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My trip to Chicago was wonderful.  Talked, laughed, and enjoyed the company of my mom, dad, uncle, and aunt.  Made it a little hard to come back, actually.  We have about two months left here in the Emerald City.   Being with family made me wish we were back in PA already!   Still, we do want to try and make the most of the time that we have left.  After all, this will probably be the last time we live in the Pacific Northwest (although you never know)

Shawn is doing well.  He organized a group to attend a camp work day at Lutherwood and is starting a group called GIFTed Ministry (goes along with the churches Growing In Faith Together small group ministry) that will plan future service projects and mission trips for the congregation.  He is also leading an adult Sunday school series about the image of Christ in art (from all reports, they have been very interesting sessions).  Church activities will be scaling back in the next few weeks though.  PRLC seems to close up shop in late May and, from what we hear, many people will basically take the summer off and only return to church in September.  We find it slightly odd, but I suppose it's just the way things are here in Seattle! 

School is going well for me - same old same old really.  I'm in the process of applying for jobs in PA.  So far, I have sent out several applications and resumes but haven't heard back from anyone.  I'm not going to let myself get to frustrated yet.  Since I am applying to schools, I know that hiring often won't begin until after the school year ends officially.  I do hope that I have a job before we return in July, but we'll just have to wait and see.

In other news, I ran a 10K (6.2 miles) in Tacoma yesterday.  I finished in 57 minutes and 21 seconds.  Out of a field of 367 runners I came in 43rd overall.  I was 9th out of the 48 women in my age group.  I was really proud!  Shawn took pictures and cheered for me like crazy.  It was such a fun experience.  I can't wait to run my next race!  I'm trying to convince Shawn to run the half-marathon in Baltimore this October.

So much to catch up on! 

The trip to NYC was fantastic!  The red eye flight to New York was actually quite pleasant (Jet Blue is amazing - Direct TV at your seat, lots of snacks and beverages, sleep masks and ear plugs, extra leg room, etc. etc)  We met Shawn's parents for dinner and a show on Thursday.  Friday was mostly rehearsals for Shawn while I hit the town with friends.  Amidst heavy rains, everyone trekked to Carnegie Hall Friday night.  It was a wonderful, moving performance.  Hard to believe they pulled it off with just a few hours of practice!  After the concert we walked many blocks in the rain to the official Susquehanna University reception.  Eight dollar glasses of wine aside, it was a nice to time to celebrate with everyone.  After that we continued the fun at a bar near the hotel and finished the night with slices of NY pizza (I had forgotten how amazing a slice of pizza tastes at 3am!).  On Saturday Shawn and I said our goodbyes to the SU crew and met my parents at the fantastic Green Acres Mall (which happens to be right beside JFK airport).  They drove all the way to Brooklyn just to spend a few hours with us before we flew back to Seattle.  It was the most fun I've ever had in a mall.  :-)

After that it was back to reality and Holy Week at church.  Shawn was preacher and presider at the Good Friday service - he did a fantastic job!  That's one of my favorite services of the whole year and I was a little nervous about him doing it (because I tend to not be able to relax and worship as much when he is up there) but I needn't have worried.  It was such a moving service.  We both really enjoyed PRLC's Easter Vigil as well.  There were ten baptisms that night - including three adults - two of whom were fully immersed!  The feeling of community and celebration was unlike anything I've every felt at a church service.  The joy of baptism and the joy of Christ's resurrection made for an unforgettable evening!

