Last Wednesday was our officially 2 year mark here in Montreal. It is hard to believe that 2 years have passed, seriously, time needs to slow down! I guess the old saying "Time flies when you are having fun" is true since we have been having more fun that I could have imagined!
I have to say that I feel really settled and comfortable here...much more than I did when we lived in Dublin/Columbus, Ohio. I'm not sure why, but I know that I really do enjoy being here in Canada. It is a great place to be raising Arabella and I love all the opportunities that we are able to take advantage of - she is learning French in preschool, is taking swim lessons at the same aquatic facility where they hosted the Canadian Summer National swim meet, and so much more. Arabella loves to play in the snow - although so far it is nonexistent this year - and I enjoy it too! We have great Summer weather and there are so many fun things to do in Montreal. Jay gets to travel and see some pretty amazing places. We miss him when he is gone, but appreciate him so much more when he gets home. And Arabella is so excited when he arrives home. His travel isn't easy on any of us, but I am so fortunate to have a wonderful group of friends here who I know I can count on if I need anything while he is traveling.
I am trying to make this a wonderful experience for our family and Arabella in particular since our home in Montreal is the one she will remember when she gets older. It is sad to think that she has no memories at all of Ohio, but she was only 18 months old when we moved from Dublin.
I am thankful for the opportunity to be an American expat...it is teaching me so much and I don't even want to think about leaving and moving to someplace new. I want to enjoy this time. I love our home, Arabella's school, the friends we have made and Canada in general. At times it has been difficult, I'm not going to say it has all been smooth sailing, for instance, I still can't speak French and my lessons have been non-existent (we can't find a reliable tutor for me...) and I am learning more from my friends and Arabella! The weather was a little bit of an awakening, I never knew it could get as cold as it does...and all the snow....WOW! As for summer weather, who would have thought that it would be humid and get to be close to 100 degrees in the Summer in Canada...not me! The Autumn is beautiful and I love the Spring when all the snow is melting and the flowers are starting to bloom. There is so much more of this Country that I want to see...I am thinking of planning out some fun weekend trips for us this Summer (since you never know when they will decide they want to move us again). Hockey is like a religion and I still want to get to a Canadiens game at some point (Jay got to go last week so he can check that experience off of his Canada To-Do list!)
There are some things that I still am not used to - the services roads that run next to the Transcanada Highway still annoy the heck out of me and make no sense. I still can't get used to the "Eh" at the end of sentences...and haven't started saying it yet (thank goodness) but Jay says it every once in a while! And I still don not understand why they use so many stop signs...people never, ever make a complete stop at them...the joke is that when you see a stop sign it is just optional if you stop or not....and that is exactly what happens, people slow down and roll through. And don't get me started on the cost of food and dairy products!
I am thankful for the time that we have spent here and would love to stay in Canada for another 10 years...maybe it will happen...I am keeping my fingers crossed.
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