I Love You To The Mountains and Back

It doesn’t seem right to dive into the stories about my recent honeymoon to the Southwest without first sharing about what led up to us getting on a plane to Las Vegas for a week of playing in the sun and exploring more of the outdoors without fear of rain (a common plight for those of us who live in the Pacific Northwest).

My new hubby shouldn’t be a surprise to those of you who have been following along, I’ve shared about him in posts like I’m In Love, Huckleberry Scones and the Backpacking Test, All The Ways My Cup Runneth Over, and Is It Time For Something Different? But, I guess it might be a surprise that we went from engaged at Christmas to married the first week in March to taking two weeks to join households and then finally going on our honeymoon at the end of March. Even for friends and family it probably seemed sudden especially since I was on a social media diet until April 1st.

The short version would be that when trying to pick a date to get married before someone’s lease is up and the kids go on spring break to Italy that allows you not to have the kids the night of your wedding leaves you very little options. I now say I know why my brother went off to Vegas to get married to his lovely wife who already had two children of her own. No, I couldn’t talk my honey into Vegas.

I don’t have a lot of pictures to share from the wedding at the moment because someone put the flash drive in his pocket the day before we took off for the honeymoon so for all we know they are in a Volkswagen Jetta rental car in Vegas somewhere (I guess sometimes things that don’t happen in Vegas, stay in Vegas). It wasn’t a grandiose ceremony on a mountain top but a small family and close friends affair at sunset in a historic apple orchard that is part of the local state park where we walked trails on our first date after meeting on Christian Mingle (yes, online dating does work). It was simple and perfect for two low key people, here’s a shot I took with my iPhone before the ceremony. Maybe I’ll get around to writing a post about how to get married for about $100.

The next morning after getting married (by my brother who was ordained just for us), we flew down to Colorado Springs because my husband’s dad was given a week to live the Friday before our wedding and we were there just in time for a few last words and to say goodbyes. I was blessed to have met his dad two years before when we visited on our Colorado Family Road Trip.

Then we flew back home and back to work, both at jobs and at moving all his things into either storage or my house. Our goal was simply to get it all in and worry about unpacking and arranging until after the honeymoon. The day we left for our trip, the living room had 3 couches, 2 bikes and umpteen boxes. Remember I had spent the past 40 days decluttering? Well, I think I did pretty well but there was still going to be a lot to work to do if all of that had to be incorporated. Let’s just say that the third bedroom which held my gear, crafts, and memories is now residence for the bunk beds and everything that goes with twin 11 year olds boys (and occasional 17 year old daughter). If you know anything about 117 year old houses, you know there is not exactly an overabundance of closet space. Things have got to go…

Remember my mantra?

“This won’t fit in my tiny house, this won’t fit in my tiny house.”

But first things first, HONEYMOON!

We were off for a week based out of Page, Arizona with time spent mostly in Utah (Grand Staircase Escalante and surrounding canyons) not thinking about boxes, storage issues, and adulting. We just had a lot of fun.

We eeked every last minute out of our trip, including making it to the airport just as our plane was boarding for home because of the craziness that is time zone changes between Arizona and Nevada during Daylight Savings. And despite all that, we arrived back home rested and filled with some lovely memories.

But now it is back to reality. As we unpack boxes and arrange things on shelves, I am reminded of all the ways we are perfect for each other. Here we have the cookbooks, his on the left and mine on the right. Yes, we each have a duct taped binder filled with recipes. What is not pictured is another shelf with more of his cookbooks, probably because he doesn’t have Pinterest.

I had to clear out another shelf for his spices because there is already a drawer for mine.

His beach collections and mine.

His magnets on the right, mine on the left.

Not pictured is his and hers gear…his is down south in the storage and in his car in case he gets called out for a SAR(search and rescue) mission. Just being practical!

Needless to say, the situation we left behind when we escaped to sunnier parts was eagerly waiting for us at home. It was right back to making room both literally and figuratively. Consolidating jars of cacao nibs and almond flour, organizing camping gear and getting rid of duplicate boxes of Settlers of Cataan and Jenga. All the free time I had to sit in the evenings and early mornings to write and do whatever is now time for coming together to build a home. Moving away from his and mine to ours.

Yes, I have nearly lost my mind.

Because no matter how perfect we are for each other, things are not always perfect and I find myself writing this to help remember all the reasons we got married so that I don’t forget when we are dealing with the logistics of things like having double of everything and making room for what is basically now a family of 7. Yes, there are 5 kids involved in our family now even if not all of them are at home (at least not all the time). How two people who have been single for some time (me, 18 years) and having another person in your space is awkward no matter how much you love them. He doesn’t say anything but I can see it in his eyes and find myself saying, “Yes, I really do spend this much time on my blog. It’s fun. Really.”

I will fully admit here that as wonderful as I can be, I am not always wonderful to live with. Just ask my son. Okay, maybe not. “You know, it’s practical to keep the shower curtain closed so mildew doesn’t grow as fast.” I don’t know how he’s going to put up with me. Oh, there is also the fact that he now works 30 miles away from home instead of two and the commute is hellish. He’s gone at 5:30am and lucky to be home by 8pm just to avoid rush hour traffic. It sucks.

But we have a goal for the future and this is what it is going to take to get there. All in the name of saving money so we can move into a new home later this year, someone can go back to school and both us can move into new careers. Hopefully, done with a lot of patience, prayer and perseverance, nothing will thwart us from our purpose.

It’s a good thing I love him to the mountains and back.