Our first cruise to Alaska!

Bon voyage! J  About a year ago, Dan’s family signed up for a cruise to Alaska.  We were invited, but felt we should decline.  Well, a couple of weeks ago, we looked at prices, and they had dropped significantly.  I checked with my mom to see if she could watch our kids, and this was the one week in a long time she didn’t have to work.  She told me it sounded like it was meant to be and she was excited to spend so much time with the grandkids before we move.  She is the best!  So we booked and we sailed away!

Thursday, we drove with Brian and Randy to Idaho to stay at Grandma Carol and Grandpa Chuck’s house overnight.  We had a great time all talking together, jamming out to Brian’s tunes and Dave & I cuddling in the back seat.  I love Carol & Chuck.  They are so fun, so kind, and so good! 

We left Friday morning, and met up with all of Dan’s siblings.  They’re fun people, too.  Though it’s sad to see the choices some are making.  It makes me thankful for Dan who has stayed true & faithful his whole life and helped his kids do the same.  If it weren’t for him, Dave probably wouldn’t be in the picture for me, and that would be sad.  We all loaded up in three Honda Pilots (which we started by the way, Grandma & Grandpa and Dave’s aunt and uncle have them too!), so I joked we were the Pilots on parade.  We drove through Oregon and part of Washington, chatting the whole way.  Then we stopped for the night in Yakima. Our hotel was okay, but way cheap, only $40 for the night.  We ate some dinner at Mel’s Diner (nice name, no?), which was a fun old place.  We did some shopping at Target and a few other stores,  Dave & Randy and a few others got selfie sticks...haha! I got a haircut because my hair was getting so out of shape it was driving me nuts.  Then we watched a movie on TV and went to bed. I didn’t get much sleep that night, and I’m not sure why.  

Saturday, we woke up early to get to Seattle.  We stopped quite a few times on the way, this rest stop in Washington was a pretty cool place.  Then we finally made it to board the beautiful Norwegian Jewel.  We had to go through the lines and get registered and get our passenger cards.  Then we boarded the ship.  All of the employees were way nice and strive for complete customer satisfaction.  But it just seemed that these are happy, genuine, positive people.  We ate lunch – food everywhere you look!  There was a dining room and Garden buffet, about five restaurants, ice cream machines, and snacks all over.  Yum!  The interior was beautiful and fun, too!  We explored around the ship, it was so huge and it’s amazing how complicated and complex it is!  We unpacked our stuff in our room 9662 on the ninth floor (which was small, but I never felt claustrophobic), went to the bridge where the captain was at, met everyone for dinner at O’Sheehans, then we went to the “Welcome Aboard” show in the Stardust theatre, which was a variety show with all of the performers who would have a show that week.  Grandma Carol and Grandpa Chuck were recognized for being the couple on the ship who’ve been married the longest.  They got a diamond necklace and a bottle of champagne (which they gave away).  When asked what the secret to their long relationship was, Grandma Carol said that “He’s so kind!” and Grandpa Chuck joked that “It’s the other way around, she’s being too nice!”  Dave scored a free t-shirt, which he was excited about.  

Sunday, was rather quiet but a nice day at sea.  We went to Bingo to watch those in our family who played, but we didn’t buy any cards, learned to country line dance, saw whales out the ship window, went to the trivia (we went most days), had lunch with the family, watched a movie in the theatre, listened to some of the musicians in the lobbies, attended the “Band on the Run” show, and went to the band Prism (Dave’s favorite) show where they did love songs.  

