Oh man, friends. 2015 has turned out to be quite the roller coaster so far.
The M Word
I announced it on Facebook and in a blog post on Her View from Home, but I recently realized that I never announced it here. We’re moving. Paul got a full-time lecturer position in a smaller college town, and we’ve suddenly got a very small window of time to get our affairs in order and pack up our whole lives.
That’s a very dramatic way to put it, but dramatic is just kind of how I’m feeling right now, so since this is my blog, I’m not going to fight it.
There are more pros to this change than there are cons, but the cons, to me, are suuuuper rough. We’ve been mind-blowingly lucky with the friends in Omaha who have welcomed us into our lives. I already have incredible friends in this new town, but I’ve raised my babies with these other awesome people who have raised their babies with me. I’ve swapped baby carriers, dropped my kids off with friends for the first time, and talked about preschool with these human beings. I’ve had old friendships rekindled and cultivated, and become close with people I never thought I’d meet.
The part that gets me more than my own friends is my poor, sweet Charlie. He cries every time he remembers that we’re moving, and tells me which friend he’s going to miss. I can barely even type this without turning into a blubbering mess. Ugh.
My point isn’t to be a bummer… just to express how much I love all you Omaha people, and how all I want to do when I think of leaving you is this:
(That’s supposed to be a gif, but it’s clearly not giff-ing. Oh well.)
E is for Excitement
Now that I’ve gotten the lamenting out of my system for the moment, I’ve got to talk about the pros. There are so, so many pros. We’re going from a grad school/adjunct family lifestyle to that of one that involves a full-time position somewhere. That is going to be a relief to us in so many ways, ranging from financials to family time.
Kearney is so much smaller than Omaha. So, so much smaller. We will spend significantly less on gas, and will be able to ride our bikes a lot and practically. I just got a totally awesome cargo bike that can haul everything from groceries to small humans. Our lives are going to slow down significantly. Charlie will go to school, and as much as it makes me want to find another Leonardo DiCaprio gif, I know he’s ready for kindergarten, and I am also looking forward to getting some of the one-on-one time with Lucy that I used to get with Charlie.
Because the rental market in Kearney is similar to that of the gasoline situation in a Mad Max movie, we’ve found a very expensive, very large place to live. The price tag is painful and it’s definitely more house than we need, but the thought of living in a big, new home has both Charlie and I warming up a little to this whole idea of moving. Upon realizing that there are four (3.5 but from what I understand about toilets that means four whole toilets, kids) bathrooms, Charlie’s eyes lit up and he said, “MOM. That means if EVERYBODY needs to poop and pee at the same time… THEY CAN!”
And speaking of one-on-one time, I’ll get to see a lot more of Paul. Between the consistence of his new job and the proximity of grandmas and grandpas, we’re going to be able to have a little more “hey, we’re married people!” time than we have in a verrrrrrry long time.
And it’s not like I’m moving into some place hundreds of miles away where I don’t know a soul. I’ve got another friend who just moved across the country, and I’m pretty in awe of how she’s handled it with strength and grace. I’m very lucky to be moving to a town where two of my bridesmaids live, and where I already know more than, like, 50 people. This is not going to be a frigid tundra of loneliness.
W is for Work
I have to say that, despite how NUTS these past few weeks have been, I’m super excited about the present state and future of my writing business. With Charlie going to kindergarten (again, insert ugly sobbing here) and Lucy getting older and more self-sufficient, I’m going to be finding myself with a lot more time for more work and new clients. Here’s a little link roundup of some of the newer stuff I’ve been working on, if you care about that kind of thing:
How to Build a Proposal that Wins over Your Customers’ Hearts
Five Lessons Freelancers can Learn from Taylor Swift
How to Get it Done (When You Just Don’t Want To)
I’ve also been taken on over at Her View from Home as a monthly writer, which I am excited and nervous about. My writing has really switched gears from personal to business this last year, and it’s fun and terrifying to force myself to talk about my feeeeeeeeeeelings again.
So. There’s more to write about, but this post is pretty long. These are big changes and I need to write about them. I’ve written in the past about how my blog is like a super-understanding old friend who picks right up where you left off, regardless of how long it’s been since you’ve talked. I’m reminded of that again tonight, as I think about all the other friends in my life, and how grateful I am for their understanding, and for the beautiful pieces they add to this life-sized puzzle of mine.
(In case you’re wondering, the puzzle is 1000 pieces, and depicts a bunch of coffee paraphernalia that is covered in millions of coffee beans, and is titled, “Espresso Yourself.” It’s beautiful and fun and also frustrating and perplexing as hell.)
Thanks, friends.