I'm writing a Book. But I think its a Blog!

Welcome to My Journey

At 39, with three kids and a partner, I left everything familiar in Southern California and started over in Auckland, New Zealand.

This journey has been about more than just moving countries. It’s about courage, identity, culture, and the everyday reality of parenting in new soil. It’s about redefining what it means to belong, both to a place and to yourself.

What started as the prologue to a book has also become the foundation of this blog. Part memoir, part migration journey, and part love letter to both the place we left and the one we chose, my writing is where I sort through the questions and lessons of starting over.

If you’re contemplating a move, raising kids abroad, or simply curious about what it’s like to uproot a family and plant new roots halfway across the world, you’ll find honesty here. Some stories will be inspiring, some messy, but all will be real.

I’ve also been encouraged to share these experiences in other ways, through a YouTube channel, and maybe even a podcast. But writing has always been my first language. I used to keep a blog years ago, and I found it rewarding, not just for me, but for the connection it built with others. So here I am again, starting fresh.

My hope is that these words not only give you a window into my life, but also spark something in your own. Whether it’s courage, clarity, or simply the comfort of knowing you’re not alone in your questions. I hope this space supports your dreams and helps put you on a path to make them real.

Somewhere Over the Pacific (A Blog Book)

The cabin lights dimmed as I settled into an economy seat near the back of the plane. Outside the window, there was only darkness, just my own reflection staring back at me.

Beneath us stretched the Pacific Ocean, a vast distance now separating two versions of our life: the one we were leaving behind, and the one waiting on the other side.

Behind us was the place where my partner and I were born and raised. It was familiar, safe, and full of family history. It was where our kids had just started school, where birthdays and holidays carried the comfort of tradition, and where generations of our families had taken root.

Ahead of us, though, was something completely different: a country we had only visited briefly, but one we believed might hold more opportunity. More space for our kids to grow. Maybe even more room for us to grow as people.

My three kids were asleep beside me, their heads resting awkwardly against the seats, completely unfazed by the weight of such a big change. My wife was drifting off to the quiet hum of an in-flight movie, her hand resting lightly on our youngest. And there I was, staring into the window, caught between two reflections: one of the man I was leaving behind, and one of the man I was becoming.

It struck me that this moment wasn’t just about a flight. It wasn’t even just about moving countries. It was about letting go. Letting go of certainty. Letting go of routines that had become second nature. Letting go of a version of myself that no longer fit.

At the same time, it was about reaching for something I couldn’t quite define. Moving forward, yes, but toward what? A better life? A harder one? Something we’d celebrate years from now, or something we’d one day look back on with questions?

As I sat there in the dim glow of the cabin, I replayed the last few hours before departure: the rushed goodbyes, the heavy hugs. I thought of our last drive through the neighborhood, past the streets and houses that had quietly shaped our everyday life.

And then the bigger questions came, the ones that follow you whenever you take a leap this big:

What led me here?

How did I get here?

What made me choose this path, and why now?

Those questions didn’t have simple answers. Maybe that’s why I kept staring into the reflection on the window hoping that somewhere in the blur of who I was and who I was becoming, I’d find a clue. My path was leading me away a week away to an island in the South Pacific.

Check out my YouTube here if you would like to get away.

https://www.youtube.com/@CaliKiwiConsulting