January 2018

Dear friend, 

I sure love these kids.  

It is so fun to walk in on moments like this: 

or this.  

We started off 2018 in a wild and fast-paced way.  On January 1st we didn't have any details about our move, but we were out of Santa Fe by the 14th.  

Luckily before then we were able to squeeze in some good times with great friends

as well as one last family bike ride to the park.  

We have been blessed with such amazing friends here that we will miss dearly. 

Santa Fe has been a wild ride.  We moved here when the boys were just a few weeks old and enjoyed over 4.5 years of growth, learning, and sweet memories.  Elias and I actively served in the ward; he as gospel doctrine teacher and then EQP for 3 years and I as Mia Maid advisor and girls camp director and then RS counselor for 3 years.  I feel like these callings helped keep us grounded and focused on our testimonies.  At a time when many of our friends and family were searching for their spiritual path, these callings kept us involved serving people in very humbling circumstances and focused on our relationship with our Savior.  Living here has shaped us spiritual.  You may laugh (I even laugh at it), but I genuinely feel more in touch with energies and auras.  I am more aware light.  The typical Mormon culture was just absent enough in our ward that we had to define and separate doctrine versus tradition; a process that I found to be strengthening though uncomfortable at times.  I'm grateful that Elias and I spent our first few years as parents in Santa Fe.  The cultural undertones of the community made me just nervous enough to take scripture study and FHE very seriously.  In addition to personal scripture study, Elias and I would spend a little time each evening tackling a subject that (usually I) was struggling with or didn't understand.  I felt like it was he and I against the world in a lot of ways and I couldn't have trusted my partner more.  I hope we hold on to that.  Hold on to each other.  

On the other hand, I am so grateful for the community that we created here.  It took us a few years to find it, but we have been so greatly blessed by the support and friendships we have here.  I was blessed to visit teach the most enlightening sisters and serve along-side some real gems.  Santa Fe taught me that the Lord puts certain people in your path for a reason and to never limit yourself to considering only those in similar circumstance as potential close friends.   It taught me that everyone is dealing with their own stuff.  Santa Fe doesn't judge.  (Except when it comes to having five kids...for real.)

Anyway, thank you Santa Fe!  And thank you 2 Arquero Road.  Elias and I still don't really enjoy homeownership.  I think it's pretty over-rated.  But we sure enjoyed some wonderfully sweet memories in that home.  

Oh, and I loved the schools we ended up in.  I thought NYE preschool was the best-kept secret in the entire city and Summer's school was an answer to our prayers.  (Even if it did lead to her adding a cross to her CTR shield and singing songs such as "The virgin Mary had a baby boy" at the top of her lungs in Target.)  I am so grateful for Santo Nino.  

And the libraries.  There are three great libraries in Santa Fe and we painted them up and down over the years.  We went nearly every week and checked out 22 new books.  We have become great friends with the librarians and one checked our record back in September and said we had checked out over 3,820 books.  

Back to the story...so we loaded up our life and our four kids and flew east.  

We knew it would take a week to get our stuff there so instead of staying in Darien, we thought why don't we live it up in NYC? (Hum...maybe because it's 17 degrees outside, we have four kids, a very pregnant woman and no stroller?)  But those thoughts didn't come until later...

We loved showing the kids Time Square and jumping in every kid-friendly store we could find just to warm up.  (Seriously, we staying inside Toys-R-Us for almost 2 hours.  They did have a great play area and they served us snacks.)

We had some great little navigators (especially when we told the boys it was their job to get us to McDonald's for lunch). 

We went to the Natural History Museum and when I read off the options of what we could go see, all Summer cared about was the Native American exhibit.  

She breezed by everything else and then when we finally arrived at the Native Americans she went and sat right in front of a life-size diorama of Natives sitting around a campfire, exhaled loudly, and exclaimed, "I love this".

For real.  For real!  It was like she could finally breathe again now that she was back with her people.  I don't know what got into her blood growing up in Santa Fe, but she wanted to spend the rest of our time there; connecting with her roots I guess.  

Anyway, after the museum we got to walk around the corner to visit my cousin Anne and her darling family.  They just moved to the city and it's so fun to have family close by! 

In addition loving the free breakfast buffet, the kids had fun in the hotel room.  

(I just couldn't resist taking a shot of the pre-bath dance party.)

I'm still so proud that we can put all four kids down to bed in a hotel room, but about half-way through the week they decided Joy should be up on the bed with them.  Elias would transfer her back to the crib when we went to bed, but the last two nights she woke up in the middle of the night and climbed back to rightful spot.  

I can't talk about our week in New York without singing the praises of the Secrist family.  Amanda took such good care of us and even lent us a stroller.   

