Countdown to Mexico...

So I realize I've been behind on newsy updates about what's been going on with us since we sold our home in Big Meadow last May and downsized to a 3 bedroom, 1200 square foot apartment in Wilsonville (where we thoroughly enjoyed summer but are now ready for our next adventure.)

Stick around. I'm sure I'll write about how it all started, but for now I'm here to give you our reasons for heading south for the winter. 

In true Late Night style, I present to you the "Top Ten Reasons the Bachelders are Heading to Mexico"

10. The weather is better there and we will get another six months of summer.

9. Rob will not have to commute back and forth to work, he has been approved to work remotely for 6 months.

8. Great cultural opportunity for the kids.

7. Perfect timing to introduce a second language.

6. Less expensive than staying here. Rent would have gone up had we signed a new lease here. Instead we are paying $800 for a furnished 3 bedroom house that is almost twice as big as our apartment (Come visit us! We would love to have guests and the kids are already prepared to give up a bedroom if it means some of YOU come see US!).

5. An opportunity to get rid of more STUFF. (Don't worry, we're keeping the kids!)

4. The predictability of a flushing toilet and weekly garbage service was getting boring.

3. Opportunity to photograph in a new location.

2. Decrease in obligations and commitments = more time to spend as a family.

1. Space to rest and renew, both inside and out. 

Here are some things that won't happen automatically, but that we hope to implement into our lives during our time in Mexico:

-eliminating sugar from our diet (I know this could be hard...we both love Pina Coladas)

-eating mainly fresh, un-processed foods

-exercising 3-5 days a week

And finally, here's the big one....

-Staying off our electronic devices for 4 - 5 hours per day. All of us! This means us as parents just as much as the kids. They actually do fairly well at sticking to their 1/2 - 1 hour of "screen time" per day, it's Rob and I that are on our phones far more than what is healthy. So my hope is that from the time Rob gets off work at 5:00pm, until the next morning at 8:00am when he's back on the clock - we can have a "no phone" policy in our house. No phone calls, no texting, no checking the weather, no checking facebook, no posting on instagram, no gaming, no Voxing, no email, no YouTube videos, no candy crush, no snapchat.... Unless it's scheduled in advance! For example, we might like to Skype with Grammy every Sunday night (we do Grammy... mark your calendar!), but we will use the computer at the table. If any of us want to send an email to friends or family (this includes the girls also who both have their own gmail addresses) that can be done in the evening too, just not on our phones. This will definitely be a challenge and a huge change from our lifestyle here but I we believe it will be good for us in so many ways.

Please keep us in your prayers while we are away. We are hopeful that this will be an opportunity for Rob and I to grow closer to each other, for our family to grow and learn together, and for all of us to rest and heal and grow in the Lord.