SeanFromCanada's Blog

Originally posted on 11.18.13

My youngest daughter is now 4. When Phoebe was born, she entered our lovely house taking us from a family of three to a family of four. No big deal, she was small and we had a bedroom perfectly set up for her. Oh how wrong we were.

An unanticipated hurricane of a personality, and the physical presence of an NFL football team, young Phoebe turned our spacious long-term home into a dog house with a developed basement. Unfortunately, all of a sudden, our family was in the wrong house.

We investigated renovating, but the logistics and options where limited, and far too expensive for so little return. It was one of the most difficult decisions we’ve ever had to make as a family, but we decided to move from our lovely home and neighborhood.

We ran the spreadsheets, T-charted the pros and cons. We forecasted, prognosticated and business-strategy’ d the strategy. After months of contemplation and assessment, we chose to move to a new neighborhood being built in downtown Calgary, called Currie Barracks.

Yes, following the base closer, and the office space rental phase, the Currie Barracks re-development plan was now in the phase of adding homes to the area. The long term plan really attracted us to the area, not to mention the close proximity of all our friends and work. I was surprised to find myself once again being drawn back to Currie Barracks, but I have to admit, I liked the idea. This area was really beginning to feel like home.

We moved into our new home in February of 2012. We live on a street called Beny-Sur-Mer Road. There is a plaque outside of our house that explains that Beny-Sur-Mer is a place in France where many Canadian soldiers are buried as a result of the D-Day raids at Juno Beach (and subsequent battles in land).

Every time I shovel my walk, I sweep my arm over the plaque, making sure to keep it legible for any passers-by. I figure it’s the least I can do for the boys who fought so hard those days in June, 1944.

I think it’s cool to live in Currie Barracks. It means something to me.