home

I tend to enjoy traveling. However, living out of a suitcase in 3 different states, in 4 different places got a little old. I've realized how true it is that you don't know what you've got till it's gone. I miss being home. I miss being somewhere that's familiar to me. I miss my bed (who doesn't.) I have slept really well out here, better than I've been sleeping at home, but still. As materialistic as it sounds, we've missed our couch and the Element and the kitchen. It'll be nice to have dinner with friends around the table again. Oh yea, and we've severely missed our friends! The hardest part of moving will most definitely be that our friends aren't coming with us. (Well...we're still working on them.) It will be hard to start over in a town where I don't know anyone. Carl has friends from his high school days that we see when we're in town, and I guess that means I'm friends with them too, but you know. I'm the one who's sitting there while they laugh about memories and stories and has this look on my face like, "I don't know who that is, where that is, what that means." Haha. I'm sure I look ridiculous.

I'll probably still miss home for a while after we move. I don't mean Oklahoma, I mean the place I've spent the last 23 (almost 24) years of my life. My family is here (or within 3 hours from here,) and I see them often. The tables will be turned. Carl's spent the last 6, almost 7, years out here away from his family. It will be weird I'm sure.

It's very intimating moving to a place I am not familiar with and also because Carl is really familiar with it. Everything here is SE, SW, NE, NW and streets turn into other streets and there seems to be 50 highways. There doesn't seem to be any pattern or reason for all the directions added to the signs. No grid here in Oregon. Public transportation is awesome but that's also going to be intimidating to learn. The MAX (subway-like system), streetcars, buses...yikes! I'm going to look like a tourist for a while and that will be fun.

Now, I'm sitting in the KC airport (ugh...this place is aweful,) and am glad to be experiencing no hitches on our flights home. We'll be back in the familiar in 3 hours. Woo hoo!

We had a lot of fun despite all the travel hiccups. Carl took some pictures so I'm sure those will surface sometime soon. Regardless of familiar vs unfamiliar, the Northwest is one of the most beautiful places I've been to. You should visit. (When we move there, you can visit us AND experience all it has to offer. Perfect!)

For the first time ever, I think I'm looking a year in the face realizing that it could hold many different opportunities. Carl and I are going to witness history in just a few short weeks at the Presidential Inauguration in D.C.. It's going to be mind-blowing. What a cool story to be able to tell our kids someday.

2009 holds a lot of hopes. Hopes for no seizures. Hopes for a job or career or something that makes me wait with anticipation to get out of bed in the morning. Hopes for more travels. Hopes for our new friendships through our small group to only grow deeper. Hopes to grow and support our friends in their new endeavors as parents. Hopes to be closer to debt-free. The list goes on and on.

It looks like it's going to be a great year.

P.S. Carl is laying on the floor of the airport snoring. Bah hahahahahah!