One Wild and Precious Life

A few months ago we took a trip to Spokane. Little did we know, that trip was going to lead us to completely change our lives. David and I decided to travel, just for a quick get-a-way; but it turns out God had a much bigger adventure in mind for us. 

While we were on our trip, we spent time walking around the beautiful tree-lined streets of the South Hill. I have always wanted to return to Spokane, after living there for 3 years when Charles was in Law School at Gonzaga, but it has never felt like the right timing... until now. 

We came across a South Hill home on Zillow that looked just beautiful. While we were out walking early one morning, we found the home, and David thought we should call the realtor so we could take a look inside. I was hesitant to take time looking at homes while on our special trip, but David made the call, and set up and appointment. (He is a man of action.) 

We met up with the realtor, walked through the house, and there was just something really special and unique about the 100 year old bungalow. The layout was so unusual, and the colors on the walls were so inviting, it just felt like a real HOME. 

We spent the rest of our trip wrestling over in our minds what we should do. Could we really move away from Idaho? Could we move somewhere else for a fresh start? Could my dream of someday moving back to Spokane actually become a reality? Could we make it work with our unique multi-family dynamic? We spun our wheels and our emotions wildly for the next few days trying to sort out a very sudden and life-altering decision. 

But when it came time to return home to Idaho, I felt this sinking feeling, like I did not want to leave Spokane. The feeling was all-consuming and powerful, in a way that could not be ignored. We called up the realtor to walk through the house one more time, and after walking through it, we were starting to feel that pull towards a new adventure together. The idea of a home that could be our home, together, started to feel like a very possible and tangible reality. (The home in Idaho had been my home, and then David moved in after we got married.) 

To make a long story short, we bought the home in Spokane, we sold our home in Boise extraordinarily fast and smoothly, and we were packing up a Penske truck and moving before we could even comprehend what we were doing! It was insane. None of it was planned. None of it was on some agenda that we had. It just all sort of happened. There was definitely a force beyond ourselves encouraging us to just go and make the big change. And so we did! Moving back to Spokane was a dream of mine, but for David, it was much more of an adjustment that he had to work through. But all the details fell into place in a way that made it feel right. 

Now, we have been living in Spokane for more than a month. And what a crazy time it has been since we moved here! Oh my goodness! 

On the first night we were here, Daniel and Henry went to the park and Henry sliced open his elbow. That incident landed us in the ER for 4 hours until midnight, waiting to get him stitched up.  Welcome to Spokane! Ha! 

Then, we started noticing some things in our new 100 year old home that were not quite right. The foundation made of rock and mortar had some water damage, and later we found out that the old knob and tube wiring we were told was all updated actually was not, and it all needs to be replaced. (The previous owners will be covering the expense.) We knew that taking on a 100 year old home would have some interesting issues and challenges, but we were not expecting some of the things we found, since they were not in the inspection report. 

Anyway, we were getting a little stressed about the home issues, and working daily to try and solve some of the stressors, when on a windy day we heard a loud, "CRASH!" that shook our house to the core. It felt like an earthquake, and the noise was so terrifying I couldn't imagine what it was. I ran to the back of the home to find the kids fleeing from a room full of debris, and I saw that HUGE tree had smashed through the roof and into the ceiling, right where they were playing. 

I was completely shocked and shaken as we all quickly ran out of the house to see what was going on from the outside. An enormous Ponderosa Pine had fallen from the entirety of one side of the roof to the other, which then knocked into another tree that landed on top of my van. The entire back side of our home was smashed in and the weight of the tree falling on the home caused different kinds of damage throughout the whole back side of the house. 

We were only here a few weeks when this unthinkable event happened. I was in total shock, and I just started to cry as all the neighbors came running over to see what happened, and to offer love and support. All I could think was, "Really? Heavenly Father? Really? How much do you want us to deal with at one time before we break?" It was just too much. Too shocking. 

I regained my composure after a while, and as we met so many new people and had such an outpouring of love, my heart softened. And now I can see how even this tragedy will be turned into a long-term blessing. We just have to endure some discomfort for a time, while things get fixed. 

