Last weekend Nia and I drove two and a half hours north to Albany, Oregon for our very first square-dancing festival. Yes, that is a real thing, and yes, it’s exactly as delightful and niche as it sounds. A square-dancing festival is essentially a three-day gathering of dancers from all...
Hello dear readers – Hard to believe that this is the first time I’m writing about bidding this go round (oh yes, it’s that time AGAIN). I think I was in denial a bit because we’ve loved our time in Bend so much and don’t want to go . . . but go we must because Nick’s time in Baghdad ends...
This is part 2 in a series about finding a solution to my chronic pain. Best to start with part 1 before reading this one. Let’s do a quick refresher before I add more new information. Normally, the brain has very clear distinctions between body parts—this leg vs that one, right foot vs...
Image by wangyanwei from Pixabay The Back Story Ten months ago, I had surgery on my right foot and was told I’d be “good as new” in eight to twelve weeks. But twelve weeks came and went and pain was still my constant companion. It was infuriating! We had supposedly fixed the thing causing...
Hello dear blog readers – I apologize for my long absence but between starting work again (back at Lake Area Discovery Center doing marketing again after 10 years away) and single parenting while Nick’s in Baghdad, I just couldn’t seem to find any leftover time to do all...
As we shift to Fall in Bend, I find myself equal parts grateful and exhausted. We spent the summer bopping from place to place–DC for National History Day in early June, then Minnesota for a month, Richmond, VA for a week, DC for another two weeks, then Bend, OR and Baghdad, Iraq...
Source: Business Insider Nick has been ensconced in Embassy Baghdad for almost a month now. I say ensconced because you literally can’t exit the compound without 48 hours’ notice, armored cars, and armed security escorts. It’s intense. Nick has been out five or so different times for...
There have been many moments in the last 18 years when I’ve laughed over the fact that I ended up with a husband and daughter who are history fanatics. It would be one thing if it was just a private interest of theirs, but instead it’s wormed its way into our everyday lives with foreign...
One of the first things Nia did when we arrived in Minnesota for our annual summer visit was to look up what aviation-related museums there were in the area. I would have guessed zero, but it turns out that I was very wrong! Yesterday we visited the first on her list, the Commemorative...
Hi All – We just returned from D.C. where Nia participated in a five day competition for National History Day. A while back I mentioned that all 7th graders at Nia’s school were required to participate in National History Day for a class assignment. They each completed an individual...
It was our first port day in Cork, Ireland and we’d decided to rent a car to explore the countryside. In Ireland they drive on the opposite side of the road, but we’d driven that way in Malawi and a dozen other countries we’d visited so we weren’t anticipating any issues. The problem with...
Sarah here. Coming live to you from the beautiful Regal Princess. We’re on day 11 (out of 13) of our British Isles cruise. Nick and I are seeing the sights with 3500 of our new cruise buddies—98% of whom are over age 60—and thought it’d be fun to share a bit about what’s changed since we...
Hello dear readers – Have you ever had the experience of planning something several months out and thinking it’s totally manageable . . . until it’s actually upon you and you’re like “OMG, WTF was I thinking?!?!” I’m having one of those moments...
Nia continues to be obsessed with all things aviation-related. So obsessed, in fact, that she can now tell you what make of plane is flying above just by listening to it! And her favorite weekend activity as of late is heading out to the Bend Municipal Airport with a aviation scanner...
Happy Easter everyone! I hope you had a joyful and blessed day with your loved ones. We enjoyed having a traditional American Easter complete with mass, an egg hunt, and a big ham, of course! It was a lovely day, though we came into it a bit exhausted from our previous two days at the...
I was scrolling through Disney+ recently and was so thrilled to see Lilongwe’s Wildlife Trust featured in a recently released six-part series titled Malawi Wildlife Rescue. We were familiar with the center’s well-respected work from when we lived there back in 2016-2018. While...
On Saturday morning at 6:30 AM, Nick and Nia set out for their first ever father/daughter road trip. This was very much an impromptu decision; one made just 36 hours prior. Nick had been restless as of late—he obviously needed a break from all the care-taking of the last month (and the...
