Bom Dia, and Welcome to Brazil!

We made it. Hard to believe, but we are here in Rio. That intimidating list of of things to do eventually got done and we are now sitting in our new apartment near the Lagoa in Impanema, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. Wow.
       Honestly...if I take a look back about eleven years ago when Dan and I were just starting out, I never saw this one coming. We took our first major step about seven years ago when we left our safe little Utah and flew our then family of four, to the beautiful, rural state of Alabama. What an adventure we thought that was. Everything seemed new and a little intimidating, but eventually we found our footing there and ended up loving every second of it. I still haven't been able to listen to country music since January without tearing up a bit with homesickness. It was there, in Alabama, while Dan was working on his masters degree, that we learned about the foreign service. A job that would do a lot of good for our country, and allow us to travel around the world...he was hooked on the idea right away. I wasn't really against it, but I guess I didn't see it as a reality. It is very hard to get into, and without Heavens help, I honestly don't think we would have! It wasn't that I didn't doubt that we could get in, I just had a hard time grasping the reality of it all until we got an email last November telling us that Dan had been invited to join and they wanted us in DC in January. I already posted about that whirl wind move a while back. I had a few moments then where it hit me. My life was about to take a complete turn and the homey "soccer mom" life I was currently (and might I add, 'happily') leading was about to be changed drastically. In those brief moments of understanding I felt terrified and home sick, but thankfully they were short lived and I mercifully reverted back into a kind of bubble that helped make all the change manageable. In DC, after we first got there, I felt really grouchy all the time. Everything annoyed me and I couldn't figure out what it was until it occurred to me that I hadn't really accepted the change yet. I was there and I can honestly say I had was happy to be, but I still missed everything I'd left behind and I was unknowingly holding onto it all in a way that was causing me to hold back on the joy that was there in my new adventure. Once I realised this, it was pretty easy to tell myself that yes, I was sad about leaving, and I may even mourn that loss a little while longer, but that from that point on I was going to accept the change with all my heart and not hold back. It made all the difference in the world.
        I am grateful I learned that lesson on my first move, because it's helping me work through my feelings better for this second and even scarier one. Which brings me to Brazil. We arrived after a few-day lay over in Miami, on Thursday, May 16th. We flew through the night (still haven't caught up on the sleep loss from that trip!) and arrived bright and early at the Rio De Janeiro airport. (not before Lincoln made use of the barf bag while landing!) First though, I have to say, that stopping in Miami was a great prep for being in another country. Everyone there spoke Spanish. I found myself wishing they were speaking Portuguese so I could practise! It was a fun little stop, and I would have enjoyed it more if I hadn't been so excited to get to Brazil. When we arrived at the airport our sponsor and another person from the consulate were there to greet us and help us through customs, and then they drove us to our apartment. We were all so excited!(except poor Linc who still felt sick). Our fantastic sponsor briefed us on a few safety issues to be aware of as we drove past the Favelas. My heart dropped a little when I saw them. Favella's are the poor area's of Brazil where homes are stacked on each other and basically just thrown together out of whatever materials they could find. I couldn't believe people actually lived in them. I felt guilty driving to my nice, new apartment, knowing so many others lived like that. Rio is interesting because the city has the most poor area's imaginable interspersed so closely with an enormous amount of wealth.
         Anyway, I digress. We arrived at our apartment and I have to say, I absolutely love it. It is beautiful, and even has a maids quarters to use for storage. (No maids this time!) Our view is amazing and the lighting in the home is perfect. I have no complaints at all! I love, love love it.
         Dan ran for groceries right after we arrived while we still had the car and driver, (I don't know if I will be able to drive here...it's pretty scary) and the rest of us crashed and slept. Dan got home within an hour or so and he crashed with us. I think we were just so overwhelmed and exhausted all we could do was sleep. That night we mashed together a dinner or fresh mangos and teeny tiny bananas with fresh bread and cheese. Eating here is going to be very different. I haven't gotten used to that yet. Dan had to work the next day and then that evening we smooshed everyone into a cab and went to meet a very kind family we've been in contact with who have been here a few months. They go to the same church we do, and have kids our kids ages, so it was really fun to meet them. Our sponsor and her children came as well. I have to say, kids really to adjust well to new situations. Within seconds, everyone was playing and having fun. I am so grateful to both these women and their families for helping us feel a little less scared. They have been so kind to us!!
Saturday we spent sleeping in and then took a walk in the rain to find a mercado. Food in Rio is expensive, but we managed. That will definitely take some getting used to! We found a little store and paid to have our groceries delivered. It was only about four american dollars so I think we might do our shopping that way from now on. Even when we have our car (a few months to ship) there is little to no parking so we will be walking a lot.  We took a taxi to church this morning. We are in a Brazilian ward. There were so many kind people coming up to me and introducing themselves and I felt bad that could not understand a word they were saying. One sweet lady liked my name. She thought "Becki" was pretty funny. I told them they could call me Rebecca, but we'll see. Dan mentioned that he doesn't think we've ever been closer to having a dog run in during sacrament meeting than we did today. They doors were left open and we could here all the dogs in the street. The church has a cement soccer court right outside with a basketball hoop at one end. Even though I couldn't understand much, it was just nice to be there. I sang all the songs in a horrible accent, and loved it. I recognised all the melodies, so I was okay. They sang mainly without pianos...it was...fun. :)
We walked home around the lagoa. It took us about a hour, and the kids were pretty tired, but I think we will make a habit of it anyway. It felt good to be out there, with everyone.
I guess this is more than enough for today. If you've made it to the end of this post, I applaud you! I will write more later, but for now, just know that we are here, we are happy, and we love all our family and friends and miss you everyday. Here are a few pictures from our journey. I didn't take much! Tchau!

Ellie the week before we left. I went to check on her before going to bed and she wasn't in her bed! Scared me for a second before I turned to see her foot sticking out of the cupboard under the sink. Logan's been reading a lot of Harry Potter. Maybe it's rubbing off on her!

Owen excited for the move.

Linc and his best little bud in Virginia.

All our check luggage. This doesn't even include our carry-ons!

Ready to go!

 Four little kids on screens in the airport! My favourite part of this picture is the old man in the background. He looked to be in his eighties, in a wheel chair, working an iPad. Awesome.

The plane that took us to Brazil.

Our apartment view at night...

 Christu

 The Lagoa

And in the day...