Surviving Seattle

I've titled this post "Surviving Seattle." So you're now thinking, "Ouch, is it really that bad?" Well....

Okay, no :)

But, it's a long story...

Here goes. The place STINKS!!!!!!!!! Not literally, but really, is there anything to recommend a sullen, soggy, moldy, congested, spider infested, pay for parking, horrible traffic, expensive groceries, anti-children area? No.

Well, maybe there is...like the beautiful glowing city at night, or the view of the water from the park, or the fact that everything is green, and when the sun does come out, it's absolutely beautiful...

Can you tell I have mixed feelings? I came to Seattle fully aware of all the horror stories, but DETERMINED to like it because I am stuck here for 3 years. Turns out I like it okay, but I left my heart in Spokane. Yes, Spokane. I get chills just thinking of Spokane haha. But we will live to see (and maybe stay) in Spokane another day. Right now, I am in Seattle, and I am coping by looking for cheap flights home to Utah for the holidays.

The people are...different. But not all of them. Truthfully, there are a WHOLE LOT of cranky people here, but after not seeing the sun for years, hey, I can't blame them. Emma loves waving at anyone that passes by as we are walking, and here in Seattle, only about 1 in 20 people even acknowledge her! And 1 in 50 will wave back. Boy, those are pretty dismal statistics. Why is everyone so incredibly unfriendly? Sure she's my baby and I think she is the cutest thing ever, but come on, who wouldn't be glad to have an adorable child wave at them? It would make my day.

Oh, and it took us an hour and a half to make the 20 minute drive to the temple on a UW game day. WORST traffic experience ever!

Okay, ready for something more chipper? My ward and my apartment community (yes, I said community) are AWESOME! Nate and I were very blessed to get into UW Family Housing the week before school started. This was nothing short of a miracle because it's very competitive getting in. Rent is about $400 cheaper here than most other apartments close by, and we are RIGHT on the bike trial that gets Nate to school in less that 10 minutes (driving is IMPOSSIBLE in this area). Plus, BIG BONUS, I feel safe here! It's hard to describe, but the way they've designed the apartment complex feels enclosed, secluded, and safe. I love that we will be getting our own washer and dryer in our apartment this weekend, and Emma loves that there is endless fun waiting for her in the playground that is literally in our backyard (not always so fun for mom haha). Oh yeah, and there are free Zumba classes here two nights a week with some pretty awesome women. That MAKES my week, and has probably kept me sane.

Emma and I love playgroup here :)

Emma's heaven :)

Our apartment:

I'm pretty proud of Emma's room (how did I get everything to fit?)

Emma LOVES this!

Love these huge closets!

Also love the huge glass sliding door,
which is always covered in Emma fingerprints :)

I love peeking at Emma eating in her high chair while I'm in the kitchen :)

No pictures of our room cause it's a mess and not cute yet haha :)

The ward is full of fun, young couples and then lots of old couples too. Not many in between, but I kinda like it. Everyone is friendly. I already have visiting teaching assignments! We've gone to a ward camp out, a ward service activity (in the rain of course) and three Sundays and we feel pretty much like we belong (although I still feel a tad awkward because I always do in new places).

Emma at the ward camp out :)

Nate wanted it to look like he was floating haha :)

Do you ever have a feeling of dread? I've been having dread softly spoken to me lately. How? I've heard at least 100 times that the second year of dental school is THE WORST thing ever. This has come from everyone, including wives of 3rd year dental students. Yikes! It's only been a week and it's already rough. Nate leaves between 7-8 am and usually gets home between 6-7 pm. Okay, maybe that's survivable, but we don't have a dishwasher...and Nate has too much homework to help clean up after dinner...I think I'm probably going to break down and buy a dishwasher or I may wear out from exhaustion (or dry hands). So far, it hasn't been deadly tough, but I'm waiting for the hard part to hit.

Alright, now you get to hear about the funny coincidence that is our next door neighbors. Turns out they are not only LDS, and they moved in the same time that we did, but they ALSO have a little girl that is just a couple of months younger than Emma. They are already best pals! Everyday Emma escapes through the back door and runs over to knock on their back window. She would love to live at their house haha :) Everyone in the ward keeps telling Kate (the neighbor) and I that we look alike (we are the same height and brunettes). I will be surprised when they finally get us straight. I feel bad for the people we visit teach (turns out we are also visiting teaching companions), they'll be extremely confused haha. Anyways, Kate is already an awesome neighbor and friend. She babysat Emma and brought me dinner when I was sick this week (I had a freak 104 degree fever)! I couldn't have asked for a better neighbor. Hopefully we'll help each other stay sane through the rainy winters. The only bad thing about these neighbors is that they went to the U. Haha but we'll keep em ;)

Emma and Tessa enjoying the last day of summer :)

Other exciting things:

Emma is so interesting these days. She is starting to interact on a much higher level than before. I can tell that she is understanding a lot more of what I say because she actually obeys! Well, sometimes :) She is really good at stopping whatever she is doing when I say "uh-oh", though sometimes she still looks at me and then goes ahead and does it anyway haha :) But for the most part she listens and does what I ask her to do. She is a MILLION times messier than before (how is this possible?), but luckily we can limit the mess to one part of the house because we have a townhouse layout. She is getting pickier about foods. Her favorites? Swedish fish, fruit snacks, cheese, peas, and pretzels. Boy, aren't we healthy! I do force her to eat other things but she begs for these things if she ever catches a glimpse of them. She can be VERY demanding. As soon as I open the curtain on the back window, she is banging on it till I take her out to the playground. This makes rainy days hard. When I finally do take her out, she quickly bores of the playground and runs away and explores everything she can. Silly girl!

She found the fruit snack box, and she knows what's inside!

Rainy day

Can't put them together yet, but that doesn't stop her from loving her puzzles.

