Lily Meets St. Mary's

Oh is it good to be back in Denver!  I just cannot believe that we actually live here again.  God is so good and we are so utterly blessed.

The first thing that we wanted to do when we got back into Colorado was take a hike up to Saint Mary's Glacier.  St. Mary's was really where Bob and my story began.  We fell in love up there.  It just seemed fitting.  I simply cannot even describe the joy and elation that I felt driving up into the mountains.  It was cathartic and refreshing.  Both Bob and I held hands on the drive up, remembering all the wonderfully good times and in a state of shock that WE LIVE HERE!

We packed up our little mountain munchkin and headed up.

 Its a good thing we are in good shape because the altitude seriously challenges your lung capacity.  Whoa, gonna take a month or so to get used to that.

 As we got to the base of the glacier both Bob and I looked at each other and smiled.  The beauty is even more breathtaking then we remember.  I meet Jesus up in the mountains. So incredible.

The glacier has definitely done a lot of melting in this super hot summer, but there is still a large portion to play on.  We took Lily up to it and let her play in the snow.

 Frozen wato!  She was very unstable and not at all accustomed to mountain goating up the rocks and ice, but she was smiling and giggling.  It was too cute.

We decided to introduce Lily to her Mommy's version of the beach.

 Freezing lake water with a rocky shore.  We stripped her down to her diaper and relaxed by the lake while enjoying the view.  It was absolutely wonderful.  

On the way back down the mountain we just had to pull into our old "starving-after-hiking-all-day" pizza joint, Beau Jos

The pizza is as good as I remember it and we thoroughly enjoyed our BBQ pizza and honey on the crust. YUM!  What a perfect way to spend a Saturday morning.

Good Ole Rocky Mountain High!

Gosh, there is just something about the mountains that gets into you and never lets you go. After 7 years away living all across the country, the Longmires are once again Coloradans! EEEK!

I had these grand and glorious thoughts of taking copious pictures of the days leading up and including moving day and all of the unpacking, but then little Lily got sick. No, sick doesn't quite do it justice. She was horribly ill and I was a very exhausted, scared and worried Mommy. It all started last Thursday on the airplane to Colorado. With all of the moving I didn't think that her “hunger strike” was anything to be concerned with. On the airplane she was her usual busy self, but I noticed that she was warmer than usual. Boy, we made it home to Feddy and Kemos and the first night was awful. The poor baby, her fever spiked up to 103 and she was miserable. She couldn't breathe, and every time she would swallow she would scream. She wouldn't eat anything, or drink anything for the first day and she was in bad place. Day 2 was even worse. Every time I would lay her down to sleep, she would scream and fuss for Mommy. She couldn't sleep, so she wouldn't. The poor baby looked like a zombie, and frankly so did I. Yikes it was rough.

We tried everything from taking a hike in this cool new back pack to visiting the horses, to looking at the pond, playing music and petting Eoeo. Nothing helped. It wasn't until Monday, the great move in day, that she started to seem like her old self.

After dropping the Jessups off in Texas, Bob and my Dad started on their journey to Denver last Saturday. The Last Bit Ranch sells some EXCELLENT hay at a great price, so my Dad took advantage of it and filled the empty space in the truck with hay bales. Bob and Dad pulled into the Flying E Ranch on Sunday afternoon. It was so relieving to see Bob and all of our “life” in the back of the truck. We unloaded hay and then enjoyed what time we could while nursing our sick little one and preparing for unloading day on Monday.

Monday we were all up bright and early. We headed out to our new apartment with all of us in tow. Now, the apartment is way out in the plains of Denver and we were moving in sight unseen. Thankfully Mom and Dad had taken the time to see it so we had some idea about it. It really is a cute little place for apartment living. Lily is thrilled that she has a pool, aka “wato,” close by. It is way too far from the mountains, but it is going to work great for the next year as we get our feet under us and Bob gets immersed in his new job at Plink. Speaking of, Bob LOVES his job. I am so thrilled and simply cannot wait to see what the Lord has in store for him.

Because the apartment sits way out in Denver, I am completely unfamiliar with the area. In some respects it still feels like I live in a different state. I am having to learn my way around my little spot of the state. I am simply overjoyed to be back in Colorado, even though we are a ways from my old “stomping grounds,” we are still far closer than North Carolina so for that I am eternally grateful.

Mike, Kathy, Mikey and Maggie all came up from Colorado Springs to help us move into our little home on Monday. It is so wonderful to have them in the same state! I really should have taken more pictures, but I just couldn't slow down long enough to take them. Maggie was so wonderful and kept Lily occupied in the bathtub while we moved in.

Now on day 4 I am finally starting to feel a semblance of order taking place and hoping that I can finish up the decorating asap.

It has been immensely more challenging moving in with a toddler around. Her version of helping is undoing what I just did. Oy!  She is just so cute though.......how can you resist her?

How we became a Family

A year ago, Bob and I sat on the floor of the Jessups tiny one bedroom apartment and proposed the idea of our families living together.  Our reasons were sound and our families were both in a place of transition, but looking back on that moment, we must have looked absolutely out of our minds.  How in the world would it even be possible for two young families to even consider the idea of living together? Had Bob and I officially crossed over to Crazyville?  What I love about Grace and Sebron though, is that instead of running away from the idea, they embraced it.

July 2011- the day we moved in together

Two months after that evening, we were moving into our two story home.  Many thought we were crazy, many questioned our ability to live together and remain friends, but we all knew that the Lord had blessed us with a unique opportunity and we were all excited about it.

Our first month together was a time of discovering boundaries and trying to figure out how "communal" we really could live.

