The Pros and Cons in No Particular Order

(Sorry I've been blog-absent for a while . . . Twins+Colic= No time or sleep.)

I have mixed emotions about leaving Portland.

Looking forward to:

Our own yard

Kiddos walking to school

Being close to more family

Michael having a job that doesn't completely exhaust him daily (I hope.)

A kitchen that will fit more than one person at a time

The twins in their own room (ours is getting crowded!)

Sidewalks

Storage space

A walk in closet

Buying a real piano

A park in our backyard

Bear Lake

Reconnecting with old friends

Mountains and canyons within walking and hiking distance

This:

Not looking forward to:

A shopping landscape dominated by Walmart

Uprooting the kiddos

Chapped lips

The air quality (or lack thereof)

Maybe I'm a little bit nervous about living so close to so much family

Shoveling snow

Sales tax

Not gonna miss:

The parking situation in the 'hood

The perpetual plumbing problems

Coyotes

Living next door to Chester the hillbilly Fabio

Hearing Chester's same playlist on repeat every day, all day

Cramming seven people into 1300 square feet

The carport

All the lice infestations at school (is it the climate? I never remember having this much lice around whilst growing up in the desert)

The vast number of people who erroneously believe their dog's happiness and freedom trumps my child's safety and well-being

Michael's work schedule

Gloomy rainy weeks

The dehumidifier in my room

Gonna miss:

The big city malls

Costco

Target

The incredible elementary school

Good friends

Date night swaps

The air quality

The pool

Ducks in the pool

Trader Joe's

The blonde neighbors

Well, most of the neighbors in the 'hood . . . except for Chester the hillbilly Fabio

The amazing ward

The "Keep Portland Weird" bumper stickers . . . never really understood why, but they made me laugh

Living in the forest

Fleece vests as a wardrobe option for any occasion

Driving to the coast

The Oregon Zoo

Afternoons at the lake

OMSI

The brother and sister in law, the cousins

August in Portland

Tillamook yogurt and ice cream

The professional jazz pianist upstairs who practices my favorite songs every afternoon (this reminds me of how sad I was to leave the old church on our street corner in Boston . . . it used to play hymns from the bell tower every day at noon and 6pm.)

Dave's Killer Bread

Hand picking our own Oregon berries and peaches

Mall walking with the grannies