Tucson Trip

I flew to Tucson this past weekend to visit Daniel on his long weekend. I can't believe it's been 1 1/2 months since I've seen him. As of today he only has 4 weeks left, and then hopefully we'll never be separated again!
During the weekend we stayed at this beautiful resort in Northern Tucson. The weather was in the high 70's and the sun shone the whole time. We did some relaxing, but not too much because we had to look for a place to live. After looking at 5 or 6 different places we settled on a nice apartment complex in SE Tucson. I had my heart set on a place with washer and dryer hook ups, but it was going to cost us almost 200 bucks more. Daniel being the voice of reason reminded me how much that would help us get out of debt. Why does he always have to be right? :) Of course don't let him know that! So I am working on our applications and will be sending them in this weekend. I never thought doing laundry in a laundromat was a big deal. I did it while I was at BYU. I did it during my first year of marraige, but we had a nice 2 bedroom with washer and dryer in Gallipolis. Somehow I couldn't imagine going back to dragging my laundry into a laundromat ever again. It's really not that big of a deal, but you get used to these little conveniences very easily.
Daniel and I also decided to have a little fun and look at houses. We want to get a good idea of who we'd like our builder to be, so that we can start building in 6 months or so. While I love looking at model homes, it can be quite exhausting. Plus I know my house will never look as good as model home. I am pitiful when it comes to interior designing or decorating. And then I stress because I want to make sure we get all the upgrades that will make our house marketable and also just because I want to live in a nice house. I know Daniel and I aren't likely to stay in AZ forever. We've discussed eventually moving back up to Port Angeles, WA, so I want to make sure to buy a house that will hopefully sell somewhat easy in 6+ years. Give me granite countertops, and granite tile, a gourmet kitchen, a huge masterbath with a jacuzzi tub and a separate tiled shower, his and her sinks, walk in closet, custom cherry or quartersawn oak cabinets, matching stainless steel energy efficient appliances, a loft, cathedral ceilings, an inground swimming pool custom landscaped, french doors to the master bedroom, a balcony, and at least 2 addl bedroom ( preferrably 3) with at least another 1.5 bath. Oh yes and 2 car garage. Is that too much to ask for? Hey a girl can dream... :) and just maybe...!
Well at least In & Out Burger will be close!

Rock Climbing Adventures

I have finally found something I think I really enjoy and is also great exercise. It may not look it, but I was definitely sweating from the intensity. I am even more excited to move to AZ because I am ready to take on some outdoor rock climbing and I'm sure Arizona has great spots! I get pretty freaked out by heights, but climbing gives me this adrenaline rush that makes me want to go higher despite my fears. If you haven't tried indoor climbing, I definitely recommend it. It's a blast. Most places will offer classes to teach you the basic stuff. You will need to learn to belay, but it isn't too difficult. It's a great group/family activity and many places will have walls that kids can climb as well. Anyways, if you're looking for something new and exciting to do, and are tired of the same old stuff, go rock climbing!

Getting ready for Tucson

So tomorrow bright and early, I am flying to Tucson, AZ to visit my long lost husband. It has been 1 1/2 months since I've seen him, and I am feeling rather anxious to get there and be with him again, if only for a few days. The time apart has been very difficult at times, especially with our opposite sleeping schedules. Daniel has been working hard, and studying even harder. I know how hard it is for him to be so far from home, carrying the burden of providing for our family, and I am so grateful for his selflessness. I think it's been especially difficult for him to watch me live life apart from him, but I sincerely hope he knows how much I love him.
I'm very nervous for flying. I have bad anxiety problems when it comes to getting on an airplane. I fly quite a bit, and this never used to be a problem. I had one bad flight experience a few years ago, and ever since then I've been terrified. I usually have to take some anxiety pills to put me to sleep on the plane. So please pray for me! I will post pictures from the trip when I get back! :)