I have to say, "In your face!" to the guy at Home Depot who told me nothing would grow at this time of year! Pessimistic jerk! Here are my beets and chard in my mini backyard garden :)

Last week

This week :)

I can't wait till we can eat them! :)

Well, so far our new adventure has been pretty fun. We're excited! Wish us luck (we need it)!

-Kamie

I Am Free

My youth was spent in a constant state of perfectionism and people pleasing. I never stood out in a crowd for fear that someone may disapprove. I never spoke my mind for fear of offending someone. I did everything right. I got perfect grades, never got into trouble, got a full scholarship to a prestigious university, graduated cum laude. I thought I had done enough to win approval. I was wrong...but why?

2009

The Lord said that because the world hates him, we who stand with him will be hated also. He said those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake are blessed. He said to take up our cross and follow him. I thought I knew what these things meant, but the truth is, I couldn't know what it meant while I was busy pleasing everyone. I couldn't know until the Lord asked me to do something really hard.

Painting by Del Parson

In October of 2011, just 6 months after I married the most amazing man in the world, the Lord prompted my husband and I to start a family. I knew immediately that this was not a people pleasing path. I knew there were those who would wonder, mock, judge, scorn, and even pity the choice I was about to make, but I made it anyway. Why? Because in the end, there was one person I wanted to please above everyone else: my Lord, my Captain, my Savior.

Ten months later, the most amazing little miracle was born into our lives. There has never been a day since then that I have regretted the decision to bring her here. I can feel her strength, beauty, courage, purity, intelligence, wholeness, perfection, humility, confidence, and closeness to heaven when I am near her. She makes me a better person, to say nothing of the good I try to do for her everyday. Her life has already made a difference in this world, and will continue to do so in the future. She is a blessing beyond measure.

But it isn't easy. Not because changing diapers and establishing sleep schedules are torture. No. Even these things have become a joyful part of motherhood for me. It's hard because of the looks. The students at the university that pass by as I'm on my way to visit Nate for lunch. The woman at the grocery store with a career and expensive items in her cart. The neighbor who hears Emma's cries at night and knows how little I sleep. Pity is the worst emotion to receive from others. The worst part is knowing that they really have no idea! They have no idea! Not only do they disapprove of me, but they couldn't be more wrong. I suppose this is how Noah felt as he built the arc and the people mocked. And Christ, the only perfect man to walk the earth, couldn't have been more misunderstood by those who were supposed to be his friends. Why should I, who am much less than these, expect any different?

I can no longer people please. She is my cross. I never expected carrying my cross to be filled with so much joy. I never knew sacrificing everything for the Lord could be so much fun. The Lord asks us to do really hard things, to leave our so-called "nets" as Peter did, and follow him. But he makes every second worth it. Whether it's peace, joy, or even just the hope of eternal life, any sacrifice is worth it.

Elder Wirthlin taught, referring to Peter leaving his net and following Christ: "We might define a net as anything that entices or prevents us from following the call of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God.

Nets in this context can be our work, our hobbies, our pleasures, and, above all else, our temptations and sins. In short, a net can be anything that pulls us away from our relationship with our Heavenly Father or from His restored Church...

I do not know of another period in the history of the world that has been so filled with such a variety of entangling nets. Our lives are so easily filled with appointments, meetings, and tasks. It is so easy to get caught in a multitude of nets that sometimes even a suggestion of breaking free of them can be threatening and even frightening to us.

Sometimes we feel that the busier we are, the more important we are—as though our busyness defines our worth. Brothers and sisters, we can spend a lifetime whirling about at a feverish pace, checking off list after list of things that in the end really don’t matter.

That we do a lot may not be so important. That we focus the energy of our minds, our hearts, and our souls on those things of eternal significance—that is essential."

I know at least some of the people I pass by everyday who see me chasing after my energetic and rambunctious toddler think that I am entangled in some kind of "net." That having a family and choosing to follow Christ and keep his commandments means that I am not free, but a slave. They couldn't be more wrong. My faith and my family are the life-giving and joy-bringing parts of my life that I wouldn't trade for anything. I am not a slave, I am free. Why? I don't have any addictions that control my thoughts and behavior. I am not entangled into the new stereotype that says an intelligent woman must sacrifice her whole life in the pursuit of education and career in order to prove something that I already know: A woman is no less than a man. I am not forced by peer pressure to think and act in ways that are not logical, but rather I am allowed to think for myself. I am not trading precious moments with my eternal family for money, cheap entertainment, or revolting sins. 

I am not chained to the enemy of all righteousness and happiness. I am made free through Christ. He gives me knowledge, strength, peace, hope, love, forgiveness, joy...I am never alone, and I am never at risk of realizing that my life was all for nothing. He makes it more. He makes it enough, and I know when we see the other side, we will know it was worth every sacrifice and any cross we were called upon to bear. 

-Kamie

The Quiet Book

I did it!!!!! I finally finished Emma's quiet book! It's definitely not perfect, but I have to say I am pretty proud of it. It's my first sewing project since I learned how to sew in high school, which seems like forever ago. I didn't have a sewing machine, so everything is hand sewn except the seems of the pages. If you're wondering where I got the pattern...there isn't one. It's all hand drawn and cut out by me. I got some of the ideas from other blogs, websites, and people, so I can't take 100% of the credit. It took FOREVER, but it was so fun! Honestly, I am so proud of it, that I'm not quite ready to give it to her to destroy...Maybe when she's a few months older and a little less destructive haha :) The whole point of making it was to keep her from being an absolute terror in church...I guess I'll have to find another solution for the short term haha :)

Here is the finished product:

I was going for gender neutral so all of my kids can use it :)

 

                                                           The animals are finger puppets

Ta da! The end! :)

-Kamie