craig's surgery update

As most of you know craig donated his kidney to his dad on friday 12/12. The surgeries went very well. Craig's dad is doing extremely well with his new kidney. He was released from the hospital a couple of days ago and the doctors are impressed with how well his new kidney is fuctioning. Craig is still in the hospital however. The doctors say that the donor always has a harder time recovering. Craig is experiencing a lot of pain in his belly and he is still on an iv. Abdominal surgery is extrememly rough on the gut and it can take a lot of time for the gut to recover. Unfortunately there is nothing the doctors can do to relieve the discomfort. I am so very proud of him. He is so brave and strong. it isn't easy seeing him in so much pain but we both have all the faith in the world that god is taking good care of him. Craig is a true hero. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful man as my husband. We ask everyone to keep craig in their prayers. I will do my best to keep everyone up to date.

I've been Tagged!

I got an award...and I've been tagged! I love awards! Thanks Tammy!

The award....
This isn't just an ordinary award though! This award comes with some homework:


List six things that make you happy. Pass the award along to six more bloggers. Your answers have to be creative, not obvious!

So....here are my six!

1) Having friends and family over for dinner! We were blessed this Thanksgiving with four out-of-town guests! My sister and her husband and my best friend and her husband all came down to share the holiday weekend with us! There is nothing better than sitting down with a bunch of people you love and sharing some yummy food!

2) The first snowfall of the year. I love looking outside on a cold winter day and seeing the first snowflakes of the year fall to the ground. As a kid it meant playing out in the snow, maybe school closures, and hot cocoa. As an adult it means reading a book by the fire and cuddling on the couch.

3) Hearing a child laugh really hard! I absolutely love kids, and I love watching them play and have fun, but there is nothing better than when a child finds something so funny that he/she can't stop laughing! It is so contagious and it instantly makes for a good day!

4) Looking at pictures, hence my love for taking them! There is something about that frozen moment in time. I love looking at a picture and imagining what they were smiling about, laughing about, and thinking about! I love that emotion a good picture will invoke.

5) Seeing my husband after a long day at work. I love seeing him as he walks through the front door. He always has a smile on his face, he always says, "babe...I'm home", and then he always extends his arms for a big ol' hug!

6) When my little brother says, "I love you and I miss you." Of course this isn't easy for a 9 year old boy to say, but he says it every time I talk to him on the phone. He has the biggest heart and I love him sooooooooooooo much!

Now...I'm tagging:

1. Anitra F.

2. Polly K.

3. Sarah E.

4. Shannon S.

5. Katie L. - yep it's time you get a blog (consider this a pre-blog creative blog award!)

6. Cary H - same as above...this is your motivation...you can even get awards for having a blog ;)...and I can add you to my blog stalking list!

The Launch of a Dream

Yesterday I launched my new business. Who says you shouldn't quit your job and start a new business as the economy creeps toward a depression! (as one of my co-workers says...I'm the girl with the guts!)
The truth is that it has taken me a loooong time to get to this point. Am I going to do this full time? I'm not sure. All I know is that it is where my heart is leading me for now. As most of you know...I love photography!. There is something so incredible about creating an image that captures a moment, an emotion, a piece of time. I have been playing around with photography off and on since high school, but I have never had enough time to really do something with it. I'm so excited about this new adventure because there is so much to learn, so many opportunities, and endless possibilities.

Check out my new website: http://www.kneumanphotography.com/

All the beautiful children and babies you see throughout the website are my very adorable nieces and nephews. I had so much fun capturing their smiles and laughs! My special thanks to all of Craig's family for letting me photograph all these kiddos! It is hard building a portfolio when you only have a dog, a cat, and a husband to take pictures of. Craig didn't want a whole website full of pictures of him....although one did make it on there :). I hope everyone enjoys the pictures!

Malfunction Junction

There is this intersection in my hometown (Missoula, MT) locally known as Malfunction Junction. This intersection has about 6 different roads coming together at one intersection. The fact that it has so many roads coming together isn’t why it is called Malfunction Junction, although looking at it, one might conclude this. What causes it to be a big malfunction is user error. Yes, the intersection is very busy, but if people would pay attention, stay alert, and try to do the right thing, it would operate smoothly. Often time people will not proceed when the light goes green, others will get impatient and run a red light, others will experience rage and honk their horns. Others will go when the light is green and forget to look both ways, while others will stall out in the middle of the intersection. When you get that many people at one intersection, there are a lot of potential user errors, and this…is the malfunction.

