Holy @#$%!

Ok, so Pastor Jack and I have been house hunting. Well, today the hunt ended! Jack found a great condo yesterday and we went today to look at it. There was an offer made, and then a counter offer, and then we jumped in and stirred things up a bit. We made an offer and then tonight we got a call that they had accepted it! We are soooo happy about it. The house has a bay window, its 2 bedroom, 2 bath, 2 car garage, a giant kitchen and a fantastic backyard. The backyard is probably our favorite part! It is landscaped around a giant, old tree that is so homey and shady. OHHH!! We are just so happy. Now, when we get wedding gifts we can picture where they will go! It's such a relief. Our free time won't be spent finding a house or looking stuff up online.

So I thought I would tell blog world. It's about 4 miles from the church and about a mile from some of our very dear friends, Buddy and Renda (they're not married, just neighbors and two extremely special people). Anyway... if you have any furniture arranging advice or space sharing advice, let us know. Yay!!!!

She's Baaaaack!!!

Dear Bleaders,

I am back! I have my degree in hand, I got it in the mail today, and I am ready for this new season! My graduation was on Saturday, and so was Bo's, and so was Justin's new wife's! (Justin has a wife... wow) I didn't walk at graduation, but Bo did and it was great.

The past few days (well, months, but we are sticking with the past few days) have been an absolute whirlwind. My last day at Greenback was this past Wednesday. The kids were awesome! My senior class got together and all gave me a card to say goodbye. They also gave me a huge giftback, complete with a note that said, "Miss Emily, May God bless you as you Serve the Bread of Life and the Living Water." And in the bag was a beautiful bamboo serving tray, a bread box, and coasters. I got a little teary... all my hard work did pay off. We had talked so much about current events, environmental issues, etc. that they wanted to show me they had learned. I love those kids and will miss them.

The next day was my Exit Interview where I officially completed the teaching program... The next day I met with my new "employers," looked at a house, and celebrated my graduation... Saturday we went to Cookeville for Bo's graduation and Nashville for Justin's wedding... Sunday we were in Nashville... Monday was wedding things. And today I got a massage. :) I got a deep tissue massage which I needed ever so badly. The girl that did it was impressed with the giant knots and creatures that live deep within my muscles and tendons.

So anyway... I do officially have a job now. I am the Communications Specialist for Apostles Anglican Church. I am SUPER excited about it. The job description fits me to an absolute T. It's all things that I love doing... newsletters, setting up meetings, keeping calendars, communicating between people, bulletin boards, and tons of other stuff. I start a week from today. I'm sure I will keep you up on it. It's going to be great to have a "big girl" job that does not include a transition. This is the first job I've ever had that I am not getting because it will carry me to the next thing, or I need it "because..." I feel really good about it and it's good for the ole self esteem too!

I got to catch up with some college friends this weekend and introduce Jack. It was so good to see everyone. It's crazy that almost everyone is married and several have kids. And I was thinking... I have known some of them for seven years! That's a long time! So, cheers, guys, to seven years!

I've gotten really bad about taking pictures, so if I had some I would definitley post... but I don't. All I have are pictures I am working on for the slideshow at the rehearsal dinner. Some of them are hilarious, but here is 2 year old me. Classic.