One more week

It's hard to believe we leave WA one week from today- yikes! Packing is coming along pretty well- I'm down to a few kitchen boxes and a few other random things left to pack. We're getting really excited about our new home but also trying to savor our last few days in Albion. I decided to make lists and share them with you:

10 Things I am looking forward to at our new house:
1. A DISHWASHER!!!! I have not had a dishwasher for over 7 1/2 years (except for the time I was in NM). I can't imagine how much time will be saved by one this little appliance!
2. Multiple rooms with singular purposes- I am hoping to have as few multi-purpose rooms as possible. Example- our current dining room is also where the washing machine, hot water heater, and computer live. It also has the closet with all my clothes. Titus' room houses the chest freezer, dryer, and refrigerator. It will be nice when all these things have a home in rooms that are designed for such purposes. Along the same lines...
3. A laundry room! Currently my washer and dryer are in different rooms (granted they are just around the corner, but still). My new laundry room has lots of storage too!
4. A garage, not just one, but two! Our attached 2-car garage will house the 2 cars and our 2-car shop will house the truck (and someday, my doggie daycare). We've never had a garage in our married life, so this is VERY exciting.
5. A guestroom. That's right, if you come visit us, you will no longer have to sleep on the hide-a-bed in the living room!
6. More than 1 bathroom- we'll actually have 2.5 bathrooms- also VERY exciting.
7. Land- at least 10 acres, survey may say more. Just imagine what we can do with all that space! The pond will be pretty nice someday too!
8. Covered front porch with swing- need I say more?
9. Pecan trees- yummmm
10. Space- it will just be nice to spread out a little and have room for other people in our home. Yes, it means more cleaning, but I choose to focus on the positive

10 Things I look forward to in Abilene:
1. Being closer to family
2. Finding an awesome church that we can really get involved with
3. Cajun Cones- the BEST snowcones/shaved ice EVER! My favorite flavor is called "I don't know, but it's good." Come visit us and we'll enjoy one together!
4. Stores! We won't have to drive far to find everything we need. Abilene has 2 Lowe's and 2 Super Walmarts- what else do you need!?! (It has lots of other stuff too!)
5. Long growing seasons for gardening.
6. Wildflowers galore! WA seems a little limited in this area.
7. Reconnecting with old friends
8. TX BBQ- Betty Rose's, here we come!
9. Thunderstorms
10. Lakes with yummy fish- catfish, crappie, bass- no more trout!

10 Things I will miss about our life in WA:
1. Cool summers- we don't even have an AC and rarely feel like we need one.
2. Green grass all year long that doesn't need water.
3. My spice closet- this is truly the most special thing I will miss about our little house. There is a small closet with about 6 shelves for spices in our kitchen and we use every last inch of space in it. If you haven't seen it, you're missing out!
4. Friends- we have made some great ones here!
5. The Snake River- my favorite afternoon hangout (and Titus' too!)
6. Lentil Festival- I know it sounds silly, but we actually like this small town event.
7. Mountains- we have hiked in some really beautiful areas up here.
8. Snow- guess we won't need our snow tires or snow shovel in TX!
9. Winco- I actually like buying food from bulk bins and bagging my own groceries!
10. WSU- I really like this campus. It's so green and has some really neat buildings.

I'm sure I could keep going with these lists, but that's enough for now. Maybe my next entry will be from TX!

16 More Days- Just a little update

I can't believe we only have 16 more days left in WA. This summer has just flown by. Before you know it we'll be settling in to our new home and starting our new jobs. I haven't blogged about it yet, but I also accepted a job with ACU last week. I'll be the chemistry lab manager. Basically, I'll set up stuff for labs, make the needed solutions, maintain the chemical inventory, and keep equipment calibrated. It will be nice that we can drive to work together and even work in the same building! I'm excited that I don't have to apply for any more jobs and that I don't have to work evenings or weekends.
Last week was also my birthday. It wasn't a great day. It was the first b-day without my Dad and it marked 7 months since he passed away. Also, Josh is out of town, so I just spent my day working in the herbarium and crying- alone. Pretty sad, huh? I did, however, get phone calls from about 5 people and that made me happy.
So other than lots of packing, that's all going on here. Have a great day!

Cowboy party

Last Sunday our church threw us an early going away party- cowboy style in honor of us moving to TX. They also gave us a song book that everyone signed and a quilt with a square from each family. Here are some pics from that night.

Potluck meal with "Texas" food

Root beer at each table with personalized labels- way cute!

Fun table decorations- chips were in bandanas that were in upside-down cowboy hats and sheriffs badges were turned into napkin rings.

Cactus cake- very yummy!

Thanks everyone!

I found my drag queen!

Yes, it's another post about my hairstylist who happens to be a drag queen. I thought I had lost him. When I got back to Pullman in May, I learned that Fantastic Sam's had closed. So I have refused to get my hair cut all summer because I didn't want to find a new stylist. At work this week, a friend tipped me off that I might find my drag queen at SuperCuts. I checked it out today, and there he was!! I was so excited. He has only been working there 3 weeks, so I was really lucky to catch him. Now my hair is short and ready for the TX heat. Too bad I still have to find a new stylist in a few months. Sigh...