Still.. Ok I'm gonna put my Pros list out and not worry that certain things might be immediately neutralized by my Cons list.
1. No More Winter - No more icy roads. No more bundling up and then bundling up some more just to leave the house. No more achy joints from the cold (yes I am that old apparently.. or my body has been too abused in it's short life). The lil boys, they don't do well in the winter. They are sick the entire winter long most of it junk resting in those asthmatic lungs. Once spring/summer comes they are completely different kids.
2. Bigger/Nicer House - Have you looked at the housing market in the Sunshine State? It's in the crapper to put it mildly. I currently have in my realtor.com page 76 saved houses that fit my very strict criteria. (5+ bedrooms, 3+ bathrooms, 3500+ sf, screened in pool) Houses that are bigger, newer and over all nicer than my house. Now don't get me wrong, I love my house. I do. But I need more space. I need more bathrooms. My house is older than I am
an]=-d the layout is not open and I need openness. Plus if I am going to uproot my family I need to offer them Better!! And come on, one of the perks of living in a warmer climate would be having your own pool to jump in whenever you please.
3. New Job - Daddy Chaos is currently going to college and when he's done he plans on looking for a job at a few particular companies. One of those companies happens to have locations in the same area I'm looking.. He is currently very frustrated with his job and we all know how hard it is to continue going day after day to a job that is frustrating. A job you can't like. The frustration carries over into your everyday life, it's hard for it not to. Obviously I realize that the same frustrations could be at a new job but it's a change.. The possibility for better..
4. Disney World.. ok it probably should have been #1 but I wanted you to appreciate the restraint I kept in place by waiting til #4 to even mention it. As you know, I am a bit of a Disney Freak.. So living close enough to go basically whenever I wanted, well that would be pretty much Heaven..
5. Timing - Everyone is okay with moving right now. I know that will be different in a few years. In just 2 years, Drama Queen will be a Junior in high school (o.m.g. how did that happen?) and I know that high school is rough enough without changing schools at that point in your life if it can't be avoided. So at that point, I would wait until she graduated.. Which is fine, but when she graduates Attitude King will then coming up on his Junior year.. Back into the unfair & needing to wait game. So it's basically now or 5+yrs from now. Ugh.
6. Thinner Family .. This one just sounds silly but honestly, in the midwest it seems acceptable to be ... Fluffy.. We have long winters and tend to be like bears and pack on the pounds.. We don't shave our legs all winter long (or is that just me?) and when it's too cold to go out we BAKE.. It's ghastly. Now this theory might not work once put into practice but it is currently my theory that if we live somewhere that we will need to put on a swimsuit more months than not, it's more motivation to lose the extra flab that currently surrounds us.
7. Distance.. Ok this one I admit is selfish.. I'm conflicted on even listing it here because it colors me in a less than rosy light. But in the name of 100% honesty, I'm going to list it anyway because it did occur to me. If you've read my blog for any amount of time then you know that the youngest four of my children are adopted from foster care. You may also know that I struggle to maintain a somewhat openness to our adoption. I have an "ok" relationship with at least one of the parents in each sibling set. Openness is offered to both but in each set only one parent really seems to respond. Mind you, I don't at this time allow visits because I don't feel it would be healthy for my children. But I do offer pictures & updates (if requested). Both sets of biological parents have done stints in prison. Heck some are still in prison. Both sets of biological parents live within 40 +/- mins of me. At this point, neither appear to know my home address but we live in a very small community. Only one set of biological parents really pose any kind of safety issue and I'm not even sure that it is an issue. They don't acknowledge boundaries well. They have violent tendencies and mental health histories. They have violence related felonies. While they have never threatened our family, it's still there in the back of my mind. For now, I allow contact. I feel it's not right to judge someone for what they have done in the past. People can change but they don't always choose to do so. So, yes distance while it makes me feel like a fraud would also make me feel safer.
Feel free to tear apart my pros list.. or offer more things to add to it =)
xoxo,
Huh. I always thought you lived in the south somewhere already. Don't know why.
ReplyDeleteI would love to leave the winters behind but there is always a trade off. Fetid humidity, reptiles in your yard, mosquito-birds. The south-west is beautiful but the heat can get to 115, and that is just too hot, lol.
But not having to shovel and owning no snow boots? That is a great thing. I lived in Phoenix for 2 years and when we were going to move here I could not buy snow boots anywhere. I think I finally found some at sears.
Ha Essie!! No I'm up here in the cold Midwest.. I could make it to Oprah in 3-4hrs :) Mosquito-birds, how could I forget that?? Especially when the 5yr old is allergic to mosquito bites- he swells up like crazy.. Heat/Humidity are crazy but I figure you only really have 2-3months of unbearable whereas winter seems to last 6months.. lol.
ReplyDeleteOOooo, I was right!!! :) Let me know if you need to know the details of any given neighborhood of the metropolitan area. You know I've got all the details. I've lived here my entire life! :)
ReplyDeleteTara- I will be emailing you my dear :)
ReplyDelete