Our Family

We've been proud Idahoans since March 2008!

We made the decision to leave San Diego in June 2007, setting the process into motion after returning from a trip to Seattle. For 10 years, every time I flew back to San Diego, I felt like I was coming home. I always felt a wonderful, warm feeling returning to that beautiful city, "America's Finest City." But that time in June, the feeling of coming home eluded me. I felt restless and vacant. So I knew it was time for a change. Thankfully, my husband was just waiting for the chance to leave the crowded city for his homeland, the wilds of the Northwest!

We flew into action, remodeling the master bathroom of our tiny condo and putting it on the market by August 1. Despite the worsening economy, our place sold in 39 days! The offer came September 9, during Dennis' 30th birthday party celebration. Perfect timing to celebrate! We escaped from San Diego before the housing bubble burst and prices plummeted, forcing people to foreclose in record numbers. We even made a decent profit, which we planned to use so Dennis could go to school.

Moving is tricky! We closed the sale of our condo October 23. Meanwhile, we rented a small house near downtown San Diego for 6 months while we got all the details lined up. I was pregnant with our second child, David. We needed to stay in San Diego for his birth, and then make the move to Idaho.

As fate would have it, David Emmanuel was born on Christmas Day 2007. In February, Dennis flew to Idaho to arrange housing for our move. He ended up finding a beautiful country house on over an acre of land. The house has a view of a huge 16-square mile lake. In March, he quit his well-paying job and we packed up our stuff and drove to our new home in Idaho, with the future wide open. There is something nice about having no path to follow, but having to make our own path through the times ahead.

March 2008 was cold, and spring was late in coming. It took me an entire year to adjust to the new weather patterns. It was new for me to live on the edge of the time zone. The extreme swings in temperature and daylight were difficult for the first year, but eventually I came to love all aspects of this high desert climate. The wonderful house made the move easier. The peaceful setting soothed my nerves, and the many cows that surrounded our home reduced my stress levels. When David was 4 months old, I discovered that I was pregnant yet again.

Alanna Joelle was born 13 months after David was born, in January of 2009. She is now 6 months old. Sam will begin kindergarten in a few weeks at the new charter school here in town. And life is good.

We have a full life here, a wonderful church, many new friends and family nearby. Our faithful Labrador "Scout" survived the trip, no worse for wear, and we have since added "Bat the Cat" to our family. Both animals live outdoors and enjoy each other's company.

God has blessed us immensely!