Spinach smoothies!

In the mornings I like to make a breakfast smoothie with spinach, pinapple, mango, and a splash of orange juice. It's a great way to get more spinach, blend in supplements, and they taste sooo good, even Lily likes them!

Spinach smoothie moustache!

Play date with baby Sophie

Can you believe they are only 6 months apart?!



Auntie M's house!

Here's Lily and her auntie Marissa during a visit to my sister's apartment. They were tossing bread down to the geese below...Lily of course took a few bites first.

Play date with Tristan

Lily and Tristan having a snack

Ready to play ball, but Lily isn't sure what to do

Luckily Tristan is able to talk Lily out of her cave-girl antics

And they finally get the game started

Drake Park

Today Lily and I went to Drake Park...Bend's water front park. We brought bagels to feed the birds and we were really excited to see all the goslings. After going through two bagels Lily and I decided to get our own lunch and it was as we were leaving that I finally saw the sign--DO NOT FEED THE ANIMALS. 

Oops!

Cooking with Punkin

Lily had fun making salsa with her grammy, "Punkin". 

She loves sour things and had us laughing with all her dramatic expressions.

Lily and her Auntie M

Lily and Marissa...the best of friends!

Lily loves to wear other people's glasses and watch the floor as she walks, amazed at the change in depth perception. In this picture, she's modeling Marissa's Coach frames.

Not sure if Lily or Marissa made this mess since they both looked guilty when I discovered it.  :)

Farewell, Kansas City!

We left Kansas City today at 6:50 AM, heading for Redmond, Oregon. Our flight plans included a four hour layover in San Francisco. We weren't sure what to expect, but thankfully, SFO has a small play area inside the airport for kids to burn some energy.

It was a LONG day, but Lily handled it all fairly well. We were so happy to finally reach the condo. It's been an exhausting few weeks and we are looking forward to a change of scenery.

Moving Day, part II

It was our second-to-last full day in Kansas City and Alexa came over to play with Lily, while the movers loaded the master bedroom and kitchen. Even as the truck drove off, I didn't feel the finality of our move. We've been in such a "Go go go" pace to get everything ready, it just felt like one more thing was checked off the list and we were on to the next one...

Moving Day, part I

The movers arrived today to start loading up our stuff and I have to admit...the whole thing was a bit awkward. The idea of four strangers going through your house, touching all your stuff...just feels weird. In addition, anytime my family has moved it's always been a DIY undertaking so I really didn't know how to react. For some reason, I felt guilty that they were working to move us and we were just hanging out, so I kept busy by packing my own clothes and mowing the lawn. But the positive side, is that it was WONDERFUL to not feel that stress of being responsible for it all!!!! They packed and labeled EVERYTHING...even our junk drawer!! How cool is that?!

With the exception of the master bed & bath and the kitchen, the house was packed and loaded in about ten hours. They'll return tomorrow at 7:00 AM to finish up and then we'll start deep cleaning the place.

Tonight, we're off to dinner with our dear friends, James & Eva Webb, for one last night together.

Q&A

It's all so sudden...How did this even happen?

Eric first learned about this opportunity in September 2010, but God did not bring all the pieces together until recently. So, while the official decision wasn't made until this month, we'd been considering a move since last year.

What is Eric's new job title and what will he be doing?

As told by Eric--

Managed territory Klamath Falls to Pasco to Vancouver

Primary territory Wishram to Chemult


Will be responsible for safety, budget, track integrity, train velocity, local customer service, service interruption response, crew management, train make-up compliance, crew schedule planning, van service.


Will not have to work nights very often, but will need to travel extensively in order to fully cover territory and respond to incidents as needed (company car provided).


Main focus will be safety and developing quality relationships with those I directly manage.


Job will prepare me to manage supervisors; manage a broader territory; manage a larger budget


I am excited to be back in the field and out from behind a desk; this job will be a challenge, but look forward to the development opportunities.

Where exactly is Bend?

Bend is located in central Oregon. It's 5 hours from the Tri-Cities and 7 hours from Spokane.

To learn more about this beautiful place, you can watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6zSKJqalug

What about Lily?

It breaks our hearts to remove Lily from her class at La Petite Academy...she just loves her teachers and friends so much! I am purchasing the birthday party package from her school, but asked them to substitute the signs with a "Going Away" theme instead so she can have an incredible last day with her pals! We are currently researching preschools in Bend, and have identified three we would really like to tour.

Lily has truly blossomed at La Petite and we believe in the value of a preschool experience, for families like ours. She will continue to attend on a part-time basis and we are praying that we find a new place, equally nurturing, welcoming, and fun.

What about the house?

Our house is currently on the market and we're hoping to sell it in the next few weeks. We are required to list the house for 30 days and if we cannot sell it in that time, a BNSF-appointed relocation company will purchase it from us.

I can't explain exactly what a relief that specific benefit is for us...it's just AMAZING.

If you or someone you know is looking to purchase a home in our area, please pass along the link: http://www.prukc.com/HomeSearch/Listing.aspx?MlsNum=1724644

How are you going to pack everything in one weekend?

Thankfully, we do not have to pack ourselves! BNSF is providing a moving company to pack, load, and deliver our belongings to Bend. All we have to do is oversee and suggest labels for the boxes.

Where are you staying once you get to Bend?

We are renting a two bedroom place at the Eagle Crest Resort. Renting for one month, directly from the homeowners, will be less expensive than staying in a hotel for a few weeks, and certainly less expensive than booking our stay directly through the resort. Plus, after all this craziness, we'll need a vacation!!  :)  http://www.eagle-crest.com/

Are you going to buy a house in Oregon?

