The Realization of Moving

It always happens this way. I know we are moving, and I prepare for it well. But every time I move, there is a point where it all hits me. It's not a bad feeling, just a realization that things are about to change even more than they already have. It happened to me Thursday night after the moving company came and loaded all of our stuff on a truck and hauled it away. Sometime around dinner time, when we were sitting on the air mattress in the middle of the floor in the living room eating store bought sushi without plates or utensils. It's a feeling of relief, anxiety, and excitement all at once. All of our stuff is gone and we don't have to worry about it for a while-relief. We are soon to be theoretically homeless and jobless-anxiety. We are about to take an amazing road trip across the country and be reunited with all of our friends and family from back home-excitement! While these feelings can be overwhelming at times, the changes that come with them are always worth it. I like moving and starting fresh. I like experiencing a sort of carefree life for a while where we don't have to worry about jobs, bills, or schedules. I like house hunting(as terrible as it can sometimes be) and that feeling you get when you've found the place you'll be spending the next year or so. I like road trips. I like my life right now. It's not a life fit for everyone, but at the moment, it suits me.

Persie is sure gonna miss her spot on the back of the couch. She guarded it until the movers came.

Julian loved having towers of boxes everywhere.

Iggy in my pine cone wreath. "Please don't pack this, I love it too much. Just put it in my suitcase"

The pups being sad before the movers came.

Iggy loves cardboard.

So full of stuff. We've collected quite a bit in just a year.

Tim having a paper cup of cereal. 

All clear! The animals were having little panic attacks. So confused.
This is how we'll live for a few more days until we take off down the road.

Such a big empty white kitchen. No more of my favorite orange :(

Eating sushi off of a cardboard box. Classy. And it's store bought at that.
The kitties get all shifty-eyed when they smell fishies in the house.

Berry medley off of a cardboard box.

And morning doughnuts from the Safeway up the block. Buying food when you crave it is great.

A few final Northwest adventures: Hiking Multnomah Falls, Ape Caves at Mt. St. Helens, Tim runs a half marathon, Crater Lake, and the high desert in Bend, OR

This last month we have been very busy having as many adventures as we could in Oregon. Here are a few of the better adventures in photographic highlights. Enjoy!

This is Tim at the base of Multnomah Falls. We hiked over a mile with an
elevation change of about 700ft to play in the river above.

Of course the pups came with us.

I found some sweet round rocks the size of baseballs.

On our way back down the mountain overlooking the Columbia River.

We played in the Ape Caves near Mt. St. Helens. 

It took us a while to find the entry hole.

Tim went down first.

As it turns out, I was right and we actually went in the exit hole. But we were climbing down hill so apart from
8ft drops to blindly jump down, it was probably a bit easier than going up hill.

It was crazy dark and if you didn't know, I am very afraid of the dark. And caves.  And cave dwellers.

Looking back on the ladder out before we started the mile and a half trek in the dark through the lava tube.

Shiny lava rocks look like silver.

It was so dark!

It was really wet and constantly dripping everywhere.
The sound was eerie and serene at the same time.

One of just two skylights in the whole 1 1/2 mile tunnel. 

Weird lumps coming out of the walls.

Taking a break under the second skylight. 

The exit. We were underground for almost two hours. Yeah, it was cool.
Would I do it again, probably not. I don't want to push my luck with the cave dwellers.

Then we went and saw Mt. St. Helens up close. Well, as close as we could get without hiking.

Tim ran his first half marathon! It was the Vancouver USA Marathon and he placed 21st overall and 3rd in his age group! 

Tim smirking at the start.

Close to the finish line.

That kid is wondering why his socks only cover his shins. 

Driving to see Crater Lake for the first time! They just recently opened the roads because the snow is still so high!

Gorgeous blue mountains.

This was on the cold side of the crater and a group of Asian tourists insisted on taking
our picture for us, telling Tim, "You are super hero! Where you come from? Super hero, super hero!"
Tim's super power: the ability to let a mild coldness touch his skin. They did not, however, insist
that I was a super hero. Probably just thought I was a crazy lady.

The island is Wizard Island. That's where Tim wants to live.

Such blue, blue water.

This was on the warm side of the crater where our shorts did not seem so preposterous to the other tourists.

It is the deepest lake in the US and is made from a volcano.

After we went to Crater Lake, we went to the Umpqua Hotsprings in the Umpqua National Forest.

We bring the pups everywhere.

The water was about 110° and the pools were situated on a cliff above a river in the forest.

On top of Pilot Butte in Bend, OR, looking out on Mt. Jefferson and Three Sisters, and a bunch of other mountains.

Playing amongst the Juniper trees on top of Pilot Butte.

Juniper tree in the high desert.

Two swans were picking on Newton by one of the rivers that runs through the city.

We found a lovely place to soak up some sun while we digested our diner milkshakes, fried foods, and Deschutes Bewery
tour samples. Newton stood guard, making sure that no one disturbed our little piece of paradise.

My super handsome super hero husband.

Persie makes the best faces.

Those two are peas in a pod.

Persie's favorite spot while someone is tanning.

Buddies.

Pouring water on Newton. Oh my, what brown eyes you have.

Persie did not like this.

We found out that Newton likes to swim! And he is good at it! He looks like a little otter. 

Headed home from Bend.

Watching rainbows drive by.