One year later

It's been a whole year since we picked up and moved to the other side of the continent.  A year since we had the entire house packed and loaded onto a truck.  A year since Kyle, Jillian, Leah and I got onto an airplane with a one-way ticket to Seattle to see Jeff and see this new city where we would be living.  A year since the kids walked into new schools not knowing anyone.

I was looking back at a blog post I wrote last October - it made me realize how far we've come in just one year.  Of course there are still some boxes around the house so not everything has changed. But for the most part things are very different around here now.

A year ago when we were making this move, there was a song that was playing on the radio often - Home by Phillip Phillips.  I remember listening to that song and the lyrics really spoke to me.

Hold on to me as we go

As we roll down this unfamiliar road

And although this wave is stringing us along

Just know you're not alone

'Cause I'm gonna make this place your home

Settle down, it'll all be clear

Don't pay no mind to the demons

They fill you with fear

The trouble - it might drag you down

If you get lost, you can always be found

Just know you're not along

'Cause I'm gonna make this place your home

This feels like home.  As much as we still miss many things on a regular basis...family, friends, schools, Tim Horton's...we have gained so much with this move.  I feel like instead of losing our home we gained a second home.  We have met amazing people here who have made us feel welcome and loved.  We have settled into life here with some similar elements like work, school and activities.  Plus there's all the new stuff!  Living near a beach where the girls collect seashells and we see ferries and cruise ships go by, enjoying some cool vacations to the mountains and along the west coast, being able to walk outside in January without spending 10 minutes bundling up in full snow gear.  I watched my kids make friends easily and walk right into a life here as if they've always lived in this place.  Yes, there are still tears and sadness about missing people back home in Toronto, but our visit home in the summer was incredible, and I know we will always keep those connections.  And as sad as we were to leave everyone at the end of our trip to Toronto, there were also smiles once we got back to Seattle and the kids were able to see their friends here.

It wasn't an easy decision for Jeff and I to uproot our family and move somewhere completely new where we didn't know anyone.  I can't explain it but I knew in my heart this was the right thing for our family at this time.  And now to see how well everything has gone in our first year and the friends we have made here, well I just feel like this is where we are meant to be right now.  I always tell people it's like a puzzle came together perfectly once we decided to make this move...this house, the schools, our church, the people we have met. 

I don't know what our future plans are, we don't know where we will be living in 2 years.  But I do know that no matter where we are, we will be fine.  And that's something this move has taught me.