It’s been a very long time since I’ve updated here, and since that time a lot has happened! Our family moved back to Jacksonville, FL. We first lived here from 2010 – 2014 while Shelby was stationed at NAS Jax. This was where we had all our firsts! This is where Tristan was born. It feels like a full circle moment being back. I joke with Shelby all the time that since we are making the rotation again, Hawaii is up next. Maybe in a handful of years or so we can make it back there. We are currently accepting winning lottery numbers if you have any to send our way.
So yes, back in Florida. Shelby is currently serving as the Director of Golf at Jacksonville Golf & Country Club. We are praying this can be a long term place for us. We are ready, TRULY, to settle some roots somewhere. Louisiana brought us the best friends, and we miss them dearly. Tristan and Kate still talk all the time about how much they miss their friends. We are incredibly thankful for technology which allows them to talk to their friends almost every week. They even do virtual sleepovers from time to time. HUGE blessing for them.
Kate’s going to a wonderful school close to our house. Tristan’s school, for lack of a better word, was ROUGH. He went 1 day and was told not to use the restroom because that’s where people get beat up. (The Principal is the one who made that statement, something seemed wrong with that picture ..) After some discussion we made the decision to homeschool him this year. The downside to homeschool for him has been a lack of friends. There aren’t any kids that play on our street, so it’s just ME! I know he loves me, but I’m sure he’d love some kids his own age to talk to and play with.
It took us (ME) a good while to get into stride here in Florida, but I feel like things are finally starting to fall in to place and we are starting to enjoy being here. We found a wonderful church. That was a HUGE answer to prayer. We have been able to slowly make some friends there, and we’ve heard amazing lessons each week. I can tell a huge difference in our morale since we’ve started going there.
We’ve got out and had some FUN and have done some exploring. We made it to Disney (not the park, just Disney Springs) and the Kennedy Space Center. We went to St. Augustine and have gone to the beach a couple times. We are finding new places to eat and enjoy all the time.
One of the coolest things has been getting to live near our best friends from Hawaii again! We don’t get to hang out with with very much, which is a huge bummer, but I hope we can figure out a way to see each other regularly. Our kids have grown up! It’s so neat to see them spend time together again. The last Christmas we were in Hawaii we spent it together, and our first Christmas here we were able to spend time with them!
We are so excited for this summer and the ability to make LOTS of great memories in the Florida sunshine. We are so thankful for God’s provision and protection and the opportunity He gave us with Shelby’s job here in Florida. We are all trying to live each day looking forward and dreaming of a bright future here.