Reality is Setting In

It's hard to believe that since my last post, Tonico has been back to Minnesota and is already in Brussels! Sounds like he had a really good time seeing friends and family while he was home (I'm going to have to get him on here so he can share some of his thoughts - for now, I'll just relay what I've heard). There is never enough time to see everyone and do everything you want before you leave - but I know it meant a lot to see lots of people there to send their love and support! :o)

It was a quick turn around for him - the day after the party he headed to the airport! He arrived Monday morning with enough time to drop his stuff off at our temporary apartment, take a shower and head right on in to work. Now that is dedication! The office was doing some team building on Monday and thought Tonico could really benefit from that - getting to know his coworkers and learning how they work as a team will be essential to his success with this new position. Sounds like he got lots of sleep last night and is ready to tackle another day!

Meanwhile, back in North Carolina, things are starting to get real. I had to say my first goodbye to a dear friend of mine from Wingate University. Jessica Hylton is the Director of Counseling at Wingate and it wasn't until the end of my year there that we really began to bond. She had found the love of her life and was getting ready to say "I do". As she began to plan her wedding, we ended up sharing thoughts and emotions over what roles our friends and family would/did play in the big day. Jessica opened her door to me and from then on, we had this special connection - we just understood where the other was coming from. I was so honored that she invited me to spend the day with her and her (now) husband Derek. It was BEAUTIFUL! The day began very gloomy, rainy, and c-o-l-d. As I began driving toward Asheville, in the mountains, I thought for sure it was just going to get colder. But, as I looked down at the dashboard, I watched as the temperature continued to climb. By the time the wedding started, the clouds had opened up and the sun was shining just like I imagined it would! It was such a picturesque ceremony, so intimate and personal. It was very hard to say goodbye but I know our friendship will remain - and Jess, you know it's a great vacation location!!!

The once Bride-to-Be at her beautiful shower (wish I would have gotten a good one at the wedding!)

As I drove home that night from the wedding, I realized how quickly this is happening. While it may not have completely hit me yet, the realization that I have to leave my friends is quickly sinking in as I make plans for 'one last dinner together'. Who could have known how quickly such strong friendships could develop? I am forever thankful for them.

Tonight I head up to Huntersville for the 3rd night in a row to stay with our good friends Jen & Matt DeGrave. From the day I met them, I knew we would be good friends. After knowing them for less than a month, they graciously opened their home to Chucho while Tonico and I spent 2 weeks getting married and honeymooning! Now they have opened their home to me - donating their spare bedroom to my back which just could not spend another night on the air mattress!

My Aunt Pat (who I know will be reading this) gives me a hard time (in a loving way!) about the fact that we moved all the way to Charlotte and are "only friends with people from WI". While we certainly did not plan it that way, it is true that many (not all) of our friends are from the Midwest! I guess that is part of why we connected so well. We will miss everyone in North Carolina so much - but it is also very comforting to know that we will likely meet again :o)

Hiking trip to Stone Mountain with Dogs and Friends!

The First of Many Goodbyes

Well tonight has been much more difficult than I had previously imagined. Tonico and I have done this before, we have been apart, at most, a month so I was not worried. What's one more month? And truthfully, it really was easy. There's something extremely exciting about knowing the next time I see my husband I will be getting off a plane and starting my life in Brussels with my best friend!

No friends, saying goodbye to my husband was not too difficult. What was really hard -brace yourselves- was saying good bye to my 'boo boo'. Now, anyone who knows me knows that I'm not much of an animal person, especially not dogs! But, Tonico had a dog, and if I wanted to marry him, and live with my husband, I would have to just suck it up. And it was not easy! It's very hard to get used to a dog that chews up your shoes, that needs to go outside no matter what the weather and that is at your feet constantly! Then Tonico started traveling for work and it was all up to me to take care of Chucho. And after about 2 months he became my new best friend! Don't get me wrong, he still drove me crazy, but there is something about his fun loving personality that got me hooked! Tonight, as we packed the last few things into the moving van, it hit me that this was it. This was something I would have thought I'd be excited about - no more dog! But as I walked up the stairs to our apartment, it really sunk in. As I opened the door to my essentially empty apartment, I realized how much I really did enjoy his company! I know he is going to have a great time living out in the country  with my sister and her very excited three boys. I know I'll get to see him when I am home in a few short weeks, but it's definitely going to be a strange transition!

So now you can all laugh and say 'I told you so', but this girl misses her boo boo!

Things We Will Miss

It's hard to believe that Tonico only has 6 days left in Charlotte! On March 20th he will pick his brother up from the airport, they'll jump in the Uhaul and be on their way back to Minneapolis. This is all becoming very real and in many ways, exciting! But lately, I've been spending a lot of time thinking about everything I'm going to miss!

Like these little faces

 Ashton, 4

Owen, 5

Aydin, 10

These three little boys have been my world for the last 10 years! I've watched them grow from tiny little babies to the unique, goofy, sweet individuals they are today. They have been the thing I've missed the most over these past two years in North Carolina. Every time I see them it is like they are new people -talking more and continuing to amaze me with how smart they are! Thinking about how much more we will miss while in Belgium makes my heart hurt! To top it all off, I talked to my mom one day who told me Ashton wants to know if he's "ever going to see Lauren again?" Thanks Mom!!!

And just when I thought my heart could not possible love any more, my brother and his girlfriend brought this beautiful little girl into our lives. I'm counting down the days until I am home to snuggle her for days!

Adelaide, 4 days old

Thank goodness for technology! We have been able to get our parents set up with Skype so that Tonico and I can watch all of the littles grow up and keep in touch! The boys and I tried it out a few weekends ago - what a hoot! They spent most of the time checking themselves out in the little window and asking lots of questions about what they could see in the background. 

