Happy Tuesday! Anyone who knows me, knows how much I love my family and friends back home in Ottawa. Thang's favourite joke is about how I just always want to move back to Ottawa. I totally do, but not yet. This time about a year ago, we were planning on extending our time in London. Well, our plans changed and now I am so excited to be in Australia and explore this beautiful country and travel around this side of the world a bit more.

But it does get hard. Sometimes I get homesick and miss my friends and family and the dogs! FOMO! Like last week I was falling asleep and I saw my cousin's snapchat story from earlier in the day and she had been playing pool with my brother and I randomly started to cry! LOL I wanted to be there with them!

So here are some of my top ways to keep from being homesick:

1. Facetime

Now that we've mostly gotten used to the 16 hour time difference, it's been great to facetime. Thankfully, Melbourne has cheap data plans just like London did. I talk to my mom and dad almost every day, and I love facetiming my cousin Tammy and her kids. Last week I got to facetime my girlfriend and her baby. She said the baby likes looking at faces, but I think I probably scared her lol. It can be hard to arrange with the time difference, but it's always a nice way to catch up.

2. Snapchat

Truthfully I'm probably a little too old for snapchat. I followed Kylie Jenner on Snapchat for a week and had to stop or burn my eyes. But ever since I moved to Toronto, snapchat has been my hands down favourite way to keep in touch with people. It started with just my cousins and my brother. I would send them funny face pictures or what I was having for lunch that day. Now I have more cousins on both sides of my family. It's so nice to send a quick snap over something that you want to show or say, but wouldn't be worth a text. And my girlfriends have a group chat. I love being able to see their kids and what they are all up to! Some of us have had record streaks going from snapchatting everyday. And looking like crap, no problem, just put a filter on. Watch out because I just got my own Bitmoji and I'm out of control!

3. My homesick book

When I moved to Toronto, my family gave me a book with life advice and tips and well wishes. I bring it with me on every move, and it reminds me of how much I admire my family and friends. I appreciate their wise words and love taking it out to read again when I am feeling a bit down. Usually I'll just come across it in a drawer and take it out for a quick read. It reminds me how everyone is behind me and supports me no matter what, and I will cherish it forever.

4. My girlfriends

My girlfriends are truly the best. There are 8 of us who stay in regular contact and participate in that snapchat group chat I referred to earlier. But honestly, we have been friends since high school (some of us since elementary school) and I know we will be friends together. Whenever they are planning a brunch, or movie night, or any sort of get together, they make a facebook event, and they ALWAYS invite me. Even though they know there is no way I will be able to go, it seriously means so much to me that they include me anyways. Sure, I get homesick because I won't be able to go, but this way I am always up to date on what's going on, and I can follow along with the inside jokes.

5. Explore

If I'm feeling sad, or missing home, I love to get out and do something and explore and see something new! It reminds be of why I choose to be so far away, why I am so lucky to have these opportunities. My mom always tells me to enjoy these experiences. Her mother, my grandmother would have loved to travel so much but didn't have the means to. And my great Aunt Marlene had the money to travel, but not the health. I live a very lucky life and I get to be very selfish sometimes being so far from responsibilities. So I try to get out and see something cool and send pics or snaps back home, or facetime my family from somewhere cool. And I think about when(if) people visit me, all the cool places and things I will get to show them!

6. This blog!

This is a newbie, but I'm hoping that this blog will help me keep in touch with people and keep everyone updated! At the very least it will be an incredible thing for me and Tj to look back on someday :) 

I hope you are having a great week so far!