A year in review

I have been thinking a lot lately about our life over the past year as July 1 marked our 1 year anniversary of moving to Arizona.  So much has happened in our life over the past year.  To say it has been a year full of change is a major understatement.  Not only did we move our children from the only home they ever remember living in, but we moved them to an entirely different state.  We have spent the last year living in a home that belongs to Scott's sister Twila and her husband, and though we are extremely grateful for their generosity, we are super excited to be moving (again) at the end of this month into a new home.  It still won't be our own home (we will be renting it) but we will be able to finally unload the boxes and furniture that have been sitting in Scott's sister's garage for a year.

With our move to Arizona our family also embarked on a new adventure.  Starting our own business. 

I think Scott and I had a pretty good idea that this would not be an easy undertaking and we were prepared for that, but I can honestly say that it has been WAY more stressful and overwhelming than I imagined.  Scott is loving it and is happier than I have seen him in years.  For him the level of stress has been a little easier in some ways and different in others.  For me I have gone from being a full-time stay-at-home mom to a full-time bookkeeper (something I knew nothing about!), receptionist, office manager, etc. in addition to being a full-time wife and mother.  Some days I have handled the stress more gracefully than others.  I joke that a year ago I could barely balance our checkbook and now I am responsible for managing our business and keeping everything organized and functioning.  Luckily, Scott's sister Debbie has been a HUGE help and has been very patient with me helping me figure out Quickbooks. Scott is great at what he does but I am still a novice and learning lots everyday.  I am grateful that I have been able to "work" with Scott everyday.  Our business is truly a family business.  During the school year the kids would all ride the bus to the shop after school.  Jordan is a great help to Scott and the girls have been good helpers in keeping the shop clean.  We have spent a lot more time together as a couple and as a family and I am grateful for that.

I know that we are far from being done with major stress in our life, but we have passed a major milestone and after a year I think Heber, Arizona is finally starting to feel like home.