Next Phase!

So....this last month has been more than a little crazy. It's been a whirlwind of traveling for interviews, graduation, board exams, the excruciating wait for my scores and preparing to move from our little home. From a previous post, most of you know the options we were comparing. We have made a decision and signed a contract. We are going to MOSES LAKE, WA of all places. It was an interesting conclusion because that was the only interview that Tay wasn't able to go with me on, but I really loved the clinic and the way that it was organized. It is in a community health clinic with 7 doctors and 8 other PA's. It's a brand new clinic with very nice rooms. The job itself has great hours, a really good benefits package and a good salary. One of the main attractions was the fact that they GUARANTEE student loan repayment! I will be able to be debt free after just 3 years! It's a very large benefit that happens to be tax-free! The community itself is a small place with about 20,000 in the city limits and about 40,000 in the greater area. I was expecting it to be a hole in the wall, but I thought that it was a cool little place. Tay and I will be going there in a couple of weeks so that he can explore and so that we can get the final details worked out. I am scheduled to start the first week in October. We are really excited about this move and feel that the Lord has played a very large part in our decision. Just an example of that is the fact that we are selling our house on the 25th of September without even putting it on the market! It has been such a huge blessing. Of course there are very mixed feelings because we won't be near our families anymore and that makes me more and more sad as time passes, but we do feel like this will be a good move for us. We have been so blessed to be near our families. They are so amazing and we are thankful every day to have been blessed with such great families. Plus, my brother Jared and his family live about an hour away in Kennewick so I will actually be able to spend more time with them now! Tay and I don't know much about Moses Lake, so if anybody does or has any tips for us, let us know!!!

AHHH RELIEF!!!

I just wanted to post a quick blog and let everybody know that I PASSED my boards!! I found out on Thursday and was sooo excited. I posted an update on Facebook, but then realized today that I hadn't updated my blog. It was pretty funny because to find out my scores I had to log in to a certain website and it would tell you your score. My heart was pounding when I was logging on, but the ultimate feeling of relief came when I looked and saw that one little word...PASSED! So, I proceeded to run upstairs screaming "I passed! I passed!" Tay was still in bed and I scared the crap out of him! So..that was pretty much the greatest feeling ever. I am finally DONE with school! It seems surreal, but we are so excited to start the next phase of our lives. Speaking of which...we have made a decision on where we are going to move. I will post about that a bit later when I have more time!

When I Grow Up........

So....these past couple of weeks have been a crazy mess consisting of a nauseating amount of travel going to my interviews, my graduation, and studying for my board exams. In 2 weeks, I have been off and on 14 airplanes and spent more hours than I care to count being bored out of my mind waiting at 5 different airports. Let me tell you a bit about my interviews so that all of you can help me decide what to do with my life when I "grow up" and get a real job:). My first interview was in Aberdeen, WA for a hospitalist position. It is right on the coast and is BEAUTIFUL. They are offering a killer salary and a lot of time off, but I would be working 12 hour shifts and it would be 7 days on and then 7 days off. That sounds like a crazy schedule, but they also offer 5 weeks of paid vacation per year. Next up was a family practice clinic near Lake Havasu, AZ. The doctor there was really nice and it qualified for student loan repayment, but the salary would be significantly lower. Then, I was off to Moses Lake, WA at a community health center which was set up really well. It also qualifies for student loan repayment, but the salary is quite a bit lower than the one in Aberdeen. Anyways, there are my options so far. We are still deciding and we haven't heard back from all of the places yet, so I will keep you posted as we find things out. Here are some pictures....
This is the view from the neighborhood we would live in in Aberdeen. It overlooks the harbor and it's so pretty!








Here's a shout out to all the Twilight lovers of the world!! We were driving down to the beach and saw this sign. I wasn't going to stop, but then I thought that I couldn't claim to be a true Twilight fan if I didn't take a picture of this!!





You've gotta love the beach! It was so pretty with the morning fog and the waves. There's something very therapeutic about the ocean. I love it!






So, on our last night in Washington, Tay and I went to the Pike Place Market in Seattle. It was sooo cool! I'd like to go back there and explore some more.






Now this one was the view from our hotel balcony in Lake Havasu. It was really pretty! Our hotel there was so cool. It had a ton of modern touches.






As you can tell, the further we got into interviews, the lazier we got with taking pictures. In fact, I didn't take any on my trip to Moses Lake, but it was a pretty area. So, there's the facts. If anybody has any suggestions or advice...feel free to share. We can use all of the help that we can get!

Now, on to the big graduation day. It was a really great day! The graduation ceremony was just for the PA students and it was in this gorgeous building. The ceremony was not too long and the speaker was hilarious. Then there was a catered reception following the ceremony. We had a limit of 10 people that we could invite to the ceremony, so afterwards, we had a little get-together at the park to celebrate with everybody. Thanks to all of my family and Tay's family. You guys spoil us soooo much and we really appreciate it! Love you guys. Here's some graduation pictures. Don't laugh at how ridiculous I look in that stupid cap! I really wonder if they want you to look like a complete idiot on the day of graduation. I mean.. come on!!!























So there's the scoop on us. Exciting times! I am getting ready to take my board exams next week. PLEASE PRAY FOR ME!!! I feel like I'm going to have a stroke pretty much every time I think about going in to take the test. Seriously, I HAVE to pass this test and I don't deal well with that kind of pressure. My anxiety level is outrageous! Taylor is probably ready to move out until I get this out of the way. But seriously, please pray for me. I'm going to need the Lords help more than I can say:). We love everybody and hope that all is well!