Thursday, July 24, 2008

Something new...

Well, we finally did it! We have been talking about moving to Eastern Washington for years. The right time and opportunity just hasn't come along. Finally, I bit the bullet and started applying for Assistant Director positions for Special Education instead of Assistant Principal positions. That must have been the ticket 'cause I started getting interviews right away. I was offered and took a position with the Pasco School District. Jamie got a job not long after with Pasco also as a 6th grade math/science teacher at Stevens Middle School. Since then it has been a whirlwind of activity. Between getting my things together and finalized in Bethel, looking for a house in Richland, deciding what we were going to do with our house in Spanaway, and trying to make Jaiden's world as consistent and stress free as possible for the move, I haven't had much time to think about informing everybody about the move itself. I'm guilty, I admit it. So, in hindsight, I've decided to try this Blog thing. My friend Heather does it pretty regularly to keep everybody up-to-date on the family. Although I don't think I'll be as regular as her, I will try to do my best.


The picture is of our new house in Richland. Jamie and I both love it. It's big enough for the three of us and the four dachshunds. The house is 2250 sq ft with 4 bedrooms and 2 baths. Jaiden has his own room and a play room for his toys, which is great so we don't have the battle of toys in his bedroom at bedtime. We have a spare room for guests. I have a formal dining room and office, which I love. It has a great backyard for the dogs and Jaiden to play in. The kitchen and living room are nice and roomy and open to each other so I can be in the kitchen and still be part of what is going on in the living room. When we get the house a bit more put together I will post more pictures. We also have a website that we store all of our pictures on, http://community.webshots.com/user/stippjt. Check it out!

Jaiden started daycare this week. I got a great tip from my colleague the week before last about a daycare based out of the Catholic Church just four blocks from my work. Jamie and I visited it and fell in love. Caring teachers, great classrooms, and a schedule that fit ours. In addition, he is guaranteed a spot in the Montessori Preschool once he is ready to move up (and it's included in the daycare tuition). So far he LOVEs it. On the way to daycare every morning our conversation goes something like this:
Jaiden: Where goin' momma?
Me: Where do you think we are going?
Jaiden: Friends....see friends.
He talks about having new friends and a new teacher. He is happy in the morning to go and does not want to leave when I come to pick him up. He is of course going through the difficult transition from our move and now starting a new daycare because he is still a bear to deal with when he gets home sometimes. With a few weeks of this schedule, he will get back to normal and make the adjustment though.



The teachers are already remarking that he is a "smart little guy" to which I remark, "of course." :) They all laughed when he saw me with the camera and said, "Cheese!" without prompting from me. This of course is his cheese grin for the camera. (Kinda fits with his shirt, don'tcha think?)









3 comments:

Heather said...

Tracie,
It is great to hear from you and so neat that you started a blog! Just a heads up though, when you share the blog address with friends, you need to add the "www" before the addy as I wasn't able to paste it into my webpage without that. :) Also, I tried the link for your photos and I think for it to work properly you need an "s" after the word "user" as that is how I was finally able to see your page (I had to do an advanced page search to find it otherwise).

Your house looks really nice too! What a nice bathtub! Wahoo! Isn't it amazing what you can get for the price over there? We hope to move back to Spokane someday too for that very reason!

Your little guy looks so cute too! Isn't it fun when you can start having conversations with them? Josiah is now potty trained (you may have read that already) and we are thrilled! It went over VERY nicely and no relapses thus far.

I have your blog marked and plan to check back from time to time! Glad we can keep in touch this way!

Blessings,
Heather

Heather said...

Actually, OK, it is very late at night...ugh. What I meant to say was:
you have it as "users" on your link and it is supposed to be "user" instead. Apparently I am dislexic at 2:00am in the morning!
~Heather

Anonymous said...

Hi Stipp Family!
Nice job on your new blog!It is particularly fun to see the pictures of your adorable son. He is such a cutie( I guess I don't need to tell you that :) I'm sure he will adjust in no time. Your house looks fabulous!!!! Everything just seemed to fall into place for you guys. That's when you know it's the right move. That's what happened for me, too, and it is reassuring. It's also very exciting for your little family. Have fun exploring your new surroundings during these warm, sunny days!!
Teri Wright :)