adventure is out there! minnesota to pennsylvania and back again. my unexpected journey.

As you may have noticed – my site has been quiet this week. And that level of quiet wasn’t planned or intentional. I’m one of those writers that has some articles written and saved, but honestly, this week there wasn’t time to pull them out and keep the site going. You see, I was blessed with an adventure that I didn’t expect to have – and those moments in life – those split second decision moments in life are sometimes the greatest unexpected gifts.

On Tuesday, my dear life friend Amy (in the pink) and her family were moving to Pennsylvania. I had gone to her home to help with last minute packing and to say goodbye. Tuesday was the day I wrote my post about my grandfather and work – and it was also the day that I ended up starting my unexpected adventure. As I pulled up to their home I immediately started to wonder if they would be able to fit all of their belongings in the uhaul that was rented. By noon, they knew – it wasn’t all going to fit.

So on Tuesday at noon I drove to my home, packed a bag with belongings, drove back to their home, and became another driver on their trip to Pittsburgh. All of Tuesday night I drove – staying awake with lots of caffeine and sugar and great conversation with my friend Amy’s sons, Seth and Isaac. Through Wisconsin, and passed Chicago at 3:30 in the morning, and into Indiana.

I did nap for 18 minutes at a Truck Stop in Indiana. I knew I couldn’t sleep more because I wouldn’t be able to stay awake. And we drove – me in a red jeep trekking across the country, paying many many many tolls, following two uhauls, and all the while being blessed to be on this grand adventure in life.

So unexpected, and yet so beautiful.

Life can surprise us at times. And for those times I am grateful.

We arrived at her home in Pittsburgh, her home that I wasn’t going to get to see for months, and I realized just how enormous a gift this truly was – it made the unfamiliar familiar. I helped unpack, after I woke up from sleeping on their couch after the found me nodding to sleep while sitting on their hardwood floors, met her new neighbors, and then late at night was blessed with a trip to the top of Mount Washington to see the extraordinary sight of Pittsburgh at night.

I stood on that look out with a heart filled with gratitude for the gift of these moments in the course of a day. On Sunday, if someone had told me I’d be standing on the overlook at Mount Washington in Pittsburgh I wouldn’t have believed it. And yet, there I was, there.

It was a gift.

Life is so interesting. I had notes about posts to write, and a list of things to do around my home, and yet I found myself half way across the country following a uhaul (whose words on the back are now etched in my brain), chatting with the sons of my friend, and helping a friend out in need. It was a gift to help. In fact, that trip will be one of those moments that I look back at in my life and I think about how blessed I was that I said yes, had the space and time to go, and just did it.

Last night I flew from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia and back over Pittsburgh on the way to Minneapolis. As the plane soared through the air my heart was full. Blessed, grateful, amazed (I think I pinched myself several times and asked myself multiple times if I really just did that) and ultimately thankful for that unexpected gift. And that is the reason that this site has been quiet for a bit.

I hope your week has been wonderful and full of simple moments of joy tucked in the fabric of the day.

As I told Amy last week – Onward brave mother. Onward.

Life is full of brave moments. Some huge like driving across the country and flying back in 48 hours and others, which are so incredibly beautiful, like getting up in the morning, loving on your kids, pulling up your bootstraps, wiping those faces, and keeping on going with the every day normal. Sometimes it is in being a bit silly and taking crazy pictures, or following a uhaul for 21 hours or those times when you just sit on your couch reading stories. Life is a mix – good, normal, extraordinary, beautiful, hard – and unexpected.

Little things matter. Life is good.

Onward!

How about you? What are some of your favorite little things matter moments from the week?

And, if you’re interested – most of these pictures came from my instagram feed –> finding_joy

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For those of you who blog, I’ve added the Friday Favorite Things link up below. And for those of you who don’t – this is a great way to check out other sites. :)Please feel free to share your favorite post from the week. Thanks!