Aaaaaaand we're back.... in Tahoe

All the pictures below are from our days in Idaho, but we've been back here in Tahoe now for 3 weeks.  It was kind of weird moving back into the house we'd just left 3 months prior.  Just so you know how we ended up back here in Tahoe, especially after my last post, here's the short story: Ryan went back to work for the lady that moved us up here in the first place.  He applied for jobs and interviewed like crazy when we found out that his other job was going to be ending, but nothing panned out.  Then we found out that our house we'd been renting here was still available.  Then we both, independently of each other, started thinking, "Ok, maybe Tahoe wasn't so bad.  Maybe we could move back there."  One thing led to another, Ryan contacted his old boss and BAM, it was a done deal.  Then we had to decide when we were going to move back.  We decided that after Christmas would be best.  We packed and cleaned and cleaned and packed and loaded up a huge truck, split the drive up into a couple days and before we knew it, we were back in Tahoe.  We left behind some awesome neighbors and friends in Idaho, but we feel like this is where the Lord has led us back to.  It is nice being here again and seeing familiar faces.  We've both decided to embrace the craziness that is Tahoe and to enjoy more of what Tahoe has to offer.

We (meaning me) are still deep in the throes of unpacking, but it's coming along.  We're happy to be back and excited for what things lie ahead for our family.

 Just another frozen day in Idaho.

 Zoe and Benson about to open the huge present behind them.  It was a wagon from MeMa and Papa.

 So, the awesome neighbors I mentioned above?  Yeah, this was at their house.  We had a fun time building gingerbread houses.  We're already missing them!

 Don't be fooled by her cherubic face.  Deep down, this girl is a pirate.

 There's just too much going on here.

 Your guess is as good as mine.

 The Minnie ears were the perfect accessory.

 Our handsome little Benson all ready for church.

One of our last pictures in Idaho.... taken in the cement room of our basement.

At least we're not pregnant!

I'm kinda sad that it's been 4 months since I posted anything on our blog.  I've been thinking about it and wanted to get caught up.  Then we decided to move.  And now it's 1 week before Christmas and we're moving again.  Only this time there's a catch: we don't know where or when we're moving.  Isn't life fun?

We left Tahoe and moved back to Rexburg, ID at the beginning of October (I say "back to" because if you've known us long enough, you know that we moved to Idaho (just outside of Rexburg) back in 2010).  Ryan got sick of his job and took on a private client who could pay more than what he was making.  Plus, he could work from home.  Things were going fine and dandy in Tahoe until we started hearing way too many stories from our friends (who are cops and who know what's going on) about some of the crazies in the Tahoe area.  Even being at church wasn't completely safe.  The missionaries in our ward were teaching someone (unbeknownst (I love that word) to them) that ended up stabbing to death his invalid cousin whom he'd been sexually assaulting!  We had FBI agents in our foyer/lobby every Sunday doing security because our bishop had had death threats on him.  We'd had enough of the craziness and felt that Tahoe wasn't really the place where we wanted to raise our kids.  I wasn't too fond of living in a tourist town and hated the fact that I had to drive at least 40 minutes (on a good day, minus snow or other road hazards) to get to the nearest Target or Walmart.  Sorry, Kmart just doesn't cut it.  I had made a wonderful mommy friend, but Ryan was wanting some friends too.  His brother and best friend from high school were both living in Rexburg.  Well, since we weren't tied to Tahoe anymore and since Ryan could work remotely, we decided to pack up and move to Rexburg.  

All was fine and dandy until..... until.... someone dropped the ball.  We'd found this great huge house to live in and Ryan was enjoying the work he was doing.  The man he was working for had a couple people on his team and they had this product they were rolling out for a rather big client, George Washington University out in DC.  This was going to be a big thing for them.  Then ooops!  Mr. Web Tech designer of some sort, decided to not do his job.  That threw off the roll out of their product and they lost their contract with GW.  Guess what that means?  No contract = no money.  Ryan's client could no longer afford to pay Ryan and we got stuck with the bum end of this deal.  We'd just moved here and had been here only a couple weeks before we found out that Ryan was going to have to find a new job.  There is nothing local that can pay what we need to live on (and we do not live extravagantly by any means) so staying here is not an option.  So guess what?  We're moving where there are better options.  Ryan has been applying for jobs and interviewing like crazy.  A couple weeks ago we told our landlord that we'd be out by Dec. 31 so we're under a time crunch to get out too.  We just need something to come through for us.  

