Bush send-off

We were honored yesterday to be able to attend the send-off of former Presidnet Bush at Andrews Air Force Base. Historically, each former President flys on Air Force One for the last time following the inaguration of the suceeding President to his destination of choice. In this case, the Bushes were headed to Texas, and they invited a crowd to help send them off. It was such a neat day and a wonderful way to honor a President that has kept our country safe for the last 8 years. We will always consider it the most amazing professional experience to have served in his Administration, and we are so proud of the achievements of the last 8 years.

There was a crowd of about 500 people who were in the hangar. Mostly friends of the former first family and political appointees.

They had big screens set up in the hangar where we watched the inaguaration of President Obama.

We then watched the TV coverage of former President Bush land at Andrews in Marie One. We all cheered when he walked out of the helicopter.

As you can imagine, he recieved a VERY warm welcome by this crowd. Former VP Cheney spoke, follow by former Pres Bush. Lynne and Laura joined them onstage.

His sentiments on looking forward to being back in Texas were near and dear to my heart. Who doesn't want to be back in Texas, anyway? :)

There were cheers and tears when he and Mrs. Bush boarded Air Force one for the last time. What an amazing piece of history to be able to witness!

Happy Birthday Norman!

Yesterday was Norman's birthday! It's hard to believe that our sweet boy is already one year old! It seems like just yesterday that we brought home our fuzzy, cuddly little guy from the breeder. That same "little" guy now weighs 105 lbs and is FULL of energy! He's been the perfect addition to our growing family... although we are a bit worried about his transition to "big brother" once Baby Harper arrives, as he quite enjoys all the attention he gets!


The little fella that we brought home in March...

...and the handsome boy that he's become!

Here are some highlights for the little birthday party we had for him. Norman asked his best friend Cooper (Laurie's Golden) to come over for presents, cake, and a sleepover.


Norman's "loot" and his frosted doggie bone with sprinkles and one candle.


Norman (and Coop) eager to tear into the new birthday toys.

Norm LOVED his birthday bone...

... but was willing to share it with Cooper (although seemed to have second thoughts later about his decision to share).

Sprint to the Finish Party

We got invited to a fun party that Bush Chiefs-of-Staff Josh Bolton and Andy Card hosted to celebrate the "sprint to the finish". This was Josh Bolton's motto for those of us who stayed in the Administration until the end, encouraging us to use our time wisely and effectively right up until the last day. And it sure was a sprint to the finish.... I was crazy busy at HHS even on my very last day! So it was a great reason to celebrate all the hard work and hang out with many of our Administration buddies.


All smiles to be celebrating the accomplishments of the last 8 years and a terrific President.


They did not tell us in advance that President and Mrs. Bush would be stopping by. What a fun surprise. (Sorry about my crappy picture quality... it was dark).

Joel with our buds Nathan Sales and Al Lambert.

My kind of crowd... still VERY proud to be "W" supporters.

There were lots of Administration "celebrities" in the crowd. We even snapped a quick pic with Karl Rove! Check out his casual attire.... sporting a hat from the '04 campaign.

Retirement!

Today was my last day of work! With the new Administration, all political appointees automatically lose their jobs, so both Joel and I are now officially unemployed. YIKES! We've known this is coming, so have been planning/saving/praying for months to prepare for this transition. It doesn't necessarily mean that its any less scary, but we are confident in the Lord's provision for our family. Joel is knee-deep in job searching (more about this in a future post) so we aren't really celebrating his "retirement" per se. But as for me, I will be staying home with Baby Harper in February so it truly does feel like retirement in a way!

I have been incredibly blessed with amazing professional opportunities since finishing graduate school in 2001. I moved to Washington on September 10, 2001 without a job, just in time to witness first-hand the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon. In fact, I watched the smoke billow out of the Pentagon for days from my brand-new apartment in Alexandria, VA and wondered what on earth I had just done. God provided and within a week, I had a great job as a research assistant at The Heritage Foundation, one of the leading think tanks in the country (and my perfect ideological home!). After 2 years, I was promoted to a policy analyst where I could research, write, and speak about issues I really cared about like poverty, family, welfare, and the culture of life. I had awesome opportunities to even be on TV and radio, which was SO much fun.

After 4 wonderful years at the Heritage Foundation, the professional opportunity of a lifetime came about to work at the White House Domestic Policy Council. In God's amazing provision, this job found me while I was not even looking to leave. Although it was the hardest and most intense job I've ever done, it was the most amazing experience to serve President Bush and see the inner-workings of the White House. The work was incredibly exciting, rewarding, and fulfilling, but boy the hours were LONG! After about 2 years at the White House, God again opened another wonderful professional door for me. I left the White House to continue my service to President Bush from the Department of Health and Human Services. I had the fantastic opportunity to be the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, where I managed a staff of 35 and a budget of $10 million in research and evaluation projects for the human service portfolio of the Department. The work was so much fun, and I cannot even begin to comprehend how much I learned in this job. But my learning curve didn't stop. Last October, my old boss at the White House (who was now the Deputy Secretary, or the #2 guy at HHS) recruited me to come work for him. So for the last few months of the Bush Administration, I served as as policy advisor in the Deputy Secretary's office, which was so much fun and exposed me to so many of the larger health issues in the Department. It was a crazy last few months, working some very long days, but well worth it to finish strong and wrap up many of the important initiatives of the Bush Administration.

While I am thrilled beyond belief to become a mommy and be able to stay home with Harper, I am definitely bittersweet about my amazing professional life coming to a close for awhile. Maybe not forever, and I am praying that God will reveal ways for me to use all the things I've learned over the last 8 years to make a difference to the issues I care deeply for. Perhaps some part-time things or consulting will emerge down the road. (After having been working in the thick of things for so long, it will be hard to resist staying out of the fights that are sure to ensue over many of the issues I've worked on!) So while I don't know what the future holds for me professionally, I am trusting God to use the gifts and talents He has given me for His glory.

In the meantime, I am VERY excited about my new career as a mommy. While the hours will be longer and the pay lower than any job I've ever had, I know it is a HUGE promotion!

Toasting (sparkling cider) to 8 fantastic years of professional opportunities and to my new promotion as a mommy!

Sooner Baby

Despite the bad outcome for our Sooners last night, I still thought I would post a picture of the in-utereo OU indoctrination that is happening for Baby Harper. She will have no choice but to grow up as an Sooner fan, and has even been to multiple OU watch parties before she was born. She was trooper last night at the National Championship game, even tolerating mommy and daddy's very bad moods when the game ended. She'll be born by March Madness, so let's hope having her here will bring better luck for the Sooners! (The cute shirt, by the way, is courtesy of my mother-in-law... thanks Suzanne!)