A New Chapter: Letters From Elsewhere
Dear, Readers -
When we first started dreaming about packing up our life in the United States and moving abroad, we weren’t sure if it was ever going to happen. And here we are, two weeks out from our big move. Two educators, two little kids, too many bags, and a one way ticket to start a life we’ve been dreaming about for the last 10 years.
Letters From Elsewhere is our place to share this story, one letter and adventure at a time.
We’re a family of four: my husband, our two little ones, and me. By day, I’m a school counselor and he’s a choir/drama teacher. By night, lately, we’re buried in lists, packing and unpacking the same suitcases, researching everything from visas to playgrounds, and dreaming about what’s waiting for us.
This August, we’re trading our familiar streets here for the cobblestone streets of Zagreb, Croatia. We’ll be stepping into new roles as international educators, searching for fresh classrooms, new ways to grow as people and teachers, and new students to inspire and learn from. We’re also hoping to find a better balance between work and life. More time together, more time to explore, more space for our kids to grow up surrounded by different languages, foods, faces, and ways of seeing the world.
We’re stepping into this new chapter, hoping it shapes us in all the best ways. We want our kids to grow up knowing that home can be more than one place. We want to wander through the unfamiliar and find ourselves again in new places. We hope to meet neighbors who become friends, discover places we’ll return to again and again, and come back here to share it all. The sweet parts and the messy ones too - like a handwritten letter from a friend who wants you to feel like you’re right there with us.
If you’re curious about moving abroad with kids, teaching internationally, or just what it’s like to trade the known for the unknown, I hope you’ll find something here for you.
Thank you for being here at the very beginning. I can’t wait to see where these letters take us.
With love,
Haley
