2 and 1

A picture post to sum it all up.

A quick trip to San Francisco to see an old friend.

Family photos: Brothers (and ladies)

Brothers, and mom

Laceys

 We had a beautiful family dinner with all of Scott's family and my folks, at my parent's house yesterday. Merry Christmas to us.

Christmas coming early

Mom

Scott's preferred method of eating chocolate (mass quantity)

Apparently there was a present opening theme.

And now present time... packing.

And Scott's present...

Not pictured: all the wonderful family and friends who joined us for a Christmas beverage and a goodbye last night. We must have had 40 friendly faces here last night. Between last night and today, we feel like Christmas really happened. We are so lucky.

3

I've been spending the last couple of days in Marin County, and I have to say... my husband is from a beautiful place. The hills are green from all the rain California got in the last few weeks, and that vibrancy just accentuates the undulations in the beautiful geography of the area. I would include a picture.... but I didn't get one. (Scott tells me I need to incorporate more pictures into this production to hold people's interest, but this week I've found it hard to carry the camera around or remember to snap pictures with my phone. I promise to be better about this in New Zealand to keep those short attention spans entertained.)

We went to the Little Hills Tree Farm today to pick out a Christmas tree for my in-laws house. I have to say, I didn't see any hills... little or otherwise. But there were a lot of trees, and the whole experience was quite festive.

Anyways, I will upload some pictures from Little Hills when I'm not too lazy to go out to the car and get the camera.

Tomorrow we're having family Christmas with Scott's parents and my own, as well as a little farewell get together at my parent's house afterwards. It should be fun. And afterwards, its just packing, and flying.

3 days.

Update (i.e.: pictures)

Scott's family on the hunt for the best tree

Timber!

8

I've become a free internet aficionado. I've had tea at several different places in town now. Need to handle finances? Go have tea to use free wi-fi. Need to email someone in NZ? More tea. I've had so much tea I may never enjoy it again, but I finally found a place on the couch at Scott's former place of employment, with good wi-fi and no fluid intake requirements. My bladder is thankful.

Anyways, we're wrapping things up in Chico today. A handful of errands, and we'll be off. It's a beautiful day in town today. There were crazy wind and rain storms all weekend. The creek flooded the parks and nearby neighborhoods, and there's some trees down and some power out. But today seems to be the calm after the storm (or between?), because the sun is out and is mildly warm. There's barely a breeze. The air is SO clear, it finally feels safe to breathe in (the local farmers burn crops during the fall in Chico, and although I enjoy their crops, they destroy our air quality for months). Even though it's a nice day, it also feels like a nice day to say goodbye. Or at least, goodbye for now.

For those of you that don't know, Chico is a pretty cool town. Theres a mid-sized state university, as well as a decent art scene, great food and wine, one of the nation's largest city parks, and some of California's friendliest people. I grew up in the bay area, and I didn't know that people this nice existed (outside of Minnesota) until I moved here. They have the time to help you with directions, they smile and look you in the eye when they say "thank you". It's all in the little things, but after being here for nearly a decade, I notice these little things and try to incorporate them into who I am.

People in Chico bike to work. They go to farmer's market, at least twice a week. They support small business, and there's more Runs for This and Walks for That than anywhere I've ever seen. The sense of community here is huge, and I love it. Of course Chico has it's downsides, like any town. It's a college town, so there's alcohol abuse and cool-old-mansion-turned-frathouse abuse. There's crime and way too many transients (probably my biggest complaint). But it is beautiful, and it's become home. And I truly feel that Chico has shaped who I have become. I suppose all I'm getting at, is that I'll miss it.

Bidwell Park (and creek, about 15 feet lower than currently...)

Don't get me wrong though. I am super excited. Everything feels surreal right now, and between my cushy vagabond princess life (living out of huge suitcases, still having 2 cars, having my own shower...) and the fact that I haven't had the normalcy of going to work or making dinner, etc... I just feel like I haven't actually gotten to soak in the reality of our move. But I have a feeling that over the next 8 days, that will become much more real.

Can't wait!

9

Rainbow over my backyard, our last day in our house.

Look who found fast and free wi-fi! Thank you, T Bar.

Last night was our going away party, we had about 75 people show up for a fun shindig in a friend's warehouse building. It may sound cold (and random) but it turned out well. Patio heaters, Christmas lights, tricycle races, homebrew, and good food made for a really fun time. There were even a few folks who braved the weather to drive from 3+ hours away. We are lucky to have such great friends, and we're also really happy to hear everyone made it home ok.

