SPRING BRINGS CHANGE!

Spring has always been one of my favorite times of year.  I love the change it brings and the hope of new things.  I love warmer weather, being outside, and flowers.  I normally associate spring with rain and new growth, but spring in Albuquerque will be different than most springs I've seen and so I'm excited to see what spring holds for Geoff and me in New Mexico.  There are many changes going on right now during this season of our lives so read on to hear about just a few.

CHANGES IN WEATHER

I continue to learn more about ABQ all the time.  For example, spring can have some very windy days and where there is wind in a dry desert area….there you will find a dust storm.  J  I went to the store one night this week and walked out to a nice windy walk back to my car that involved dirt in my teeth and eyes on the way there.  Then when I got to the car, this is what it looked like:

Lovely!

Just a little motivation to find a car wash now! J

CHANGES IN MY JOB

Now that we’ve been here for a little over two months, it’s time for me to REALLY start looking for a job.  My company in Indiana has been awesome in letting me work remotely for them for an interim period while they fill my position, but as that’s coming to an end it is now officially time to start looking for a new job.   (So sad because I'll miss sitting in Starbucks all afternoon!!)

Now, of course I’ve been “looking” since I’ve been here, but not REALLY looking.  I’ve clicked through pages of monster.com postings and went to various banks and other employer’s websites, but nothing has really stood out. I’ve applied for one job now—a copy editor position.  That was four days ago.  I’m just hoping to find more things that I actually want to apply for.  Wish me luck!

CHANGES IN OUR HOUSE IN INDIANA

Yesterday was the closing to sell our first home together in Indiana.  We lived there six years, and it was a wonderful first home.  We're blessed to have it sell so quickly, but of course it is a somewhat emotional thing.

So as we say goodbye to our first house, we get to start thinking about what our next home will be...

An Introduction

Wow!  What an amazing whirlwind the last few months have been to get us to where we are today.  If you're wondering where that is, we're in Albuquerque, New Mexico!!  Crazy huh?

Now that Geoff and I are starting to get settled in in Albuquerque, I've decided it's time to finally start the endeavor of having the blog that I had decided I would have when we knew we were moving down here.

So what are my goals/reasons for this blog?

1.  Communication--Keeping everyone "back home" up to date on what life is like down here in a way that is more meaningful than short, fragmented "snip-its" on Facebook.

2.  Thought Organization--I've always loved to compile, organize, and sort through my thoughts by writing them down, so I feel like having this outlet will be a good way for me to do that.

So, I look forward to joining the world of bloggers and getting started and letting you all in on what life is like for us in this beautiful place!!

For now, let me share with you a few beautiful pics of things we've seen so far!  

Beautiful Sunsets!  This picture was taken from the base of the Sandia Mountains looking down at the city in the valley.  It's amazing how far you can see.  The mountains in the background are about 90 miles away. 

Petroglyphs!!  We've went hiking at Petroglyph National Monument State Park and saw several (there are hundreds) of these awesome, very old carvings.  They're done on volcanic rock and their meanings aren't known, but I'm pretty sure the one below has something to do with aliens in Roswell. :)  

And finally is my favorite. Coming from the very flat southern Illinois, it still takes my breath away every time I look out our window our walk outside and see this awesome mountain lurking "in our backyard".   How cool is that?  It's especially beautiful right now with all of the snow on it.  Yes, it does snow in Albuquerque--it's not Phoenix.  Random facts:  Albuquerque is what is called "high desert".  Our apartments sits somewhere around an elevation of 5700 ft.  The crest of the Sandia Mountains is 10,678 feet above sea level and so snow seems to stick around during the winter for sure!