The following week Sarah came to visit us during her spring break.  It was so fantastic to see her and be able to share a little bit of our life here with one of our best friends from back East.  On Thursday Shawn and Sarah hit Pike's Place Market and the Ballard Locks (where the guys from "Deadliest Catch" hang out).  Friday she and I went to some of the upscale department stores downtown (tried on a $45,000 diamond at Tiffany's) and the Seattle Art Museum.  On Saturday the three of us drove 20 miles north of the city to visit the Chateaux St. Michelle and Columbia wineries.  Later that day we also took a "tour" of the Red Hook brewery company.  While we loved visiting the wineries the Red Hook experience was probably our favorite.  It was more like a party than a tour - you pay $1 and get to try about 5oz each of their 5 different beers (For those who care: Blonde, Spring Ale, IPA, ESB, and Porter).  The girl leading the tour would talk for 5-7 minutes and then they'd turn on some music and we'd all try another beer.  It was pretty awesome.  All in all, we had such a wonderful time with Sarah and were so thankful she took the time (and spent the money!) to come visit us!

Coming soon: Two weeks from now Jacob will be in Seattle for 48 hours (he's such a jet setter), and a day later Shawn's parents will be arriving again.  A day after they leave I'll be flying to Chicago to see my Mom and Dad.  Not long after that it will be my birthday and the 10K.  Time is flying!

I really planned to do two posts in February...oh well!

Not too many huge things to report from the past month.  Medical issues plagued us - Shawn got a bad case of the flu and I had many doctor's appointments due to a skin infection (aren't you glad I shared?).  Fortunately, a trip to a great dermatologist has finally led to some resolution.  I hope that we can spend the rest of our time here in Seattle without any more medical events.  Otherwise, we've both been going about the regular business of work, church, and what not.  Shawn is presiding over the mid-week Lenten services, running Bible Studies on stewardship, leading the 7th grade confirmation class, etc., etc.   I am enjoying a new young adult women's book club that started in February.  It's really wonderful to get back into reading and spend time discussing ideas with great friends.  We just finished reading "A New Kind of Christian" and our meeting last Saturday went for over three hours!  (P.S.  I highly recommend the book.  It's a great exploration of what it means to be a Christian in the post-modern world.  If the faith of your parents, or the faith you had as a child, doesn't seem to fit your life anymore...this book is for you)

As we look ahead to the next month we have lots to look forward to!  This Wednesday night we will be flying to New York for a long weekend.  Shawn is singing at Carnegie Hall in an alumni choir to celebrate Susquehanna University's 125th Anniversary and the retirement of their long time choir director.  We're really looking forward to seeing tons of friends (who are also in the choir) as well as Shawn's mom and dad who are meeting us in the city.  The concert is Friday night and we have to be back for church on Sunday...it's going to be a whirlwind.  I wouldn't have ever imagined that while living in Seattle we'd take a weekend trip to NYC! 

Also coming up this month, all the excitement of Holy Week and Easter, a visit from our wonderful friend Sarah Bringman (can't wait!), and the return of dodge ball!  Our first games were actually last Monday and we were so excited!  It's a tough league, but we've got a great team.  We're just glad to be back at it!  Nothing like  throwing balls at other grown people in a High School gym. 

Quick news: my sister-in-law and brother recently found out her Synod assignment for next year.  Erin was assigned to the Southwest PA synod - so back to Western PA they go!  We're excited that they will be relatively close next year.  Not too long now until we'll all be back in Pennsylvania.  Speaking of, this week Shawn and I filled out housing requests for the Seminary and started talking logistics for the trip home.  Can't believe we're at that point already.

Last but not least I have to mention how glad we are that Spring is finally on the way. Yes it's true - my apologies to everyone in PA - but the weather here is already Springy.  Most days this past week were 55 degrees and sunny.  Trees are budding, some flowers are stating to bloom, and we're remembering just what a beautiful area this is.  I'm sure we still have some dark, rainy days to come, but for now I'm happy!  That's all for now.  Shawn and I are headed  down to the Japanese market - we're going to attempt to make our own sushi tonight.  Fingers crossed!

It just occurred to me as I titled this post that it's Groundhog Day!  I never thought we made that big a deal of it at home, but now that we're in Seattle nobody talks about it at all.  I almost forgot about it entirely!  Life in the Emerald City marches on.  We had a "snow day" at preschool on Monday.  There was about an inch on the ground and it was snowing on and off so after starting off with just a delay, they decided to close.  By about 1pm everything had melted.  I certainly didn't mind the extra day off! 

