hello there

My sweet sister (probably the only one to still read this thing) asked me if everything was okay since I hadn't blogged in a while. 

Yes, yes it is. We have been in all-out summer mode. And rather than recording memories the last few weeks,  we've been making them. The highlights include getting together with friends in towns, library story time, trying to keep cool, going on vacation, and falling in love. 

And then breaking up.  With a house that is. We haven't quite experienced such intense emotional attachment as we have the past few weeks. We had been casually looking for a house and found one that had 95% of what we wanted. It seemed like every minute was consumed thinking about how we would make it ours, that it was just "perfect." It felt so right, and then out of nowhere, the relationship ended. We were heartbroken. Devastated. We had so many questions. Just like the end of any relationship conjures up. But we can take from this whole experience is that there is a much better plan. There will be something better around the corner and we can't wait to find out what it is. All we know for now is that the timing is not right, the house was not right, and that there are still things we are needed for here. (But it is hard to let go of the bigger kitchen, a bathtub, a huge garage, bedrooms for our growing family, walking distance to the elementary, a fenced backyard, a laundry room with a sink, and lots of other perks.)

In some ways, the timing could not have been more perfect for the breakup to happen. Way back in the Spring, we decided to take a family vacation--just the three of us--to the San Juan Islands. And then when all of this was happening and we were putting in an offer, we thought, how can we be gone and actually enjoy a vacation? 

Well, the news came right at the beginning of the trip. It was a big blessing to be away from the situation. To forget about it all and be happy just to be together. 

I've got hundreds of pictures to sort through and post, but for now, I'll just leave you with a few of my favorites. And then when I get a little more time, I'm going to tell you all about it because there is so much fun in reliving our trips by posting about them. I already miss those San Juan Islands.