Southern California

It's been way too long since I last blogged...almost a year!  The Stepps have been on the move. We just made a Permanent Change of Station (PCS) move and are now in sunny Southern California.  Brandon is working as the Executive Officer for the Commander of  4th Air Force at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside, CA, about 60 miles east of Los Angeles.  In 1994 March AFB was converted to March Air Reserve Base (ARB), a stand-alone reserve base.  The base itself originated back in 1918 and is one of the oldest airfields operated by the United States Military.  They have kept most of the buildings in their historical condition, with minor updates, and they are absolutely beautiful.  I love driving around and imagining what it would have been like on base back in the 1920's and 30's.

We live in Green Acres, a neighborhood comprised of what used to be base housing.  When the active duty base closed in 1994 the city of Riverside acquired a portion of the housing and they lease the houses through March Joint Powers Authority.  The houses date back to the early 1930s and they are amazing!  Just down the street from us there is a house called "The Doolittle House."  Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle, who led Doolittle's Raid during World War II, once lived there.  There is also the "Hap Arnold House" which still resides on base.  General Henry Arnold, the General of the Air Force, once lived there when he was the base commander back in the 1930s.  The inside of the houses are a bit dated but I LOVE all of the historic details.  There is just something about an old home that make you feel cozy.  So many memories were made in the same spot that you are now making memories and I love that!

 Entrance to Green Acres. 

The house we rent used to be designated for high ranking officers.  It is a 4 bedroom 3 bath home and is so much bigger than our home in Rocklin.  The floors are beautiful hardwood and the rooms are huge!  Gwyneth loves playing in her room and is going to be so spoiled with all the space in which she has to play.  The walls are super thick plaster so decorating has been a little bit of a challenge since you can't hang pictures or curtain rods.  When we first looked at the house I noticed the crown molding was not flush against the ceiling.  I thought it was just poor workmanship when I saw a 1 inch gap but later learned the molding is used to hang pictures.  Little details like that are what I love!! :)

Adams Avenue, our street.

The house is slowly coming together.  We have come to realize that we have accumulated a bunch of "junk" over the years.  The move has helped us declutter a bit, but we still have a long way to go.  I will be posting pictures of the inside of the house over the next week.

Our house.