The road trip: Four days and 1,500 miles!

Sunny, clear skies the whole way! No snow!

Two cars, with 3 drivers swapping turns

Contents of cars: suitcases, booster seats, pack n play, extra diapers, the wooden toy treehouse (too fragile to load in the moving cube), Timo's bicycle, stroller, lots of books and toys and snacks. I took a tip from the Mary Gieser book and wrapped some books and new toys, so the boys could open them every few hours along the trip. That was a great help... although let's be honest, there were numerous moments of Timo yelling, "Mattias, stop crying! Jaja is driving!" (particularly on the last day) and me continuing to marvel at how Mattias napped no more than 30 minutes in the car the entire day, and Timo never napped. Yet somehow we made it.

Driving Day 1: Colorado Springs to Lawrence, Kansas and overnight in a hotel (with a swimming pool!)
Driving Day 2: Kansas to Chesterfield, Missouri and the home of the Brinks! We stayed 2 nights and one full day with them - great to be with family at the end of Christmastime (thanks for still having up your decorations, Katie). 
Driving Day 3: Missouri to Madison, Indiana and the home of the Katerbergs! Friends from Bloomington situated perfectly as an overnight stop.
Driving Day 4: Indiana to Sylva, North Carolina and the home of the Woodys and to Western Carolina University!

No pics from the first two days of driving, except these two of the boys "being football players" (as Timo said) and running around on the grass outside a rest area. We all participated in some brisk walking or running at every stop to clear our heads and get some energy out!

We made it to the cousins' house! Boy was it wonderful to see them, and in particular to see them in their new home in Chesterfield and see a bit of their new lives there. We are really looking forward to going back and having more wrestling in the huge basement play area, and explore all the cool things St Louis has for kids. But wait, first they need to come here and Katie can help us get our house decorated and arranged!

David, Timo and Elsie riding a horse (Jim)

Millie had changed so much since we saw her in June! Now a little girl!

the fams! well, this is what you get when you try to take a photo right before bedtime...

Boys in their matching soccer shirts from Nonna

And now, on to Madison and the Katerbergs house - great friends from our time in Bloomington. This is what our families looked like one in January 2013 just before we moved....

And now we have these 3rd children, too! Mattias and Audrey, who by the end of dinner were holding hands across their chairs!

Thanks for having us, Kevin and Laura - and we'll be back!

NOW, finally, onto North Carolina!

Saying good-bye to Colorado Springs

This move was HARD - both the leave-taking part and all the logistics that make up a move - most particularly because it was FAST. In a span of two weeks (with Christmas Day and New Year's Day in between) we had to sort through and pack up our house, make plans for arriving in Sylva, and say good-bye. The latter was difficult because it was such a busy time of year, and we were not able to spend much time with people or have any kind of send-off party/event. The good-byes were quick... 

Not only that but we didn't have the opportunity to re-visit all our favorite places to say good-bye. We did had one final workout at the YMCA; one last walk and picnic lunch at Garden of the Gods; one final walk on the Monument Valley Trail; one final date night to the Broadmoor (thanks to Daneli for babysitting); one final Sunday service at Westside church; and then suddenly we were in the car at 6:30 AM on a cold Saturday morning, looking at the sunrise on snowy Pike's Peak from our rear-view mirrors.

And... we did "a terrible job" (as Jim says) of taking photos. We did get to see all the special friends and extended family for good-byes, but unfortunately we didn't take many photos. (We love you, Storrs! Custers! Lohrenzes! Kims! Reeves! and neighbors Lisa, Martha & Stewart, Liz & Lyndon and Kay!)

A good-bye with Fiona (above) and the 3 girls. Timo and Megan were good buddies, and Timo has continued to talk about Megan since we've moved. 

Fiona will forever be a really special friend to me. She was there to talk with me many times during the first year after losing Gemma, and then she was there to help at the birth of Mattias!

Liv, Mattias, Emmalyn, Megan, Timo

Kiddos laughing at Fiona's antics, trying to get them all to smile

Jason and Kara Tippetts were also such an encouragement to us during the 2nd year of our time in Colorado Springs while we attended Westside, even though Kara passed away last March. Of lasting significance is their honesty and love and kindness, and our experiences of grief that we were able to share, and we are thankful for the bond of the Holy Spirit. 
 

"Packing up day"! A very full Friday, with friends and folks from church helping with the final packing and cleaning and loading up of the moving 'cubes'. 

How would you describe that day, Jim? 

"It was not a fun day. ...That was really stressful."

Yep, that day (and its after-effects) goes down as one of our more stressful days in 14 years of marriage. It didn't help that I had a bad head cold and couldn't stray more than a few steps from a box of tissues. There had simply not been enough time to plan for the packing (and the cleaning), and at midday we looked at the boxes and furniture laid out on the driveway and realized, "It's not all going to fit." In the end, we had to leave behind numerous things - gratefully, several friends from church helped load up the 'extras' to take for donation or to try to sell on their own. We remind ourselves that stuff is not the essence of our home and our identity. A desk is just a desk. A car seat is just a carseat. A toy is just a toy. A vacuum is just a vacuum. But still, moving is darn tough.

Somehow three of us were smiling (??) in this photo, though Timo was not interested in a photo.

Jim and Don

In the midst of those last 2 days of crazy packing and cleaning, we were SO grateful for Brian and Mandy Cave, who let us stay at their house while they were out of town for Christmas. Their home was a good respite for us in the beginning of the transition, as it helped us mark an official good-bye to 825 E Yampa St, and then to the rest of the city and our community.

