Hey, Kids... Dad isn't a "NeRD" any longer!!!!!
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Spraying enamel
3 hours ago
Monday, September 29, 2008
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Our first day trip!
Today we took our first day trip. We went to visit the Manassas Battlefield where the first battle of the Civil War took place. It was VERY interesting and it was fun to finally start exploring!! The park ranger who led a walking tour really helped bring history to life in this battlefield area.
Photos from left: (L) Actual cannons that the army of Stonewall Jackson used to defeat the Union Army. (C) The first civil war memorial constructed in 1865, after the war. (R) Dan with Stonewall Jackson, General in the Confederate Army.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Back to the beginning of the story...
As I was getting "We have moved" cards ready to mail out, I realized that there were many people who did not know how this move came about, or how God orchestrated this whole move.
It all started when after a couple of years trying to decide, we finally decided to try to sell our house of 21 years and move to a different house but still in the same area. We decided to do some upgrading but not much. We left the carpeting and countertops, which were originals, for the new owners to take care of. I only mention this because it is just one of the many testimonies to how God worked this all out.
So, we decided on a realtor, which our long time friend from Illinois, John Greener, helped us pick out, being a career realtor himself, he offered to do the interviewing for us. That was a HUGE help to us! Jennifer was a wonderful realtor, but what she said when she signed up with us was that there were around 240 homes within a 3 mile radius of our house, in our same price range, up for sale also and it could be a struggle selling it. We thought about putting it up for rent, but decided that would be option B if things didn't work out.
So, on June 3rd we put the house up for sale. On June 4th we had an offer. We counter-offered, and by June 6th we had sold our house!! It was AMAZING!! Right about this time, Dan came home from work and said "Want to hear something funny? Guess what I got asked at work today? They want to know if I want to interview for a 3 year rotation job in Washington D.C. " I said,"Washington D.C. ? Huh." not being very excited. But the more I thought about it, I thought, well, why not? Our house just sold, the kids are settled (and no grandchildren yet) So I told Dan what I was thinking and I said"Let's ask the kids how they feel about it." He did and each in their own way, said "go for it!" He was amazed at our responses and decided to put his hat in the ring for the job. At this point, we began laying our future before the Lord, wondering how He would lead us.
The official interview was Mon. June 23rd, but it was going to be at least 3 weeks before we heard the outcome. So in the meantime we were looking for houses to move into "just in case". So every weekend we had our realtor taking us out to look for houses. Alot of times the kids would go with us to look. We looked at over40 houses during that time and surprise, surprise, we never found one that was "the one".
Our prayers during this time included asking God to give us peace (which He did ABUNDANTLY!!) and for us not to get attached to a house before we found out about the job. Looking back, we now believe that God was preventing us from finding a home in the Seattle area.
The first date for the interview results was Mon. June 30th. That came and went with no decision. The next date was Mon. July 7th. Again, no decision. By this time we were getting a little nervous because we knew the closing date on the house was looming (July 25) and we still didn't know where we were going to live. Two days later, Dan got a call saying he was going to D.C.!!
Well, we had an answer, but now we had to get moving on things! Boeing has an awesome relocation package and we knew they would be moving us out there, but with the fact we had to be out of our house in 2 weeks made things a little iffy. Do we pack up our own things, or can Boeing get their contracted movers lined up within the next couple of weeks to come out? Where will we live for 1 1/2 months until Dan had to be on the job in D.C. on Sept. 15th. We were going to get rid of our old furniture which was pretty worn down and get new things when we got to D.C., did we keep it and move into an apt. or go ahead with selling it and move into an extended stay hotel?
All of these questions going on knowing we were going to have to be out of the house by July 25th, but God worked again and the closing got pushed back a week to Aug. 4th. So we decided we would let the furniture go and after moving out we would move into the Residence Inn for a month. Our contact at Boeing called us on Thurs. July 31st to let us know the movers would be there the next day. So on Fri., Aug. 1st the movers packed us up, on Sat. they loaded us up and on Sun. the whole family met at the house to say goodbye. Lots of memories in that house after 21 years!!
Dan and I flew out to D.C. Aug. 9th on a house hunting trip, also provided by Boeing. We looked at 35 houses in 3 days, decided on one( in Virginia, about 25 miles away from Dan's office which is in Rosslyn across the Potomac River from D.C.), put in an offer and were able to sign the escrow papers and get in some sight seeing of D.C. all in one week!!
After returning to Seattle, Dan was busy finishing up his job and showing the new person how things were done. I ended up working at the school for 3 weeks because they didn't hire anyone to take my place until a couple of days before school started and there was LOTS to do! There again God blessed me because it gave me a chance to say goodbye to families, kids, and staff I had worked with for 15 years.
