Family Montage at Gasworks

On Monday, Greg met me and Josie at Gasworks. We were both dolled up, Josie looked cute too :) We met Kaitlin Musser for a photo shoot, which was exciting because she took our preggo photos a year ago (view on her website). She took some excellent photos! So please take a moment, relax, enjoy 1.5 minutes of Joines family montage.

Family Montage at Gasworks from Greg and Dolly on Vimeo.

Pibil, the Phantom, and Parking Garages

*Some details may be falsified/embellished for dramatic effect...

So last Friday was a great day of celebration. I didn't exactly know what we were celebrating, but we decided to party like Rock Stars (or how we would party if we were Rock Stars). It started with the usual; waking up to the Josie, getting some grub and heading out the door. Instead of making the pilgrimage all the way out to North Bend, we met Dolly's mom (Grandma Sheri to the wee one) in Issaquah at 'the Bird' for an Iced tea, Diet Coke, and an order of fries. After leaving Josie for a fun adventure at the Grandparents (she has become rather fond of Boompa), we decided to head over to Ross so we could look snazzy sexy on the Cheap. I ended up with a nice Calvin Klein shirt, Dolly ended up with a wardrobe, and Josie would get a puffy pink jacket (I hope we return it, *hint* *hint* Dolly). There is something about getting some new, nice clothes and going out on the town (and there is something else about even leaving the tags on to let the town know that you are going out in new nice clothes- we practiced the former and neglected the latter). Anyway, after Ross we had to hit up QFC to make ingredient for our favorite Mexican dish, Puerco Pibil.

**SIDENOTE: Puerco Pibil is an amazing slow roasted pork dish that is uber fantastic (I probably should've used a Spanish word and not a German would to describe that...). Anyway, it is the only thing good about the movie "Once Upon a Time in Mexico" Robert Rodriguez has a "10 Minute Cooking School" (Rated -R, but the PG-13 version of the Recipe is here) and it teaches you to make this amazing dish. I highly recommend it. Because you use 5 lbs of meat, it usually feeds the Joines Fam for about 10 meals.**

At QFC we figured the best course of action for our Pibil campaign was to break up into two teams ('super secret squad alpha,' consisting of me and 'lame Dolly team', consisting of Dolly) Alpha team was in charge of a 4-pack of Red Bull and 5.5 lbs of Pork Butt and the Dolly team was in charge of the rest. It was like a crazy scavenger hunt to get the ingredients and meet at the register. Unfortunately, and I won't mention any team names, but it wasn't the super secret squad alpha team forgot to get the most coveted Mexican cheese in the display, Cotila or something, so she had to go back and get it, and ultimately had to pay separately for that.

So after a short stop at a liquor store (to get a cute lil bottle of Tequila for the Pibil), we made the trek home. We had laid out all the spice before we left and were ready to grind, blend, and roast. The little bottle of Tequila somehow broke and when I opened it up it started draining across the floor and shooting a small stream of liquor across the kitchen. Since my military training kicked in, I knew exactly what to do; get a safe distance away and aim the small stream in the blender. Unfortunately my marksmanship with a lil bottle of Tequila isn't as good as one might expect with all my taxpayer-sponsored training, so after the most expensive dribble of tequila in the mix, we were ready to put it in the oven.

After a short nap we woke up to some fantastic Pibil and got ready to go. We both looked great and we were ready to tear up the town. So after a few navigational blunders/parking adventures, we ended up parked and almost 50 minutes early. So we got to the Paramount, purchased an outrageously over-priced program, and looked good (we do these things in style, or at least we pretend). So we decided that we would get a drink; I got Glenlivett on the rocks (a standard) and Dolly ordered a "Masquerade" (Absolut Pear, Soda and a splash of Cran- disgusting). So neither one of us really enjoyed our drinks (they gave me about a pint of Scotch and Dolly's was just plain disgusting), but we didn't want to just throw our drinks away. So with the utmost care we performed the most clandestine operation of the evening; getting rid of our drinks without other people knowing that we were getting rid of our drinks. We saw only a handful of options:

1. Wrap the napkin around the cup and toss it in the garbage can,
2. The dying tree to the left of us could probably use a little pear liquor in its roots, or
3. Tastefully discard the beverage while at the drinking fountain pretending to get a drink.

