Moving

So we are in the process of moving yet again. We are hoping the place we are moving to may be our last move for the next few years, but we may have to play it by year. Anyway, moving is never cheap. No matter if you do it yourself or hire someone to do it. Over the moves we have gotten a lot better at doing it as cheaply as possible. I have to say, minus paying someone to move our piano (my husband and three friends nearly killed themselves the last time they moved it), nothing is costing us much more than $100.

There are three things we are doing this time that is both helping us out and saving us money.

~ We have made friends up here who have teenage boys. We have hired two of their three boys to help us move (one had other things to do) out of and into our places. Hiring them is one of our higher costs, but still significantly cheaper than hiring a professional. Plus we just can't do it alone anymore with two kids. We have moved by ourselves so many times, which easily takes a few days and we are so blessed to have people helping us out.

~ I called around and found out that by asking nicely, you can have them reserve boxes from overnight stocking to use for packing. I spoke with the overnight manager on two occasions and the only catch is you have to be there bright and early (ok not too early - before 8) to pick them up. It was really bothering me thinking about buying a whole bunch (last time was somewhere around 100) boxes just to use once and discard. Not only is that a waste of money IMHO, but it is such a waste of resources. I like using and reusing things that are already out there (within reason).

~ We are packing a few boxes that are the last to get sealed and the first to get opened. They have toothpaste, ibuprofen, allergy meds, all of our baby's meds, vitamins, a few towels, a few pots and pans and dishes, a few cups and some staple foods. That way we are not running out at midnight to the store to get something we likely have three or four of but just can't find because all of our stuff is in boxes.

I surely hope this is the last time until we *hopefully* move back to the Midwest some day.

Yippee!

I am so happy to report I have been let off of the complete bed rest that I have been confined to for the last month. I still have to take it easy, but it was the best news I could have gotten. It was great timing because my best friend was in town so we actually got to go do some things instead of hang out in the hotel room all weekend.

God is teaching me so much patience this summer and a lot of times, I don't want the lessons but know they make me a stronger woman of faith. I am so blessed to have all the support I have, even being so far away from home. It is easy to get discouraged when everything seems to be working against you, but in the last week we have secured a place to live, found out the baby is developing normally and that I can resume some normal activities - all good news when it was really needed! Now if only I could have a drink....:).

Challenging Adjustments

Moving to a new place really can be fun and exciting and interesting as well as scary and challenging and lonely. I think I could have stopped moving a few cities ago, but God has had other plans and I trust that the Lord has a plan for wherever we are called to. We are still trying to find a place to live. We've decided to move into a rental for a bit so we can get a bit more settled while the baby is born and then in the spring find a place we want to stay longer. We are still hoping to sell our house in Minneapolis, but unfortunately the housing market is terrible and it's a difficult time to sell so we just have to wait and see.

We at least have our new doctors and our son had tubes put in his ear this week. We've now been here a month and at least know a bit more about where we are staying. It's really interesting because most families here are two income families and the ones that aren't, usually the working parent makes well over $100,000 a year and more likely $200,000 or $300,000.

When looking for houses, no one can seem to wrap their head around the fact that I am going to only work part-time outside the home because I really want to be home with my boys. The average house prices where we are run about $750,000 - yeah right! Moving from the Midwest, it's just a big jump. I guarantee that has the biggest influence on the increase in cost of living. In general, the overall cost is not that much, but depending on what you use and need, I think it can be more or less.

We've looked at pretty tiny houses and more often two bedroom apartments that cost around $300,000. It's just an adjustment and we think in order to just pay our bills and pay our student loans, I'm going to have to keep working part-time.

As far as moving, it can be difficult and put such strain on a marriage. My husband is such a good man and I appreciate how he honors me, but there is just a lot of strain because 1. We only know each other and 2. There are so many life changes happening at once. We also get torn between keeping in touch with friends back home and other places we've lived and spending that time making new ones. We try to balance it out, but it can be depressing hearing everything you're missing when you don't even want to and so it is usually healthier to make yourself put time into making new friends. It makes the adjustments a lot easier when all the chaos settles down.

I just keep my hope in the Lord, knowing He will lead and guide us and help us with all we need. I just hope the only move we have after this is back home, where we can stay for a long time.

My Top 10 In Princeton

Since this was my first week going part-time, I had more time to actually see some stuff. Plus with the 4th of July, we got to go to Philadelphia and visit new things there....

1. Philly Cheese Steak
2. Liberty Bell on the 4th (I even saw the mayor of Philly there, he was about 5 feet from me).
3. Full-time exchanged for part-time at same salary
4. Baby slings for babies who want lots of lovin
5. Getting to try new ice cream places
6. Sundays at the beach
7. An actual holiday, where my husband is off and I don't have to work
8. Fun location, people actually want to visit (unlike Minnesota)
9. An easy-to-clean "house" since there is so little stuff
10. Planning trips to St. Louie

My Top 10 In Princeton

So my mom challenged me to figure out 10 things every week that make this place ok and maybe even fun and exciting and then send them to her. It helps to focus on the positive and since everything out here is essentially new, I figured why not.

1. beach nearby
2. Princeton has so much history
3. free living for two months
4. warm summer days, like St. Louis, with a lot of cooler evenings, like Minnesota
5. lots of everything nearby
6. definite improvement of public transportation
7. friendly place where nearly everyone is not from here
8. a solid job for Jim
9. half day Fridays at his job
10. entire weekends of hanging out....ie no lab work!

Why 'Led By Faith'

After years of living on the Internet (and years of hating to write despite attending fabulous Journalism schools) I have decided to begin blogging. Many of my friends who are stay-at-home moms say it's a great outlet and after moving to a new part of the country, I figured I'd give it a try.

Don't get me wrong...I've blogged before. I am a photographer though and it has always been centered around my baby or my photography. But this time, I think I'm doing it more as an outlet and also in a hope to reach to others out there who find themselves in similar situations.

My husband just got a job on the East Coast and although nearly everyone we know and love is in the Midwest, we prayed very long and hard and truly felt like God has called us out here. Why is so beyond me and I cannot even begin to answer.

The last few months have been so difficult and I've so much trouble imagining moving out here. Nothing against the area, but an area doesn't make a place worth living ... at least not in my book. I hate missing all the things i feel like I should be around for with our family and friends, but am trying so hard to focus on the positives on being out here.

So there's the name...led by faith. Because of our faith in God and His role in our lives, we truly believe He has called us to come out here. We may not know the reason and it may be painful right now, but I truly believe that when all is said and done, we will realize this in the overall plan of our lives.

I am human and do not ever claim to be some amazing human being...because I am not. I am just a mom, a wife, a sister, a daughter, a niece and a friend trying to live the best life I am called to live. I am trying to balance what I hope to do with my photography and skills God has blessed me with along with the wonderful gift of spending more and more time with my little man and husband.

So here we are on our new adventure and although we do not know how long we will be around, I'm sure it will be interesting!