A wandering soul...

Once upon a time, in the summer of 2008 (not so very long ago) I was serving a mission, and at that time, stationed- for lack of a better word- in Morehead City/Beaufort, North Carolina.

This is Beaufort-- I drove across that bridge several times a week. And I LOVED it!

 It was around this time that we met an amazing family, what missionaries might call "golden". It may sound horrible, but I can't remember this woman's name, but I could direct you to her house, and she hugged us like a mom. Shortly after we met them, Tragedy struck-- like it often does when you're a missionary-- and they moved to... Kentucky? I remember her praying for my companion and I that we could "go home, meet nice boys and make babies". (It worked for Sister Jolstead who now has a cute little boy!) One day we were teaching her a lesson and Something came up about all the places I had lived, or the number of times I had moved... or something like that. She then said "Oh, you're a wandering soul, just like me."

I've thought about that often since then. I am kind of a wandering soul-- adventurous, headstrong, ready to live. And... here I go again.

I decided to take a year off of school after graduating from BYU this coming April. Part of this is financial, part of it is mental. I looked around for jobs, and decided that being a nanny was the best way to save money (without moving back home-- because while I love my family, I know what's there, and I would not be happy).

I went back to my old trusty job finder-- GreatAupair.com (where I met my Alaskan family), and honestly, the very first family I looked at caught my eye. I added them to my favorites list, then they added me, some emails were exchanged, and well... 2 months later I had a job offer! Let me tell you about them!

Their names are Mary and John, they have two kids, Kelly (10) and Brian (turns 8 this week). Mary is in the Air Force, and John is in the Marines. He is stationed at the Pentagon currently, while Mary lives with the kids in Colorado (crazy right? they've been living apart for almost 3 years!), but Mary is finally getting PCS'd (Permanent Change of Station) to Fort Meade, MD. Their last nanny told them she'd stick with them till they moved, then changed her mind in February, when they got some temporary before/after school help and are now waiting for me! The kids sound so great! I'm so excited to meet them!

I only officially got the job on Friday(!) but here are my plans:

Finish up school-- I realized that I really have something planned EVERY weekend between now and graduation. Not to mention all of the school stuff-- projects, assignments, papers, etc.
GRADUATE: the blue robe has been hanging in my closet motivating me all year. The day will soon come when I will put on that beautiful piece of synthetic material and march across a stage proudly! Then I'll go home and pack! Some of my stuff I'll send directly to Colorado, some of it I'll send home with my parents on the plane to put in storage, and some of it I'll leave here for them to pick up in August when they bring Rachel out...Who knows!
Drive home: I'll likely leave Provo Saturday afternoon or Sunday. Rachel and I will pack Betsy (who I've decided to sell when I get back home) up with the remainder of our stuff, and hit the road. We're going to spend some time in Idaho with my grandparents, and a day or so in Spokane/Coeur d'Alene visiting (best) friends (mine and Rachel's) then home...
Pack/Clean/put car up for sale: The things I won't be taking with me will go into the back closet at my parent's house. Everything will be tidy and taken care of. And I'll vacuum out my car, and give her a good scrubbing, and then I'll post her on craigslist. I'm very sad about this, but I think it's the most practical thing to do-- she's been good to me, but it won't be good for her to sit for a year, and I think I might upgrade to a newer car post DC experience. (Preferably one with a radio).
Visit with friends in Seattle. Because I still have a few there :)
Get on a plane to fly to Colorado Springs!! I guess if I leave Seattle around 7 or 8am (I don't remember which) on Saturday morning, I'll get there around 2 or 3 in the pm with just one plane change (I'm crossing my fingers for SLC, but not holding my breath).
Then 2-6 weeks after I arrive in Colorado, after playing with my cousins/friends who live there, I'll relocate again this time to (drum roll please!!))

Fort Meade Maryland (I guess I said it earlier).
 For those of you who are geography challenged-- Ft Meade is about 35 minutes from Washington, DC! and only about the same distance from Baltimore. There is so much history and so much to do in BOTH those cities I am thrilled. Plus Kelly especially LOVES history, but i'd bet we could talk Brian into the American History Smithsonian if we promise to go see dinosaurs at the Earth Science Smithsonian afterwards (he likes dinosaurs)!

And... I'll only be about an hour from my Kristen sister! I'm so excited! We are going to have so much fun!

So that's the story of my wandering soul-ness. Feel free to come visit me :) I'm allowed visitors!