We decided on the last option, but I had to perform the act with both drinks. It was smooth (aside from the mountain of ice left in the drinking fountain). So finally we were able to snag our seats. We had purchased the tickets one week before they went on sale thanks to Dolly's passport thing for working at Children's and they gave us some of the best seats in the house. They were dead center and 8 rows back so we could easily gaze over the pit to the theatrics unfolding around us, and were under the Chandelier as it fell (really cool). Overall, the play was a fantastic experience (the production was amazing, the costumes were great, and the music was captivating) my only beef is that the main lead for men were anything but strong. Since my only framework for the Phantom was King Leonidas (300) who played the Phantom in the movie version, so I was expecting a pretty tough dude. Instead, we got this joker (below the King). Lame. This consequently made Christine's character look weak. So after enjoying the time at the theåtre, we hit up the Cheesecake Factory for a quick appetizer and drink. We both enjoyed some of our favorite foods (Potstickers for the misses and I rocked some sliders), and got some Cheesecake and Carrot Cake for the road.

Unfortunately, the entrance to the convention center (where we parked) closes at 10pm and the garage closes at 12am. Our watch said 11.15 and we knew if we didn't play our cards right, we would be that couple calling you (to the two people who will read this) asking if you could pick us up. Luckily after going through the entrance off 8th, through a parking garage, through three levels of the convention center, and riding in two elevators we made it back to our car. We pulled into our Pibil smelling abode shortly after midnight and were able to enjoy some of our Cheesecake bounty. We started a good movie about the IRA terrorists, but was only able to make it 20 minutes in before we crashed.

Dolly wishes that I would be more thoughtful posts on here instead of just recounting the adventures. I honestly am thankful for Jesus that I have an amazing wife who have been able to grow with over the past 8 years and still enjoy and experience 'that teenage feeling', that I get to eat good food that anticipates a heavenly feast with Jesus, that we have caring parents who love and adore our girl to enable us to do this, that there is creation and expressions of it via theater (and the better movie) to reflect God's creation and drama, and that we can share how special this is to the one person who actually finished reading this.

Why I'm a Nurse at Children's

The Soulworker

A nurse is a soulworker. The mending of
the body is only a fraction of what she
accomplishes each day. With her compassion,
kindness, and specialized skills she encourages and
inspires those she works with. Through her caring,
courage and everyday heroism, the act of nursing
becomes a life’s work. The nurse is transformed
into a vehicle of healing. She is a soulworker.

Micheline Montgomery PhD
September 2002

I had an incredibly emotional and difficult time at work on Friday evening...the second night of work that I have ever cried in front of my colleagues. I cried twice last night at work in fact, and fought tears the rest of my night at home. I am often asked how I cope with working with sick children, and my only answer is that God has prepared my heart in advance to serve these families in the capacity he has enabled me to. I feel privileged, honored, and blessed to have the opportunity to show the same love and compassion that my Father has shown me to families of different cultures, languages, and religions. Whatever economic, situational, or physical characteristics seem to define these children and their families, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ looks beyond to see the heart. I am thankful that he has called me to serve them with kindness and love as I too reach beyond what is on the outside to help the hurting, sick, or disabled child and the family that provides unconditional love to that child outside the hospital.

So here is a list of reasons why I love working as a nurse at Children's Hospital:

I see bedridden children sit up with joy at the sight of a therapy dog

I see exhausted fathers return to their teenager's room with McDonalds at 2:00 am

I see new mothers tearfully express thanks when I enter their room with hot tea, as they await the doctors news from the most recent labs drawn from their newborn.

I see teenagers who have battled cystic fibrosis together for years, chatting on their hospital phones while they play Monopoly from separate hospital rooms

I see foster parents dressing their child's wounds day after day with the utmost care and affection, for they were called to care for a child who's skin fails to heal

I see the 3 year old in severe pain call out for "more bubbles" as I fill their room with little floating balls of joy.

I see new fathers anxiously attempt to change the first diaper of their little boy as I stand nearby coaching with words of encouragement.

I see excited toddlers stand in their "bubble-top" cribs playing peek-a-boo with me as I stand outside their room, knowing that when I enter I have to "gown up" and put on a mask making it impossible for them to truly trust me, a faceless stranger.

I am a sticker queen for the school girls

I am a warm arm for the babies without parents alone in their room at 4 am

I am an ear to anxious teenagers, missing the most important dance at school

I am encouragement to the mother learning how to give insulin injections to her 2 year old, newly-diagnosed, diabetic son

I am respite for the parents who have spent hours trying to calm their agitated daughter who has cerebral palsy

I am the lady who pulls the wagon for the preschooler needing to go on a "walk" around the unit late at night

I teach, encourage, support, learn, cope, laugh, plan, lead, listen, hold, blow bubbles, cry, and everything else that is required of a nurse besides giving meds, continuously assessing, calling doctors, and endless charting.

