Week 1 Update

Sattgast family over Christmas in Huron

A week has passed since Laura and I left on our journey to the northwest.  Prior to leaving, Laura and I both finished our obligations (Joel = 20 week clinical rotation / Laura = employment as a Family Permanency Specialist) in Omaha and divided our "stuff" between a 10 x 10 storage unit and the Camry.  We packed the car carefully as to accommodate for all we will need for the next 6 months.  Following several days of busy packing we left for South Dakota to spend time with Dad and Mom Sattgast in Huron over the Christmas holiday.


We left Huron on Tuesday and made it to Billings, MT prior to stopping for the night.  The next morning we left by 7 in order to make it to the Twisp River Valley by evening in order to spend a few days with friends from Creighton University, whose parent's have a cabin just off the Methow River  on the edge of the Wenatchee and Okanogan National Forests.  While there Laura and I were able to catch up on sleep, enjoy wonderful food, take many pictures, snowshoe and snowmobile, build a snowman and snowwoman, and spend time with good friends while also meeting new friends.  We ended up staying an extra day due to 6-8in of fresh snow falling the evening prior to our planned departure.  However, we were glad to stay in order to see the mountains covered in fresh powder and to enjoy some fun winter sports (i.e. snowshoeing and snowmobiling).  Overall, it was a good detour on our way to Lynden, WA. For pics of our Twisp adventure see the following pics:

Friday morning we left Twisp and finished our trip towards Lynden.  Laura and I have repeatedly mentioned to each other how glad we are to be in Washington...every time we look to the horizon we get to see snow-capped mountains and the opportunities before us (Joel = time in the clinic learning further perspectives on rehab techniques / Laura = enjoying a reprieve from social work and excited for new adventures / Us = exploring and taking-in what the pacific northwest has to offer...and that's a lot) are endless.  Upon arriving in Lynden Laura and I were graciously welcomed by the Korthuis family.  Steve Korthuis is the father of 5 kids and married to Robyn - together, Roby and Steve, own and run Lynden Family Physical Therapy, the clinic I will be working in for the next 10 weeks.  The Korthuis's were kind enough to allow Laura and I to occupy their beautiful studio apartment while in Lynden.  We are excited to get to know the Korthuis family further as well as explore the surrounding country side while still having a place to call to "home" over the next 10 weeks.

So, you are now "up-to-date" on our travels thus far.  Our plan when we started this blog was to use it as a way to share our experiences and adventures with family and friends.  However, this will also serve as an electronic memory of our 10 weeks for the two of us.  You may also be wondering, "What's with the title?"  Well, you can't start a  blog without a "catchy" title, right?  So, we decided to head down the alliteration path...the reasoning is this: our travels over the next 6 months will take us from Nebraska (a "nurturing" midwest environment) to Washington and the pacific northwest ("nature" at its finest) to New York City (dare I say "nutty?") - all of this will be our new "normal" for the next while.  Following the train of thought?

With that all explained we invite you to bookmark, save, copy and paste or return to our blog's link on a regular basis as Laura and I will be (attempting to) providing weekly updates, each from our own perspectives, on the week's fun, challenges, learning endeavors, and new experiences.