At the beginning of the month we had a lovely visit with Jacob and Erin (my brother and sister-in-law).  The Seminary held a J-term class here in Seattle that both Erin and Shawn participated in.  Jacob and Erin came a few days before the class started to spend some time with us and then stayed for the week-long class.  We did some of the touristy stuff, but between class/work schedules and the expense of most attractions, we spent a lot of time just chillin.  We had tons of fun enjoying each other's company.  One of the nights they were here we went to a sushi restaurant that serves from a conveyor belt!   You just sit along the belt and watch mini plates of different kinds of sushi go by.  There are five different colored plates that correspond to different prices. When you see one you want you just pull it off the belt and start eating!   All in all, they were here in Seattle for (I believe) eleven days.  It was really wonderful to share some of our "Seattle experience" with family.  I had forgotten how much fun we have with Jacob and Erin!

Shawn just finished his mid-year evaluation at the church.  Hard to believe we're at that point already.  The review was very positive - always a good thing!  Of course there's still a lot Shawn wants to do in the next 5-6 months.  He's in charge of mid-week Lenten services and he's really getting rolling with his internship project now.  He's starting a small group that will focus on service ministry.  The ultimate goal is to understand the Biblical basis for service to others and plan a mission trip.  Shawn is really excited to get this group off the ground!

Things at my work are pretty much status quo.  I'm looking forward to starting dodgeball again at the end of February and a new book club for the young women at church.  Most of us really enjoy reading so we decided that it would be fun to have an excuse to get a new book, hang out twice a month, and drink some wine.  Can't wait for our first meeting next Saturday!

Last but not least - today marks eight months of marriage for Shawn and I!  Time sure flies!  I think we're going to mark the occasion with a run around Green Lake, grocery shopping, and trying not too eat to much so we save up our calories for the Superbowl tomorrow!  We're watching at a friend's house and there will be lots of deliciously fattening football foods. I'm planning to wear my Steelers jersey.

Once again it's been so long since we've posted.  Christmas time has come and gone.  Christmas Eve Shawn and I had a Mexican brunch with our friends Abigail and Martin, then Abigail joined me as I continued my family tradition of people watching at the mall.  We enjoyed two beautiful Christmas Eve services at Phinney (between them Shawn and I had a lovely dinner for two at a Chinese restaurant...fa ra ra ra ra...)  On Christmas Day we exchanged a few presents and then went back to church for the bi-lingual (Indonesian/English) service.  We enjoyed a light supper with Pastor Hoffman and his family and then watched a movie at home.  It was a quiet, relaxing holiday. 

Two more days of work and then we hopped a red eye and came back to PA!  We had family Christmas at Shawn's house that Saturday night.  It was wonderful to be with his whole family.  We were especially excited to see our niece Katelyn.  She was born in September and we couldn't wait to finally see her.  She is the most adorable child I've ever seen!  Seriously - I know everyone says that - but this child is fantastic.  She's so calm and content.  She loves to babble and gives big smiles.  We couldn't get enough of her! 

We went to my house on Sunday for my family Christmas or Smith-mas - as my brother called it.  Unfortunately I caught a stomach bug that lasted about 24 hours and put a damper on my smith-mas.  Still, we were happy just to be together.  The next day was New Year's Eve.  Since I was feeling much better my mom and I went to get pedicures (we always do something spa-like on New Year's) in the morning while Shawn met his best friend Dave for lunch.  Later that afternoon we drove to West Chester to have dinner with Tim and Melissa (good friends from Susquehanna).  It was so much fun to catch up with them.  They had just returned from Christmas in Germany!  Between our Seattle stories and their Germany stories we had lots to talk about!  We all went on to a friend of Melissa's house and celebrated the New Year with friends (both old and new). 

The rest of our visit consisted of more family dinners, visits with a few friends, and trying to take it all in.  One thing we really liked was visiting Sarah and Seth at their soon-to-be home.  We loved seeing the farmhouse and the barn (Shawn wants to drive the combine).  It really got us excited for all the time we'll be able to spend with them next year when we're back at Gettysburg.

