Well, the rumors are true, whether you've heard them or not. 

The Brandstaetter Family will be relocating to Tucson, AZ in 2018!

CAT has decided to relocate their Surface Mining & Technology team to Tucson, AZ and yes, that affects Erik and his job. CAT is a company that has been very good to our family and that Erik really enjoys working for. So, while it's a hard decision for us to move our family from a place we love so much, we also know it is the best decision for our family. 

I'll be the first to admit that this is pretty shocking. Mostly because I'm a Wisconsin girl, through and through. And I really do love it here. Except for the winters. Because while I don't mind the idea of snow and think it's beautiful when viewed from my sunroom windows into my orchard, I absolutely despise getting myself and the kids all bundled up just to go outside or run a quick errand during the winter months.

There's a lot I'll miss about this place.

Our home that we've worked so hard to turn into what we thought would truly be our forever home.

Our big yard that the kids can play in and explore.

Being near all of our family and friends and spending birthdays, anniversaries and holidays with those we love.

But, luckily, this is a digital world and thanks to social media, Skype, Facetime and this new-fangled transportation referred to as "air travel" we will be just a short hop away from WI and all those people and places that we love so dearly.

Our move date is set for Summer of 2018. This means we get "one more" of everything in our home. One more summer here. One more fall. One more time decorating our home with Christmas lights. It'll be very bittersweet to leave a place we love so much, but it's also really exciting to think what is in our future.

Warm days. Sunshine. A pool with a mountain view in our backyard. 

Scorpions. Coyotes. Unbearable summer time heat.

The ability to be outside pretty much all year riding bikes, hiking, swimming and playing.

Visits from family and friends to our new home and way of life. Visits back home again for major events, summer festivals, etc.

So stay tuned. We'll be sharing more life updates and moving updates as they come. 

And we're going to take the opportunity to truly enjoy Wisconsin and all of the awesome things it has to offer while we still live here. We are also very excited about the adventures that await!

Bed progress. It's painted and ready to go. Now all we need is the hardware. Should take us forever to find since this bed was originally purchased in the 1980s!

Everybody's wearing winter hats and sunglasses before our trip to the grocery store. Our future's so bright we gotta wear shades!

Pony rides are still 1 penny at Meijer. They even have a little penny cup in case you don't have any change. There is nothing my boys love more than a pony ride at Meijer. It sure is the little things in life.

I built a stool! Read about it here :)

Date night! Erik's brother generously gifted me tickets to the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra as my Secret Santa gift. Such a fun and unique gift idea and it's something Erik and I had never done before. Add to that the fact that it was the music of John Williams (Indiana Jones, ET, Superman, Harry Potter and, of course, Star Wars!) and you've got yourself the makings of an awesome night out.

We started with charcuterie, drinks and dinner at Rumpus Room, across the street from the venue. The charcuterie would have been plenty of food for us and we were stuffed by the time dinner was over. We also opted to eat very early before the show so that we weren't rushed. It's pretty funny being some of the first people to enter a restaurant and watch it fill up as the night goes on. We also had time to make a quick stop at the Brown Bottle over in the new Pabst development. 

We arrived at the theater, having already picked up our tickets prior to going out for drinks, and there were some special guests at the Marcus Center waiting to greet everyone. I had my picture taken with the characters... you know, for the kids ;)

The show started and all I can say is that it was amazing. Talk about reliving your childhood through the nostalgia of music from some of your favorite movies. 

John is enjoying his lunch with his too big shoes on the wrong feet while wearing his Green Bay Packers ensemble. Yep, the kid is too cool for school :)

Time to head out into the snow and go exploring for animal tracks!

Will needed a Valenitine's box to collect all of his goodies at school. We used what we had in the house (a USPS box, some green wrapping paper and lots of stickers) and created this really cool monster to eat all of Will's Valentines. Great job decorating it, buddy!

Sometimes, Bear likes to get dressed with Will on school days. 

Today, he was even wearing a pair of Will's underwear. Seriously, my kids are hilarious and make me laugh every single day.

