Winter Wonderland neighborhood view
Terri Webster Schrandt

Sunday Stills: 2021 In the #Rear-View Mirror, Nothing Like the Present, The Future is Ours

What a year 2021 has been! When we anticipated 2021, most of us thought we would be done with Covid and our hopes for a healthier and stress-free new year were, well, … dashed? Postponed? Maybe never existed?

2021 was a truly eventful year for my family as we spent our first full winter living in Spokane, WA, having moved mid-December, 2020 from Sacramento, CA. In a nutshell—huge changes as we moved twice between January and March, from a family member’s home to our RV, then to our brand-new home in Nine Mile Falls, 20 miles north of Spokane.

As I share my thoughts and photos that made the most impact on my year, I’ve selected a few of my favorite images for each month of 2021. You can create your own narrative to describe how you lived a year full of change, surprise, or … you fill in those blanks!

“This is a new year. A new beginning. And things will change.”

Taylor Swift

Justifiable January

Did you know January is the best month in which to purchase furniture if you want to save money? Anticipating a 6-8 week waiting period for delivery, we spent several days shopping for new furniture and some appliances. Lots of money changed hands but it was justified in order to furnish our larger home. We expected our home to be ready by March, so the timing was right.

After a loo-oo-ng month living with my hubby’s twin brother and weird roommate, we gritted our teeth and pulled our 30-foot RV through the snowy roads to an RV campground where we lived until almost the end of March.

Freaky February

February was a COLD month with temps dropping to 9 degrees Fahrenheit for several days. Always fun, when the propane tank runs out at 4 am when you have to get up to use the facilities! February 14, a traditional day of love, marked the day that my dear mother-in-law, Hella Blumenbach Schrandt, peacefully stepped into eternity.

Another March Madness

Similar to March 2020, 2021’s March was a MONTH! Compared to life in 2020, while we were locked down and dealing with the uncertainty of a pandemic, I also lost my mom in early March, 2020 just before everything shut down.

Not only did we get the keys to the house on March 22nd in 2021, and begin the torturous, but super exciting move-in process, we also attended the wake and celebration of life for my mother-in-law who passed in February at the age of 89.

An Abundant April

If finally belonging to a local church and getting a “new-to-me” car doesn’t define abundance, I’m not sure what does. Getting the first of two Moderna vaccination shots gave me the feeling of good health again, if not as abundant as in prior years.

May’s Momentous Moments

With a Pacific Northwest spring in full swing, May was a busy hub of beautiful views, hikes, whirlwind construction, and family visits to our new home.

  • When I discovered I could enjoy sunflowers again, and wild ones at that, which grew on the property, I was in heaven.
  • We finally got all of our vehicles registered in Washington and corresponding plates were handed out at the Department of Licensing. Same-day service…incredible!
  • My daughter and fiance traveled on Memorial Day weekend to spend a few days with us. We took them to the Bowl and Pitcher State Park and to downtown Spokane’s Riverfront Park.
  • In the same month, the contractor began construction on our pole barn/shop/shed/garage.
  • My first stand-up paddle on Lake Spokane!

June’s Journeys

Hmmm, June. An emotional roller coaster of life events and road trips. In May we learned the sad news that my cousin’s beloved husband died of cardiac arrest.

Miraculously, the entire set of families were all vaccinated and we could gather safely in Portland, Oregon, to celebrate his incredible life in early June.

During June’s long days, I witnessed a fantastic lunar eclipse just as the sun rose.

“All great beginnings start in the dark, when the moon greets you to a new day at midnight.”

Shannon L. Alder

With one road trip (Bloganuary theme for Jan 2) to Portland under our belt, hubby got ready to take a trip to Sacramento to pick up the rest of our belonging from the storage unit. As he departed from the extreme heat here in the PNW, he headed south to equally hot temps, coupled with crippling smoke from west coast wildfires. How does the Spokane area get to 109 degrees Fahrenheit??

A Truly Emotional “Journey”

Many of you followed along as I grew emotionally attached to “Journey,” the local celebrity eaglet whose eagle family resided in their nest in a neighbor’s backyard. Diana created a Facebook group “BlueBell Court Eagles,” chronicling the magnificent eagle family with her incredible photography. Thousands of folks followed along daily watching Journey grow into a stunning juvenile eaglet. She graciously allowed me to use her photos.

With June’s unexpected and oppressive heat, Journey fledged too soon and leapt out of the nest, and was rescued with a call from a neighbor to the Birds of Prey Northwest who promptly took Journey to the center for 6-weeks of rehydration and recovery.

Jaw-Dropping July

Expecting cooler summers in the Pacific Northwest, I never dreamed we would experience such devastating heat. The excessive heat that engulfed the west coast sparked hundreds of wildfires that not only devasted hundred of thousands of acres of land and burned homes and structures, but created enough smoke that could be seen from space!

