Thursday, June 13

After a good nights sleep, we woke up this morning and went on a short hike before the rain came in. We met some lovely people at the top of the hill, and got to meet two goldens, a cocker spaniel named cooper who wanted all of the love, and some doodle mix that was scared of everything and everyone. Coopers parents were two lovely humans from south of London. They are also on Holiday at the moment and we chatted for awhile about our trip so far and where we were going next. It’s been lovely getting to talk to so many people from all over during this trip. Everyone has been so friendly.

After the hike we headed south to the lakes district in northern England. When we got here, we checked into our B&B and then walked to the Kittchen Bar in Hawkshead. They are a taproom that has cats you can sit and play with. Unfortunately the cats had the day off today, so we had to just watch them through a window. They did have some great sours though and the bartender was so wonderful so it was a great time. They had one cat that was named Disco Kev which we obviously loved.

**As I’m typing this I’m sitting in a window bench in front of a large picture window. The rain is falling outside and all I can hear right now is cows throwing an absolute tantrum. Truly a dream situation.**

After the bar, we wandered around town a bit but since it was so rainy, and no one was out and about, everything was closed early for the evening. So here I sit listening to the falling rain, the cows mooing, and the birds chirping in the trees. Between Ireland, the Scottish Highlands, and being here in the Lakes District, I don’t know which one is more magical. With this window seat though I truly feel I could sit here for ages. Especially if I had a good book, and a good glass of wine or whiskey.

Part of me is so ready to be home, and snuggle my babies, and sleep in my own bed, but part of me never wants to leave this place. This trip has been truly unreal in every way, and I can’t wait until the day we get to come back. (Or move here…..)

Wednesday, June 12

Today felt like a busy day, but it was a lot of driving! We woke up and checked out and immediately went to hike the fairy pools before it got too busy. This meant skipping breakfast, but I had a few sips of Red Bull to get me through 😀

It felt like a pretty steep decline right at the start of the trail which made me weary of the hike back. The fairy pools were pretty, but the real beauty of the hike was the panoramic views all around us. Isle of Skye is so incredibly beautiful and if we are ever lucky enough to come back its a place we will definitely be spending more time in.

Following the fairy pools hike, we started our drive to Loch Lomond. We made a few pit stops along the way for lunch and to go to a crystal & fossil shop. I got a Monasaur tooth to bring home that’s pretty cool! We stopped at several overlooks along the way because the highlands are absolutely stunning.

We also stopped at the Glenfinnan Viaduct which is well known from being the train bridge in the Harry Potter films. It was cool to see, but crazy that parking was 5 pounds for a trail we were at for less than 30 minutes. Tourist trap at its finest!

When we got to Loch Lomond, we checked into our hotel for the night, grabbed dinner, and planned our course of action for tomorrow. We have another decent drive on our way to the lakes district in Northern England, but hope to get a little morning hike in, and another before dinner.

Kevin feels like he may be getting sick. It’s just congestion as of now so very much hoping it doesn’t turn into anything more than that!

June 10 – 11, 2024

The morning of 10th we said see ya later to Marissa as she headed back to London. Kevin and I had an Eras tour hangover so we took advantage of being able to checkout late. Once we got our lives together, we headed up to Inverness, checked into our B&B, and then looked for dinner. I was feeling super indecisive last night (sorry Kevin) and deciding took awhile. Then when I finally decided, the place we went was going to be a 45 minute wait. I think we stopped into 2 or 3 other places before we found one we could get a table in. I didn’t take pictures because it wasn’t anything special, but Kevin did try haggis for the first time! I decline to participate in Haggis, but he seemed to like it. It was mixed in with his risotto though so kind of hard to tell. After, we planned on going back to the car but decided to pop into Hootanannys for one beer and to see some live music. Well the band ended up being really great so one beer turned into 4 plus the round we got from our friend Ray that we met. It was an absolute blast. We both love chatting with new people in pubs and combined with the live music, we ended up shutting the place down. Unfortunately for us, breakfast was early this morning, and checkout was early as well.

We got up this morning at 8am to start the day quite bottle weary. Not really hungover because fortunately we drank enough water, but definitely back to being sleep deprived. We had full breakfast at the B&B before meandering downtown for some shopping. I was hoping to get a wool sweater, but it turns out, its very much NOT in the budget. So, we headed toward Loch Ness. The loch is absolutely gorgeous and look! We found Nessie!!

Next, we got to go to a working farm to feed and pet and take pictures of the highland coos! The guy also had lambs that were abandoned by their moms or orphaned, and we got to bottle feed and hold them! It was absolutely incredible, and I couldn’t believe how little the guy was charging for it. I would have easily paid double, it was an awesome experience.

Finally we headed towards the Isle of Skye where we are staying for the night, and were also in search of the chocolates that our pub friend Ray makes! We found them in Portree but not much else was open so we made our way to our B&B for the night. Checked in and freshened up and just got back from having dinner at the local pub. We are exhausted for sure, so going to sleep now for a decently long day of driving tomorrow.

Sunday, June 9

The day we’ve all been waiting for! The one and only Taylor Allison Swift!!!

When Marissa and I got these tickets a year ago (without consulting Kevin, whoopsie!) it seemed like such distant plans. It’s hard to believe that the day has already come and gone. I’m lucky enough that this is the second eras tour that I’ve been to. Seattle was great, but there was just something about Edinburgh that was so absolutely incredible. For this show, I made 60 friendship bracelets and was able to trade them all before we found our seats. People have definitely leveled up their friendship bracelet game since the 2024 shows! One of my favorite bracelets simply says haggis. It was from a Scottish girl who felt I needed to have it as an American at a Scotland show. Ill treasure it forever.