She took the kids for an entire afternoon and gave them the time of their life while Elias and I enjoyed some much needed time together. 

Speaking of that time, let's take a step back here...posting a bunch of cute pictures of the little people I love most in the world can paint a false reality of how things went down.  Yes, we had some darling moments that week, but honestly...it was really hard.  So yes, it was wonderful to have a few hours alone with my main squeeze in the Big Apple, but let's be honest and admit it was bitter cold out and aside from an amazing Thai meal, it was spent at FedEx trying to get the kids' medial records faxed to the right place and fielding calls from our attorney/bank/movers about our closing date getting moved back. 

This month was a challenging one for us.  Elias was navigating the social terrain of leaving a firm that had just promoted him, as well as mentally preparing for the leap this new job entails.  Meanwhile, I was trying to wrap up life in Santa Fe for us and our four children, while trying to nail down the logistics of beginning a new one across the country.  Additionally Elias and I were working side-by-side to coordinate with realtors, attorneys, bankers, stagers and movers to get our Santa Fe home on the market and close on our future home in Connecticut. As if that all wasn't enough...I was 35 weeks pregnant.  I was obviously emotionally and physically weaker that I would like to think I normally would have been.  Elias was an all-star and stepped up in every way.  But just to make it a little harder...we had the crazy idea of him having major dental work done.   My brother offered to do it for free, but that entailed Elias flying out to Tahoe twice over a two week period.  Elias' teeth look amazing and we are so grateful to Carter! (For real, you are the best!)  But between the significance of the work and his TMJ, Elias' teeth have been crazy sensitive and he hasn't been able to close his jaw for the last month.  We're talking smoothie diet for over two weeks.  Yeah, we should have scheduled that better.  So with all that we had to figure out this last month, going though it while pregnant and with dental pain was especially challenging.  

So with Elias heading back to Tahoe and our closing date delayed, I headed over to DC to visit my parents.  

We were welcomed by gorgeous weather,  

lots of love,

and even some sewing lessons.  

Elias joined us there and we were able to relax for a day.  

Sunday night Elias and I went to an incredible "Why I believe" Fireside at the Temple Visitors Center.  

On Monday we loaded up and drove to CT to sign our closing documents.  We finally stayed at a hotel with a pool.  (The kids are quite certain all hotels should have pools.)

On Tuesday we moved in, Wednesday the kids started school, and Thursday Elias started work.  

Amanda saved the day again when she brought her kiddos up for the day to help us unpack and get settled.  She even brought fun gifts for the kids.  Believe it or not, that week gave me some serious contractions, so after lots of medication and Amanda's good care, things began to settle down.  

It was a good thing too, because the very next day Elias flew to South Africa for a week.  

I wouldn't say I was quite back up to par, so we were blessed to have my parents come take care of us while Elias was gone. They made sure we were all fed,  

and even packed the boys a lunch that was oddly reminiscent of my childhood.

They helped us with SO MUCH around the house and even made castles and spaceships out of cardboard boxes while they were at it.   

I couldn't have done it without them.    

Thank you so much Mom and Dad!

While I would have loved to have been working on all cylinders during this transition, I can't thank everyone enough for their love and support.  This community is unreal.  I think we may have landed in heaven.  The seller's realtor welcomed us with balloons and a cake on move-in day.  The builder has dropped by to check in and fix things that very day.  Our realtor brought us a gift card to a local restaurant and a teepee for the kids "to help them to remember their New Mexico roots, but in colors that would match our new life".  We have had multiple neighbors bring by flowers and chocolates and the ward has been so loving.  I can't rave enough about the kids' schools.  They are right next to each other and only a half mile away.  All of the kids have already been invited to playdates and birthday parties.  And I think my favorite thing of all...Summer gets picked up and dropped off at our very doorstep by the bus within ten minutes of the school bell.  Seriously...my eyes tear up a little every time.  I just love this place!  Everyone has been so nice!  When the trash man explained that I didn't have to bring my cans to the curb; that he would just collect them from the side of my house, I just wanted to start singing.  And when I walked into Home Depot only to be greeted by a smile in an orange apron saying "How can I help you today?" I nearly fainted!  (It's a big joke in Santa Fe that no one actually works at Home Depot.)

And it's been snowing!  I swear the snow is more beautiful here.  Everyone is so kind and they all seem thrilled that we have kids!  This entire community is built around kids and it's blowing my mind.  

So yes, January 2018 was totally crazy and a little challenging for us, but wow, I sure love where it landed us.  Here's to settling down in February.  Oh, and a new baby.  

Love,  Brittany et al.