Well friends, I thought I'd do a quick update on our lives here in Arizona. I'll get around to writing about the holidays eventually. (Because they were fabulous! Thanksgiving with Joe's family in southern Utah and Christmas in San Diego just the two of us!) But consider this your overview with more details to come later.
Joe is still working for AMEC (thank goodness I can say that as it's only been 6 months!) and loving it. It's been quite a learning process for him and he has really enjoyed the work that he does. He has struggled with taking on the leadership role - if you know Joe, this shouldn't surprise you. But he has continued to impress those he works with. (This also shouldn't surprise you.) Anyway, he is usually working on jobs that are outside of Phoenix. He's currently working in Surprise, AZ which is about an hour and half outside of where we live. Previously, he has been staying in hotels while he works on job sites further away than Phoenix. I would go and stay with him and hang out wherever he was. But then I got a job so he has mostly been commuting back and forth from Surprise each day. I know it's been hard on him but I am so grateful he's willing to sacrifice by making that long commute so that we can still be together at night. He has loved living close to my sister and her family. He especially enjoys the fact that my brother-in-law owns an XBOX. Oh, and just having another male family member to hang out with.
I was previously not working due to us having only one car. But we bought a second car in October and I started looking for jobs. One of the drillers that Joe had been working with was telling him that his wife works with kids with disabilities. Joe found out the information about the company and whether or not they were hiring since I had previously worked with kids with disabilities. I applied that week, went in for an interview the next and was hired that same day! It was really exciting and I felt very blessed to have gotten a job so quickly and one that I was excited about having. I started training mid-November and have loved working there! Currently, I'm working with a teenage boy who is transitioning home from being in detention. We're working with him on building skills and learning activities that support sobriety. It's been quite the experience and I have learned so much already. The people I work with are also amazing. That is one of the positives of working in the field that I do - you go through so much together that you really get close and it's quite amazing. I also applied to the MSW (Master's in Social Work) program at ASU. I am currently just playing the waiting game to see if I get accepted. To be quite honest, I'm more scared of being accepted than being rejected. Maybe it's a little sad, but rejection is what I'm expecting so to actually be accepted and take on this new challenge will be...well, challenging! But I'm excited either way for my future and the fact that I'm in a job I love is pretty great.
We were both called to be Family History Consultants soon after we moved in. We were humbled and overwhelmed as neither of us have done much of it before. While we haven't been able to devote the same kind of time as the retired couple who was called with us, we have really enjoyed learning about family history and being strengthened as individuals and in our marriage as we have sought to do the work for our ancestors. I was also called to be a ward organist. This was also VERY humbling as I had never played the organ prior to being called. It has been interesting. I have enjoyed the opportunity for growth and to put myself out there to serve the Lord but I still get quite nervous every time I have to play.
The week I started training, my Grandpa Ward passed away. Since the funeral was to be that weekend, my sister and her family and Joe and I decided to make the long drive up to Idaho for a few days. All of us working folks were able to get Friday off so we left Thursday night, drove through the night, and arrived Friday. We spent Friday and Saturday with family and attending the funeral and headed back home on Sunday. It was so good to be there with so much family and to remember the amazing impact that my Grandpa has had on so many people. He will be greatly missed.
The next week was Thanksgiving. Joe and I were able to go up to Parowan to celebrate with his family. All of his family were there except a brother-in-law and nephew. It was so much fun! We about died in the FREEZING Utah weather. (They kept telling us it was warm compared to what the weather had been. We begged to differ.) Joe's parents gave all the children a generous gift and we were overwhelmed with their selfless gesture of love. I can't imagine a greater family to marry into. I have learned so much from the Zaleski's - their selfless, kind service to others never ceases to amaze me.
Once we got back, I had finished with training and started working with the kid that I am still working with. I didn't know how much time I would be able to get off for Christmas so Joe and I considered going to San Diego if my time off was only going to be a few days. At first, it was just a dream because we really did hope to make it up to Utah for Christmas to be with my family since we spent Thanksgiving with Joe's family. But as it got closer and we realized I wouldn't get as much time off as we hoped, we started looking into going to San Diego. Things just seemed to fall into place. We went on our honeymoon to San Diego a mere 3 years ago and since we had just celebrated our anniversary the week before, we thought what a better way to celebrate 3 years than in the place we honeymooned! We found a great deal on a great hotel but best of all, we found out the Utah State Aggies would be playing in the Poinsettia Bowl the day after Christmas! It felt like it was meant to be. So...we committed. And OH MAN, this was a trip for the books. We stayed in downtown San Diego only a couple blocks from the harbor. We could see the ocean from our hotel and it was glorious! We did a lot of walking around downtown San Diego as we were right in the heart. Probably the BEST thing we did was a sea kayaking tour around La Jolla caves. If you ever go to San Diego, don't miss this opportunity! Winter is the time to see marine life and while we didn't get to do the whale watching tour we initially wanted, we were more than happy with the one we got. We kayaked around the caves and saw leopard sharks, sea lions, harbor seals, cormorants and some cool-looking fish. We also were able to jump in and swim (we had wet suits on) and swim. There were harbor seals swimming around us at the time - it was amazing! A few of our other activities - went on a run along the harbor, walked around La Jolla beaches in the evening, ate at the San Diego Hard Rock Cafe (a tradition), got goodies at Ghirardelli, went to the San Diego temple for a session, saw the temple lights (amazing!) and finally...attended the Poinsettia Bowl! And, as you all know (or you should know!) the Aggies won!! It was such a fun experience to be there with so many other Aggie fans and be cheering together with Aggie fans, young and old. We also randomly ran into some friends from our ward in Logan. It was so much fun! We then said goodbye to San Diego and came back to reality. Until next time, dear San Diego.
Well, I'll try to post some pictures soon of all our adventures. I have pretty much stopped taking my camera anywhere since I became an iPhone owner. So pictures aren't great but they're sufficient! Thanks for stopping by!