Our first "hike"

Ben and I are slowly learning new ways and new things to keep just the two of us active!! For example we decided that for our weekend, I would plan our Friday night and Ben would plan Saturday, interesting right??!
We have actually had a wonderful weekend! It started off great because Ben got home early from a ride along and I had many forms of entertainment planned for our evening. I had a few different activities on cards and Ben chose the cards throughout the night...goofy, I know, but we have to keep ourselves busy somehow! :) The first card he picked said "Trick?!" What that meant was a card trick! I had spent about 10 minutes on you tube teaching myself a card trick to be able to entertain...and of course, impress Benny. And boy did it work!!! I was so proud of myself! He thought I was a little weird, but I DID trick him and he had no clue how I did it! So, maybe I should be looking for magician jobs...kidding! His next job for the night was to take a gander over my homemade menu and choose what he wanted for supper. So the rest of the night was spent eating many yummy things like french toast, apple crisp with ice cream and popcorn. We also played a little Yahtzee :) and watched a movie. (Sorry if this seems like a little too much information, but it is good for Ben and I when we read back and can remember all the details!)

Ben had Saturday all planned, which made me extremely impressed. We started the morning by getting some amazingly good donuts from Haagens, which is the grocery store by us. Then we headed to REI to look around and we saw a million and one things we could have bought but left with nothing! :) Then we drove to Chuckanut Drive which is a historical coastal drive along the Larabee State Park. There are many miles of trails, some of which are for walking and running, others are for hiking and biking. So we found a place to park and headed out! We really had no clue where we were going or what we were doing, we just wanted to explore!
Here are a couple of pictures of us just making our way into the trails.


We started off on an Interurban trail that is used for walking and running. The first thing we loved about the trail was how you felt completely surrounded by beautiful, tall, GREEN tress.

Some of the trees here have this amazing green moss all over them. Ben and I just love those trees. It looks like green frost...since that is what you are all used to! You just feel surrounded by the beauty of the Lord!

Of course Ben just HAD to find a walking stick to help us along the trails.

We started to find our way off the Interurban trail and start hiking toward the water. It is crazy to us that we are so close to the ocean.




Once we got to the water, it was beautiful. The foothills of the Casacade mountains were covered with clouds, so we can't wait to go on a clear sunny day!


Ben, of course, wanted to get closer to the water.

This was me...a little concerned about him (for good reason as you will see in the next pictures!)

It had been raining all day so on his way down there he took a little tumble! Oops! :)


He also wanted to "double check" that it was salt water...NERD!

Then we headed back to our car because we were getting hungry.

Ben had even packed a bag lunch for us!! How great! We had wanted to find somewhere on our hike to eat but everything was muddy and wet so we ate at a park on our way home!


This morning we went back to Cornwall Church and loved the pastor again! We are planning on starting our small group on Wednesday, so we are excited to start meeting some people!

Thanks again for checking in us! We love you and miss you all tremendously! :)

"So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law." Galatians 5:16-18

I just wanted to add another picture. Even though I think some of our pictures are boring, I have had some requests to keep adding pictures:) Not mentioning any names...Emily!!! So, here is a picture of Ben and I with Karen and Mike, which is Pam's sister and brother-in-law. They were so wonderful! Karen, if you are reading our blog, thanks again for such a fun night and thanks for sending the picture!
We love you and miss you all!

"God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ dies for us." Romans 5:8

Just another day! Ben is at work teaching himself all the new information he has to learn about Cargill Animal Nutrition, while I am at home getting ready to clean the bathrooms and think about starting supper! Yep, that is pretty much what our days consist of now! Ben at work and me busy doing "something" at home. My job search is going ok, there are a couple jobs in the mix so we will see. Ben and I are hoping to start getting connected at our new church. We signed up for small groups and we also signed up to start volunteering, so once we hear back from them hopefully we will get going. We are still enjoying each other in this small space! :) We seem to be having even more fun now than we lived in a house! We are finding ways to keep ourselves busy. Last night we went for a walk around Barkley Village, which is the area we live. So this morning I went for a run and then decided to take a few pictures of the area so you can see it!
We live on Newmarket St. (you can see the sign in this picture)

This was taken standing in front of our apartment building, that is where we walk to all the little shops.

