How we moved across the country….I’ve done this before. I should have known what to expect. It’s hard to be a transplant when you are so incredibly close to your family. It’s tough. I miss them every day. And to think of my sister and me raising our tiny humans without each other is heartbreaking.

I miss home. I don’t just miss my family, I miss my community. They say it takes a full 2 years to fully immerse yourself into your new community. Well, it has been almost 3 and it still doesn’t feel like home. Sure, I put things on the wall, made friends, explored the area. It’s. Just. Not. Home.

I always thought I would be that person who fully appreciates and commits to a new lifestyle where ever the world took me. Wrong! I’m more set in my ways than I thought. Its called realization. Ha! I’ve watched House Hunters International on HGTV and thought about how cool that would be. To rent a tiny flat in Paris and live like the French. Not gonna happen. Its fun to dream though!

I don’t hate Wisconsin, its just not my cup of tea. Winters are brutal. I need to do things, be outside, go to things that don’t require putting on your entire wardrobe in order to not freeze to death (literally).

But the summers…oh how I love the summer here. Though it is short, it is bliss. At least the days when it’s not raining is bliss. Last summer I think we had exactly 3 weekends when it wasn’t raining. Talk about a letdown! All of the beautiful temps but can’t go swimming. 😩

I try to take advantage of good or semi-good weather at every opportunity. So often that I think I wear my husband out! I drag my family out on little adventures where we explore the many parks, hiking trails, lakes etc. It’s soooo good for my soul, I need fresh air and sunshine.

Covid-19 hasn’t helped my feelings of homesickness either. Now, not only do I miss home but now I can’t socialize either?! Gah! I know I shouldn’t complain. I will be fine. But I’m allowed to have feelings.

The last time I moved away from home it was only a 5 hour drive so I was able to see friends and family on a fairly regular basis. It was also only 14 months long. We’ll call that a trial run. This time it is 2200 miles away and we are lucky to see family 2 times a year.

Do you know what else is hard? No built-in babysitters! It was a solid 5 months before my husband and I could have a date night. We really didn’t have much disposable income for a sitter and didn’t know anyone well enough to ask for recommendations. Now (pre Covid-19) we have a date night about once a month.

Enough about the hard stuff. How about some good stuff, eh? Yes! Well, we learned we could do it! We can navigate through our new life with little help. We learned to really lean into each other and grow and made some pretty incredible friends along the way. Our kiddo hasn’t had family around but when she does, it’s that much more special. We also learned to use technology to stay connected. What’s more, is we are exposing her to a completely different life than she would have known if we didn’t take this leap.

So now the big question is, where is home? We haven’t figured that out yet, but when we do, I’ll let you know.

Where do you call home? Are you a transplant like us? Comment below and follow me for more whimsical heart stories.