We got really lucky with the weather as the previous two days had been fairly cool, cloudy, and windy, but while we were waiting in the queue, the sun came out and it was a beautiful day! It didn’t get cool until late in the show and by that time, I think most of us appreciated the light breeze.

Paramore opened up the show and they were incredible. I realized I don’t remember as many of their songs as I thought I would so 14 year old Taylor is incredibly disappointed in 30 year old Taylor for that one.

When THE Taylor came out on stage….. Absolute chaos and magic. During one of her early show speeches she said the crowd for night 3 felt so different from the previous two shows and I believe it. The energy was unmatched. The tortured poets set was a new addition to the show for me to see live. I knew it was there, (I stalk the livestreams like a crazy person), but it was so much better in person than I ever imagined it would be. Screaming the bridge to the smallest man who ever lived was one of the highlights of my life.

One of my favorite parts about The Eras tour is looking around and seeing all of the girls and women grinning and singing and dancing along to all of her songs. No one judges anyone else. Girls in the pit were twirling around and dancing together and it was just so awesome to see. It truly felt like the definition of girlhood and I feel so lucky to be able to be a part of it.

When it came to the piano surprise songs, the second she started singing Haunted, the crowd lost their minds! I was so excited she was playing it as that was one of the songs I remember singing along to in my room as a kid. When she mashed it with Exile, it was the loudest I’ve ever heard a crowd get in my life. Two absolute top tier songs, and Exile is Kevins favorite Taylor song of all time. It was absolutely a moment to remember and in my opinion, one of the best mashups she’s done this far.

After the show, all the streets around the stadium were shut down so we had to walk quite a ways to get an Uber back to our airbnb. It sounds like it would be a nightmare but it was actually crazy cool to be in a sea of swifties leaving the stadium. The streets were PACKED with sparkling fans. People were watching from their second story windows getting videos and waving and all of the swifties as we walked past and it truly was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before. Edinburgh Eras will forever be a highlight of my life and I can’t wait to see one more show this December! Until next time, Taylor.

Saturday, June 8

Edinburgh!!!! Today was a jam packed day. We started the day at the Edinburgh zoo since swifties got 25% off admission! We walked the entire zoo which was essentially a hike because some of the paths are SO. STEEP. We saw some giraffes who had beef with each other give each other neck slaps. We thought we were going to witness fight club. We also spent a ton of time watching the otters fight over a crab. The animals were feeling angsty at the zoo today! Before heading out, we spent some time watching the penguins. They were nesting and had lots of babies and it was the sweetest thing watching them carry rocks over to their nests and seeing the moms nesting with their little babies. The zookeepers were weighing the baby penguins and had to take them from their nests for a bit and the mom penguins were furious. Penguin bites must not hurt because these poor zoo keepers were getting annihilated.

After the zoo we checked into our airbnb before heading downtown to explore and have a few drinks. Dinner was at Mums where I had maybe my favorite dinner of the trip. Bangers and mash that it took me less than 8 minutes to absolutely inhale. I could eat that meal everyday for the rest of my life.

After dinner we headed towards the Frankenstein bar but got distracted with Taylor Swift themed Gelato so naturally we had to stop for a taste of that. Then we made it to the Frankenstein bar that was super cool. The whole city of Edinburgh was fully embracing the swifties and the bar dressed up Mr. And Mrs. Frankenstein in swifty gear.

The city of Edinburgh was absolutely stunning and we hope to someday come back and spend more time there. The stone buildings were gorgeous and we loved walking the cobblestone streets.

Friday, June 7

I’m so behind! Whoopsies. Just been living my best life over here.

Today was the day we said goodbye to Ireland (heartbreaking), and took the ferry over to Scotland! Before we headed to port to catch the ferry, we spent some time in Belfast at the Royal Botanic Gardens. They had a rose garden that was already pretty, but will no doubt be absolutely STUNNING this time next week. Lots of pictures from the gardens.

Today is also the day that Rex got to go home! He’s all back to his normal self, and we couldn’t be more thankful for our dog sitter and the team at Blue Pearl for quite literally saving his life. We will never financially recover from this, but he’s worth it for sure.

When we got on the ferry, we expected a normal ferry. Bench seats, pretty basic. This ferry was more like a mini cruise ship which was wild. They had a bar and a casino and a movie room. The seating was super comfortable and it felt more like we were at a restaurant than on a ferry. We all had a pint of Guinness of course. Then we were in Scotland! We spent the night in Ayr at a mildly shady airbnb, but the town itself was cute. We had an absolutely INCREDIBLE dinner at the tree house and then called it a night. Will be mass posting all of the days I missed so stay tuned!

Today was more of a low key day. We had the best breakfast ever this morning made by our B&B host. It was sooo much food I actually felt bad I couldn’t finish it all but I was STUFFED.

Then we headed out to go to the Giants Causeway on the northern coast. I was truly disappointed to see a downhill hike to get to it because it meant having to hike back up when we were done. After yesterdays hike, this was very difficult for me to accept. But we did it and it was beautiful. I always love being on a coastline and feeling the fresh sea breeze on my face.