I always just thought this was a cool clock within all the shops!

And this is me...being a nerd...taking a picture of myself getting ready to blog! :) P.S. I just got done running, so don't look too close! :)


Ben and I are hoping to do some more exploring this weekend...so just hold on...this weekend's blog may just blow you out of the water...or not!! :)
We pray that you are all having wonderful weeks! We love you and miss you all!

"This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

Relaxation...and go vikes!

This weekend we spent our days just enjoying relaxing. We didn't plan anything except for a date night last night. This was our first weekend since October that we didn't have any plans. It was kind of nice!

Our Saturday morning started off with a bang! We were able to watch the Gophers, we were really excited...until the last 20 seconds when they were behind for the first time in the game and then lost. As my dad said, "it was demoralalizing!" That is definitely something I miss-watching the gophers with my dad, while mom is cleaning like a maniac upstairs, checking on the score every time she heads to the laundry room!

Yesterday I was able to skype with Jenny which was so great! Ben and I also took a drive around Whatcom lake, which is just a few miles from our place. There are some magnificent homes on the water. Ben loves the trees around the lake...he said "this is what the Pacific Northwest looks like!" It was pretty! Then we went to church at Cornwall again and we really liked it. The lead pastor is great. Ben "really" likes the church and the pastor (so do I)! After church we went to a place called Scotty Browns which is next door to our apartments. It is a brand new restaurant. It is a really cool place, but I can't say that I love it. It was just a little to "modern" for me! :)

This morning we went for a run, walked to get groceries and got revved up for the big game. Ben has been nervous since Tuesday!!! We bought some little appetizers to have our own little Vikings party. Our menu consists of cheddar little weinies in crescent rolls, puppy chow, chips and cheese dip and of course...Dr.Pepper! It should be fun, that is if the Vikes win! Ben already warned me that he will be a little depressed if they lose...weird! I love the Vikings...and I WILL be bummed, but I promise I will get over it!
OK, the Vikings are just getting started so we have to go CHEER! We love you and miss you all! Here are a few pictures of our exciting day!
Here is Ben getting pumped up for the game!


"Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others." 1 Corinthinas 10:24

Sunnyside, WA

Hmmmm....Sunnyside, WA, where is that you may ask? And I would answer, that is a great question! I do know that it is southeast of Bellingham, in the mountains, in the middle of nowhere! Sunnyside, WA is where I am sitting right now while Benny is visiting a feed mill in Granger, WA. Ben and I left yesterday morning for his "little" work trip. Since we didn't have to leave until about 11, we enjoyed a beautiful morning together outside. We took some time to organize a few things in our place and then we went on a long walk on a new trail we just discovered. It is less than 1/2 mile from our apartments.
Here are a few pictures from our walk. Yes, we take pictures of everything now! :)


That is our apartment building in the background...it is called The Drake!! Pretty Fancy, huh?! Just Kidding!

Back to our little getaway! Our 4 hr. drive here was beautiful. So, of course we stopped along the way and took a few snapshots! The pictures can not even come close to capturing the unbelievable views we had!

Click on this picture to make it bigger...it is amazing!!!!!!




Once we pulled into good ol' Sunnyside, WA (which by the way I am not completely sure where they got that name...I don't know if I would consider it the "sunnyside", and I KNOW Ben would agree) we found our hotel. It is a new and very nice hotel. It was full so they gave us a suite which was great! Then Ben just had to take a dip in the hottub so I just dipped my feet in and then he treated me to KFC. YUM!! It sounds like a goofy night, but we love those low key nights together! This morning Ben and I enjoyed our continental breakfast together and he headed off for another day at the feed mill. I am sitting in the hotel room keeping busy on the computer and waiting for Ben to pick my up!
Sorry we don't have anything too exciting to write home about! Thanks to everyone who continues to check in us! We love you and miss you all so much!

