Avery and Lindsey De Marr (Phoenix Floozies)

Avery (Steve's freshman-year roommate at Seatte U) and his wonderful wife, Lindsey flew up last weekend to attend a friend's wedding in Sumas, WA. They came in on Thursday and we were lucky enough to host them at our house. (Sorry we only have a couch...we're working on a second bedroom). They were great sports about it and Lucy was very excited to have some additional people to love and pet her. We had a great dinner at Joey's on Thursday night and then hiked Little Mt. Si on Friday morning. As you can see from the pictures, Lucy found a mud pit and we were a bit horrified. Steve and Avery were able to wash her off in a stream before she jumped in the back of their rental car. Sorry Avis! Steve and I then had a great dinner at the home of Sean Kliger's mom before Avery and Lindsey returned from Sumas. On Sunday night, we hosted some people for a BBQ and then Lindsey whooped up on everyone in a game of Shang-hi. I think they were a bit sleep-deprived after the weekend. Sorry!

Steve and Avery playing Guitar Hero on Avery's phone. Crazy boys.

Schmemily (AKA BFF)

Makayla and Sean Kliger brought home a yellow lab puppy in December. Many of you know Emily as Lucy's side kick. We have nicknamed Emily "Schmemily" because it's way more fun to say. We also use the term "BFF" (Lucy's Best Friend Forever- stemming from our junior high days). Up until recently, Lucy has been the larger of the two pups, especially since she is 6 months older than Emily. At the request of Emily's breeder, Sean and Makayla have started feeding Emily more and she quickly passed up Lucy. It seems as though Lucy will remain the smaller BFF. Even though Sean doesn't like it, we call her "Chubby McChubberson" on the sly...

Emily has just taken to the water (to the joy of her parents) and does a great job fetching when Lucy is not around. Lucy is still the dominant fetcher/runner and I'm not sure that will ever change in the near future. Emily and Lucy love to be together and we love it too because it means two very tired dogs. Tired dogs do not get into nearly as much trouble as fully-awake dogs. We're glad that Lucy has another dog her own "size" to play with. We also really enjoy hanging out with Emily's parents and we all look forward to our "real" children in the future.

Chelan

Bon Voyage!

Graduation Celebration

Steve threw me a great graduation party on June 14th to celebrate being done with school. I was so excited to have both sets of parents there as well as most of Steve's family and many of our friends. I still can't believe I don't have class on Monday! Here are some pictures of the festivities...

Graduation Rituals

On Saturday, June 14th, 2 fellow classmates (yeah Jamie and Jodie!) and I attended the baccalaureate mass (with our families) at St. James Cathedral to celebrate Seattle U's graduation. Even though I am not catholic, I am beginning to believe more strongly in ritual and rights of passage. I thought it would be a great way to experience something I could not at WSU. I must admit that it was pretty fun to line up with the rest of the graduate and march into a huge cathedral full of families excited for our accomplishments. My masters degree seemed to be a tougher road than my bachelors degree- especially since I was doing it later in life and while working. It's not as hard to go to class when you're 19 and have nothing else to do except hang out with friends. I got a little choked up at the thresh hold of the cathedral...and by the incense. The three of us lucked out with front-row seats and it was amazing to be a part of. I'm really glad I participated and wish more of our classmates had been there.

On Sunday, June 15th, I officially graduated. Our ceremony was at Quest Field (Seahawks) and it was a brilliant sunny day. I was not as brilliant and I wore nylons and black pants under my black robe- all because I didn't want to shave my legs. I was hot. It was incredible to go through this experience with all my classmates who had worked so hard to be there. We came from all walks of life and careers all to give it up to be school counselors. I have been asked many times why I decided to be a school counselor- some of my answers are wittier than others, but I honestly had the best experience getting to that day of graduation. As it turned out, I was the first person (after 2 people who received awards) to receive their masters degree on that day. It was a bit weird and made for a long few hours after my turn. It went so quickly that my family almost missed my walk across the stage. Another experience I'm glad I experienced. It's hard to believe it's all over. I miss it... and I'm glad it's over.

The four "Jen's" (Jenn, Jennifer, Jenn, Jenny)

I'm now a master!

Last Sunday, I graduated with my Masters from Seattle University in School Counseling. I'm am thrilled to be done...no more papers, presentations, night classes. The part that really saddens me is that there will be no more seeing all my classmates each week. It has been 2 great years with truly amazing professionals. I will miss them all, but we have vowed to make plans in the future. I have still not found a job for next year, but that too will come in time. I finished teaching on Wednesday and it was very bitter-sweet. I have loved being a teacher for the last 6 years, but it has also worn me down a bit and I'm excited to the next phase of my life. My parents as well as Steve's parents were with us for graduation and it meant a ton to have everyone there. It was a gorgeous Sunday in Seattle. Can't beat a good Seattle summer day! We leave for Paris tomorrow evening. Eeek! I just got my legs waxed today for the first time. I don't think I'll be going back. It hurt! We're going to try and blog from Europe. We'll see how that goes. Take care!