Back East

We pictured our trip back East, similar to that of when we first came out to Bend.  We pictured the same emotions of excitement to see something new and driving on never ending roads. We pictured the kids happily watching movies in the back sit while we talked about everything and anything up front.  We thought it would be the same, but it wasn't.  It was actually a lot harder this time around.  Autumn wanted a snack about every 5 minutes.  Someone had to stop and pee almost every 45 minutes, myself included.  We just never seemed to be making any head way.

On the road again..

Autumn finding time for a nap..

We decided to drive as far south as possible to avoid any and all winter storms.  After leaving Bend we drove all the way to Tonopah, Nevada. It was the only hotel we could find between Reno and Vegas.  We probably pushed it a little too much the first day with driving.  We basically rolled into he hotel with a screaming 3 year old, a restless 7 year old and two very, very over exhausted parents.  Needless to say we hit the pillows hard that night.  Next stop ended up being only about 4 hours away when Josslyn started to feel car sick. VEGAS BABY! We found a reasonable hotel for the night and spent the day at the pool so the kids had a break from driving.  We couldn't do another crazy day like the one prior.  And in the Southwest all the stops seem so far apart.  After spending a night in crazy Vegas, we started getting serious about driving.  We decided to make our next big stop, New Orleans.  It took about 2 long days of travel to final reach one of my favorite cities in this country.  

N'awlins!!!!!  Cheers!!

Josslyn enjoying her first meal in the Big Easy.  

Oysters, gumbo and bbq shrimp.  What a meal!!

Love the cemeteries in New Orleans.  Mysterious and macabre, yet lovely and peaceful at the same time.

Joss collecting flowers she found on the ground along the way.

Loving the crocodiles in N'awlins

Autumn trying to steal one, but getting caught by the cashier.  She is always up to no good this one.

The biggest beads ever!

Filming NCIS New Orleans.  Josslyn was thrilled to watch this.  She so wants to be on TV.  

A rare family photo.

Precious moments.

Erik giving them a little Sunday School lesson.

Dancing in the streets to some jazz music

Cafe du Monde..  Best coffee ever and I am not even a coffee drinker..

Autumn seems to have loved the beignets.  Ha ha

After we left New Orleans we started heading North.  I couldn't believe we were already this far East to be able to head North to NJ, which is where we were going to see family for a couple of weeks.  As the scenery changed to that of what we once knew, it all became so surreal to actually be back East again.  Even though we were only gone for two years, the feelings I felt were as if I hadn't been back for 10 years or more.  It felt so exciting and fresh again.  I started seeing things with new eyes and was thrilled to be apart of it all again.  I wished at that moment I would always see things as if I were seeing them for the first time and would never take it for granted as I did before I had left.  I made a vow to be awe-inspired by the scenery no matter where I lived and to be grateful every day.  

Saying Good Bye

As I sit here ready to write the next post about our journey back across country, I have stumbled upon lots of pictures from our trip and have become teary eyed and choked up.  Mostly because of the happiness and love I feel as I look at how little the girls were when we started two years ago and how much they have grown since.  But also because of the sadness to leave this part of the country, for now and for how quick life goes by, even when you TRY to slow it down.  These are tears of accomplishment for having done such a trip and it actually being successful.  Tears of knowing that there is not one bit of regret for having taken this break in our lives.  And tears of knowing we learned that happiness can not be found in a place, but has always been there, we just needed to realize that.  

All packed up! AGAIN!  It was definitely easier this time around to pack up everything, since most of our stuff was still in boxes and since we had already gave away most of our things before we had left the first time.  Thankfully we also didn't accumulate anything extra while in Bend. 

  Saying good bye to the wondrous scenery was much easier than saying good bye to all our new friends.  

Here is the only picture I had taken of us saying good bye to people.  I really am not fond of saying good bye.  It's too final.  It means things are coming to a close and that's not how I wanted to leave Bend.  I wanted to keep that door open forever.  We always said that we moved to Bend because of the people first, and the outdoors and scenery second.  And it held true the entire time we lived there.  The people here are unlike any other place we have lived.  So welcoming and open hearted.  Thank you to everyone who was a part of our lives while we lived in Bend.  You made Bend so special and hard to leave.  

