Exciting News (and catching up ~ once again)!

Daisies
Posts have been few and far between lately.  In part due to being busy with the new house and with all the remodeling/moving/unpacking and settling in that went with it.  Another part has been due to job hunting ~ which has been nearly a full time job for the past few months.  There were many applications and many interviews, often with very positive feedback, but either I didn't have quite the "right" experience, or lacked the "correct" degree, which some other candidate had.  It was discouraging and disheartening to say the least.   For a while I feared that I was going to need to go back to school for another 2-3 years, the idea of which had me in tears for days.  So, I expanded my search to include the large Denver hospitals ~ something I had originally hoped not to do.

On a whim (or more likely a nudge from God) I put in an application for a position that "required" the degree that I do not have... and within a day had a positive response and a request for an interview.  To make a long story short, by the grace of God, my experience and education were deemed to be exactly what they were looking for and I have been offered a position in my chosen field (Mom/Baby), in a unit very similar to the one I left in Flagstaff!  I am relieved to be among the employed again and looking forward to starting orientation in mid-March!  I will have a long commute of nearly 60 miles one way that takes just over an hour in good weather, but with God's grace I know that even that hurdle will become a blessing.  

Sunrise on Snow
As with much of the country, we have had a fair amount of snow lately.  I love looking out the frosty window panes early in the morning to catch the first of rays of sun shining across a pristine blanket of new fallen snow!

Sir Thomas
The kitties are my constant companions no matter where I am in the house.  Sir Thomas is usually to be found within about six feet of me, if not closer, even when I am moving about the house.  Here he is hopeful that I might be headed for the kitchen and that a little food will come his way, even though it is hours until feeding time!  At 21 pounds of healthy strong cat, he isn't in need of any extra food, despite his highest hopes!

Miss Mollie
Miss Mollie has a new favored perch on the top of the sofa.  At 13 years old, she is still spry and delightful.  She only weighs in around 6 pounds ~ quite a difference from Thomas, but she still rules the roost most of the time!


Kitzy Kitty
Our other kitty, Kitzy (who was my Mom's kitty) is usually tucked away in my daughter's room.  Unfortunately, she and Miss Mollie have terrible fights if they encounter one another in the same room.  Which has led to a few more vet visits than we would like.  As a result, we keep them separated most of the time.  Sadly that means I rarely am able to capture a nice photo of her.  This one was taken a while back.  She's a sweetheart on her own, but so obstinate and nasty with the other cats!

Dried flowers
As the blooms dried and dropped from the crocus, paperwhites and orchids that bloomed throughout January, I saved them into a bowl.  Little bits of loveliness even in this delicate state!  It won't be long until the pots of hyacinths and daffodils that I potted and tucked away in the garage last fall will be ready to bring indoors from some early bits of spring!

Bumps River
While I was in Massachusetts with my Posie friends, I did a couple of watercolor sketches.  Di's lovely home sits on the Bumps River, a tidal river on Cape Cod.  This was done before storm Nemo moved in.

Garden Shed
After storm Nemo had left it's blanket of snow and moved on, I did this small sketch of Di's garden shed.

Posie Friends!
Here are the group of us that were able to make it.  Two of our friends were not able to make it in due to the storm, but the six of us that were able to get there had a fabulous time, despite the storm and a couple of days without power!  In truth, this group of women is one of life's biggest blessings!  We came together about 13-14 years ago through the old "Victoria" magazine website.  Our group name had it's origination in the saying, "Friends are the flowers in the garden of life".  When we first got together as a large group in 2001, most of us had never actually met one another other than online.  We try to gather for a long weekend every couple of years and there are smaller gatherings in between.

Today, there are ten of us who converse almost daily (and a couple of others who participate occasionally) sharing the ups and downs of life, supporting and encouraging one another through thick and thin.   I don't know what I would do without them!  So here is to Gail, Judi, Heidi, June, Shaun, Judy, Di, Val, Peggy, Maya and Amy ~ the best friends a gal could ever have!   You are a blessing!

Comments

Terri said…
Congratulations on the jobs! Love the kitty pictures.
Leslie said…
Congrats on landing the job, job hunting is terribly stressful. As for the commute, books on tape! You'll be able to get in a lot of 'reading' each day. I came to love my 40 drive to work for just that reason.
Fun to see the kitties too. Kitzy looks just like a cat named Whiskers we had years ago, the spitting image.
Anonymous said…
Wonderful news on the job!!! Somehow it will all work out and maybe into one closer to home in the future. No one was more disappointed than Judi when she was unable to make the trip to see you all. I felt so bad for her as she sure had looked forward to it!! I think your friend Di's shed looks good enough to move into. And as always I love all your pictures and I hope the job will work out wonderful for you.
wendy said…
Congratulations on your new job! Your water color sketches are beautiful!
Susan Elliott said…
First of all, your photography is wonderful! And the job sounds great...maybe you can work fewer days and longer shifts to reduce the commute burden. Also, might I highly recommend a subscription to Audible to download books? My husband works an hour away and his commute has become a non-issue since he has started listening to books. I tend to choose ones that are over 30 hours of listening when I can find them...that way, spending the money each month seems worth it. Also, if you can share them with someone else (my sis and I share our libraries), it's even better.

Love your kitties and it's always a special treat to see your illustrations. You do such a beautiful job of loving your life.

xo susan
Connie said…
Hello, hello, hello,
Well, I was out surfing the blog (I find it much better than surfing the frig for snacks, LOL). . . I went to Google and typed "gypsy colors" and your Feb, 17, 2009 post came up.
I love these colors. We are seriously thinking about purchasing this small older wooden sailboat. We use to have a large sailboat, but it gone to be too much work, but since we sold it six years ago . . . we have been heartsick. Well, the one that we are looking at is small, but it has beautiful classic lines and I know that it would be perfect to decorate in a bohemian gypsy decor. Well, enough said, that's how I found your blog and now I'm a follower. Please come over and visit . . . I would be honored to have you follow me back. If we get the boat I will be posting some of the work we do to get it perfect. I just might copy your photo to use when I shop for fabric . . .I just want the little cabin to be lush, and romantic. Our last boat was blue and nautical . . . that is not what I want for this one.
Sorry, can you tell I'm excited . . . it's all that I can think about. Next week we'll see how she sails and if she's worth the money and hard work to get her back in shape.
I hope that I didn't bore you to death. Hope to hear from you, but if I don't I want to say thanks for the inspirational color choices :)
Your newest blogging sister, Connie :)
welltraveled said…
Oh Lisa I am so delighted that you have the job in the exact field you wanted..
I was so sad to miss the gathering because of the snow storm.Enjoying Florida is nice ,but seeing dear friends face to face is such a blessing. Love our GROUP or coven as some call us.....
JustGail said…
Congratulations on the new job!

We also have 2 female cats that don't get along, although it's better now that it used to be. At least they don't growl and hiss until they are within 3 feet of each other now. That's taken about 4 years, so there's hope for yours yet.
Love the paintings that you did on the Cape. Beautiful additions to your journal. I am sad to have missed seeing you, but it will happen in time. Xxoo
Parabéns pelo novo trabalho! Desejo a você muito sucesso!
Um abraço, cheio do sol de verão do Brasil!

Egléa
Marty52 said…
Hurray for the right experience! It is a long commute but I second Susan's Audiobooks idea. If I had a commute farther than 20 miles, I would definitely be doing that. So glad you are back amongst the employed!!

Popular Posts