Happy Anniversary!

Today marks our 3rd year since we stepped off that plane in England as some of its newest residents! We thought we'd be leaving shortly after this day but as usual it's rare that things go according to plan. We may be staying a bit longer than we thought but it's hard to believe in some ways that those 3 years have passed! Austin was 3 1/2, Teagan was 18 months. We had no idea what we were getting into or what our next 3 years was going to be like but were instead excited about the adventure we were embarking upon. Living in a different country, seeing so many historical places, traveling to different countries. We were wide-eyed with excitement.

Well, some months at times seemed to drag on as though our time here would never end and we longed for home and family. Other months have whizzed by and we wonder how it could have passed so quickly.

In the last 3 years we have had some struggles that may or may not be the result of where we live but were more difficult to get through without the familiarity of home and nearby family. The culture here as well as making friends was a big adjustment. Oxford is very transient and a melting pot of international students. We may have met many different people but very few have become our friends.

We struggled through a lot of illness, messy things like lice and bedbugs, terrible things like bike and car accidents and a miscarriage. Living here has definitely been more stressful and trying for us. But we know it is God that has brought us through all of it. If it weren't for our reliance upon him, we would have given up long ago and gone running home.

In the last 3 years we have welcomed our 3rd child to our family (a girl this time!) which has been such a sweet blessing. We found a terrific nanny who has become our closest friend here and a tremendous help to me with 3 kids running around!

We have traveled so many places and countries, and seen so many things that many others don't have the opportunity to. We have been so blessed to have had this opportunity and actually get to see places we read about in our history books in school!

Austin is now 6 1/2 and in 1st grade. We made the decision to teach him at home after issues with the local school and while it often wears on my patience we know it was the right decision for right now. He's doing so well and is reading well! Teagan is now 4 1/2 and we've started teaching him some kindergarten. He listens in when I teach Austin and already knows some addition and subtraction!

Bailey is 18 months already! The time has flown by! She is quite the pistol and thinks she's in charge. She talks a LOT and loves to sing! Her favorite things are princesses and Minnie mouse and playing with her brothers.
So we have 5 more months in this country. (We've been counting down) We are anxious to go home. We are excited to be closer to family. We are excited to live somewhere new. We are looking forward to our future in California and all the opportunities it has to offer. With any move we enjoy the adventure of discovering something/somewhere new or different.

We will miss many things about living in England. The beautiful summers. The history and ease of traveling to Europe. Our favorite pubs, bitters, and Pimms! We'll miss the friends we've made.

The next few months will be busy with school, packing, movers coming and plans for our return to the U.S. The time will go quickly and soon we'll be home!

Another Winter in England!!??

What?! Do I have to?!
We finally got word that Devin's application for an extension was approved. I knew this would happen but I didn't really think through what that meant for us. So instead of moving to sunny California in October and enjoying American food and shopping and a larger house we have to wait. 3 more months! Devin has until the end of January to finish. Don't get me wrong. I WANT him to finish and to do it before having to work a real job since we see him so little already. He needed this extension. But now I'm left with a dilemma. Do we stay until he's done? That means our 4th gloomy England winter and 4th Christmas in our tiny house with no family around. Another option is to leave earlier and stay with my parents but we all know that's only nice for a little while. :) We'll miss Devin and our things and want to get to our new home and get settled. 
So please excuse my little tantrum. I just needed to let off some steam. We'll work it out and eventually get home. 

Home Sweet Home (Colorado)

The end of June the kids and I traveled to my hometown of Colorado Springs. I had not been back since my sister's wedding 2 1/2 years ago. I was excited to see what had changed and for my kids to spend time with their grandparents. The kids were great on the flight. I'm so blessed to have kids that enjoy traveling! When we stepped off the plane in Denver it even smelled like home. I've missed it so much. The mountains, the thunderstorms, the dry air. Most of all it was good to spend time with my parents and my sisters who flew in for a visit too! The kids just loved being at their grandparent's and all the attention as well as the open space and room to run around on their little "ranch". We had tons of fun and the visit was too short. The kids keep asking when we will go back and hopefully we'll be visiting more often when we return to the U.S. for good.   

Road Trip! 2010

I can't believe it's been 2 months since my last blog! As usual the summer months seem to fly by. So a quick recap over the last 2 months. In June we took our last big road trip while living overseas. This time though we didn't leave the country. We drove to Scotland stopping in Sherwood Forest, Newcastle and along Hadrian's Wall. We stayed a week in Glasgow while Devin attended the 2010 Turbo Expo where he had 2 presentations. Then we drove up to Inverness along Loch Lomond, through the Highlands and along Loch Ness. We then drove to St. Andrews golf course and walked on the fairway at the 18th hole. What a thrill! Next stop was Stirling Castle (my great grandmother was born there) then a couple of days in Edinburgh. We finally made our way back to England stopping for a couple of days in the Lake District which was unlike anything I expected. Beautiful mountain passes and lakes almost made me feel like I was back in Colorado! Except for the sheep and very narrow roads! Below are a few pictures from the trip. We had a great time and will miss our "European vacations"!  

                             

Spring Time in England

We've survived our last winter in England! I must say we won't miss the cold, wet, dreary, dark days with about 7 hours of daylight. But after winter comes spring which is a beautiful time of year here. Yes we will miss spring time. The beautiful fields of green and yellow. The crocus, daffodils, tulips and bluebells are abundant. The daffodils literally grow like wildflowers here. They are everywhere!  More sunshine and less rain is a comfort as the days get longer. One of our favorite things to see (besides the flowers) are the baby sheep around Easter.

As our time here in England gets shorter I think about some of the things I will miss. It's always hard to pick up and leave a place and move on to something different whether or not you've grown fond of living there. There are still things we liked, memories we've made, challenges we faced, and new friends we will have to say goodbye to. Change (moving) is bittersweet.

HAPPY EASTER!

Teagan Turns 4!

Today we celebrated Teagan's 4th birthday! He's growing up so fast! He had a great day with his Lady train cake and lots of Thomas and Friends presents. He was hilarious to watch opening his gifts expressing such excitement over it all! Can't believe my little boy is 4 already. Love you Teags!