In 1975, following some groundwork, I moved to Enumclaw, WA, to raise my boys in a small city. I was lucky to be able to stay-at-home mom until 1982 when I went back to work on the night shift in a nursing home - a 13 year spell. I took a two year break from nursing, got a paper route to pay most of the bills. Went back into nursing working in kidney dialysis in Seattle for 10 years and returned in August '08.
Enumclaw remains “home” for me (think Mt Rainier instead of Susitna and Cascade foothills instead of Chugach range) - it just feels right. I fell into local politics for almost 20 years, added a second story (mostly finished) to the house, and collected tons of stuff which I'm now faced with sorting/organizing/disposing so I can downsize. Son Jim teaches math and is assistant wrestling coach at Cleveland HS in Portland, OR and will marry Amy in July much to my delight. Son Jon ended up going to med school, is completing residency in Columbia, SC, and will be moving to Columbus, OH, for a fellowship.
I'm looking forward to crossing things off my bucket list while adding more, doing volunteer work sometimes combined with some more traveling, and treasuring slow mornings at home with the Seattle Times and the daily Sudoku. Life is good and I am blessed…….Anne