Moving Canada to Panama: The Last Ten Days of Our Ordinary Life

Home Stretch

We made it, only ten days left! We have not been able to stop. It has been super busy and filled with some amazing times and some not so amazing. The final countdown to our move from Canada to Panama has not allowed for rest or relaxation. We have a full calendar of packing, cleaning and trying to see everyone one last time. But the week before the move would not have been complete without some sort of hiccup…and when I say hiccup I mean totaling our car. We are now a zero car family.

Lets start at the beginning. Zach was working his last shifts before retiring and we were spending our evenings with family and friends. On top of that we were in the process of purchasing our Amazon business. When we weren’t with people we were on the phone, in the bank or on the computer sorting out all the details. There were a lot of moving pieces to getting ready to leave Canada with a new business. I was getting to the point that I felt like I was drowning. I couldn’t seem to get anything done fast enough and there was a problem at every turn.

The Coffee that Wasn’t Worth It

So that fateful Saturday after getting all the kids and Zach (he was working a night shift) down for a nap I decided to treat myself to a coffee, donut and a thrift shop run to look for a couple books I had been on the hunt. I relaxing hour or two to hopefully lower my stress level. It was all going great, my donut was perfect, coffee was perking me up. I got to the thrift store and wouldn’t you know it but I found not only one but three of the books I had been searching for. I headed back to my car feeling so much lighter and ready to face the last week.

Getting in I take a deep breath and start heading home. I got no farther than 20 feet when the accident happened. I was in shock! Did that really just happen? I get out of the car and am shocked at the damage my front end is literally ripped off and in pieces. Of course the other vehicle is an old tank of a truck so barely any damage to speak of and here I am pretty sure I will need to tow the car. Thankfully I was able to zip tie the bumper back on, collect the pieces and limp it home. I was devastated and so angry, this was the last thing we need right now.

Finding the Blessing

After 24 hrs and many encouraging phone calls we realized how thankful we should be that the only damage was to the car. I was alone, praise God, and not injured. The car did its job and protected me from injury. The only thing we are in control of at this point is our outlook and attitudes. We have amazing family and friends and no one left us stranded our last week. So we made a bad situation the best that we could.

With the car all but behind us our final week was coffees, dinners, desserts you name it. Every day of the week we spent time with the people we loved. Lots of hugs and maybe a few (quite a few) tears before our interactions will go digital. My Sister made a joke that I was going to lose water weight with how much I cried lol and she might quite literally be right (that and the stress).

Special Moments

Our church family really spoiled us this week too. I got to spend time with my group of girlfriends and they showered me with love and prayers! This truly lifted my spirits but also kind of broke my heart as that community of people is irreplaceable and I will miss them so much. Our final Sunday was also so amazing as they gave us a special send off. We also spend time with our best friends just reminiscing and talking about life, marriage and kids.

Possibly the hardest goodbye were to my sister, brother in law, our nieces and nephew. We spend hours upon hours together and that time was such a blessing. It is hard to put into words what it feels like to say goodbye to your sister who is your best friend. Her kids feel like they could be your own. I know it isn’t goodbye forever but not having their sweet hugs and kisses for an extended period of time will be a struggle.

A Hard Goodbye

Tucker, our family dog, also had to leave us in the final 2 days and that one hit hard. I have had him since he was 8 weeks old. Zach and I met when Tucker was only 2 years old and now he is almost 9. He was our baby before we had our babies. It was extremally hard not only on us but the kids too. I don’t think anything would have prepared me for this one. I tried not to think about it a lot leading up so this last week I went through all the emotions and when he drove away I lost it a good bit!

If there was ever a positive God really came through for us again here. Finding his new home could not have gone smoother. When we first called our realtor/family friends about our crazy plan to move one of her first comments was about gladly taking Tucker if we needed. At the time we didn’t think much of it. But then as we went through the motions of the move we had 2 vets that confirm Tucker was too big, too hairy and too old to have a chance of adapting to the heat and humidity of Panama. He is a Bernese Mountain Dog after all, built for snow and mountains.

Remembering our Realtor’s comment we decided to call and ask, no pressure, if they were serious about taking him. Much to our pleasure they confirmed they would love to make him part of the family. We truly couldn’t have asked for a better family for him. We know he will get all the love and happiness he deserves and we will get lots of photos and videos of him.

Maybe we are Ready

So another week full of ups and downs but we have finally made it to the day before we leave. We have seen everyone given all our hugs and kisses and are so ready for this next chapter. I might barf from anxiety and anticipation but man I am proud of our family and getting through these last hard days leading to the move and I cannot wait for tomorrow and the adventure to finally start!