After that we were ready for lunch so we stopped in Ballycastle for a bite to eat and to walk around a bit. We didn’t see many shops that looked interesting so we just had lunch and a pint. It was all delicious.

After lunch, we headed towards the B&B, but had to pull over for a call from the neurologist. She told us when she evaluated Rex he was practically pulling her across the room which was FANTASTIC news after the week that poor boy has had! During the call we saw a rainbow in the sky, and it might seem silly, but I truly believe the Hilltop fairies heard my wish in the wind yesterday and helped grant it. Ireland is magical like that.

None of us has been sleeping well and I personally haven’t gotten a solid nights sleep since we got here, so for the rest of the evening we just hung out at the B&B. It was some much needed down time after a busy and VERY stressful week.

We got another call a little bit ago from neuro who was on the fence about whether or not we should get an MRI today. He’s still doing well and his status hasn’t changed since the call earlier this afternoon, but he’s still sleepy when he’s in his crate and if we didn’t do an MRI today, they’re not available again until Monday. So if he declines again tomorrow we would have to wait. On the flip side, he has been improving, and if we gave the required anesthesia to perform the MRI, it could reverse some of the progress he’s had. Honestly this was one of the more difficult decisions we’ve had to make this far, but we decided since he’s improved, we didn’t want to run the risk of backtracking by introducing more drugs into his system.

The unfortunate part of all of this is that we still don’t have a clear answer for why this happened. They have drawn a CBC, multiple chem panels, a phenobarbitol test, a KBr test, checked his liver values, drawn an ammonia level, a bile acid test, done an abdominal ultrasound, and a chest x ray. It has been a LOT on that poor boy which I am thinking is one of the reasons he’s still so lethargic when he’s in his crate. I would be tired too! The only odd results were his pheno level being slightly elevated, his KBr being just barely elevated, and his ALT or AST (I don’t even remember which at this point) being slightly elevated. His ultrasound also showed very mild changes to the liver but nothing that is overly concerning at this point. In my opinion, since his pheno and KBr levels were high, and he was given an antibiotic that from what I’ve read should be used with caution in dogs with seizure disorders or liver dysfunction, that combination was just too much and set off this entire horrible situation. As of now we are crossing our fingers and toes that he has a good night and day tomorrow, and they can get his seizure meds rebalanced so he is able to go home in the next few days. I’m excited for him to be out of there so I can fully enjoy the rest of this trip, but ill be honest, I think I’m the most excited to get home and snuggle the heck out of that boy! More updates to come tomorrow. Keep sending the good thoughts and warm wishes!

Today was actually great. Got a late start to the morning because of course I’m not sleeping the greatest lately. Then we were off to my hawk walk at the Ireland School of Falconry. This has been a bucket list item of mine for awhile courtesy of Nora Robert’s fantasy books. I got to fly the largest hawk in the school and she was absolutely stunning. Her name was Putóg which is olde Irish for pudding. They named her that after sticky pudding because she’s so solid and never loses her footing. It was very cool to see how silently she flew through the woods. Her ability to fly so quickly through very small gaps was incredible. This was one of my favorite experiences I’ve ever done and would highly recommend it to anyone that gets the chance to do it in their lifetime!

Following the hawk walk, we went to Moore Hall. It was the ruins of an old estate that was burned down during the Irish civil war in the 1920s. Ivy has completely taken over the manor and it was stunning. There was also a beautiful garden overgrown with a field full of wildflowers. It was beautiful. After that it was mid afternoon and we headed to Donegal. There were some cows being herded up a road that we had to stop and wait for but we didn’t mind. It honestly felt kind of magical. Then we stopped at what I thought was supposed to be some caves but ended up being a very steep hike up through field of sheep to the top of a hill where the hilltop fairies live. Sorry mom they didn’t wat to come out today so I wasn’t able to bring one home for you. There was a sign at the top saying to leave a gift and whisper a wish into the wind for the fairies. We didn’t bring anything up with us so I braided together some wildflowers for my offering. The wind was STRONG up there so I’m hoping every fairy in Ireland heard my wish.

After the hike we were all pretty hungry so we found a place on the coast to have dinner. We went to the Strand Bar in county Sligo and it was PHENOMENAL. The Irish stew, and beef stroganoff were definitely foodie highlights for the trip. Dinner was followed by baileys and coffee and an Irish whiskey for Kevin that was the perfect way to end a cold, rainy, windy day.

We got to our bed and breakfast and the host here is the sweetest lady. She cooks the breakfast to order herself every morning so we are very much looking forward to that. We told her that we were looking forward to a good nights sleep since we had a sick pup back home and we shared our experiences about loving and losing and fighting for our sick animals. She seems like an absolute sweetheart and it makes our stay here seem so much more warm and cozy. I always love running into people who have such a huge love for dogs like we do.

Still not a lot of updates about Rex unfortunately. Some tests have come back but they’re not giving us a ton of answers about why he’s as lethargic as he is. Our wonderful sitter has gone to visit him every day though and she said he seems a little more perky today. We got video of his nub waggies when she said hello to him, and he rolled over for her so he could get some well deserved belly rubs. She told us the staff wouldn’t stop telling her what a sweet boy he is, and we can’t help but agree. As big of a menace as he is, he’s the sweetest boy in the whole world. More updates to come when we have them!

Now onto the less fun events that have taken place. It starts a month and a half ago when Rex somehow got ahold of some socks and had his second bowel obstruction surgery. His surgery went well and everything had been going fine.