Our first 5K together

 Since we shared one kitchen and it was in Bob and my territory, I know that Grace and Sebron struggled with how often they could come and go and whether or not there were public "kitchen hours."  Alternately, Bob and I struggled with wondering whether or not we could go downstairs at will to feed the kitties or change the laundry.  Wondering if we needed to give them notice, or call down.  That first month was, at times, awkward.

Cow Appreciation Day at Chick-Fil-A

But then something amazing happened.  We started living. Together.  Where we were and whose stuff we were using started to become irrelevant because our relationships were so much more important.  Slowly the house became our home.  Grace became my sister. Always there for me, always only a moment away. There was something so bonding about waking up with a crying baby and hearing Jancsi downstairs.  I knew that Grace was up too.  There was camaraderie and support just knowing that I wasn't alone.  Being a stay at home Mom with Grace was healing, empowering and life giving.  Our conversations were so deep, so powerful and so authentic.

June 2012- the day before we moved out

I know why the Lord calls us to live in community.  Only in community can you truly know, love and connect with others without pretense.  To call Grace a friend seems somehow underrated.  She is so much more than that to me and I will never be able to communicate in words all that she is.  She, Sebron and Jancsi are family and a part of the Longmire's will forever be with them.

One Last Time

We're moving. Away, and without the Jessups.  It has sunk in and the reality is really hitting home.  This week has been the week of lasts.  The last time we will feed our kids together, the last time we will give them a bath together, the last time we will cook dinner or eat dinner together, the last time we will watch a show (Big Bang, Raising Hope or Accidentally on Purpose) together, and for Grace and I, the last time we will run together.

This is the spot where we met- a Divine Appointment

I get teary just thinking about it.  Grace was a gift given straight from heaven for me.  She quickly became my perfect running partner.  I truly believe that our relationship is as strong as it is because of our many, many, many miles of running together.  We are perfectly matched running partners.  When she was down I was strong, and when I was down she was strong.  We were always at the same pace and pushed each other just enough.  We did 5Ks, half marathons and a marathon together, and all of the training that went along with them.  Running was (and is) our thing.  When babies were up all night, we ran.  When husbands lost their jobs, we ran.  When life seemed overwhelming, we ran. The simple thought of not running tomorrow or next Monday, or next Saturday............oh it makes me sad.  Yesterday was the last time.

We went to Lake Johnson.  To finish where it all started.  It was special and perfect in every way.  The best part is that Bob pushed the babies in the double jogger so we got to run just the two of us.

The last time they will ride together- they had a ball

Grace, it may have been our last run together for a while, but it was the most perfect and fitting way to say goodbye.

Goodbye Bread Friends

I wasn't sure if I was going to do an entire blog about our Great Harvest Bread Co., but I can't help it, I love that place and the bread makers in it.  I discovered this little bread store a year ago and have been utterly and completely hooked on their delicious bread ever since.  Both Grace and I make a once, sometimes twice, weekly stop to purchase scrumptious whole wheat, spelt, golden wheat cinnamon chip, breakfast blend, dakota, extreme cinnamon swirl bread and of course the occasional cinnamon roll and savannah bar.  Oh my mouth is watering just thinking about it.  Lily and Jancsi just love it because they give out free slices.  We get close to the store and both kiddos start tuning up.

In the past year, we have gotten to know all of these wonderful people and now we are known by name and are also known as the "running families."  All of these wonderful people hugged us and congratulated us at the Tobacco Road Marathon.  They get us and we love them for it!  Grace and I have even run to the bread store, bought our bread and run home and that's no easy feat considering it is 9 miles round trip!  We are really going to miss Great Harvest.  Not just the delicious bread but the kind family of bread makers we have come to know and love!

So Much to Celebrate-Let's start with 8

Bob and I celebrated our 8 year anniversary today and we have so much to celebrate about.  There are so many new adventures and possibilities opening up for us and we are simply amazed where we are.  I am humbled by this man I have the privilege of calling mine.  He is incredible.  I never thought that I would marry someone who so completely and utterly loves me.  I am his world and I never doubt it.   There are simply not enough ways to describe love to encompass all the ways he loves me.  It is awe inspiring and beautiful.  Being married to him gives me a glimpse of the Lord's great love for His bride. I am a very lucky lady and I love him more with each moment of life we get to do together.

Our anniversary was simply wonderful.  Grandma and Grandpa Hill are here for the annual "moving in the summer" tradition, and we decided that we needed to take them to the beach.  What a blast.

 We ran on the beach together,

discovered what parents do when Grandma and Grandpa are in town....delightful

ran on the beach

dug holes,

built sand monuments

sat on sand thrones

stood on sand thrones

ran around some more,

jumped over the waves

put sunscreen on Grandma

ran around again

and had a grand ole time! Lily just doesn't stop.

This time Lily was beside herself with wato anticipation.  She couldn't get into and out of it fast enough.  We had an absolute blast and found that it was a perfect way to slowly bring our North Carolina time to a close.

We made it home, showered and then headed out on a much needed Anniversary/Celebrate our life date night.  3 weeks ago when I was doing my cleanse and we were waiting to hear back from Plink, Bob and I went down to this fancy mall to just walk around, you know, kill time.  We walked by this restaurant called Kanki, a sushi and hibachi grill, and told each other that when I was done with my cleanse and Bob got offered the job at Plink we would come back and celebrate.  We left the mall wondering if we would be back.  Well, tonight we celebrated at Kanki.  3 weeks later we were back with dreams realized and goals fulfilled.  It was fun.  We topped the night off with cheescake and wine.   Simply perfect.

Happy Anniversary my love, may we have 80 more!