Mountain Mama Moves Cross-Country: "I think it's my adventure, my trip, my journey, and I guess my attitude is, let the chips fall where they may." Leonard Nimoy

A few days ago, my friend Jenna contacted me with a question: "Would you move cross-country with me?" Without hesitation, I said, "YES!"

Jenna and I don't have a super long history, in fact we met a little over a year ago-- but we immediately hit it off. We were both entering our freshman year at a small college in northern West Virginia. There were several events planned for the first weekend on campus; one of which was an ice breaker game where all of the freshmen were placed in a large room on campus and separated by birth month. Of course I joined the other nervous January babies, and a tall blonde girl with a lip piercing stood beside me. It was odd meeting someone near the same height as me, for I typically towered over everyone at 6'1" tall. We introduced ourselves and were soon separated again.
As the event continued, we were again facing each other. Though this time we were supposed to form a trust circle by sitting on the person behind us. I promised her I wouldn't actually sit on her, and she did the same.
I skipped several events that evening, but decided to attend the movie on the lawn with a boy I had met earlier that day. While looking for a place to sit, I felt a tug on the bottom of my pants. It was the girl with the lip piercing and blonde hair. She invited us to join her and her friend from home, and she offered me gold fish crackers and cookies & cream Hershey's chocolate-- my favorite. Since then, we've had a great friendship. We were there for each other for everything from boys, and late night snacks to 3:00am trips to the library and family matters. We were inseparable.

Though we parted ways physically when we both didn't attend college the next year, we've remained close, and that's where this journey begins.

Jenna & I

Also joining us, is my rugged yet refined pup--Rigby. He's been my partner in crime, hiking buddy, and bed hog since I recently moved back home. He's a fiery Aussie with blue eyes and the most adventurous puppy spirit. Not to mention, he's super attached to me: I can't even go to the bathroom without his little paws reaching under the door and his blood-curling howl filling my ears.