Weddings, Honeymoon in Vegas, Trip to Utah, and the Vision for the Future
Long before we arrived in the United States as a family of permanent residents, ready to start over, there was a much earlier beginning.
One that didn’t feel like the start of anything at the time.
It felt like a fleeting visit.
Our Wedding
December 2005
Reed and I, had already built a life together in Aotearoa New Zealand. By the time we married on December 10, 2005, we had been together for ten years and were already raising three young boys, Benji, Kit, and Logan, aged eight, four, and one.
Life was full, structured, and grounded. We weren’t searching for change. We weren’t planning to leave our humble beginnings, nor fathom the thought of moving to a different city let alone another country. At that point, the future felt set, wider family milestones were celebrated together.
My Sister’s Wedding
March 2006
A great blessing of 2006 was the opportunity for our families to come together to celebrate my sister’s wedding.
2005 Life had been incredibly busy. Between work, study, raising young children, and preparing for our own wedding, it would have been easy to become consumed by our own schedules and responsibilities. Instead, this occasion gave us something far more valuable, time together.
Family members traveled from near and far, gathering to witness the beginning of a new chapter in my sister’s life. There was laughter, storytelling, photographs, shared meals, and the familiar comfort that comes from being surrounded by people who have known you for most of your life.
Looking back, what stands out most is not necessarily the wedding itself, beautiful as it was, but the feeling of togetherness. In a world where families often become spread across different cities, countries, and life commitments, these moments become increasingly precious.
At the time, none of us could have known how much our own lives would change in the years ahead. We couldn’t have known that future family gatherings would eventually involve international flights, different time zones, and oceans separating us. We simply enjoyed being present, celebrating love, family, and the blessings that come from sharing life’s important milestones together at the time.
It remains one of those memories that reminds me how important family connections are, not just during major events, but in the ordinary moments in between. My sister’s wedding wasn’t simply a celebration of two people beginning their journey together, it was also a celebration of family, unity, and the relationships that continue to support us through every season of life.
Las Vegas Honeymoon
December 2006, we traveled to Las Vegas for our honeymoon.
It was meant to be a celebration, a break, a moment to step away from routine. We spent a week there with family, experiencing a different pace of life, a different environment, one that felt unfamiliar but not uncomfortable.
Destination – Salt Lake City, Utah
From there, we took a Greyhound bus to Utah.
That part of the journey carried a different kind of significance.
It was the first time Reed met my dad, and my three sisters. It wasn’t just an introduction, it was a connection of two parts of my life coming together in one place.
Looking back, that visit was more important than we realized at the time.
It planted something.
Not a plan, not a decision, but a possibility.
In 2007, that possibility became something more concrete.
After that visit, my dad and I initiated the Immigrant Visa Petition.
At the time, it didn’t feel urgent. It didn’t feel like a life-changing move was around the corner. It felt more like opening a door that might be useful one day.
Life in Aotearoa New Zealand continued.
We worked, raised our family, built stability, and created a life that many would have considered complete.
The petition existed in the background, moving slowly through a system that operates on its own timeline.
Years passed.
The idea of living in the United States remained just that, an idea.
Until it wasn’t.
What started as a honeymoon trip, followed by a family visit in Utah, eventually became the foundation for one of the biggest decisions of our lives.
The process was long.
At times, quiet.
At times, uncertain.
But it never truly stopped.
This series is not just about arriving in the United States.
It’s about everything that led to that moment.
The years in between.
The systems, the waiting, the decisions, world, life events and the reality of turning a long-standing possibility into a lived experience.
What This Series Will Cover
In the chapters that follow, we’ll walk through:
- The long path of the Immigrant Visa Petition
- The stages of the Green Card process
- The transition from life in Aotearoa New Zealand to the United States
- The reality of starting over as a family
This is not a guide.
It’s a real account of lived experiences of our journey…