I am not going to do the traditional New Year's Resolution blog post. All my resolutions are the same as last year (which I failed to stick to). You know the ones: eat better, exercise, kick my Coke habit (Diet Coke that is ;), stop procrastinating, etc......
Instead of looking forward to 2009 and thinking about all of the things that I HAVE TO CHANGE in my life, I am going to look forward to 2009 and think about all the things that WILL BE CHANGING in my life.
This year is going to be monumental for Bub, Kaylea and me. You see, we are moving. I don't mean down the street or to a neighboring city. We are moving to Florida. Bub applied for a different position with his company which requires the move. Our family is facing the move with mixed emotions, but I have faith that we all will benefit from this relocation in the end.
Bub is very nervous about leaving East Tennessee. This is the only home he has ever known, except for the 4 years that we lived in the Nashville area. He is a country boy and loves the mountains. I keep telling him he will adjust to Florida and learn to love it also, just in a different way. I don't know that he is totally convinced, but I think he is ready to face this new adventure.
His new job will be totally different than anything he has ever done. He will be traveling A LOT! They are telling him he will be on the road about 3 weeks a month. I think he is looking forward to the challenge of learning the new job and not being tied to his desk like he is used to. But, being away from his family is weighing heavy on his mind and heart.
Kaylea, naturally, doesn't want to leave her friends, her school, her house, her church, her art classes, her Karate studio, etc... Basically, her whole world is being turned upside down. She says she doesn't want to move, but then talks constantly about being able to wear shorts and flip-flops all year long. She loves warm weather, the beach and Disney so these things are always a topic of her conversations, also. She is excited about having a community swimming pool and level streets with sidewalks where she can ride her bike. Mostly, she is anxious to make friends and have kids living within walking distance of her house. All of these are things she does not have in our current neighborhood.
She hasn't thought about how much her dad will be gone and how much she is going to miss him. I am hopeful that she will adjust to that change - THE BIGGEST CHANGE- without too much trouble.
Then there is me. I am totally torn by the move. As you all know, I grew up in Florida. We moved there when I was three and I didn't leave until I was twenty-five. Most of my childhood memories took place in Florida. All of my school memories (Elementary, Junior High, High School, College) took place in Florida. That was home to me for most of my life. But when I moved to Tennessee in 1993 I didn't look back. I moved here to further my relationship with Bub and this was his home; therefore, this became my home, too. So for the past 15+ years I have called Tennessee my home. I have wonderful friends and family members that live here and I will miss them terribly. BUT, I also have wonderful friends that live in Florida that I can't wait to reconnect with. I am sad, but also, very excited.
As for Bub traveling, I am not looking forward to him being gone. It will be a huge adjustment for me. I am going to miss the heck out of him, but I am prayerful that our marriage will only grown stronger as a result and that I will be successful at parenting Kaylea in his absence.
For now, we are preparing for the move in many different ways. First, we have been working our tails off getting the house ready for listing. There has been a lot of cleaning, spackling, painting, packing, updating and general sprucing up. I promised several people that I would post some "Before and After" shots, so here they are:
Living Room, before. I loved my cranberry walls
Living Room, after. Nice and neutral and, hopefully, universally appealing
Kaylea's Room, before. BRIGHT tangerine walls and luau theme.
Kaylea's Room, after. Nice and neutral and, hopefully, universally appealing.
New counter tops and tile in the kitchen!
Close-up of counter tops and tile.
We have, also, prepared our family for the separation that will be involved, by equipping everyone with a webcam. Hopefully, this will make the miles apart seem a little less.
Lastly. I am trying to psych myself up to be a pillar of strength for Kaylea. You see, Bub will be reporting to his new job at the end of this month. Kaylea and I, however, will not be leaving Tennessee until the end of the school year. So, we are about to get a crash course in being a long distance family. Lucky for us, there are REALLY cheap airfares from Knoxville to St. Pete. Hopefully, we will be able to scoot down for a weekend or two, and then there will be the school holidays that we will be able to take advantage of.
I am asking that all of my blogging buddies keep my family in your prayers. Pray that our family will grow stronger and adjust to our new "home" with ease.
Oh, and by the way, if you know anyone looking for a good deal on a home with beautiful mountain views, just drop me a note. ;D
