It’s not exactly a tale like Brad Pitt’s ‘Seven Years in Tibet”, but I can’t believe it has been three years since we arrived in the US and were greeted by the gorgeous Lady of Liberty. Greeted by 36 degrees Celsius (95+ F) as we disembarked the plane. Not too sure why we had to get off the plane a mile from the terminal, but I suppose Aer Lingus was either late on arrival or hadn’t paid its fees. I’m sure it was just due to the delay, and we had enjoyed our first flight ever in business class. It makes traveling so much more comfortable 🙂
The first 18 months had many ups and a few downs. I suppose that’s what to be expected when you rip up your life as you know it and move lock stock and barrels to another country. You don’t realize how comfortable you were until you start over. And, the US has so much to offer, but sweet lord, it has so many interesting challenges for a new family.
It’s amazing how quickly our kids settled into their new life, gained new friends and improved confidence in the speed of light.
My oldest girl amazed us by quickly adopting the American lifestyle and accent. She no longer has her Irish twang, other than when she says bollocks, Dublin, Tayto, deadly and a few other expressions. But, as soon as we meet up with our new friends (from Ireland) in the US, she reverts back to her cute Irish words.
My son has jumped leaps since arriving here. Born with Down Syndrome was not ideal in Ireland. Although the Irish health system tried to do as much as possible, resources are fairly limited, and what he received in services in a year in Ireland, he receives in a few days in the US. For that alone, our move was well worth it.
My youngest adventurer is American. She was born in Ireland, but learned how to talk and walk here, so for her Ireland is just a distant memory. I doubt she would even recognize the homeland if we went home to visit.
We love it here!
The home of the free, the brave and other amazing folks have truly made our life better and helped us along this journey. We have met so many wonderful people in this country, and they have mostly been welcoming us with open arms.
We have our green cards, which are actually green, and look forward to when we can apply for citizenship. This is absolutely our home and country. We are proud of being residents in this wonderful land of opportunities.
I still haven’t adopted NFL, MBL and MSL – I still support my might Chelsea and love the fact that I can see most games … KTBFFH (keep the blue flag flying high).
Thank you America, for taking us in and making our move feel easy – we love you!