We also took this opportunity to take a mini vacation with the kids to Whistler,B.C.. We had a GREAT time- check out the pictures on the blog! We were able to also still be in town to celebrate Kacie's momentous 21st birthday!!
The kids blessed us with a marvelous going away party on Sat., Sept. 6th (which we were blown away with the number of people who came to wish us well) and we left Seattle to our new adventure on Mon. Sept. 8th.
So what IS this job Dan has that has moved us across the country?? It is a 3 year rotation job as I mentioned before. His title is "Director of Aviation and Regulatory Affairs for Boeing Commercial Airplanes". Which means he brings the technical expertise to the Wa DC office of Boeing policy makers. Working as a liason between the Boeing Puget Sound offices and the Boeing Washington D.C. office.
So, we are on a new adventure! We would love to have you come visit us while we are here for the next 3 years. We bought a house with plenty of space for visitors!!
It all started when after a couple of years trying to decide, we finally decided to try to sell our house of 21 years and move to a different house but still in the same area. We decided to do some upgrading but not much. We left the carpeting and countertops, which were originals, for the new owners to take care of. I only mention this because it is just one of the many testimonies to how God worked this all out.
So, we decided on a realtor, which our long time friend from Illinois, John Greener, helped us pick out, being a career realtor himself, he offered to do the interviewing for us. That was a HUGE help to us! Jennifer was a wonderful realtor, but what she said when she signed up with us was that there were around 240 homes within a 3 mile radius of our house, in our same price range, up for sale also and it could be a struggle selling it. We thought about putting it up for rent, but decided that would be option B if things didn't work out.
So, on June 3rd we put the house up for sale. On June 4th we had an offer. We counter-offered, and by June 6th we had sold our house!! It was AMAZING!! Right about this time, Dan came home from work and said "Want to hear something funny? Guess what I got asked at work today? They want to know if I want to interview for a 3 year rotation job in Washington D.C. " I said,"Washington D.C. ? Huh." not being very excited. But the more I thought about it, I thought, well, why not? Our house just sold, the kids are settled (and no grandchildren yet) So I told Dan what I was thinking and I said"Let's ask the kids how they feel about it." He did and each in their own way, said "go for it!" He was amazed at our responses and decided to put his hat in the ring for the job. At this point, we began laying our future before the Lord, wondering how He would lead us.
The official interview was Mon. June 23rd, but it was going to be at least 3 weeks before we heard the outcome. So in the meantime we were looking for houses to move into "just in case". So every weekend we had our realtor taking us out to look for houses. Alot of times the kids would go with us to look. We looked at over40 houses during that time and surprise, surprise, we never found one that was "the one".
Our prayers during this time included asking God to give us peace (which He did ABUNDANTLY!!) and for us not to get attached to a house before we found out about the job. Looking back, we now believe that God was preventing us from finding a home in the Seattle area.
The first date for the interview results was Mon. June 30th. That came and went with no decision. The next date was Mon. July 7th. Again, no decision. By this time we were getting a little nervous because we knew the closing date on the house was looming (July 25) and we still didn't know where we were going to live. Two days later, Dan got a call saying he was going to D.C.!!
Well, we had an answer, but now we had to get moving on things! Boeing has an awesome relocation package and we knew they would be moving us out there, but with the fact we had to be out of our house in 2 weeks made things a little iffy. Do we pack up our own things, or can Boeing get their contracted movers lined up within the next couple of weeks to come out? Where will we live for 1 1/2 months until Dan had to be on the job in D.C. on Sept. 15th. We were going to get rid of our old furniture which was pretty worn down and get new things when we got to D.C., did we keep it and move into an apt. or go ahead with selling it and move into an extended stay hotel?
All of these questions going on knowing we were going to have to be out of the house by July 25th, but God worked again and the closing got pushed back a week to Aug. 4th. So we decided we would let the furniture go and after moving out we would move into the Residence Inn for a month. Our contact at Boeing called us on Thurs. July 31st to let us know the movers would be there the next day. So on Fri., Aug. 1st the movers packed us up, on Sat. they loaded us up and on Sun. the whole family met at the house to say goodbye. Lots of memories in that house after 21 years!!
Dan and I flew out to D.C. Aug. 9th on a house hunting trip, also provided by Boeing. We looked at 35 houses in 3 days, decided on one( in Virginia, about 25 miles away from Dan's office which is in Rosslyn across the Potomac River from D.C.), put in an offer and were able to sign the escrow papers and get in some sight seeing of D.C. all in one week!!
