Catching up on 2015 and Christmas...

I know - it's February, not Christmastime, and I'm sitting in Sylva, North Carolina in our new home, and not in Colorado Springs! What happened?! We're still reeling from it ourselves. It has been a tumultuous 3+ months of transition - but one also filled with many provisions - and just this week we are starting to feel like the ground underneath has stopped moving and we can start to wrap our minds around making this new town & job & house & community into our new life.

In a previous post in December, Jim wrote about leaving DAI and job-searching. Short version reply to that: He heard about a postion at Western Carolina University at Thanksgiving time, and then in a span of 4 weeks he applied, interviewed twice, got the offer and accepted it, and we had packed up the house and hit the road!! Two weeks later, Jan 15th, was his first day on campus as the study abroad advisor.

But looking back... to what now feels like a long, long distance... 

Christmas! Yep, Christmas celebrations and end-of-year reflections all throw in together with preparations to move and trying to say good-byes. Our gifts and decorations were more subdued this year, which suited us perfectly and was still wonderful for the boys.

reading Christmas stories before naptime

Christmas morning we opened stockings, and then had a brunch with Daneli (a friend/colleague from Jim's time at DAI office) and opened more presents.
 

Timo putting out fires on the boys' tree (which he decorated)

backyard visitors on this cold Christmas day

Blankets and cars and legos - and another pot of coffee brewing - makes for a good Christmas Day.