Presenting . . . my new look for the next 12-14 months! And a close-up for you! Now, I know you’re thinking Sarah, what is UP with that brace placement? It looks like the orthodontist was drunk when they put them on! Yes, indeed. They are pretty bizarre looking with the front ones so...
While my body has always had a host of issues (see recent postings), I always knew I could count on my teeth to come through for me. In my 44 years I’ve never had a single cavity, got to keep my wisdom teeth, never had braces, nor had a bad report at a checkup. I’ve always felt good...
Hello friends – It’s been a long three weeks of sitting, though I’ve greatly appreciated the change of scenery when the weather permitted me to take up residence outside. Amazing what a difference a little time in the sun can make! Today marks the three-week anniversary of my...
Hello everyone! I’m back after the most BORING WEEK EVER of doing this. It wasn’t even fun being waited on by my amazing caretaker, Nicholas. I just wanted to do things for myself. SIGH. I guess we all knew I was never going to be a good ‘Netflix and Chill’ kind of person… Yesterday...
Good news! I came through my surgery with flying colors! It was a relatively minor procedure, but I was anxious nonetheless since my last surgery was in 2000. I really liked my doctor, however, and trusted that she would do a good job. That helped put my mind at ease. This surgery was...
Last weekend we had the thrill of watching Nia in her first onstage production, Finding Nemo Jr, The Musical. After three months of rehearsals, the kiddos sang and danced their hearts out in six productions between Thursday and Sunday. Nia was cast in the role of Bruce, the leader of the...
It’s the most wonderful time of the year–except when COVID finds its way into your system. Stupid COVID . . . always at the worst possible time! I had intended to write this post much earlier this week, but only now, on day 4, do I feel like I have the brainpower to write...
If you’ve spent any time around me, you know that I love to sing. It’s such a part of me, that half the time I don’t even realize I’m doing it. If I’m in a good mood, then there’s likely a tune coming out of my mouth (Please share your favorite singing...
Hello! I’m back!! Happy holidays everyone. I hope you are taking in all the special aspects of this season. I, for one, am loving the Christmas light displays on houses, something we don’t see much when living outside the U.S. due to the prevalence of apartments. I have lots...
One of the best aspects of this unexpected U.S. time has been the opportunity for Nia to have some quintessential American experiences. In fact, the last few weeks of been full of them! Please allow me to share . . . :) When new friends invited us to come see their daughter perform at the...
I’m not sure how this is possible, but we have an honest-to-goodness teenager now! That’s right, our little girl is 13 years old! Her interests have become more focused over the last 12 months and currently include: history, geography, drawing, and reading. We were fortunate...
Hi All – This is the third and final post in my series about Bend’s “personality traits”. The final aspect I want to touch on is what I refer to as “West Coast Vibes”, which to me means a free-spirited, open-minded, anything-goes aesthetic. I was reminded of this on our first full day in...
I was shocked to step foot in Oregon for the first time to discover that it was not, in fact, wet and green like I’d imagined it. In reality, half of Oregon—including Bend—falls in a climate zone called the high desert. The ‘high’ part comes from the fact that much of Oregon sits above...
Over my 10+ years of visiting Bend, I’ve come to notice a few distinct ‘personality traits’ of the city, namely—extreme athleticism, outdoor ease, and west coast vibes. I’ll leave the latter two for a future post and focus solely on extreme athleticism today. Bend has a lot of natural...
Hello dear ones – Lots has happened since I last wrote. Nia completed her first three weeks of school and even went away for a two-night 7th grade bonding experience at a camp an hour outside Bend. There have been the typical highs and lows one expects with middle school, but all in...
Today marks the end of our fourth (very full) week in Bend. In many ways, I’ve treated this like yet another overseas assignment because we had to do all the usual ‘setting up house’ things like finding schools, doctors, friends, and new activities. I’m not much for slow starts. I’d much...
