What. A. Relief.

PASS

Ryan's Physical Therapy Boards are officially done and over with.

With a passing score on both his National Boards and his Nebraska Judicial Exam, we are in the clear.

WHEW.

Orientation begins this week and work starts Monday.

Crap is getting real, folks

Oh boy, we received our "Loan Cost Worksheet" from our mortgage lender today with the nicely organized thousands and thousands of dollars we owe. Closing date is set for September 3! It's really happening! 6 weeks!

But between now and then, Ryan takes boards tomorrow and starts orientation next week.  Meanwhile, I'm kicking my butt in gear planning a two-week Resident Assistant training for 26 college students, and preparing move-in for over 1,000 residents. Ready, GO!

Oh, what a year it's been.

On July 15, 2012, Ryan and I packed up all our belongings from our first apartment
as newlyweds and left what had been our home for the past two years (left).

Today, one year later, our stuff is still on storage (right) and we have driven
coast-to-coast-to-coast-and-halfway-back and lived in 3 different states.

As I look back, this past year has been quite the ride, and thankfully it is ending on a high note. 
We have both learned a lot and gained a lot of trust in each other and our Heavenly Father. 
Below are my random thoughts on the experience...
(and realizations Ryan and I made through our MANY hours in the car together).

We've realized that living out of your car isn't so bad.  You can really live on the bare necessities. 
We look at that storage unit and can't even remember what we own.  It's just stuff.
While a lot of it is modern conveniences, when it comes down to it, they really aren't necessities. 

Over and over again, it has been confirmed to us what great friends we have here in Omaha, and that the friendships we made in North Carolina will last through distance as well. It was a huge relief to show up both cities after being away and being able to pick up right where we left off.

When it comes to friendships, Ryan and I have accepted our role as the instigators. 
We've had many discussions realizing that we probably wouldn't see many of our friends if we never called them. 
Sometimes that just stinks.  Sometimes we wish they would just pick up the phone and call us and give us a break.
But, for some, that just isn't part of their personality and that's just how it is. 
This is one of the many reasons we are so excited for our house.  Party at the Sweeney's!

Arizona, even though it's a "dry heat" is still HOT and Nebraska winters are still COLD. 

North Carolina is a happy middle-ground with mild winters, but muggy summers like Nebraska.  

In this past year, we feel like we experienced each of the extremes this vast country has to offer. 

Even though I hate the hot summers and Ryan struggles with the freezing winters, 

Omaha is definitely where we are supposed to be!

In the past year, I've gone from one extreme to the other when it comes to working and discovered that 25-30 hours a week would be idea for me at this point in my life.  Arizona was my time for myself.  And it was just the right amount of time.  By the end of three months I had accomplished much of what I had hoped and was about to get pretty bored.  In Nebraska I really struggled because I watched cute little Luna for half the day, but then the second half the day I didn't have a car, or the space to do anything I wanted.  Not to mention it was cold out.  Being trapped inside was AWFUL.  North Carolina brought three jobs and too much work.  I am definitely not cut our for retail hours.  Kudos to the people who can work nights and weekends, but that is time I want to be home with my hubby, not making barely over minimum wage.  So I cut back and ended up working around 30 hours a week and it was perfect.  My time at home was well spent and I was still making a decent income.

So much for "Happy Wife, Happy Life."  If Ryan is grumpy, it's not a pretty sight at the Sweeney household.  

I love you, babe, but we know this is true.  :)

Most recently, we have been learning what to do with our money.  

In preparation for earning real money for the first time in our lives, and not falling back on student loans, 

we signed up for Dave Ramsey's "Financial Peace University."  I gotta tell you, I am SO glad we did. 

It has been the motivating factor that both Ryan and I needed to save money and spend wisely.

Ryno has kept us sane and happy on many occasions.  I did NOT used to be an animal person.  

In fact, I hated animals.  It's true.  My college freshman roommates will tell you so.  

I still don't love animals, or even dogs, by any means.  But I sure do love my dog.  

When all else fails, he always makes us so happy.  If only we could just take him with us everywhere we went.

Heavenly Father's plan is better than our own.

I can say this all I want, but in the midst of a trial, it sure is hard to really believe it.  Six months ago, I said those words but I sure as heck could not see how everything was going to turn out in our best interest.  But now, in hindsight, we have been blessed incredibly this past year even thought it was not at all what we had in mind.  This also marks one year since I went off birth control.  As you obviously haven't seen any announcements, we are still without a baby.  For many, many, months this was the hardest challenge I have ever faced.  Especially as we've seen friend after friend all experience the joy of bringing a little one into this world.  This was definitely the year of babies, just not for us.  BUT, Heavenly Father probably knows that we may not have been as ready as we thought.  Finances would have been really tough, and we would have gotten by, but Ryan and I have never struggled with finances.  There has always been enough money.  This time around, there may not have been.  A new baby and no money may have been too much for us and the Man upstairs knew it.  So now, instead, we have each been blessed with full-time jobs and a beautiful home to prepare to bring a child into this world.  

Next, Ryan makes a great stay-at-home husband. He has been studying for boards while I work and the laundry is getting done, the house is clean, Ryno gets to go on a run almost every day, and all I have to do is cook (which lately has been the last thing I want to do).  Thankfully, Ryan is the sweetest husband and really means it when he says, "It's okay, I can find something to eat on my own.  You don't have to cook."  In the past year, we've had many make-shift meals of Mac & Cheese, cereal, Taco Bell, three different leftovers, and sometimes just chips and salsa.  I sure have a good man.

I still love graphic design and someday hope to really make some sort of a career out of it.  But,  I also love my current job.  I haven't announced it on the blog, yet, but I have been hired as the Resident Director (again) at my college dorms. I had this position when I was a grad student, but they have built new dorms since then and they are up to 26 Resident Assistants.  It was time to make the RD position full time and I am so happy to be able to do it.  I love the energy of 19-22 year old college students. And I work with some of the best ones out there.  While I will often have to be working overtime and into the weekend, I love the work.  I have been a much happier person and over all more fun since being back there.  Not to mention all the fun memories it bring back of my college days!

This is a super random one, but I've finally accepted that medicine is there for a purpose. 
I used to NEVER take ibuprofen or anything because it never removed my headaches or my pains.
But my body apparently hates me since being off of birth control and I get monthly migraines,
cramps, back spasms, etc and I am sold on Midol and ibuprofen. 
I guess there's a reason the rest of the world loves the stuff.

My aches and pains and this past year have also reminded us that we're getting old. 
The days of staying up past 10 p.m. on a regular basis are long gone. 
Heck, we're lucky if we make it to midnight on the weekends. 

That's really all I can think of for now.  I gotta say, if you really want to start pondering life.  

Take a long drive.  A REALLY long drive.  Ryan and I had some amazing heart-to-hearts discussing what struggles we faced as children and what we want for our kids, our list of "musts" for a house, if we are the people we want to be or thought we would be, baby names, finances, friends, family and so much more.  

All in all, I think this has been the fastest yet longest year of our life. At times, it feels like we just left North Carolina but at others, living in Arizona seems like a distant memory.

Here's to finally settling down.  We couldn't be more excited to finally have a HOME.  Ryan hasn't had a place to call home since he left for his mission in 2004 and I've been a bit of a gypsy since going to college in 2005.  Hence, why we had this hanging on our wall in North Carolina: