Christmas greetings from Coeur d’Alene, Idaho! Wait, how did we end up in Idaho? Well one afternoon in July we asked ourselves, “What if…?” What if we could pick anywhere to live? What if we lived by the water and mountains, surrounded by beautiful nature? What if summers weren’t 110 degrees? What if we could slow down a little? We had visited Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana the past few summers and each visit to Coeur d’Alene kept checking all the boxes. A hidden gem (not so hidden anymore) with a stunning lake surrounded by wooded mountains and a downtown filled with charming coffee shops, restaurants and boutiques, it felt like an ideal place to live. Suddenly we came to the realization that we could alter our course and make our dream a reality. We thought about moving after Dylan finished high school, but after our visits this summer we decided to move up the timeline. We’ve only been here a few months yet it already feels like home. Maybe ask us in snowy January, but I have a feeling we’ll be just fine.
As parents, our biggest concern was switching high schools for Dylan. He was about to start his sophomore year at Granite Bay High and was well connected with a lot of friends. The safe option would’ve been to stay the course. But Dylan kept telling us how much he loved Coeur d’Alene: the lake, the mountain biking, close to skiing. At one point, Nicole and I were walking along the lake and Dylan called while mountain biking on one of the local trails. His voice full of excitement, he said “We have to move here!” So we made an impulsive decision not to wait. It never came down to one thing and I honestly thought it was such a longshot that everything would fall into place. I was reading John Steinbeck’s East of Eden and came across an unforgettable word. A single word that could change it all: timshel. In short, life is a choice and it’s not predetermined. We can change our course. We’ve done it before and we’ll likely do it again. The choice was ours and before we knew it, we said “Adios” to California and all its wonders, sold our home and moved north. We’re fortunate to be celebrating 29 years of marriage this year. In those 29 years together, we’ve moved 11 different times and we know that a forever home for us usually lasts a few years. Each experience has strengthened and fortified our bond. This move feels different, in the best way. We keep noticing a sense of peace that had been missing or was just dormant. Multiple times a day we find ourselves commenting on the beauty of our surroundings, and we truly love it here. So for now, we’ll be calling Coeur d’Alene home.
Dylan is 16 now and a sophomore at Coeur d’Alene High School. He’s loving it here and keeps busy with baseball, mountain biking and has recently taken up golf. During a baseball game In April, he dislocated his knee which ended his freshman season, but he’ll be back on the field next spring. In July he did a mountain bike race in Durango, Colorado. Since moving, he’s joined a local golf club and often plays golf after school (prior to our first snow at the end of October). Even the public courses here are pristine with pine trees and lush fairways. We’ve played some father and son rounds and enjoy sharing a few baskets of balls at the range in the evenings. I may not be able to keep up with him racing down the side of a mountain on a bike, but we can happily walk and play 18 holes together.
In the summer we packed our winter parkas and flew south, all the way to the southern tip of South America. Our destination: Patagonia, with stops in Buenos Aires, El Calafate, El Chalten, Puerto Natales, Punta Arenas and Santiago. We spent nearly 2 weeks there with friends flying and busing between Argentina and Chile. We fell in love with the jagged Andes Mountains that were covered in snow, marveled at massive glaciers, ate lots of empanadas, alfajores, anything with calafate berries, and Argentinian beef. We saw herds and herds of guanacos, bright pink flamingos but never spotted a puma or penguin. We may have even had guanaco meat but can’t be sure.
Nicole (age: N/A) has flown back to California a couple times in October and November to visit friends and do photo sessions. She’s attending a couple of Bible studies in Coeur d’Alene where she’s made new friends, and is looking forward to cozy winter days cooking and baking while it’s snowing outside. Michael (age: 53 N/A) is still keeping busy with work projects, summited Mt. Whitney again this summer, has started swinging the golf clubs again, and had a few work trips at the end of the year. Seems like there was a lot of traveling the last few months of the year, and it’s now to the point that if our dog Obi sees a suitcase come out, he stands at the front door and refuses to let anyone leave. So I think we might be happily “trapped” in our home for the rest of the year.
Well that about closes the year for us. We hope this card finds you and your home full of joy, peace, gratitude and hope, and we look forward to hearing from you. Merry Christmas!