Washington

Next we were off to Tacoma, Washington for another four weeks. It was our first experience of a true fall in a REAL long time.

I was in starting my 8th month of pregnancy, but still feeling strong. So, we thought it would be fun to hike a bunch and take in the fresh air. The rains had not yet arrived, so there was plenty of sunshine the first part of our trip.

Do I see Blue Bonnets in Washington?

This is the tiny path on the side of a mountain we thought would be fun to hike to see Mt. St Helen's volcano. To the right of the path is a huge drop off straight down to the bottom. Oh, the fun of balancing expensive heavy camera equipment and a huge baby belly. Um, I like challenges. (Note: I'm the ONLY gal on this little excursion.)

Us in front of Mt. St Helens. We did make it.


Adam also had weekends off while rotating at Ft. Lewis. So, in addition to hiking the country side, we toured the surrounding cities, like Seattle and Olympia.

Me, having a moment on the grounds of the Pacific North West Ballet. The baby bump accentuates the classical line.

One weekend we drove down to Portland, OR to visit our dear friends, the Combs who live there part of the year. They took us all over Portland and even to the Columbia River Gorge water falls. We were sold on Portland! Too bad the army doesn't have a residency there.

Um, shall I say Beautiful!

Adam loved the program up at Madigan Army hospital. He learned a lot and really connected with the people there. My experience up there those 4 weeks was quite different. I was alone majority of the time and due to poor medical treatment for my gestational diabetes, I was having to go in for testing several times a week. Plus, the rains had come and I soon realized that I was not a fan of living on base. Regardless, we came away having made some amazing memories. Now, we were ready to stop living out of a suit case and return home to the high 90 degree fall Texas weather.

Hawaii

Our first adventure was Honolulu for four weeks. We were completely spoiled there. The army paid him a per dium that covered a posh condo literally on Waikiki beach. Since it had two bed rooms, Becca (Adam's sister), my mom, and his mom and friend were able to come out and stay each a week with us during our time there. Adam received great feedback from the program and fell more and more in love with Orthopedic surgery. He had his weekends off so we just played.

Since our precious baby girl was to be born around our 2nd anniversary, we decided to island hop over to Maui for a "pre-anniversary" weekend. It was like a second Honeymoon. :)

My father-in-law was able to use his hotel points to get us a couple of nights stay at a beautiful resort on the beach. Adam, being the totally cool fun husband that he is, was able to get an awesome deal on a red-hot convertible. We justified our weekend get-a-way by saying that this will be the last true time it will be just the 2 of us and that we most likely will never do anything like this again till our children are out of college. So, we said :)

Sunset dinner on the beach. Not exactly like the meals I prepare at home.

Though my time on the island seemed completely postcard perfect, It was not entirely paradise. I had just been diagnosed with gestational diabetes (an unusual case--not due to diet or lifestyle at all). So, I was beginning my treatment while in Honolulu. It was a rough adjustment since we were so far away and my dear doctors back home could not treat me. We were in limbo with such a short time there to really get started. Plus, I was having to see a new doctor pretty much every time I had an appointment, (hello military medicine). There was no consistency and huge chunks of important info was falling through the cracks with every visit. Not fun. Though I could not delight in the island cuisine per se, I did drink in plenty of sunshine.

Adam's interviews went well and we met some great people during our stay. The warmth and hospitality of everyone made us feel so welcome. We left Hawaii's sunshine and rainbows with hopes of possibly returning for residency. It had been our first real interview rotation destination and certainly not our last. Our adventures continued as we set sail for the mainland of Washington state. I was excited to compare the programs and experience life in the great north west.

Summer 2010

As some of you know, Adam joined the army last June with the HPSP scholarship. We prayed so much over this decision and really felt God moving us in that direction. That being said, Adam had to do 2 TDYs (Tours of Duty) his fourth year at 2 army medical hospitals preferably where he would like to do his residency. Two of the top programs were in Honolulu, Hawaii and Seattle/Tacoma, Washington. So, naturally he selected them. Since, he was going to be traveling for two months straight and because I was going to be in my 3rd trimester, we decided it would be best for me to quit my job in July and travel with him. I was totally happy to. :)

Spring 2010

During the spring, Adam finished up his 3rd year medical school rotations and prepared for Step 2 of his licensing exam. I, amidst lots of morning sickness, continued to teach Pilates at the YMCA and train for my STOTT Pilates reformer certification.

I also made a guest appearance in Ballet San Antonio's production of Coppelia. I played the role of the doll Coppellia---a challenging role may I add. I had to sit and hold a book and not move for like 5 minutes, except for one moment when I stood up to blow a kiss. I was exhausted! :)

After we both successfully passed our tests, we were ready for a change of scenery.

February-July 2010

The next month we had the amazing surprise that we would soon be adding to our "coupleness." Our little addition was to be born sometime around our 2nd anniversary in October. What an gift, surprise, and amazing answer to prayer!!!

January 2010

We began 2010 with going a Hines' family ski vacation to Breckenridge, Colorado. This would be the first time yours truly ever ventured the slopes. Adam was my teacher, and with tons of encouragement and support, I actually experienced the breathtaking wonder of the landscape on a thin little 4 inch blade. I soon discovered that skiing is basically falling down a mountain side but with grace. The hardest thing was retraining my leg muscles to not "turn out" like in ballet, but to "pizza wedge" them inward. Oh, Ouch!