The Tulips Fairy Arrives Again!

Every year my Mom sends me a bouquet of tulips (my favorite) for my birthday. I've started calling it the Tulip Fairy because even the few times I've been away from home on my birthday, she manages to have them sent. So today I not only got a beautiful bouquet from my parents, but also received a beautiful tulip bouquet from one of my closest friends, Tammy. I was so surprised to receive her flowers and was so touched she would think to send them! I miss her!!!

Here are pics of the bouquets...

From My Parents

From Tammy & Sau

Job Update

Matt and I are still in the process of deciding where to go. After our Walla Walla visit, we are very impressed with the area and the Clinic. The Clinic has told us that we've got the job if we decide to take it, so it's great knowing that we definately have something.... especially such a great job!

Matt also has been in talks with a doctor in Colorado Springs who owns his own practice with 2 clinics and seems to be very successful. After our trip to Washington, and after Matt talked with several friends, we almost planned on just accepting the Washington offer. However, in talking with the doctor from Colorado Springs, Matt feels it would be best to go out to Colorado and at least meet with this doctor and see his clinics. I understand not wanting to just jump on a first offer, however part of me feels that it'll be very hard for this Colorado doctor to be able to match the offer from Washington. So Matt and I will be heading to Colorado in early May. After going to Colorado, we should be able to make our decision.

Matt has even brought up the idea of going back to California where he could do Locum work (basically Doctor temp work). Most likely this would be internal medicine and my concern is that it wouldn't necessarily be full time work. While I am incredibly tempted to be back in California near family and friends, it just seems like too much uncertainty for Matt to have Locum work in an area of higher taxes, higher home prices (compared to WA or CO) while having to pay bills and loans... also I hate the idea of Matt not being able to practice Allergy after all the years of hard work he's put in. I would rather go to WA or CO for a few years, be able to save a good amount of money, and if we can or decide to come back to CA, we'd be able to come back much more financially secure and maybe even have enough for Matt to start his own practice and not have to rely on a position being open.

I have a feeling we'll end up in Walla Walla, however it's not completely decided yet. There is a chance CO could really impress us, but we'll see. I'm just looking forward to the decision being made so we can start making our plans to move!

Our Walla Walla Weekend

Matt and I went to Walla Walla this weekend for his interviews and to check out the town. I have to admit that when we first flew in, I wasn't so sure about this place. It is in the middle of nowhere, but it's surrounded by the beautiful Blue Mountains that still have a bit of snow on them. Of course, I brought my camera, but totally forgot to take any pictures!!!

The Walla Walla Clinic (where Matt interviewed) was amamzing. This entire process has made me impressed with them... from their quick responses to emails, sending a package of information to us about the area, and then paying for both of us to fly out. They set up dinners for us each nights when a few doctors and their wives, set us up with a real estate agent to get a tour of the area and see some houses and were so welcoming!

On Friday, Matt spent all day in interviews meeting with a different doctor every half hour! It was a busy day for him, but he aced them! I spent the day walking down Main Street and driving around town. I was glad that we ended up with a real estate agent to take us around, because the streets I was driving around were not impressing me!

On Saturday, after our meeting with real estate agent (who was so great... she even had a bottle of wine and tickets to the Taste of Walla Walla left at the restaurant we went to the night before we met her!), we went to the Feast Walla Walla (aka, Taste of) where we sampled many wines and a little food. It was great... unfortunately, this area specializes in red wines and I'm a white wine drinker, but we did find a few places that had some great whites. Afterwards, we went out and went to a couple of wineries and ended up buying a bottle.

After dinner with the CEO that night, he let us know that all the comments he's heard about both Matt and I have been very positive. Then he said that the decision on this job would basically be ours... meaning that if we decide to take the job in Walla Walla, they would most likely vote to hire him!!! We were so excited to hear that... and so relieved to know that Matt has not only most likely found a job, but an AMAZING job at that. It's really one with so many perks and is really practically his dream job that we just can't pass it up.

We head to Colorado Spings in a few weeks to meet with one other clinic. This is one is owned and run by one doctor and he's looking for someone to eventually take over his practice. We are going just for a "2nd opinion", but basically we think there is no way he can really compete with the Walla Walla position.

So it's not official yet, but I think Matt just found a job and we just found a new home!!! There are over 100 wineries in Walla Walla so I hope that will entice many of you to visit!!!

Update

Since I haven't blogged in awhile, just thought I'd give an update...

First, I'm going to be an Aunt!!!!!!! Bethany and Ryan are pregnant and everyone is soooo excited!!! She is due only about 3 weeks before the wedding, so they were really cutting it close! It'll still be a few more weeks until they find out the sex of the baby... she says she wants a boy, so I guess we'll find out soon! My Dad would be so thrilled to finally have a boy in the family to wrestle with!!! :) Bethany is felling really well and has recently heard the heartbeat and gotten a great ultrasound picture!

Wedding planning on still my focus at the moment. I've got the florist, photographer and DJ hired. I made my decision on my dress, but haven't yet officially ordered it... I'm kinda hoping to negotiate a deal... I've got 2 dress shops (one in CA and one in CT) I'm trying to have bid against each other. So far, I've got the dress more than $200 off retail! Our Save the Date magnets have come in and we'll be mailing those out this week... hopefully! They turned out so cute and I'm excited that this is the first step to annoucing the wedding and making things more "official".

Job hunting is still Matt's biggest priority. This weekend we are both being flown out to Walla Walla, WA for Matt to interview with a multi-specialty clinic and for us to be able to check out the area. We are really excited to finally see Walla Walla in person after all the online research we've been doing! We are scheduled to have dinner with different doctors from the clinic each night, so I guess I'm being "intereviewed" too!!! We are also meeting with a realtor who is going to show us around the town and give us an idea of neighborhoods we might be interested in living. There is another opportunity in Colorado Springs as well, and that doctor is also interested in flying us both out for interviews and checking out the area. We haven't yet set a date on that, but I think it'll be sometime in early May. So with any luck, Matt will have a job offer soon and we'll finally know where we are going in July!!!

Matt also just got back from a week in Grenada. He did his first two years of medical school there at St. George's University and this it the second time he was asked to teach in Grenada (he's also taught twice at the school's Newcastle, England campus). Unfortunately I couldn't make the trip... SGU didn't offer to cover my expenses this time (I got to go the first time he taught about 2 years ago), and with my new temp job, I didn't feel I should take a full week off, especially when I had been there before. Matt had a great time teaching, but unfortuantely the professor who asked him to teach is crazy and now he's not interested in teaching for her in the future. Her reputation is one of being completely unreasonable and crazy, but apparently SGU doesn't care and she continues to be the head of the Allergy/Clinical Immunology Department! Hopefully Matt will still get another chance to teach there, but within a different department. He was amazed that all the students have cell phones and he had wireless internet in his hotel room. Grenada is finally catching up!

So lots going on with us and with the Netro family! Please send good thoughts our way for this weekend while we are in Walla Walla!!!