AND, the most amazing person who helped in all of this was MOM!!!! As soon as she heard that we would be moving (and driving) to North Carolina, she volunteered to fly out and then road trip back with us - just as she had done 3 years ago when we moved from Bloomington to Durham, and 2 1/2 years ago when we moved from Durham to Colorado Springs. Have I mentioned that my mother is simply amazing! And loves to drive! And is wonderfully patient with our two boys! Because of her help we were also able to keep our two cars and drive them both together across country to NC.

Jaja and Timo reading a book before bedtime at the Cave's house

Now - we head out!!

Good-bye to Durham

A little bit more looking back - 

It's the last week of July: the moving truck is packed; lots of stuff has been sold on craigslist as we continue to downsize; we've moved out of the basement apartment and are staying our final days with Dad & Mom Hawkins...time for one final date (coffee and a croissant in downtown Durham - just the two of us) before we depart. 

Naturally, we had to go rub the Bull's nose and take a picture in front of 'Major', an iconic piece of the "Bull City", the name for Durham originally taken from Bull Durham Tobacco company.

Below, selecting a few delicious items from Loaf, one of my favorite newer bakeries downtown. They have a huge brick oven in the bakery that you can observe. And the most amazing gougère (peppery cheese puffs) - and they even sell Nanaimo bars!! Of course we got one of each of those, plus some yummy flatbreads to share with everyone else back at 1406. Fun fact: did you know we had homemade (by Mom) Nanaimo bars at our wedding reception in 2001?

 

Catching up on summer-times

Yes, we are safely moved in and residing in Colorado Springs!! The last few weeks have been tiring and very busy, so we've had a hiatus from blogging. But slowly now we will try to get back into it...so here's a post catching up on some summer fun with family (with the Weltys in town for 2+ weeks). 

...back in early July: The Weltys, Freys and Giesers (and our 7 kids) were able to get away for a couple of nights in Montreat, NC, thanks to kind friends loaning us their two cabins. (And then the Weltys stayed on longer, meeting up with friends.) Even though it was quite rainy, we had a good time seeing this little community and enjoying the 'mountainous rainforest' that Montreat is! And maybe next time our kids will be old enough and the weather will be nice enough for some hiking. And drop by to say hello to Billy Graham, of course.

three cousins within 6 months of age - and playing together well!

Timo shows off some chub and relaxes with Auntie

Ice cream for Gemma and a napkin for Timo (this boy loves to eat paper)

a view of little Lake Susan, though the rain

Craig and Rachel and Lillian cooked up some delicious stromboli

Mountains. Mustaches. Yeah.

Back in Durham - Timo started crawling!! (8 1/2 months old) No more sitting idly by while Gemma dances and plays and runs. Watch out, Timo's coming, too!

July 14th was our 12th anniversary!! After putting the kids to bed, we headed out to American Tobacco campus downtown for an al fresco Cuban dinner. Lovely. (oh, don't worry, Jaja graciously stayed with the sleeping children.) And lovely to sit together and reflect on the last year - birth of Timo, selling our home in Bloomington, moving to Durham open-endedly, job-searching, Jim's graduation, and now the anticipation of a job & new life in Colorado Springs.

 

who knew old tobacco warehouses could look some dreamy?

Soon after, we had to say good-bye to the Weltys, and they continued their cross-country trip (up to Maryland, then Connecticut, then Ohio, & then home to Texas).

Wait, don't forget to get a photo of the three sisters!

One week ago: packing up the moving truck!

In preparation for our condo closing on the 11th, we moved in with some friends, Vadim & Hilarie and their four kids, for a few days so that we could pack and clean without our two kids in the way. (Or, more accurately, so Jim could pack & clean.) Vadim & Hilarie were amazingly generous and hospitable and fun!! Gemma absolutely loves being the 5th child in their house, and getting lots of attention - and exposure to all things pink & Barbie, thanks to the girls. (She stayed with them when Timo was born, too.) We're hoping that somehow Gemma will end up with curly hair now that she has spent so much time with them. AND we decided that she will begin Summer Camp this year - we'll send her back to her birth-town so she can stay with them for a week. Being at their house for our last days was the perfect ending to our three years in B-town!

Here's a picture of their family from an earlier time in December: Vadim & Hilarie, and Daelon (the oldest, and the only boy), Alina, Daria and Samara. It was sad to say good-bye...the night before we left, Daelon said (about 5 times), "I think we should drive to your new house for Spring Break to come and visit."

Vadim and Jim were able to pack up the 16' moving truck in only a couple of hours. Quick work on a rainy day.

On the day before the closing, we brought Gemma back to the house to see it empty and to say our good-byes. 

Gemma did a little enthusiastic farewell dance in her old bedroom.

Time to head out! We had our closing on Friday afternoon - what a truly exciting, freeing experience that was!!! - and then woke up early on Saturday morning to drive to Durham. We left at 4:30 AM and arrived in Durham 13 hours later; Jim drove the truck, while Jul & Mom H drove the car. The kids did pretty well in the car. It helped to have nice long breaks at breakfast and lunchtime, and arrive in Durham in time for dinner, just as the sun was setting.

Saying Good-bye...one year ago

It was exactly one year ago - hard to believe! - that we had to say good-bye to Cape Town and so many good friends, and begin the transition (via NC and Wheaton) to Bloomington and studies at IU. We still feel the 'agony' of the separation; as life changes so do our friendships, and so does our definition of home. We continue to be increasingly grateful for our two years there. We miss you guys!

(I love that Wolfgang is crying in this photo.)

We also really miss the mountain!!