Early Monday morning, we arrived in Ketchikan, Alaska.  We sat at the port and ate outside so we could overlook this beautiful place!  It was overcast, but not rainy, which the locals said was ideal weather!  We got off the ship and walked around, went shopping for souvenirs, went on a totem pole tour, and went on a walk and explored the town!  It was probably my favorite stop on the cruise!  I loved the beautiful rivers that ran through the place, the lush greenery and colorful flowers, and wildlife we saw. We saw many beautiful birds, butterflies, sea animals, and even saw jelly fish in the water, which I didn’t know lived in cold weather places.  When we got back on the ship, they had a Memorial Day BBQ and party by the pool.  We had some food and listened to the patriotic music.  That afternoon, some of us went to learn how to do balloon twisting.  Grandpa Chuck was laughing so hard at one point at Dave & Randy, who were struggling with their balloon swords and dogs, he was crying.  And we were all laughing and crying along with him.  We watched a little of the NBA playoffs during the cruise, there were some good games!  We did some more dancing lessons, went to eat at Tsar’s Palace with everyone, went to the comedy show featuring Andrew Kennedy, who was so funny and finally watched the “Newlywed, not so newlywed game” which was SO funny!  Each day was so jam-packed we were exhausted by the end of the night!

Tuesday, it was to Juneau.  We ate a quick breakfast, and then got off the ship.  We found our bus for the whale watching tour.  Dan, Sue, Brian and Randy also came.  Our tour guide/bus driver was fun!  We saw the city of Juneau and it was nice, bigger than I thought.  We drove out to Allen Marine’s dock and got on the St. Nicholas to go whale watching.  I always thought on TV it seemed a little boring, but seeing those whales was amazing!  I didn’t get any amazing pictures, it’s hard to know when and where they will jump or breach.  The tour guide again said this was the best weather they’d seen in a long time and the first week the whales had started breaching.  To see something as gigantic as those whale jump out of the water and to learn about their amazing life cycles was fascinating!  I can see why that is on most people’s bucket lists.  After whale watching for half the day, we went to Mendenhall Glacier, and hiked to Nugget Falls.  The glaciers and ice that had broken off were so blue, it was amazing!  The falls and forestry surrounding it were breath-taking.  We also checked in at the Visitors Center for a little bit.  On the drive to and from our destination, we saw a huge field with around a hundred eagles just sitting there.  We barely made it back in time on the boat, then ate lunch, went and played Pictionary with our family, we did a Scavenger Hunt on board, went to the Acrobat show, which was amazing!  They were a married couple from Russia and so good!  Then we ate at Chin-Chin’s Chinese restaurant, listened to the Show Tunes show, and watched the Ultimate Dance Competition, which was hilarious!  They paired up passengers with the cruise staff and it was kind of like Dancing with the Stars, but they had some twists and it was great!  

Randy caught this one!  I missed all of the breached shots!

This light house was neat, and it is no longer in service but you can rent it out to stay a nigh or two.

Probably my best picture of the whales! 

The water was so green and beautiful!

Crazy hair after being in a hat all day...yuck!

Wednesday was the only day I went to the gym, ha ha!  I think I maybe worked off an ice-cream cone or two.  ;)  It was a nice gym though and I loved the track that went along the outside of the ship.  We ate breakfast and then landed in Skagway.  We walked around town, went to some of the U.S. Forrest Service’s little museums, ran into the missionaries and talked to them, went to the train station, and did some final shopping.  It was a neat little town and we had fun there.  We got back on the ship, ate lunch, went to the Visual Trivia, looked at the art on auction, attended the Le Cirque Bijou show, then went to the Beatle’s tribute show, and listened to part of the comedian’s show for adults, but left after a few jokes because it was pretty crude.  

Thursday, it was our day at sea, and it was a rough one!  I had to take motion sickness pills and it usually doesn’t bother me.  There were bags near the garbages and we had to step over the results of someone’s sea sickness in the hall.  I went to our room to take a nap, which I did almost every day and fell asleep during shows sometimes. I think I got way more sleep than I’m used to and that made me more sleepy.  Dave and I were brave and went swimming.  Dave had a great time in the pool, which was salt water from the ocean, but I wasn’t brave as the weather was pretty overcast/light rain/windy so I hung out in the hot tub, which was nice.  Dave was getting quite the waves in the pool!  We went to all three meals at the Garden this day, as everyone can just get what they want.  The food was all excellent.  Finally, we went to Magic/Comedy show by JP.  Randy was picked to help the magician out.  The magician let Randy pick a plain orange and put it in a bag and then had a card that someone picked later on in the show in the orange he put under his chair!  It was crazy!  Randy was a good sport.  After that, everyone on the boat knew him and Grandpa Chuck & Grandma Carol.  The tricks were amazing and this guy had us laughing!  Then we had to go see Prism again, lol!  And finally, went to the white hot party after that, which was a black light dance.  We mostly just sung along to the music, and it was fun. Each night, we'd get the agenda for the next day on our bed along with a towel animal or something - they were so fun!