All-in-all it was a wonderful trip.  We're back in Seattle now and I'm trying to get myself mentally ready to go back to work tomorrow, haha.  Honestly though, we are ready to get back into the swing of things.  We already have big plans for the rest of our time here - we now realize how quickly it's going to go!  We want to make the most of living in this great city before it's too late!

We hope all who read this had a wonderful holiday and we wish you all God's blessings in the New Year! 

Sorry for the long break between updates!  Here's all the news I can think to share:

1.  Thanksgiving was fantastic.  I'm quite proud of all the good cooking Shawn and I did.  We also had lots of time to spend with my parents.  We walked around downtown, took a ferry over to Bainbridge Island, visited the Boeing factory, hung out and talked for hours, and other good stuff.  It was wonderful to see them but hard to see them go!  Good think we'll be home soon!

2.  Work goes on for both Shawn and I.  Shawn has preached twice since I wrote last.  Once at the Thanksgiving service (which he also planned and led by himself) and once last weekend for Advent II.  He continues to receive great feedback about his sermons and all the work he is doing at Phinney.  He is really growing into the pastoral role.  I am so proud of him!  Last Friday evening was the Advent Fair for my school.  The kids came in their holiday best (so cute to see them dressed up!), put on a short program for friends and family, and then did Advent/Christmas crafts.  It was tons of fun to see the kids "perform."  Two parents apologized to me for their kid's behavior.  One of the kids started a brawl center stage during the song "Mary Had a Baby" and the other just completely ignored the whole program and kept trying to get the other kids to run off with him.  Oh preschoolers!

3.  The fall dodgeball season has ended.  We didn't fare so well in the playoffs: we lost both our games.  It was a lot of fun though!  Shawn received player of the week honors even though we lost.  He was pretty excited about that and continues to remind me how great his dodgeball skills are.  Since there is so much interest in dodgeball among the young adults at our church we're thinking about creating two teams for the winter/spring season!  It's very exciting!

4.  In other young adult fellowship news: Shawn and I hosted a brunch for the young adults this past Sunday.  We ate tons of food, drank mimosas, and watched football.  Everyone seemed to have a really good time.  We loved having everyone over to the apartment.  This coming weekend will be lots of fun too.  Friday night is a going away party for Dan and Kirsten - friends from church who are headed to Russia for 5 weeks.  Saturday we are having a young adult progressive dinner.  Sunday Shawn and I will join some friends from work to see the Christmas ships.  This is a Seattle tradition where a parade of ships and boats covered in lights sail up and down Puget Sound and the many lakes in this area all through December.  The lead ship carries a different musical ensemble every night.   Folks from all over the city go to parks and beaches, build bonfires, drink hot cocoa, watch the ships, and listen to the Christmas music.  I can't wait to take part!

5.  Sorry for the length of this post - when we wait to long to post there is lots to say!  One last thing - some friends of ours could use your prayers.  Two members of the young adult community at church have been apprehended by INS.  They are Indonesian and had student visas that expired.  They were in the process of trying to update their immigrant status when they were picked up last Friday.   They are  a young married couple, just like us, who actually just found out that they are expecting their first child.  They were educated in the U.S. and hold down good jobs.  They were active participants at our church and really wonderful people.  Now they are being held in a Tacoma jail, unable to see each other, and will very likely be deported.   Immigration issues are a hot topic in Seattle because of the large Asian immigrant population and this situation has really brought it home for us and all the members of the church.  Wherever you stand on the issue, please remember Kevin and Maggie in your prayers.  I can't imagine how it must feel to be taken away in handcuffs, seperated from your spouse, cut off from everyone you care about, uncertain of your rights, and fearful that you'll be sent back to your country at a moments notice.

