Monday, September 10, 2007

Chloe's Birthday

Chloe turned 3 today. I can't believe I brought that little puppy home 3 years ago!! She is a joy and a pleasure, even if she is work. The world is a better place because of dogs :)

Here's an old pic of her a few months after I got her. Is she cute or what!!?


Baby Shower Invitiations

My sister, Kellie, is due to give birth to her first baby near the end of October. Now that we live near her, we get to participate in throwing a shower for her. I volunteered to do the invitations, which I love to do, but I have an uncanny ability to underestimate the amount of time it's going to take to make them. In this case, I WAYYYYYYYY underestimated. I found the cutest idea (that was actually for a baby announcement) but I altered it to fit our shower theme. After many hours, lots and lots of intricate cutting, and help from both my mom and Kellie, we got them done and mailed out. Hallelujah!! Here's a peek (sorry about the blur - I think the light was too low):



My favorite part is right here: See where it says "General Contractors: Kellie and Chad Davidson right under the ultrasound of the baby. So cute!!!!

A New Car



We've known since we moved here that we needed to get another car. We left Nate's old one back in Colorado because it would have been too difficult to get it out here along with our two Uhauls and other car. Selling it made the most sense. Until Nate got a job, we could get by with one car. Truth be told, I was putting off the whole thing because the thought of shopping for a car made me sick to my stomach. You see - I've been very lucky. Since I graduated from college, I've always had a company car. I've never made a car payment, an insurance payment, a gas payment - nothing! I know, I'm spoiled and very lucky!! That joy came to an end last week when we finally ventured out in search of a car for Nate. We made the mistake of going to a dealer (that's a nightmare story all in itself), but when it was all said and done, Nate got a great car and we're happy with our purchase. The best part of all is that we learned today that the dealer is willing to let Nate do all their large format printing. Maybe the purchase will be a great investment after all!! Nate insisted he couldn't drive a 4-cylinder, so we had to search out this '05 Altima with the 3.5L V6. He loves it and it won't break our bank. That's all that's important. Here's to happy driving!!

A Long Awaited . . . J-O-B !!

I posted a few weeks ago about how most things long-awaited seems sweeter than those that come easily or quickly. In the case of Nate's job search, we've learned that lesson again. After over two months of searching in what should be a great job market here in Las Vegas, Nate found an awesome job in the least expected of places!! A company he used to order printing supplies from back when he owned his print shop recently called. I answered the phone because Nate was off at a job fair. I ended up talking to the sales guy and mentioning that we had moved to Vegas but still had the printer, blah, blah, blah. Anyway, he kind of paused, then mentioned that they had been thinking about opening a location in Las Vegas, but didn't have anyone who wanted to move here. Wa la! The light went on for both of us. He said, "Well, I believe everything happens for a reason". Yep, we do too. In this case, the reason is that Heavenly Father is looking out for us and answering our prayers for our new family. Nate spent all of last week up in Minnesota meeting the owners and firming up details. He will be opening a location of Northlight Color (large-format printer sales and printing services) here in Las Vegas(the first one west of Chicago)and will run the shop while trying to decide if he wants to focus more heavily on the sales or the printing side. The job has lots of upside potential and plenty of room to grow. As you might imagine, printing is just a "tiny" business here with all the larger than life billboards, signs and banners we have! Nate gets to use his graphic design skills while still having lots to do and not being trapped in an office all day. He's just excited he doesn't have to get a work wardrobe :) We're both grateful for the exciting turn of events. Isn't it just amazing how things work out in a way that you would have never expected, yet they work out in the very best way of all? Long awaited blessings are indeed the best!