In 2021, Spokane also saw the most days with 90-degree temperatures and tied the most days with 100-degree temperatures. Keep in mind that most homes don’t have air conditioning because it is usually not necessary. When we finalized the orders for our manufactured home in September 2020, we added the heat pump/AC at the last minute. I’d spent enough years in hot, smoky Sacramento to know that I didn’t want to endure that again. Thank goodness!

A Little More Journey

Journey was released back into the wild, healthy and strong. During this process, I learned so much about eagles and other raptors and the Birds of Prey Northwest’s efforts of its volunteers. During the unprecedented heat, over 20 bald eagles were rescued in three weeks’ time, compared to other years when the volunteers rescued 1-3 per year. Jaw-dropping indeed! Images by Diana Gigler and used with her permission.

Juvenile Bald Eagle, Journey Bluebell Court Eagles ©Diana Gigler
Journey

Although Journey did not fly back to his nest, we believe that his parents cared for him out on the lake and continued to teach him how to hunt and fish. We eagerly await the new nesting season and hope that the Bald Eagle pair will return to the nest and lay a new clutch of eggs this spring.

Exhausting August

August was a dizzying month for a variety of reasons. The weather was still very hot and smoky, making me pinch myself to check that we didn’t dream about moving here and were still living in Northern California where heat and smoke were the norms in summer and fall. We stayed mostly local during the first part of the month as the construction on our outbuildings was near completion. I enjoyed driving around and stopping for photo ops.

But then… with upcoming air travel to San Diego, CA, and Phoenix, AZ, I needed a blog break to survive the rest of the month. Many thanks to Natalie for guest hosting Sunday Stills for three weeks!

August highlights included:

  • Kayaking on the Little Spokane River with friends where I saw two moose!
  • A fun stay-over with Marsha in Prescott to see their lovely new home and area, which coincided nicely with our 8th wedding anniversary.
  • My step-daughter’s wedding in Sedona.
  • A visit by a dear friend from Sacramento.
  • Shop doors were FINALLY installed!

Sanguine September

Where August was the whirlwind, September was downright sluggish but sweet and serene! After the Labor Day holiday, summer ends, kids head back to school and normal weather returns. Signs of Autumn showed themselves early here in the PNW. As the pace really slowed down, and I had time for local hikes and more photo ops. Toward the end of the month, another good friend came up for a visit!

We also finalized and converted our construction loan to a mortgage loan at a nice, low percentage rate, which had been another source of stress and uncertainty.

Overjoyed October

I checked a bucket list item off this month. I got to witness the Northern Lights from my front porch! To the naked eye, the lights looked gray and misty, but the camera picked up the green bandwidth of color.

As Autumn progressed, we had the opportunity to volunteer for the local nursery each weekend in October and gain 8 free trees in the process! Hubby turned 62, a milestone birthday, which usually marks retirement…what’s that supposed to look like?

A Northwest November

With Autumn still hanging in there, November found us beginning work as substitutes for the local school district; Hans, as a substitute for custodial/facility maintenance, and me as a substitute teacher. Below is a rare moment in between classes in the library resource room.

I also discovered the yellow pine tree, known as Western Larch to add to my collection of amazing things to see in the PNW.

In late November, we drove back to Lake Coeur D’ Alene at Higgens Point to hopefully observe the Bald Eagles fishing and hunting for Kokanee salmon that spawn there. Many of you saw these beauties already on social media. These were captured with the Lumix FZ-300. The image on the right is currently being printed onto a large canvas!

December Defined

December Highlights:

  • December 2021 was our first December in our home.
  • Winter Mule Deer Buck
  • A Winter Moon
  • Old-fashioned Christmas tree lighting living in a winter wonderland
  • Thirty-five family members gathered for Christmas Eve at another relative’s home. My sis-in-law is a spectacular decorator and chef!

Redefining traditions, spending time with extended family, and discovering the jewels of the Pacific Northwest, where every day feels like a new adventure, are some of the reasons we left Northern California. I get a thrill seeing wildlife daily just walking in my own neighborhood or a few miles away.

In this last image, you can see our compound off to the left. This angle was taken from the street looking toward our neighbor’s front yard.

“Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.”

L. Frank Baum

I leave you with these thoughts for 2022.

Dare to dream. Take the road less traveled. Just do it. There is no try–just do! Life IS short.

As Eleanor Roosevelt said, “Do one thing every day that scares you.” This motto/meme graces most of my social media images.

“An optimist stays up until midnight to see the New Year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves.”

William E. Vaughan, journalist and author

Photo Challenges this Week

Each week I am inspired by my fellow bloggers’ photo challenges. I find it fun to incorporate these into my Sunday Stills weekly themes.

