Yelm, Washington

Wow, where to begin. So much has happened since we moved to Washington. So far so good. Jared is getting settled into Fort Lewis, and I am getting settled into my new job at Print NW. I work in Tacoma at Print NW as the Receptionist and Accounting Assistant. I love it!! The accounting part is taking some time for me to learn, but I have some great co-workers who are really patient with me. Some days are really overwhelming, but I am just grateful to have a job. The weeks have been flying! I can't believe we have already been here for two months. Yelm already feels like our home. Our house is beautiful, and we love everything about it. (I will post pictures soon) It does get kinda lonely when Jared goes on night jumps for work though.

One of my favorite parts about Yelm is the ward. I feel very grateful that we are part of such a great ward family. The first five minutes of Jared and I walking in, the Bishop's wife and the Relief Society President were right there to greet us before we even got a chance to sit down. I was so worried that we wouldn't fit in. I know that people say the ward is whatever you make it, but I feel like that is not entirely true. I was not a fan of our last ward in Colorado. I honestly tried to fit in and make friends, and go to church every Sunday. Going to church just felt like a trial, and it felt like I had to, instead of get the opportunity to. I was hoping and praying that I would have a good experience in this ward. I know the church is true wherever we go, but it is sometimes hard for me to go to church alone. I feel like a need a good support system to keep me on the right track. I know that things happen for a reason. After talking to my Bishop, he said that the ward was fasting for new families to move into the ward. Our ward is extremely small, and they had way more callings than people to fill them. The Bishop told me that we were an answer to their prayers. Everyone is so sweet, and I always feel welcome there. They respect Jared's wishes of not going, but still want him to feel welcome and accepted. Our neighbors Ben and Amy Montoya are also members. They are amazing!!! Ben is an Officer in the military, but such a down-to-earth guy. Amy stays at home with the kids, and is the Primary President. She loves to watch Friends...we were meant to be neighbors and best friends forever. They both are great examples of the gospel. With a great ward family, and great neighbors, I feel very blessed in Yelm.

Speaking of church things. I got a new calling! I am so excited for this new adventure. I just got called as the Laurel Adviser!! I am so excited to serve! Nervous? YES! The Presidency is great too. There are maybe only 6 girls though. I am getting set apart this Sunday after Sacrament Meeting. My first lesson in Young Women's is on the 16th. I better get preparing now!

Staff Sgt. Wright

On my last post, I posted about Jared passing the board. He studied for such a long time, and he was so happy when he found out he passed. He just had to wait until he got enough points. Last week he hollered down at me to come upstairs to look at something on the computer. I was right in the middle of doing something and didn't want to come upstairs just yet...but no he convinced me of running upstairs. He told me to read the name on the screen. Once I saw STAFF SGT. JARED SCOTT WRIGHT I immediately knew he got promoted!!! I am so proud of him. Jared works really hard, and he is not one to brag about his accomplishments. If there was a Texas Roadhouse in Washington, we would have gone there for dinner. Instead, we went to Cabelas (again) to celebrate!

Studying DOES pay off

I am a few weeks late of writing about this, but it is better late than never. Jared was studying for a good solid month for the Promotion Board. He is a Sgt. now, but he is getting promoted to Staff Sgt. (E5 to E6). He was hoping that he would get promoted while he was in Afghanistan, but they said he had to wait until they got back. The Army makes you go the Board if you are getting promoted to E5 or E6. All this means is that you study a HUGE binder full of random Army information (about the Army/US/State flags, Army history, US history, Army uniform, etc). The board members are high ranking (1st Sgt. and above). They each will ask a few questions to the soldier from any section of the binder. It can be very stressful if you are not prepared for it. Jared on the other hand was VERY prepared. He retains information very well, and he does very well at studying for things like this. I could tell he was a little nervous for it, but I knew he was going to be just fine. I am so impressed of how he handles his stress (much better than how I handle things). I was SOOOO sad I missed him wearing his nice uniform. I have yet to see him in person wearing it. The soldier can be in there anywhere from 5-50 minutes. Pretty much the quicker you are, the better. Jared was only in there for 15 minutes this time....HE PASSED!! I am so proud of him!! He now just has to wait until he gets enough "points" to be officially promoted. He will find out in about another week. This will mean more money for housing, food, and a better base pay. I am totally ok with that. That would be amazing for the new move to Fort Lewis!

