The next chapter

(photo cropped for modesty; you'll have to imagine the cuteness of it!)

It's hard to deny the cliche that we're starting a new chapter in our lives. Hans is now officially a doctor; Matilda is more of a toddler than a baby; Freja is now a kid; we're all sleeping through the night (!!!); and we're moving to a different city in a different state. It's daunting if I think about it too much.

It was hard for me to leave Philadelphia. I have made such good friends there and have a great community at our marina, at my church, among friends, and with my mom friends and their kids. I love the actual city--the nitty gritty parts, the historic parts, the parks, and the food. But we made a conscious decision to move south to a warm city, based on the water so we can do the things we love (be outdoors on the water). Even so, there were tears in my eyes as we motored away from Pier 3 Marina.

A few days later, however, when we were visiting friends in Deltaville, Virginia, we took the girls on a short dinghy ride and found a beach for them to swim and us to relax. I was reminded why we decided to move.