One Year Later...

Janelle's new bike — March Break

I've been absent for quite a stretch this month! I blame it on March Break and too many dentist appointments. I've also added extra days to my volunteering schedule. Last week, the first after the break, I was either at the school or the dentist every day. I received two complaints today from two of my most faithful readers (you know who you are!), so I decided to dash off a quick one before the kids get home from school.

March 13th marked our first anniversary living in this house in London. I mentioned it to Chris and the kids that day, and we all commented on how much has happened this year, but also about how quickly the year has flown by. In most ways, it still feels like we're the "new kids in town", but we do have a number of good friends now, and we're involved in our church and our community. We have a couple of babysitters that we call on a regular basis, so Chris and I can get out on our own again, which was a big hurdle a few months ago. I'm part of a book club that I look forward to attending every month. I have a couple of dear friends who get together each week to have lunch, share whatever is on our hearts, and generally support each other. I volunteer at the school at least twice a week, and I'm part of the planning committee for a Literacy Night coming up this month. Chris and I attend a Community Group through our church weekly, and we've made some great friends there. I even found a walking buddy! And as always, I'm volunteering in the Kids Ministry at our church, which our kids are happy to be part of. In many ways, we have settled into our new community and found a place for ourselves. Things have changed a lot since I started this blog, just over a year ago.

Connor's new Ripstick — March Break

But we're still Maritimers at heart! This weekend Chris, Connor and I were excited to be able to cheer the UNB hockey team on to the national title, as we watched the tournament held at the Aitken Centre in Fredericton on TV in our living room in London. It was nice to capture a bit of home as we watched and cheered, especially when UNB shut out Western! Chris looked forward to gloating to a number of his collegues who are Western Alumni. We still grab hold of pieces of our Maritime heritage and hold on to them tightly. Chris found a sale on Paderno pots a couple of weeks ago and decided that our old pots and pans desperately needed replacing, which was true. So we now have a full new set of Paderno pots, proudly made in PEI. We both love the fact that they are Maritime made! Connor loves to tell anyone who will listen that his favourite place in the world is New Brunswick, with Mexico coming in a close second. Both of the kids would say the highlights of their year have been their visits "back home" in the summer and after Christmas. It's been a year that we've been here. But we're still very tied to the Maritimes. And that's just fine with me.