New Job Today!

Started my new job today as a Mechanical EIT with Huitt-Zollars in Fort Worth. It is only a 15-minute drive from our house to downtown (very nice) and the people I will be working with are very helpful. I got a chance to actually do some work today as I figured out AutoCAD (computer program we use) and learned the ropes. The office has a ton of work on backlog so that is really nice. It was a great first day overall.

Emily continues to do well. She seems to have a little more energy right now but it can fade quickly if she does too much. Things are rolling along for us now and it is only three months away from the big event!

P.S. We are going to tell the baby's name in the next couple weeks, so stay tuned!

24 Week Update

Quick note and a couple pics: Emily is feeling fine, but not sure how much more her stomach can stretch! Everything seems to be going well, we think he is still big and he is kicking a lot now. We are starting to think about registering and getting dates firmed up for baby showers so we will let you know. Thanks for your continued prayers as I start my new job on Monday!

Boston Trip

Hey all!

Back from Boston and ready to move on to a new phase of life. We had some adventures and some interesting experiences but it was a great weekend.

We left last Thursday and immediately got bumped to another flight (direct to Boston) due to our original flight (through NYC) being delayed. The only problem was, our bag was still on the original flight. So we were praying that that flight would make it in time for our bag to transfer, but unfortunately it didn’t. So we spent the night Thursday without our bag but it came early the next morning and they reimbursed us for our overnight purchases! Worked out fine. Plus we got comped breakfast on Friday morning at our hotel. Nice.

We spent all day Friday in Boston, working the subway and seeing the sights. Went to Fenway (Boston Red Sox), Boston Common (oldest public park in U.S.), Park Street Church, Old State House, the Cheers bar, Paul Revere House, Old North Church, USS Constitution, took a ferry across the bay (doesn't Emily look so pretty in the ferry picture?!), Faneuil Hall, ate clam “chowdah,” and generally walked the beautiful streets of Boston. The fun part was that we got to spend time together doing all these things!

Saturday we drove down to Plymouth (where the Pilgrims landed), a quaint little town with a ton of history. We saw Plymouth Rock and a replica of the Mayflower (their boat). Then we walked the shoreline and the shops, seeing the church where the oldest congregation in America meets. I also had a lobster roll there, which is sort of a chicken salad sandwich with lobster instead.

Saturday night was a trip. We were asleep by 11 but were awakened by the fire alarm going off, so we evacuated with everyone else (including the huge wedding reception party—maybe they had something to do with it?) at 1:30am. So it was tough to go back to sleep again but we eventually did…until the alarm went off again at 3am. So it was a tough night! Interestingly, the fire alarm was also going off while we were eating at the lobster roll place earlier that night. Hmm…

Sunday we got up (got comped breakfast again!) and drove through Cambridge (Harvard U) then went up along the coast north through New Hampshire and into Maine. It was so beautiful and the coast towns are really neat places! The tall grasses and beaches are really what I imagined New England to be. We hung out on the beach for a while and shopped a little while until our flight left late that night.

It was a great trip and the best part was just being together. We enjoyed it all and everything worked out great. Take a weekend sometime and head up there!

Love you.

Job Offer

Huitt-Zollars called me today and said they are formally offering me a position as a Mechanical Engineer! They are sending the contract/letter in the mail so I may be working as early as next week! Thank you all for your prayers, it is a special feeling knowing that so many are praying for us.

We are also getting ready to go to Boston this weekend! We leave Thursday afternoon and come back Sunday night. Any last minute tips would be appreciated!

Have a great day in the Lord!

John

22 Week Update

Beloved,

Much has happened since we last had an update. We are starting to feel ______ kick a lot now (don't fret, you will find out soon enough!) and we are also seeing some movement in other areas of life.

I had a job interview last week with Huitt-Zollars for a Mechanical Engineering position. I thought it went well, they seemed to like me and want me around even though I have a lot to learn. Well, they called on Saturday and unofficially, verbally offered me the position! The pay is great and it seems like a great place to work. They told me not to accept it yet (they still have a few things to look at HR-wise) but they wanted to make sure I was still interested. So this is a big week for us, as I could potentially be signing a contract and starting work very soon!

OSU held an engineering career fair Tuesday (9/8) and I attended just to hedge my bets a little bit in case something falls through. I made a few good contacts that I will follow-up on and I also got a call from another company here in Fort Worth that is looking at my application there. But on Tuesday I got to be in Stillwater and see my mom, sister, her husband, and my beautiful niece, Laney! I also got to check in with some old friends at church and the football program. But anyway, God is great and has a unique way of handling our "issues" as we work through this job thing.

Classes are cruising along, I am enjoying Hebrew and also getting to study the New Testament more thoroughly. Also, I get to disciple someone and get credit for it! How cool is that! And church is going really well also, we just can't seem to stay away from being completely involved wherever we are.

Emily is feeling okay, too much activity will drain her pretty fast but still no sicknesses or debilitating issues. Tuesday was her 22-week doctor visit (pretty uneventful) and she measured at 24 weeks. As you can see from the pics, she is growing straight out! And her belly button seems to be a little off-centered now, but whatever! Apparently, he is a pretty big boy in there so it could happen earlier than the January 13th date. We are getting really excited about this upcoming process, the challenges and the joys, of raising a boy to become a godly man. We will need your help as we attempt this monumental task!

We love you all so much and thank you for your prayers and support for us down here in Fort Worth! Keep us up on how you are doing, we love to hear from you!

The Woogies (soon to be three...)