Well, right now in my life, I am inevitably at Malfunction Junction. I am sitting here, at an intersection deciding which direction to go. I have many roads to choose from, and they all lead me in completely different directions. The light has just turned green and indeed, I am proceeding. I have been extremely patient as the light has been red for quite some time now. I did honk my horn a few times however (whoops), but I did not run the red light. While I proceed through the green light, I’m going to look both ways, and God help me if I stall out in the middle of the intersection. If all goes well, I may be able to avoid all malfunctions, however I'm pretty sure I'll run into a few. I’m on my way, on to new adventures. Today I resigned from my current job. I have several opportunities waiting for me, including two interviews, a school acceptance test, and a business I would love to start. Which way I’ll go, I’m not sure, a new road could pop up at any time. I am so thankful for my dear, dear husband for being so supportive and extremely encouraging in my new endeavors. I know this is scary for both of us! I do know one thing, I could not do it without my two biggest fans…My God, and My Craig, and my faith in both. I’ve never been so excited in my life about what is ahead! Sitting here at Malfunction Junction has been difficult, as I am impatient, and going through may be scary…but it is absolutely Amazing! Here I go!

Some words about the upcoming elections…

I am not going to speak about who I am going to vote for and why you should do the same ;) (give me a call if you want that information ;)) but I do want to talk about the Electoral College. Sounds boring, but please stick with me. I have heard A LOT of people say lately…”oh it doesn’t matter, I’m not going to vote, it’s not a popular vote anyway.” I understand that the fact that we do not use a nationwide popular vote to elect the President is bothersome and somewhat confusing. It makes sense to elect a President on what the majority of the people want… right? Well, as is everything else with politics, this sounds and seems great on the surface, but one must always look a level deeper to make sense of it all.

The Electoral College allows an even representation across different regions of the United States, therefore representing different perspectives equally.
Example: Alaska, Delaware, District of Columbia, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming have a collected population of about 3 million. They have the same amount of electoral votes as Florida which has a population of about 9.5 million people. Now if we operated using nationwide popular voting, the viewpoints in the less populated states (more rural areas) would be completely overridden by the more populated states (more metropolitan areas). Now we all know that people in urban areas and people in metropolitan areas have very different viewpoints. Neither should be neglected, because both are extremely important for this country. With a popular vote, the urban folks would be absolutely overridden, essentially losing their voice.

This even distribution of representation reserves extremely important political powers to the States. For example, the House of Representatives was designed such that it represents the States according to their population. The Senate was designed to represent each State equally regardless of its population. The Electoral College was designed such that the number of electoral votes equals the number of Senators plus the number of Representatives. To get rid of the Electoral College in favor of a nationwide popular vote for President would be directly contrary to the federal structure laid out in our Constitution that serves to protect the powers of the States. If we believe there are reasons to maintain State representation in the Senate and House of Representatives, then why should State representation for the election of the President be any different?
In conclusion, the Electoral College has performed its function successfully for over 200 years. It has succeeded in ensuring that the President has sufficient popular support to govern properly and effectively and that all perspectives are equally represented.
So…whoever wins this election, righteously won regardless of whether or not they received the nationwide popular vote. Maintaining the system of the Electoral College allows a very important balance between the National and State Governments in which the Founding Fathers of this great nation very deliberately intended. So please, get out there and VOTE, your voice will be heard!

