Road tripping - Day 2 {Day 15}

The next leg of our journey took us from Columbus, Ohio to St Louis, Missouri. We didn't really stop anywhere interesting on the way, just little rest stops and fast food joints for the necessary meals and bathroom breaks.

So we spent all of Monday traveling, passing fascinating signs like "Thanks for visiting Ohio!" and "Welcome to Indiana!"





I will say though, the soybean crops in Indiana were very pretty in the sunshine. How's that for a phone camera photo snapped from a moving car?



Then, we crossed the Mississippi River, and officially entered the west! I thought a lot about Laura Ingalls on this trip, and I was very thankful that we had a bridge to drive easily over the river instead of floating in a covered wagon pulled by swimming oxen. ;-)



And then, finally, after about seven hours of driving, we were welcomed into Missouri. Fun fact, did you know that Panera Bread Co. started in St Louis as the St Louis Bread Co, and changed their name when they expanded into the rest of the country? Neither did I.



We took our time heading out in the morning, so by the time we got to Missouri the sun was setting and we were thinking about bedtimes for the kids. (Not that they went to sleep by anything close to their normal bedtimes!) Lover booked us a fabulous room at Staybridge Suites - we love them and have stayed there before, always a great experience. We had to make an emergency trip to CVS though, after a certain toddler discovered my nail polish and experimented with painting it all over the hotel room wall! I would have taken a picture but I was too busy scrubbing. Thankfully about half a bottle of nail polish remover did the trick. Also, this happened. Cuteness.





 

Road tripping - The First Day {Day 14}

Sunday the 21st we went to our church one last time, said goodbye to our pastor, and headed out to the van. Some of Lover's family was there to hug and kiss us one more time, and then we loaded up and headed out. There were a few tears but mostly we were excited to get started on our trip! I'll never forget the way Javi would say "we moo-fing to Den-Ber!" Melted my heart every time.



Our plan was to make it to Columbus, Ohio on this first day. It was just over six hours, and we knew we didn't have much more in us than after the month we had had (our original plan was to drive all the way to St Louis, MO that first day, thankfully we realized that was a terrible idea!) The kids conked out shortly after leaving Rochester, so we had a couple of hours of quiet as we started out.



We made it about four hours, and then stopped at a little gas station to fuel up and stretch our legs. We were in Nowheresville, OH, but they had this awesome steam engine and diner car at the top of the hill. So naturally we climbed up the hill to check it out!



Peanut had a bit of trouble climbing such a mountain (to her!) so she and Lover lagged behind a bit. Javi charged up that hill, anxious to see the train, of course. A while ago I asked Lover to take more pictures of me with the kids, and he's been awesome at that. I particularly liked this one he got of my little guy and I while we waited for them to catch up.



From up top the view was incredible. We got to see the train, and look out at the awesome sunset. It was a nice way to get out some wiggles and have some freedom from the car before finishing the rest of that leg to Columbus.

Saying Goodbye {Day 13}

A few people have asked us how we could possibly leave our family, friends and church family behind. I will tell you this, it hasn't been easy. I'm a lover by nature. I love people, love to feel connected and like I belong. Starting over in a new city has its benefits, but it is definitely hard to feel unattached and without a support system.

My adorable grandparents

The Wednesday before we left town, I went over to my grandparents to say goodbye. I love them dearly, and they have been especially important to me since I lived with them when I was in college. My grandma became my friend, which I know is such a rare gift. We said our goodbyes with the full knowledge that it may be our last time together. I plan on visiting, obviously, but the reality is that they are older, and their health is not what it used to be. It was hard knowing it might be my last time to see them in this life.

But what I always come back to is the fact that it is not truly goodbye if we are a part of the family of God. Yes, I may not see you again in this life, but we get to spend all of eternity together!

We sing songs about the family of God, and we talk about it routinely, but I truly believe that my "family" is sprinkled around the globe, and I was so excited to move out here and meet some new family members. Of course I miss the depth of friendship and familiarity that I had in New York, but I'm also excited for the new friends we'll make here!

Beauty Around Us {Day 12}

We're living in a beautiful little area of Denver, and since we only have the one car, three days a week I'm home with kids car-less. So we've been taking a lot of walks - to the park, to the playground, to the library, to the store. Last Monday we walked to the library, which is about two miles away. This is what I love about Denver, as we walked down a totally normal street we passed dozens of prairie dog colonies, found a hidden herd of horses, checked out the wildflowers and got a sunburn. You know, just walking to the library.



