Moving

Leaving Laramie was difficult. Logistically we had to sell our house, wrap things up at work, and do all of the necessary planning for relocating while caring for a one-year-old. Emotionally we had to say goodbye to a place we called home for almost five years, to our first house, and to a town that felt really comfortable. We said goodbye to wonderful and supportive co-workers. And, perhaps hardest of all, we said goodbye to Nora's fantastic childcare center and the place where she was born and spent her first year. Some days we thought we were totally crazy to leave.

Last UW basketball game

I loved being a Wyoming librarian

My wonderful co-workers threw me a lovely farewell tea on my last day, February 14

Goodbye to our favorite restaurant, Sweet Melissa Vegetarian Cafe

Goodbye to our first house. We loved it so much.

But, new opportunities awaited us in Nevada. So we took off on Tuesday, February 18th right after the moving truck left with all of our household goods. We had a really good time on the road. (No, I'm not being sarcastic.) We spent a night in Evanston, WY and then spent a day and night in Salt Lake City, the halfway point of our drive.

Thanks to our friends, John and Corianne, we stayed in Castle Creek Inn in Sandy, Utah. They live there and manage things. We had the Ivanhoe room, which was so fabulous.

Nora's favorite part was the big bathtub.

The weather wasn't quite nice enough to really enjoy the balcony, but it was a lot warmer than in Laramie!

We spent some time at the children's museum in Salt Lake.

One of the animal noises that Nora knows is "neigh."

After a night in Salt Lake, we met Grandma & Grandpa Brough in St. George and enjoyed lunch at Cafe Rio. Nora found the black beans delightful.

We arrived in Henderson at our new home on Thursday the 20th and the truck with all of our stuff arrived on Friday the 21st.

We're enjoying the great weather and the park next to our house.

Highs have been in the 70s almost every day since we got here.

We're getting everything unpacked and set up. Here's our living room and dining area.

And Nora is pretty happy. She has seemed a little extra clingy and not quite her usual happy self, but there's lots of new stuff to adjust to. We expect it will take us all a little while to feel settled.

My cousin Celia and her family have had us over for meals, which has been so nice. We've been to campus a few times to take care of business and we're looking forward to getting to know our new colleagues. We're impressed with how friendly and helpful people seem at local businesses and around town. We bought a second car and have only been lost a few times.

We hope friends and family will come visit us in Las Vegas! Sheri and Garth Terry are coming next week, but our guest room is available after that. It's easy and fairly inexpensive to get here, and of course there are lots of entertainment options that we're becoming acquainted with. Let us know if you're coming this way!

Family Photos

Thanks to Shelly Coulter for taking these beautiful pictures of our family on a very cold morning (14 degrees, felt like -1). We were on the University of Wyoming campus, a place that is very special for us. You can see the library in the background in many of the photos.

Homecoming Activities

Nora had a homecoming parade at her school, which was adorable. The kids from the infant room all got Steamboat tattoos on their cheeks, wore brown and gold, and rode in the big stroller which was decorated to look like a covered wagon.

In Nora's opinion, the best part of the parade was the end, when we all danced to "Cotton-Eyed Joe."

On the day of the football game we went to Tailgate Park to check out the festivities and we ended up right next to the marching band, Western Thunder. I thought this might alarm the baby, but she wasn't scared.

Later that weekend, we put in storm windows and worked on cleaning up the yard before more snow hit Laramie!

Eight months

Lucky little Nora got to spend lots of time in August with her grandmas! They are crazy about her, and were kind enough to come and stay with us while daycare had a two-week summer closure.

Nora loves Grandma Sheri!

Uncle Nick was here for a couple of days, and won Nora's heart with his guitar playing

And Grandpa Garth got in a little snuggle-time, too!

Nora loves Grandma Pat! They went on lots of walks together, and Grandma taught Nora how to dance. Someday we'll capture it on video.

Grandpa Dirk made Nora a little bit nervous at first, but she warmed up to him quickly.

A few more pictures from the past month:

Vertical Dance at Vedauwoo: we went with Mom and Dad Bowles and it was amazing.

And school started this week at UW. Go Cowboys!

Family Vacation: Teton National Park

We spent a couple of days in Teton National Park last week at the UW Research Station. It was gorgeous and relaxing and fun. Here are some highlights:

Lodge at the research station

Taking a nap in our cabin

The view from the dock at the research station

Our lovely host, my colleague Mary Ann.

Mike and I hiked to Grand View Point while Mary Ann played with Nora.

Here we are at the top!

We had a great time!