Our drive over the mountains was beautiful. The roads clear, the air crisp, and the snowy peaks breath-taking. By now, Bend is one of the kids’ favorite places. We drove over at the beginning of December for GreenLoop’s annual Christmas party. This one was special because we video conferenced with the Phoenix office and two… Read More The Bend in the River
Spring Break turned into a sort of winter break for us since we headed to the snowy mountains of Bend. Stephen needed to go to Bend for work, so we planned a family trip and got a rental house for the week. The first morning, we woke up to snow that fell in big flakes… Read More Adventure in Bend
Stephen and I lean toward the spontaneous adventures. Though we use our synced Google calendars extensively to manage appointments and activities, we always find ourselves going on day trips or overnight trips without intense planning ahead of time. Sure, things have not always worked out perfectly, but at least we’re going with the flow and… Read More Last Minute Vacay
The first weekend in December was GreenLoop’s holiday party. Since there’s only one other GreenLoop employee in Portland, he and Stephen (& all of us) were invited to Bend for the weekend to celebrate. Bend is an inviting mountain city in Oregon’s high desert about three hours southeast of Portland. We took the western/southern route… Read More Weekend in Bend
One year ago on July 1st we moved into our home here in Oregon. We were warmly welcomed by our neighbors and were immediately incorporated into the community’s Fourth of July bike parade/party in the park. Can’t wait for this year’s Independence Day celebration! On our one year Oregonniversary we drove to Cannon Beach with our… Read More Oregonniversary
Between two birthdays and Thanksgiving all in the same month, Novembers are busy with celebrations around here. Because we’ve settled into life here in Oregon, our family calendar was a lot fuller this past month. I volunteered in Silas’s classroom twice and hope to do it more. His teacher’s love for her students and love… Read More Around Here
There are many ways to explore Portland, and the 4T Loop combines four transportation possibilities in one swoop: Trail, Tram, Trolley, and Train. Last weekend, two of Stephen’s co-workers from Phoenix were in town to meet with Stephen and his boss for a leadership weekend. On Saturday, they invited us to join them for the… Read More The 4T Loop
The past few weeks have been fairly monumental for our family. Stephen and my mom share the same birthday, and they both celebrated milestone birthdays this year. Stephen turned 35, and Mom turned 60! We helped celebrate Mom’s big day with a photo book full of pictures of her visits with us and her grandbabies. Love… Read More Milestones
Peeps These are my peeps. My people. My marshmallowy sweet, squishably loveable (and often sticky) people. My peeps. Pete’s Fish & Chips Rachel was our tour guide for our first visit to Pete’s Fish & Chips in nearby Tolleson. Apparently the restaurant and downtown Tolleson had recently been given a facelift. It was super cute! Pete’s is somewhat… Read More P is for…
January is my favorite desert month. The holiday busyness is over, my home is clean and simpler with the seasonal decorations put away in the garage, the weather is sunny and silent–which makes me smile inside, the new year has begun with whispers of goals to be met, and my mood is both reflective and hopeful… Read More New Beginnings