Last week Tuesday before we left, we took him to the vet because it looked like a hernia was appearing along his incision, and we wanted to have it looked at before we left for our trip. Fortunately, it wasn’t a hernia, but unfortunately it was an infection under the incision so he needed to be placed on antibiotics. Things were going fairly well before we left. Wednesday he was a tad clumsy, but with the anticonvulsants he’s on, that happens from time to time so we didn’t think much of it. Friday evening, our dog sitter reached out because Rex wasn’t interested in eating dinner which is HIGHLY abnormal for Rex and historically has only happened when he has bowel obstructions. She’s super paranoid like we are about him getting into something so she was certain he didn’t eat something he shouldn’t, and he also hadn’t had any vomiting like he does when he’s had his obstructions in the past. He eventually ate his food and was acting normal otherwise, so we all just thought maybe the antibiotic was giving him a tummy ache and he wasn’t feeling great. It happens to people with antibiotics so again, we weren’t concerned. Saturday he was good and normal.

Then Sunday evening he became very clumsy and was stumbling around and falling over. We decided he could wait overnight and we called the vet first thing Monday morning. Our angel of a dog sitter brought him to the vet to have him checked out. They drew full lab panels and unfortunately didn’t get too many answers. At this point he was hardly lifting his head he was so lethargic, and the vet there recommended we transfer him to our Neurology office to be evaluated for Potassium Bromide (KBr) toxicity. Unfortunately, because of where we live that’s a 3 hour drive. Commence panic since we are across the ocean and who the heck are we going to ask to do that for us. Our dog sitter is worth her weight in gold and didn’t even hesitate. She found somewhere for Nora to go, got her settled, and jumped in the car to make the drive across the state with Rex.

I will never be able to repay her for how absolutely incredible she has been during this absolute nightmare situation. She arrived with Rex around 7pm which because of the time difference was 3am Ireland time. I had gone to bed around 1am after she was on the road with Rex, and then was up from 3 until 6 bouncing between vet calls. By the time they arrived, Rex was still only lifting his head, and they weren’t really sure what was going on. Kevin and I had to go out to the car for a phone call with them around 5am Ireland time, and because he was being admitted for intensive care, they had to ask us the question about code status. Working in healthcare its a question I hear so often, but it hits so hard when their asking about what lifesaving measures we’d want them to take for our sweet angel of a dog.

After the phone call ended we were both so incredibly upset. I can’t speak for Kevin, but the absolute guilt I feel not being there for my boy is gut wrenching. I want so badly to jump on a plane and come home, but thats not practical or rational. After getting a couple more very restless hours of sleep before checkout, we got a call late in the morning Ireland time from the emergency vet giving us an update. They got our hopes up by telling us about an hour prior he had gotten up and walked a bit. Immediately our hopes were crushed as they told us he had taken a turn again and was at that time practically comatose. They were concerned about cerebral edema because his sodium levels had also had quite a drop due to the fluids they were giving him. Again, I can’t speak for Kevin but it felt like the breath had been absolutely knocked out of me. The vet asked that we call the ASPCA poison control line and open a case with them for treating his potential (at this time we still aren’t sure if this is the cause) KBr toxicity. After calling them we called the vet back and then it was two hours of a waiting game.

We continued our drive towards the Cliffs of Moher because there was nothing else we could do, but the entire drive was not enough breathing and constantly fighting back tears. We got a call back a couple hours later and the medication they had given him had brought him out of his comatose state. He still wasn’t walking around, but he was lifting his head again and looking around and at the vets working with him. Nowhere near out of the woods but knowing he was conscious was enough to let us feel like we could breathe again. The plan was to restart slow fluids and continue trying to flush the KBr out of his system. They said they would call back with another update later in the day after the neurologist and intensivist arrived in the morning to see him. They said we can call back at any time for an update but no news is good news and they would call us back if anything changed. We carried on our day the best we could, and tried our best not to be too worried and stay hopeful.

After dinner we got another call letting us know that he had had another comatose episode, but they gave the med and brought him out of it again. Its incredibly upsetting that he keeps having these waxing and waning processes, but we are grateful the Manitol is working to reduce the edema and bring him back to a responsive state. As of now the plan is to keep on track trying to reverse what could be a KBr toxicity episode. I guess theres no way to really know at this time except for doing what we are doing and hope he starts to show improvement as the medication leaves his system. If they arent seeing the improvement they want by morning, more imaging may need to be done tomorrow but all we can do now is wait. It has been an incredibly difficult 48 hours, but Rexy boy is in the best place he can be right now, and our sitter is staying in a hotel near the hospital so she can be close if he needs someone. We are not even close to out of the woods yet, but we have to stay hopeful that tomorrow will be a better day.

For all who read this far in this blog post that has gone on for far too long, please keep Rex in your thoughts and prayers and send him all of the good, healing, positive energy. I have questioned a million times today if I should book a ticket home, but I know there is nothing else that we would be able to do, so we are just trying to make the most out of an absolute nightmare situation. I will post updates as we have more to update with.

Day 4

Listen, so I did chicken out on Blarney castle. But in my defense, it was a bank holiday in Ireland so we assumed it would be busy as heck, and also the thought of dangling backwards off of the edge of the castle was giving me nausea, and I’ve had enough going on with our boy at home to make me nauseas enough. More on that at the end of this blog.

