Are we really moving away?

If you would have told me a year ago that Rob & I would be moving to New Zealand on December 1, 2008 I would have thought you were nuts. We have lived in the cozy town of Sonoma since 1982, and we are always grateful to return here after our travels. Sonoma is our home. We have raised our children here...we are very connected to this place and all of our friends and family. Sonoma is a place that when you go to the market, you literally visit with half the town before you even get to the check out stand. So, when Rob came home one day in May and asked me if I would consider moving to New Zealand I said yes without even blinking. And then I started thinking...would this really happen? Could we really leave Sonoma? After Rob went back to the corporate office in Milwaukee to interview for the position it seemed remotely possible as they told him that he was one of many applicants for the assignment. Then, in August, the company sent Rob & me to check out NZ to see if we could re locate there. They even set us up with a relocation company to show us houses/apartments should Rob be the chosen one. All this uncertainty...until August 28, 2008 when Rob was formally offered the position of BEP Marine site leader. That day was just a blur ago... Since then there has been a mountain of paperwork and events that have led up to our departure date of December 1, 2008.

We have leased a small, 2 bedroom apartment that is part of a larger, victorian house on the waterfront in Devonport. We have an incredible view of the waterfront, and the Auckland City skyline. I have always wanted to live near a big city, so this is fulfilling one of my dreams. From our house we have a short, eight minute walk to the ferry building, and then a very short, 12 minute ferry ride to Auckland Harbor. My plan is to be able to cycle, walk and use ferry service to get around. I will not be rushing to drive anytime soon, as everything about driving is really quite terrifying...and completely backward from what I have ever been taught. Being a passenger is a daunting experience...my brain just has not accepted the fact that you drive on the opposite side of the street, on the opposite side of the car, yielding to the right in the roundabouts, remembering to look over the right shoulder...not just the left shoulder...my head is in constant look out mode. Just plain too stressful. It will be interesting to see how long I stay out of the driver's seat. Hmmn...

Rob has been down to NZ for the better part of October to get started on his assignment. I have been busy wrapping up the house here in Sonoma...finishing all the remodeling and completing the front yard landscape...just in time to move away! Now we are both here in Sonoma busily wrapping up all loose ends. If you have not moved recently, you will find that you accumulate ridiculous piles of stuff. Since early October I have been donating masses of stuff to anyone that will take it. It is shocking how much stuff we hang on to...it is very liberating to purge. Then, there are the hours & hours pouring over the sentimental bits of our lives...pictures, journals, albums, treasure boxes that we have been saving since our own childhoods...and they go back in another cleaner, more organized box on the shelves in the garage. We will encounter these memories the next time we need to "organize" our stuff. I never knew we could have so many photos!!

We are now deep into my office, clearing out files, cleaning out the desk. Our moving shipment to NZ was only 200 cubic feet, so we really couldn't pack that much. The day the movers came I had inventoried everything even down to the # of pairs of underwear...really! I also had to place a value on the whole lot...just in case it get lost at sea. Our shipment is currently somewhere out to sea between here & NZ. It is expected to arrive at Auckland Harbor on Dec. 6th. Then we will be in the queue for customs, as NZ customs & immigration will be going through our shipment with a fine tooth comb. That is according to the NZ Vanlines moving company that is scheduled to deliver to us.

I am just looking forward to getting there, and nesting. It seems that our house here has been in such a flux since we started the final phase of re-modeling that I do not know what settled is anymore. Once I get settled...the kids will be arriving for Christmas, and our adventuring will begin. We are really looking forward to Ross & Emmy's visit. And...I am really stoked that we will miss the wet, dreary winter season...it is springtime in NZ right now!! Flowers are blossoming, birds are singing! So...we really are moving, and I'll be updating this blogspot periodically to let you all know how we are doing half a world away from here. We will miss all our wonderful family and friends, and hope that you all stay in touch while we are gone. If by chance you find yourself in NZ, we hope you look us up!