If we were going to meet up for coffee, I would actually order a hot chocolate because I don't drink coffee. Crazy, right? But then I would remember that I gave up chocolate for Lent this year (and it's so hard!) and look for some sort of non-chocolate non-coffee treat. Seriously, I gave up pop a couple of years and thought that was hard, but no chocolate, and trying not to replace it with some other form of sugar (most days anyway) is REALLY hard.
After we got a treat, I'd tell you about life right now. 2015 feels like a year of big decisions for us. The first big decision I recently had to make was about work. I was able to take a one year leave from work after Baby C was born, and I have loved it. Early this year I had to tell work whether I was coming back or not and after much (MUCH) thought and a lot of talking with E and pretty much anyone else who would listen, I decided to resign my position. It was really hard. Actually much harder than I expected it to be. I remember wanting to be a teacher from the time I was really young, so deciding not to be a teacher anymore (at least for now) was hard for me. I may or may not have cried on the phone when I told my principal I wasn't coming back. As hard as it was to make the decision, I haven't regretted the decision at all since talking to my principal about my decision.
I'd also tell you about another big decision we're making this year, the one to move. This has been our plan for over a year and now that the time is here I'm finding it really hard! We haven't seen a house that we really love in the six or so months we've been looking, so while we're trying to get our house ready to sell most of our effort is going in to finding a new house. I'd probably ask you what you like and dislike about your house. I'd ask you for any suggestions about buying or selling a house. I think I looked at (as in went to) close to 100 houses (seriously) when looking for our current house, so I know this process takes a lot of time and work, but it's starting to get me down. Here's hoping we find something amazing this spring!
One push to move now is that Miss A will be starting kindergarten in the fall and we'd like to make the move before school starts. I can't believe she's starting school so soon! It feels like she was my tiny baby yesterday and later this month she'll be five. FIVE. Where did those five years go?! I know she's excited to start school, and I am excited for her to start, but a big part of me is also sad that she'll be away so much. I might laugh about how we'll be working on writing her name from now until the first day of schools. First and last names together are 18 letters. Sorry girls (they all have 18 letters)!
And, because no post is complete without a picture, here's my Baby C being extra adorable.
So, how are you? Any advice for house searching or having a kid start school?
awww that pic of Baby C is adorable. Frame it for sure!! House hunting is SO hard. I feel your pain. The most important room for me is always the kitchen. It's where we probably spend most of our time - an island with stools for the kids is a must have for me. Good luck. Spring time is a great time to be looking - lots of houses will come on the market!!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree on the kitchen. I would love a big island with some stools. My dad's house has that and I'm always sitting at the island when I visit. Have you found anything yet?
DeleteThat baby of yours is just so adorable!! Happy for you that you made a decision that felt right about resigning... that had to be really hard though! I think it would be REALLY hard to have 2 parents in demanding jobs with 3 kids - so glad that both my husband and I have flexible jobs or it just wouldn't work. Aside from the breaks and summers off, teaching is not so flexible and can be quite draining!
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the house hunt... I was shocked at how fast we found our house this time, I think we looked at 60+ the first time around. Are you staying in the same general area? I still am so happy we made the decision we did with our house! It still needs some work but we love the overall space and the area it's in, along with the schools. Hope you find the same!
I think a lot of people don't realize how inflexible teaching is. Summers off is great, but kids getting sick/needing days off during the school year is a pain!
DeleteI'm so jealous of how quickly you found your house! We're maybe staying close, maybe moving further out to the 'burbs. My husband especially wants a big yard, and I don't know how easily we'll find that near where we live now.
Did you intentionally make the girls' names have the same amount of letters or was it just a happy accident?
ReplyDeleteAlso, we have been house hunting on and off for the past few years so I totally feel your pain on that front!!
Happy accident! I didn't really notice until after we decided on Catherine's name. Miss A's teacher said she was doing a good job writing her name considering it's a long one... then I realized it's the easiest to write of the 3.
DeleteGood luck with your house search if you keep going!
Congrats on your decision to stay home! I left teaching (7-12) after my 2nd was born. I renewed my license but at this point I really don't think I will ever go back into a classroom. At least not a jr/Sr high setting. Also, moving with 3 little ones makes me cringe. I can't even imagine keeping my house clean enough to have on the market. ..
ReplyDeleteKeeping it clean while on the market will probably drive me crazy ;)
DeleteMy license expires this year, so I'm going to renew and then see what happens. My principal said she'd be happy to have me back when I'm ready, so maybe that will work out, but who knows what things will be like when I'm ready to go back.
Yay! Congrats on official SAHM status! I'm sure it was a very tough decision to make, but you never get these days back so I'm sure you'll never regret it.
ReplyDeleteI'm no house buying expert (although I used to work in real estate and I'm married to a broker, so maybe I'm more of an expert then I let on, ha!), but it sounds like you are doing all the right things. The more places you see and the more familiar you are with the market, the better able you are to make the right decision when the time comes. We are thinking about moving soon too and it is just such a stressful idea when you factor in doing so with a bunch of little kids - no fun! I love SO MUCH about our house, but we also know that ultimately we are gong to need a smidge more space (ideally a 5th bedroom and a 3rd full bath, also we'd love a great room!) so we would rather move sooner rather than later so that the kids are in one school system for most of their schooling career. We are also trying to decide if we want to be closer to Boston for my husband's work commute or closer to family for more help at home. It's one or the other and that is the toughest decision we've been dealing with when looking to move. Obviously I vote for closer to family, but I feel terrible that my husband's commute would be super long. Anyway, good luck with your house hunt. I hope the perfect place pops up soon for you!
And that baby C - WAY TOO CUTE!
I think it's so hard when you're pulled between different preferences. We'd like a big yard and some space from neighbors, but I'd still like to have some neighbors/a neighborhood feel for the kids. We're in the city right now and we've become friends with the neighbors which is so fun for the girls. I love that I can say "go play" and trust that pretty much the whole block will be looking out for them. And we don't have family nearby so it's nice to have neighbors who can help in case of emergency. Good luck with your search too if you decide to do it!
Delete