Closing up March

We have had yet another uneventful, but fast, week. Actually, I had a pretty easy week at work. I had a ton of cancels and no-shows, which always seems to happen this time of the year when a lot of people are on spring break. I didn't even have paperwork to bring home! I was so excited. I am sure things will pick up soon. Things are going to start getting stressful again at work, as we simply just have too many referrals from our contracts and not enough people to evaluate, let alone treat. My bosses don't quite see this clearly. Thursday night, I had seven people there at once. I saw my license flash before my eyes as one of my patients tripped, but thank God, didn't fall. If they don't hire another assistant fast, I am really going to have to think about looking for another job, because it just is not worth risking my license.
Friday afternoon after work, we drove to Studio City, to meet Nick's parents before taking them to LAX. It was a fun drive in, as we drove through downtown LA, Hollywood (we saw the sign and the Celebrity Center of Scientology) and finally to Studio City. We ate across the street from where they record American Top 20 with Kasey Kasem and American Top 40 with Ryan Seacrest. No star sightings, I'm afraid, but was still nice. After dropping them off at the airport, we drove our car and theirs back to Riverside in record time. After that, I was pretty beat.
Saturday afternoon, we looked at about 14 houses with our realtor in different areas of Riverside. We saw a few older homes that had some nice charm, but also needed quite a bit of work. We also saw some real dumps as well. We did see one house that we may offer on with a huge backyard, even by Midwest standards. We are going to check to see what kind of activity has been on that house. It's in a really cute neighborhood with nice trees and very established houses. The only downside for me is that it is literally across town from my work, which would be hard to get used to after my 2 minute commute I have now!
Today, we have been hanging out and doing our normal Sunday errands. Nick has tomorrow off, as it is Cesar Chavez day, which is an official state holiday in California. How ridiculous. I, of course, still have to work. I am heading downtown in the morning to hopefully get the MD appointment in that I missed last week. I pushed my 10 am eval to Wednesday at 9:15, so I don't need to be to work to 10:45, which will give me the extra time I need. It's going to be a super busy week (at least on paper). I have 4 patients an hour with treatments, and in some cases, 5-6. This, and about 5 evals a day with corresponding paperwork. I hope that there are a few cancels and no shows! No big plans for the week, but I hope it goes fast and we're very excited that April is here!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter everyone from sunny California! We have bright blue, sunny skies and 80 degree temperatures here in Riverside! Spring is officially here with all its beautiful weather and fresh blooms. It really is an actual change here in California vs. an official change like back in the Midwest. It sounds pretty chilly yet back there!
We have had a uneventful week here. We found out that we will not (more than likely) be getting the house we offered on, as someone offered higher with more contingencies, but the bottom line still comes in higher than ours. This has prompted us to look at things a bit more carefully and we will be broadening our search to other areas of Riverside and we will be looking at mostly older houses. This is not exactly what we had hoped for but, unfortunately, with interest rates being so low, there are a lot more buyers out in the marketplace who are willing to scoop up good deals fast. So, we will see what this new search brings to the table. We are hoping it does not force us into a fixer-upper, but we will see.
My Friday off went quickly. I had a dentist appointment in the morning, which is one of my least favorite things to do, but I did not have any cavities! After lunch with Nick, I was supposed to have a 3:30 appointment with the doctor, but they were so backlogged, they were not even able to see me! I was so mad-to be nice. So, I may try another office and see if that is any better. Needless to say, the medical care and facilities around here are very sub-par.
That's about it for now. We have had an uneventful weekend, but will see Nick's parents next Friday, as we will be taking them to LAX for a trip to Tahiti. Wish it was us leaving!!! Enjoy spring and the warm weather that is bound to come soon!

Beautiful winter days

Lately, we have had some outstanding weather. Bright, sunny skies with temperatures in the 80s with plenty of lush, green foliage and beautiful spring flowers coming into bloom. Yesterday, we got some rain and even a little hail, probably one of the last rains of the season. I think I even heard a clap of thunder, which you rarely hear out here. The mountain vistas area beautiful with their snow capped majesty. It is hard to imagine that this is all about to come to an end in another month or so. I've never been so sad to see winter go. Although neither of us mind the scorching summer temperatures, it is nice to enjoy the moderate temperatures and clean air while it lasts.