If you have already published a 2021 “retrospective” post, please feel free to link it to this post so we can see how the year went for all of us. I will be adding your links to each, current Sunday Stills post while it is still live, rather than waiting until the following week. Doing it this way is actually easier and a bit more efficient!

Sunday Stills Photo Challenge Reminders

Sunday Stills weekly photo challenge is easy to join. You have all week to share and link your post.

  • Please create a new post for the theme or link a recent one.
  • Tag your post “Sunday Stills.”
  • Title YOUR blog post a little differently than mine.
  • Don’t forget to create a pingback to this post so that other participants can read your post. I also recommend adding your post’s URL into the comments.
  • Entries for this theme can be posted all week.

My humble and sincere thanks to all who participated in 2021! Sunday Stills is a wonderful community of bloggers and photographers who desire to connect with one another.

Have a great week and I wish you:

© 2022-2025 Copyright — secondwindleisure.com — All Rights Reserved

Discover more from Second Wind Leisure Perspectives

Subscribe to get the latest posts to your email.

123 comments

    • Right, Jacqui? Thank you! It took forever to write, but a fun process. The pole barn got its name from using telephone poles as the anchors, now they just use 6×6? square beams for the support. No matter how I try to describe the thing, someone scratches their head. I like shop, some call it a shed. I’m sure your sister loves hers!

      Like

      Reply

    • Thank you, Wayne! This post went a little longer than I expected and took a day and a half to write and organize. My post is eagle-centric as you can see–there is just something about them as you well know. Thank you for your support and kind comments all year, too!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  18. Oh what a fantastic post. You definitely had a memorable year as well as ever changing. So glad you bounced from one thing to the next with grace. Let’s have fun this year. 😀 😀

    Like

    Reply

    • Thank you, Cee, and how kind of you to mention me and “grace” in the same thought 😉 Life is always going to throw something at us and you are also a wonderful example of positivity and encouragement as well. Don’t forget that Marsha and I hope to hang out with you this summer, God willing! Now THAT will be FUN!

      Like

      Reply

  19. Wow! It was a year of big changes for you, Terri! Glad you are settling into the Northwest so well. I liked the photos of your new home in the snow, the eagles, sunflowers, and, of course, the lovely larches. Have a great new year!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  21. It’s interesting to look back on the year that was and see the good and the bad through your lens’s perspective. Hopefully, 2022 brings less in the way of extreme weather events (doesn’t hurt to dream, right?) and plenty of opportunities to connect with family and friends without the big C hanging over our heads.
    Happy New Year, Terri!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  24. Hi Terri, Happy New Year to you and what a wonderful review of 2021. It was a huge year for you both and I hope you are now settled and happy in your new home. You have some wonderful memories captured in your beautiful photography and I love the eagles – such majestic birds. Best wishes to you and your family for 2022 and I hope to try to get to some Sunday Stills this year. I wrote a review of 2021 which I’m sharing with #SundayStills this week. I was pleasantly surprised at all the happy memories I have from 2021 despite a very stressful personal issue which was only resolved just before Christmas.
    Ihttps://www.womenlivingwellafter50.com.au/2021-a-year-in-review-did-i-live-up-to-my-woty/

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    • I’m so glad you could share your link, Sue! I’m sorry the personal issue was so stressful but glad for its resolution! Thank you for your kind compliments, we indeed feel mostly settled but more so such a connection to our new community, which is what we really needed. And being close to family is amazing. I will look forward to when you can hop in to Sunday Stills when inspiration strikes!

      Like

      Reply

  26. What a great walk through your year Terri – my GOODNESS you dealt with some change! I was sad to see and am sorry for your losses, and remember feeling anxious with you as you awaited the move to your new home. Crazy that your weather was hot an smoky, let’s hope THAT was an anomaly! Now that you’re fully settled in I’m wishing you all the best in 2022 and beyond. Happy to share my own 2021 Favorite Images post with your Sunday Stills community. https://travelsandtrifles.wordpress.com/2022/01/01/lens-artists-challenge-180-favorite-images-of-2021/

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Thank you, Tina, and for taking that long walk with me, LOL! The post kept getting longer the more I spent time on it, oh well. Weather anomalies alone would make a crazy enough year. Great to see your link and happy to share! Happy New Year from the snowy Inland Northwest!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  30. Terri,
    Fabulous re-cap with extraordinary photos. I’m sure it was a struggle to leave California, but when you can see both snow and sunflowers in the course of one year, the move had to be worth it. Have a blessed 2022! Joe

