliner came from Lucas' mom.
* We purchased our bedroom set from a Dr. Holly & Julie worked with that was moving and wanted to get rid if it.
* We also were given a spare bed from Lucas' grandma for our guest bedroom
* Washer & Dryer came from Holly's in-laws.
Thanks to all who helped us settle into our first house!

Job Offer

I completed my internship on August 6, 2010. Enjoyed a graduation/Birthday Party on August 8, 2010 and started my job on Monday, August 9, 2010! :) I was offered the Assistant Executive Director position @ the Golden LivingCenter-Three Oaks in Marshfield. I love my job, my residents and my staff!

College Graduate

I graduated from the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire on August 6,2010 with a Bachelors Degree in Health Care Administration.

The summer graduates (me and the rest of the HCAD group) were invited to walk in the ceremony of the spring graduates - so Lucas & I were able to be in the same ceremony.

An Engagement

September 26, 2009:
I can remember this day as if it was yesterday. The day (night) Lucas asked me to be his wife.

At this time, I was living at home with my parents and doing the internship. Lucas was living in Eau Claire, finishing up his last year of college. Lucas had come home for the weekend and was spending the night at my parents' house.

At this point, we had been together almost 5 years (our anniversary was just a couple weeks away - October 11) so I figured this day would come, but I really had no idea when.

That night, we were headed to bed, but every time I would doze off, Lucas would ask me a question. He just would not stop talking... It reminded me of a little kid who is too afraid to sit still because they might fall asleep. I can't even recall what he was asking because it was just goofy stuff that made little sense. I could tell by the way he was acting that he had something on his mind, but I couldn't figure out what it was. Out of the blue, he got out of bed and told me he had to go get a pair of socks on because he can't sleep without them. The room was dark, with no lights on. When he came back to bed, he sat me up, got down on both knees, took me in his arms asked me to marry him. I said yes. I cried. & he cried. I was SO happy. It was still dark, I had no idea what the new ring on my finger even looked like, but we sat there in the dark holding each other for a few minutes. Then I asked him to turn the light on so I could see it. After seeing it, I looked up at him with a big smile and said,well, are you going to kiss me or what? :)

Looking back on this, I'm still surprised Lucas was able to keep this a secret.
If you know Lucas at all, you know he is TERRIBLE at keeping surprises for me a surprise. Then, I even found out he actually picked up the ring at the mall when I was with him! Sneaky. Sneaky.

An internship.

In order to complete my Health Care Administration program @ UWEC I had to complete a year-long internship. I was fortunate enough to be chosen for my first choice facility: the Golden LivingCenter Three Oaks in Marshfield. The internship began at the end of August 2009 and ended the following summer - August 2010.
Throughout my year there, I would be a sponge: Learning everything I possibly could. Volunteering to help in anyway I was able. Observing the staff and their interactions with the residents and each other.
Loving every minute of it.
I've always been very observant and perceptive. I can pick up rather easily on a person's thoughts before they say a word. Through observing the many people and the many reactions to those people I was able to develop in my mind the type of employee/employer/coworker I desired to be. I didn't stray much from the person I was, but rather refined who I was in relation to this new work-career life.
I always give the best "reviews" to UWEC's HCAD program because the internship is such a great opportunity. It is the best hands on experience a college student can have. & the opportunities are endless.
The internship validated to me that I was right where I needed to be. I wanted to be with the elderly population. Serving them. Making a difference in their lives. Putting smiles on their faces. Every. Single. Day.

Time

Time has flew by... Two years have flew by with no blog posts.
What was missed?
An internship.
A proposal [engagement].
A college graduation.
A job offer.
A move.
A puppy.
Another move.
A wedding.
Unfortunate news.
A death.
A baby on the way [an expecting sister].
Yet, another move.
Another baby on the way [me].
A miscarriage [me].
A surgery.
A birth of a beautiful niece.
More to come... {in less than two years!}
And, as always, the best is yet to come...