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." Philippians 4:8

Week 2

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:2
I have felt called to this verse since we have moved out here. It is amazing all the "things" Ben and I realized we had and did not need. The Lord has definitely been revealing to us many reasons for this move. Just one of those reasons is Him teaching us how to live for Him and to form our hearts and minds more like Him. We obviously have a long way to go, but it has been amazing coming to many realizations of things we can change.

After I wrote last we had plans with Pam's sister and brother-in-law, Karen and Mike. We had SO much fun with them. I had never met them before so it was great meeting them, I don't think there was a ever a lull in our conversation. They were so wonderful. We had some great seafood at The Cliff House, along with awesome appetizers and desserts. It was just a wonderful night overall, it made us feel a little bit more at home. They live in Portland, so we are hoping to head down there sometime in the Spring!

On Sunday, we went to Cornwall Church. It was good, we really liked the two pastors that spoke. We can see ourselves going back, but I also think we are going to try a couple more. Then we went to Ben's boss' house and watched some of the Vikings with him and some other co-workers. We left at the beginning of the 4th quarter because I had to get home for a Skype appt. with my family. I was so ansy during the game because I was so excited to get home and Skype with them. I had never done Skype until that weekend. We skyped with Megan and Chad on Thursday and Friday and it was so neat. Megan even showed me a few things she got shopping so it was like I got to go with her :) It makes it so much easier to talk and being able to see them really makes you feel closer to them. So, we don't know who has it, but if you have skype, please let us know so we can chat :) So, on Sunday I got to talk with Gabby and Lauren, they were crazy! Gabby didn't know what to think about it at first, but then she warmed up and was acting as goofy as ever. Then I got to talk with my mom and Emily for a long time, it felt like I was right there with them at mom and dad's. Especially when Jacob turned the camera so we could watch the end of the gopher game on their tv!!! I also got to visit with dad, Jacob and Mark! It was so great!

Yesterday and today have been nothing exciting! I have been running errands and "trying" to start my job search. I feel like I am starting from a blank slate with no connections. I just have to be patient and continue to be in prayer about it. Ben has been out of the office both days. Yesterday he spent the day in the actual feed mill, so he got to wear some grubby clothes to work, and he did not smell the greatest when he got home. :) Today he headed down to Burlington to do the same things just at a different place. I think he is seeing (and helping) feed getting loaded on to rail carts and all that jive. He will have to write and give you the real low down. Can you believe he blogged?? He didn't tell me he did it and then I got on and got to read what he wrote...he is too great! Anywho, that's it from the Wetzell's in Week 2 in WA! Love you and miss you all!!
Here are a couple pictures of our apartment!




"Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?"
Matthew 16:24-26

Hello

This is Ben. Just wanted to say hello to everyone as well. Amanda is really getting into this social media stuff. She's taking good care of me. I've come home to home cooked meals everynight. Our place is almost all organized thanks to her taking the time to put stuff away carefully. If it were me.....wouldn't be the same story. Had our first sunny day today since we've been here...Amanda was tanning her face as we drove around...go figure.

Our First Weekend!

Well, so far it has been a wonderful first weekend in Bellingham, WA. Last night we just wanted to stay in, eat a homecooked meal, and watch tv. It sounds boring, but we were really looking forward to it. I made some yummy paninis, potatoes with gravy and a salad. Ben was as happy as a lark! He isn't too hard to please when it comes to food! Then we decided to drive around and find neat neighborhoods. We found a few but they were so hard to see because we discovered they DO NOT use street lights like we do in MN. We ended our night relaxing on our couch in a "pretty" organized living room.(We will put pitcures on of our place once we are all organized!)

