We made it! All 5/5 of us are safe and sound in Portland. (Actually, we’re technically in Hillsboro, just west of Portland.) We’re all doing well and enjoying settling into our new home.
We left Sunnyvale on Tuesday, hours behind schedule. Mary stayed home from work to help us get out the door, which was much needed and appreciated. Jeanna and her two littlest ones came by for a very sweet and sad goodbye. Jan also stopped by to see us off, baring a gift of a gorgeous dragonfly (dead) for the girls, and spent at least half an hour out front helping Kane wrestle with the truck and the trailer. Mary gave us our final hugs and some encouraging words as we got into the car.
From there, our trip up here was action packed, with an overnight stop in Chico (many thanks to Justin, Lauren and Rosalind for their help and hospitality), an early morning shuttle trip for Kate and the girls to the Sacramento airport and an exhausting marathon of loading, driving and unloading for Kane. At the airport, Kate and the girls had to brave long lines, grumpy fellow travelers and nosy security agents. The long lines and heavy backpacks were declared “the worst thing that ever happened to me” several times by certain smaller members of the party. On the flight, sweet Shaelyn and Davia kept an eye out the window for a big yellow truck towing a minivan. Also, a chihuahua escaped its sparkly pink carry-on home in the seat across the aisle from us, and tore off down the aisle, causing quite a scene and some quality in-flight entertainment. (This was a highlight for Kate.)
Meanwhile, poor Kane had finally managed to get the truck loaded in Chico, and had departed for his 500 mile drive north. He was soon able to confirm the rumors we had heard that there are a bunch of mountains between Chico and Portland. (Maps make it look so flat!) Driving a 22-foot truck, packed full of stuff and towing a minivan, through windy mountain roads turned out to be even less fun than it sounds. And then the sun had to go and set, the unfortunate timing of which meant that while Kane was getting more and more exhausted and discouraged, the road was also getting darker and harder to see. Luckily, Kane is a champ, and he made it to our new home a little past midnight. There, Kate and the girls were already fast asleep (Kate on the couch, so she’d be sure to hear Kane knock on the door, and the girls upstairs in their cozy new beds). The three and a half ladies of the family had touched down around 4pm and had spent the evening getting to know the new apartment, stocking the fridge with some essentials for Kane’s homecoming, and trying out the pool.
Our temporary apartment is awesome – clean, comfortable, well-equipped, and probably too nice for us. (But don’t tell the people who got it for us that!) Davia, who had been grumbling about the idea of us staying in an apartment for “a whole month”, had a look around the place and then asked, “Mama, can we stay here for two months instead?” Kate is pretty sure she’ll need to be escorted out by security when our 30 days is up. It’s just so lovely!
Kane had joked on Facebook that he thinks he earned 5 man-points for completing the moving/driving job he did. Kate wondered how many housewife points she should be docked when Shaelyn and Davia both, separately, complained that it was hard to sleep in their new beds, because they were “too made.”
There’s probably more to tell, but this will have to do for a start. We’ve still got lots to do! We’ll leave you with some pictures though.
Kane and his travel companions for the long, mountainous drive.
A view of our living room, while Kate eats an apple.
Shaelyn and Davia enjoy their new room, bed no longer "too made".
Here we are! We love our new kitchen.
S and D try out the pool.
Mermaids? No, twins!
Have we mentioned they like to swim?
A happy Davia, Shaelyn exiting the pool behind her.
That’s all for now.
love to all,
K, K, S, D and t.b. (<– t.b. = tiny baby)
ourmountainiswaiting 
What you’re telling us…