So we are in the new house. It has been 3 weeks now and we’re only just starting to feel at home. Most of the boxes are unpacked, my husband finally has his games room and the kids have their own separate bedrooms.

The house is huge, so much larger than what we had before. Which is good and bad. Good as we finally have space to spread out as a family and seek sanctuary for ourselves. Bad as there is so much more to clean and keep tidy!

What has amazed me the most is the change in lifestyle and in the way we live. In under 3 weeks we have become a more active family, ironically in a place that has less than 1/8th of the outdoor space of our old home.

Our old house had land and lots of it. But while the backyard was large it was disconnected from the house and the kids felt too scared to be out there by themselves.  It did not get used nearly as much as it should have.

Now, the yard is used morning until night. The grassed area is tiny but it holds the trampoline and also hosts the totem tennis set. What really makes this place is the flat undercover area off the garage.

It is a place where the kids can ride their bikes and scooters, where we can eat outdoors and where they can set up their toys and play imaginary games regardless of the weather.

GIlbert has been starting to ride his bike, finally finding the coordination he previously lacked. He has even asked to go riding at our local bike track, something I could not have imagined him asking us a few months ago.

He is also utilising the trampoline, getting on there before and after school to self-regulate his sensory needs. This is already making a difference in a very positive start to Term 2 where is is staying on task in class and generally behaving himself quite well.

Matilda is enjoying her bike too – she’s getting faster and more confident with each passing day. She is also enjoying a hit of the totem tennis set each afternoon and loving the old Nintendo 64 console that we have set up in the garage/games room.

Actually, she is spending far less time on the iPad and watches a lot less TV which is a great result for us. Plus, she and her brother are actually playing together sometimes. It doesn’t always end happily (it never ends happily, to be honest!) but hearing them loudly playing “cops and robbers” together is something that I thought I’d never hear.

Delilah is also loving the new place. She always yearned to be outside and now she can, pretty much whenever she wants. The fact that we can see most of the yard from the house and are only a few steps away if needed means that she has embraced a new-found independence which is wonderful to witness.

All in all, the move has been great for us so far. Sure, the actual moving part sucked big time and I’m not looking forward to having to do it all again in 12 months time, but I think this is the beginning of a whole new chapter for us.

At the very least it has been a positive start.

 

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