After returning to Seattle, Dan was busy finishing up his job and showing the new person how things were done. I ended up working at the school for 3 weeks because they didn't hire anyone to take my place until a couple of days before school started and there was LOTS to do! There again God blessed me because it gave me a chance to say goodbye to families, kids, and staff I had worked with for 15 years.
We also took this opportunity to take a mini vacation with the kids to Whistler,B.C.. We had a GREAT time- check out the pictures on the blog! We were able to also still be in town to celebrate Kacie's momentous 21st birthday!!
The kids blessed us with a marvelous going away party on Sat., Sept. 6th (which we were blown away with the number of people who came to wish us well) and we left Seattle to our new adventure on Mon. Sept. 8th.
So what IS this job Dan has that has moved us across the country?? It is a 3 year rotation job as I mentioned before. His title is "Director of Aviation and Regulatory Affairs for Boeing Commercial Airplanes". Which means he brings the technical expertise to the Wa DC office of Boeing policy makers. Working as a liason between the Boeing Puget Sound offices and the Boeing Washington D.C. office.
So, we are on a new adventure! We would love to have you come visit us while we are here for the next 3 years. We bought a house with plenty of space for visitors!!
Friday, September 26, 2008
Update 9/26/08
Hello everyone,
We are doing fine in Virginia! Our move here has gone smoothly. We arrived in Virginia on Monday, 9/8. We signed our closing papers on Wed. 9/10, the movers came on Thurs. 9/11, and our cars got delivered on Fri. 9/12, and then Dan started his new job on Mon. the 15th.
The first week of work, Dan drove to the Metro station (about 1/2 hour away) and then rode the Metro to work(there is a station right across the street). This week, he drove almost every day and the commute wasn't that much more. He has decided he will probably do a mix; mostly drive, but every once in awhile take the Metro.
He was given the honor of going to a Congressional meeting last Wed. having to do with FAA certification. He found it facinating to actually see what really happens behind the cameras of CSPAN!
I have been spending most of my time looking for furniture, calling utilities (we have some added services we require; pest control(the house has had termites in the past) and the house is wired with a security system. On top of that, we decided to get the cabinets and counter tops in the kitchen redone, so have had contractors out here. Other than that, I have been driving around and trying to find my way around.
Some of you may not know this, but, our house backs up to a state park and is all wooded. One of the extra blessings God has given us is that it is the home to ALOT of white tail deer, and every day, I look out the window and watch them either in the woods or in our neighbors yard. It is WONDERFUL!!! We have also had a woodchuck, a red fox, rabbits, and lots of birds keeping us company. God is so good!!
Keep in touch all of you! And remember, we would love to have visitors!!
We are doing fine in Virginia! Our move here has gone smoothly. We arrived in Virginia on Monday, 9/8. We signed our closing papers on Wed. 9/10, the movers came on Thurs. 9/11, and our cars got delivered on Fri. 9/12, and then Dan started his new job on Mon. the 15th.
The first week of work, Dan drove to the Metro station (about 1/2 hour away) and then rode the Metro to work(there is a station right across the street). This week, he drove almost every day and the commute wasn't that much more. He has decided he will probably do a mix; mostly drive, but every once in awhile take the Metro.
He was given the honor of going to a Congressional meeting last Wed. having to do with FAA certification. He found it facinating to actually see what really happens behind the cameras of CSPAN!
I have been spending most of my time looking for furniture, calling utilities (we have some added services we require; pest control(the house has had termites in the past) and the house is wired with a security system. On top of that, we decided to get the cabinets and counter tops in the kitchen redone, so have had contractors out here. Other than that, I have been driving around and trying to find my way around.
Some of you may not know this, but, our house backs up to a state park and is all wooded. One of the extra blessings God has given us is that it is the home to ALOT of white tail deer, and every day, I look out the window and watch them either in the woods or in our neighbors yard. It is WONDERFUL!!! We have also had a woodchuck, a red fox, rabbits, and lots of birds keeping us company. God is so good!!
Keep in touch all of you! And remember, we would love to have visitors!!
Thursday, September 25, 2008
We have friends!
We have a ton of white tail deer that are in the woods behind our house and they love to go into our neighbors yard!
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Saturday, September 6, 2008
A new life chapter...a new blog page!
As Dan & Barb embark on a new adventure, I thought it was time to introduce them to the world of blogging! A way they can keep in touch with friends & family, and keep us all up to date on their journey. Please feel free to stop by, say hi and see what they're up to as they settle into life in Washington DC.
We love you Mom & Dad!!!
~Callie
We love you Mom & Dad!!!
~Callie
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