Dear Family:

Dear family,

Here we are – our last night to sleep in your house. Tomorrow morning, we’ll be loading up our bed, clothes & toothbrushes & officially moving into our new home. It has been quite the process, moving across the state & making our home here- you all have given us so much, sacrificed, and given up so much so that we could make this transition- we will forever be grateful.

406 days ago, you drove a U-Haul packed to the brim with our house across the state. You unloaded it into the garage & every available nook & cranny of your house. Boxes lined hallways, were stacked to the ceiling in the family room, and forced you to park a vehicle outside because all our furniture was in it’s place in the garage. Not only did you give up your space for our boxes – you gave up your bedrooms & moved to sleep under the steps, on the couch, and became temporary roommates. It was all supposed to be for just a few weeks. We were supposed to buy a house before the baby was born. It didn’t play out that way. And when the house buying process got difficult & we realized that we’d be staying longer than we’d planned, you rolled with it. We moved our boxes once, and then moved them all again- trying to figure out how to fit a second house inside your house, how to fit a second family alongside the first.

Then we added a 10th person to the already bursting house. I literally could not imagine having Braelynn anywhere else. Sure, I dreamed of having a pretty nursery, but your arms were so much better than pretty walls & a crib. You love Braelynn so so much & I wish she could remember living with you all & how much fun it was to wake up every morning & spend time with you. You helped me adjust to being a Mom and watched her for countless hours while I edited thousands of photos during my busiest photography season yet.

You’ve cooked us dinner every night, shared your hot water with us. You’ve adjusted your habits to accommodate ours. Took Abby out every morning. Dealt with Derrick’s crazy movie watching & his cranked up surround sound system. We’ve had super serious and controversial conversations around the dinner table and laughed until our sides hurt & tears rolls down our cheeks in the living room around a fire.

So, as I sit & ponder this past year on the last page of our chapter here – I am just so grateful. My heart is overflowing with gratitude for everything that you’ve done for us. You all are the best family ever & I wish everyone could experience family like you. We love you! It’s going to be so strange to live in our own house again – it’ll be lonely. So, I’m hoping for lots of sleepovers & “just dropping bys”! As exciting as tomorrow will be, it’s also going to be sad. We’re only moving 5 minutes away, but it’ll feel so far. I have absolutely loved every moment of living back at home & have thoroughly enjoyed every moment of this season.

Thank you – from the bottom of our hearts.
Love, Kara & Derrick & Braelynn