It's So Hard To Say Goodbye ...

I hate goodbyes! Hate, hate, hate 'em. I am a big-time crier, too. (Just to warn all of you Roseburg people.) :) I have been dreading writing this post, but, alas, it must be done.

Most of you already know that we're leaving the lovely town of Roseburg in a few weeks to return to our motherland, Virginia. Mike -- so proud of him -- landed an excellent job at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond doing cardiac rehab. This is a dream come true for him. He's hoping to get his finger in research and teaching at the school. Wonderful opportunity for him!

We didn't intend to return to Virginia to live (although I secretly wanted to someday.) :) When we were there at Christmas he learned about the job opening and just applied on a whim ... and got it!

We are so sad to leave our cherished friends. One of my favorite quotes (author unknown) is: "You never really leave a place you love. Part of it you take with you, leaving a part of yourself behind." That is totally how I feel about Roseburg. I had no idea I would grow to love this place so much when I first moved here. The people have made all the difference. Roseburg will always have a special place in my heart for some solid reasons:

- This is where Mike and I launched our marriage.
- We experienced much of the West while living here: Seattle and Pasco, Washington; Portland, Bend, and Eugene, Oregon; and San Francisco, Monterey, and Carmel, California.
- We enjoyed the gorgeous, breathtaking hiking and scenery available here multiple times.
- We made INCREDIBLE friends. (Who knew we'd make some of the best friends of our lives here?) I know that we'll stay in touch!
- We were able to live slimly and save for a down payment on a house. Let the house hunting begin -- yah!
-We had a baby here -- yah!!!

We'll always have wonderful connections to this place!

Now for the invitation. You are ALL invited to come visit us on the East Coast. We truly love visitors and expect you guys to come stay with us. YOU MUST! Richmond is just a hop, skip, and a jump from D.C. (Okay, it's two hours.) But, we'll be in the heart of Virginia, which means we'll be surrounded by lots of beautiful historical sites. Richmond is where Patrick Henry gave his famous "Give me liberty or give me death" speech, for example. Please come visit! (For real. We really do mean it; we're not just saying it.)

We will miss our Roseburg friends dearly. At the same time, we look forward to being closer to family and great friends. Mike and I have talked about how it would be so awesome if we could create a neighborhood full of our close friends and family so we wouldn't have to all be so spread out. Wouldn't that be AMAZING? Ahh, wishful thinking.

Thank you, Roseburg people, for such an incredible two years. I only have absolutely fond and wonderful memories. I love you all so much!

We don't leave until March 18, so there's still time to hang out!

Happy 38th Anniversary Today!

Happy anniversary to a special couple (no bias or anything!) :)

To many they are Barbara and Steve, but to me they are Mom and Dad. I am thankful for the love, encouragement and support they've always given me. Mom, thank you for telling me that I can do anything I set my mind to (and believing it). That has always stuck with me. Dad, thanks for the help in choosing a college major -- it's something that has turned into a lifelong love. Thank you both for being so fun to laugh with, for being so kind and gracious, for loving your children, for supporting us, for forgiving us, for believing in our capabilities, for serving so selflessly and quietly, for forgiving others, for your generosity, for teaching me so much by your examples, for teaching me to be independent, for lifting me up when I was down, for loving your grandchildren so tenderly, for coming to visit when we had Aaron, for truly living good lives, for sincerely loving and serving your neighbors, for encouraging me to follow my dreams, for always opening your lovely home to your friends and mine, for dropping me off in New York City for the summer and then picking me up, for supporting me and writing me on my mission, for praying for the people I taught, for praying for me, for guiding me every day of my life, and for being yourselves. Thank you, finally, for teaching me to believe in myself and to never give up. You are truly remarkable people. I can't believe I get to be your daughter! How lucky am I?? I feel so blessed to have you as parents.

Anyone who knows my parents knows how kind, witty, patient, loving, and wonderful they are. Congratulations, Mom and Dad, for 38 years of marriage. Thank you for hanging in there. As Dad likes to say, "Life isn't meant to be an endurance contest." Thank you, both, for teaching me to enjoy life. I truly do.

You deserve a beautiful day! Hope you have fun in Ithaca this week. We love you. You mean so much to us! Here's to many more years ...

p.s. Happy anniversary, as well, to Lane and Erin - another truly wonderful couple! This day must be reserved for special couples like you guys! ;)

Fly-fishing Legend and Family Home Evening: Great Combo

We've had some particularly fun Family Home Evenings the past couple of weeks. We've decided to break from the "norm", leave the house, and make visits to people. These have, by far, been the most memorable Family Home Evenings I've had since being married. It's fun bringing Aaron along, too, because he seems to lift and brighten people's spirits. Children do have that wonderful effect.

