Well, it’s come to an end!  I’m sitting here in Silt, CO at a KOA posting for the last time on our trip.  I am writing more on my thoughts so it might be scattered.  There were times when this moment seemed so far away and we never thought the time would arrive.  We spent more than a year not only away from our home, but completely away from our home state!

The times have been wonderful and sometimes challenging.  Leading up to this day has made us wonder if we ever wanted to go back to reality and we did extend the trip by two weeks to help our timing with the summer months.  In the end though, I believe that all of us are ready to go back.  The kids are so excited to see their friends, have a bigger room, and reestablish their relationships with their stuffed animals that we didn’t bring.  Melissa and I are excited to start back up with building our real estate business more and maybe more excited about not having to plan our every move.  Of course, we’re not excited about moving back into our home and the process that will take.  We are also not excited to stop traveling, seeing, and experiencing what life has to offer.

We couldn’t even begin to list all the wonderful things we have experienced over the last year.  The places we have seen, the places we have stayed….37 STATES!…., the old friends, new friends, extended family, and other people we have met, the family time, etc.  I had intentions of writing more before leaving and keeping a much more detailed account of our adventures.  But, ultimately I think I determined that when you don’t want to do something, then don’t.

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Today, we drive our remaining 3 hours home.  We have certainly become immune to longer drives and we all do really well in the car at this point.  I am not sure if we’ll all be laughing or crying as we reminisce on the way.  Our bodies have felt very weird as we gain ground on our home.  The entrance into the state on Wednesday was certainly a weird feeling and our bodies and minds have all been a little wacked out.  We talked about it yesterday and we aren’t able to put words to it.  It’s like we are excited, sad, and stressed out with some jitters like being on coffee, all at the same time.  I think maybe it’s just the unknowns that we are coming back to.  Unknowns like: Will the kids leave us for their friends over us moving forward? (a big one)  Will we forget to live our lives and get caught up working too much (no 8-5 jobs for us but dedication to our real estate work and/or therapy)?  Will we enjoy being in a huge house again? (Some amenities are good, but otherwise most likely not)  Will we only think about where we can go next?  Will our finances work out as expected?  What do we tackle first?  So many more questions that you don’t think about unless you’re in a different way of life.

I don’t consider myself a real emotional person, but I sit here writing this with tears in my eyes.  The sadness and great memories are taking hold of me right now.  So, I think it’s time to sign off for now.  I think we’ll work on some videos and post some other notables in the near future, hopefully to our blog and Facebook.  I appreciate all those that have followed us, have kept up with us, met us, cheered for us, and supported us.  The Four Road Hoggs (now with a dog) will remember this forever and certainly look forward to our next adventure……..

Much Love,
Justin

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