Air Conditioning

So...I am trying super hard to be interested in my job, the problem is, I'm not at all. See, there is something about air conditioning that is just not interesting to me. I can't complain too much though...I do get heating and ventilation thrown into the mix every now and again (sigh). I have always been an extremely hard worker, with really endless motivation. I have never experienced what I am experiencing in this job however. I am so uninterested, and so bored, I am having a hard time staying motivated. I can only count my ceiling tiles so many times (18 total), re-organize my shelves (twice a day), and sit here (for 9 hours a day), doing nothing (except the occasional conversation about air conditioning) before I lose all motivation all together. Now, don’t get me wrong, there are benefits to this excess of boredom. I am now extremely informed on all the news…local, national, and otherwise, and I am so far from stressed, I forgot what that was like. The fact that I am one out of two employees under the age of 50 doesn’t help much either…not to mention, I’m the only woman engineer. Now you may ask…who would be interested in air conditioning? Well folks…I too used to wonder this…but, trust me…they exist. I’ve met them and I’ve actually witnessed (first-hand) what it looks like when someone gets excited about air conditioning. I even tried to get excited about it myself during a meeting one day (I figured, if you can’t beat them…join them!). It was short lived when I realized that whether or not the people have air conditioning is really irrelevant in the scheme of life. So what am I doing? Collecting a paycheck? Am I doing something that matters? Hmm…I guess one could argue…the people need cooling on hot days. Right….especially since it gets so hot here in northern Washington. In fact, why do we even put air conditioning in buildings around here? There is maybe one day a year which you *might* need it. So…heat. I do heating too! Oh yes, I’m keeping the people warm! Well… not really. The heaters in the buildings are only turned on during “the heating season.” Now what is the “heating season?” Well… it starts in mid October and ends in the spring. Now when it is not heating season around here, all heat is shut off. Literally all heat. That means it is freezing in all the buildings for a good chunk of the year (good thing we have that air conditioning). People walk around the office in hats, coats, and I’ve even seen gloves being worn while typing. Funny at first…not so much when you try it yourself. I solved this problem by bringing in a space heater and shutting my office door to keep the heat in. Well, today we got an e-mail saying that personal heaters are not allowed unless it is during the heating season. Hmmm…that makes sense. Back to the hat, coat, and gloves.
Nonetheless, I’m confident that great things are on the horizon. It is funny how we end up in the positions we end up in. Me…and air conditioning…why and how? Who knows, but…I do know it is just a sign pointing me in the right direction…and for that…I’m happy.

Whale Watching Adventures

Last weekend, a consultant at Craig's refinery offered to take us on a whale watching trip. Of course...with company approval...we said YES! The trip set sail right downtown Anacortes. We were hoping to see at least one killer whale. To our delight we saw so many we lost count. The whales were everywhere. At one point I looked around and saw so many fins it looked like the waters were infested with whales! Let's just say if I was in a kayak...I would have headed to shore. We also saw some sea lions...those guys are HUGE. The captain said that they can get up to 2000 pounds! That is one big sea lion! Anyway...check out the pics of the whales!

Whale flipping on its side.

Harbor Seals on the shore catching some rays.

This one would have been cool to see from the shore.

This was a baby whale flipping out of the water.

This picture has a whale, Mt. Baker, and a ferry...all in one pic!

A whale with Mt. Baker in the background.

A Sea Lion warming up.
This is a big ol' Sea Lion...almost tipping the buoy.

Alright...

So...the best part about my day (so far) has been watching a co-worker receive a cash award for doing a project that I'm doing. Hmmmm....

A quote

I love quotes. I love them because if they are good, they leave you thinking. If they are really good, you remember them. I heard a quote last week that I will always remember. Think about it. It's powerful:

"You never touch someone so lightly that you do not leave a mark."

The Brown Lantern

On Saturday night, Craig and I went out to a dinner and movie. We were in the mood for some nachos and a burger so we headed to a local pub called the Brown Lantern. We had never been there before but we discovered that they have absolutely excellent food! They have the best crab chowder in the world! The food wasn't the most remarkable part about our experience at the Brown Lantern however. As we were seated at our table, I noticed an elderly lady at the table next to us. She was sitting all alone eating dinner. I'm sure everyone has seen an elderly person eating alone and a twinge of sadness goes through you. Why? Is it because we assume this person is inevitably lonely? Is it because we assume that they would rather be eating with someone else, yet they have no one to eat with? I’m not sure, but I am sure we have all seen this at a restaurant at one time or another. There was something about this woman…the look on her face as she watched those around her, the smile on her face as she listened in on all the nearby conversations, the smile that she gave every passing customer, waitress, and employee. I couldn’t explain it, but I couldn’t stop thinking about her and wishing (praying) that she wasn’t a lonely woman. It was at that moment when the scene took an unexpected turn. A young woman walked up to her, talked to her, and gave her a big hug. After the young woman left, another couple came by and sat and talked with her. After that couple left, a lady from the table next to us went over to her, introduced herself, and then proceeded to invite her over to her table of friends. The elderly woman had this smile on her face that you would have to see to feel. The table welcomed her, shook her hand and invited her into their conversation. I have to say, I was moved…I mean I was really moved. Craig and I were both in awe. We couldn't believe what we were seeing. I left with a lump in my throat.

