SUMMERTIME 2021
Today I woke up and found the ground covered in snow for the first time this season…so I decided I really should get to my summertime recap post. Lol.
We had an excellent, overall very happy summer season. It began with a wonderful, long road trip to the westside of Wyoming, officially marking the furthest west both Nick & I had ever traveled in the US. We were un-phased by the 20 hr drive, and enjoyed a historic cabin stay in lovely Pinedale, WY. As much as we could, we spent time enjoying the outdoors–hiking, kayaking, biking, relaxing on our porch–and, despite the mishaps that came with each of those activities, we had a great time. Mishaps? Oh, nothing big. Just once being casually chased by a moose, once being stranded on the side of a lake where mountain lions were known to roam, and once completely forgetting to protect my back from the sun and getting nice and crispy. Nbd.
The summer continued with one surgery after another. First a laparoscopy for myself, followed a few weeks later by a similar procedure for Nick, followed by a surgery on my shoulder a few weeks later. We were certainly blessed with good surgeons, easy recoveries, and fairly successful outcomes. Best of all, we both function a little better now!
Finally, the summer ended with a big move to be closer to Nick’s work. It was emotionally draining to have the house torn apart and boxes everywhere for pretty much the whole summer, and saddening to go through a series of “lasts” and goodbyes in a town we both loved. But, we made it through that period of unsettling and had a very smooth moving day in mid-August to a home we hope to stay in for a long time. We are loving our new place and new town!
PHOTOS & MEMORIES
-Celebrated the beginning of summer by welcoming Nick home with “We are the Champions” as he walked through the front door. The evening followed with a steak dinner, celebratory cake, and a hard-earned bottle of whiskey.
-Had my most social summer…ever? Invested in friendships over ice cream, wine dates, dinners at folks’ homes, and in aquatic zumba classes. I made a friend..which is exceptional for me.
-Helped a friend paint her new house –which was great fun in and of itself. But it was DOUBLY fun because painting day fell on the 1st day of my 1st period post-surgery and I couldn’t believe that I was doing active work and not laying in bed with unmanageable pain.
-Celebrated our 3-year relationship anniversary, 2-year engagement anniversary and 1-year wedding anniversary. We love our milestones!
-Rang in my 27th year with a Vitamix blender (!!) and a rainbow, unicorn cake courtesy of my husband. Was also showered with birthday love and many Reeses PB cups by my co-workers.
-We met a Lego Master!! I officially have a claim to fame.
-Attended the fanciest wedding I’ve ever been to and we enjoyed ourselves immensely. I’m emotional at 98% of the weddings I attend, but this one was emotional ten times over.
-Made a quick trip to Duluth for the baptism of our newest goddaughter, Gwen. Enjoyed time with family and got away for an evening to go antiquing…which is how we wound up being proud owners of a Terracotta Warrior statue.
-Enjoyed my last months with coworkers that I loved all too much. The end of my time at the job came sooner than anyone expected (thanks, COVID), but I’m still so grateful for my time there.
-Started Kristen Lavransdatter–my most ambitious read yet. I didn’t finish. Nobody was surprised.
-Spent as much time as possible watching the birds in our backyard before we moved. Witnessed so much great wildlife back there - including two sets of mama deer with two babies each that came back day after day.
After this beautiful post, it is perhaps horrible that my biggest take-away is that you didn’t finish Kristin Lavransdatter!!?!
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