However, when my hubby left for cold, windy Nebraska (Physical Therapy school interview) and my nurse preceptor unexpectedly switched her Friday shift to Wednesday, I decided the stars were aligned for a much needed weekend trip home! I threw some stuff in a laundry basket (that's my true packing style...who needs suitcases?) and left Friday morning around 8:30am to make the 6.5 hour drive home.
I experienced no major mishaps on the drive unless extreme boredom counts (note to self: solo road trips aren’t that fun). Once I was halfway home, it occurred to me that maybe I should call my family and tell them I was coming. I told my little sister Mallory, and she decided I shouldn’t tell anyone else. But then I talked to my dad and since I’m bad at keeping secrets, I told him too. The only folks out of the loop by the time I showed up were my mom and little Nate. It was fun to surprise them and so nice to be home! Friday night was pretty uneventful and due to the fact that I had gone to bed at midnight the night before, I opted for a 9:30 bedtime.
Saturday was full of fun activities. In the morning, I ate cocoa and toast with Nate (a family and especially Nate’s favorite).Then I found a cute pattern online for making headbands (click here for pattern). I convinced 11 year old Mallory, a much more proficient sewer than myself, to help me with the project and by the end of the day we had 3 or 4 cute headbands whipped out mostly using my mom’s fabric scraps. Here’s a couple:
Everyone except Quentin and my Dad (who had a youth temple trip that Saturday) were able to go pick apples at an orchard in Payette, Idaho. It was so much fun to do together! Next we shared pumpkin pie milkshakes, went to JoAnn’s to get crafty stuff and then home to finish the headbands and do other projects. That night I went on a long walk with my mom (I still needed 80 minutes of exercise that week!) and watched “Radio” with the kids. Fun day!
Sunday I went to Sacrament Meeting in my home ward and then hit the road back to Provo. Other than a little rain and snow, the only major mishap was locking my keys in the car while at a gas station in Burley, Idaho. As I’ve locked my keys out of the house at least once a week for the past month, this wasn’t a major surprise. Thank goodness for a wonderful locksmith that came and unlocked my car (and for a super kind husband that simply told me I’m worth a lot more than $45).
Once again, Pete and I decided that we HATE being away from each other. But if I can’t be with him, then I would definitely choose to be with my family, so it was a perfect weekend to go home. Pete felt like his Creighton Interview (Omaha, Nebraska) went well, and soon he’ll have a phone interview with Loma Linda (southern California). Then we will BOTH :) be flying out to Virginia for his interview at Shenandoah University. We’re still getting applications sent in to schools, so we’ll see what other interviews come our way!
