Hello All – I had intended to write sooner but life got in the way because . . . our things finally arrived! The car is currently undergoing its mandatory government inspection, we received our boat freight last Wednesday, and our air freight landed last Friday—just in time for us to tear...
Nick has officially christened Berlin the “City of Missed Opportunities” because each weekend we find ourselves agonizing over which fabulous street festival, museum exhibition, or one-day cultural extravaganza to choose—which also means agonizing over which equally amazing events we will...
Greetings readers – I’m pleased to report that I’m in a much better mental place than when I last checked in. And there’s been lots going on that I want to catch you up on, so, like it or not, this is going to be a very random, update-filled post that jumps all over the place. Apologies...
I was feeling really lonely last week. Nia’s after-school activities kicked in, which means she’s now gone for 10 hours three days a week. And Nick’s schedule is even worse—a GOOD day is 11 hours away. When he has night events, like last Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, he leaves at the...
It is a universal constant that every PCS (Permanent Change of Station, otherwise known as a move for those not fluent in Foreign-Service-speak) involves something going terribly wrong. I’ve heard wild stories—like stuff being hijacked by pirates or falling off a ship—though the more...
I’ll say this, the patterns are familiar—high highs one day and low lows the next. It probably doesn’t help that Nia and I are a teensy bit on the dramatic side, so our emotional responses swing wildly, sometimes even by the minute. ;) Good thing Nick is so even-keeled, but even he has...
Hello again! I hope you enjoyed Part 1. There’s one category left for today, and that’s The Perplexing. My first example is pretty self-explanatory in its perplexing-ness, however, with the last two items on my list, I should specify that it’s not necessarily the activity itself that...
It’s our 10th day in country, and I’ve sent my loves off to work and school for the day. I’m enjoying the quiet, along with a latte from my neighborhood coffee shop. Isn’t it adorable? Just a three-minute walk from our front door. So dangerous… My days are a bit unstructured right now...
Hello All – Greetings from Berlin, our new home! Overall, we are settling in nicely. The United States Government seems to love “hit-the-ground-running” starts, so we arrived Saturday, had school orientation Monday, Embassy orientation Tuesday, Nick’s first day of work Tuesday, and the...
Hello everyone! It’s Nia. I know it’s been forever since you heard from me, but I’m really excited to tell you all about my amazing first-time experience at EAA AirVenture and GirlVenture! First, I want to start by talking a bit about what GirlVenture is and how it works before...
We just started week four in Minnesota and are making the most of our time here. The weather, however, has been less than cooperative. We’ve had 11 straight days with highs in the 90s, plus wildfire smoke hanging around for the last six days. Needless to say, it hasn’t exactly...
When I landed in Bend two years ago, I was, quite honestly, a hot mess. My mental health had tanked, my body was falling apart, and I was desperately in need of friends and community. I’d wanted to try living in Bend ever since my first visit back in 2011, when I was pregnant with...
I can’t believe I’m writing this, but we officially have a high schooler! This fall, Nia will begin 9th grade at Berlin Brandenburg International School. Once again, I don’t feel nearly old enough for this to be happening, but that seems to be a recurring theme these days. 😊 What’s most...
Hello All –I finally feel like I have some breathing room and the headspace to write again. It’s good to be back! So what have we been up to, you ask? Well . . . my last month included hosting my parents, performing in 4 concerts, wrapping up my marketing job with Lake Area Discovery...
Today, 825 days after submitting my application, I learned that I passed the Foreign Service Specialist Exam and received a conditional offer of employment to join the State Department as a General Services Officer (essentially a logistics role, similar to what I did in Mumbai). First and...
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...