We arrived in Tyler and met the then-owners Richard and Patricia, and were taken by the beautiful restoration they had wrought with the Manor. When you see the "before" pictures of the Manor back in 1992, it's hard to believe it's the same place. We were even more struck by their clear love of running the bed and breakfast, and the stories they had of meeting such a variety of amazing people. We spent Saturday exploring the Manor and chatting, and Sunday exploring Tyler. And as we drove away Sunday evening, before we'd even returned to DFW, we knew that we'd finally found a place we could call home!

We arrived back in Phoenix, Arizona and by Tuesday we had sent an offer letter to Richard and Patricia, and much to our relief, they accepted! As much as we knew it was the right place and the right time, pulling up roots wasn't easy. We both grew up in Arizona---Lisa in Phoenix, Chris in Pinetop, a small mountain town---and our families were still there. Lisa had worked as an electrical engineer for Intel since leaving college, and Chris was in charge of the water resources program for an environmental consulting firm in downtown Phoenix. And were they all surprised when we told them what we were doing! Long story short, we got our Phoenix house on the market, and had an offer within a month---which given the poor housing market, we took as a sign that this move was meant to be. After a whirlwind of closing, packing, moving (1,200 miles with a dog on our laps!) we found ourselves back in Tyler, this time for good. And what a change a few months made---the azaleas were in bloom, the trees had greened up, and instead of snowing, it was in the 80s. And we fell in love with East Texas and the Manor all over again...

And most importantly, Kelsey (the one on the left) seems to love her new home---she loves chasing squirrels, lounging on the porch, rolling in the grass, and making new friends! (For the record, she's an Australian Shepherd mix, a bit small for her breed, but super friendly and lovable).

So come visit us in East Texas and see the beautiful Woldert-Spence Manor. There's no place like home!

P.S. If you're observant, you probably noticed there are TWO puppies in the picture. Well, about 3 months after getting to Tyler, we stumbled upon a litter of puppies---Border Collie/Cocker Spaniel mix. Needless to say, we soon had a new addition to our family---meet Polly. She's a bit more energetic than her sister, but also super friendly and always happy (despite how forlorn those Cocker Spaniel eyes look!)