We’re Moving Across the World!

Our visas are in hand, the flights are booked and our bags are (almost) packed! We are all set to fly out on Wednesday! I am in absolute disbelief that this is finally happening. We have been waiting for more than 5 months to move internationally, but the visa process has been a bit slow. Actually, that’s an understatement. We thought we would be moving back in January! And we’ve been trying for more than 3 years now to be expats.

And finally, yesterday morning, our Australian visas were approved! For most of yesterday, I was packing and looking at apartments in Sydney, Australia. And just before that picture at the top of the post was taken of my husband and me, we received an email that there was a change of plans…we’re actually going to be moving to Tokyo, Japan for the summer! Then, we’ll be moving to Melbourne, Australia.

So, holy smokes! We will be spending the summer in Tokyo and then moving for an unknown amount of time to Melbourne (we’re thinking around a year in Melbourne – but you see how quickly things can change). We do have a conference in Chicago that we will be returning for in August for about a week. So, we won’t get too much time to miss the United States. 😉 And we’re planning on coming back for the holidays.

(My husband kindly asked I tell my readers that he has spent a bit too much time on his computer and not enough time on his appearance for the photo at the top of the post. He’s studying for a massive work-related exam he has to take the day before we fly out. He has literally been studying from morning until night. It’s crazy – and I still think he looks cute!)

I honestly don’t know what else to say right now! I’m kind of in shock, haha. A big thank you to my mom & stepdad for taking us in during this incredibly long period of limbo! And my husband’s grandparents for letting us store our extra clothes at their place (as we aren’t going to be needing our winter clothes anytime soon!). And our family and friends who have been very supportive of our weird life! I don’t know what we would do without awesome family and friends like you guys!

I really didn’t think I was going to be going anywhere anytime soon. After we hit the 4-month mark, I gave up all hope. We were looking at moving to Ohio for a project instead. And now – boom! All kinds of international travel! Oh, and I’m only bringing 2 suitcases with me…surprisingly, I’m doing ok. Haha. I am struggling with what shoes to bring, though. (They’re just so darn bulky!)

And I have done pretty much zero research on Tokyo…so, this should be exciting! Haha. If anyone has any tips or things to see in Tokyo, kindly let me know in the comments. I’ve already done some research on Melbourne, as we thought we were going to be living there when we started our visas…but then it changed to Sydney, and now back to Melbourne. Haha. But I’m open to tips and suggestions on Melbourne too!

Ok, I’m done babbling in my shock-like state now. I will continue blogging as per my usual schedule (Monday, Wednesday & Friday). I have an outfit post centered around this announcement for Monday, and I’m standing up in my cousin’s wedding this weekend (her wedding is going to be so gorgeous!), and I have some NEW Zoo photos to share…so, there will be posts to be posted! 🙂

I’m off to pack and prepare for a wedding, now! I hope everyone has a lovely weekend! I’ll be discussing this all a bit more on Monday! And if you haven’t read my “Getting Personal” post yet, click here to better understand why we’re moving around so much and how it all works.