Greetings from Western New York!

A lot has happened in 3 days.

First of all, we can’t thank you enough for your kindness over the last few days (weeks, month!) and all of your words of encouragement. We made a huge life choice that up until we collapsed in bed on the farm Saturday night, we were worried might not be the right one. Moving is hard, and the emotional exhaustion had me questioning every mile I drove north.

But when we pulled into the driveway late Saturday evening and were greeted by my Mom and Scott’s parents standing on the porch to welcome us home, we knew we were right where we belong. The signs and balloons didn’t hurt either, Mom. ;)

So what has our first few days been like? Fortunately with the help of several of our family members and parents, we tackled the move and were unloaded in our storage unit by 2PM on Sunday. A HUGE thanks to my sister and her boyfriend for flying down to help us pack in Virginia and drive the truck back, and another giant thank you to Scott’s parents and my Dad and step-mom for unloading the truck. Without their help, I’d still be sitting in a box in the middle of my apartment in Virginia drowning in a sea of overwhelmed tears.

After we unloaded, Scott and I took to the couch for a brief respite before our first official dinner as New York residents. In this area, an image of the box alone can get people excited – but we made our decision months ago that Pony’s in Middleport (formerly Mr. Ed’s) would be our first meal. These suckers require a post on their own, but the best chicken fingers in the area, and I gather the WORLD, can be found at this little dive bar in rural WNY. Am I right, friends? And DC, anyone who plans to visit will end up trying these guys so you can head back and tell everyone that your life was changed by a chicken finger.

We have yet to walk down the streets of Medina to get the whole effect of being home. But we have already traveled to Buffalo (and stopped into Wegman’s of course!) and will be back several times this week for our first date night on Friday and Saturday for the Erie County Fair. Next week will most likely find us in the city for a mid-week date, and then we will take off to the Adirondacks for my first camping trip EVER. Stay tuned.

The most HILARIOUS part of our move so far? I not only introduced Scott to farm life by showing him how to do chores in the barn and how to handle the horses, but I THREW him head first into mucking out the goat pen, which was not a pleasant job. Thankfully, he says that farm life “smells”, but not “stinks” ;)

So many things to tell you, so many pictures are coming of our first week at home, but I am launching into a full makeover of what is our new bedroom (formerly a guest room) in this old farmhouse. Scott is working in his “office” in the other room, and I’ll be playing Joanna Gaines today and ripping up carpet, priming walls for new paint, and refinishing floors. It’s a passion of mine, home renovation and projects, so I’ll make sure to take some photos of the process for posterity’s sake.

Again, our most heartfelt thanks for following along as we adjust to this enormous change – to the DC readers who continue to support from afar and the WNYers who have already welcomed us with open arms.