 Friday was a beautiful day!  It was a half day at sea and then Victoria, B.C. In the morning, we had breakfast with everyone, went to a Q&A with the ship captain, main engineer, and hotel director.  It was fascinating!  And we found out our ship embarked and began its maiden voyage on August 10, 2005, our anniversary!  Meant to be, Dave said!  J  We also attended the Q&A with the entertainers, which was fun and interesting.  We played our last game of visual Trivia and didn’t do well at all on this one, which was airports around the world, but then rocked the 80’s name that tune trivia.   Dave and I were unable to get passports in order before we left, so we stayed on the ship.  We had the ship to ourselves!  We played basketball on the deck, soaked up some sun and relaxed, looked all around the area, hung out near the pool.  Way nice!  We had a dinner with everyone at one of the restaurants, tried to take a picture with everybody, but people kept leaving.  We played our first game of shuffleboard, as it was actually open.  Then we went to the Farewell show, followed by Karaoke, got one last ice cream cone, and off to bed to get our things in order for the next day.  While talking to Grandma Carol that day, she expressed her sadness to me that none of her kids except Dan had stayed true to the Gospel.  Chuck is not a member but is very supportive.  But none have followed the Gospel path and she disappointingly said “I must have done something wrong!”  But no!  She has not, she has done her best and is a wonderful woman!  We all have our agency, but I told her there’s still time and everyone one will be compensated for their losses and none of our efforts are not in vain to our Heavenly Father.  I also pointed out how because Dan has followed in her footsteps, she has six grand kids with four of their spouses, and several great-grandchildren who are following the Savior.  I thought of how if she hadn’t reared her children right, Dave wouldn’t have been in my life, which really got me!  How thankful I am for her and her example to us all!  Her other kids are great, but some have made some poor choices and now they are dealing with the consequences.  One of their kids is literally dying from stage 4 lung cancer, as she smoked most of her life.  She stopped smoking, and her husband quit but picked up the habit again.  Some of the grandkids of Chuck and Carol had been to jail, or struggled with substance abuse and other problems, which is sad.  When we were talking about it one afternoon, I light-heartedly joked but with some seriousness told Dan’s one sister that there was still time!  She laughed.  As we were on the cruise ship, I saw so many different lifestyles and paths that people chose and felt so thankful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ!  Truly, there is “safety and peace” in living the Gospel.  I felt so strongly to share this experience at the senior branch we went to with my parents where the serve the weekend after the cruise.  I told them to have no regrets about their past and that the Lord is pleased with the lives they’ve lived, and how there is great peace in life when we live the Gospel every day and do the little things to strengthen our faith, for they really are big things.  I’m thankful to have grown up in a home where the Gospel was taught by a father and mother and for the testimony I have!  It is everything!

Final day, we packed up, had breakfast (I just had a teeny bit…I was getting sick of food by this point) exited the Norwegian Jewel for the last time and went on our way!  We drove back, caravan style with all of the family.  When we stopped a few times, I felt like we were still rocking.  It was a really great time, with memories to last forever, but SO good to get back to the family!  We drove all day from Seattle back to Bountiful, and made it back just around midnight. 