This morning we wanted to explore the area a little. So we got up and headed toward a lake we had heard about it. It was called Lake Padden. It must be a pretty happening place because it was really busy even on a chilly and extremely foggy morning. Again, we are really being "Bellingham" :) We ran around the lake on a trail that was surrounded by beautiful, big, old trees. We are excited to go back on a clear day. After our run we drove down to Fairhaven which is the old historic part of Bellingham. There are some really cool and unique stores and cafes down there. One of the first things I said was how much my mom and Pam are going to like the stores! Ben was such a trooper, he went into any girly store I wanted :) We didn't buy anything, it was just fun seeing such unique things. After that we got some yummy smoothies and headed toward Ferndale, so we could see Mt.Baker a little better, and Ben wanted to bring me by his office. He is really liking the job, he talks about the people he works with all the time. They love to go out for lunch, and they go out to a Mexican place called Chihuaha almost every day (no joke). I finally told him last night he could not go there anymore unless he cleanses his body before he comes home...if you know what I mean! Oh my word...it is unbelievable what that place does to Ben's body...oofda! Anyway, we ventured through Ferndale and are now back at our place watching football!

Tonight, Pam's sister and brother-in-law are taking us out to eat to a place called The Cliff House. It is on a cliff over the bay, so it has beautiful views. It also has really good seafood, so we are looking forward to our night out with them!

Tomorrow our plan is to try another church. AND watch the Vikings.....WOOHOO!!!
So, that concludes our first weekend in Bellingham!! Thanks for caring about our not so exciting weekend! We hope you are all having a wonderful weekend! We love you and miss you all!

Below are some pictures of Ferndale and Ben's office.



"I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
Matthew 17:20

“Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves.” Philippians 2:3

Always Something!

Well, it has been a great couple days with some goofiness in between the great parts!

Ben and I had to go to Seattle yesterday to get another rental car...long story. So, we get there and we happened to get the best car ever. KIDDING! We both were dying laughing when we saw our gem of a vehicle. It was a "bright" red Chevy HHR, which looks like an amplified PT Cruiser. And it was not a smooth ride to say the least, but it got us where we needed to go! Then we stopped at Best Buy on the way home to look at computers. We got back in our car and Ben thought he would take a shortcut by going straight out of our parking spot and he ran right over the curb with a few loud bangs and crunches...yikes. Thankfully the HHR was just fine, it must have high tolerance for accidents! When we got home Ben went to work and I decided to walk to the grocery store to get some groceries. I was trying to "go green" so I brought a big bag to carry my groceries in. I ended up getting a few more things than expected, so they packed some things in plastic bags. I was trotting home with my reusable bag and my hood up of my new rain jacket, being very "Bellingham", and I heard a thud, not thinking anything of it I hear another thud and realize my plastic bag had ripped and all my groceries were falling out. I got everything back to our place...a little more wet and tired than when I left!

Our cars came today!!! We were so excited to see a piece of home! I spent the day continuing to organize and move things around. Ben spent his day (as he would say) staring at a computer! When Ben got home from work we went and bought a computer! I get to pick it up tomorrow! We were so excited to get back to our place after making our big purchase, I had a yummy roast in the crock pot! So, Ben was being goofy, acting James Bond like trying to get into our apartment when we both realized that our new key didn't work...we were locked out. Bummer! So we went downstairs and waited in the Bakery for the landlord to bring a new key. We decided to go back up and wait by our door and we both decided to try one more time...and we got it. Oops! Anyways, we got in and enjoyed the yummy roast! Now we are enjoying our new technology!

We hope you are all having a great week! Miss you all! Love you!

"But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful." Psalm 68:3

Organization!

