Bahamas HERE WE COME!!!

Just in time to fully eradicate the winter doldrums, we are headed to the Bahamas March 26th - 30th. The best part is we don't have to pay for the trip! That's right - it's all expenses paid by good old XO! I was nominated for an eXamples award at work and have been selected as one of the winners. We will be staying at the Atlantis resort on Paradise Island. We fly out of Seattle at 6AM on the 26th through Atlanta, GA to Nassau, Bahamas. This place is pretty much the fanciest resort Darin and I have ever seen much less been to. My company even provides spending money for us while we are there.

Our passports arrived on Friday so it is all seeming more real now. I have never won anything before, much less a cool trip like this so it all seems a bit like a dream (all except the part about wearing a swimming suit in front of fellow employees....YIKES!).

XO is hosting a welcome reception on Thursday evening and a gala awards dinner on Friday night but otherwise we are free to explore and do whatever we want.

Bonnita's Dad Ted is in the Bahamas now with his sailboat and we are hoping it might work out to connect up with him - it will just depend where he is planning to be during that time.

You can bet we'll be sure to post LOTS of pictures from our adventure!

Caucus

Today Darin and participated in the Democratic Caucus here in Bremerton. It was a first for both of us and a really cool experience. It was especially exciting because Washington's results actually matter in this year’s primary/caucus process (at least for the Democratic Party).

We had the added bonus of meeting a few neighbors including a lady just down the street who we bought a chair from a couple of years ago at a garage sale. She owns an art gallery in Pioneer Square and commutes to Seattle 6 days a week. We pledged to work together to have a neighborhood BBQ this summer!

It was really great to have the opportunity to discuss the election with neighbors and to hear the reasons why people support a particular candidate. Some of you may be surprised to know that I actually didn't give a speech for my candidate - there were several people who did a great job expressing my thoughts so I had an excellent opportunity to sit back, observe and listen. I was alternately amazed by the level of research and careful thought of some compared to the purely emotionally based outbursts of others who tended to crumble when they were asked for specifics to back up their assertion. I really appreciate those who take their civic duty so seriously and carefully weigh the options.

It was also really interesting to see the diversity of the crowd in practically every category: race, gender, age etc. I was particularly impressed with the efforts of many elderly folks to participate. I saw several older folks that could have used their disabilities as an excuse to stay home but there they were actively participating in the process. There were also lots of younger children - who the rules do allow to participate in the conversation - only those who will be under the age of 18 at the time of the November election were unable to place their vote.

We've seen news reports indicating that turnout was at least twice that of 2004 but in our precinct it was closer to 4 times higher. It will be interesting to see the final counts.

We started the process with the pledge of allegiance which was a great reminder to me that we need to celebrate the fact that we do have the opportunity in this country to gather and discuss our opinions freely without fear of recrimination -except for perhaps from a few Republican family members :o)!

So - whoever you plan to vote for in November - VOTE!! It is a great privilege we have to live and participate in a Democracy.

Oh, and by the way - our candidate won by a landslide!! Feminist I may be but I draw the line at voting for Hilary. I am inspired by Obama's message of hope and unity (among other things) and think he has what it takes to eliminate some of the divisiveness that has characterized the last several presidencies.

Resolutions Update

In our first post we shared a list of "resolutions" with the goal of keeping busy through this transition time. Well - it's working...we are DEFINITELY BUSY!!!

Here is an update on how we are progressing:

•Guitar lessons (Jean): I have the names of 3 possible guitar teachers….this takes some tracking down in this town!
•Making wood furniture (Darin): Darin made me a lovely printer stand for my office it is a combined unit with a pull out platform for the paper shredder that nests underneath the printer – VERY cool!! His next project is a "kitchen" for our nieces Caelyn & Carlee and then a desk for my home office (his list keeps growing every time he turns around!!)
•Visit family more often (both of us): Well, so far our plans to visit family outside of Bremerton have been thwarted by the big snow in Eastern, Washington. BUT – we are planning to visit Jeff and Bonnita this Saturday evening; we have managed to visit Aunt Velma several times and are having Todd over to our place this week for his birthday dinner.
•Have more company (both of us): We have a Valentine’s Dinner bash scheduled for February 16th at our place with several of our friends with children. We are cooking the dinner and providing the babysitters – no more details until after the event in case some of the invitees happen to be reading
•Ski adventure with nieces and nephews in February (both of us): This is on the books! We can hardly wait. We rented a great cabin up at Mt Baker and so far Leah, Logan, Tyson, Dallas and Tyler have all accepted. Anna-Lisa and Kyle are on the “maybe” list.
•Volunteer as CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate - Jean): I have mostly completed my CASA training – just one morning of court observation left. As soon as my background information comes back I will be able to start reviewing possible cases for assignment. I am very excited about this opportunity.
•Back to school for Master's Degree in Psychology - first class starts January 8th (Jean): Class is in full swing – I’ll admit, a bit overwhelming. I have a total of 120 pages of “learning journal” to complete before the end of the term (by March 13th)
•Dog Obedience class (Darin and Watson): We start obedience training on Tuesday night this week. We found a trainer (recommended by our Veterinarian) that will come to the house for an hour per week for 5 weeks for a surprisingly reasonable price.
•Keep a journal (Darin): I’ve definitely seen him writing in his journal (gift from Mom & Dad Foster)!
•Join the YMCA with Jean (Darin): Darin joined the Y last Friday and we worked out together on Saturday. Our plan is to meet at the Y 3 – 4 times/week before he gets home and we get busy with chores!
•Create a web photo album (both of us): Still working on this – we have downloaded the shutterfly software and have been working on getting all of our photos organized.
•Organize boxes of photos (both of us): This is still on the “to do” list
•Take a Pilates class (both of us): First class on Thursday this week
•Oh yes, and last but certainly not least ... lots of house and yard projects!!: House: We met with an architect a couple of weeks ago – he is currently working on a proposal for us; Yard: Our friend Lisa is attending landscape design school and will be working on a design for our yard as a school project – LUCKY US!!