While we were gone, I don’t think the kids missed us.  They went to the park, played tennis, practiced the guitar and piano, went with Mark & Mayela and played with Amber, saw movies, helped in the garden, got a gold fish, made a tire swing, swimming and water fights, did arts and crafts, slept over at Jerry & Stacy’s and swam over there.  They did pretty well we heard, but Cov broke down once. I was on the phone and my mom said “Cov’s been really good and hasn’t cried for you once,” then all of the sudden he started bawling and saying “I miss my mommy!”  He also asked if Grandma could take him to Daddy’s hotel a few times and would also go to the window a few times to wait for us.  I missed them like crazy though!  We’ve never been gone for more than a few nights at a time, so it was hard for me and the cruise seemed to go by so slow.  When I got back, the kids kept hugging us tight, so glad to see us again and never wanting to let go.  But it was so great for Dave and I to have this alone time, and some relaxing time to be waited on hand and foot!  I’m so not used to it, and it was nice for a change but will be nice also to get back to hard work and reality again.  For a good time, head to Alaska!!  It was a wonderful, beautiful experience I'll never forget!  :)

Scobey's the word!

So it's been a long five months Dave has been never ending searching for jobs, applying for them, doing phone interviews, online questionnaires and tests, video interviews, sending in information and getting references together, having employers and co-workers fill out questionnaires about him, traveling to in-person interviews (all day or several days even!), and more!

We've been applying really all over the west.  At first, things were slow and we didn't have too many calls.  But then several started coming in.  We really wanted a Rapid City job, but that didn't work out (they hired internally) and figured that was our will, not God's.  He had some other great interviews but again, the internal candidates won out.

Dave applied in April for a job in Scobey, Montana (pronounced Sko-bee...Dave called it Scoobey at first.  Scoobey, doobey dooo!  Lol!).  At first he was a little resentful and as he got called for an in person interview, he was kind of mad.  But he figured he might as well give it a shot.  And I was thinking at first "really?  We're getting that desperate!?"  As he went up there the first week in May, first to Billings, and then to Scobey, he felt better and better about it as he went through the process and met more and more people.  It was a long four days, but a good experience.  A week later and day after getting back, he got the call with an offer!  He will be the Chief Executive Officer of Daniel's Memorial Healthcare Center there in Scobey.  He'll be employed by the Billings Clinic though and was very impressed with all of those he spent time with while there and was impressed with their passion for what they did, the care they want to provide to patients and the support they give to small hospitals like this one.  They pay and benefits can't be beat.  And hey, they have Amazon Prime 2-day shipping, so yeah, we can do that.  ;)  They gave him a couple of days to decide.  In the meantime, we got offers from IHC in Utah, but weren't quite sure.  Dave felt great about Scobey, and kind of knew all along he was going there.  I prayed about it and as I asked, immediately the words to the hymn "I'll Go Where You Want Me to Go" by Mary Brown came to mind.  We always kind of had a feeling on this one, but almost wanted to deny it.  I wasn't jumping up and down with excitement on this one, though the pay is certainly great, but this gave me sweet assurance that we're going where we need to go!

1. 1. It may not be on the mountain height
   Or over the stormy sea,
   It may not be at the battle's front
   My Lord will have need of me.
   But if, by a still, small voice he calls
   To paths that I do not know,
   I'll answer, dear Lord, with my hand in thine:
   I'll go where you want me to go.
2. (Chorus)
   I'll go where you want me to go, dear Lord,
   Over mountain or plain or sea;
   I'll say what you want me to say, dear Lord;
   I'll be what you want me to be.
3. 2. Perhaps today there are loving words
   Which Jesus would have me speak;
   There may be now in the paths of sin
   Some wand'rer whom I should seek.
   O Savior, if thou wilt be my guide,
   Tho dark and rugged the way,
   My voice shall echo the message sweet:
   I'll say what you want me to say.
4. 3. There's surely somewhere a lowly place
   In earth's harvest fields so wide
   Where I may labor through life's short day
   For Jesus, the Crucified.
   So trusting my all to thy tender care,
   And knowing thou lovest me,
   I'll do thy will with a heart sincere:
   I'll be what you want me to be.

