Fall 2012

My how time flies!!  I was thinking about this blog  and came to look at it and was surprised at how much time has gone by.  Life is moving fast!!

Everything is going pretty well in the McPherson household...  about time for an update!

Scott , our oldest man "child" is 20 and is waiting to see if her will be going into the Air Force.
While he is waiting he works as a Certified Nurse Assistant at a local assisted living, nursing rehabilitation facility. He enjoys his work and has been able to get some money saved.  He is also betrothed to his lovely Anna and, if they have their way, will be getting married the end of December.
They are preparing but it all depends on what will happen with the Air Force. We are so proud of the
man he is becoming. He has grown in so may ways and definitely has his ideas and opinions about life.

Michael is a senior at North Kitsap High School..... Wow, already!  He has applied for an Air Force ROTC scholarship and would like to attend college at Central Washington University in Ellensburg Washington, the town of his birth.  He is doing great in school! He was the Cross Country team manager this fall after a stress fracture to his right ankle kept him from running.

James is a freshman at  NKHS..... another Wow!  He just finished his marching band competition season.  They did very well!  We are so proud of his attitude and his dedication to the program. The kids really put in a lot of time during marching band season!! Very impressive! He is also doing great in school! In his spare time he loves playing Mind Craft or another  complicated game..

Now to our Emily!! Our girl!  She just turned 12 and is very much a preteen in every way. She is in the 6 th grade and is also doing great in school. We are so blessed!! Emily is our math wiz. She scored a perfect score on her 5th grade math assessment and in taking 7th grade math in school.  She continues to play the violin and is doing very well.

John and I both love our jobs!! I work full time in our Kitsap Pulmonary and Sleepm, Poulsbo office. It takes me about 2 min to get to work. I have a great co-worker that has been with us for over a year now. All my co-workers are wonderful!  Johns job may "go away" in January unless our government can stop the sequestration that will happen January 1st.  He is applying for jobs just in case but we are hopeful they will come up with some kind of compromise. He loves his current job and does very important things for our country!  We are trying not to stress about it but focus on our many blessings.
God is faithful and has never let us go without!!

I guess that is all for now. I was going to use this day off from work to catch up on some things around the house... Here I go!!

Long Overdue Update

This update is long overdue!! I started typing it a few weeks ago and then it disappeared on me somehow- I gave up! Anyway I will try again!!

Boy ,the summer has sure flown by!! I have been at my job about 3 months now. I 'am still loving it very much!! I have been working pretty much full time. When they hired me they said I would work up to full time but instead I jumped right in and have been going strong. Lately though due to Dr's much needed vacations and patient numbers being down, my hours are being cut some- almost to part time. While I like the money that comes with full time, it is nice being home with the kids more especially while they are getting ready to go back to school. I was able to take Michael to the HS and get his schedule changed and will be off on the first day of school. I like to take the kids to school especially the younger two. So it is nice. I do not know how long it will last. I 'am just so thankful for a job doing something I love! I'll take any hours I can get as long as I can keep my job!

Scott, our graduate, just finished a summer school course at the community college. He took a statistics class. He is hoping that is the last math class he will have to take in his college career. He as a job that he is really enjoying and will start fall classes on 23 Sept. He has been working on his music quite a bit and has written one song that I especially love. He has also been a help driving us places. We have had some major car problems that are not over yet. We need a mechanic in the family that lives close by! :0) We can't buy a new car so we have to keep this one running.

Michael has had a pretty laid back summer. He traveled in July to visit his BF in North Carolina and had a great time! He has also had some lawn jobs and earned a good bit of money. He was the family navigator for relatives visiting this summer while was working. Cross Country practice has started. I think he is going to have some good times this year! He is a great runner! He is also pleased with the new class schedule we got for him the other day. Michael will be a Sophmore this year!

James is our sweet techy! He has had fun playing in the neighborhood but you mostly find him at the computer. He has also enjoyed going to the pool almost daily for most of the summer. He has helped us navigate the new computer Aunt Cara and Uncle Craig passed down to us. It is awesome having a Mac!!! Thank-you CV 2!!!! James will be in 7th grade this year!

Emily has done a lot of playing out side with friends and really enjoyed time at the pool! She has also started cooking some on her own. She made some great cookies last night all by herself!!! Emily will be a 4th grader! I can't believe how all my kids are growing up!! Time seems to be flying faster the older I get!!

