I Must Have Done Something Right: Home Sweet Home the British Version

After a long and agonizing 6 months, Brenna finished 6th grade and we finally made the final transition of our move to Scotland where we joined Jacob. Life in Britain is starkly different than the life we knew in Texas. When we moved to Canada things were different, of course, but it was more of a quirky new way of doing the same old things. That is not the case here. Even the simplest of tasks seem to be done in a completely different manner. Laundry, grocery shopping, and driving (oh my, driving!) have all become much more complicated. Because my unit is a washer/dryer combo (as in, it washes and drys in the same tub, not separately) it takes on average 6 hours to complete one load of laundry. I walk a lot or take the bus. I generally only drive to and from Brenna’s school. The school is less than five miles from our house, yet it takes me an hour round trip every morning for drop off and usually longer every afternoon for pick-up. The streets are extremely narrow and there are lots of hills and curves. Bicycles and bus stops use the same lanes as motor vehicles, and pedestrians seem to be darting across streets everywhere! Since the average speed is 30 mph it takes forever to go only a short distance and then when you’ve reached your destination, there’s no where to park, because in a old city like Edinburgh space comes at premium and no one is willing to waste it on a parking lot. Fortunately, there’s a bus stop just a few steps from our house. Buses are abundant and frequent and change for “bus money” has become a priority.

Food has been another issue in this relocation. I certainly can’t complain about the classic British dishes served up here. The fish and chips are delicious and I’ve even managed to fit some haggis into my culinary adventures, although I could do without baked beans and black pudding on my breakfast plate. But I miss Chick-fil-A, Popeye’s, and TexMex! The comfort foods we love are nowhere to be found and neither are the ingredients. I desperately miss Rotel tomatoes and Colby jack cheese and just this week a store clerk actually laughed at me when I asked him where to find the cornmeal. What’s Grandmaw’s chicken pie without cornbread!

Communicating has proved challenging at times. Just for me really, because Jacob and Brenna seem to get along just fine. I have a much thinker accent than either of them and unfortunately my southern English does not always interpret well here. Brenna is constantly stepping in for me at checkout stands and restaurants to relay my requests. On the flip side, the Scottish accents can be very thick and there’s also Gaelic words mixed in. Couple that with all the British slang phrases that I don’t understand and I frequently find myself wondering if we really are all speaking the same language!

We live in a village just outside the city center. We were very fortunate and found a peaceful little place on the Water of Leith (we’d say river) that backs up to the Pentland Hills. The house is named The Aspect. It's such a lovely location. The house is actually below the street, so if you're looking from street level you'll only see a small parking area for our cars. You take a few steps down to our front door. Our little hill gives isolation and serenity from the busy street above. Every morning I wake up to the view of fluffy sheep grazing over rolling hills of green pastures. Our garden (or backyard, as we would call it) is filled with beautiful blooming flowers and bushes. Since I don't have a green thumb, I hope they survive our stay here.

While there's clearly been lots of changes, it's been an amazing experience so far. Castles are plentiful and the landscape is beautiful. We've got lots of travel planned and Brenna is excited to start school.