Hello dear reader – Profuse apologies for the long lag between posts. This transition has sucked up a lot of my mental energy, leaving my reserves depleted for things such as blogging. The good news is that we’re finally starting to get a handle on our life here, so I anticipate having...
Smith Rock State Park near Bend, OR. Photo credit: Photo by Rich Martello on Unsplash Hi All – You haven’t heard from me much lately. I apologize for that, but I have a REALLY good excuse . . . I’ve been busy planning an international move. Yup, it’s true, we’re leaving Kazakhstan after...
If you haven’t read part 1 yet, you should definitely start by reading it HERE. My gardening mentor and I made our first trip to the garden store on April 10th. I had brought a few things from the U.S.—seeds, obviously, but also some small hand tools, a rake and hoe, and two...
Last summer, Nia and I stopped at Home Depot as part of our preparations for Kazakhstan. I can’t remember what we actually needed to get, but I do remember how transfixed we both became by the endless “wall of seeds” showcasing every flower, fruit or vegetable you could possibly dream of...
Happy Hump Day everyone! Hope your week is off to a lovely start. We’ve been getting the most delightful weather the last few days (low 70s), which has put me in an especially good mood. Last Thursday to Sunday, however, I was the opposite of that, because what I thought would be a...
One of the things our family most anticipated about Almaty was the chance to experience seasons again, especially winter. I know many of my Minnesota friends and family are probably thinking, “What’s so great about winter? I’d give it up in a heartbeat”, but I bet you’d miss it too if you...
Hey all – It’s a quiet Saturday afternoon here. Nia’s just finished a sleepover with her bestie and Nick’s in the U.S. of A. at a conference for all the Public Affairs Officers (one from each of the 173 embassies and 88 consulates around the world). We’re missing him but trying to get...
I have an amusing story from the salon last week that I know you’ll get a kick out of. Here goes… I’ve been struggling to find the right salon here, so last week, I tried out a new one that a friend had recommended. I checked in and was introduced to my stylist. I knew there was no way I...
This is part three in a three-part series. If you haven’t read Part 1 and Part 2 yet, you should definitely start there. For those of you who are caught up . . . on to part 3! ———————– I felt dramatically better after throwing up. I wiped my...
Photo by Vladislav Klapin on Unsplash This is part two in a three-part series. If you haven’t read Part 1 yet, you should definitely start there. For those of you who are caught up . . . on to part 2! ———————– Once preliminary axing...
Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash Hello all -Today’s post is a bit different than my normal updates. It’s something that I wrote in 2022/2023 when taking part in a months-long writing program. I originally planned to use the piece in a book, but then decided publishing wasn’t my jam (too...
My view when walking from the Consulate back to our townhouse! Today marks six months in Almaty! In some ways I feel quite settled (favorite coffee shops identified, house set up to my liking, public transport mastered), but on the flip side, there’s a whole lotta things I thought I’d...
Hello Readers – I had intended to write again shortly after the earthquake but COVID had other plans. Nick got the positive diagnosis first and I followed two days after. We had the good fortune of sending Nia away to a friend’s house for five nights and thought she’d been spared, but...
We had a wild night here in Almaty and I can now say I’ve experienced my very first earthquake! Well, technically, I slept through it—as did Nia—but, still! :) The earthquake hit at 12:09 AM in China, just South of the Kyrgyzstan border (the epicenter was where the red circle is on...
I think what I love most about my new church is that it’s so vastly different than any church I’ve attended before. For starters, it doesn’t look anything like a church. You would never know it was a church if you passed by it, especially since there’s no signage and the entrance is next...
Hello everyone – Happy 2024! I hope you had a memorable holiday season with friends and family. We spent our holiday here in Almaty soaking up the marvelous wintery wonderland atmosphere and crossing a few more local activities–like the cat cafe!–off our to-do list. Here...
I did it y’all. As of Friday, I wrapped up my 16-week Russian class (3 hours a day, 5 days a week!). Taking into account my sick days and our week in Paris, I figure I logged right around 200 hours of class time. When you add that to the 105 hours spent on Duolingo, the 160 hours...