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...
Foreign Service Life
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...