Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone! We're continuing to get settled in our new home in North Carolina. It has been quite an adventure, especially for me. Work has kept me very busy. And our weekends have been full with grocery shopping, household item shopping, and a little Christmas shopping, oh, and of course going to church.

We recently got our first Christmas tree. This is the first real tree I have had in years. I'm really enjoying the fresh scent.

This year, we will get to spend time with Joey's family for Christmas. Joey will be working on Christmas Eve. On the evening of Christmas Day we will enjoy a meal with his parents and four brothers and their families and his aunt. I'm really looking forward to it, though I will miss my family in California.

Turning Another Corner

Joey and I just moved across the country. It took us five days, driving both our cars.

We visited his family in North Carolina for a little over a week during the end of September and beginning of October. While visiting here, we met with a man who I knew through work. We also met with some of Joey's friends. I was also able to see both his college and his seminary.

After we got home, I found out that my job was going to be changing. This change would dramatically decrease the amount of hours that I would be working. Within a couple days, the man that we met with in NC called me and offered me a job. Joey and I took some time and prayed about it. We believe that this was a good opportunity for us to be able to get established on our own.

We have now been in NC for a little less than two weeks. It has been a very busy time for me as this is a new organization. Joey was able to transfer his position. We are both doing well and adjusting to our new life on the East Coast.

Still Plugging Along

We're still here. Our situation hasn't changed... good? bad? I don't know. God is in control.

We are trying to use our time in California well though. We have gone on many drives and even stayed in San Diego a couple times. We were able to visit with some friends who live in San Diego that I met while living in Hungary. Joey and I both enjoyed our time with them.

We both celebrated our birthdays too. Our first birthdays being married. We didn't celebrate too much though since we are trying to save money. We did have a good time though.

Some more pictures for those of you who are asking.

Merry Christmas!!

We hope you are all doing well. We are doing well. Marriage has been a walk in the park... well an amusement park. You know sometimes it's great and fun, but sometimes we feel crowded and tired. God is good though, he is teaching us a lot about each other and ourselves.

Just to keep you updated, we are both working. Joey is working part-time with Christmas trees. (It is kind of fun because we still have the smell of a live tree around even though we have an artificial one up.) His job will probably continue in the garden department even after the season is up. I am working part-time for my aunt's bookkeeping servicing company. This give us plenty of needed flexibility since we share one car.

Please keep us in your prayers. Joey is continueing to look for a permanent full-time job. We would love to eventually get a place of our own. Thanks!!

Love,

Joey & Heather

P.S. Here are some pics from our recent trip to Disneyland... Joey's first time there.

For Thanksgiving this year, we spent the day with my mom and step-dad. My mom and I did almost all of the cooking... we had turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, sweet potato casserole, asparagus, cranberry jello salad and my step-dad made pumpkin pie for dessert. It was pretty good... but way too much food!!

It's been a while...

Life goes by and sometimes we don't even realize it. Sometimes Joey comments about what we were doing a year ago on this day or that day. It was over a year ago that we were in the Czech Republic for the Teach Overseas "Thanksgiving" weekend. ...AND IT WAS SNOWING!!! Here in California the temperatures have been in the 80's lately. It's hard to imagine snow.

Things are going well for us. Joey just recently got a part-time seasonal job. It's good, gives him something to do while he is still looking for something permanent. We are living with family, so our bills are minimal. It's a huge blessing!

Today we decided to do something different. Joey has been wanting to get involved with Hungarians living in the Los Angeles area. So today we went down the the United Hungarian House. There was a traditional Hungarian folk dance show. It was fun. This was the first time for me to hear Hungarian (well except from Joey) since I left Hungary. Hopefully there will be more events in the future.

East Coast Wedding Reception

Once again, we are posting this in October, but labeling it as September in order to "get caught up" - as if we can ever get caught up. This September has been a busy month for us. If one word could describe this month, it would be "travel". For Labor Day weekend, we interviewed at a church in the mountains of Arizona. So, we got to drive about 9 hours or so across the deserts of California and Arizona and eventually up to the mountains. We spent several relaxing days there, and on the way home, we took the time to go by the Grand Canyon. I had always wanted to go, and since we were so close, I didn't want to miss this opportunity. The visit to the Grand Canyon was worth the drive in itself.

Later, Joey's parents held an East Coast reception for us in North Carolina on September 20th for all the friends and families who could not travel to Southern California for the actual ceremony. We went out to North Carolina on Saturday September 13th and we stayed till Monday the 22nd. While there, we spent much of our time visiting family, traveling for job interviews, and meeting up with some of Joey's friends. My dad, Heather, and I got to go and visit the NC Zoological park in my hometown one day. It was a great chance just to spend time with my dad and see some of the beautiful things that the Lord has created and blessed our planet with. However the high light was the reception held at the church that Joey's grandmother had been a part of for many years before her death in 2000. We are thankful for all the friends and family we have on both sides of the US - and around the world for that matter!