Another day, another mini home improvement project. My mom gave me these hand me down refrigerator box style end tables years ago. They live in our sunroom ad hold trucks and blocks. They were pretty beat up on the top with water marks, which is presumably why my mom decided to get rid of them. I've been planning to redo them for years. Today I finally emptied them out and moved them into the basement. The plan? Paint the bottoms and doors (which I already removed) a cottage white and do a polyshade on the top to freshen up the stain. The hardware/hinges are gold and I may keep them as is or do something in the oil rubbed bronze family. Time will tell! Stay tuned for 8 years from now when I actually complete this project! 

The boys and I had a pre-Valentine's Day playdate at Dillon's house (while mommy hung with Auntie's Melissa & Kelly). Will found a very cool racecar holder that he helped reorganize while we were there. I'm sure this is something that will end up on his birthday or Christmas list.

I feel like my kids should be renamed Calvin and Hobbes for how much fun they have exploring in our yard. And playing with sticks. Or in this case, banging sticks on what was left of a frozen puddle in the yard.

Will's Valentine's party at school was a huge success! His teacher did an exercise with the kids where she asked them questions about different things they love. I think it's hilarious that Will loves to go to Costco. And it made my heart melt to see that he loves when his daddy gets home from work to eat dinner and play with him. I won't lie, I may have cried while reading this. Will's teachers really are the best. I love his school so much and am thankful that he is so happy there.

Will and daddy checking out all the Valentine's and goodies he received from his classmates!

Erik bought a wood chipper off of Facebook. Here he is getting it tuned up with his handy helper.

Will was playing fetch with Stella. By playing fetch I mean he was handing her sticks and then sitting with her to pet her. 

Then it was time to get to work on his firetruck. Goo thing daddy had lots of tools out that the boys could steal from him!

And there goes fearless John running up the big hill!

We met some friends at the zoo on a beautiful Monday morning. Here was my failed attempt at getting a picture of my 2 little monkeys with the primate statue.

These 2 little hooligans sure are the best of friends. They were waiting for me after nap time. John thought he was hilarious because he had removed his socks and had his stinky feet hanging out under the gate.

Morning snuggle with his blankie on the couch. Notice the milk cup strewn carelessly onto the floor. One day I'll teach this one manners. One day...

John's main goal in life is to see choo choo trains. Every day, on the way to and from school, we drive over 2 sets of tracks and drive past at least 1 or 2 more. John knows exactly where they are and starts telling me "choo choo tracks" from the back seat. On this day, we drove a different way to pick Will up from school and a choo choo train was going by. The stop was right next to the tracks. He was amazed and excited that he finally got to see a choo choo on the way to pick his brother up from school.

Will is a bit of a planner. He gets it from his momma. A couple nights before our big Hawaii trip, Erik and I could hear noise coming from Will's room, at 9:30 PM (2 hours after bedtime). I went to investigate and opened the door to this:

Will was packing for our trip! He had piles of clothes "organized" on his floor. Mickey Mouse was strapped in and ready to go. I had to explain to him that it was bedtime and time to go to sleep. He was insistent that he needed to pack. I'm still not sure he was fully awake during this exercise. I did get him back in bed and left everything out for him to finish packing.

The next morning, he awoke and wanted to continue packing for the trip. Erik stopped to help him before going to work. He had all the necessities ready to go. 

Mickey Mouse, lots of undies, stuffed animals, his monster slippers, pajamas and socks. I kept unzipping compartments and finding more and more treasures. It was hilarious. I unpacked everything and helped him get everything he really needed put into his suitcase. And wile I was at it I packed John's right away too. It was actually really nice having that done well ahead of time since I usually wait until the day before. Thanks for being proactive, Will! You're the best!

When daddy gets home late, Mommy takes the boys out for Culver's custard. Yep, I know. I'm the best mom ever.

Will's friend Henry and his sweet momma sent Will a boat in the mail just in time for him to take it on our Hawaii trip. Will is always so excited to get mail or a package so this was an extra special treat for him! Plus, Henry felt really bad when we were at the zoo earlier in the week and I wouldn't let Will buy anything from the gift shop. His mom tected me later and told me that Henry said next time he's at the zoo he wants to bring $2 with him... that way he can buy Will and himself something little from the gift shop. Will has the sweetest friends and we just love them so much!