Tonight is our last night in Chico. I've actually been really apprehensive about being sad, scared, etc. but I think it was unwarranted. We're both just ready for this adventure to begin. We love our house and we'll miss it. We love Chico and we'll miss it. And we'll so miss our friends, but this has been 14 months in the making, so it would be a shame to be sad. And luckily, my irrational emotional side seems to have taken a hiatus and kicked back with a mojito or something because I just feel excited. (Ok, and a little stressed... still a lot to do... but the major challenges are over.)

So despite the great wi-fi speed and this killer spot I scored on a busy night at T-bar, I'm going to log off and go see a movie with my husband. In the midst of all of the insanity, we're looking forward to sitting, relaxing, and turning our brains off. Plus, I can't miss the latest James Bond... I have my priorities.

Larry's chickens, to whom I find myself growing quite attached, although I don't know their names...

13

I just had my last day at work. This was my first nursing job, my first "career" job, my first awesome paycheck. I have to say though, as last days go it was the most anti-climactic of all the lasts. I got some love from the doctors, and my one awesome buddy brought me a box of chocolate and some other goodies. I'm thankful for goodies.

While I was at work, Scott spent most of the day dismantling, transporting, and relocating the chicken coop. Yep, the girls moved out today. He sent me play by play texts. And he gave them extra treats for me this morning. I know it's completely silly, but that totally made me feel better. (If you're judging me, just unsubscribe now. Spontaneous irrational emotions are part of my charm. I can't change, I've tried.) I've been fretting for weeks now about when the girls actually moved out, and maybe dealing with some guilt (irrational side again, I know they're just chickens- doesn't change anything)... so last night I conned Scott (after a few beers) and a buddy of ours to take a "family portrait".

Fellers Family Photo 2012. Too bad I'm not sending out Christmas cards.

One Week

We bought our house in August 2009. We had only been in the market to buy a house for about 4 days. On day 3, we walked through a house listed at $300K (we were in a recession then, but $300K will buy you a mansion in Chico now) and Scott and I still laugh about that house. The floors were so uneven one could consider them ramps between rooms. Among ancient looking family heirlooms and dust bunnies, we saw discarded oxygen tanks and cannulas, which honestly just made me feel sad that some elderly folks had to sell their home. A heavy heart isn't exactly what you want to feel when you buy a house. 

Anyhow, the rooms were small, painted dark colors as I recall, and had an odd pattern of all connecting within each other. Like a small maze-house, great for hide-and-seek. As we braved the walk through a treacherous kitchen and out the back door, we faced a jungle. Kind of a cool jungle, but a jungle none-the-less. Gardens grew within old furniture and antique car parts, and small paths braided their way around the back yard with no rhyme or reason. It was several times the size of the house, and had a similar disorganization. There was an awesome greenhouse (where Scott saw multi-bike storage potential), but the dense foliage between the house/gate/greenhouse would have prevented any bike entrance. Conclusion? At least $20K in renovations and months in clean-up, for a house that was about 4 blocks out of the neighborhood we wanted.

And then our realtor called us, not 24 hour hours later, bubbling with excitement about a house that would be put on the market in 2 days. Tomorrow, he told us, was the day all the realtors could come view it to make their listings, but he had already peeked inside and wanted us to see it ASAP. 

We were wary, after the previous day's adventure, wondering if we were up to buying a home. But it was in our price range, smack dab in the middle of our desired neighborhood, and it had a fireplace. We agreed to check it out, and with realtors glaring, we walked in and saw this:

Large, uncluttered living room. No paint needed! No velvet curtains to remove!

No visible lean! 

We walked through all 5 rooms of the house, circled the yard, and ended up out front. We promised our realtor we'd put a bid in the following day. The asking price was below what we had agreed on for our budget of $300K, so I wanted to offer the asking price for the house. I didn't want to lose this turnkey charmer due to a couple thousand dollar squabble. But my father-in-law, who is far wiser than I, talked us though the process of putting in offers and counter-offers, and with his complete guidance assistance, I was able to get over the anxiety of offering less, and we were able to secure the house for $15K below asking price.

4 weeks later, we came home:

I had always wanted a green house with white trim. I don't know if this stemmed from a subconscious desire to be Anne of Green Gables (although I suppose her gables were green, and her house white) or if I truly have a sensible home decorator side that is buried in there somewhere. Regardless, I was so proud when we got our home painted, the lanterns out front replaced, potted plants properly placed, and a beautiful adirondack chair on the porch. 

