And so it begins

1. Old job - I started out the month helping interview for my replacement. No one really stood out to me and my friend in Palo Alto reminded me when I was there visiting in September that "It's not my problem." Having multiple friends in HR has been very helpful.

My friend Annie

My friend Karen

My "Legit 50" crew

Domo rooster

So I can remember when they make it big

2. New job - The old job ended on a Friday and the new one started on a Monday. I didn't quite know what to expect and since I hadn't heard from my new boss, I spent the day packing for my move across the country. The next day I flew to San Francisco for our annual users conference where I met too many people and spent too much time helping people from the old job figure out what I had been doing. Apparently my efforts the last few months to do knowledge transfer fell on deaf ears. 

Advocate friends from Deer Valley ski trip

3. Running - In the middle of all of this, I was training for a half marathon. I really enjoyed starting the race with two of my sisters and my niece. They finished well ahead of me but I still finished close to my goal (only five minutes slower). 

Halloween Half

Finished!

4. Last minute things - I had time to get in one more cabin trip, one more BYU football game, and one more last goodbye. Tears fell multiple times.

My home :(

Cabin time

Cabin memories

Skyline drive at sunset

One more football game

One more story with Max

One more Fairbanks group hug

One more Woolston group hug

5. Eyes - I was at the eye doctor every 2-3 days. I was there so often the receptionist would call me out by name telling me she had already checked me in as I walked through the door. The doctor prescribed two different types of antibiotic drops, two different types of steroid drops, and multiple natural tears drops. My wallet hurt. My eyes hurt. And I still couldn't see clearly. I could only see clearly once I used the natural tears. Yes I drove. But my vision was only slightly worse than before the surgery so I knew how to compensate. Gratefully, the infection cleared and I had minimal to no scarring on my eyes. I continued the steroid and regular eye drops until Christmas when I saw the doctor again. Everything healed beautifully and I can see perfectly. It just took a long process to get me there.

Too many drops

6. Moving - My sister stepped into my mom's shoes and helped me drive across country. I decided to have everything shipped since I didn't know exactly where I'd be moving. Best decision! I had two cousins (one in Colorado and one in Missouri) who let us stay at their homes. Early November 1st, my sister and I rolled into Virginia...my new home. (See post here about the moving process.)

Eastern Colorado

Western Kansas

Eastern Kansas

St. Louis