Our first pick is....

SALEM, OR

We have made a choice of where my first nursing assignment will be.  We wanted to go to Oregon for a few reasons.  First, it's close to family (here we come Uncle Danny, Aunt Janet and Rosemary!), second the summer months should be really nice, third I have a nursing license in that state and fourth we haven't spent much time there and want to go exploring new places!
There were a couple of places we wanted in Oregon, but because of our behemoth of a trailer (hence C.O.W.), we were limited on what RV parks could accommodate us.  We were given options like Hood River, Seaside, Newport, Lebanon, Kalamath Falls and Baker City.  There are so many places to go!  I did a phone interview with a position in Salem, and got it really quick, so here is where it will begin for us.  My assignment will be for 13 weeks which should give us a good time frame to taste what Oregon has to offer (Andre hopes there's Cheeseburgers!).  We are looking forward to traveling all over when I'm not working.  We've got to start planning these adventures!
Meanwhile, we are continuing to enjoy our trailer lifestyle.  Recently, we had the pleasure to have our neighbors help us out.  Alex is learning the guitar, and our RV neighbor just happened to mention that he plays.  Coincidence???  Our friendly neighbor taught Alex some chords and played with him the other night as well as gave us a taste of Karaoke.  We hope the others in the RV resort didn't mind the flat-tuned songs that were sung by the Grosdidier's.    It was the stereotypical camping-nighttime-neighborly-activity-(with electricity)! (Thanks Bill and Lisa!).  We hope that Alex will be jamming soon, and you never know who we might meet while on the road!

Kind of hard to see, but it's Alex and Bill

Still here in CA

We are all getting used to living in closer quarters.  We have adjusted to turning off the water to lather up when taking a shower, making sure that we flush with enough water, and ensure that the holding tanks are empty!  There haven't been many mishaps of living in a trailer yet.  Yes, it rocks when someone walks around and you are trying to sleep (wink wink!) or the oven is often too hot and the cookies end up getting burned.  We are having our normal functions of household life though, so there is comfort in knowing that no matter what we are in, we can still put our mark on it and have the familiarity of sticks and bricks living.  Having a back area with a closed door makes it easier for the boys to play their games or enjoy the back patio and sunshine and it closes them off to us and their noise!.  We are still getting used to where everything is that we have placed in the trailer.  There just isn't enough room for the things you need to put in the right spots (Wine is in the bedroom...where else?).  The boys say that we need to make a map so we know where we have stashed things!
Living in the RV resort has been good so far.  We have met some interesting people who have shared their travel experiences with us.  The ebb and flow of the RV resort is interesting too, always giving us a reason to take a stroll around to check out new rigs and see who has recently vacated or come into the resort.  We are spending our days taking the dog for a long walks, as well as getting the kids to/from school and me to/from work (done on a scooter!). Being so close to the beach, we taking a lot of walks right beside the beach and catching some beautiful sunsets.  There are parrots that come out in the morning and evening which catch our attention by their awkward sounding squawks.  There must be an apartment nearby that houses them. 

Beautiful California Sunset!

We have been eye-ing some potential travel nursing positions in Oregon for our first long stop on our journey which should begin the end of June, or beginning of July.  I am hoping that by next week I will hear more about who needs what and where/when, so I can apply for some of these jobs.  We still have a month left here in Oceanside before we depart, still waiting for school to finish for the boys.  All of us are eager to get this adventure on the road!

See you on the road!