DisadVantage West Credit Union

Nothing irritates me more than companies that have stupid policies and poor customer service. Most of you will not have to deal with this particular company ever, but if you ever live in Arizona do NOT bank with Vantage West Credit Union. Daniel and I recently bought a new car and the dealership financed it through Vantage West because they could offer us the best rate. I will say, we did get an excellent rate, so I was very pleased with that, but had I known of their ridiculous payment policies I would have taken my business elsewhere. Some may not think this is a big deal, but being in banking for over 5 years, I've come to understand the world of banking and how it works (at least on the retail side).
Daniel is very busy training at his new job, and therefore has very little time to deal with paying bills, etc. I take care of all this for him. He asked me if I could make his car payment since he would be working all day and was afraid he wouldn't be able to make the payment on time. He was visiting in Tucson and picked up his mail and noticed that his car payment was due the next day. Thankfully they had phone banking. I, not being on the loan, told him I would need all the account information because they would be unlikely to look it up or give it to me. This is understandable because there is so much fraud out there, banks and credit unions are doing all that they can to protect the customer. Daniel provided with the phone number, account number and payment amount. I called the phone bank, letting them know I needed to make a loan payment. They informed me it would be a $5 fee to pay over the phone, which I agreed to. She asked me for the account number next, which I provided her with. She then asked what my name was, and I told her. After a long pause I said "It's not going to be listed under my name. It should say Daniel Van Orman." She then asked me if I was on the loan, and I again told her no. She went on to say that since I was not on the loan she could not make the payment. WHAT? What do you mean, you can't make the payment? I wasn't asking for any personal information, I was taking money that didn't belong to me, I was making a freaking payment. In all my years of banking and the 4 institutions I've worked with, I have NEVER heard of this. I explained to her that I had all the information and wouldn't need her to tell me anything, but that I just wanted to make a payment. She said she couldn't accept the payment because the names wouldn't match (what the heck is that supposed to mean?), but that I could go into a branch and pay or mail it in. I told her it would be mighty difficult for me to come into a branch because I am not currently living in Arizona, and that my husband had the bill and honestly I didn't want to deal with the hassle of having to mail it. I set all of my bills up on my bill pay, but with that payment being due the next day I just wanted to get it taken care of.
So my question is, if I called and said I was Daniel could they accept the payment then? I am personally not a fan of credit unions in general. In my personal experience, most credit unions are small which may appear to be a good thing, but often when they are small it is because they are new and they don't know what they're doing. They have policies that don't make sense, and since I've worked for one, I've seen the chaos of banking gone wrong. I am not speaking ill of all credit unions because I know there are some good ones out there-- for example Mountain America Credit Union out west seems to be ran very well. Vantage West is another story. I will never get another loan through them again and neither should you.

Right Place, Right Time

This past Sunday was the first Sunday Mel and I could go to church together. We decided to attend our family ward, but after not being able to fall asleep, we decided to go to the singles branch in Cincinnati since it started earlier. For those of you unaware, Melody is a night shift nurse and I've pretty much switched to the same schedule. We sleep all day and stay up all night. Our typical bedtime is about 11 am and we usually wake around 6 pm. It is difficult to switch our sleep schedules around when there is something going on during the day, but Melody has expressed a desire to go back to church. In order to be more understanding of her situation, I'm trying to walk in her shoes. Of course I can't completely understand, but I am starting to understand the struggles of not wanting to go to church after staying up all night.
Our family ward starts at 1 and we were going to try to sleep at 4 am, and at least get a little rest. When we were unsuccessful in falling asleep, we decided to just stay up and go to the singles branch that started at 11. We pulled into the parking lot about 5 til, and I noticed young families walking into the building. Hmmm... this doesn't look right. Then the thought occurred to me that it was the first Sunday in the new year, and well.... it is likely that more than one ward met at this building. I felt frustrated b/c I didn't know anyone from this ward. I have friends in Liberty Ward and in the singles branch and I really want Melody to attend these two so that she can become comfortable with these people, especially the ones that are her age. Feeling exhausted and disappointed, we trudged inside and I inquired about the singles branch meeting time. Just as I suspected, they weren't meeting until 1. The people we were really friendly though and encouraged us to stay for their ward. I was reluctant, but didn't want to drive all the way back home without having attended Sacrament meeting.
I now know that us showing up at this ward, was no mistake. I don't believe that Melody nor I have felt in a very long time the Holy Ghost quite as strongly as we did in that meeting. It was obvious that the people of this ward weren't particularly well off. These people were humble and open about their shortcomings. There seemed to be a recurring message of hope and finding happiness. Every testimony given that day was inspiring and was exactly what Melody and I needed to hear. We weren't aware of it at the time, but we both cried the whole time. Heavenly Father loves us and wants us to be happy. No matter what we have done, we are still His children and He will always forgive us. I think often we look at members of the church and think they have all led next to perfect lives. Attending the Norwood ward, we were able to see those who have made many mistakes, but through the power of the Atonement were able to come back unto Christ. It is possible. We are never too far off.

Happy New Year!!!

Well Melody and I had a great New Years. We tried to throw a party, but unfortunately our plans fell through and so last minute we decided to go crash the singles dance in Cincinnati. Yes, a little awkward, especially with people asking me every five minutes "Aren't you married??" YES! Nevertheless, we had a great time shaking our booties to good ol clean Mormon music. We got to hang out with some old friends and make some new ones :) Did I mention I LOVE to dance? Anyways, Happy New Year and hope everyone's night was as great as mine!