So, instead of Blarney, we went and saw some ruins (Coppingers Court), and the Drombeg stone circle. It was a nice drive despite the absolutely sketchy roads we had to drive down to get there.

For lunch we went to Glandor Inn near the southern coast, and had some fish and chips (clearly, I can’t get enough of them) and a whiskey sour that was just so so good. Kevin had a seafood chowder that was also delicious. The views were absolutely incredible it was my favorite lunch spot so far.

After lunch we headed up to Muckross just outside of Killarney. We headed toward the National park and ended up going to Muckross abbey and exploring the ruins there. It was absolutely gorgeous and so much of it was still standing.

After a nice walk around the park and the Abbey we headed to our B&B where our welcome note said that BUNNIES and PUPPIES were waiting for us near the stables. Obviously we ran right over and got some of the cutest puppy snuggles. The pups looked so similar but one was so sweet and calm while the other was an absolute menace. I loved the menace so very much. The bunnies were less than interested in human interaction so we just watched them through their enclosure. The B&B also had horses in the barn that I loved giving pets to.

For dinner, we went into Killarney where we had to change our original plan because the first restaurant we wanted to go to was fully booked for the evening. We wandered over to the next closest place and it ended up being an awesome decision. We got a bottle of wine for the table that was delicious, and the food and service were both wonderful. Before bed, we got some more puppy snuggles. In my opinion, every B&B should come with puppies.

Day 5

We had a late start to the morning because of Rex’s emergency overnight (again, ill go into all the details at the end) but woke up in time for breakfast. Simple toast, fruit, and yogurt, but they also had cheese which seemed odd for breakfast, but I’m 100% on board with cheese any time of the day. Before checkout, naturally we got some more puppy snuggles and pet the horses then it was time to get on the road. We had a bit of a drive on the agenda for today, so for lunch we stopped at a grocery store where we got a loaf of the best still warm because it was so fresh bread, and some meats and cheeses to eat with it. It was probably the best bread I’ve ever had and I’d be perfectly happy repeating that lunch every day. In the afternoon we made it to the Cliffs of Moher. The coastline was absolutely stunning and unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. It was also one of the windiest places I’ve ever experienced. Kevin seemed unbothered, but Marissa and I felt like we were going to be blown away by the wind.

The drive to Galway from there was stunning, but I felt bad for Kevin because the roads were narrow and winding so he didn’t get to enjoy much of the view. We saw some more ruins along the drive and were able to enjoy the view of them from the road without having to stop. In Galway, we again had to change our dinner plans because the place was fully booked up, so we ended up at Anafora Turkish bistro. Marissa and Kevin both had Kebabs, and I got pasta which definitely did not seem to belong on the menu, but was delicious all the same. After dinner we stopped at Tig Coili Pub where Kevin and Marissa had their millionth pint of Guinness. I was too sleep deprived to have a beer. We are now back at the hotel where I’m hoping to get a full nights sleep, but that’s TBD.

Road trip! Once we shook off our Dublin induced hangover (we did not shake it off, it clung to us like a wet blanket for the day), we headed to Cork. Naturally we had to stop at Barack Obama plaza and get a photo with the Obamas. It was underwhelming but hilarious that there’s a random gas station in the middle of Ireland dedicated to him. I love it.

On the drive to Cork we ran across some sulky racing horses in the middle of the roadway. No warning. Just driving along and suddenly some horses with carts are racing towards us down the road. It was so bizarre we didn’t even have time to photograph it, but it was very cool to see.

We checked into the airbnb and headed into town for dinner. We found an amazing pizza place but did not take any pictures because it was inhaled immediately. I’m still stuffed and bloated from the amount of pizza I consumed. After dinner we went to a Bier House where they had some awesome sour beers on tap. The town of Cork is nice, but I’m not sure if anything will compare to our Dublin experience. It was just too good and such a wonderful start to the trip.

Tomorrow we’re going to Blarney castle to kiss the Blarney Stone. I’m writing it here so I don’t chicken out because to be honest it looks absolutely terrifying, but its iconic so it has to be done! Our bed and breakfast tomorrow is on a farm, so stay tuned for pictures of all the animals because I plan on petting each and every one of them!

https://youtu.be/Qppcsipz0QQ?si=CC–spSd6NAhUH2K

Woke up to a jump scare from the dog sitter because our dog wasn’t eating. Crisis averted with Rex, and then a FULL day of exploring. First up was an incredible breakfast. Then we explored Dublin castle. It screamed poverty in my face in every language imaginable. All I want is a throne room is that too much to ask for?!

After Dublin castle, we went to the temple bar which was incredible. I quickly found out I’m the only whiskey girl on this trip so I’m the only one who ordered whiskey. I chose writers tears which was an incredible whiskey. Then we went down the alley to Auld Dubliner where I want to live for the rest of my existence. Kevin found an English dad, and I love that for him. English dads love Kevin.

After a few pints it was time to head to our Guinness tour which honesty I did not love. We all would rate it a 1 out of 10. As someone who lives for a brewery tour, it was not good. At the end you get a free pint which we were heavily looking forward to since the rest of the tour was trash, and even that sucked. We had to wait at least 20 minutes to get our pint of Guinness which is insane. Following the brewery tour we went to a whiskey tour at Roe and Co and it was INCREDIBLE. Marissa and Kevin were slightly less impressed than me, but as a whiskey lover I was overjoyed. We got to mix our own cocktail and it was so good. Even the whiskey haters in the group were impressed so that should tell you something.

