Long Time...Again!

Well, you may have thought I'd give up on this blog thing. But fear not, for I have not! I've just been a little busy lately, and then more and more things happen, and then I fear writing a super long blog post about all that's happened, and I just wait a little longer, and so on. But, I've decided to just get back into and [hopefully] quickly get you up to speed about what's been going on here and then [hopefully] keep up with my blogging again. We'll see how this goes. ;-)

So, first, about the job in my last post. I didn't get the part-time position I applied for, but they did offer me an on-call position (and said they hired a current page for the part-time gig). So far I've had one day of training, I'm going in tomorrow, and they just sent me a list of about 7 more days they want me to come in. So, at least I've got a toe in the door there.

I've also got a couple more job possibilities on the horizon - one in a library and one in a bookstore - neither one full time, but I'm ok with having several part-time jobs for a while, so it's fine with me. It's actually kinda nice not having to spend 40 hours a week in the same place. I like variety. :-) The brewery still isn't open, but we're all hoping it will happen soon. The 20th is a possibility, but something with the electrician...there's no guarantee. The Duck is still going strong. And I think I'm starting to exhibit a little more self control when it comes to spending all my paycheck there.

In other news, my mom came to visit for a week and we had a fabulous time! She was our first visitor out here and we had a great time showing her around and exploring new things together. We did at least 5 hikes, climbed a 200 foot rock scramble (way to go Mom!), saw some waterfalls, visited the coast, Timberline Lodge, Portland, some wineries (or one winery and one tasting room), ate out at some delicious restaurants, ate some delicious home cooked meals made by Abe, walked Ika lots, did a little shopping, and had an all around wonderful time together. I think her first experience in the Gorge was a good one! And our first guest in our new town was fun and a pleasure for us to have.

In Ika news, she had spay surgery on Monday. She was super out of it, moaning and crying and trying to get comfortable, the evening after her surgery. She wouldn't eat or drink and we just felt so sorry for her. But the next day she was eating and almost back to her frisky self. The problem is she's supposed to be calm and not run or jump or play too hard for 10 whole days - that's already proving tough to control after only 2 days! But, we're very - she pulled through and is doing great! She's still growing very fast - almost 35 pounds now - and still as sweet as ever!

Abe's hacking away at his new job (and I guess actually hacking cause he's on the computer :-). I don't know that he loves it, but he seems to be able to put up with it, so that's good. He just got his first paycheck, and that was very nice!

We just celebrated our 7th anniversary together on Sunday. We both had to work that day, but we went out to a nice dinner and had a wonderful time - yummy food and great company!

And, I think that's about it. I'm dealing with a nasty cause of poison oak, but other than that we're all doing great! Hopefully I'll have another update sooner than later. :-)