a beginning

Hello, blog world!
Because of the 1000 changes going on in my life {and because I have been telling the same stories over and over to different people every day} I decided to make this little bloggy to keep everyone informed without me getting laryngitis ;).
A lot has happened in the last three months, and most of it was in the last three weeks! Here's a "condensed" recap of our holiday adventures, what felt like a million (worthwhile and amazing) trips over the pass and back, a fantastic christmas, the most low-key new years ever,  a looong road trip and finally arriving in Arizona [and then the million things that have happened since then]!
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To start off all of our holiday madness, Paul and I went over the pass to Redmond to see his mom for a night, and have thanksgiving at his dads house! We had such a good time seeing everyone even though we were only there for two days (downside of working retail: no time off during the holidays). We got to catch up with Paul's Granny Ruth, lots of family friends, and spend some time with his sister, Chrissy.

 View of Mt. Hood from our first trip of the season over the pass

Paul's dad's house is an actual log house. So. Cool. 

>Black Friday we jetted back over to Portland for a belated thanksgiving with my parents and the Newcoms, our closest family friends. This one was extra special because Nick, the younger Newcom boy had just flown home from Army training less than 24 hours earlier! It was definitely a day to be thankful for.
>Over the next two weeks, Paul finished up college {WAHOO}, and I worked my last few weeks at Nordstrom. We flew to Arizona for a long weekend to find a house [which we did, more on that later], and to spend some quality time with my cousin Scot, who live in Scottsdale!

>The day we got back to Portland, Paul and I had to move him out of his Corvallis house, and completely pack up and vacate our apartment in Beaverton. It was a veeery long day with more haul trouble than we ever thought possible but somehow we got it all done just in time! {Thanks dad, by the way, for letting us store a whole house's worth of stuff in your garage for a month!}.

Picking out the Christmas tree with my family

>Two days after manically cleaning our apartment in order to get our deposit back, we headed back over to Redmond for Paul's birthday and to spend some quality time with all of his family! We had an amazing week with his mom Jeannie and step-dad, Larry, playing a ridiculous amount of boardgames (which somehow we never got sick of), and taking in the amazing mountain views (which you could never get sick of). We also got to see Paul's dad, Mike, and his step-mom, Kristin, and had such a great time catching up with them!
>Then, it was Paul's 24th birthday! We had a real lazy day (something we hadn't done in over a month!), talking on Jeannie's back porch over coffee and trying to soak up as much Oregon as we could. We had enchiladas and margaritas for dinner (Paul's favorite) and then the two of us went into downtown bend to meet some friends for drinks! It was really fun being able to meet all of Paul's high school friends (who apparently all go to the same bar), and I think it really made his birthday awesome.

told ya, lazy day!

downtown Bend for Paul's birthday

>The next day, we headed back to Portland to spend Christmas eve with my family! My mom was singing in her Church's choir for the evening services, and i think we were all impressed by how talented they are! Definitely the best church choir I've ever heard. You're amazing, mom! After Church we all went back to my Dad's house for an Christmas Eve Sleepover! I made cookies, which were as usual inedible (I cannot bake to save my life, but i love it!), and we all played Sequence. Christmas morning was spent with lots of smiles and laughs, lots of coffee and my mom's famous breakfast casserole, and Paul and I were way too spoiled with so many amazing (and practical!) gifts. We love you guys!

Christmas pic with my pops! Love you, dad.

>Mid-Christmas Day Paul and I loaded up the car (and Penny) and headed back over to central Oregon to spend Christmas day with his families and see everyone one last time before the move.
We went to his Dad's, where Penny had her first introduction to cowboys and horses, and I had a great time meeting all of their family friends and as usual, chatting with Granny Ruth!

Penny, meet Horse. 

>We left Mike's, and went to meet up with the other side of Paul's family at his step-sister's house with Chrissy, Paul's sister. We had a fantastic time at Wendy's, especially with Colton, the biggest dude of a four-year-old and the best nephew ever- watching Colton get gifts from Santa (including his very first big boy bike) was so much fun and really made the day special. We love you all and were so lucky to be able to spend a Christmas with you!! After Christmas was over at Wendy's, Paul, Chrissy and I went back to Mike's, and played poker (and drank) until the sun was almost coming up!!
>The next few days were spent in total recovery mode, hanging out with Chrissy and the rest of Paul's family. It was really special for me to be included in their holiday celebrations, but it was definitely bittersweet because Paul and I knew we wouldn't be seeing them for a long time. On the 27th, we headed back over the pass to Portland one last time...

Our last time driving over the pass

>When we got to Portland, the five days before we moved were spent packing, and repacking, and doing laundry and then doing it again. Luckily my brother Braden had been able to fly home from Chicago for Christmas, so its was really amazing to have my whole family and both of my brothers in the same place at the same time. Along with all of the packing, we tried to see as many of our friends as much as we possibly could before the big move. I loved being able to have all of my people in the same place for so long and it was a really special holiday season for me. New Years rolled around and my mom, being the amazing planner/person that she is, threw Paul and I a going away party/ graduation party/ new years eve/ open house so that we could see everyone before we moved! It was a really incredible (and sober!!) New Years Eve, and it was even more fun because Dave and Brandie Newcom had a sleepover so we got to spend extra time with them!

>New Years Day, Paul and I got our Uhaul and packed it up to maximum capacity! That baby was full! It took hours and hours to tetris it all in, and we had to leave a lot of stuff behind, but we were finally ready to get the show on the road and start our long road trip to Phoenix! That night, my dad threw one last dinner for all of our friends and family so we could actually say goodbye for the last time. All of my people were there, and it was a really special night for me. I love all of you!


Finally, at four in the morning on the 2nd of January, 2014, Paul and I started our move down to Arizona!

Only a true best friend spends the night and wakes up at 4am with you to send you off. 

Love you Schmitty

And here we are! Three weeks post-road trip with a new little pup, a new house, a new truck, new jobs.... new everything! Told ya it was a long story! More to come on the road-trip, getting settled in our house, getting our sweetest little Bear, and life in general!