This video is a celebration of all the things that have been on my mind lately plus the beauty of AcroYoga along with some good tunes. It’s against social media, pro environment, and a beautiful presentation. Enjoy!!
Be the exception!
Chelsea
adventure
On the Road Again
Since we met, Team Jander has never been able to be stationary for too long. We started our marriage off in Seattle, then moved to central Mexico for the Peace Corps. Now, we have relocated to the sunny state of Colorado!!
And we’re making the Rockies our home for the foreseeable future!
There has been a substantial amount of change over the last few months, and we haven’t been settled in our own home since September 2014. The nomadic life taught us a lot about humility and gratitude. A special thank you to those that graciously housed or fed us in this time of transition. We hope to return the favor by offering our spare room up in our home in the Denver metro area.
For the blog, a house tour is coming soon! Any special requests for blog coverage in our new town?? Also, we have a new address and phone numbers so please contact us if you would like our updated info!
Adventure is out there!
Ceebs
Enjoying Unemployment
Unemployment and living in the in between can be tough. Money constraints and lack of rhythm often create a lot of stress when you’re unemployed. You’ve got no routine and you’re just floating because you’re not exactly on vacation. In talking to a fellow Peace Corps Volunteer about the difficulties of the transition, she laid out some really good advice.
Enjoy being unemployed. Enjoy the time and freedom.
That struck me pretty hard. Enjoy it?!? How could I possibly enjoy this time of waiting and nothingness… and without any income! I put my thinking cap on and started thinking about inexpensive ways we could pass the time. Instead of dreading the downtime and trying to speed it up, we have started intentionally tried to enjoy the valuable gift of having no requirements. We’ve been able to enjoy the moments. Check it out below!
Hiking to el Moro Beach in Newport
The beach is so far away!!
We made it to the beach – now back up into the hills!
Ridge hike nearing the end!
Refining our survival skills
Collecting the goods for the tinder bundle
What we foraged from the canyon
Working on the bow drill method
Visiting the Getty Museum in LA
Spending time with family in CA
Mama, Auntie, and Grandmoms to the cutest kiddo!
Baby Kate fresh off a nap!
Aunts and nieces!
Visiting Crystal Cove State Beach
Goodbye beach! ❤
Sewing a dress
The finished product!
Excuse the hair – we pumped out the dress in 2.5 days!
Being tourists in Seattle
The new roasting facility for Starbucks in Seattle
Hanging out at Pike’s Place Public Market
Hiking in the Pacific Northwest
Some lookout off the 2!
Hiking around at Cougar Mountain
Old growth in the midst of clear cuts
Cherry Creek Falls near Duvall
Spada Lake off Hwy 2
Well as you can see, we have made the most of our time off. Instead of looking at it like unemployment, we’re choosing to make it more of a sabbatical more than anything. Time to recharge and rejuvenate; time to locate the roots of who we are. When this time does come to a close, it will be a bittersweet exchange. For the moment, I will enjoy the opportunity to sleep in and hike and blog while I can.
ACTION: Take a moment to reflect on something tough or challenging. Write it down and then draw a line next to it. This is your optimistic window. Write a positive spin on the problem that’s on the other side of the line. Circle your new positive solution! Be happy! 🙂
Peace to you,
Ceebster
PS – Follow me on Instagram at @theceebster ! Cheers!
Resolutions vs. Goals
I love the New Year! I love the fresh, clean cut from the past year. I love the feeling of having limitless opportunities. Optimism fills the air as people look forward to the year to come. Everything seems to look a little bit brighter in these moments of the new year. The world looks shinier and you start thinking about the person you hope to be.
Maybe you want to stop smoking, or get in better shape, or get out of debt this year. You resolve to getting to the gym or getting on the patch or making a budget for yourself. You’re doing great, but that first hiccup appears and you miss your gym appointment or you inhale the smell of cigarette smoke or you buy that thing that was just too good of a deal to pass up.