Tonight Shawn and I planned our first official Thanksgiving dinner.  From how many potatoes to buy, to when to start the turkey, we've got it all figured out! (I think)  I can't wait for my parents to arrive on Tuesday night so we can start the fun!  Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday!

Stepping back a little, I guess I should recap the past few weeks.  Last weekend Shawn and I helped at the CDC workday.  We spent the day with some of my co-workers and parents of our students sprucing up the center and doing those jobs that just never seem to get done during the week (refinishing furniture, updating the safety proofing on the mini-blinds, etc.).  It was a long day but felt good to get things done.  Afterward we met up with a husband and wife from church who took us out for a very authentic Chinese dinner.  It was delicious!  Wonton soup, homemade dumplings, pot stickers, chive pancakes, shrimp lo mein - it was truly a feast!  We had a nice evening and even got a great recommendation for a local doctor whom I saw later that week (I think the ongoing saga of my illness has finally ended. Cross your fingers!)  

Also this past week, the "regular season" of the dodgeball session ended on Thursday night.  Our team, the Phinney Phlingers, finished strong with big wins in both our matches that night.  Hooray!  The playoff schedule is up and we made it into the highest bracket.  That means we're one of the top six teams in the league!  We're really excited and can't wait for playoffs to start after Thanksgiving.  After the matches we had the whole team over to our apartment for food/drinks/socializing.  It was the first time we had a group of friends over and we had a really good time.  Too bad we all have real jobs and nobody could stay much past 10:30, haha.

Today church was a little different.  Quick background:  Shawn and I both sing with the Chancel Choir. This is a fairly normal church choir in terms of composition (average age is probably 60) but they have lots of talent and a conviction to work on really challenging music.  The Choir has been working on John Rutter's Requiem for around 6 months.   Today we preformed the Requiem at both services.  Along with our regular organist we were joined by a fantastic soprano soloist, and several professional musicians (on timpani, flute, oboe, and harp).  It was a truly beautiful, awe-inspiring addition to the worship.  Shawn and I were both so glad we were able to be a part of it.

Many thanks to all those who have called, emailed, or written, to kept us up on their own lives.  We love hearing from you all and cannot wait until they day we can see you face to face again.  May the week ahead be filled with blessings and may we remember with praise and thanksgiving the giver of all gifts - Jesus Christ our Lord.

God Bless you!   

Well...I have to tell you- This has been the best five months of my life.  The honeymoon might be over, but we are still having a great time.

Seattle has been keeping us busy and so has work, but we are finding time to really enjoy married life, by cooking for each other, reading together, experiencing Seattle together, etc etc. Rachel had a difficult three weeks being sick, where it seemed everyday she would get better, but then feel worse by the end of the day. She was faced with the unending cold from hell. We are proud to say that this week she has felt the best since moving and we are hoping she has made the turn she needs and has gotten the rest that she longed for.

I don't know what you have heard about Seattle weather, but we're loving it now. After Rachel wrote the post about, "then the rains came," the entire rest of the month has been amazing, with only a few days of rain. Rachel and I have been waking up to the sun rise and on our way to the work we see the Foothill Mountains to our left. The past few days have been breathtaking. So everyone who thinks it rains here everyday, I am here to tell you that you are wrong.

Thanksgiving will soon be here and that means Rachel's parents will be making a visit. What a great thing to be thankful for. We are starting to plan the daily activities and it should be a wonderful trip for the two of them. I believe Rachel is going to take a few days off, but I on the other hand have a busy week during Thanksgiving. I think we may work a day trip in to see the world famous Boeing factory, which is suppose to be an incredible tour (Tour through the worlds largest building shows you how the worlds largest planes are manufactured). Thanksgiving Day service is my solo responsibility as Vicar and that means I need to plan a service and write a sermon by the 22nd. I have lots of time but I am sure it will fly by. After the service we are planing cook our first thanksgiving dinner, and I am all about stuffing a turkey for four people.  

I hope you are enjoying yourselves as much as we are.

