Continuing Education

It is on to a new type of adventure for Chad and I. The past year and a half, give or take a month or two have been very busy. I decided to go back to school and get my Master's Degree in Occupational Therapy. Easier said than done, I hold a Communication Studies degree so I had few of the required courses to apply to the program. It was required to have courses in Anatomy , Psychology, Statistics, and the two random courses in Physics and Human Biology among others.

On top of that the application process was challenging. I applied to several schools to increase my chances of acceptance and in order to do so I had to meet the varied criteria for application for seven different programs including separate essays, classes, job shadowing, and volunteering plus reference letters from former employers, OTs, and professors. It was an interesting journey but in the end rewarding as I was accepted to several of the schools. Even though Chad and I were prepared to move as far away as Wyoming to make my new career possible we ended up right where we started and I will be attending the University of Minnesota program.

We are very excited for a few reasons. One, the program is the shortest of all the schools I applied to, I could potentially be working around this time 2014. Two, it starts in September, so I have a few months to catch my breath and work before I dive into the program, most programs started in May and June. Three, the program is a hybrid of online courses and on site training but mostly online which is kind of a nice option. Four, it is my alma mater so I am very excited to continue with the UMN.

I am sure some of you were not sure what I've been doing the past few years and were confused as to what classes I was taking and now it is official that all my hard work and preparation will pay off as I was accepted to the Master's program. Hopefully, this will also explain why in the next two years to come I am not going to be available for trips or anything fun! It will all be worth it in the end, I just know it.

SW Road Trip: Mesa Verde, Ouray, and Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Can you believe I am still talking about this road trip? Well, I must finish what I've started. The final day of our SW road trip included an amazing drive and night north of Durango, CO. The town of Ouray (pr. you ray) is the cutest place ever with some AMAZING views, hot springs, and canyons. Apparently, Box Canyon is world renowned for it's ice climbing and ancient history. All we know is after our fearful, icy drive on the $2 million highway we landed in Ouray and were happy we did. We arrived late in the evening, it was pitch black and the roads were slick, fortunately there were hotel rooms available, unfortunately no one in town served food after 9 o'clock. Gas station pizza and a beer at the local pub cured us for the night and our next day was great. It was drizzling, but we still were able to soak in the hot springs, hike around Box Canyon, and visit the local museum. Very interesting mining town history and I would love to stay here again.

We had to get moving though because it was tough to say how long a drive it would be back to Winter Park and we had to be in MN the next day. One more National Park to hit and we'd be on our way. The Black Canyon of the Gunnison is just a few miles east of Montrose and even though we were only making a quick stop it was worth the drive. All of the national parks have a movie you can watch to learn more about the area, history, and landscape. This one was crazy. This canyon is deep and the river is dangerous yet with little advanced equipment pioneers were determined to explore the river and not many lived to tell the tale. My pictures do not do it justice and Chad and I will return to spend more time in this area. It's awesome.

Our drive took us through some amazing landscape and back through Glenwood Springs. We'd been to this area years ago when we flew to Colorado for a wedding. The size of this town has more than doubled but is still a desirable area. I'd recommend the trip.

Several hours later we made it to Winter Park. We fell fast asleep with the knowledge we had a sixteen hour drive to make home with all of our stuff the next day and the worst of it we were leaving Colorado and the West behind. Hopefully, we will return and possibly make one of these areas our home. Only time will tell!!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

We truly wish everyone a happy and healthy new year.

With love, Chad and Christina Sears

SW Road Trip: Arches National Park and 4X4 Trip

We woke up in Moab, UT and knew it would be a great day because there is so much to see and do. We sat down for breakfast to plan our day but couldn't decide what to do so we went to the Visitor Center and took their recommendations. It's what you do when you only have one day to do it all.

First on the list was a drive through Arches National Park with a short hike to Landscape Arch. It was already busy as we couldn't even find a place to park. This is the downside of popular parks. The upside is incredible views and landscapes.

To beat the crowd after our hike we drove off the highway and down a random dirt road. We thought we would be brave but lost our nerve when we saw the "road". So we turned around, left the park, and regrouped for the off-roading trail we had planned outside the park for later that day.




Once we refueled and regrouped we followed the directions we had been given and headed out of town. The pictures really say it all. It started out and looked easy enough but we were a little nervous for what was ahead. We were still learning how our Land Rover works off-road when navigating over rocks and up steep inclines. We really wanted to do it though because, hey, we own a Land Rover and we know it is sick of city streets. Plus, the vehicle has all these neat features provided exclusively for trips just like this one.

We started heading up and up and the road was narrow and going up and up and it was ROCKY. Don't forget there are people heading down and we needed to share the road. We were a little hyped up but when we saw that rock over the road we weren't sure. The only thing is, how would we turn around if it got to be too much? Well, we couldn't so onward we went. We made it and it was awesome. Fortunately, another vehicle came by and we were able to watch them climb the rocky road and gave us the nerve to barrel through. Sometimes it’s nice to watch how it's done and it totally helped.

The views were amazing and we felt accomplished. If you ever get to Moab you gotta do it. Either use your own 4X4 or rent one. You won't regret it.

This was a long day, we drove through Dead Horse Point State Park, Canyonlands National Park, and then drove to Cortez, Colorado to spend the night where we even had time to try some local brew and prepare for another day.