Two years.

My thoughts are too numerous to list these days. SOOOO much change overlapping SOOOO much memory... 

Leaving my island, embarking on a grand new adventure...

In a one-week-turn-around, we listed our home on PEI, packed up the essentials, and "moved" to Sussex, NB to be there for the beginning of the school year.

We had our super fun annual family camping trip at Mactaquac Provincial Park

Alea conquering the KU annual slip and slide

We arrived Sunday night, the 31st, to officially start moving in (meaning officially kicking Brent out...) and joining the KU family, made up of many old and new friends.

Roya was quite excited to join Esther Maskery (and others) on the annual slip and slide, but Alea would not budge without Mama! So, despite the terrible traction of wearing jeans, we did it!!

The KU annual slip and slide holds another memory when Lynn (as he later shared) had first made note of his interest in me. He was acting student council president at the time, a junior, and I was a new freshman. I often heard him tell the story of when he watched me and Sasha (Blaikie) Labonte go down with such grace and poise :) 

There wasn't quite as much poise this time... But maybe a little grace?? And this time, we were followed by "Daddy Brent" and Nathan Maskery running and sliding, competing to get the most epic air time over the bump...

Roya's first day of Grade 1 at Sussex Christian School!!

Alea's first day of Kindergarten at Sussex Christian School!!

Roya and Alea started school today at SCS! They have expertly maneuvered these last few weeks of change, moving, camping, taking in university life!! They are so beautiful and ready to thrive :) I am so proud of them!

Brent came to pick us up for the official first day of school drop off :) He was an expert Daddy, and the girls are completely comfortable and secure in his presence. We went upstairs afterward to pay and sign paperwork. Brent signed as father in all the appropriate places...

1st KU chapel service kicking off Fall 2014

After dropping off the girls, it was time for the Fall kick off KU chapel service! I tried to stay in the back and take it all in, but I couldn't quite contain the emotions of the day...

Lynn died on September 2, 2012, two years ago today. And here I am. Back in this place, where we met, dated, where he proposed, where we first lived and served as a married couple... Here is where we were nurtured together in the word and in fellowship, preparing for a lifetime of surrender and service to God, and to the body of Christ...

Lynn and I sat in on early planning meetings for the design of this chapel building, and in less than 40 days, I will be getting married here in this very room.

There are so many of the staff and faculty here who love and care for us, who have known me since I had first arrived on campus in 2001. But there are new friends as well. My neighbour, Angie, came to walk to chapel with me, keeping me company on an emotional day... Her husband Dave approached as I was seated, and without even saying hello, put his arm around me and spoke a powerful prayer of grace and glory over this day.

Oliver Locke is here :) Mairi MacPherson is here :) and others who knew and loved Lynn as we served together in Truro.

And here I am... all worlds crashing together into one... With a man of God who loves and cares for us well. A new family being born.

So many incredible blessings, and yet each echoed by a cry of loss.

My brain is mush today, while my mind stubbornly exhausts its effort to untangle the great mysteries of life which are impossible to grasp...

Time moves forward. Seasons change. Life changes forever... All things are counted loss (Phil 3:7) and yet some things are never lost...