We have all been there.
Resolutions never seemed to work for me, personally. It’s too easy to lose focus on the big picture you’ve set for yourself. Before you know it, you’re the same person you were when you made this resolution. I much prefer goals – big or small – that bring you closer to become the person you want to be. This past year, a friend loaned me the book Creating Your Best Life by Caroline Adams Miller MAPP & Dr. Michael B. Frisch. The book is all about goal-setting and living the life you have imagined. I highly recommend it to those who are interested in moving with bold intention.
For me, goal-setting and list-making have always been a part of my life. Thanks to the book, I have been able to hone in on life goals and living with more clear purpose. Ask me sometime and I will let you see my hearts desires, my 100-thing list. Here are some of the actions we want to take this year.
- Attend a marriage conference (our goal is every 5 years!)
- Neal to do his first triathlon
- Chelsea to do her first half-marathon
- Backpack out in the country for 4 days
- Refine our survival skills
- Read through the Old Testament
- Publish at least 2 books of travels around the world
- Join an intramural volleyball team
- Do a full moon hike
- Continue to document stories from time abroad
If lists and goals aren’t your thing, then check out this TED Talk for a cool alternative to becoming your best self. All it takes is 30 days!
To your best you!
Cheers,
Ceebs
¡Hasta Luego, México!
See ya later, Mexico!
And Hello Seattle!
November 1st marked our last day as a Peace Corps Volunteer, and it also marks the day we assume a new title of Returned Peace Corps Volunteer. Once you’re a Peace Corps Volunteer, you’re always a Peace Corps Volunteer. The story sticks with you, the memories will change you forever.
We committed twenty-seven months to living abroad. We dedicated twenty-seven months to all things Mexico. We devoted twenty-seven months to lovings others outrageously.
Mil gracias to all of the people that participated in this part of our journey, to all those that visited us in Mexico, to those that sent us letters and packages, to those new friends that journeyed with us, and to those that welcomed us warmly back into their lives as we adjust to life in the USA once again. We truly could not have gone through the last few years without all your support and love.
Now we begin a journey anew, one of rediscovery and settling in to our old skin as new people. We have changed significantly over the last few years – we still resemble our old selves and yet not at all. This is where reverse culture shock begins to set in, so please give us mercy and grace as we repatriate to US culture once again.
Ways you can support us during the repatriation process:
- Be extra communicative. If you want to see us or spend time with us, please let us know! If you expect something of us, please communicate that to us. If we’re breaking some serious US cultural norms, please tell us!
- Be sensitive when asking about what’s next. Coming back to the United States after being away for so long is a process in of itself. We are planning on becoming employed and settling in at some point. Right now we are considering repatriation our job as we get through the holidays.
- Send prayers and good vibes. It’s a long, hard process to come back and start all over again. Please pray for us and send us good vibes as we begin a new life and new adventure.
- Clue us in on pop culture references. Because really, being away for over two years really does a doozy on your ability to understand pop culture. Lists of good music, TV shows, or movies to watch is infinitely helpful.
- Invite us into your home. One of the big life lessons we learned in Mexico was the importance of seeing people in their homes. We want to visit you in your home, or at your work, or at your place of worship. We want to be intentional about this blank time that we have, and fill it up with relationship-building time.
Paz,
Chelsea Beth
Lugares Hermosos: Tehuacan
So I can’t exactly vouch for the town of Tehucan, but I can however tout about the Tehuacan-Cuicatlán Biosphere Reserve which is just outside of town. The trip to Tehuacan (the town) was about 2 hours from the central bus station in Puebla, and then to travel to the Biosphere Reserve was another 30 minutes by bus. It was a little convoluted, so I definitely recommend knowing Spanish if you’re travelling to this little desert oasis. We had a work meeting out in the reserve and we only stayed for one night. If we could do it again, we would definitely try and stay out there for at least 2 nights!
The Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Biosphere Reserve is a UNESCO World heritage site that has highly concentrated biodiversity with over 3,000 species living inside the reserve! It is one of the zones with the highest concentration of columnar cacti in the world.The site is also considered a key site on the origin and development of agriculture in Mesoamerica and has provided central information regarding the domestication of various species such as maize, chile, amaranth, avocado, and pumpkin. (Thanks, UNESCO for the facts!) Below are some of the views we saw in the short time we were at this amazing place.
(see Neal as scale)
Working hard as Peace Corps Volunteers!
Having fun with the Super Moon!
More Super Moon fun!
Thanks, Tehucan! You are beautiful!!
Could you ever imagine a forest full of cacti to be so beautiful and breathtaking?? We were certainly surprised. Our two biggest regrets is that we waited so long to visit and that we didn’t stay long enough. Oh well! Better than never visiting at all.
Keep adventuring, amigos!
Love,
C
Ecuador: Criaturas Asombrosas
¡Hola de nuevo! Welcome to the third – and final – installment of my Ecuador series. Click on for part one: Fabulous Moments or part two: Beautiful Views. In this final section of our trip to Ecuador, I wanted to share some of the crazy and beautiful living creatures we encountered during our time abroad.
This tapier was recuperating in the wildlife refuge we visited.
Stoic toucan waits for the rain to come!
A cordyceps right there in the rainforest!
A beautiful butterfly accented by modern colors.
Butterflies enjoying a good meal.
The ostrich referred to in this post!
A resting hummingbird – a rare shot indeed!
Sweet baby Canela, the hostel’s latest addition to their herd!
We just loved capturing all these creatures and critters on camera during our quick trip to Ecuador. This was just the tip of the iceberg. We’ll be back, South America!!
Abrazitos,
Chels
Ecuador: Momentos Fabulosos
When Neal and I first found out we were moving to Mexico, we knew that we were going to have the opportunity to travel to some amazing places. From the get-go, we were determined to utilize our vacation as strategically as possible! Thanks to the generous Peace Corps annual leave policy, we have been able to travel to Costa Rica, Chiapas, Seattle, and now Ecuador. We even still have some vacation left if you can believe it!
When we planned this trip, we knew we would have to pack a lot into a short trip especially since we’d be travelling by bus and taxi in Ecuador. We contacted a handful of Peace Corps Volunteers currently serving in Ecuador and we got our travel plan approved after many revisions. Early on we decided that this would likely be the first of many trips to such a beautiful, interesting, and diverse country. That said, here are some of our favorite moments and memories from our viaje in Ecuador.
White Water Rafting (27 km!) in the headwaters of the Amazon and laughing the whole entire way.
Stumbling on a hiking trail with lush plants, waterfalls, and an ostrich! (Yes, an ostrich was waiting for us at the end!)
Visiting a hummingbird garden in Baeza, and then getting invited to the town party.
Making friends at one of the coolest hot springs and learning the word for cold in the native language… cha-chai!
Summiting our first mountain in the Andres range – Pasachoa at 4,200 m (13,780 ft)
Summiting another mountain in the Andes, Rumiñahui – 4,721 m (15,489 ft)
Playing, resting, and relaxing on the beach for two whole days and meeting Peace Corps Volunteers!
Attempting the summit of Pichincha with friends from the hostel. We turned around just below the summit due to inclement weather at 4,784 m (15,696 ft)!
Watching the sunset on our last day in Ecuador on a rooftop bar and celebrating all the wonderful memories we have made!
If you ever, and I mean ever, have the opportunity to travel to Ecuador… DO IT! Our Spanish was definitely helpful in getting around, but we ultimately used our English more in country talking to other travelers. We had such a beautiful time sharing meals with new friends, seeing you sights, and summiting new mountains!
Thanks for coming along! Adventure is out there!
XO,
Ceebs
Go Team Jander! 