So… the summer of 2026 is approaching. And as many of you could read a year ago, this was supposed to be the moment we would move into our home in Spain. But, as plans are often made only to be turned upside down, things unfolded a little differently for us as well. So, time for an update!

By now, we have been connected to Spain and to FamiliaFeliz for over two years. From the very first visit, we fell in love. And that love has only grown deeper over time. We have now traveled back and forth to Spain exactly ten times, nine times by car and once by plane.

We have owned our house for over a year now, and we have already experienced many beautiful moments there. One lovely story to share is from last summer. It says a lot about the Spanish mentality and way of life.

In Rossell, where our house is located, we had already gotten to know the owners of the local bar, “Lo De Juanma.” Coincidentally, their family owns a house on our street, and one afternoon we happened to step outside at exactly the same time. We started chatting. We were on our way to the beach, while they were heading out with a large group to a part of the dry riverbed that was no longer dry because of the heavy rainfall earlier that year. They invited us to join them. Even though we felt a little hesitant at first, we decided to go along.

The journey there was an adventure in itself! A 4×4 vehicle would definitely have been more suitable, but thankfully our Citroën Picasso managed to survive the rough road as well. And the destination was more than worth it. What a little paradise!

After a few hours of swimming and chatting together, we were invited to join everyone at the swimming pool, and by evening we found ourselves all gathered in their family home on our street, eating pizza and pasta together. Our boys were immediately swept up by the children in their group and wandered around the village with them until well past midnight.

We were welcome. That much was clear. We could feel it in everything. And at that moment, it was the most beautiful gift we could have received.

Whenever we are there, we always try to stop by for a cup of tea and a chat, and to this day we still feel genuinely welcome every single time.

Unfortunately, we cannot be there as often as we would like. However, we are now finally connected to the electricity grid, which has made staying in our house much more comfortable. We have also figured out the gas tank system in Spain, meaning we now have heating during the colder months as well.

In addition, we have started removing the old mortar from the walls. As we do, the beautiful natural stones hidden underneath are slowly being revealed, and we would love to keep them visible as part of the house.

As two complete DIY newbies, we are still figuring out where to begin and what exactly we want to do. Our ideas do not always match perfectly. Ben is definitely the more adventurous one out of the two of us. I tend to like things the way they are and make adjustments gradually, while Ben’s ideas often go a little further and are a bit bolder.

On top of that, Ben is more into the heavy demolition work, while I would secretly much rather start with making the house beautiful already. I even brought a huge collection of mosaic tiles with me to create little pieces of art. (Newsflash: apparently, the demolition really does need to happen first before any of that can begin.)

Still, so far we have managed to meet each other somewhere in the middle.

We also found a handyman who can help us with some of the jobs that are still far beyond our own abilities. Things like adding a small extra bathroom on the ground floor, placing a support beam, connecting the electrical wiring to the fuse box, and installing an electric boiler for hot water.

So, you would think everything was perfectly on track. Which raises the question: why the delay in our plans after all?

The answer is a very personal story. I will share the story  with you, although I do not expect everyone to fully understand it, because it has much more to do with feelings than with logic.

Before I explain what happened, I want to start by saying that our three boys are not exactly eager to leave Belgium behind. Their lives are here. They play football here, they have friends, part-time jobs, family, familiarity. For them, this move feels heavy.

They enjoy being in Spain. But at the same time, it also feels uncertain, unfamiliar, and not yet like home.

At the end of March, I found myself holding a positive pregnancy test in my hands. I am 43, Ben is 44, our youngest is almost 10, and our oldest is nearly 15. This baby was absolutely not planned. So discovering that another little one was on the way came as quite a shock.

But no matter how startled we were at first, this new little part of our family quickly became more than welcome. And before long, we shifted into practical mode. Moving in August to a house that is still basically a construction site, while expecting a baby, did not exactly sound like the most sensible plan. So we decided to postpone the move for at least a year.

You can probably imagine how our boys reacted to that news. They could not wait to tell their friends that we would be staying a little longer.

Sadly, only a few weeks later, I started bleeding and miscarried.

Those first few days were incredibly hard. All I could do was cry. My heart was broken, and I missed that tiny bundle of love, the one I had not even wanted at first, more than anything.

Of course, we could have decided to try for another baby afterwards. But honestly, that simply does not fit our lives anymore. When it happened, we dealt with it and embraced it. But consciously choosing it all over again… that felt unfair both to ourselves and to a child. So the grief felt especially raw because it also felt final.

Spain had disappeared from our minds once the news of the baby entered them. And afterwards, all of us found it difficult to reconnect with our old plans. Not just the boys, but Ben and I as well. We felt further away than ever from the idea of starting a whole new life.

Thankfully, we already had a trip to Rossell planned for the end of April. We desperately needed to reconnect with all the reasons why we had wanted to move in the first place.

Crossing the Spanish border felt strange. Normally it is a little celebration moment during our journey. This time it still felt good, but heavier somehow. Unlocking the door and stepping into our house felt the same way. Like coming home, but quieter, less full of excitement than before.

And yet, after spending a few days there, something slowly shifted again. It felt good to be in our house. New ideas started flowing again about what we wanted to do with it. A friend came by and we gave him a tour of both our house and the village of Rossell. And somehow, that became the moment Ben and I truly felt again that this is where our future lies.

What a beautiful place. Both our home and our village.

That evening, lying in bed, we talked about everything. I said that I wondered what the message of this baby might have been. Ben answered with the exact thought I had already been carrying inside me:

“What else could possibly have stopped us from leaving this summer?”

And honestly, the answer was: nothing.

So for us, it feels like maybe this summer simply was not meant to be the moment we moved. And strangely enough, that realization also comes with certain advantages, including financial ones. We had become so focused on the idea of moving that postponing it had never even crossed our minds. But now we realize that waiting a little longer may not be such a bad idea after all, for several reasons.

Whether something will happen over the coming year that confirms our interpretation of the message this little baby brought us… only time will tell.

For now, we will continue driving back and forth, continue renovating the house little by little, and gently begin shaping a new plan to move in the summer of 2027.

But then again… you never really know what life will place on your path.

So we will see when the time comes.

With love,
Gwen