New year, new beginnings...

January 2nd 2019, our world was packed up and packed off to the USA. I woke the next morning to hear the news saying that a container had fallen into the ocean...maybe I was dreaming.

After cleaning the house within an inch of its life, I was ready to go with painted red white and blue toes and suitcases packed. Lulu's crate had been organised and I confess I had over measured to give her more room - she seemed dwarfed by it when she got in a day before I travelled, but in typical Labrador fashion was totally oblivious to what was happening.

I was all ready the next day and Poppy helped me park my Beautiful Bertie Beatle in the garage. Off I went in the Uber, crying.....what on earth was I doing? It was the same thing I had been asking myself for the last few months in fact.

The flight was fine and I arrived after a good sleep, very excited to see both Mark and Lulu.

Mark picked up Lulu from the animal centre after he had completed the customs forms and she was lifted down by a forklift truck, something she hated!

Meanwhile I was stuck in a meandering ten line queue (an underestimate!), which was never ending and stretched the entire area. We all shuffled forward two steps, stopped, listened to the staff shout at a few new arrivals about where to go; every age and nationality had the same expression on their faces as we kept passing each other and were saying the same things to each other in countless different languages - basically WTF!

Two and a half hours later I was called forward and I smiled sweetly at the customs officer who had looked at my customs card earlier and told me that I had filled it in wrongly. I had tried to explain that although I had an American address, I had only just arrived. He just looked at me and then rolled his eyes to the man next to me. He was fine when I saw him an hour later thank goodness.

Welcome to America he said.