From the Big Smoke to the Port City: Toronto family vlogs their mid-pandemic move to Saint John

Toronto family blogs about move to NB The Owens family made the move from Toronto to Saint John and took all their social media followers with them.

FREDERICTON — A family from Toronto packed up their life and settled down in Saint John, N.B. in the middle of a pandemic, and the Maritime newcomers are taking their social media followers along for the ride.

Jess and Jordan Owens decided to document their big move by showing it off online on their vlog.

"Mostly nature spots and kind of showcasing Saint John, I guess for the most part, but then we're also just sharing like our daily life as well and we try to keep it as real as possible," says Jess Owens, as she holds her young daughter Irie on her lap.

It's been an adventure so far. The Owens’ moved to New Brunswick in November and their videos have racked up thousands of views.

"We both are lovers of nature, we like to be slow pace," says Jordan Owens.

"We also go to Irving Nature Park, which is one of our favourite places to go. (The vlog) also showed us experiencing our first winter out here, which is -- I mean -- it wasn't too bad of a winter, but it was more snow than we were used to in the past," says Jess Owens.

They were excited about all the Maritimes had to offer, including real estate costs compared to bigger cities.

"Once I started working from home, you know, our one bedroom apartment seemed a little bit too small for the three of us," says Jordan Owens.

The pandemic also played into their decision, with so few cases on the East Coast.

"We feel for all of our family in Ontario right now just going through lockdown after lockdown," says Jess Owens. "We feel fortunate that we were here in New Brunswick where we didn't have to endure some of those lockdowns and really harsh restrictions"

The couple share their adventures under "A Tribe Called Owens" on YouTube and Instagram.