Organization is what I did ALL day and what Ben was most excited about when he got home from work! I spent all day taking everything out of the cupboards that Ben had thrown randomly in (while trying to be very helpful). When the movers were here on Saturday Ben wanted to get as many boxes as he could out of here so he just kept unloading stuff in the kitchen. I just had to laugh every time I opened a cupboard. I got the entire kitchen organized and then I started on other parts of the apartment. Ben was so excited to see most of the "clutter" put away. Since we know Ben does NOT like messes :) Which is just one thing I love about him! The best part of my day was having to open the windows in our apartment because it was getting just a little warm :) As Melissa would say...it was a "balmy" 60 degrees here again...with rain of course!

We are hoping to get our tv tomorrow, which will be wonderful. Then hopefully our computer will come later this week. So, for those of you who are checking our blog daily...Mom:)...I may not be able to update every day until we get our computer.

We do not have many groceries yet and I don't have a car so our supper choices were limited tonight. We were planning on having Mac and Cheese, Yum! But Ben decided we should go out to eat, which was great! We went to a very "WA" place called Pastazaz. It was interesting! It was all locally "grown" and "healthy"! I guess we had better start getting used to it and going green! But it was good food.

Anywho, this was not the most exciting post but now you know how the Wetzell's first Monday in Bellingham was! I am going to keep working on this Blog thing (then you will be really impressed Emily)!!!!
Love you all!!

"May the Lord direct your heart into God's love and Christ's perseverance."
2 Thessalonians 3:5

WOW!

WOW is the word of the weekend for us! I am thinking WOW as I am sitting at the table writing this looking at the mountains from my dining room/living room/kitchen...that is how small our place is :) With that, a WOW went through my mind as I walked into our apartment last night and saw the boxes piled to the ceiling! WOW when my plane was landing yesterday and the pilot said that the current temperature of Seattle was 55 degrees. I think my jaw dropped to the floor and I knew from now on I wouldn't have to wear my leggings under pants along with 5 layers of shirts. Another WOW when Kris Pulford picked me up from the aiport and he kept pointing out all the beautiful scenery around us. Then there was a WOW when I realized that this would be our home for the next few years. WOW when Ben picked me up and we were so excited to see each other. The last WOW that I will write about (because it may be getting annoying) is when we were walking into church today and it smelled so fresh and wonderful. I LOVE that feeling and smell. As hard was it was to leave everything and everyone, we have been feeling God's hand in all of our newness. Thank you for all your prayers in our new journey. OK, we hope everyone is having a wonderful Sunday! We love you all! The pictures below are of us in our apartment with our "stuff" all around!

"Praise the Lord. How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise Him." Psalm 147:1

Day 2

I do not promise to write every day on here, but I decided to write one more time before I leave for WA.
Ben and I are spending our days much differently. He is on his 3rd day of his new job. It has been going well. His days seem a little long right now since everything is new for him and after work he has to go to a hotel, but he always manages :) His other job this week is finding a computer and tv for us...woohoo!
I am spending my day with Lloyd (Jacob's dog)! I am going to get organized to leave. The best part of today is I get to spend one more day enjoying the beautiful Minnesota Winter!

"One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I see: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the BEAUTY of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple."
Psalm 27:4

The Beginning

Well, here we go! This is our first posting on our blog. Crazy! We will see how this goes, since I am not such a computer whiz!
Ben and I are so excited to see what God has planned for us in Washington. We have no doubt that God has amazing things ready for us once we get West. Please pray that Ben and I continue to seek God's guidance in every new thing we encounter and every new part of our life.
Ben is officially a Washingon resident. He had his first day at his new job yesterday. As for me, I am not quite there yet! I am sitting at mom and dad's in front of the fireplace on this extremely cold January day. I will be heading to Bellingham on Saturday to enjoy the 40 degree weather and to be with my hubby again.
Since I am just sitting at my mom and dad's....making baby blankets for my nieces...with no job :) I decided to start the blog before I got to my new home. So, here we go. The adventure begins...

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
Jeremiah 29:11