Following our second tour, we went back to Auld Dubliner. Kevin found at least two more dads pictured below and we had an incredible time. All of our new dads were English and in Dublin with their sons who were celebrating their stag parties. I genuinely love the tradition of dads going with their kids for their bachelor parties. Every single person we interacted with was friendly and beyond great. Overall, day two was incredible despite the hangover I will likely have come morning. Pray for my liver. Slàinte.

Dad #1!

2023 brought us so many exciting life changes. January started with lots of home renovations, getting our Zeeland house ready to sell. February brought the end of my time at Holland Hospital, and SO MUCH PACKING, as well as trying to make my rounds and see as many of my favorite people as possible before we started our trip. March brought the beginning of our journey which included some major panic packing on the morning of our move. My 29th birthday happened on the road, and i’m still so thankful to Kevin and my parents for making it special despite the horrible day of weather and driving we all had. Shortly after moving I got my jeep that I still love so much! April came with lots of adjusting to our new life, and making new friends along the way. In May, we took our first “camping” trip with the dogs. We stayed in a cabin but it was so nice to be able to see more of this beautiful state! In June, we were so lucky to be welcomed at our first Washington wedding. We had a great time, and danced the night away with some of our friends. In July, I took my first trip back home to Michigan to see my family and get some much needed boat, and Lake Michigan time. End of July we got to go to the Eras tour in Seattle which was absolutely one of the highlights of the year for me. July ended with both of us getting COVID (Kevin’s first experience with it) and we started August being sick, but grateful to have a gorgeous backyard to spend our sick days in. August also brought us our first real tent camping trip with the dogs, where we went to the cascades to see the meteor shower. The dogs do great in the tent, however, they left their shared brain cell at home and spent way too much time licking dirt at the campsite. The meteor shower was absolutely incredible being out in the middle of nowhere with absolutely zero light pollution. In September, I once again took a trip home to celebrate the wedding of one of my favorite people to the love of her life. It was so great to be able to see friends and former coworkers, and catch up with people while celebrating on such a happy day! In October, Mom came out for a weeklong visit and we had way too much fun shopping, drinking wine, and watching hallmark movies together. Hopefully she’ll be able to make it out again in the spring when the weather is a little bit nicer! We also got to have a little getaway with some friends, AND all of the dogs in Stehekin. We got a little cabin and had a whole weekend of board games, drinking, and laughing until our abs hurt. In November we were blessed with being invited to our “Washington parents” home for Thanksgiving so we were still able to celebrate while being so far away from our own families. It genuinely touched my heart to be so welcomed for the holiday meal. December was definitely tough being away from my family for the first christmas ever, but even though I worked, we made my families classic christmas breakfast and had a wonderful christmas morning at home with our little family. New Years Eve, we hosted a get together and got to ring in the new year with some of our favorite Washington people. Games were played, marble races were enthusiastically watched, and beers were chugged.

There were so many more incredible moments this year, and memories that were made, but those were definitely among my favorites.

While there’s been so much good this year, there has obviously been not so happy things as well. Being away from my family for the holidays was so much harder than I thought it would be. I’m so grateful for all of the memories I have of Christmas morning at the Rice house, and I definitely missed my parents and siblings and not being able to celebrate with them on Christmas Day. I’m so excited to come home in a couple of weeks and celebrate with them all then. Thanks mom for leaving your tree up so it can still feel like Christmas!

We are also still struggling with getting Rex’s epilepsy under control. Ideally, we would be able to go a couple of months between seizures. However, we are still having a seizure every 2-3 weeks. When we moved out here, we had hoped to be able to go camping much more than we did this year, but having an epi dog makes traveling with them so much more complicated. We are thankful for the trips that we were able to take with the dogs in 2023, and are hoping to figure out a better combination of meds for Rex so we can have many more camping weekends in 2024! The few trips we have taken have definitely taught us what we need to have on hand for our future trips. Even with his messy brain, expensive vet bills, and 5 hour round trip neurology trips, we wouldn’t trade our boy for the world.

Moving across the country was one of the biggest leaps of faith we’ve taken, but I know I can speak for us both when I say that we are so happy we did it. We have made some incredible friends that have become like family to us and we couldn’t be more grateful. After such a great 2023, we are looking forward to more memories, more era’s tour shows, and more new experiences 2024 will bring!

Happy New Year! 🙂

It’s hard to believe we’ve only been here for 6 days. Our little rental is already feeling like home, and we’re all settling in well.

Saturday was a hard day. I went with my parents to seattle where we explored Pike Place Market, had some AMAZING food and even better times, and then went and got them checked into their hotel before their early morning flight. We had one more dinner together at Olive Garden (classic) before taking them back to their hotel, and saying our goodbyes. I knew I would be sad when they left, but I didn’t know how emotional I would get. It was hard driving away from them, and then even harder getting back to this house and not having them here. Again, we can’t possibly thank both of them enough for everything they’ve done for us to help with this move. To Mom & Dad, I love you both more than you know, and am already waiting for your next visit. The hidden dinos have been bringing me so much joy and I don’t plan on moving a single one of them from their new hidey homes.