Life is a Never Ending Journey

When we moved to Bend, we pictured our journey coming to some sort of close with nothing but blue skies ahead, literally.  We pictured being settled with only the worries of which majestic mountain we would hike in the spring or which emerald colored, crystal clear lake we would visit on a hot summer day.  Which outdoor music concert we would attend on a lazy Sunday afternoon or which fabulous restaurant Erik and I would walk to on our date night.  Whether to walk to the "Lot," a place with heated seats, delicious food trucks and of course beer on tap, or go to an outdoor brewery to just sit and relax while sipping on the most sublime beer and watching the kids run around getting tired under a setting sun that is about to hide itself behind the three sister mountains in the distance.

This is how it was all SUPPOSED to go down. But the universe knew different.  Bend was not to be our home.  It was just a lay over.  Long story short, Erik was offered an amazing opportunity back East in Boston that we thought long and hard over.  It was an opportunity that would allows us to hop in the car, instead of a plane (a 12 hour journey when you include all the lay overs and driving across the mountains) to see our family whenever we wanted to.  An opportunity to see another part of this incredible country.  A place where jobs are plentiful and the fear of being without one is quickly diminished.  A place filled with the richness of history and the scent of the salty ocean all in one.  Boston, in the end just made more sense for us at this point and came at a time that allowed for us to enjoy a WHOLE YEAR in beautiful Bend.  The memories will always be there as will the opportunity to visit at any time.  It was with a very heavy heart, yet also with excitement in our guts, that we boxed up our lives yet once again, still exhausted from just unpacking not too long ago.  One of the greatest gifts from this trip, so far (because it is not even close to being over) is being able to expect the unexpected and to give it a big bear hug instead of running from it.  It has afforded us priceless time spent with each other that in the "real" world would never have happened.  We feel that our journey has prepared us to EMBRACE such life changes with open arms and open hearts.  Especially Josslyn and Autumn.  They are so strong and so accepting of change.  They are two very incredible girls who have taught us so much, maybe even more than the actual journey itself.  I couldn't be more proud of them.  And as the journey continues, both on the road and off, I feel so fortunate and excited for what lies ahead.  

Winter Wonderland

Winter in Bend is unpredictable.  It can be a snow storm one day and then sunny and spring-like the next.  One of the many reasons we moved there.

This was our one and only snow storm this winter here in Bend.  Auty is a little confused I think, on what to wear.  Or maybe she just loves to run around in bathing suits as her everyday attire regardless of what season it may be.

                                                

Joss catching snow flakes in her mouth.  Oh, the and excitement and amazement the first snow always brings.  I love it!

In Bend, Santa comes in on a helicopter.  It was a little nerve racking waiting for him while the rain came down and the winds blew pretty hard.  Didn't think he was going to make it.  Then when we saw him coming from afar, we were a little scared again that maybe he wouldn't make it to the ground safely.  Unlike most, we stayed far away until the helicopter safely landed before we went over to give hugs.  Only in Bend.

The look of excitement on both their faces in priceless.

Out of the whole crowd, Auty gets picked up by Santa and gets the biggest hug ever.  She was SO excited!  She didn't stop talking about Santa for weeks after that.

There's the Big and Burly Erik ready to cut down our first ever, fresh cut, Christmas tree.  You pay only $5 to get a permit to go to the forest and cut down any tree to take home with you.  

After about an hour of searching and almost getting lost, we finally found our tree!  A family photo moment for sure, even Nana was there!

The tree looked a lot smaller in the forest than when we got it home.  But it worked perfect!  It never lost a pine needle and the kids decorated it perfectly.  Our favorite tree of all time.

If we sent out Christmas photos this year, it would have been this one.  But time ran away from me and it just never happened.  

A couple pics of Christmas morning.  Auty loving her Elsa doll, which I am sure was a hot seller this year.

And Joss was psyched to open up her Tinker Bell movie. All was right on this Christmas morning.  

