Sunday, November 24, 2013

We're moving

I've been trying to think of some nice, creative way to announce our departure, but I've been just too busy.  We're moving to the United States.  There were many factors involved in our process of making our decision, and the main factor is that we want to be closer to our families.  We moved to Brazil with the hope that we could show our children a different culture, to give them the experience of seeing a different part of the world, and to give them the chance to learn the language and hopefully thrive within another culture.  I would have to say that for the most part, we have learned that.  And I feel pretty proud of the fact that we have a good car, a nice apartment, and we are mostly satisfied with the schools the children attend.  We have figured out how to make a life here, and that is an accomplishment.

And now we are leaving.  Are we crazy??!!???

Probably.  But I would venture to say that everyone is a little crazy.  But I don't want to address that topic here.  My husband and I feel like we've had the chance to teach our children one of our values by living in Brazil.  And now it's time to show them that family is very important.  We have been saying it, but now we can show it.  And we are demonstrating to them that sometimes family is so important that we willingly and joyfully make sacrifices.  

Here are some of the details--
Date of departure from Brazil:  December 26
Last night we will sleep in our apartment:  December 12 (the rest of the time will be spent between friend's houses and hotels)
Where we will move to?  Cashmere, Washington
What we are doing for Christmas?  we don't know
What I will do for work?  look for a position in a school, and work on certification/a master's
What the husband will do? TBA
What the kids will do?  go to school
How we will keep up the Portuguese?  find some Brazilians, Skype, videos, books
What will happen to the hamster?  a friend is taking him
Have we sold the car?  yes
Can anyone rent our apartment?  talk to Adimoveis
Want to buy our stuff?  Send me an email, but most of it is sold.  I don't deal with Correios, so I don't ship.

I'm feeling pretty overwhelmed with the sheer volume of stuff I have to do in the next month, especially before we move out of our apartment.  Moving out of an apartment in Brazil is a pain in the hiney (you have to pay a lot of money and paint and fix everything).  And then I have to do report cards, help with 3 talent shows, 2 graduations, do all my normal work, help my children with their final projects, and take care of all the normal things of life.  Not to mention that it's VERY important for the children to have time to say goodbye to their friends, so I'm scheduling parties, sleep overs, final play dates and good bye presents.  Aaaaaahhhh!  

So, all to say, you may not see very much of me in the next month. But my husband has taken to blogging, so read what he has to say here.




14 comments:

  1. How exciting and stressful for your family! Congratulations on the move, I hope it goes smoothly. I've loved reading your blog for years, and I'm happy for you that you're going to be closer to family.

    Now the repatriation adventure begins! I hope you keep writing.

    Best wishes!

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    1. Thanks! Yes, repatriation is a challenge in and of itself!

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  2. Oi Shelley!
    Desde quando a Dora entrou no coral, acho que tivemos poucas oportunidades de conversar. Sua vida deve ser bastante atribulada, sobretudo agora com a mudança ne? Bom, passei so pra te falar que adorei conhecer a Dora, ela fez amizades e ja esta deixando saudades, tanto para mim quanto para as amigas do coral. Desejo toda sorte para vcs nesta nova etapa e em especial um grande abraço para a Dora, vou sentir muito a falta dela no coral, espero que ela prossiga com a musica em sua vida!!

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    1. Oi Lara, muito obrigada! Eu lembrou muito do churrasco que voce deu durante na copa! Dora está gostando tantão do coral, e sabia que quando a gente contou para ela que nos estamos mudando, ela falou primeiro "e coral!?! eu não posso cantar mais com o coral!??" Com certeza ela vai continuar com música! Nos vamos sentir muito a falta de voce!

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  3. How exciting! Congrats on the move, we hope everything goes smoothly back to the U.S.!

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  4. Bummer - I mean - Congratulations! I will miss your updates. BH and Brazil is a great place to be and your stories have really shown that in a positive light. You will be missed here in the Blogosphere.

    I know you don't do the Correios, but -- do you have any great books that might be available? Any chance I could get you to the post office to help out a kindred soul? I have to ask...

    Good luck with all the details moving forward (and to WA). Be safe.

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    1. Hi Jim, I so wanted to try to organize a blogger meetup before I left, because one regret I have is that I didn't get to meet my blog friends! To be honest, I only really have children's books. The few books I have aren't really so great, but you can take a look:
      Used books in English
      The Border Lords by Jefferson Parker, Almost Heaven by Marianne Wiggins, Dogs of Babel, Apples and Oranges, To the Bright and Shining Sun, Rules of Prey and Dixie City Jam
      Homeland, and Other Short Stories, by Barbara Kingsolver
      I used kindle for most of my books, or I went to the book club here. Let me know if you think it would be worth it

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    2. Thanks for listing. Although I enjoy B. Kingsolver very much and The Border Lords looks good, it does not seem worth putting you out for them. I still have a decent stack of books on deck here and brought several back with me from our trip to Florida in May. Plus Luiz now has a tablet, so digital books are now an option. It was worth the ask... Thanks anyway.

      Any final bucket list item to check off before you depart?

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  5. I have been reading your blog for so long that I am even feeling sad! But I totally understand your decision, you have accomplished your mission, and what your Family has done is na amazing once in life time experience! I wish you all the best in the US and hope you keep posting from there, I believe that once you are distant from here you gonna have diferent perspectives about Brazil related subjects. Take the good memories and funny stories with you. All the best!

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  6. That is wonderful news. Hopefully you won't have too much culture shock returning back to The States!

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    1. Thanks--I'm anticipating that repatriation will have its own unique challenges...I'll try to keep you posted!

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