Next, of course, comes our amazing parents and siblings. They have been so supportive of us and our decision to move abroad. It's not easy for any of us but we are so unbelievably thankful for all of their support! Tonico's parents are generously donating their basement to essentially all of our furniture and personal belongings for the next 2+ years! Sounds like they are already planning their visits and for that, we couldn't be more thankful!

Tonico's sister Carla is turning 18 this year and graduating in June! She will be attending Iowa State in the Fall and we are so proud of her! She's going to have such a great time and even though we will miss out on the celebrations, we know we will be seeing her soon!

Here she is loving on her nephew dog Chucho!

Tonico asked me the other day what I will miss most about the United States (besides friends and family) and I did not know what to say. Maybe I am going to miss everything...but maybe nothing! I am not going to miss the politics - but then again, the EU (European Union) is located in Brussels, so I guess we will get our fair share of politics. I am not going to miss the packaged, preservative filled foods our country relies so heavily on. I have been told the food is much fresher. But I will not be eating at IKEA for fear of horse meat in my "Swedish Meatballs"! Having only spent a total of 6 days in Europe, none of them being in Belgium, it is hard to say what I will miss but I feel pretty confident I will find out verrry quickly!

Tonight is another night of packing...sigh...but the light at the end of the tunnel is that we HAVE to be done by Saturday so we can enjoy a day of St. Patty's celebrations! We will be joining a group of friends downtown Charlotte to catch the St. Patty's day parade, followed by a farewell dinner at our favorite restaurant Cabo Fish Taco (it's just fun to say!), followed by an infamous night out at our favorite local bar, Saeeds! This weekend will certainly be bittersweet as we begin to say "See ya later" to some of the greatest friends we have ever known (thankfully most of them are from the Midwest so we know we will meet again!).

Overwhelmed!

Since starting the blog yesterday it seems a lot has happened! First of all, HELLO to all of you who have started following the blog! I was so surprised to see how many views I've gotten and especially all of the comments! This is such an exciting time in our lives and I'm so thankful we can share it with you all!

We started officially packing when we got home from work last night and WOW, is it time consuming! We have decided we have 4 categories we need to consider: going to Belgium, going to Minnesota, going on the plane with Tonico and finally, going on the plane with Lauren. We live in a moderately small 2 bedroom apartment, so it seems we couldn't have that much stuff, but it is very clear that we have learned how to be master organizers of the little space we have. In 2 hours, we successfully packed away 3/4 of the spare bedroom! Only have 7/8 of the apartment to finish off! I know what I'm doing tonight!

This afternoon Tonico sent me a bunch of emails with information about the move. We will be working with a company called MAP Relocations. They help us literally map out what this relocation will look like. This is incredibly helpful but also extremely overwhelming! Reading through the 44 page "Welcome to Belgium Handbook", I'm already making notes on top of notes about things we haven't considered. They will be most instrumental in helping us find a place to live. They are liaisons between the landlord and the tenant and thankfully not real estate agents in that they do not have connections with the landlords. They simply want to help us find the best location that meets our individual needs. They also help us decipher the lease agreement so that we are aware of all that is involved and are not getting ripped off. What a wonderful service!!! Thankfully Ingersoll Rand is putting us up in a furnished apartment for the first month while we (and by we, I mean Tonico since I won't get over there until well after he does) work on finding our permanent home. It feels so amazing to be able to think about having our own space in Belgium! I should successfully arrive in Brussels just in time to help Tonico move our stuff into the new place!

Tonight will be another jam packed night of packing and running through our thousands of "To-Do" lists.

Here's my question for the night: Is there a stronger word for overwhelmed?

Welcome to Our Blog!

Where do I begin!? It feels like Tonico and I are finally getting comfortable with our lifestyle here in Charlotte. We have made such great friends since moving here. But as it goes, all good things must come to an end! And in our case, this good thing is ending but another GREAT thing is coming our way!

Tonico has always expressed his desires to move abroad to live, work and raise a family. If you would have asked me 5 years ago, I would have called you crazy for thinking I'd ever move to Charlotte, NC let alone abroad! After meeting Tonico and seeing his passion for learning different cultures and traditions, my curiosity began to grow! We finally came to the conclusion that we would love to move abroad if the right opportunity came our way. (In the back of my mind I thought "well, what are the odds of that?") And now here we are!

Tonico was offered, and accepted a position with Ingersoll Rand, the company he has been faithfully employed with for the last 5 years. We will be relocating to Brussels, Belgium in just a few short weeks! Tonico will leave Charlotte on March 20th to take a Uhaul full of our home goods back to his parent's house in Minnesota. He will be home for a few days, see as many friends and family as he can, and then he's on a plane to Brussles! And, after a whole year of him being in audit I hope this is the LAST time I have to say it, but this will be our FINAL month apart!

I will continue to work at UNCC through the madness of registration. My dad will be driving down to Charlotte to collect me and any final home essentials. I will get about a week and a half filled with friends, family and brand new baby goodness! Unfortunately, I have to be present on my last day of work, so I will fly back to Charlotte, work for a day and a half, and then April 19th, I will be hopping on a plane across the ocean.

As the details of the relocation come flooding in, we are realizing all that is involved with making a move abroad. It is all that is on our minds from the minute we wake up in the morning until we go to bed at night. And I don't know about Tonico, but even when I'm sleeping, I'm thinking about this move!

We are so beyond exciting to start this amazing new chapter in our lives! To be given this opportunity is like nothing we could have ever dreamed! Though we will miss so much from back home (which is now Charlotte AND Wisconsin/Minnesota) we know how extremely lucky we are for this journey we are about to impart on!

We have no idea if anyone will read this blog, but are hopeful it will help our friends and family keep up with us and what is going on from across the sea! More details to come and thanks for joining this journey with us!

-L & T