During winter break we took a hike at Smith Rock Park.  It was only 25 degrees out but so worth it.  As the kids, Nana and Erik hiked our usual hike I decided to take a more intense hike alone up to the top.  It's a hike the kids would not be able to do at this time and Erik would never do ever.  :)

The view of Monkey Face.  I had heard so much about this view and finally got to see it.  It was just as amazing as I had hoped.

Another view from the top.  I didn't want to leave.

Josslyn singing at first Christmas Choir Show.  She did wonderful and as always, felt very comfortable on stage.  

While Autumn was at school, we decided to take Josslyn ice skating for the first time.  She started off a little shaky but...

Ended up loving it and doing wonderful.  She is a very determined and courageous little girl.  I hope she never loses that.

Autumn's first ballet show.  She seriously was the star of the show and did not want to leave the stage.  

Love the hip movement for her final pose of the night.  So sassy.

We have done lots so far this winter and much more excitement is on its way.  It's time to rest up while we can.  So sweet. 

Fall Firsts

Fall is here!  So excited!  Although we spent a couple weeks of fall, here in Bend last year, we couldn't wait to be here for the whole season. 

Joss all ready for she second day of school, but her first day on the school bus!  She was so excited and of course a little nervous.  I am so proud of her.

Just enjoying each other before the bus arrives..

The waiting was the hardest part.  Lots of mixed emotions going on here.  

A very proud moment for all.

Auty's first day of school!  She is attending a school held at a lovely woman's house that teaches about 8 kids from the ages 2-7.  What a wonderful experience she has been having.  

Auty's first day of ballet!!  She loves being dressed as a ballerina and dancing around the studio!  

Preparing for Halloween.  A fun decorating idea found on pinterest.  

They came out great!  So spooky! And the kids did most of the work!

Auty's 3rd birthday! (first in Bend)

She kept asking when she would see all her friends for her party.  Well we didn't have a party planned for her, we just wanted to keep it small and simple this year.  We planned to just take her to bouncing off the walls, a little indoor bouncy play area, then out for some hot chocolate.  Well to our surprise lots of kids came at the same time we came and Auty was so happy because she just assumed these were all her "friends" who were supposed to come to her party.  She had a blast!  I don't think we will ever be able to pull something off like this again with her, but glad it turned out fine this year!

Double trouble..

Fall Festival fun at the farm...

My little sweet..

Joss doing all the work as Auty dictates which pumpkin she wants..

She is very proud of all the cookies she made..  I have to say I am too!  

First Halloween in Bend was tons of fun!! 

Kids started out as princesses and witches, then they all turned themselves into zombies.. so cute!

After a long day of trick or treating we went to a friend's house for some more Halloween fun of food, drinks and dancing!  One of the best Halloweens ever!

Josslyn's first time riding a horse.  She was in her glory!

She did a fantastic job.   She was very courageous and couldn't wait to start taking lessons regularly.  I learned a lot from her this day, watching her try something new and conquering any fears or reservations she had.  A true inspiration.

An unfortunate first for all of us this fall was the death of a family pet.  After being away from Quintus for a year while we traveled the country, we were happily reunited with him January 2014.  He looked so healthy and happy when we saw him for the first time.  But as days passed he started throwing up on a daily basis and feeling lighter and lighter when I picked him up.  Shortly there after we found out that he had cancer and had to be put to sleep.  He was in lots of pain according to the vet and there was nothing more they could do to help him, even surgery wasn't an option.  After Erik, Autumn and myself came home from the vet after saying our good byes, Autumn was laying in my lap while we sat in silence hanging onto all our wonderful memories we had with him.  Many memories involved him clawing and biting people, especially Autumn.  He was a bit of a stinker.  Then all of a sudden as Autumn was just about to close her eyes and fall asleep in my arms, she let out a loud sudden cry and said, "OW!  Quintus just bit my leg!"  Well right where she had felt pain there was a red mark.  I guess he wanted to let us know he was still there with us and that he was still the same cat even in the spirit world.  Love him and miss him lots.  

October 11th, 2014