This week we were able to visit a friend of Mike's, 85-year-old fly-fishing legend, Frank Moore. He could have starred in "A River Runs Through It" alongside Brad Pitt. You can google Frank's name and find all kinds of articles written on him. Here's a good one. This man is world famous!

What's more impressive, though, is watching him interact with his sweet wife, Jeanne, of 65 years. Mike and I so enjoyed being in their home (a lovely cabin, which he built, by the way) because of the way they treated us and the way they treated each other. We didn't want to leave -- and didn't for a couple of hours! We had so much fun listening to Frank tell stories of his fly-fishing adventures, which he still has to this day. What an inspiration. I was telling Mike as we were leaving that they are such classy people because of the way they make others feel: loved and appreciated. I will never forget them nor their kindness to us. It's people like them that lift MY spirits!

Here's Mike, Frank and Aaron. Such gentlemen!



And here are the boys with Jeanne and Frank. They're such a sweet couple!

Sweeping Seattle

Some cities are magical. Seattle is one of them. Mike, Aaron and I had a great, quick trip to this breathtakingly pretty city. We covered so much ground in one day that I feel like we "swept" the city. We stayed right downtown, which was so convenient for hitting the sites. We traveled up the Space Needle twice - once during daylight and again at night (a must when in Seattle - spectacular view! Think "Sleepless in Seattle"), walked around the piers, visited "Ye Olde Curiosity Shop" (Mike's fave), shopped at a three-story Old Navy, had yummy seafood for lunch, and ate at Benihana's for din-din. Two words: So. Good.

Aaron did great. He slept almost the entire way up and back. He's very transportable at this age - hence this cool pack we bought up there at REI's ginormous flagship store. As you can see, Aaron enjoys it too. Overall, a fabulous trip. It's great having access to such fun Northwestern cities. Thanks, Mike!! Great way to celebrate Valentine's Day & our upcoming two-year (!) anniversary.

So Much Love

If this slogan doesn't inspire you today, I don't know what will! ;) (Gotta love our home state's travel and tourism motto.)



These delicious, homemade personalized Valentine's cookies were prepared for us by some friends. What a cute idea, huh? Thanks, Meg!

Thought this quote was interesting, and appropriate for the day: "Love is much nicer to be in than an automobile accident, a tight girdle, a higher tax bracket, or a holding pattern over Philadelphia." - Judith Viorst :)

Want to add that I love my husband, Mike, for being such a wonderful, kind, helpful, fun, and devoted husband and father. Of course I love my little sweets, too. How could Valentine's Day get any better than this?

Hope your day is full of love, affection, and lots of yummy treats. Happy Valentine's Day!

We love you!
J, M, and A :)

Because We Can All Use A Little More Laughter

A dear friend from college -- and obviously a very talented author and editor -- recently edited a DARLING book called "Cheerios In the Chapel." My friend Trish and I met in a communications class at BYU and came to find out that we grew up just 30 minutes apart in Virginia. We've stayed in touch over the years, and I couldn't pass up an opportunity to order a copy of her published work. (Published by Meridian Magazine, www.ldsmag.com.)

I must say I love this book. It's lighthearted, fun, and full of humor which, frankly, we can all use more of. ;) It contains humorous anecdotes and stories about the funny things children do and say. LDS humor, if you will, or any Christian audience for that matter. Something DIFFERENT to display on the coffee table. :)

I think this book would make a wonderful gift -- for Christmas, birthdays, Mother's Day, Father's Day, etc. To order a copy, visit here.

I wanted to share a couple of entries, to give you a sampling of the book's flavor:

-- My mother was an early-morning seminary teacher several years ago. One morning a girl who was a grocery bagger was asked to say ther prayer. Apparently she was pretty wrapped up in her work because she stood up in front of the class, folded her arms, bowed her head and said: "Paper or plastic?"

And another: -- While working for an organization that delivers lunches to elderly people, I used to take my 4-year-old daughter on my afternoon rounds. She was intrigued by the various appliances of old age, particularly the canes, walkers and wheelchairs. One day, I found her staring at a pair of false teeth soaking in a glass. As I braced myself for the inevitable barrage of questions, she turned and whispered: "The tooth fairy will never believe this!"

Trish did a wonderful job compiling these stories and editing the book. I love Trish, and I'm grateful for the friend she's been over the years. Good job, Trish!

So This Is Why We Have Kids ...

I wouldn't trade this opportunity for the world! I love being a mom. It's the best! (If only it stayed relatively easy ... )