At this time we are uncertain if we intend to buy a home in Bend. We plan to lease a place for 6-12 months while we learn our way around the city and adjust to all the changes. We learned a lot after purchasing our first home, and we want to make a more-informed decision the next time we buy.

Will Sarita look for a new job in Bend?

Who can know these things?!  Maybe. It's possible. It all depends...

This is something we are praying about. Of course, I want to focus all of my attention on getting settled first--Find a place to live; support Eric in his new role; provide a stable transition for Lily. After that, I am open to what God has planned.

How much is this all going to cost?

This all goes back to God putting the pieces in place at the perfect time!

Thankfully, BNSF is:

• Covering our expenses while we search for a place to live
• Paying the realtor to sell our home
• Buying the house from us, at our purchase price, if we can't sell it in the near future
• Paying the moving company
• Paying for two months of storage
• Buying our one-way tickets to Oregon

The moving package is incredible and we are SO GRATEFUL for this opportunity!

What does this mean for me?

Well, loved ones, if you've ever wanted to visit Bend, you'll have a place to stay...eventually!  :) 

What are you going to do next?

Try to enjoy our last few days in Kansas City, saying goodbye to the people we love and the place we've called home for nearly six years.

We are ending a very special chapter in our lives and with that comes great sadness...but the silver lining is that we get to make more memories with our families and start a new chapter in our story.

We've committed to taking this one day at a time and trusting God to reveal our next steps.

Big News

The prayers of our families have finally been answered--We are moving back to the Northwest!!

Eric accepted a job with BNSF in Bend, Oregon and we will be relocating in May.

This is all happening very fast and we haven't really had time to process everything...Of course we look forward to the opportunity to be closer to our families, but we are also deeply saddened to leave our friends in the Midwest.

We will keep you all updated as we finalize our plans.

New kicks!

Tonight we took Lily to pick out new shoes. I was really hoping to buy her some Sketchers twinkle toes because she loves how they light up but they didn't have any in her size! We settled for a pair of bedazzled Pumas instead.

Lily's feet are a size 9, but we wanted 9.5 so she could wear them through summer. Unfortunately, we didn't find any half sizes. The 9s were too tight so we bought the 10s, but I don't think they'll fit her properly until fall!

She has such long, slender feet...finding the right fit is never easy.

Family time

Lily just saw a picture of a superhero on her kids menu and said it was her daddy!!

If only she would have such high opinions of us for the rest of her life!!

What a princess!

Tonight as we flipped through Lily's coloring books she stopped at this page and started to analyze it. After a few seconds she said, "Hey, that's Mommy and Daddy! My mommy and my daddy!!"

Minutes later she crawled into her toddler bed, gave me a kiss, and fell right asleep.

Sometimes Lily is too precious for words!

Enjoying the weather

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Morning girl-time together--Hair & Make-up!

Our daily routine isn't complete without a little Dr. Pepper chapstick.

Spring time!

Today we took advantage of the 70 degree weather and played outside for more than two hours before dinner!

When picking Lily up from school, I received a note from her teacher informing us that Lily is one of four (out of sixteen) 2 year olds that can alternate feet while walking on the balance beam. She happily showed off her skills at the playground near our house--Cirque du Soleil, here she comes!

When we got back home, Lily insisted on organizing all of the balls in a row in our driveway.

Getting the balls to cooperate was quite a challenge, but she never gave up!

It is fascinating to see how industrious she is.

Lily was so proud of her accomplishment that she attempted the ball line-up a second time as we put her outdoor toys away. To her credit, Lily is a fast learner and her strategy was much improved the second time around!

Snake Saturday Parade!

North Kansas City has a parade and carnival this weekend for Saint Patrick's Day so we met up with a few friends in the morning. Lily's favorite parts of the parade were the marching bands and animals! My favorite part of the day was the carnival food!

Yogurtini!

After Saturday afternoon with Alexa, Lily couldn't wait to see her again so we took the girls out to Yogurtini, in Zona Rosa. Eric gave them both about eight ounces of frozen yogurt topped with candy (WAY too much), but they both ate about three bites before the drama started--Lily wanted some of Alexa's maraschino cherries and Alexa wanted some of Lily's marshmellows, but neither wanted to share. Somehow, despite the fact that they had the same flavor and most of the same toppings, they were still finding things to be unhappy about...and after a few minutes both girls decided they didn't want any frozen yogurt at all!

So we left Yogurtini and headed to the indoor play area, The Grove, but the drama continued. The funny thing about these girls is that they act so much like sisters...they bicker when they're together, but cry tears when they have to part!

"Home"

After the morning at Shatto, we dropped Lily off to play with Alexa so Eric and I could have an afternoon date. We took a tour of Boulevard Brewery (again) and enjoyed tapas & sangria at La Bodega.

It's so rare that Eric and I get time together without Lily, it was wonderful to just get away for a few hours! I don't know what we would do without the help of our amazing friends Eva & James!!

This picture is of Lily on our drive back to the city. She's "whistling" along to Home by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. She loves that song!

Shatto Dairy

Today we took a tour of Shatto Milk Company (http://www.shattomilk.com/) in Osborn, Missouri. I've been wanting to take Lily for a while and my Junior League group happened to plan two visits this spring.

Shatto is a small, local operation which produces milk (plain and flavored), butter, ice cream and a few specialty cheeses. What makes Shatto unique is that the company uses glass bottles and has a fantastic marketing campaign.

We were able to pet the calves, watch the cows get milked, and watch the bottling process. The tour was led by the owner, who was surprisingly very funny! The dairy still has that small-town feel, which I really enjoyed. I highly recommend making taking your kids, if you live in KC!