Goodbye Show Low, Hello Asia

As the last week of our Show Low rotation comes to an end, it is such a blessing to look back and see how God has used us here. This adventure has not only been something new and different, but has been really sweet for Alex and I do to together.

Overall, the experience for me has been much more challenging than I thought it would be. Going from 100 miles an hour with a 40 hour work week, to 0 miles an hour was really difficult. I really had to figure out what my purpose was in all of this, and trust that God had a plan for me just like he had a plan for Alex.  I ended up working in Flagstaff every other week with a great store I had previously worked with, and I had a really sweet opportunity to learn new skills like gardening, cross stitch and canning. This change in lifestyle made me really step back and appreciate the solitude of a simple life.

As we say goodbye to our country living adventures in Show Low, Alex and I get to say Hello to a whole new adventure, internationally!! 

Thailand and Seoul here we come! We are so excited to get to see my sister Molly in Thailand, and experience the culture in Seoul.  Alex and I have talked about traveling internationally together, and cannot believe we have the opportunity. We will be in Thailand for 2 weeks and Seoul for 4 days. Having such a nomadic lifestyle gives us a chance to go and do things we otherwise wouldn't have been able to. God is good and we trust His plan for us in this adventure!

Experiencing the Culture

I received a text this week from Alex that said "Honey, I have an adventure planned for us this weekend, lets get cultured!"

This meant, lets attempt to look like the locals and go where locals like to hang out. If you know us at all, we are definitely outdoorsy people, but nothing like the "outdoorsy" people here. For starters, we made our way to Darbi's, a local breakfast place that warns you to order the half order because they give you so much food! Definitely a fun way to start off our day with "adventure dinning."

After breakfast we proceeded to make our way through the mountains to a little town called Greerer, it reminded us of the little mountain towns in Colorado. Our final destination on this road trip adventure was the "Western Drug and General Store" in Springerville. They say that if you can't find it here, you wont find it anywhere, and boy, is this is the truth! Nowhere have I been where you can buy baby food, ammo, fabric and lingerie in the same store!

As you can see from the pictures, the Western Drug is quite the shop! However, the Akin's are always looking for ways to be witty, so this was the perfect store for us. The other gem we drove by in Springerville was a building that did Taxidermy on one end and had a meat shop on the other...this is either really convenient, or really gross, either way pretty funny!

The only way to finish off such a great weekend is by doing some shootin'. This was by far Alex's favorite part, plus he has not stopped talking about getting a gun since we moved here, so this was some good practice for him. 

We definitely had fun this weekend experiencing the culture here. Unfortunately, in order for us not to look like "big city people" we need go buy some cowboy boots, a cowboy hat, a gun, some camo, a gun mug and a truck. Thanks for such an interesting weekend honey!

Country Livin'

WELCOME TO SHOW LOW!!!!

Trucks, gardens, horses and farms, this is country livin'.


Two weeks down, 11 to go! Alex has started his job at a skilled nursing facility and is enjoying it,  he is appreciating a change of scenery and a change of pace. It has been so cool to be able to relax and be more intentional with each other since we both aren't completely exhausted at the end of the day from work. For example, we went on a run together last night and were able to enjoy being outside and being together, I am so thankful for that!

I have signed back on with an amazing store I previously worked at when we lived in Flagstaff called Mountain Sports. This is such a blessing, because it offers me the "purpose" that I feel I am lacking and has made the transition from going 100 miles an hour to 0 miles an hour much easier. I will be working every other week in Flagstaff, which means living away from Alex every other week, definitely not the ideal situation, but we are trusting that God wouldn't provide this opportunity if it wasn't for a purpose!

Below are pictures of Anneka's garden! I am so excited to learn the ways of the Pioneer Bergstrand women! So far, we have one zucchini and lots of swiss chard...but we plan on making pesto, homemade salsa, and zucchini bread!

A New Beginning

My husband Alex and I have decided to say goodbye to our comfortable, settled lifestyle and hello to a new nomadic adventure across the US. There has been a stirring in both of us over the past couple months, hoping and praying that God would open doors for us to run through, and He did.  Alex signed on with a traveling Physical Therapist company that will allow for us to pay off debt quicker, and experience new people and places. On June 22nd we packed just our clothes, camping gear and  bikes and headed towards our first destination Show Low, Arizona. Follow our blog for the months to come and be part of our stories, struggles, and attempt to live a simple life.