Still Settling In...

I thought I better get an update written as I kind of left everyone hanging about Carl's job situation!  Carl ended up taking the job he was offered and is on his way to day 2 of work as I type.  We were able to get a delayed start date so that we had a few more days to get settled and spend 2 relaxing nights in Whistler with Mom and Dad Funk.

So far (after day one), Carl thinks the job will be good and that if nothing else, he will learn lot's!  We are trying to figure out the best mode of transportation for him so yesterday he drove and today he is taking the bus!  He left at 5:30am this morning and the last I heard, the bus was moving quicker than he thought :)

On my first day alone and without a car, I managed to keep busy washing and folding (and folding) baby clothes and cloth diapers!  I also took a walk to the grocery store and probably bought a few to many heavy items to walk home with...But the groceries on my back seemed to balance out the weight gain on my front!

I can't forget to mention the amazing shower my sister in law Brittany threw for us this past Sunday!  We were able to see almost all the ladies from the Funk and Rempel side along with the some friends, which was soooo great!  I've really appreciated being able to see so many of our family friends since we've been back!  

I'll leave you with a few photos from Sunday!

P.S. Carl just texted...He made it to work via bus an hour earlier than expected :)

Getting into the Groove

It's been a busy 5 days!  Since we pulled in the driveway on Thursday, it feels like we've been going non stop...We haven't even had time to enjoy our cable TV!  Besides doing the usual unpacking and settling in, Carl has had 3 meetings for 2 potential jobs, we had an amazing baby shower/ welcome back BBQ, and I've met our new doctor and done a hospital tour to see where our little one will be born!  What do you want to hear about first?

I'm sure most of you are saying "Carl's job opportunity!" since that has been an area of concern for us. Soooo he had an interview with a private development company (as opposed to public/city) and on the way home from the interview received a call from them for references and "to chat".  The following day he received another call saying that they would like to meet again.  At this meeting he was offered the job!  BUT, on the same day Carl had written an exam as a first step for a possible job opportunity for the city of Coquitlam.  We are currently weighing out the pro's and con's of the jobs and are prayerfully considering the opportunity that has been offered.  Either way we are amazed and thankful at how quickly God has answered our prayers for job opportunities to arise...Now we just hope we make the right decision (more prayer needed)!  (If we decide to take this job, we will likely need a second vehicle so keep your ears open for any cheap commuter cars for sale out there!)

On Sunday, my friends Tiffany and Catherine threw me a baby shower!

It was awesome to get to see a bunch of my friends and family and of course, get spoiled!  You'll notice in the pictures below an elephant theme.  It happens to be our daughters favourite animal :)

YUM!

Adorable!

Party Favours

Adult Sippy Cups

Yesterday I went to my first doctors appointment in Abbotsford.  We chose to go to Abbotsford because my sister in law Brittany is a maternity nurse at the hospital there!  She was able to recommend her favourite doctor and we're hoping to get special treatment at the hospital (especially if she is working), heehee!  The doctor said that the baby is head down and will likely stay that way until birth.  He also said that everything looks great and she is an average size.  When I asked him how much he thought she might weigh, he figured about 7-7.5 pounds already!!!  With anywhere from 2 to 6 weeks left to go, that sounds BIG!  Makes me a little nervous!

This week the goal is to work on the nursery!  It's probably been the most overwhelming part of being home, just not sure what to do with it!  Hopefully our trip to Ikea today will bring us some ideas!

Back in the Burbs

So we made it back to BC! 

After a delightful visit with our friends Marcus and Mel, we left Calgary with Scotch Creek as our next destination.  It was a long day of driving and once we reached Scotch Creek we were feeling a little brain dead.  We wanted to stop at Scotch Creek to enjoy some fun in the sun but when we arrived, it was looking more like rain than sun!  With the possibility of rain on the way and the fact that Carl had lined up interview for Friday, making us want to get home a little earlier, we decided to plug on to Kamloops.  In Kamloops we were able to visit with several of my family members and a friend and stay the night in a bed!  By about 9am Friday morning, we were homeward bound!

We arrived at our new house around noon and had a welcoming committee consisting of my friend Catherine and 2 of her boys who had made us a "Welcome Home" sign.  They helped us unpack our car and left us to check out our new place!

Since we've been home, we've settled in quite nicely (it didn't take much seeing how most of our stuff was already in our house before we moved in!!!).  Carl had his first job interview on Friday and has been short listed for another job!  

Overall, we must admit it feels a little weird to be back - almost like we never left, yet things are different.  We are really looking forward to reconnecting with all our friends and family!

Calgary Bound: Sept 2, 3, 4

So our first 2.5 days were spent just getting out of Ontario!  Since we crossed the Manitoba border on Sunday, we feel like we’ve been making good time (maybe it’s because the speed limit seems to increase in each province).  We crossed into Manitoba and debated on stopping in Winnipeg but heard from others that there wasn’t much to see and we were kind of on a roll with this driving thing, so we pushed forward.  

