You traded what for WHAT???

So, we recently traded this .....

For this ....

Yep, that's right. The Russell's are back in Arizona. Hard to believe since we absolutely loved living in Oregon, but sometimes life just has other plans. In February, we decided that although we were completely in love with the beautiful surroundings and our fabulous friends, in the end, the tall, tall trees were not going to be paying our student loans and decided we would be wise to make an adjustment to our financial future -- which meant a move. We narrowed it down to Carlsbad, NM and Florence, AZ. It was a whirlwind decision - we finalized our choice the end of the first week in March and the movers were there for our things on March 25th. Let's face it, we've survived several moves, but this was quickest we've ever pulled one off.

Florence won ... My family is in north of us in the Phoenix area and Jon's brother and family are south in Tucson ... wonderful perks. But, more importantly, Jon felt really strongly about the medical practice ... a great Physician and PA supported by a terrific staff. You can read more about them at www.mainstreetdocs.com in the "meet our providers" link on the "who we are" page of the website. Although Jonathan enjoyed the Urgent Care setting in Roseburg and the people he worked with, he has really found a great fit here with Dr Lizarraga.

As for Florence ... we're getting settled. We've nestled ourselves in a community here called Anthem. The area has grown considerably over the years. (I remember when Florence was nothing but a prison. LOL) We chose Anthem because they offer great amenities for families - parks, catch-and-release fishing, water park, etc... We can't launch the kayaks, but we're excited for the water slides! ha..ha.. the boys miss the grass, as our yard isn't yet landscaped, but Ian seems to be just as happy to dig in the dirt. I on th eother hand am always on the look out for scorpions and spiders, but when in Rome...

In addition to a new locale, we have a new addition to the family. A 5 month old Schnoodle named Zoe. She's been great so far. She had lived with another family with 3 dogs and 4 kids under 6. In the end, the dogs needed a home and are as luck would have it ... we have one. LOL She's been great with the boys (the other family also had a 2 yr old boy) and has transitioned well. The first night was a little iffy, but after that she's been pretty mellow. We think we got pretty lucky with her. We'd been researching a few different dogs/breeders and stumbled upon her one day. it was a good day. :)