Yay for Good Samaritans!!

So today started out to be a horrible crazy day! I woke up late, had to rush around to get ready for work, had to make sure I fed and took Echo out. Once in my car I realized that I had no gas! Which is not a good thing with an hour long commute. So I head out to the gas station and hurry to fill up my tank. In my hurry, I placed my wallet on top of my car so that I could fill up the pump and then proceeded to put the nozzle away, grab my receipt, jump in the car and zoom off to work. When I finally get to work, I am following my routine, put on uniform shirt, grab cellphone, keys, clock-in card and wallet... WALLET?? WHERE IS MY WALLET?!? I tear my car apart look absolutely every where for it and can't find it. Go into work freaking out and walk into a hurricane of paper and people shouting. So I turn around and head back to the car where I disassemble the whole thing again looking for my wallet. Then it hits me! I put in on top of my car at the gas station. *GREEEEAT* Just what I need, to lose my wallet and not know where in the world it fell off my car.  So I go back into work, explain to my boss what happened, track down the phone number for the gas station. I call, and nada, can't find the wallet anywhere. The sweet lady recommends that I cancel all my cards, she is sure its a goner.
I however am not going to give up hope so quickly. I call up a friend and ask her to run down to the gas station and check for me to see if she can find it anywhere. (Thanks Lindsay! ) Again, nada. So I'm starting to feel really really really down in the dumps when I realize that my social security card and my stamps are in my wallet ( at this point I think that I am freaking out more about the stupid stamps than anything else... don't know why..but I was). At this point, I just decide to call Nathan, let him know what happened and pout for the rest of the day. I was working a late shift at the Lodge, so there really was nothing I could do in terms of going anywhere and looking for the wallet myself. I prepare myself to have a rough day, nothing seemed to be going right at work, everyone was really tense, and I couldn't handle much more drama as it was. So I decide to randomly check my email. There I found an email from Nathan that says I should call Frank (my father-in-law about my wallet).... Frank? what in the world would he know about my wallet? So I decide to call him up and find out what this was all about. It turns out, I was carrying a check in my wallet from Frank, that happened to have his telephone number on it. So the wonderful person who had picked up my wallet at the gas station called him to say he had found my wallet. Frank then continued to give me this persons name and phone number.
I give "Dan" a call and it turns out he had pulled into the gas station and seen my wallet laying there, found the only phone number in there and given it a call. Dan was so sweet that he said he would even deliver the wallet to me. He drove over to my house and put the wallet in the mail slot in the front door. So when I came home tonight, there it was!! My wallet and everything. When I opened it up all my cash was in there , including the check, all my stamps and cards. I felt such a rush of relief. Most of all I am soooo thankful for all the good Samaritans there are in this world! This man saved me a lot of unnecessary stress! So kudos to Dan for being so awesome!!!!!

For Our Friends and Family

Hey Everyone!
I know that we have been horrible about keeping in touch, so we decided that it would be best if we started a blog that way you could all have a window into the secluded lives of the Needham's! We have all been really busy lately. Nathan has been studying like crazy! I have been working like crazy! And both of us have been going crazy trying to keep up with Echo's shedding. Who knew that the hair is never ending!!!

When we moved to California we were very nervous! We didn't know what to expect and it turns out things are better than we could have hoped! We have met some really cool couples that we really enjoy spending time with.  It is so beautiful here! It is nice to be a hop, skip and jump away from the ocean. And the sunsets here are breathtakingly beautiful. I was fortunate enough to find a job in Big Sur, California. The only downside of the job is that it's a 1 hour drive down there. But again, the drive is so beautiful it makes the distance and time worth it. Big Sur is this 90 mile stretch of the coastline that is gorgeous, I have yet to see a coastline as breathtaking as this one.

 It is wonderful working in Big Sur, where you are surrounded by nothing more than natural beauty. Woods full of redwoods, pines, ferns, waterfalls and rivers! It is a little like Sequim, and no matter what the weather is around Big Sur, in Big Sur it is always gorgeous! If you are ever in California, Big Sur is a must see! We also went to Pfeiffer Beach which is full of these really cool rock formations that the waves crash through! Definitely a must see for sunset! On the drive down from Monterey, right before the Bixby Bridge on the left hand side is the "Old Coast Road" if you have a SUV or Jeep, I would recommend taking this drive down and come back up on the highway! It makes the trip a little longer, and quite a bit bumpier but the views from inland and BREATHTAKING!!! You come out on top of the El Sur Ranch and the view is AMAZING! Again! A must-do if you have the time and car!

Echo is loving it here! He gets to spend so much time with us as compared to before! Nathan leaves early in the morning for school, then I leave about mid-day for work and a couple hours later, Nathan is home. Echo's favorite thing to do here is to go down to Carmel and play at the beach. The beach there is very pet friendly and you will always find some kind of pooch frolicking around playing in the surf. Echo and I spent a good two hours there yesterday and then took a stroll through Carmel ( most shops in Carmel are pet friendly). Echo is still afraid of the waves, but its learning to enjoy them! From Carmel Beach you get a glimpse of the Pebble Beach golf course as well as more of that beautiful coastline! The cypress trees are also really cool.

Well thats the latest in the life of the Needham's! We plan on doing something new every weekend. Not sure what the plans are for this weekend, however if we do anything cool! We will let you know!
Toodles for now!
Love,
Nathan and Monica