post-moving thoughts: five months in

A friend of mine might be moving this fall and her mind is running in a million different directions. Her husband has applied for several jobs, all which would require them to move to another state. She has a great job, great friends, a great church and she's involved in activities that she feels passionate about. Knowing that she might be moving has made it hard for her to make plans and continue investing in work and friendships, but the alternative (cutting herself out of situations) is just as hard. She wants to look up jobs and houses but also doesn't want to get her heart set on anything that might not become reality. Boy can I relate.

We knew we might have to move when Andy was hired by Kellogg's last July. I chose to stick with my job and become a new small group leader even though I had no idea what the future would hold. It was tough! I felt like I couldn't really commit to anything. If you've been reading for a while you might remember that last fall/winter included five months of living apart from Andy, me quitting, re-taking my job and quitting again, almost signing the lease to a house I LOVED in Warrenton, Virginia and ultimately moving to Maryland.

Ugh, just writing all of that makes me feel sick to my stomach. I hope we never have to go through anything like that again! Moving is rough. Just like everything else in life, though, it gets better. Five months in and...

- I've unpacked every cardboard box (plastic bins don't count, right?)
- I've borrowed something from our neighbor
- Both of us have made a few friends
- We found a church home and are currently in the process of becoming members
- I've found a small group to attend as well as a new group to help lead (yay for college ministry!)
- We know which grocery stores we prefer
- I know which nail salon has the best prices
- I've been to the MVA (DMV) a jillion times (blegh!)
- We know when to avoid the highways

and the big one... we feel at home here! 

Come visit any time. :)

to Maryland we go

oh, friends. Is it possible to have a happy and a heavy heart at the same time? I say yes.

If you haven't seen on my facebook, we've got big news to share. We're moving to Maryland. Never thought I'd say that! (In the words of a brain-dead friend, I get to live in New England now! hehe. )

We're very sad to leave our sweet home and our wonderful community of friends. We've been in this hard place before - last November I quit my job and looked at places to live in Warrenton - but then we miraculously got to stay in Harrisonburg. For a little while, at least! I know it's been hard to keep up with all the job changes. So here's the breakdown: Andy was hired by Kellogg's in July, lived and worked in NOVA for five months, moved back home in January and worked in a new territory for the past month and a half, and is now getting ready to start a new job in Frederick on April 1st. I'm incredibly proud of Andy for getting a promotion so soon after being hired by Kelloggs. We're both blown away by how this job landed in his lap. God is good!

Neither of us know really anything about Frederick (though we've passed by it many times), but we will be an hour closer to my parents and a little less than two hours away from my family's cabin in PA. Plus, I've always wanted to explore Baltimore and Annapolis with Andy, and maybe take a weekend trip to St Michaels.

It's weird to think that a month and a half from now we'll be in a completely new home and a new city. I don't know how I feel about that! Ok, I'm mostly sad. But I'm excited, too. I'm glad that I get to share this adventure with a man I love and that we serve a God that we trust.

aaaand, if that wasn't crazy enough, I leave for Uganda TWO WEEKS from tomorrow! (If you think I'm in freak out mode, you're absolutely correct.) I went ahead and put in my two weeks notice, so when I come back from my trip I'll be able to spend the rest of March packing up the house and spending as much time with my friends as possible.

is this real life?