This week is going to bring a touch of chaos as we have so much to get done. Both of us have pre-employment appointments today at our new jobs and we only have one car to get things done with. After the appointments, begins the process of car shopping for me. Then we have to find a new bank and setup accounts, get our auto insurance switched over to michigan, get rental insurance for the new place, call around to vets and get something set up for the pets, but more urgently for Rex, and get all of the utilities on the house switched over to our names. Kevin starts work on Thursday, so we’re hoping to tackle all of those things before that time. Hopefully in the next week, we will also be able to get an appointment to get our Washington IDs. On top of everything we have to get done, new flooring will be getting installed at the end of this week and middle of next week so we have to work around them, which no doubt will add to the stress level. Counting down the days until that’s done and we can fully settle in here!

So far, there are no regrets and we are still very excited about taking this giant leap. We’re already planning our adventures around the state, and if weather allows for it, Kevin even wants to go snowboarding already this spring, after his health insurance has kicked in of course. As for me, I’ll be in the lodge sitting by a fireplace with a good book, and a hot drink. Stay tuned for updates!

We are officially residents of East Wenatchee! We arrived in town on Tuesday evening, and have been busy since then unpacking boxes and getting things put away and settled. As much as I want to post pictures right now, all of the flooring in the house will be getting replaced in the next week and a half, so I’m waiting to post photos until that’s all done and all of our furniture is where we want it to go. Lots of stuff is still in boxes because it doesn’t make sense to unpack it just to have to move it again in a week. Currently, the flooring is less than photogenic. Other than that, so far, we are very very happy here. The dogs are absolutely loving their new private backyard dog park, and we even have their friend Finn staying with us for the weekend!

Wednesday evening we spent some time with our friends in town and a couple of their friends. We all went to Sweetwood BBQ (so delicious), and then went down the road to Wenatchee Valley Brewing and had some brews around the firepit. It was a very enjoyable evening and the perfect way to end our first full day in Wenatchee!

Yesterday we spent the afternoon at Pybus Market going around to all of the little shops, mead tasting, and eating gelato. Then we went to nearly every furniture store in town looking for a TV stand for living room. Thankfully, we found the perfect one at our last stop!

Later today we’re going to Rails & Ales downtown. They close down an entire street, bring in a ton of snow from Mission Ridge, and have snowboarders doing tricks on the streets! Of course there’s a beer tent as well and that may or may not be one of our big reasons for going.

Tomorrow, I’ll be riding to Seattle with my parents to bring them for their flight early Sunday morning. We’re going to do some typical Seattle touristy things before I drop them off at their hotel and say our goodbyes. It’s going to be strange here without them, but I’m so thankful for the time we did get with them here, and we’re both beyond appreciative for all of their help. We truly could not have made the move out here right now without them.

Next week will be a busy week. Car shopping for me, pre-employment employee health appointment on Monday, Kevin starts work on Thursday, and then the flooring people will be here to put in the new vinyl in the living spaces on Thursday and Friday.

We are so happy to finally be here and starting our new life, and can’t wait to show everyone our new home in the coming weeks.

I’ll start this post by saying we are all safe in our hotel for the night.

Today was my birthday! It’s been… Different. We started the day in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. The plan was to drive west to Bismarck, ND, but the weather this morning showed major snow on the north route, so we decided to head a bit south to Rapid City. The first portion of the drive was great. Clear skies, and clear roads. Before we crossed into South Dakota we hit some pretty rough roads. At this point, my parents were a ways behind us with the big truck, so I was texting updates on the weather and trying not to die from panic. I HATE being on the road in the snow, and I was worried about the big box truck with the conditions and wind we were driving through. We pulled off the highway for a bit to get lunch and let the dogs play at a dog park while we waited for things to either clear up, or at least give the plow trucks time to clear things up a bit. Got back on the road and it was very slow going for about 30 minutes. Almost as soon as we crossed into SD things cleared up. By this point, we were about an hour and a half ahead of my parents and they had yet to hit the bad weather. Thankfully, we all made it through and the drive across MOST of South Dakota was uneventful.

When Kevin and I got about 30 minutes from Rapid City, we hit more snow. It started as sleet and quickly turned into a decent snowfall, but we were close enough to the hotel that it didn’t impact our drive too much. We got checked in and got the pets fed and pottied, and were about to order dinner when we both got an emergency alert on our phones. “National Weather Service: Snow Squall Warning.” First of all, the alert sound they use is panic inducing. Second, what in the world is a snow squall?! We have both lived in Michigan our entire lives where there is obviously a ton of snow, and neither of us knew what it was. The short answer: Snowy Hell. We hit the road at 9am today, so my parents had been traveling for almost 13 hours already, and the last hour and a half was about to not be great. I texted my mom to check in and roads were still clear for them so I hoped they would miss the worst of it and the “Squall” would be over by the time they were close. What should have been an hour and a half drive remaining ended up taking them almost 3 hours, and they most certainly did not miss the Squall. I’ll attach pictures of what their visibility was like. Thankfully they made it here safe and sound and we had pizza waiting for their arrival.

To sum it all up, my birthday started with a reroute, was packed with two snowstorms, and ended with a feeling of dread while my parents drove through what I was envisioning to be an icy apocolypse. It actually truly ended with cake in our hotel room purchased by my amazing mom.

Thank you Mom and Dad for driving the truck on this trip, taking the time to get me cake and making sure my birthday still felt special, and I promise to never again move across the country in early March. Love you both to the moon and back!

We’re officially on the road. I want to start this post with a HUGE thank you to all of the friends and family who came over this week to help us pack and get loaded up. By far the worst part of moving, but every one of you made it easier and we cannot thank you enough. Nothing is more appreciated than the gift of your time and helping hands.