Javi took this next picture, I am so proud of my budding photographer!



The sky here is an unreal shade of blue. Like bluest of bluey blues. It's so bright and saturated that it kind of leaves me breathless.



We walk through the park, around this little pond, all the way up to the playground. It's a nice, calm walk that we always enjoy. It allows the boy to burn off some energy, and the girl to practice her walking. And the momma to take some deep breaths and snap some pretty pictures.



Not even big sky and horses compare to these two though. Have you ever seen anything cuter? :)

The Mountains {Day 11}

Last Saturday, after all that fun at the festival, we loaded up the kids in the van, handed out binkies and made a beeline for the mountains. We had been admiring these gorgeous Rockies from a distance, and I was absolutely dying to get up there with my camera and see them in person. They did not disappoint!


The view from Overlook Mountain. Pretty sure we could see all the way back to NY.








Some big eared Mule Deer checked out us from the side of the road. I was ecstatic but they were not impressed. I want to see elk and big horn sheep and whatever else these mountains are hiding - maybe a mountain lion? From the safety of my car of course. :)

It's only kind of pretty up here. You know. Average stuff.





I've been meditating a lot on the fact that God has always descended on a mountain, shown his glory on a mountain, drew all men to Him while lifted up on a mountain... So many references and I need to do a study on it. It seems these beautiful, wild, exquisite creations of His are quite important to him.



I think we'll be headed back up into the mountains today. I've been struggling a lot this week and being surrounded by this absolute beauty and wildness that God created is so soothing to me. I'm doing my best to remember to "lift up my eyes to the hills, from whence comes my help!"

The Most Epic of Moving Sales - Part 2 {Day 10}

So last time I talked about the Epic Moving Sale, I gave you my three rules for a successful sale. Today I want to just talk about my sale in general, some anecdotes, and a few things I want to remember.

 

Papa's first selfie! 

I couldn't have done this sale on my own. Thankfully I have an awesome father in law who came over bright and early Thursday morning to help with set up (I think he made three dozen trips down from the attic!), sisters in law who are always up for helping out, a husband who worked from home so I wouldn't be alone with the creepers, and a sweet best friend who took time out of her day to come help out at my sale.

We met some really, truly interesting characters. Some of my favorites were the Irishman who chided me for carrying a heavy box - "why are you carrying that all by yourself, ye bonnie lass?", his partner in crime Luigi who was an absolute riot, the people who spent two hours in my house only to spend 50 cents, and the lady who nearly had a heart attack because her little dog ate something off the ground in my yard. "What did you eat? Do you know what he ate? If you die, I am not going to be able to help you!" All of this after she threw her just purchased wine glasses on the ground trying to "rescue" her dog.

We also had a really fun guy we dubbed Superman who bought a ton of our stuff and was a real riot. He bought things one at a time, a picture frame, then some boots, then maybe I'm interested in the computer, oh, and I'll take these 30lb weights, but my hands are full, so let me stack both weights (60lbs) and carry them with one hand out to the car! He also bought all of my vintage sheet music for his daughter, and came back the next day with his wife to buy even more stuff.

I'm glad we set up indoors, because we had really chilly, rainy weather for most of the weekend. I had already packed up our winter stuff, so it was a cold couple of days! But we survived and we had a good time, and the kids thought it was a blast to run around the yard playing with all of the stuff we were trying to sell.

I thought it was really interesting that a few friends came to our sale as a show of their support. They bought quite a bit of stuff to help us out, so that we could move! It wasn't something I would have thought of, but I appreciated them coming, having a chance to visit with them, and then of course, getting rid of more of our things!

So that wraps up our little moving sale recap. It was fun, and exhausting, and a part of me never wants to do it again. :)

Giving Myself Grace {Day 9}

The last few days have been hard days. You know, the days that are sandwiched in between the happy-go-lucky fun days? Days full of sticky stuff like discipline and poor sleep and feeling unsettled. Overall this move has been fantastic, but I'm definitely feeling the lack of community and a support system here, and our family has been through a lot of changes in the past month. It would be idealistic of me to think that we could navigate all of this without any hard days/negativity/personal failings. So, I'm extending grace to myself and reminding myself of God's blessings, and doing my best to be okay with the fact that I'm feeling a little weepy these days. We're starting to settle into a routine and find our new normal here, and after tonight we may even own a couch! :) That would be fantastic. Bring on the snuggles!