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Thank you, so much and see, you totally get me, Joe! I really didn’t struggle that much to leave CA, although I miss my side of the family since we couldn’t take the winter road trip we loosely planned. All good things happen for a reason and we have time to wait for better conditions! May your 2022 outshine any years so far and stay healthy!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  31. Hi again, dear Terri. Thanks for the mention. It’s a big undertaking to remember the entire year, and pick the best, isn’t it? WOW! I love your snowy pictures. Our dusting, which I thought was going to be four straight days of snow, is nearly melted now. I canceled my CA trip after all. I decided I didn’t want to chance it on the plane with all the variant going around. Getting sick away from home is the last thing I want to do! 🙂 Have a wonderful week. I’ll connect to next Wednesday’s post.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  33. Hey Terri. I believe that as we think about the year that was, we tend to forget just how busy we’ve been. Maybe that’s a symptom of getting older and one day melding into the next. But thanx to blogging, and journalling about our journey through life (even of we started past the half way mark – that’s a reference to myself), this delightful method of recording events – big or small, significant or not – it provides us with an easier vehicle in which we can look back and say “Wow! I have been busy, and I have done a lot!” You need a holiday! 🥰

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • You are so right, Clare! I suffer from the one day melting into the next and my hubby and I ask each other “what day is it again?” Since we started subbing part-time the days are better differentiated, but all of 2021, we were living on our retirement incomes and everyday was Saturday! Blogging and photography have been a huge blessing in my life as it relates to both the creative side and the relationship building! Not sure where you live in the world, but blogger meet-ups are the best!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

    • Thank you, Janis! Isn’t that the truth when you see a photo and remember a random moment? My hubby can’t believe I can remember so much, but because I take pictures that have dates associated with them I can easily remember. Thank goodness for my Dropbox account 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  35. What a full year you had, Terri, with so many beautiful pictures to show it! I didn’t realize you were 20 miles north of Spokane. Looks like wilderness! I love the pictures of your place in the snow with the Pine trees and can almost feel the peace and quiet. Hope you have a very happy and healthy New Year! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • It had been a wild ride to get here, but we’re super happy. Yes, Nine Mile Falls is in Stevens county but Spokane County is on the other side of the lake. I had never heard of Nine Mile until the mfg home GM told us about the properties on the subdivision. Thank you, Susanne, it is really quiet and peaceful here. My new year is starting out right and hope yours is too!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  36. Happy new year to you and Hans, Terri! You had an incredible year in many ways. I enjoyed reading your 2021 summary and staring at your amazing photos. Having wildlife in my backyard would excite me too! And the northern lights? Wow. That’s probably a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence too. Washington is so very diverse. I don’t think one could ever get bored there! Sorry to reread you had an awfully hot and smoky summer (ironic, almost) – and I had no idea that you would work again as substitute this time! Keep enjoying you love up north – with the right dose of leisure, belonging, and joy!

    Like

    Reply

    • Thank you, Liesbet! I love your last sentence description “the right dose of leisure, belonging and joy,” perfect. I had no idea living in this rural area would bring us such a different world. There is a hiking trail a few steps from us that is the boundary for several 5 acre properties and beyond. It eventually meanders back to the main road Hwy 291 and all level. No cars until you get to the hwy which is perfect for a hike, snowshoeing, walking dogs, and for seeing deer and birds. Can’t get much better than that. Hope your southward travels are going as planned!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  41. What a great recap of your year, Terri, in memories and photos. I’ve enjoyed traveling along with you and look forward to doing so again in 2022. I can relate to a lot of what you shared as a fellow PNW resident, though I missed the northern lights. Wishing you a wonderful new year of adventures. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  43. That was a year and a half, Terri! So many ups and downs, but I’m glad you’re happy with where you are now. Many thanks for the link to yours and I hope the year ahead takes you where you want to go.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  52. What a great wrap-up of 2021, Terri. You certainly filled the year with plenty of life, regardless of there being a pandemic. I especially liked the autumn coloured photos. What a wonderful place to be when Autumn comes along in your part of the world. To me, it seems like you have been living in Spokane for more than one year.

    Sorry about the losses you and your family had during 2021. As we grow older, the deaths of loved ones and friends are something we witness a lot more of than when we were younger. But we are left with memories of those who have departed, which I always cherish. Thank goodness for memories.

    When I look back at 2021, it all seems like it went in a flash but also was all of a blur.

    For me, it was all about the comfort and safety of our home, something I am very grateful for. And 2022 has kicked off with much the same feeling.

    Happy New Year to Hans and you. May it be a peaceful, healthy and fun year for your both.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Thank so much, Hugh! First of all, great to see your blurry tree, it seems to epitomize how quickly the season flew by as well as how fast 2021 went. We are at peace with the losses of both moms, who both lived full lives and who each taught their children important life lessons. If the pandemic has taught us anything it’s that we cherish our families and home spaces much more. Wishing you all a smooth start to 2022 🥂

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

Leave a reply to Terri Webster Schrandt Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.