It was so odd seeing our home empty this morning and driving away. Now that we’re on the road and I have some downtime, it’s sinking in how much we’ll be leaving behind. I hope everyone we love comes to visit us at our beautiful new place in East Wenatchee.

The plan is to travel to Eau Claire tonight so we have 6 hours left in the car. So far the pets are doing well. Our kitty Oliver had a hard time settling in but thankfully all 3 of them are now snoozing. Fingers crossed they continue to do well and this long trip doesn’t stress them out too much. I’m already very eager to get there and show them their new space! The dogs are going to love the yard, and the cat will love having more room to run around inside when he’s possessed by demons at 3am.

Will update again tomorrow but for now I’m just thankful to have everything in the truck and be on the road. The worst part is over!

The day has come and gone. I’m officially done at Hoho and I have every imaginable emotion about it. First off, I’m feeling so incredibly grateful for the family I’ve been lucky to be a part of for the last 6 1/2 years. For my coworkers reading this, I will never be able to thank you enough for what you’ve given me. Each and every one of you has helped me become the therapist that I am today. From my first day pre-grad, feeling like I would never know enough to be the best for my patients, to feeling confident in my skills and maneuvering my way through a respiratory pandemic. We’ve been through so much together throughout the years and I have learned something from every single person I’ve worked with. You’re not only my coworkers, you were family and I’ll carry a piece of each of you with me on this new adventure. I’ll never forget my first home. To those of you I didn’t get to say goodbye to in person, just know I’m grateful to you and my door in Washington will always be open for a visit.

It’s hard to believe that I clocked out for the last time today and when I clock back in, it will be at an entirely new hospital all the way across the country. I think it will take awhile for it to fully sink in, and until then, I’ll enjoy reminiscing on the memories and friendships that Holland Hospital has given me. Even on the worst days, I wouldn’t have changed a thing.

In just 34 days, we will begin our journey across the country to our new home in Wenatchee! After searching for what seemed like an eternity for a place to rent for the next 12 months, we finally found the perfect place and will be signing our agreement this week. I can’t even begin to describe what a relief it is to know we will have a place to land when we take this crazy jump. We will have enough space for a guest room, as well as a big fenced in backyard for the dogs. This was one thing I was really hoping to find in a rental because our sweet pups deserve the space to run around and play.

The last several months have been chaotic to say the least. We have been working hard on renovating our kitchen to prepare to sell our house. We have also been busy starting to pack things up and move them to the storage unit to make our lives a little bit easier once it’s time to actually load up the truck to move. We will be sad to leave the home where our relationship started, but we are both so excited for this new journey together.

On top of that, our boy Rex has been having seizures and last week was officially diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy, and started on meds. He seems to be doing well with them, but we really won’t know how well they’re working until he goes a long period of time without having one. January 18th was his last, and we’re crossing our fingers that the meds will work and we will have a nice long seizure free stretch!

We are also trying our best to make time to see and spend time with friends and family we will be leaving behind. This is by far going to be the hardest part about moving across the country, but we are so grateful for the support of everyone we have in our lives. You all mean so much to us, and keep in mind we will have a guest room in our new place so feel free to come visit us anytime! We truly mean that.

I will continue to post updates throughout the process of our move. The next two months are going to be absolutely crazy, but once we are in Washington and settled, I know all of the chaos will have been well worth it.

Wanted to add a photo of our new backyard! Feeling so lucky that this is going to be our view for the next year. Looking forward to cookouts, and many glasses of wine out here!

If you haven’t heard by now, big changes are coming, and we are moving to Wenatchee, Washington this coming March.

Deciding to make a big change is always scary. Kevin and I have talked about moving for as long as we’ve known each other, but I always had a reason to say “not yet.” It took actually interviewing for a job while on vacation, for me to finally decide I was ready to take the leap. “Ready” might be a generous term for what I am. I’m excited, nervous, stressed, honestly feeling all of the feelings.

March is going to bring us so many wonderful new adventures, but having a date also makes me feel like I’m running out of time. I feel like I’m already becoming detached from where I’ve spent my whole life even though we haven’t packed a single box yet. Driving down the road heading home makes me sad. In just a few short months, that road won’t lead me home anymore. The places and people I’ve spent the last 28 years of my life near will be a long flight across the continent, instead of a small drive away. Opening up my locker at work reminds me that soon, I’ll have to put all of its contents in a box, and say goodbye to this hospital, and the coworkers that have become like family to me. I’ll be completely starting over, and for someone who overthinks, and gets anxious about everything, that thought is slightly terrifying.

On the flip side, I am so excited to move closer to the mountains where my soul finds the most peace. Instead of taking time off of work and flying across the country to explore our favorite parts of nature, we’ll be able to take a short drive and spend long weekends camping in the cascades. I’ll be starting a new job at a hospital that is going to give me so many new opportunities as a respiratory therapist. I’ll get to learn new skills, and be challenged in ways that aren’t a possibility here. I’ll get to have friends and family come visit and show them around places that they’ve never been before. I’ll get to make new friends, and get to know a whole new work family. This is going to be a completely fresh start for us both and with that, we’ll get to experience so many new things together that I know will only bring us closer and make our relationship with each other even stronger.

New starts are both scary, and exciting, and I want to keep everyone updated every step of this journey. The first part of that is getting through the scary feelings and being more and more excited about what’s to come. Follow along as we get ready to finally take the leap and chase the life we want all the way to Washington!