Tumalo Falls (Bend, OR)

Tumalo Falls

After we arrived in Bend, we had a three week appointment blitz. 

Think over the past year of your life.  Think of every appointment you had, for every member of your family.  Doctor, dentist, glasses and contacts, allergist, personal care, automotive, home repair, homeschool testing, banking, etc.   

We did all of it, for all five of us, during our first three weeks in Bend.  

So that was a lot.  But it felt so good to get it all done!  We also enjoyed spending lots of time with my family, plus got to do a few fun hikes and outings.

One weekend, we went back out to Tumalo Falls.  This time, since it was later in the year, the gate was open and we were able to drive up to the parking area.  That made things MUCH easier!  ;)

As for Jeff, he spent most of these weeks working with his boss face-to-face, which he always enjoys.  I think it's refreshing for him to be around a fellow computer geek who appreciates the same things that he does.  ;)

During the first few weeks, the kids were finishing up their school work for the year.  Then they finished up with homeschool testing.  This was a big year because it was Megan's LAST YEAR to test!  That's right!  As far as the state of Oregon is concerned, Megan is graduated!

And that would be a big deal for her, I guess, if she were also graduated as far as Jeff and I are concerned.  Haha.  But as it stands, we all talked and agreed that she doesn't need to be "done with school" at sixteen.  Though she's thinking she'd like to study design in some capacity, she isn't sure what kind of design and which school she'd like to attend.  And we think she's got plenty of time to figure that out.  So she's decided to stay busy for the next year, taking a British Lit survey and a few other courses, to continue her studies.  She's also looking forward to entering the workforce once we get settled in a new home.  And of course, she'll continue her art and design studies as well.

For this mom, it's pretty cool to have reached another milestone with the final year of testing.

And that's what we did during our first several weeks back at home base!