The Great Adventure Starts... NOW?!?

This year's trip (aka move to Louisiana) has been optimistically dubbed "The Great Adventure."

I like the name, but I also think this life is one, big adventure. The Portland chapter of the Mahaney Family Adventure has been particularly beautiful.

We moved here with a 9 year old and a 1 year old. So, notably, we had another child here. We are both within spitting distance of new degrees thanks to study while we were here. We, well mostly Tom, ran - A LOT - while we were here including a marathon. We made life-long friendships that will continue to support and encourage us far beyond here. We watched our older children grow and explore the world in a place that is pretty darn cool. Perhaps more than anything... we drove to Seattle! Which was awesome. Well, the drive isn't that awesome, but being this close to Garrett has been a privilege that we will miss intensely.

All in all this was a great stop.

Tonight we are in a hotel. We had dinner (and swimming) with Josh, Lael, Heidi, and Julia one last time. Most of our stuff is on its way to our new home. It is strange, for sure. It definitely feels less like the end of something sweet and more like the start of something new...

So, the Great Adventure Starts NOW! Now for some moving pics...

Couch time among the boxes...

Did I actually get a picture of all three looking at me?

Relaxing with pizza and her Bro Bro

The girls... (two smiling out of three ain't bad!)

Such a great friend... 

Tomorrow Tom will finish up at work and we will have one last visit with some other friends before we visit the new owners at their new house for a few minutes and then head to Louisiana... via Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.