Ahhh...  the gift of patience. Something I am always working on, and something that God is always trying to teach me! But I am reminded of what the Chaplain at the hospital said after Charles died, she embraced me and said,  "Take life one moment at a time." I would also add to that: Slow down, breathe, and walk the moments of life with Jesus, and He will carry you through. 

So, we are currently in waiting mode until Spring, before we can do anything about the roof and house repairs. With winter coming, they (the insurance company) have patched up the holes with tarps, and we put up some drywall to cover the hole in the ceiling of the one room. The rooms in the back are still livable, but the projected plan is that a huge portion of the roof might need to be replaced. Three different rooms need the ceilings/walls to be repaired and replaced since the lath and plaster was cracked all over, and our stairway needs to be redone as well, and a back deck, and some other damage... it is just NUTS! But I am sure it will be a blessing when all the work is completed and the rooms will be all new and fresh. They did find asbestos in the ceilings too, so all of that will be cleared out as well, another blessing in disguise. By the time the projects are done, the home will be renovated in ways we were never planning on, and not at our own expense! 

In the Springtime, we will need to move out to a rental home for many months (not sure how long, yet), while they tear everything apart, and put it back together. I am not looking forward to that too much, since I will have a brand new baby. But I am praying that it will work out in a beautiful way too. I have faith that it will, when the time is right, and when it is necessary. 

Meanwhile, we are doing all online school for the kids, so as we have had numerous contractors and people walking through our home, we are also trying to balance four different children on computers, and David works from home as well. So life has just been strange and nutty. 

The kids have made some new friends. William has especially made some really great friends with his Deacons quorum at Church. He goes to hang out with them almost daily, which makes my heart happy. Daniel has made friends through musical theater groups, and was elected VP of the theater group. Sammi has made some friends through the Singles ward here, and she is doing online College through BSU. She is still preparing for a mission, which will be super awesome. Henry has had a harder time with making friends, since there is no where for him to meet young kids right now. I do hope school will start soon, so he can be social like he loves to be. He is doing great though, and he is his happy self loving life. All in all, they are doing well, though online school is emotionally tough, especially after moving to a new place. 

Also, at this point, I am about 24 weeks pregnant. I am 40, I will be just turning 41 when I give birth. I for sure feel different with this pregnancy than the others. I am looking forward to having a baby outside of my body, rather than inside. I so desperately want to be able to be free to exercise and run, and mountain bike again. It is coming... at least my recovery time will happen during the Spring. 

David is figuring out life in a new place. He is able to work from home, and work on home projects. He currently travels a few times a month back to Boise, to go visit his kids. It is all an adjustment, but it has been for good. 

I really have way too much to write and catch up on, but I feel like I better just wrap this up, or I will never finish, and then never post. I have not disappeared or dropped off the face of the earth, there has just been SO much going on, and with so many people at home all day, it makes it hard to blog. I still very much want to record life as it happens, and as I get behind like I have for the last four months, it feels kind of overwhelming to try and do a quick recap of everything. But it must be done! 

When we were visiting Spokane a few months ago, there was this sign on the bathroom wall that said, "Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?" Those words -- which I had heard many times before -- for some reason, they just resonated with me to the point where I felt ready, willing, and wanting to make a BIG change for our family. 

To be honest, our family needed a change. I wanted my children to be exposed to a new place, with new people, and new adventures and opportunities. I knew it would be hard. There are also the new challenges of David having to figure out how to visit and stay connected to his children. We have had to work through many, many, many, hard and difficult things. I had no idea how hard it would be so fast, but even with all the hard, I know these experiences have been for all of our good, as we learn many different life lessons. 

I do not know much, but I do know we are supposed to be in Spokane, right now. There have already been blessings that have made that very clear. We all needed the change. We all needed to learn things in a new place, with new people, and we all need the experiences we are having. 

I will, hopefully, be able to start writing more, more often, as I really do miss it. I do not like having large chunks of life not recorded. It makes me feel antsy. 