The last checkbox on my dyslexic Anne of Green Gables homeowner dream wish list was a Christmas tree. I impatiently waited two months, and then a few weeks before Thanksgiving started mercilessly pestering Scott about when we could get a Christmas tree. Lucky for him, Christmas trees aren't actually available until Black Friday (today, incidentally), so I had to practice that patience thing. If you'll recall, I've had struggles with patience.

Anyhow, I finally got my Christmas tree (and a small fortune worth of lights and ornaments), and I finally had a window to place it in front of so all the world could see that I had created the most fabulous of all trees (under 7 feet tall), and that my house was the cheeriest of them all!

Half the reason I buy gifts for other people is so I can enjoy looking at them under the tree

I have enjoyed nearly 3.5 wonderful years in this house. We've had 3 Christmases, including huge holiday dinners. We've had 3 insane Halloween parties. There's been several great cocktail hours, and several hangover inducing nights with friends. We've had perfect date nights at home, in front of the fire place, snuggled up drinking wine. We've enjoyed our 5 chickens, Scramble, Omelet and Quiche (RIP), June and Hop. They're absolutely hilarious, and if any of you think chickens are just stupid birds that can't fly, well you're kind of right. But they're so fun to watch, funny to pester, and eggs from your own back yard really are the best (and make you feel just a tad superior to all other egg eaters.)

We move out one week from today.

I love it here so much, it's such a reflection of who we are (big bike storage, great party house, no room for kiddos, ha!) but I'm calm because I know that even though we'll be on the other side of the world, this little house, this little piece of Chico, is ours. Scott tells me we have great renters, and he is a fantastic judge of character. Our neighbors and friends will keep an eye on the place. We have a great property manager. We can't take it with us, but it's in great hands.

So off to pack more boxes I go. Theres one week left, and so much to do. Those of you that know me, know I'm overly nostalgic, so you can be sure that packing this place up is a wine-assisted process. We'll be extremely hard-pressed to find a spot this nice in NZ (although not hard-pressed to find a spot like this with single-pane windows and imaginary insulation). We don't have plans for chickens at this time, and houses with fireplaces are are rare commodity reserved for rich folks. 

But I do promise here and now, there will be a Christmas tree.

A Full Heart

I am so lucky to have such great family, wonderful friends, and a phenomenal husband. These last few weeks, from the memorial and dad's birthday, to spending a week in Breckenridge, CO with a close pal, have given me so much to be thankful for.

Yesterday I got caught up in my frustrations with the moving process. Everything is contingent on my job hunt, which currently feels stalled (although I did apply for 2 more jobs - an ICU and an OR). I had a moment of pure anger, really, but since then I feel re-set. I know this will happen. We're in control of our fate. And look at the beauty I have around me in the meantime!

Breckenridge, CO is a cool little resort town, and if you haven't been there before, it's worth checking out! Yes, it is touristy. But unlike Vail or Northstar, it's not a pre-fab town just established for your spending pleasure. It's actually a real place, with real year-round residents (only 4,500 of them, but whatever). There's fantastic food, great bars and pubs, and amazing hiking.

Image Via

Irresistible, isn't it?

My friend Courtney from Chicago and I met "in the middle", a 2 hour plane ride for both of us, in Breckenridge for a 4 day girls (mid)weekend. Technically it was a farewell vacation, but we didn't let that stop us from having some serious fun. In addition to enjoying the Breckenridge Brewery, and watching the Giants lose miserably in game 4, we also shopped 'til we dropped and pampered ourselves with deep tissue massages after completing a 7 mile, 1,500 foot elevation gain hike in the mountains. And this is no wussy hike- in addition to the actual hike, consider we're starting at over 12,000 feet elevation, and we've got about 4 inches of snow to contend with. We were lucky there were footprints on most of the trail.

There's no oxygen up here! Can you breathe? Yeah, me neither!

About 1,000 feet into the hike- we climbed up that rock face on the left

A small waterfall that the signs made a big deal about

Mohawk lake, looking towards Breckenridge

Reached the top of the rock face, lunch with a view.

Although we'll be leaving the states soon, and many people may think I'm nuts, I plan on filling these last few months with plenty of little getaways. I have a lot of fantastic people to say goodbye to, and a lunch date or phone conversation just isn't going to do it.

Next up, Ashland, OR (again, I know! We cant stay away from that place!) this weekend with some friends, and then the bay area the following weekend for an old friend's wedding.

Lesson learned: saying goodbye can be really fun. No tears necessary.