This feels more like a journal entry than a typical blog post.  But guess what?  I haven't written in my journal in awhile either.  Two birds, baby.  

So here I sit in our house that doesn't even smell of packing yet and trying to come up with a plan B in case no jobs come through for us by the end of the month.  On a bright note, I never completely unpacked from our move up here so a lot of things are still in boxes.  I never decorated or put things up on the wall so I don't have to take anything down.  I just hate moving again.  I truly hate it.  

But here's some pictures of the kids!

 Zoe's 4th birthday.

 What a cool daddy.

 Trip to San Fran!

 Our little CrossFit baby.

 Zoe and her favorite cousin Kira.

 Happy mommy, happy Ruthie.

 A week before we moved, Benson got hurt in a trampoline incident.  He strained or sprained something and couldn't walk for a day or two.  He did get better.  And yes, his toenails are painted.

 The great-aunts came up and visited before we left.

 Our lil' punkins at the pumpkin patch.

Happy baby!

Life is still good.  We are all healthy and happy.  We have much to be grateful for and things could definitely be worse.  Here's to a fun and interesting next couple of weeks!

A Day in the Life

Because life isn't always about trips and events.  This is our real life.

 How I know when Benson's been playing with my phone.

 Sometimes we hang out in our bathing suits all day.  Just for fun.

 And sometimes we get wet in our clothes!

 Who doesn't love a happy baby?

 Moments with  Mommy.

 Broom Riding 101.

 Our little (good) witch.

 Sometimes our clothes are too big.

 Sometimes we're happiest when we have no clothes on.

 Yep, that's how we roll.  

 A sweet moment for these two.  It's rare to catch Benson near Ruthie when he's not laying on her or forcing his toys in her face.

 Hanging out with friends and looking at rocks.

 Ruthie getting some quality time with her great-aunts.

 Grandma squeezes!

 Grandpa teaching the finer lessons of Sesame Street Radio.

 Our own little curly haired monster. =)

 How we play outside.

 And we make silly faces.

 Is she really big enough to be in that thing?

 What childhood is complete without fort building?

 Hangin' on the hammock with Daddy.

 Oh the fun we have.

 That's why we gotta keep you strapped in Ruthie!

 Nature walk with Daddy.

 Zoe got to try on Mommy's wedding dress.  Someday Zoe, someday.

 Zoe's favorite person in the world... her cousin Kira.

 Zoe's best little friend up here in Tahoe.... Syren.

Having their cake and eating it too.

Camping at Santa Cruz

I just posted about our Tough Mudder adventure and realized I totally forgot to blog about our camping trip.  Every year we take a trip to Santa Cruz and camp with some friends of ours.  Each year it's gotten more interesting too as we've added a kid almost each time.

 Wearing Daddy's hat.  She's serious about her camping.

 We stopped at the Jelly Belly Factory on the way there because what long car trip is complete without kids amped up on sugar?

 Where Ruthie ended up most mornings - in bed with us.

 Sleeping arrangements.

 "Hey, I have an idea.... Let's pick up handfuls of dirt.....

 .... and drop it on our heads!"

 Outside of Pizza My Heart.

 Everyone is worn out and passed out.... except me, of course.  Hey, someone's gotta be awake to document all this!

 At the Seymour Aquatic Center.

 Touching Jaws.

 Someone is just a little worn out from all this camping.  Yeah, Ruthie is too.

 Sisterly love.

 What we lovingly call "the shoe box."  Hey, it keeps the babies from rolling all over the place and doesn't take up as much room as a pack-n-play!

 Beach time!

 And at the Boardwalk.

 Early morning back at the campsite.  

 Our little mischievous girl.

 I think Benson is picking his nose.

 Our personal chef.

 More beach time!

 My friend Sherry.  They keep letting us hang out with them, so we do!