Flood, Famine, and Fire?

I am having a very difficult time with our experience in Allentown. I often wonder if coming here was the right decision. Shortly after we moved here, our street had a sewage pipe burst. Our basement was flooded with the most disgusting thing possible that I had to basically throw all of our belongings away. Then in November my van was hit by a uninsured motorist that ended up getting arrested on site for armed robbery. No insurance for him, and a $500.00 deductible for me. Let's just say, I haven't fixed my bumper yet. In January, our little Honda was stolen right out of our driveway, and after it was recovered, we had to pay $330.00 to get it out of impound and it had been stripped for parts. Today I went in our basement to find a layer of smoke. I quickly yelled to Owen that something was burning, but we couldn't figure out what it was. We got the kids out of the house and called 911. Our street was packed with police and fire trucks, and they even closed our street. They found out it was our light fixture on the verge of an electrical fire. I consider ourselves lucky that we weren't all up on the 3rd floor not realizing that our house was about to go up in flames. So....what do you think about all of our nightmares? Oh, and the famine thing--I just had to throw that one in --I mean after all, we are on a residents salary.

Where to from here?

Many of you have asked where we are headed to after Owen finishes his residency in June. Well....we don't know, so stop asking! The rundown is that Owen has had some job offers, but if you know us well, you know that we are very indecisive people. Ok, more picky than anything. We are just looking for the "perfect" place to raise our family, with the "perfect" job. Originally we were going to take the job in Eugene Oregon. Feeling really excited about our decision to take the job in Eugene, we had another offer in Paso Robles California--central coastal. Absolutely beautiful wine country, and close to a lot of our family. Not to mention the fabulous weather and living so close to the beach ! We decided to turn down the offer in Eugene, and take the job in Paso. Honestly, I just don't think I could handle 6 months of rain and grey. That was on a Thursday, and on Friday he talked to the guy in Paso, and he ended up hiring someone else. His associate up and quit, and had to hire someone quick. So, needless to say, it sucks for us. But, we are looking at it as that it wasn't the right decision. On Monday, Denver called him, and told him to come out again. Maybe that's what we'll end up doing. So...I'm sure you'll all hear soon enough! Believe me, I wish I knew. This is such a stressful decision, I want it to all be over.

Happy 7th Birthday Mags!

See pic below of her new doll "Kit"




It's crazy to think that my baby is 7! Where has the time gone? Maggie has been talking about her birthday since the day after her 6th birthday. Since it is our last year on the east coast, we thought we'd take full advantage of it and go to our favorite place--NYC! We love being so close to the Big Apple! The day before her birthday was the big day, and it POURED rain! Do you realize that it has rained every time I've been to NYC? ANd I've been there over a dozen times. We left late afternoon, and by the time we got there, it had stopped. Whew! Maggie's b-day present was her first American Girl Doll. She has been eyeing "Kit" in the catalog for weeks. Kit resembles Maggie to a t.-(see pic below) It was so fun to see all the little girls picking out their American Girl gear. We had a nice time. I think we may be back in 3 months for Audrey's b-day.
Afterwards, we went to Mars 2112 restuarant. We were seated at our table after a short spaceship ride to mars. They informed me that I would NOT get motion sickness, but hey, I'm soooo sensitive to movement, I had a nice headache afterwards--but Maggie enjoyed it. As we ate, we were greeted by aliens, and they sang "Happy Birthday dear earthling" We had a nice time.
I love my little Mags! Happy Birthday!
7 fun facts about Maggie
1. hates cheese
2. Awesome Reader
3. Loves to be in charge
4. Spiritual
5. Prefers boy things over girls--we're so over princesses and dressing up--but she really loves her American Girl Doll!
6. slightly OCD--very concerned about germs
7. Current jobs-writer, singer, choreographer, artist, actress.

Mags--Through the Years

Newborn








Age 7