It's been a while...

I've been meaning to write for absolutely ages. I mean that, too. As each milestone has been passed, I think to myself, "self, you need to write about this." And then I don`t, the milestone passes, and I feel like it`s too late.

So here`s the run-down:

We moved in to our own house on September 5th last year. It was hard, but we managed. The actual move was not too hard, as we didn't have much stuff and it was only in one place in mom and dad`s house. Living in a building site was hard. Our bedroom was floorless when we moved in, so we were sleeping in the living room. But we're comfortable now. In fact, we only have 1.5 rooms that need work. All of the rooms need little things doing to them, but its pretty much cosmetic. Martin built an amazing porch this year, and next year we are going to do our dining room and bedroom extensions. Or maybe just the dining room. Not sure yet. The current project is the "raccoon room."

Christmas was an adventure. Money was really tight, and Martin's dad came for a visit as well. The kids had a good Christmas, but Martin and I had to wait until after December to buy presents for each other. Laurence was good company, and we were thrilled to see him.

We got our own mortgage in January. It was amazing to be able to pay off the loan from my parents. We are independent again, and it feels amazing! We couldn't have bought the house without them, but I hated being beholden to them. It felt like they were constantly checking up on us and making sure their investment was going well. So January mortgage was amazing!

The kids are fully settled in to school here. They are also enjoying community sports and church. Edith does dancing, and she is on the competition team this year. Dylan is doing twice weekly crossfit classes to keep himself/get game fit for soccer. He's getting really good, and he wants to play at the high school when he's old enough. They continue to be a constant source of irritation and joy!

We hit our one year anniversary in March, and it was crazy! Then it was back for a visit to England in May, which was even crazier! It feels like we've been here forever. The visit was rushed, but incredible.

September saw the one year anniversary of us moving in to our own place. That also seems crazy. And the year saw a lot of changes, like a real bedroom for me and Martin, the remodel on the front room to get rid of the 60's wall panelling and avocado green carpet. We've reclaimed more of the garden, as well.

The best part of life right now is how it's settled back into a pattern of normalcy. Things were absolute chaos for a while, and it was a real struggle. Obviously, nothing's perfect. My relationship with my dad still isn't great, and I don't like to go to their house unless I have been explicitly invited. And we miss our friends and family in England a lot. But we fit in here now, and that's a real comfort.

I have to do this more often.