The End of an Era

This week has been the most stressful, yet exciting and at the same time kind of sad week of my life.  Big “emotional rollercoaster” if you will.  Hubs was doing some days at the base this week and on Tuesday we found out that he is being put on orders to work at the base for a few months with the potential of a full-time position.  Nice, right?  Well, he informed me that these orders don’t include housing, which I knew already and that they start May 1st.  I look at the calendar.  “So you mean to tell me we have to move to WI in 25 days and I’m not even in Chicago during the week to pack and get everything ready?”  That is exactly what he was telling me.

Panic mode, followed by excitement, followed by “what-ifs” flooded my mind.  I was surprisingly very calm given the situation.  I pause and look at him for a minute, “Okay, so we’re really doing this?” is what I responded with.  After he left my office, I immediately got on craigslist and started looking for a house.  I thought for sure all the good May 1st rentals would be gone.  I e-mailed my cousin who owns a few duplexes in the area and found out she had just rented one last week.  Bummer.  I lined up a few places for us to see and in record time (2 days), LC and I found the perfect home that would work for us right now.  It’s in an apartment complex, which I wanted to avoid, but is set up totally different than where we live now.  No shared hallway (therefore, no stinky smells coming from other apartments), private entrance, attached garage, washer and dryer IN UNIT (hallelujah!), a private patio area for grilling and al fresco dining, a grassy area for Oliver to play, fireplace, and a pool!  A pool…every “pregnant in the dead of summer” girl’s dream.

Even though we don’t plan on being in the house for more than a year, we’re hoping to buy our own place by next year, I wanted to make this house as much of a home as I can.  After all, this is the first place we’re bringing baby home to.  We were given permission to paint and LC said no.  We went back and forth on this and he agreed to the baby’s room and an accent wall in our bedroom.

As excited as I am that we will be moving back closer to my family and friends, I can’t help but be a little bit worried.  We’re still waiting to hear whether or not my position at the base will move from temporary to full-time.  Hiring for that starts next week, so here’s to hoping.  Also, at any point after LC’s orders are up, if there isn’t a full-time spot for him at the base, he will have to commute back and forth from Chicago.  So we’re taking a HUGE leap of faith in doing this, but I feel confident that everything will work out.

And Chicago…I’m very sad to be leaving the city.  I’m a city girl at heart.  I’ve lived there for almost 4 years and have considered it my home.  Every time I drive in and see the skyline, I can’t help but get excited 🙂 So I think that will be the hardest part for me out of all this.  Today, while I was laying in bed, thinking about how nice it would be to bundle up, grab some coffee and take Oliver for a walk in Grant Park.  I definitely forgot where I was (we’re in WI for Easter weekend & Oliver is with his grandparents in Chicago). Luckily, LC’s family and friends still live there so we will for sure be back for lots of visits and I still plan on taking the little one on walks through Lincoln Park, the zoo, Cubs’ games, and the Green City Market.  I will definitely miss the running scene in Chicago among lots of other things, but I’ll save that for another day.

Obviously, the name of the blog will be changing and I’m open to any suggestions on the name and how to make improvements on the blog.

I’m off to get a workout in, have lunch and a little retail therapy with a friend, and sign the lease to our new home today!  Enjoy your weekend.