2 Years in Belgium

Today marks two years since we landed in Belgium and started life here. This past year has been very different from our first year here (in my opinion). We have adjusted much more to life in Belgium and though there are still challenges, we have come to appreciate much about life here. Of course we still struggle with missing things about home and friends and family, but I feel like we have eased into a way of life that works for us...and we are happy here. We have continued to choose to make Gent our home and not constantly compare or wish we were somewhere else. Although there are tough days from time to time, we are happy.

One of the biggest things I've observed over the past year is that Belgium really does feel like home, or more normal. You might recall a couple of posts I wrote a while ago about the differences between here and the U.S. With the exception of my Belgian birthing experience (which I still need to write about), I feel like I would have to think really hard about it to write another substantive post like the ones above. Instead, I am starting to feel like I could write those posts when we go back to the U.S. It's weird, but things sometimes feel strange when we go home...and it can be frustrating. This is not to put down where we are from in any way because we do love it there. But it's hard to go back and be so different. We have changed and grown a lot these past two years and are not the same people who stepped off that plane two years ago. Our outlook on life, our exposure to so many nationalities and personalities, our willingness to challenge ourselves and step out of our comfort zone...these things have changed us. At the same time, things have moved on back home. This is not the first time I have talked about this, but it's hard to go and try to fit back into our lives in the U.S. Life moves on and we can feel a drifting apart. It's more of a struggle to see how we fit into the life that we once had. This revelation is both exciting and sad; Exciting because I think we are becoming more open to the things in life that God may have for us, but sad because we also see the life we had and loved fading away.

Because we are feeling more at home here, the loneliness and some of the other struggles (hello grocery shopping) that I had the first year are also fading away. Instead, I can see the enormous ways that God has blessed us this year from the experiences we've had, to the people we've met, to the places we've traveled, to the opportunities we've had to grow and serve, to the beautiful addition to our family. I am in awe of the things that our children are getting to experience at such a young age! I still have moments of panic when trying to plan for the future, just as I did before we came and all throughout the first year, but I think those moments are more few and far between these days then a year ago.

I am extremely thankful for this opportunity to grow, see the world, and stretch ourselves as a family. It's been a great year full of many of blessings. We thank God for surrounding us with such a wonderful community who have supported us and walked with us on this journey. I have no doubt that they will continue to walk beside us as we move into year three in Belgium! We look forward to many more fun adventures in Gent and beyond!  

A post from me would not complete without some pictures...so here are some highlights from the year!

Our family at the beginning of 2014

Cologne, Germany

Tenerife, Spain

Our family now...