A Quiet Life Update (and Why I Went Quiet)

Hi - Thanks for still being here. Really.

I didn’t expect to go quiet for this long, but the past several months have been… a lot. Moving abroad has been such a gift, but the adjustment period hit us hard once the “honeymoon” phase wore off.

For a while, we were very much in the culture shock phase - the constant learning curve and the feeling of being just a little bit out of place everywhere. It wasn’t one big moment, but a long stretch of learning, adjusting, and honestly, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

Seasons like that have a way of quietly pulling you inward, asking you to take a step back (or five) and focus on what’s right in front of you.

We’ve started to come out of that “crisis” stage of the expat adjustment cycle and into something gentler - adaptation. And honestly, it feels like exhaling. There’s more peace, more confidence, and a growing sense that life here is starting to feel like ours.

It’s not perfect, and there are still days that stretch us, but it’s the most settled we’ve felt since arriving here in Zagreb eight months ago. And that feels really good to say.

So this is just a small hello. An update on where we are now. A step back into this space.

I’m really glad you’re here.

Haley