Oh moving. The joy. The excitement. The anxiety. The stress. Oh, and the bruises (at least I used all of my fitness)…

But it’s all worth it. We have officially moved up to the Pacific Northwest, we’re putting down roots in our little Radical Roots Homestead, and we couldn’t be happier.

I’ve been getting a lot of questions about the move, the settling processes, and our new home, so I thought I would bust out a little catch up post, filling all of you in on why I have been so MIA for the past couple weeks (sorry!).

So let me break it down for you…

WHY?

This could be a post all on its own, but I think those of you who know me, probably have an idea. Though I love the relationships that have grown and flourished in the Silicon Valley – friends, family, colleagues, NorCal CrossFit – the pace, traffic, and money/work focused mindset there were wearing us down. We wanted a change. Some land to grow (food and a family). A smaller community. More of the arts. A holistic approach to health and wellness. Less driving. The beach. And MORE NATURE (just outside the Olympic National Forrest, to be exact). Oh, and the entire town has a focus on sustainability, shopping local, and eating farm-to-table and organic. The food here is unreal, and even the pubs serve organic local fare and ciders.

We’ve found all that we could want in a community here on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington. We took a big leap of faith, moving far from family and friends, but we feel in our hearts that it was the right choice for us. The support from our loved ones has been amazing. So stay tuned for posts on all the fun of putting down roots (yes, literally and figuratively); of backpacking, hiking, kayaking, and exploring this amazing wonderland we call home; of the holistic health focus that is so prevalent here; and of  all the amazing recipes that are going to come from this new kitchen (yeah!).

THE MOVE:

Here is where the headache started. I still wouldn’t change a thing because the experience has taught me a ton, brought Rusty and I closer than ever, and created the perfect home for us, but geez was this part rough.

Things were going smooth as whipped cream (I’ve got this on the brain considering the recipe I’m currently working on), UNTIL THE MOLD FIASCO. Ugh. Ew. Ick. F*ing mold. The day before we were to head out on our 875 mile journey, we took the Uhaul over to my dad’s work where we had been storing a bunch of boxes and furniture, only to find that half of it was covered with mold, which means that everything in there was potentially contaminated with spores. Like I said… F*ing mold.

After lots of research and help from Megan Rand (Ginger Newtrition) and Hayley Mason (Primal Palate), I realized this small hiccup was going to be a monster task, and that we were going to lose a lot of things. So after trashing anything with visible signs of mold and anything porous that could hold onto spores, we went to work opening every box, spraying each and every item we owned that was in there with mold killer, and then HEPA vacuuming each item.  Yes. It took forever, and we lost lots of things (saddest of all was our kitchen table that just couldn’t be salvaged), but in the end it’s all worked out because it’s made nesting that much more fun… consignment shops anyone?

So once that fiasco was over, and our last day of packing ended up with a bedtime of 2:00 am, we were up at 5:15 am, loaded into the truck (a very tight squeeze), and off on our adventure with plans to stop off for a night at my aunt’s in Portland. My husband, the champion, though, decided to power through, and after 22 hours on the road with a lunch stop in Ashland and gas breaks, we were HOME.

NESTING:

After recovering from 22 hours in a small cab of a large truck, nesting has been a BLAST. Taking time to set up OUR house the way we want it has been really really fun, and it’s incredibly fulfilling to that small part of me that is damn ready to nest. First, we met a wonderful lady at our new CrossFit gym, who sold us some gorgeous rosewood furniture and a perfect leather couch with a great story for an unbelievable price. Basically, she didn’t want to give it away because it has a lot of sentimental value to her, but she wanted it to go to a good home. She saw something in us, and gave us the deal of a lifetime.

Then, we found the most amazing consignment shop (Have I mentioned I love my town?) and have been able to buy some really rad furniture for great prices (and even did some trading), like that sofa table, those Hershey’s crates, bench, and the cool old distressed mirror (more pictures to come of other great finds). Now our home has so much character and warmth and it truly feels like home. It will be a work in progress of course. Rusty is currently stripping, staining, and prepping our coffee table and kitchen picnic-style table, and I can’t wait for the finished products. More pictures to come as we get settled, so stay tuned! I will be doing a whole post on consignment finds and remaking old furniture into gorgeous new home additions. I love this stuff. Sustainable, renewable, and fun! We will also be putting hardwood floors into our upstairs ourselves, so check in for tips on how to take salvaged wood (oak in our case) and turn it into flooring! Stay tuned for more on this whole process. Decorating can be done sustainably too. I’ve found some really great finds on Amazon for organic, chemical free towels, blankets, sheets, and more. Keeping a toxic free home is a lot easier than you might think. As the inside continues to feel like home, the outside gets love too…

HOMESTEADING:

Next up? The garden. So far, we’ve gotten compost all set up, and I’ve planted sunflowers along our front fence. This week, we start building our chicken coop, and I’ll order baby chicks to start that adventure. Rusty’s designing a cheap, simple, but beautiful stone back patio where we’ll also have a fire pit to sit around and grill on. And we’ll be building planter boxes and starting a whole garden of produce. Cherry on top? The fruit we’ll be growing: apples, plums, figs, and berries. I. Can’t. Wait. Again, more to come on the Radical Roots Homestead, so stay tuned, and if you haven’t sign up for my newsletter, so you won’t miss anything. The recipes will be more inspired than ever, take that bacon and fresh fig burger for instance, and the ingredients will hold a special place in my heart because they’ll come from our garden (eventually) or from the farmers nearby! It’s all a work in progress, and patience is a virtue I’m working on, but there is no better place to practice than here. I’m home.

I’ll still be offering nutrition consulting, and I’ll be working for CrossFit (love my job). I’ll also still be blogging away and opening my heart to ya’ll so let me know what you’d like to read about! And if you are currently (or if you ever will be) near the Olympic Peninsula of Washington, feel free to drop me a comment or an email. I love meeting new friends and seeing new faces. Thanks for reading. Let me know what you would like to read more about in the comments below! Cheers. And as always, Live Rad.