Moving!

Jared and I feel very blessed of how everything has worked out these past few weeks and month. We really wanted to stay very organized and stay on top of our "moving check list". A lot of our Army friends have told us some pointers on how to help make the move less stressful. We have broken down the list and split it up into four weeks. Every week we just make sure that we get those things taken care of. We are working together to finish it, but we also split up some responsibilities as well. Jared is doing all the Army paperwork...and trust me...IT IS A LOT! I had no idea how much stuff he has to fill out in order to be transfered. He had to organize all his Army equipment, then return most of it to Ft. Carson. All he has to do with the Army now is sign out of Ft. Carson on Sept. 26th, and report to Ft. Lewis on October 10th.

My main responsibilities have been getting the new house in Tacoma, and getting our current house rented out. I went with my dad to Washington last week to house hunting. Honestly, I didn't want to go with anyone else except for my dad. Jared couldn't take the time off work, so it was just a really fun filled road trip with my dad. We spent four days in Washington, and we stayed at one of the Hamptons. I am really going to miss working at a hotel. My rate per night was $29...wow I am never going to find that great of a deal anywhere else! After many hours of looking and after a few different realitors, we finally found the perfect house for us! We live about 22 minutes away from post, but it is worth it. There is a small little city called Yelm. Only about 6,800 people there. It is perfect for us!! I even called the bishop and found out where the church building is, and what time church starts. Find the perfect house in Yelm...CHECK!

My second big worry was trying to find someone to rent out our house in Fountain. We had it on the market to rent for 22 days, and I was really starting to worry that we would be paying double morgages..NOT OK. We showed the house a few days ago, and a cute Army family fell in love with it. They put in their application and the next day our property management company called and said that it was approved. The couple is moving in on October 1st...Find renters for our house...CHECK!

With those two things done, I feel much more relaxed. Keep in mind that Jared and I are both working full time until the day we leave. Moving is expensive...even though they pay us to move, it doesn't hurt to just keep saving as much as we can. We are down to just the smaller things now. We just have to cancel our ADT security system, cancel Comcast, change addresses, etc. Some of that stuff we can't do til a few days before we move anyway. Blessed is the only word I can say right now. We are very grateful for the low stress!! We are both very excited for the new move. Washington here we come!!

Jake Billingsly

Working at a hotel definately has its advantages. I actually had to work an Audit shift last week to help out another co-worker. It was 6:00am and I was just finishing my night, when I noticed this nice older couple eating breakfast (no one else was in the room except for them). I had everything finished, so I went over and started chatting with them for about 15 minutes. He is wearing a survivor hat, and he brought up the fact that he was on the show Survivor! I was like WHAT? Then it hit me who he was. It was "Jake" from Season 5! He always wore a cowboy hat and everyone loved him on the show. I was a little shy about asking him for a picture, but then I thought what the heck..I will never see him again! I look terrible in the picture though, but I was happy I at least got one with him. He was SO sweet and very friendly. He was telling me all about how the show behind the scenes were, and about the people on the show. That year that he was on Survivor, the show won an Oscar (or whatever award it's called) So since he was one of the top ones left (he almost won it that year) he got to walk across the stage. They gave him 10 grand just for walking across! I thought that was pretty sweet. He gave me his signed Survivor picture and wrote "To Katelyn, allows follow your dreams". I guess he is now a motivation speaker. So glad I met him :)

Bronco Football Game

Jared and I have been wanting to go to a Denver Bronco's football game for a while now. It was the top of our "Colorado Bucket List", so we figured since we are moving next month that now was the only time for us to go. It was only a pre-season game, but it was P. Manning's first game playing for the Broncos. We actually got our tickets really cheap too (which made the game seem even better!). They save a section for military, so our tickets were only $55/person instead of $470....KILLER DEAL! I was shocked when I found out how cheap they were for military. By the time we paid for our tickets, parking, and nachos at half time, we were under $150. Not too bad for an NFL game. The only bad thing was that the Broncos played like CRAP! The first half was pretty exciting, but the second half was so boring. Of course, by that time, 2nd and 3rd string players were in. We didn't see too much of Manning. We were so happy to go have fun together. Jared's mom gave us Bronco t-shirts for Christmas, so that was fun to actually were them to a game. We really are going to miss Colorado. I hope Washington will be as good to us as Colorado was.

Wright Family Pictures 2012