An Update On Our New Life

Mr. Brown Mouse likes pumpkin seeds!(yes, we realize he is a hamster, we named him brown mouse temporarily back in August and the name stuck)

Today's post is an update on our new life on Vancouver Island. We moved here in early June and have been loving it ever since. Our new home, which is less than half the size of our Alberta home, is just right and we have zero regrets. We love it. We have great neighbors, some of which are fast becoming friends. I see wildlife daily in the form of seagulls, herons, eagles, deer, geese, ducks and seals, and we can go to the Ocean any time we feel like it as it is a five minute drive from home.

There are four seasons here, just not as brutally cold as the Alberta we left. Hubby is on a business trip in Southern Alberta right now. It is minus 11 degrees celcius and he has a two hour drive in a snowstorm to get back to the airport to come home tonight. It is plus 11 degrees celcius here :) and we have yet to see a snowflake. There are grey skies in winter but once in a while it breaks and nature is glorious here in the sunshine. The rain does not bother me - some say it will over time. All I need to remind me this is paradise is a trip back to Alberta.

My disease, fibromyalgia(suffer from arthritis 13 points in my body, have cronic fatigue, skin and sound sensitivity, with insomnia thrown in for good measure), is much better since moving here. Alberta weather is not easy on those with this disease. My body hurts less and because I am now living where I want to, I am much happier. Cronic fatigue is not such an issue as I can now sleep longer if necessary and work when I feel good as long as the work gets done.

Mom only lives two hours away and we spent Canadian Thanksgiving with her for the first time in nine years this fall which was extremely nice. I do the drive almost every other week to see her and she has come to our home twice as well. One day soon she hopes to sell her place and move closer to us.

Hubby and I are working together at his company (he keeps saying ours), which is a awesome considering he only started in January and the original intent was for me to get a job to have an outside income. Since the business took right off in September he needed my help and I have had to learn some new skills to fill that role like power point and printing workbooks. The next job is figuring out a way to reduce office expenses as we do a lot of printing and ink cartridges and paper are expensive. We may have to have a weekend away in Washington to stock up on supplies as things cost 60% of what they do in Canada and it is a couple hour drive plus ferry to get there. Sounds like a holiday to me :)

Thank goodness for points - we have gotten nine free flights this year(we paid tax) from Airmiles and Avion. Everyone in the family is doing well, fingers crossed it all continues. Three of four kids have been to visit and the fourth is likely to fly out in early spring on a college break. We are flying back to Alberta for Christmas to spend it with the kids and my Mother-in-law.

Although I was born in the USA we moved to Canada when I was six months old so celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving which is early in October. Happy Thanksgiving today to all my relatives and fellow blogger friends living in the United States. Eat lots of turkey and be happy.

I am thankful today that due to hard work, saving, and being frugal we are living the good life. I am most thankful for my awesome hubby, my family (four kids stepkids, two moms), our hamster "Brown Mouse"(hence the gratuitous hamster shots), our new business, our cozy home, and our new beautiful life.