Once we got back in the car I told Craig, "I think we saw God tonight.” He shows up in the most humble of places...including a little pub in little Anacortes, WA. Now I know what he looks like. Incredible.

It's Fall Time!

This is the first year in almost 4 years that it actually feels like fall for us. The weather is very fall-like. The air is crisp, the leaves are changing colors, and it is beautiful! Craig and I love the holiday season and we get excited to decorate for every holiday. Every holiday we get one new decoration. Craig hopes to be Chevy Chase in the Christmas Vacation movie someday with all the lights on the outside of our house. Over time we have been collecting a good amount of halloween decorations as well. (Yes folks...we are "those" neighbors). This year, on our yearly outing to get some new decorations, Craig explained how he wanted to create a graveyard. He said, "no more cute decorations...Halloween is SCARY!!" We have this one section in our yard that is kind of hidden from the street and enclosed in....perfect for a spooky graveyard. We went to the store, found some neat yard pieces and went with it. I had to hold him back from buying the fog machine and the strobe light. We first have to see if we get a lot of trick or treaters. I really hope we do. In Houston we had so many trick-or-treaters that we had to run back to the store to get more candy...and we even had a line outside our house once! Now that's a good Halloween.
Here are some pics of the spooky graveyard. At night...there is a light that shines in the graveyard and the skeleton head lights up. Pretty spooky!

While Craig worked on the graveyard, I put up some webs and a scary hanging ghost!

Here's one of our decorations from Texas. Yep..."those neighbors."

My mom found this witch and sent it to me. She's so cool. It's hard to see in the picture but her costume is really neat!

Mega Picture Post #3

Alright...next up...trip to Wyoming to see Craig's family! Right after Polly's wedding, we headed to Rawlins to spend time with the other side of the family. It was a short trip but we had a lot of fun. The trip was complete with meeting two new babies, a few poker games (Craig and I didn't fare so well), a game of Monopoly (I tied for first ), some really good Mexican food, and lots of pictures (these are just a few...there are lots more to come!). Mega Picture Post #4 coming later..tomorrow...or the next day... or maybe the next!

Mega Picture Post #2

Next on the list. Polly's wedding. Polly had a photographer at the wedding, so I left my camera at home for the actual wedding but I captured all the moments leading up the wedding. We had a really neat bridal shower for Polly where everyone shared stories they wrote about Polly. We shared some great laughs...and some tears. The day of Polly's wedding was complete with mom and all the bridesmaids waking Polly up to a mom-written song complete with some really sweet dance moves! It was the only way a bride can wake up the day of her wedding. We spent the rest of the day getting our hair and make-up done ...complete with wine and strawberries of course. The wedding was absolutely awesome and everyone had a really great time...and the bride...looked stunning! Congratulations Mrs. and Mr. Kuhner!!!

The bridal shower party!

First gift!..

Mom reading her story about Polly.

A few tears...

The whole bridal shower group!

At the rehearsal...bride with clipboards...uh oh...

The groom keeping the bridesmaids inline

The practice before the big day!

My mom and Uncle Steve.

Good times at the rehearsal dinner.

Bride and groom exchange gifts.

Okay...so I missed this moment..so I asked for a re-do.

Another re-do :)

The big day! Good morning bride!

Bridesmaids and bride...getting nervous yet?

The Katie Bridesmaids (2 out of 3)

Oooo lah lah!

Best Friends.

The bride writing a letter to the groom.

The bride is almost ready...and here comes the nerves!!!