Moving and Moving On.

I am starting this blog as another way for our friends and family to stay in touch with us during our time in Okinawa. I can guarantee I will probably keep it fairly updated and I will try to coerce my husband into writing a few lines here and there too. I still enjoy looking back on the blogs we both wrote to each other during our college years when we could not be together. It is fun to see where we have come since then.

For those that aren't familiar with us, we are Mandy and Steven. We have been married for two and a half years and have a 2 month old daughter, Gwendolyn. Steven is currently serving with the USMC and is stationed in Okinawa, Japan. Gwen and I will be joining him on this tour shortly.

Here I am packing the 3 suitcases of things I get to bring to this new life awaiting us in Okinawa. Almost all of it consists of toys and room decorations for Gwen's nursery. I don't know why. While I am so excited to see where this road leads, I also have a deep sense of loss. I don't want Gwen to miss out on anything we had planned for her life as it was to be in North Carolina. We always hoped to be stationed overseas, but neither of us imagined now being the time. We have seen a chapter in our lives close that almost feels like it ended too soon. We had a beautiful house in the perfect "family" neighborhood with our little girl's nursery all coming together. I worked at the ideal job in every sense of the word, we had our Great Dane to snuggle with us in bed every night (more like paw us in the face, but hey), and we were surrounded by friends and neighbors who always knew how to show us a good time. I don't think there has ever been another time in my life I would seriously have sat down to consider jumping on an opportunity such as living abroad in Okinawa. Still, I'm excited to instill in Gwen a sense of adventure and curiosity that will continue to lead her for the rest of her life.

So I am exchanging my plans to take Gwen to eat cherry snow cones after a dip in the pool for plans to take her to the 100 Yen store to try Mango flavored Kit Kats. And instead of spending afternoons dressing like clowns and hosting a "magic show," I am sure we will dance in the living room in our home-made Kimonos just like the beautiful women do at Cherry Blossom festival time. Hence the name of my blog. Not quite what I had pictured, but still totally fulfilling.