A Colorado Halloween

A week before Halloween: Unpacked enough supplies to do some pumpkin painting.
Ramona requested a scary pumpkin which of course acquired a pink face by completion. Pink is her color of choice these days. But she thoughtfully incorporated some other colors, as well.
Wednesday before Halloween: Seven-eight inches of snow. Apparently, in Colorado, this is normal.
As soon as Ramona saw the snow that morning, she insisted on playing in it.

And so, just two days after painting a pumpkin, we ended up building our first snowman of the season.
Friday before Halloween: Round one of trick-or-treating--around the cubicles at Forest's workplace for the "Halloween at Avago" event. Mika went as a caterpillar . . .

. . . and Ramona went as a monarch butterfly.

Saturday before Halloween: The weather was pleasant and most of the snow melted (also normal for Colorado, we hear), so we went on a family hike by the Horsetooth Reservoir in Horsetooth Mountain Park.
Ramona led the way and Mika slept soundly in the carrier. So far, they both seem to be champion hikers.
Halloween Day: Mika's very first Halloween

Ramona's first full-on neighborhood trick-or-treating route (we took her down two streets, as opposed to two houses, like last year)


She really got into a groove as we went along. (Knock, "Trick-or Treat!", "Thank you," "Let's go find some more treats!")
She could barely carry her bucket full of candy by the end, but wouldn't let anyone else hold it for her. Forest convinced her to come back inside by reminding her that she'd be able to do the best part: dump out all her loot on the floor.

We're Here

Even after being in Colorado for one week now, it's still hard to believe that this really is our new home--not just the destination of a giant family excursion. Needless to say, it hasn't been all vacation all the time . . . we've had a tedious trek through Nebraska with whining children, broken appliances, a sick husband/daddy, and of course mountains of boxes to unpack. But, despite these realities, I think some part of me still thinks this has all been a dream, and that when I wake up I'll be back in the flatlands of the Midwest.

The Lord Bless You

. . . and let us keep you forever and ever.
Sunday was Mika's baby blessing at church. Despite some tight scheduling, we were thrilled to have some family from both sides able to attend. Had we waited to do the blessing until after the move, when we were further away, we probably would have been on our own.
I was also thrilled to snag a few pictures before we left--we had an open house scheduled during the time we would be gone, so we were scrambling to make the house immaculate beforehand. I wasn't counting on having time for a photo shoot that morning.
Mika, unfortunately, was anything but thrilled about her dress. You can see by the end of camera-time she had already lost her patience for posing in a pretty outfit.

Recital Goodbyes

One of the things that makes me saddest about leaving Cedar Rapids is the fact that I cannot take my music students with me to Colorado. But I feel some consolation and closure upon being able to squeeze in some last-minute performances to showcase their progress before we move.

On Saturday three of my students participated in a short and bittersweet recital.
My friend Rachel accompanied me (one last time!) on a Schumann piece. I am going to miss her and her willingness to put together the piano and cello.
For my student who couldn't make it to the Saturday recital, we did a little in-home concert for his family. Even though he acted tortured by the whole experience, I think it was somewhat worthwhile for him--and more importantly, it meant a lot to his mother.

Perhaps I should mention: His mother is my hero--she is the person I called at 5:40 in the morning a few weeks ago when I realized I was going to have a baby. She came over just in time and took care of our other baby while Forest and I rushed to the hospital.
It is hard to say goodbye to all of these beautiful people, but I feel so privileged to have met them and shared a little bit of music with them.

Westward, ho!

(Fort Collins, CO)

The Midwest has been our home ever since we can remember, but the time has come to uproot and move out West. A new job opportunity is taking our family to Colorado in a couple of weeks. We are sad to leave Iowa so soon--Cedar Rapids has been good to us. It's given us our very first house . . .
. . . a plentiful garden . . .

(roma tomatoes + mini bell peppers)

(jalapeno peppers)

(cherry tomatoes)

(zucchini under the fort)

. . . memorable friendships . . .

(a friend's birthday party at the fire station)

(playgroup at Bever Park Zoo)

. . . a baby shower to welcome our new daughter . . .

(Ramona: "Baby Mika doesn't take showers. She takes baby showers!)

. . . and there have been many chances to work, play, and grow.

(the duck pond at Noelridge Park)

It will also be sad to move further away from our parents in Illinois. It has been nice this past year to have just a 3-4 hour drive between us. We squeezed in one last Iowa-Illinois trip over the weekend for a friend's wedding in Decatur.
Parry and Teresa let us stay with them.



Of course we made a stop in Bloomington-Normal on the way back for some Jii and Baachan time.

I think some part of me will always remain a Midwestern girl--something about expansive fields of corn, oppressive humidity, and blaring cicadas will always invoke a sense of nostalgia. But I'm looking forward to setting foot (for the first time!) in Colorado, and experiencing a whole different set of adventures with our little family in a new place. Westward, ho!