November/December 2018

What a crazy few months these have been! I don’t even know where to start…

November

1. Lunch with the Shumways

We started the month off by meeting the whole Shumway clan for lunch at Rubios. It’s always so fun getting together with them! This was the first time the littles were meeting Harper and they fell in love!! I mean look at these pictures…

2. Harper’s Blessing

What a special day. Mom and Dad were able to fly in for the blessing and the Shumways came to our ward for the event. Sean gave Harper such a beautiful blessing, she is so lucky to have him as her daddy. It was a really special moment for our family and one that we will always remember. We were sad we couldn’t have more of our family here for it, but are grateful that my parents and the Shumways (who are basically family) could make it. Harper was pretty cute as well.

3. I FINISHED SCHOOL!!!

I had my last day of clinicals EVER on November 7th. It was such a surreal moment walking out of the clinic knowing I didn’t have to go back! Beyond just the ectasy of being done I was so proud of all I had accomplished over the past 2 1/2 years, particularly the last 10 months. After finishing clinicals I took a few days off and then spent the next week holed up in the office studying for my exit exam…aka the BIGGEST test of my life. Basically if I didn’t pass I would have to repeat the class including all the clinical hours and assignments, which would have been the death of me. So thankfully Sean took Harper for that week and I spent 10+ hours a day studying for this exam. And the day finally came on November 20 and I PASSED! Not only did I pass, but I did A LOT better than I needed to or even expected to! It was such a relief/blessing. Now it was time to study for the boards…

4. Harper turned 2 months

Where did the time go?!? It’s crazy to me that she’s already 2 months old…I can’t even imagine what it will be like when she’s two years old!! This girl is so sweet though and we just cannot get enough of her!! See Harper Rose post for pictures.

5. California Trip

When I was eight years old we moved from Oregon down to San Diego, it was a hard move for me because of all the friends I was leaving. What I didn’t know then was that I was moving across the street from someone who would become not only one of my greatest friends, but more like a sister. So when she got engaged and asked me to be her Matron of Honor I felt so honored/blessed to be able to do this. So Sean and I packed our two month old and out to San Diego we went!! See Emily’s Wedding post for more details.

December

1. Sean’s Shark

Back in August Sean went deep sea fishing with my Dad and Dan while they were out in Florida visiting us. While out he caught a HAMMERHEAD SHARK!! Seriously, he reeled in a 9ft hammerhead shark! And in the heat of the moment he decided it would be a good idea to get a taxidermy of the shark. So fast forward to December and a few too much $$ and Sean has to rent a uhaul van to go pick up his 9ft taxidermy shark. So now whenever we move/buy a house we need to consider where we’re going to hang the shark. True story.

2. I PASSED MY BOARDS!!!

I officially became Katie Stevenson FNP-C. It was the hardest test I’ve ever taken and the most stressed I’ve ever been. But seeing the PASSED on my paper was also one of the most proud moments of my life! It was so exciting driving home knowing I had accomplished this goal of mine and I would not have been able to do any of it without my family. And when I got home Sean had a waterfall of balloons waiting for me!! Now we’ll see what the future holds!

3. Ward Christmas Party

We love the Coconut Creek Ward and love the Christmas parties! It was so fun having Harper there with us and seeing some of the Young Women I taught through the years! Plus we obviously won the gingerbread making contest!!

4. Photography Lessons

I’m grateful Jessica is so so talented at photography because she has been teaching me how to take pictures with this new camera. It’s so fun! I’m definitely not the best, but I enjoy practicing and look forward to getting better. (Harper may get sick of all the photos, but oh well).

5. Harper turned 3 months

I can’t believe Harper is 3 months old!! Blows my mind! She is getting so big and fun and is already traveling so much! She went to San Diego last month and she is heading to Hawaii with Sean’s family this month (we’ll see how that goes). We love this little girl so much though!!