Woo!
 Oh this feels good :)

 First things first - yesterday, we made it from Tulsa to Little Rock, with a quick stop at one of Arkansas' biggest wineries (Wiederkehr), and went at top-speed directly into a storage unit. We stopped hard, unloaded every non-essential trinket, trifle, lampshade and chair into storage, and then sped off towards Texarkana to see the family.
 Perhaps the biggest part of that to me was getting out of that deathtrap U-haul and getting back behind the wheel of my sweet little car. FREEEEEEEDOOOOOOMMM!!
 Finally! I can back up again! And go over 60 mph!

 That was exciting!

 Then, we arrived in Texarkana around 9 at night, were greeted by our wonderful family (and pizza!) and promptly fell into a much-needed sleep. A sleep that turned into a possibly even more-needed sleeping in - which was followed by a wonderful lunch (slept through breakfast) with some of our closest Arkansas friends!

 And, after some very late Christmas shopping, we're once again curling up for still more much needed sleep.

 It's going to be a big adjustment for me, moving here. I've lived other places than California before, but few and far between, and I've never made a move that felt quite so permanent - I'm not coming back in four years like I did after college, and not moving from state to state as work changes like I did after that.
 But, truth be told, it hasn't hit me yet. The decision, the announcement, packing, moving, the epic drive, unpacking…  It's all been so much, so quickly, and we've barely been sleeping during the process, so it still almost doesn't feel real.

 Then again, I had a moment today. Driving back from shopping earlier today we were driving straight into the sunset. The clouds down here in the South are absolutely magnificent - perfectly separated to allow light through, but be tight enough to cover the sky, fluffy and smooth in equal measure, and marvelously reflective.
 For those who haven't experienced one, no place in the world beats the South for sunsets!
 I saw that sunset, and I had those thoughts, and I felt a sense of pride. And not the kind of pride you'd get from seeing something beautiful, but the kind of pride one feels in finding something magnificent about their own home.
 Home. Tonight I had my first moment of thinking of this new world as Home. A little early, perhaps, but it's a welcome feeling, to already be at that point.

 An early Merry Christmas, everyone, and Happy Holidays :D