Adios 2017!

The last day of 2017! The end of a pretty amazing year for us. It has definitely been a year of changes for us. The year we made our dream of living in Spain come true. For Bob it was returning to a place he fell in love with 25 years ago.

This time last year we were in the process of sorting and purging and selling and giving most of our belongings away.  It was a crazy time and not without a bit of stress. How we accomplished it all in such a short period of time just proves how determined we were.

Today marks nine months since we arrived. Nine months! How is that possible?! Those months have been filled with hurdles, triumphs, time spent with old friends, time spent with new friends, and a whole lot of learning! When times get frustrating we remind ourselves that life is like that no matter where you are. That’s just life. A walk in the vineyard has a way of helping us keep things in perspective.

Has the move here been everything we thought it would be? Yes. No. It has been different in some ways. We thought we would spend a lot more time in Sitges taking in all of the festivities but we haven’t. It isn’t possible to do as much as we thought we would. But we have discovered other events that I think will become annual outings for us.

We haven’t spent as much time with old friends as we would have liked but they all live busy lives. Perhaps we can see them more in the new year. We have made some amazing new friends and our neighbors in the village have played a huge part in making us feel so welcome.

It has been a year of stepping out of our comfort zones. Especially for me. I thought I would have learned more of the languages than I have. I have focused on other things and truthfully haven’t put in the dedicated time to practice. I’ve had good intentions but that isn’t enough. When Bob and I are speaking alone we can use the words we need in Spanish. But when I am with others it is still very difficult for me to relax and think of the words that I do know. I get flustered and thus don’t try. This has been hard for me. I am used to expressing myself freely. My friends back home probably would be surprised how quiet I am! Lol! So, that is a big focus for me starting tomorrow. I am determined! I want to be ME again. I want to share my thoughts and feelings more easily with our new friends. I will be keeping you informed on my progress.

2018 is sure to be a year of more challenges but also of more successes. More adventures. The dream of moving here isn’t my/our last dream. I have many more to make happen. And let’s face it…if we can make this incredible dream come true in less than six months there is no stopping us on making easier dreams come true. So…watch out world! 2018 is going to be amazing!!!!