We talked to the kids to and asked them where they wanted to live, telling them about our possibilities and discussing the pros and cons.  We told them to pray, too.  They all thought about it and prayed and each one said they felt warm and peaceful about going there.  Cal was sold when we told him all of the kids in their school get their own iPads, haha!  He said he was ready to move to Scobey right away!  Haha!  Emma thought that everything she learned about Scobey was cool though she said she'd miss her friends. Cov said "I want to move to Scoobey Doo's house!"  I think he might be disappointed when he doesn't see Scooby Doo when we get there.  Lucy is happy about Montana.  :)  So Dave accepted the offer on May 18 and is set to start the end of June.

So Scobey...Where's that, what is it?  It's north east Montana, about 15 minutes from the Canadian border, so I guess we better get our passports, eh?  There are about 1,000 people living in Scobey, and more in the towns outside of Scobey.  So way small town, way rural!  At one point, Scobey was the wheat capital of the world, and farming and ranching are still big there, and their economy is sustained also by a phone company, the school, border patrol, and mom and pop businesses.  We'd be in a branch, and have to travel about 45 minutes to an hour to get to the nearest Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saint chapel (people keep asking if Dave's ready to serve as branch president...haha!).  The school is rated rather well, and there is a K12 campus, with one class for each grade, total student population of 222.  The community has a grocery store, a couple hardware and farm supply stores, digital movie theater, bowling alley, golf course, a swimming pool, library and park.  The community supports the arts, and they have a few well-supported community music groups.  They are passionate about the education there and there are many opportunities for students to do new things.  The community really cares about the hospital and wants improvement there, which is a good thing.  Dave said everyone was really friendly and nice and we're excited to start the next adventure here!  :)

Map from Wikipedia

We went up the weekend following the job offer to scope out the area as a family and check out the housing situation.  We encountered rain, hail, sun, clouds, and rainbows on the way there and saw many different fun animals.  We read books and movies on the way there, including one about Montana and a joke book that was so silly.  We stayed a couple hours south of Scobey for Friday & Saturday night and the kids enjoyed swimming, visiting parks, and watching movies at the hotel.  Scobey is small, but a nice community.  Everyone smiled and waved and many came to talk to us.   We went to about ten houses that are on the market that might work for us and have three we liked that would work well.  We met up with Don and Nancy.  He is the current interim CEO getting ready to retire (again!) and he and his wife are both born and raised in Scobey and lived other places most of their adult lives, but moved back and are going to settle in here. The are LDS and wonderful and they introduced us to a bunch of people, including the branch president & family.  It seems like some great people living here and they are excited to have us move there, and we are glad to be going there.  Our kids really liked it and said going there made them more excited to move to Scobey.  When we got home, Cov was crying "I want to go to Montana!" and we told him not yet we were going in about a month or so and he added "I want to go to Montana RIGHT NOW!"  I'm sure it will be here before we know it!  Now, time to pack!

Our He-Man bobble head kept us safe during the big hail storm on the way up.

A beautifl double rainbow came out soon after and we saw tons of wildlife, which we loved!

Our family will increase the population by around .6%!  ;)

Family Pictures 2016

We finally got professional family pictures again...it has been almost 2 1/2 years, which is hard to believe!  It's always kind of a hassle to get outfits together and everything, but worth it!  Candy Washburne did them and she was so sweet!  They had an elementary school fund raiser up here and local photographers donated their time so the proceeds would go to the school.  They turned out pretty cute!  Candy liked the coordinating I did on the outfits, Dave teased that we were in the 80's again and Cal asked if he could have a mullet since we were doing the 80's as a theme. ;) We picked the Old Penn as the location of the photo shoot.  Lucy started not feeling well during the photo shoot and got really sick later that night so she was having a hard time smiling. But overall, we had a good time, and she was way sweet! Cal said after that he wanted to take more pictures so he could come up with "pictures of perfection"!  We have more on a CD, but our computer doesn't have a CD-rom drive so we can't see the rest...