Moran Family Fun

We started out Saturday morning knowing we had a four-hour drive ahead of us and also knowing that we couldn't check into our hotel until 5 p.m. What to do? The only solution to our dilemma was to find something interesting along the way where we could spend some time. We've learned that if there's a tourist, historic, or some other interesting place there will always be a brown sign along the side of the road both advertising it and telling us which way to turn. We'd crossed the border into Scotland when Jared saw a sign reading New Lanark .  We made a split-second decision to go for it but since the sign was right before the exit Jared had to do some fancy driving to get us off the motorway and on the road to New Lanark. I'm grateful that Jared was willing to be our primary driver for our Scottish adventures; some of the roads were crazy and he's an excellent driver. Anyway, our thinking was that we'd take a little detour just to see if New Lanark was ...

We've been looking forward to our spring break trip to Scotland since Christmas when Jared, being the wonderful guy that he is, planned the whole thing. Our much-anticipated spring break adventure started before we even left home with Jared's birthday celebration. It was a couple of days early but there was barely room in the car for us, let alone his birthday presents so there was nothing to do but celebrate!  Seasons 1-4 of Longmire because Jared can never get enough of Sheriff Walt Longmire and the crazy things that happen in Absaroka County, Wyoming Pretzel M&Ms are not something we can find on or off base here so I grabbed a few bags from Target while I was in the States. It took everything I had not to devour these in the few days they were in my possession before I wrapped them up. This amazing, confusing, wonderful game has been on Jared's wish list for a long time. It's not currently in print and seems to be something of a sleeper hit in the C...

I have a good husband. A man who, when I somewhat timidly brought up the fact that my grandfather had been on my mind and maybe I could fly to the states for a visit, did not remind me that we discussed my grandfather and the fact that if we were to move to England I likely wouldn't see him again in this life. Or the fact that I'd understood this and was still on board with the move. A husband who realized that it might be now or never because of travel plans, church commitments, school activities, and an impending deployment and so encouraged me to go for it. Plans were made and a ticket was purchased all in the span of a couple of days. Definitely not the way I usually do things. My cautious brain prefers a much more drawn out decision-making process.  It was a long direct flight from Heathrow to Salt Lake. I appreciated the lack of layovers and connecting flights but was so ready to get off the plane by the time we landed almost eleven hours after departing. When you ...

There's something about the changing of seasons, much like the beginning of a new year, that brings to mind new beginnings and making a fresh start. The spring is the perfect time to review those goals and see where you stand, what needs changing and what you've accomplished before looking ahead and pressing forward. One of my new year goals was the write on the blog more often this year. I didn't do so well in March, but it's always a good time to start again. The school projects continue for Natalie; some she can do on her own and some that require a bit more parental involvement. She made this poster at school illustrating the importance of having a growth mindset. It was a perfect fit for Natalie because she naturally has this sort of attitude. You can see it clearly in her poster - even when she made mistakes she just kept working. Some of our other girls would probably have balled the paper up to start again or given up entirely after any little mistake. Nata...