A Season Of Change

Well its been 3 months since we arrived in Listowel. A lot has happened in those three months and life had certainly been busy! I feel like we are just starting to get a handle on all of the changes that have been brought to our family in the past few months. We are still making some adjustments, and probably will be for awhile but we are in a bit of a routine now and sort of settled in. Here is a little bit about some of the changes that have been brought to our family since moving to Listowel. 

1. I never thought that I would enjoy living in the country (I'm a city girl at heart!) but I have been liking the quiet pace and slower lifestyle that Listowel has to offer. It is so nice to never have to deal with traffic, to drive to the grocery store buy groceries and get home all within one hour, to be helped at the grocery store with packing and bringing things out to the car, to walk to the library, to go to a free play group, to be a five minute drive from work, to have total silence when we go outside (like literally no traffic sounds at all) to let the kids play out in the yard without being totally paranoid that some creep is going to come and snatch them, to go for walks with the kids and not have to worry about traffic or keeping them off busy streets, to go to events and not have to push your way though a giant crowd. It's just a different world out here in the country and I have to admit that at this point in my life I'm enjoying the simplicity that is has to offer.

The only photo I've taken of our house so far! 

Some of the pretty scenery in and around Listowel. 

2. I'm now working roughly 20 hours a week, which may not sound like a whole lot but when you factor in all the time I spend doing prep work at home (1-2 hours a day which isn't nearly as much as I'd like to do) and the fact that I haven't ever worked with three children, this is a LOT for our family and a BIG change. I think the person who is struggling the most with adjusting to this change in Marshal! In fact he seems to be having the most difficulty since our move. He is so attached to me that every time I go to work he has to be reassured over and over that I will be coming back and that I love him. This is proving to be a bit challenging (we're working on how to better deal with him) but we're making it happen. Truth be told I LOVE being back at work. I really love to share my love and passion for dance and I am so happy at the studio here in Listowel so that's a huge bonus. I really think that this job was something I needed to do. I'm going to be honest and admit that I have really been struggling with motherhood especially over the past two years. I really felt burnt out and was starting to hate my life and was not doing a very good job parenting (I know that may sound horrible so don't judge me but this is something I'm still working on.) Working has helped me to remember that I have something to offer to others and is doesn't hurt to see the positive effects of my hard work either (something I feel I rarely see in meeting the constant demands of my children- why are they so needy?) In any case work = a huge change that we are all still adjusting to but overall it is going well and I am happy to be back!

3. We spend a lot more time travelling longer distances now that we live in a small town but this is mostly ok. In the first month that we were here we traveled a lot with getting furniture, switching over drivers licence etc. but now that we've settled into our home and I'm working we've mainly just been travelling to family events and to church on the weekends. The kids seem to be adjusting to longer drives (they are usually 45 minutes- 1 hour so really not that bad.) and truthfully I'd rather be driving for 45 minutes then sitting in traffic!

4. Dan has a new church calling which is kind of a huge adjustment for me (and one that I am sort of struggling with.) We are now in a tiny branch that meets in Stratford which is 45 minutes from our home. There are not many members in our branch and Dan was called as the first counselor in the Branch Presidency. This means that he has a lot more responsibility with how our congregation runs and he has a lot of Sunday meetings to attend. Because we are so far from church we are all packing up to get to church early (which is so far proving to be impossible), as well as staying late after church. We are basically out the door by 8:30am and arrive home at 5pm! It's a LONG exhausting day. But honestly the worst part of it is having to sit alone with my kids in Sacrament meeting. If you know my kids you know they are one serious handful and I am really struggling sitting alone with them for the hour long meeting. They are so noisy, they like to eat and play with toys during the meeting and they are the only young children in the branch. SIGH I feel like such an outsider every Sunday and am honestly so stressed out by the time Sacrament meeting is over that I want to burst out in tears. I don't know how to meet all of their needs and trust me they are needy little people on Sundays. The past two weeks I have just left the meeting half way through and sat in another room because I couldn't handle having to shush them and try to keep them contained for the whole hour. I know this is not a good solution to the problem so if you have any advice to offer me please I am desperate!
Ok enough venting now (sorry went off on a tangent!)

Here's the tiny nursery in our branch!

5. We miss our friends. We have none now. And that is probably the hardest part of this whole move for me. I think it's been hard on all of us. We went from having so many lovely friends to having NO ONE :( I really feel for the boys. I know that they are ok and I'm glad that they have each other, but I know that Marshal is having a bit of a hard time. He is starting to tell me less now that he misses his friends, and his Gramma and Grampa and that he is sad and wants to move back to Calgary, but I do still hear it. I also miss my girl time and all the fun things we had going on in Calgary. I know Dan really misses his buddies too. I think the hardest part is that we really don't even have an opportunity to make new friends now. We are honestly so busy with managing our family, work and church lives that there is no spare time at the end of the week. Our lives are now completely based on making it through each week with little room for fun and adventure and friend making.

6. It is a HUGE bonus to be close to Dan's family though! It's great to have time to spend with the Fuller Grandparents and the kids really love them! We have seen them for several occasions like family Thanksgiving, a visit to their new house, dinner in Kitchener, birthday parties and even trick or treating. Marshal even went for a 2 night sleepover at their place and had a blast. They have helped us out with watching the kids so we could go out for our anniversary, to a couples conference and to visit the temple. We are really glad to be able to have Dan's parents in our lives and for our kids to have a relationship with them. It's also great for the kids to be able to play with and get to know their cousins who live near by. We have already had some fun with them of a couple of occasions. It's great to be close to family after being so far away for so long!

Marshal helping Grampa make pancakes for Grandma on her birthday.

Driving the tractor at their sleepover party!



All the Fuller boys having fun at the bean bag toss at Cohen and Rachael's Birthday Party.
Uncle Jim, Dan, his Dad and of course Cohen and Marshal.

7. The sad note about family is that we really miss the relationship that we had with my parents and sisters and little cousin Kendra. I know the kids really miss Grampa Jim and Gramma Michelle, Auntie Rael, Auntie Aeron and especially Kendra. We got so accustomed to having them being a part of our every day life that we really miss them a lot :( We hope that they decide to come back or that we can at least visit them someday soon!

Our general pace of life is certainly a lot different than it has been over the past couple years but we are doing well and still feel strongly that we are in the right place for our family at this time. Even in my off moments when I get a bit sad or discouraged I can't deny knowing that this move was the right choice for our family. I know that some of the experiences and changes we are living through right now are difficult and will require time and adjusting but I also believe they will help us to grow stronger and put us on on a better path for the future.

Here's to life in Listowel!

Jordan