I experienced mixed emotions. I was so excited to move back to California and "un-pause" my life. I dreaded downsizing from the wonderful house we had into a yard-less, washer and dryer-less apartment. I freaked out about that a bit, actually.
The night before we left, my mom accused me of "not feeling sad at all" about moving away. I remember she said, "This must have been a really awful year for you if you're so anxious to leave." Um, yes, yes it was a really awful year. It wasn't all bad; I loved being near family and being in a nice house. But it was still the hardest year of my life by a long shot, and I was happy to put it behind me.
But that didn't stop me from crying the last time I walked through the place, everyone else already loaded up and ready to drive off. That house was Godsent, and I will always be grateful for it and the people who took care of me while I was there.
We moved back into our previous ward's boundaries here in Sunnyvale. That has gone a long ways in helping us all with the transition. We are happy to be surrounded by long-time friends and our ward family.
Hazel and Jack have a bunk bed, and take turns sleeping on the top. Hazel set up her scarf hammock and hangs out there a lot. (I love how this picture shows her lemur hanging out by her as well. Also, the look on Hazel's face: "Get out of here." I get that a lot.)
We signed the two older kids up for twice a week swim lessons. They're the only kids in their class with Teacher Ricky. They've been three times so far, and I can see they're rapidly gaining confidence in the water. Jack will put his face in the water on the count of three. Hazel loves diving for toys and swimming face-down. She can make it 8-10 feet now.
One of our first field trips out here was to visit the beach and Barbara's Fishtrap (aka The Fish Restaurant) at Half Moon Bay. It was an awesome day for everyone. I especially loved watching Gemma experience everything for the first time. She was fascinated with the different textures of the wet and dry sand, and loved standing in the water and being chased by the waves.
Easter has been our first holiday out here. Our attempt to color eggs was
Some of our friends organized an Easter party the Friday before. In addition to an egg hunt, the kids tried out ice blocking and hard boiled egg races. We love the good friends we have out here!
A family in our ward owns the local mini-golf course and hosts a ward egg hunt there every year. It is awesome! Our attempt to catch a photo of all three kids... not so awesome. Gemma was sporting a bit of a fever that weekend and was furiously offended that I set her down.
Gemma broke out in a rash moments after eating walnuts. Guess we've got an allergy there.
I took the kids with me to visit old co-workers at Cumberland Elementary. I think it was a really good experience for Hazel to see a kindergarten classroom and meet a K teacher. She's been nervous about starting school this fall, and I think seeing how friendly and welcoming the atmosphere is took the edge off for her. She's since started acting a little excited about school.
Overall, the move back has been pretty painless. We're happy to be back.
