Bonjour, Texas!

Our little traveler has done great!

When I last posted I think I was sitting on the floor of our house in Montreux while movers packed everything around me. I mentioned that I wanted to post before we got swept up in the craziness of relocating to Texas. And that is exactly what has happened!

Empty Montreux house

K Bear and I have been here for about two weeks now, and BK has been here for almost a week. I would say we're settling in, but that's not exactly true just yet. When K Bear and I arrived, we had two nights and one full day in Fort Worth, then turned around and left for Ole Miss, where TR graduated from college. And yes, for those of you who went to college with me, this is the same sister who was five when we started college. I would say more, but I think that about sums it up...let that sink in for a minute.

Aunt Tay and the babies

Anyway, we stayed at Ole Miss for a few days, then got dropped off in Kilgore to visit BK's family, including going to our niece and nephew's softball and baseball games. Even though it wasn't a long visit, it was really good to get to see everyone for a couple of days when we first got here. Papa dropped us back in Fort Worth after a couple of days, and since then we've been doing all sorts of things to get back into life here.

H1, Nani and K Bear at the baseball game

I would say I'm not sure what we've been up to, but just to name a few, we have...

• Spent lots of time with family; K Bear is currently obsessed with her cousins.
• Been accepted by a new doctor and had the first appointment; all is good with Baby H.
• Started a new job- BK, that is.
• Closed on a house; and yes, we were under contract before seeing it in person.
• Started updating said house.
• Received our air shipment from Switzerland, so we do have some of our things now.
• Bought two cars.
• Slowly gotten into meeting friends out to socialize during the day at the zoo, museum, and other fun kid places in Fort Worth.
• And tomorrow we're headed to Florida for a week-long vacation with BK's family!

Fun with little MG (Swiss friend, also from Fort Worth) at the museum

I say we're not quite settled not only because of everything listed above, but also because we're about to make a number of moves in the next month. We've been staying at Mimi and PopPop's house for now, are now going to Florida for a week, will be moving into a furnished apartment for a few weeks while we wait for the rest of our household goods, and finally will move into our house sometime around mid to late June. Whew!

K Bear has handled things pretty well. She's been a bit clingy at times, but it's a lot of change for anyone to handle, much less a two-year-old, so over all, she's done great. One other report as well- Tobs arrived the same day as K Bear and I a few weeks ago and has been great with everything. He's showed PopPop's dog who is boss, and is generally happy as long as his people are around.

So that's the latest for now. As I mentioned, we're headed to Florida tomorrow for some sun and sand, but hopefully I'll have more to report soon.

Two questions we always get-

How life has changed with her in it and since living here!

Before we leave Switzerland and get all caught up in everything happening when we arrive in the US, I thought I would share two of the most common questions we get from people when they hear we're leaving Switzerland and returning to the US- and more than that, we're returning to where we came from. Most often people want to know: What will you miss the most? and What's the most significant thing you think you'll take back with you?

What will we miss the most?
I can honestly say I think we will miss the lifestyle, including travel, the most. I have really come to love that you're forced to live more intentionally. From costly trash bags that force you to recycle more to all the stores being closed on Sunday and having to plan ahead for that, you have to think about what you're doing in your daily life much more than when you're in the US and everything is open all the time, every day, nonstop, and always available. You also think more about the food you consume, as there are not really a lot of options between McDonald's (at least double the cost as in the US) and a sit down restaurant (also about double the cost). Additionally, you can't get everything all the time at the store. You typically eat fruits and veggies that are in season and meat is extremely expensive. Again, it just makes you think.

I also love that you're pretty much forced to be more active in life, especially in our case, when we didn't have a car for the first-year-and-a-half we were here. Even if you take public transport, you likely have to walk to the bus/train/tram station from where you live, then also walk to your final destination upon arrival. Whereas in the US, it's a struggle for me to get any walking in. The beautiful scenery you're surrounded with in Switzerland doesn't hurt either. On Sundays when everything is closed, often people use it as an opportunity to get out and enjoy the outdoors, hiking, biking, strolling along the lake, kayaking, or whatever suits them.

Ah yes, and I can't forget the travel of course. BK and I obviously love to travel and I can truly say I think we made the most of our time here in that respect. Switzerland is so central in Europe, and you can get nearly anywhere on about a two hour flight. And a cheap flight, at that! I will definitely miss exploring new cities all over Europe, discovering new cultures and sites in those places.

What's the most significant thing we'll take back with us?
This question is not asked in terms of physical thing, but more in the way of, how have we changed and what will we carry back with us. This has a lot to do with my answer above, as far as what we'll miss the most, but I hope we are more intentional in our lives in general.

Again, from thinking more about recycling and our usage of things in general, to being more conscious of how much food we buy, where it comes from and how it's produced, I hope we're more mindful. We've also talked some about how we'll live a few blocks from the park, and there's no reason we can't get out and walk or be active in some way in the mornings and on the weekends. I want K Bear to be outside as much as possible, regardless of weather.

And again, the travel. I'm looking forward to traveling in the US like we have in Europe, and looking forward to it even more because now there are grandparents and siblings near us who can keep K Bear and Baby H! Woohoo! There's no reason why we can't travel in the US just like we have in Europe. Like we've done while living in Switzerland, in November I fully intend to sit down with BK so he can map out when he can/wants to take time off from work so we can go ahead and get some trips and long weekends away on the calendar for the next year. I also have my mind made up that he and I will go on a kid-free trip before the end of the year, but I'll have to keep you posted on that one.

The movers arrived this morning, so things are getting real and the move will actually happen. They'll be done tomorrow and then K Bear and I leave the next day. Wow! See you soon, Texas!