Nursing is not who I am, it is not where I find my identity, it is not what I do. God has called me to nursing, not solely as a profession, but as a call to service. I learn about my heart, and it's sinful and fruitful responses, through this calling. I learn more about others: the strength that Gods gives a family to endure, the love that connects a child with his or her family, and what it means to work with a team on a common purpose to promote the physical and emotional well-being of a child.

I am truly thankful that God has placed me at Seattle's Children's Hospital for the past 2 1/2 years. I pray he will keep me there longer, whatever his will may be. I am thankful for my husband who has supported me the past 8 years, through high school and college, to discover and answer this call that the Lord had for me. I am thankful that God (and my husband) continue to give me the opportunity to work as a nurse part-time, and for my family who supports me by watching Josie when I need to sleep during the day. I continue to pray for emotional and physical strength as I experience more difficult situations at work. I pray for the ability to rest easily when I come home and to give up my worries about patients through prayer. Lastly, I pray for those children who are struggling as I type, for their families, and for the many people who care for them tonight who may also be fighting back the same tears I have shed.

Changing Traditions

I was supposed to go into work tonight at 11pm, but they gave me a "no pay". Basically, that's when they call at about 10pm saying "we don't need you...do you want to take the night off (not eligible for pay)?" It's always fun to receive a no pay : )

So...I thought now would be a good time to talk about our trip to Ellensburg! Greg gave you his version in the last blog (it made me laugh out loud..but I can guarantee I was not laughing at the time it happened!)

Ever since my family moved to Washington in '99, we meet at my grandparent's farm in Ellensburg for the annual parade/fair/rodeo over Labor Day weekend. We've done it all over the past 9 years: played horsehoes, badmitton, golf, picked corn, fished, camped and/or chased cows in my Grandpa's pasture. Memories have been made every year. The first year I got a puppy, the third year we slept out in a 3 room tent (at which time I was horrified at my mom told my then-boyfriend Greg how I was conceived...), the list goes on and on. But this year...everything was different.

I'm the type of person that thrives on tradition and memories, and it hurts to see such an important event in my life, one that I look forward to for months, change so drastically. I knew it was coming eventually. Every year my Grandpa hosts the tractor portion of the parade in his front yard. Saturday at 6 am dozens of men with their polished John Deeres ride into the yard in formation to head into town for the morning parade. The largest pulls a giant covered wagon big enough to hold 50 people. It started out that the entire family, including my great-aunts and uncles, cousins, and random people I was somehow related to, used to ride in the covered wagon and wave to the crowds. Over the past 5 years, the number has decreased signficantly. This year only 6 members of my extended family rode in the parade, even the number of tractors decreased! This was a sign of a much bigger problem to our family traditions.

This year I realized that Labor Day weekend won't ever be the same. Each family has changed; there are new marriages, pregnancies, children, relocations, career changes, homes, deaths, and separations. It hit me hard this year that everything has changed. At first I was dissapointed, no one showed up for the annual family reunion except us! There were no family games of horsehoes, badmitton, or golf. My heart was broken.

As we were leaving town, God spoke through my husband to heal my heart. I must not look back and regret what won't be in the future, I must look back with a thankful heart for the memories and bonds made in the past. I must look towards the growth in each family's life, and pray for my family for the changes each one is enduring. I must look forward to the blessings God has for my own family with Greg and rejoice in the changes that have come and will come in the future. Nothing is meant to be stagnant in my life. God is ever changing this renewed heart within me. I am constantly learning and constantly growing in every way...and so is our family. This weekend the Lord blessed Greg and I with a restful time to connect with our daughter and each other. With a large crowd, we would have been unable to spend the quality time as a family. I would not have been able to spend two wonderful, and well-needed, date nights with my husband. So I am truly thankful for the changes that we witnessed this year. I believe God has prepared me for a new and difficult lesson to learn. Life is going to continue to change, our family reunion will likely never be the same as before. Another lesson of adulthood I guess, and now that Greg and I have a child, the lesson hit hard! But we are rejoicing in it!

To lighten the mood, I should tell you that we had a great time introducing Josie to horses, pigs, and golf carts. She had a blast with every thing! She had her first date at the fair; her daddy won her a pink doggy from the carnival games.