Peace,

Shawn

It's Wednesday night and normally I would be at church with Shawn.  Wendesday's are "Bread for the Journey" the church's evening extravaganza of Confirmation classes, choir rehearsals, family dinner, etc., etc.  This week I'm taking the night off to do some more recovering though - I was sick again this week.  These preschoolers keep passing their germs and my immune system is just not cutting!  This time I actually had to take Monday off with a fever.  I'm pretty much back to normal but wanted to just relax at home and get to bed early.

So what else has been going on...let's see.  This past weekend had some of the best weather we've seen in a few weeks.  We tried to take full advantage of the sunshine.  On Saturday we took a day trip north through Western Washington with Adam and Aileen (A^2).  We had a lot of fun seeing some beautiful sights, laughing with A^2, riding ferries, and having dinner in an a brewery with tons of character.  Sunday Shawn and I went to Carkeek Park (just a few miles from our apartment) and enjoyed the beach, a little bit of hiking, and some Frisbee throwing.  All in all it was a great weekend.  I've added a few pictures from the weekend.  We were really to glad to get out and around the area.  We still have so much to explore here in the Pacific Northwest!

Not too much else going on really.  We're both keeping busy with our work.  We've been doing a little forward planning and just bought our plane tickets home for Christmas time.  Hooray!  We're taking a red-eye into Philadelphia on Friday December, 28th (we'll arrive at 6:40am on Saturday) and will fly back to Seattle late in the evening the next Saturday, January 5th.  Based on both our work schedules we couldn't make it home for Christmas Day, but we're excited that we'll be able to make it during the 12 days of Christmas!  Now that we've bought the tickets I'm trying not to think about it...we've still got a few months to go!

Hello again from the Emerald City.  October has arrived and so have the rain clouds!  It doesn't rain all day (we had a good four or five hours of sunshine this afternoon) but it's definitely a lot cloudier than it was.  We feel like true Seattlites though because we haven't opened our umbrella yet.  Yup, just a pair of trusty rain jackets for us!

Updates on past events - Shawn's sermon went beautifully!  He was calm, cool, and preached his little heart out.  He received a lot of positive feedback.  Our visit with Shawn's parents was equally wonderful.  Having them here inspired us to take in more of the sites in this great town.  During the two days I was at work, Shawn and his parents went to the Market (twice), went up the Space Needle, did a Duck tour of Seattle, and visited the Woodland Park Zoo.  While we were all together on Saturday we took a 30 minute ferry ride to Bainbridge Island and walked around looking at the shops.  I really loved the ferry.  It was so neat to see the city from the water.  I had fun thinking about the thousands of people a day who commute to work on those ferries!  

Sunday was Pastor Hoffman's 25th Ordination Celebration.  It was a wonderful event that many members of the staff and congregation had been working on for weeks.  There were all kinds of special music planned during the two services, a touching presentation/slide show during the Sunday School hour, a hymn sing in the evening, and a special evening prayer service.  Things started off a little rocky when the organ broke before the 8:30am service, but everyone rolled with the punches and it ended up being a wonderful celebration.  It was a very emotional day for everyone. 

Wow I feel like there is so much to say!  My work is going well.  Almost all the kids are sick, and they got me sick too.  I had a wicked cold last week, and I still can't shake the cough.  We've had a few fevers the last couple days so I'm really trying to keep myself healthy!  The last thing I'll share is that Shawn and I went to our first dodgeball game tonight!  The young adults group at church has a dodgeball team that they invited us to join.  We play in a community league and tonight was opening night.  We played two matches.  Each match is 16 minutes of dodgeball with an unlimited number of games.  The team with the most games won at the end of the 16 minutes is the match winner.  We have to wear our team shirts, there are real referees, a rulebook... it's serious stuff!  We had a total blast.   Shawn of course was awesome and totally blew everyone away.  I didn't do bad either with quite a few hits and catches.  We won both matches and only lost one game the whole night!  Even better than that, everyone on the team is fun and supportive and we really enjoyed hanging out with them.  We can't wait until our next match!