Happy Easter!

"Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20

These are delicious! Recipe courtesy of Pioneer Woman.

The most important thing about today is that it's EASTER. Happy Easter! We are blessed to have friends who treat us like family so we will be celebrating with our friends and their CHILDREN! I can't wait to see what the Easter Bunny brought and I look forward to visiting with our friends and their family. We are so very lucky to have littles in our life and generous friends who share them with us. On this Easter Sunday the world's oldest teenager is dying Easter eggs and I am making hot cross buns. Both are some of my favorite childhood memories. I love that JSM loves these rituals as much as I do no matter how old we are.

JSM's fine work!

Being married to the world's oldest teenager is so. much. fun!

It's been weeks since I've written. Mostly because we've been on the emotional roller coaster of home buying and selling. We lost the darling dollhouse on the river because it had moved towards the water (yikes - totally NOT worth dying in my sleep over!), sold our home in ONE DAY, and began the fun (but exhausting!) work of trying on all kinds of dreams for size. In between we've put in a new master bath in the home we are selling and had lots of repair people come in and out. Some days it's looked like we were hosting a party with all the cars and vans in the driveway. Sadly, we were at work. And so were they.

We zig-zagged all over Clark County and toured some mid-century ranches in a wooded neighborhood, a 5000 SF grand home on the top of a hill (I'm sure it comes as no surprise I loved that one!), a glamorous vintage condo on Lake Vancouver, a number of ranches circa 1960-1970 that needed LOTS of work, and a brand new house in a new development (That's not who we are, but I can see why they are SO popular.) It was an emotional experience that required us to really think about what we wanted. We are in a unique position to do whatever we want, live wherever we wish, and think long and hard about what is the best choice for where we are NOW. That's way more overwhelming than I ever imagined. After seeing 20+ houses over 2 Saturdays we ended up in the exact neighborhood where we started when we moved to Vancouver almost 6 years ago.

This one was a bit too modern although very lovely.

The Brady Bunch house. Too big....but it felt so comfortable inside. I LOVED it!

Back then, only one of us was working and the real estate market was on fire. We rented a beautiful townhouse in an area called Fisher's Landing. From our master bedroom window we watched a brand new townhouse development rise up in a Tudor style that was absolutely beautiful on the outside, refined on the inside, and most definitely out of our price range. So, we set our sites on Brush Prairie. Fast forward 5 years and those beautiful town homes have fallen dramatically in price and we found one that has barely been lived in. And it was perfect. For us. No yard work, an almost brand new interior with no projects, and a double door into the master bedroom (I was sold.)

This one is just right! 

Now, for the really hard part....actually moving! Our house is almost wrapped up and we are doing the inspection on this one next week. We are so excited for the new opportunity that will allow us to travel, spend more time together, and live with less. On this Easter I am grateful for eternal life and an opportunity to begin a new chapter in life with JSM. 

XOXO