For now... let me try and briefly recap the last 4 months or so, through pictures... 

None of it is in order, so please bear with me! 

This is our new Spokane home. It is 100 years old and I LOVE it despite the fact that it is currently broken. (This picture was taken before the trees fell.) 

Our blessed broken home. The damage my look minor, but it is not. 

When I say a tree fell on our house, I think people imagine that it kind of landed sideways on our roof. Nope. A HUGE Ponderosa Pine, that spilt in two separate trunks at the top (called a widow-maker), crashed landed totally across our entire roof. The damage is extensive and we are SO grateful for homeowners insurance! 

The other half of the tree had to be cut down. Our poor neighbors had to pay $4000 to have it removed, since it was in their yard. 

We wanted a souvenir, so we kept some pieces of the trunk. 

The Ponderosa knocked another tree over, and it landed on my van and caused $8000 worth of damage. I am still waiting to get my van back at this point. Again, so grateful for insurance! 

The kids were sitting right underneath where it crashed through the ceiling. It was insanely scary! The room was filled with a puff of white stuff upon impact. Sammi just barely dodged getting hit by wood and nails. Her dad was protecting her, for sure! 

The local news came and did a story on our tree damaged home. 

So sad! 

Despite all of the insanity, we have seen SO many blessings come from this tree fiasco. One of the biggest blessing have been the kindness of people. Our neighbors, our new Church member friends, and all sorts of people have just been super loving and supportive. We had meals brought to us from Church, and we got to meet ward members in a very intimate way, when they would come to our home. I do not think we would have been able to connect with so many people so fast, without such a dramatic event. We had been praying for opportunities to meet and connect with people here in Spokane, despite Covid, and for sure, our prayers were answered, even if it was in such a strange force of nature way. 

Living in Spokane is so beautiful now. Especially as the cooler temperatures are settling in. 

I just love the tree-lined streets and brick roads. 

Okay, this Blog is going to be all over the place and out of order... because I need to go back in time 4 months... 

Here we are mountain biking back when we took the trip to Spokane. The mountain biking here is so fun, and I really want to do it again, but I must wait until I am no longer packing a baby in my gut. :) 

I am pregnant with a baby BOY! It was totally unexpected and unplanned. Well, at least it was not my plan, but I have a feeling that God had something to do with it. ;) 

Visiting Riverfront Park on our trip. 

Downtown Spokane 

The parks here are awesome. 

The cute little bungalow that we stayed in on our visit here. 

A view from Lewiston, Idaho on the drive to Washington. 

We went on lots of pondering walks before we left Boise. 

We found some really beautiful places tucked in the back hills of Boise. 

Sammi's chalk message to the world. :) 

Daniel went through a major ordeal during the summer months. While mountain biking with David, he flipped over the handlebars of his mountain bike, and broke his wrist and damaged his shoulder. 

It landed him in the ER, where they cleaned him up and pieced him back together. 

It was such a hard thing for me to watch as he was suffering so badly. He was still maintaining his sense of humor, however, which was fun to watch. He handled the pain so well, but he really crashed hard. 

We had to call the rescue team to get him off of the mountain. He had to have surgery to repair all the damage. 

We spent a lot of time outside during the summer months. 

Lots of love! 

Lots of mountain biking! Oh man, I miss it! 

I love the new living room. 

With all the absolute chaos, we made a hard decision to find a new home for Bean. It was just too hard having her around in the middle of everything. And in the Spring, we are going to have stay in a rental home for who knows how long, while they fix our house. David flew here back to Idaho, where the breeders were able to take her, and find her a new loving family. She was a good dog, it was just bad timing. And honestly, I do not think I am cut out to be a dog owner. I value quiet and cleanliness too much. Our home is bonkers enough without adding another element of "fun."

Online school is interesting. It is not so fun for the kids to not have time with friends and social lives. I feel so bad for them. They are surviving, and doing their best, but it is just a hard thing. 

Pregnant! Eek! Trying to find a name for this boy has been interesting... 

I love this place! 

Autumn is my favorite! 