My sweet hubby has been a big help around the house with me working so much. He mostly cleans the kitchen each night- a BIG blessing!! He is loving his job and is looking for more challenges. He has started to finally work on his writing. I have been after him to write a book- or something!! We will celebrate our 21st anniversary on September 2nd!! He is such a gift!!

My cousin Christine spent 6 wks of the summer with us to help with the younger two kids. After she left my parents arrived for a 2 week visit. Since they went home Scott and Michael have been helping with their siblings. Having my hours changed at worked has helped too. School starts September 1st.

Well I guess that is our update. We have been enjoying some beautiful weather. I feel fall coming though!
Hope all is well with everyone!!

New Job!!

I have a new job!! Dr. Eagan of Kitsap Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine called me with the good news yesterday! I'am so excited! They are opening a new clinic right here in Poulsbo and have asked me to join their team! :0) Here is the link to the new web site: http://www.kpsmhealth.com/

Wt Loss Finally!

I have not posted on here in forever, but I want to today!!

I go to a group called TOPS (Take off Pounds Sensibly) every week. I went because a new friend invited me and I thought some accountability would help me lose weight. Anyway I have been going there since the beginning of March. I think some of the ladies come just because it is something to do , but some are serious and many of them have been coming for years! There are some sweet ladies that have reached goal and come to encourage others. TOPS does not really give you a specific plan to follow, just suggestions and friends to encourage you on your journey. I needed the accountability of stepping on the scale for someone. It has been nice to go with my friend and meet new people but I have had to figure out a "plan" on my own.

Another friend from Whidbey Island had told me about a web site called Spark People.com over a year ago but I did not really get into it . She has lost 75 pounds using the tools on Spark People! I decided to check it out again and it has been a wonderful tool for me also! I signed up on the site on April 8th and have so far lost 9.7 pounds. I had lost some weight already having joined TOPS on March 10th. I have lost a total of almost 14 lbs. I think it has gone better using Spark People and I really enjoy it! It is keeping me focused and is easy to use. AND it is free ! You sign up with just a user name and password. You tell them your goals and they set up a meal plan for you based on your calorie range. If I do not like on of the choices on my plan for the day I can click on the food and a list of alternate choices pops up that I can replace it with. No food is totally taboo and there are no "special" foods to buy, it is all about the calories . There is also a fitness tab where you can track exercise and how many calories you burned. It has just really worked well for me! I'm excited to see what more I can do!

Just thought I'd share! I'm a bit excited today because when I weighed in this morning there was a 6 pound loss!! Off for a walk now!!

Dr. Jack Leslie McPherson PhD

Johns Dad, Dr. Jack Leslie McPherson, went home to be with the Lord at 5:30 this morning.
He was an amazing, wonderful person and gave his best in every area of his life! We love you Dad!! You will be greatly missed, but we are comforted that we WILL see you again some day in heaven!
Gramma Noras birthday celebration March 2009

Scottie, Dad and Scott at the beach on Whidbey Island May 2008

Please keep our family in your prayers, especially Johns step-mom, she is in the hospital also.

Haircuts

The boys had haircuts recently and Michael decided to be goofy with his hats. The joke around the house when we have "extra" money is to go blow it on hats!
Scott decied he was tired of taking care of his longer hair and asked for a haircut.

Then Emily decided she wanted her hair trimmed. I think I cut off about 5 inches. It sure is easier to brush!

Good thing they waited until after our family/sr. pictures were taken!

Anniversary Getaway

We had a wonderful weekend getaway, in Idaho and Montana, to celebrate our upcoming 20th anniversary! It was beautiful and relaxing!! We sure would love to move back up there someday!! This is me in front of the church where we were married. It is in Hope ID, across the road from Lake Pend Oreille.

John in front of the church.

This is the house we stayed in on the property of a future Bible camp and retreat that is located in Montana.

This is the lake down behinsd the house. This was taken looking back across at the house.

This is the barn on our former ranch in Idaho where John proposed to me!

This was our family home. We built this in 1979.

Our house again. We had 40 acers. I really miss this place!! It was so wonderful getting back up there again and just exploring!! Enjoy!