Time to pop the bubble...

Some of you may know we have been mentioning moving away from Provo, UT... It is CRAZY to think I have been here 5 years already. It feels even longer than that... We have talked about random ideas over the years of what we have wanted. We thought about Midway, Ut at first. It is gorgeous in the summer and has a cute little town with cute houses... But going there in the winter is madness. Talk about a large amount of snow. I hate snow. I can handle rain. But snow, nah uh. Over the last 5 years I have appreciated Utah. It definitely has gorgeous mountains and friendly people. I came here simply for school and then I met Dustin so it has been longer than I thought. It is cheaper to live here and it is safer in Happy Valley. We have made some wonderful friends here and enjoyed being understood here, as far as being LDS. But I am ready for a big change, something different, a place to start new and a place to be more unique...

In California I actually enjoyed telling people I was LDS and explaining what that meant. Around here you walk around the grocery store and women are talking about relief society in the isles. Men mention where they went on their mission without even asking if you know what they are talking about. Everyone assumes you are LDS in conversations. Obviously because we are in Provo where LDS students go to school and live. I am not saying there is anything wrong with that. But it is too much of a bubble for me. I would like to see other cultures and be able to share our culture with others and be able to explain it to someone. I want our kids to be around more than just LDS kids who all know what primary is. Is that such a strange thing to want?

We have talked about Oregon because it is something new, a laid back and a pretty state. I have to have mountains, he wants farmland and we both like having the ocean close. It works. After our trip last week to Oregon we found a few places around Oregon we liked. Jacksonville, Corvallis, Eugene, and Reedsport. Corvallis and Eugene have better schools, more jobs, are more in the middle of Oregon, and are gorgeous. Jacksonville is closest to my parents, has a nice historic town, LDS temple, and great weather. Reedsport is closest to the ocean and has a huge lake nearby, but rainier and is a lot smaller. Eugene so far is at the top of my list.. But that puts us at 12 hours away from family. In Provo we are 12 hours away from my family. We didn't get any closer to family. Sigh.

Dustin told me yesterday, "Well, if we are financially able, we can find something in California so we are closer to family."

So this year, we are focusing on our finances and not screwing around anymore. We have to be comfortable financially with wherever we are going before we leave Provo.

That is where we are at at this point..