And Now For Something Completely Different.

After a drought of over two years, this blog is being revived! Why? Because we have plans we want to share. As many of our friends and family know, Tom and I (and the kids of course) are moving half way around the world to Singapore! I knew I kept this poor, neglected blog around for a reason! After months of secrecy during which I resigned from my position as a school psychologist with the AEA, we sold our much-loved house, and we moved to a less expensive apartment, we are here.  Tom and I spent 24 hours traveling to spend some time visiting the country we will live in for the next three years. That has brought many decisions and new experiences, but first the questions we are commonly asked:

First, where the heck is Singapore?
Folks know it’s in Asia, but that is about it. Singapore is on the most southern tip of Malaysia, near Indonesia, north west of Australia.  Here’s a visual for you:  
http://ontheworldmap.com/singapore/singapore-location-map.jpg

Why would we ever choose to leave our friends and family?
Good question! We know it isn’t forever; we’ve agreed to a 3-year assignment. Also, we are planning to return once a year to visit everyone! We will come back during the summer for a few weeks to see everyone we love back home. We would also LOVE it if you decided to visit us! Serious!

What’s the time difference?
13-14 hours, depending on daylight savings time. Right now it’s 13 hours. Our days and nights are opposite from our people in Iowa. I’ve been here a total of 3 days and so far I’ve needed to call or text my BFF twice while Iowa was sound asleep. It may be a problem….

How long does it take to get to Singapore?
From Iowa, about 24 hours. We flew from Des Moines, to Denver, to San Francisco, to Singapore. That last leg from San Francisco to Singapore was 16 hours long. I got to watch two movies and sleep. If I try, I can make it sound like a vacation!

Why are we going?
Well, Tom had a job opportunity here that will allow us to travel and see places and cultures we otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity to experience. When we found out we made a pros and cons list, gave each pro and con a weighting, put it in a spreadsheet, blah, blah, blah (if you know us, you know this is all true). Then we looked at each other, said “What are we doing? We have to do this. Duh.” And that was that.

What do the kids think?
Amelia is excited. She’s also sad to leave her friends and family. Her emotions pretty much mirror those of her parents, she’s just a bit less logical and a bit more emotional, because, you know, she’s 6. Theodore… he’s clueless. He’s just going with the flow and is his happy self.

Am I (Rebecca) going to work?
Heck if I know! Initially, no. We need to get settled in a new country and then we will see if I settle into the life of a SAHM or if I lose. my. mind.

Where will the kids go to school?
The kids will an international school that follows the US curriculum so when we return home the kids will be in roughly the same spot academically. We toured the school this week and it looks amazing. I am excited for the kids to attend. I’m also excited to see the differences between the school system in Iowa and the programing at the international school. Theo will also be going to preschool there. He’s so social we decided he really needed peer interaction. He’s been with other kids his age his entire life, and he’s learned a lot in his amazing daycare this last year. We didn’t want him to stay at home and have (potentially) limited access to other kids his age. So, to preschool he will go!

When do you go?
My baby brother is getting married on August 11th, and we knew we couldn't miss it! However, we are going to need to leave the next evening.  The children's school starts on August 15th, and they will need time to adjust to a new time zone. We'd like them to miss as little school as possible.

It's nearly midnight here, so we are off to bed. We have more places to visit and explore tomorrow!

Rebecca