I thought I would post some photos of 3 baby quilts I have made this winter. One for Sophia Sonnek and another for Tyler Etten. The last one is for Sarah and Mike's baby in Alaska, which is due in April. Sorry Sarah if you see this-but this is your present come April! The purple one is for Sophie, the blue is for Tyler and the green for Sarah and Mike's baby.

I haven't gotten around the finishing the green one yet, so that is still a work in progress. They have been really fun to make. The purple and the blue were from some quilt kits Barb (Nick's mom) gave me, but the green one I did all myself (proud yet?)
Last Sunday, we submitted an offer on a fourth house, but since it is a short sale, have not heard anything about the status of that offer. Since it is a short sale, it is not the owners who decide to accept the offer, it is the lender. In this case, I know there is a substantial amount between what the house will sell for and for what the owners owe on the mortgage. We will update you with any new developments!
It's a short week for me at the clinic. The administration has decided to close the clinic, which is fine. I will do some appointments and have a nice day of sleeping in. I was able to make up the hours a few weeks ago when we were super busy. Not that I haven't been busy this past week. I had a crazy amount of treatments! One day I think I counted 28! This week will return to a normal amount with my regularly scheduled 4-5 evals and about 20 treatments. Still a crazy day, but definitely manageable!
Happy Spring everybody!

Weekend Update

We've had a nice low-key weekend here. Friday night, we went to dinner (at Chipotle) with friends Josh and Erin and then chatted until the late hour of 10 pm, when we were all just exhausted. It sure stinks when you have to be social at the end of the week. I'd rather be social at the beginning of the week and then work when I'm tired. Anyway....
Saturday we went hiking in the OC (Orange County) at Crystal Cove State Park off of PCH (Pacific Coast Highway). We hiked through El Moro Canyon, which was a nice coastal hike away from the ocean. We decided to go the "tough way" up, which included a final leg called the "elevator." It's not a ski lift or an actual elevator-but it sure could use one! The pictures that I have don't do it justice. It was pretty much STRAIGHT UP, but it was nice to get to the top and feel the sense of accomplishment (that's me there taking a break). We took the ridgeline back down toward the ocean which let us see some of the ridiculous OC homes and a little glimpse of the ocean. The day was mild (in the 60s) and fairly cloudy, as you can see. We had some misting for a good portion of the time, which actually felt good. When we finished, we were happy that the sun hadn't come out, because it would have made the hike a lot hotter, tougher, and probably, in the long run, unbearable. We really enjoyed our time and the park, as they had excellent trails.
Upon returning home, we really didn't do anything exciting besides getting a Starbucks and having supper here at home. We watched Wedding Crashers on TV, and we were even able to stay awake for 40 minutes of SNL, which is a huge deal. It doesn't come on here until 11:30!
Today, the Santa Anas have rolled in and it is extremely windy. When I was out driving around, there were tons of branches down and even one tree. I thought that some of the immature palms may come down too, as they were bending like rubber. Hopefully, that will all calm down soon.
On the house front, we really have no news. Apparently, the owner didn't realize how far the market dipped and was shocked when she recieved our offer and saw the comps from the neighborhood. It doesn't sound like we'll get a counter-offer and she may rent the place out. We're pretty bummed, because that was the last home in our price range in this neighborhood, which we really wanted to stay in. Oh well, I'm sure something will come up. Our rent just went to month to month, so that gives us extra incentive to find something quick!
I am going to be working 3-10 hour days and 2-8 hour days this week, so I think it will be a long week. Supposedly, the following week will return to normal, but I highly doubt it will, as our coworker will still be on paternity leave! The extra money and/or vacation will be nice, although I am sure it will be stressful. As long as I know there is an end in sight I will be okay!
We're looking forward to starting Daylight Savings Time next week, which means it will actually be light when I get home at 7 PM at night! Have a good week everybody!

Dancing Obama

As you all know by now, I am a huge Barack Obama fan going way back to at least 2004. Thus, I didn't even have to think who to vote for when he was running for president. Anyway, regardless of his intelligence, charisma, and calm demeanor, his dancing skills are somewhat a funny story. The guy really thinks he can bust a move! I've been laughing at these videos for quite some time, and thought I would post them in case you haven't seen them! Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsWpvkLCvu4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2si-di3O_Wk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7XT0lmdQ68