Manitoba was pretty dull, actually very dull.  There wasn’t even signs to see the worlds largest...What is Manitoba even known for?  One thing that made Manitoba exciting is the fact that after we have driven across, it means we will have both been in every province in Canada (and will have driven through all of them by the end of this summer!).  We ended up getting through Manitoba and a fair way into Saskatchewan before stopping for the night.  

Saskatchewan, as with Manitoba, doesn’t have much to offer along the Trans Canada Highway except a few more grain elevators and trains.  On Monday, we crossed the Alberta border which makes us feel really close to home, but from here on in, we’re slowing things down a bit to visit with some family and friends along the way.  

Monday night we stopped at our friends Kris and Kellie's whom we met in Kingston!  They made us a yummy BBQ dinner and we spent the night at their place.  This morning we have taken a break from driving and had a relaxing morning.  We will shortly be meeting up with more friends of ours, Mel and Marcus who recently moved to Calgary from Vancouver.  We'll spend the night at their place tonight and get back on the road again tomorrow, destination Scotch Creek!

On the Road Again: August 31-Sept 1

And we’re on the road again!  Thursday was my last day at work and a tearful day it was, I was very sad to leave.  The people I worked with in Kingston were amazing!  In my 11 years of banking I can honestly say that that was the best branch I have ever worked for.  I left with a few parting gifts including a zucchini loaf for the road baked by a friend I called my “bank mom”, a bag of goodies for the road from a co-worker/friend/neighbor and leftovers for our first lunch on the road from the potluck the branch put on for me. 

Carl and I had packed up the car Wednesday night, which ended up being harder than we thought.  To get our roof top carrier closed Carl had to climb on top of the car and get on top of the roof top carrier while I tried to get a lock on it!  We stayed Wednesday and Thursday night at a friend’s house since we didn’t have a bed anymore, but Carl went back to our place on Thursday where he unpacked and re-packed the car.  We thought we might have to ship 2 or 3 boxes that wouldn’t fit in the car…Well our total came to 9 boxes and the car is still packed to the brim (like we both don’t have much leg room!).  We have literally shoved stuff in every nook and cranny in the car.

We hopped on the road by 7:30am Friday morning and made our first stop in Belleville about an hour away.  We stopped for breakfast and one last visit with my Great Great Aunt Joanie and Fred.  We were back on the road by about 10:30am and drove until about 7:30pm to Sault Ste. Marie.  Besides shedding a few tears (ok, maybe more than a few), the drive was uneventful. 

As for tenting while pregnant, we decided to put me close to door for my midnight pregnancy pee’s, which seemed to work well.  However, I am finding that the easiest way for me to get into the tent is to back in butt first and kinda fall to the ground.  I feel like I should have as sign on my rear that says “Wide Load” and there should be a warning back up signal beeping to warn people of what’s coming.  As for sleeping comfortably in the tent…It might take me the whole trip to figure that out!

This morning (Saturday), after a pancake breakfast we were on the road by about 9:30am.  It’s now 7:15pm and we are still going.  Again, it’s been pretty uneventful.  I’ve shed a few more tears and had a few naps trying to catch up on lost sleep and Carl has been listening to a book on CD while doing all the driving!  The sights were a bit more desirable today, as we drove along Lake Superior and through some rocks cliffs.  As we entered a small town called White River I had to do a double take because Winnie The Pooh was on the sign?  Apparently White River, Ontario is where Lieutenant Harry Colebourn bought the little black bear who became the basis for the Winnie The Pooh stories.

Right before we hit White River, I was enjoying a little nap when I felt the car suddenly slow.  I woke up with a jolt and saw the lights in the rear view mirror.  We were being pulled over.  We had heard that the area of route 17 we were currently on was a common place to get speeding tickets.  The speed limit is only 90km, it’s a 2 lane highway and for the most part empty…Except for us and the cop who gave us a speeding ticket!  I figure with the amount of driving we've done in the past 2 years, one speeding ticket isn't to bad.  Since then we've stuck to the 90 speed limit and feel a little insecure when multiple semi trucks fly passed us!

We carried on making one more interesting stop outside of Thunder Bay where Terry Fox ended his run across Canada prematurely.  When we were in Newfoundland we saw where he started so it was kind of neat to see the start and finish lines.

Emotionally, we are both feeling drained.  Drained from the driving (oh we just passed our first time change zone!) and drained from the emotional good byes and leaving a place that we both loved so much.  Carl has a more positive outlook and is excited to get home while I am stuck more in the mourning phase of our departure.  I know as we get closer to home my excitement will come, but for now I am letting myself grieve what is left behind.