As the title suggests, I’m feeling metaphorical for this year’s Christmas/year-in-review newsletter. But I’ll save that more for the end, let’s catch you up on the Montana Powells and their adventures for the year 2023. Let’s start of with trips and travels.
We headed out to Oregon for Elijah’s spring break to spend some time with my folks in Dufur. We went on a nice north-central Oregon (an a little in Washington) road tour with my brother Brendon and his crew. We also had a quick get together with my other siblings and my niece and her family in Vancouver for an afternoon.
Elijah and I made a repeat trip back out to Dufur the next month to watch the Oregon Trail Rally transform my hometown into a little motorsports magic-land. My good friend Jon joined us and we camped on my parent’s property, along with my brother and his friend. When we weren’t watching the racing action, we were cutting down trees, hiking around the property, and bathing in the creek. As for watching the rally, we enjoyed it immensely and hope to make it a somewhat regular trip.
Elijah was a diligent reader and won a ticket to Silverwood, which he chose his Aunt Krista to take him. The grandparents also joined in along with Rich (Krista’s husband, more on that later), to make a fun weekend adventure.
I made my way to Austin, TX for work to film several interviews for a small documentary I’m producing. It was my first time in the Lone Star state and of course it was during their record heat wave. It was still a great time and I returned with good content.
We didn’t get out camping as much as we would have liked, but we did get out a few times. Jessica and I celebrated our 15th anniversary just outside the Bob Marshall Wildness just as the smoke swept down from the Canada fires. We coincidently ended back at the same spot in the Summer with two other families that we do an annual camping trip with. We also stayed at a cabin in Island Park, ID for a work retreat and stopped off at some sand dunes on our way home.
Jessica’s second year as a race director of the Just for the Helena of It half, 10k, and 5k went well. Having some experience under her belt helped reduce the stress of the event and also to put on an even better race this year. The race drew in an additional 200 runners and donated $24,000 to The Friendship Center, a local non-profit that assists those affected by domestic abuse.
It wouldn’t be a Powell year without a project or two (or twenty) in progress. I finished tearing down the apartment and am grateful to all those that took time to help. While this was a large project, it paled in comparison to the job of transforming our backyard in to a small venue for a September wedding. We offered our space to Jessica’s sister and it kicked off a ton of projects with a deadline. We were pleased with the results, and even though the weather gave us challenges (rain storms, broken tarps, roof leaks, more tarps purchased), it turned out beautifully. We are so glad to have Rich in the family.
But this last, wonderful story also brings new challenges. Krista and Rich will eventually be moving to Scotland to serve as missionaries. On one hand, legitimate excuses to travel to a beautiful part of the world are always welcome! But it also means that a close family member will be further away. But while they are still stateside, we’ll soak in all the time we can with them.
We are also maturing as a family. Elijah’s in second grade, learning lots, and get ting ideas out of his imagination and onto paper. Fitz is 4 and is our little fireball. In not much time he, too will be off to school and our family out of the little kid phase. While I won’t miss the diapers, tantrums, and food arguments, I will miss the snuggles, tiny giggles, and worlds of firsts that are now relegated to memory. And that is the sea of change we float upon.
What is up ahead? Some things we know. I’m forging ahead with building a garage/apartment this year, trying to do as much of it myself as I can. Jess has already booked much of her slots for weddings. We plan to take a longer family road trip through some national parks in Utah and Arizona. A trip or two will definitely be arranged to Oregon to see family. We’ll get in some skiing, some camping, and some general adventures near and far.
While it took me into the first couple days of 2024 to write this, I’m grateful for the time to reflect, share, and dream about the time we share on this earth. From all of us in the Montana Powell family (Brent , Jessica, Elijah, Fitz, and our dog Flynn), we really do wish you are yours as blessed and growing 2024.