We have wild turkeys that just roam around our neighborhood and in our yard. 

Sammi basking in the light. 

We found a yummy ice cream shop in our neighborhood. 

They have pineapple dole whip like Disneyland. 

Daniel wants to go to in person school so badly. They have an awesome musical theater program, and he so wants to be a part of it. He wants to another show SO desperately! Les Mis was amazing for him, but he wants MORE! 

Our first night in Spokane, landed us in the ER with Henry. 

He went to the park with Daniel, and, of course, he fell on a rock while running, splitting open his elbow. When they got home, he was not crying, but he was worried. Sure enough after looking at it, it was stitches worthy. It was too late for Urgent Care, so off to the hospital we went. 

We had to wait for such a long time, for such a quick thing. We waited and waited until around midnight before we could leave. Henry was funny, he said to the doctor, "Hey, you did a good job." The doctor, who was pretty serious, smiled and said a sincere, "Thank you." Praise from a child for doing a good job on stitches is high praise indeed! 

There is a room in our home downstairs that needed to be totally ripped apart, so we can put it back together again. It had such a weird smell in that room (and I can smell EVERYTHING while pregnant.) David decided we should pull up all the flooring to remedy the problem, and sure enough... we found a haven for mice. There was a lot of mice droppings, and some dead mice too. But once the floor was ripped out and removed, and the floor was shop-vacuumed, it smelled SO much better. We are going to have the cement leveled, build some new walls, and just all around redo the room into something much nicer. It is a big family room, and it will be very sweet once we get it done. David and Daniel have been working on the project together. Daniel said he really enjoyed the demolition part.

The room will be so nice when it is completed. David loves to work on these kind of home projects. 

There has been stress and also a beauty to the big move. I can see my children growing and stretching from the change. We are all learning so many new things. And isn't that kind of the point of life? To live and learn and grow? 

Here we are in the Penske truck. David drove the truck, and Sammi drove my van with Daniel and William, and even Bean. Bean had diarrhea in her kennel while Sammi was driving the van, and so we had to stop more often to let her out to do her business. It was an insane mess to clean up, and it was not a happy way to travel. Also, David and Daniel flew back to Boise a few weeks later, and they finished some things with our home there. They picked up David's car, and then Daniel drove back to Spokane with David. 

Moving is SO fun! Ha! Such hard work, but it all worked out. We fit everything in a Penske, my van and David's vehicle. 

Emptying our storage unit... 

Through all the moving and crazy, Henry was able to get baptized. He had to wait due to Covid rules, and the fact that we could not use the Church. It was so sweet, Daniel was able to baptize him, and David confirmed him a member of the Church. 

It was a lovely day. 

We are so proud of our Henry! 

Just another beautiful day in nature. 

Our home in Boise sold super fast. We had an open house, and 2 offers came in right away. The process of selling was super smooth, and I am so grateful for that! We had so much going on, and I am pregnant, so my energy was just not as high as normal. But we all worked so hard together and we got it done. 

Packing the Penske. We hired a professional crew, and so glad we did. They got so much more in there then we could have !

The playroom before it was ruined by the tree. 

I love our bedroom. It is simple and peaceful. 

And the light that comes through the windows is perfect for my rainbows. 

We did a lot of mountain biking which was fun. I can still ride my bike on the streets around town, but at 6 months pregnant, I do not think going on the mountains is the best idea. It was SO fun while it lasted though, and I look forward to biking again after I get strong again. 

We have gone to some really beautiful places to ride. 

Now it is Autumn in Spokane. It is a glorious place to be, and I am so grateful we are here. It is starting to feel like home to me. 

The world is in chaos, and there is so much commotion, but there is still so much good to be found all around. The world is still full of glory, and even gladness! My life has been a wild and precious life, to be sure. It has been extraordinarily hard at times, but God has been with me through it all. I am so grateful to God for allowing me to travel on such a beautiful journey, in such a beautiful place, with such beautiful people. 

What are you going to do with your one wild and precious life? 

As my grandma Nan used to say, 

"Make it a good one!"