Tag: family

* Jedd Thoughts, * Life Updates, Intentional Living

Available for Family

simplyintentional
DSC08973
Apparently I have a twin (he is my real brother, btw)

When you tell people you are going to Hawaii, immediately people think: vacation. Even if you are from Hawaii and now live elsewhere- when you return, people think you are on a break, enjoying your vacation. This trip was not a vacation (though we tried to have some fun – surfing, hiking, eating, etc…). What this trip was really about was family.

DSC08941
Working on the condo

When my parents told me they were going to move to Japan, I knew we had the time and flexibility in our schedule to help them. For the last month or so, Continue reading “Available for Family” →

* Jedd Thoughts, * Life Updates, Other Travels

Epic Road Trip 2014 Recap

simplyintentional

Epic_Road_Trip_2014

Our Epic Road Trip of 2014 is over. For one month we traveled from Portland to Seattle; to Canada’s Vancouver B.C.; Kelowna B.C., Banff (in Alberta); back to the states to Glacier, Montana; Salt Lake City; Fort Collins; Boulder; Denver; Boise; and back to Portland. About 5,500 miles in all.

We participated in a World Domination Summit, helped friends with their backyard project, got to attend a wedding of two dear friends, went to another Continue reading “Epic Road Trip 2014 Recap” →

* Jedd Thoughts, * Life Updates

Everyday Thanksgiving

simplyintentional

givethanks
Wherever you are in the world, whoever you are, as you read this I am hoping that you have something to be thankful for.

Amidst all the things going on in the world, specifically the misguided attention that the media and businesses try to emphasize regarding Thanksgiving and the holiday season in general, I’m asking that we consider this time right now as an opportunity to refocus and intentionally think about what it means to be thankful…before it’s too late. Too late for what?

Loss. Separation. Regret.

In the spirit of the upcoming holidays, in light of the terrible situation caused by Typhoon Haiyan, and reflecting on 20 months of being a volunteer, I’ve realized that if our world is ever going to change for the better, it will have to start with our values. We can start by being more appreciative of what we have at this moment because life can change in an instant. I will be the first to confess that I Continue reading “Everyday Thanksgiving” →

* Jedd Thoughts, * Life Updates, * Michelle Thoughts, Videos

Looking Back at 2011: Our Year In Review

mcmeeshi

Here’s our official New Year’s update video, looking back on 2011. Although we expected to be heading out to Peace Corps in July, we found out in late spring that our placement changed and we were put on hold until the news of our new assignment arrived in August. Despite this “set-back,” we went ahead with our plans to resign from our full-time positions, travel the country, and visit family and friends. We never dreamed of all the places that our waiting period would take us; and even though the Peace Corps journey is postponed until March 2012, our adventures have already begun!

Related posts:
Ten States in Two Months
Away We Go! Our National Parks Road Trip Itinerary
Simply Intentional – 2010 Year In Review

* Michelle Thoughts, Other Travels, Videos

Redwoods and the Oregon Coast

mcmeeshi

Thanks for tuning in to our adventures! This is the final video blog post of our month-long road trip. After Yosemite, we had one of our longer driving days to get to the Redwoods. We decided to spend only one night in the Redwoods area so we could meet up with my (Michelle’s) family. It has been family tradition since the 1950’s for my Mom’s side to camp at Honeyman State Park in Florence, Oregon. I grew up going there every summer with all the cousins but now many of them have gone separate ways. So this time was a very small gathering of the clan. As you’ll see in the video, Jedd was very excited to end the trip catching two fish back to back since his other catches the week beforehand were too small to keep.

We are now in the Portland and Salem areas enjoying more time with family. What does the rest of the summer hold for us? Well, we’ve been pretty successful lining up house-sitting and work-exchange-for-rent (but we can always do more- let us know), so we continue to be nomadic. We’re excited to do some more traveling as well, with a trip to celebrate Mère’s (Michelle’s grandma’s) 90th birthday in New Orleans and then help Jedd’s great aunt get ready to move from Florida in September. Jedd is working about 3/4 time with Relevant Studios while I am basically doing odd jobs around other people’s houses. We expect to have more information from Peace Corps at the end of the summer, whether that be a final placement or more waiting.

See more from our road trip here (videos included):
Epic Road Trip Day One: 4 States in 2 Days
Yellowstone  Jackson  Exploring Utah   Bryce and Zion
Grand Canyon  Las Vegas National Park
Sequoia and King’s Canyon  Yosemite!
A Snapshot of Our Trip So Far
Away We Go! Our National Parks Road Trip Itinerary

 

* Jedd Thoughts, * Life Updates, Other Travels, Videos

Enjoying Things You Love With People You Love

simplyintentional

I don’t think the concept of “enjoying things you love with people you love” is ground breaking or earth shattering. If anything, it’s a simple life goal for me, a simple reminder of what is important in life. Unlike my typical posts where I go on and on, I’ll just let you enjoy a video Michelle made from a recent beach trip in Hawaii my family took this past weekend, doing what we do best: enjoying things we love to do, with the people we love the most.