Whoa

Just when you're at your breaking point and think you can't handle any more stress, things seem to fall into place. Drew and I have been SO stressed out about where life was going to take us, and finally it's worked out! Drew accepted a job with a great company in Boston and we will be relocating to MA Labor Day weekend!!! While the expense of living up North is not ideal, seeing my girls thrive being around so many family members and friends is going to be worth anything we have to sacrifice.

We just got back from a 10 day trip up North to visit family and attend a wedding (the best we have ever attended, aside from our own). Being in New England and knowing we're returning there so soon made it feel like we never left. It was surreal driving back here to SC and thinking that it's only for 4 more weeks. We have started the daunting task of packing our entire home and getting rid of things we don't need. On the ride home (which took us TWO FULL DAYS), we were discussing how great it was to see our girls with family. In the 7 days we were actually visiting, our girls visited 7 different houses and felt right at home in all of them. This was not due to remembering visiting before we left...it's been to long for that. It was simply because every home belonged to either family or friends and they immediately felt welcome and loved. There is NOTHING in this world that can ever replace that feeling. As a mom, I felt so good having my girls experience that. There were some homes we did not have time to visit which will be added to the ones where they already feel at home. That is the one thing growing up that I wish I had had. All my relatives were so far away that I never had another home to go to regularly where I felt comfortable no matter what. My girls have missed out on that being here in SC but will get used to it VERY quickly, as they did on vacation. It reinforced in my mind that we made the right decision by taking the job in Boston. We will be making some sacrifices (home size, vacation opportunities, material things) but gaining so much more. We will miss our friends here in SC. We will miss the things to do in and around Greenville, but we look forward to the opportunities that await us in New England. On our trip, my girls got to go in the ocean (first time for Stella, first real time remembering for Sophia) and will get to have that opportunity any time they want. It will be about an hour or two drive from anywhere we choose to live. I can teach them to ski at the mountains where I used to go. The opportunities make me so excited I want to leave today!

If you've never visited New England, I suggest you plan a trip. There is nowhere else like it. You can travel between the 6 states so easily and they all have such different things to offer. Last Saturday, we started out having breakfast in NH, drove to ME for a wedding, back to NH for dinner, then to MA (right on the CT border) to spend the night. You can go to the ocean in five of the states (sorry VT), go on beautiful hikes in ME, NH, VT (I'm sure in MA, too), ski during the winter at great mountains, explore the incredible history in Boston (by far my favorite city), attend sporting events for some of the best teams in the world....the list goes on and on. NYC is an easy drive, Washington, DC in one day...how can anyone resist?