Details and more details

We have finally made some decisions on the move. We will rent our own truck, pack, load and drive ourselves. It was a hard decision, but made easier when I realized that I don't like other people bagging my groceries. Just imagine how i would feel about my whole house. John and I work very well together, we are both careful and detail oriented. (That is pretty comforting stacked up against the moving horror stories you hear). So I hope we can do it. It will at least be a good challenge.
Now the boxing and packing begins.

Roots

Nine years ago next month John and I moved here with the intention of him going back to school while working for his current employer. We planned to be here for four years, tops. I got a job at Borders books because it was the only place I knew how to get to. My local geography knowledge for the first three years was lousy, because we were not going to be here much longer so why gain only semi-useful knowledge.
Things changed, we got a dog, bought a house and had a baby. All the while thinking that one day we would make our way back out West. Once Odin was born I became much more rooted to this place. Minnesota was/is my home. It's where I live, where we play, and where most of our adventures take place.
Recently John's company gave us a good reason to uproot ourselves. We are headed out to Washington State where John will have much the same job in a much different geographical area. It was a very big decision for us to make, stay or go . . . stay or go.
It brought to mind hearing about my parents 'plan' live in Michigan a few years (back in the 1970's) then move back to California. It hasn't happened yet, but I believe it will for them someday.
For us the day will come very soon, about the third week in February. We will move to Olympia WA. Now that I finally connected to this place, it is time to find a new one.
We are all excited about the opportunities we will gain and I also know that we will be back to Minnesota for visits, we still have family way up North. And now were are getting much closer to having friends in every state.

Wings to fly

A couple of times this winter I have let Odin play outside without me. I don't know if it better that it is wintertime when he is out without supervision or worse. he is playing with the neighbor (boys) they are ages 4, 5, and 6. Any older and I might wonder about mischief making but at their age they just want to play.
Today I was out with them for a while, watching them play enjoying the sunshine and the snow. Then I got cold, most likely because I was not running and jumping as much as they were. When I came in the sun was peeking out from behind some clouds, the shadows long and everything looked magical.
That is how I remember winter. How magical and still everything was. It is still so clear in my mind.
I enjoy sitting back and letting him discover the wonder and glee outside.

Blue wristband!

We, like every other family, went to the Y to swim this afternoon. It was pretty busy especially compared to when we usually swim and have the pool to ourselves. However today Odin watched a lot of boys and girls take the shallow water swim test. To pass you need simply to float on your belly for 5 seconds, stand up then float on your back for 5 seconds. He has been capable of doing this for quite some time, but has objected to putting his face in the water intermittently. Today he practiced a bunch then tried it and PASSED! Now he can swim by himeslf and I can sit in the hot tub! Or I can swim with him and not have to be within arm's reach!
He is very proud and excited don't be fooled by his expression, he was beside himself with glee.

Oh what a beautiful morning

Forecast was for a cloudy day in the low 20's. Instead we have a sunny day in the low 20's and the sunny part makes a world of difference!
We took the morning to go skiing. Odin took a lesson, I skied by myself, then we enjoyed pb&j's together and skied some more.

Hindsight

We had such an incredible trip. All of our planning paid off and we were able to enjoy everything. John was saying it was the longest that he had ever taken off of work. I am so glad we were able to take advantage of that opportunity.

P.T. & A. *Bonus Days*

We were scheduled to fly out of Boston on Monday, however by Sunday night we had a pretty good idea that we were not going anywhere . . . We waited to go to bed until our flight actually canceled, we re-booked (for Thursday) and went to bed. Unlike many others stranded by the weather, we had it pretty good.

This is the day we were supposed to fly




We used our bonus days to hang out, hike, play, it was great.







Leah had a great suggestion to go bowling on Odin's 5th birthday. We all had a blast and it was a very special birthday for Odin.







We flew home on Thursday - all went well we are home and safe.

P.T.& A. Part 3 Maine, Christmas

In Boston at the airport we rented two cars, one for my mom and dad and one for us. We split up and I drove with my mom and the guys were all together. Light snow increased as we drove north, nothing big, but when we stopped for dinner I was glad to be only about 10 minutes away. The end of the drive found us at my cousin's house. There we enjoyed great hospitality, great company, great food, and playmates for Odin.
books before bed

All smiles on Christmas Eve in santa jammies

Christmas





Our hosts for the week






What would a trip to Maine be without lobsters?

P. T. A. (part 2) NYC

With two and a half days to explore we maxed out all of our options. Odin was such a trooper - just going with the flow and taking it all in. I will admit it took me a little bit to acclimate to the city.
My mom was smart to get us adjoining hotel rooms and we took turns staying in with (sleeping) Odin or going out in the evenings. We were able to see everything that we set out to see and do everything we wanted.













It was a whirlwind, but so much fun. We rounded out the two and a half days celebrating John's birthday.

Johno pretending to blow out his birthday candles. We stopped by a bakery and got an assortment of cake slices and split them all up. It was delicious!






And at the end of it all Odin got to ride on a train, not a light rail or subway train either. We all enjoyed the roughly four hour trip up to Boston where we picked up two rental cars (in the snow) to drive to Maine.

Planes Trains & Automobiles (part 1)

Our East coast rip has come and gone and was a great success. We had planned Christmas in Maine two years ago, bought tickets in September, then changed them in October when we learned of my cousin's wedding in New York the weekend before Christmas.
My mom and I decided not to fly home between the wedding and Christmas, Johno and my dad decided it was worth the extra time off.
The wedding was beautiful, it was so great to see my dad's brother and his family again after just seeing them at Jamie and Matt's wedding. We had a little time to catch up with Matt and Jamie before they had to fly home on Sunday.









The rest of us moved to a hotel on Manhattan and spend two and a half days exploring NYC. In the first four days of our trip we took a taxi, airplane, rental car, subway, tour bus, and ferry.