An American in England: Goodbye 2015!

Once again time has passed me by and I can't believe the year is coming to a close. This year has been one of stability, but incredible change. A week from now, Alexander and I will be celebrating one year in England, and the longest we've gone without changing address since we've been together. Two weeks from now we'll be marking the ninth month of our son's life, and reflect on how much he's grown and changed. Our days of quick weekend getaways are behind us, substituted by family outings. This New Year's Eve will not be spent in a foreign land as our previous ones, but instead at home...in pajamas.

People always say that parenthood is life-changing. I guess I used to think of it as a bit of cliché. I honestly never thought anything would come between me and my passion for travel.

I was wrong.

Of course I still dream of exotic lands and romantic escapes, but the one thing that brings me pure joy is watching my baby boy grow up and learn new things and discover the world around him. I do miss my days of travel, but not more than I adore my days spent with my little one. Now my dreams are not for myself but for my son. I want him to see the world. I want him to explore, to learn, to travel, to fall in love with adventure. I want to hold his hand as he experiences new aspects of life and I want to let go when it's time for him to have those experiences on his own.

This time of year is always filled with reflection. Looking back on 2015, the most amazing experience I had was the realization that I helped to create a tiny human. What's more amazing is that I will be responsible for shaping that tiny human into a unique, beautiful, curious young person, who will then hopefully become an interesting, kind-hearted, adventurous adult.

With the blessings of this year, I can hardly wait to see what next year has in store. For now, I'm just content holding my boys in my arms and soaking up the love from this family of three.

Happy New Year!