Change is good!  This is the mantra I’ve been repeating in my head when I start to panic or get cold feet.  Why you ask?  Well, it’s because my family is making the big move to Boise, Idaho!

Ben and I have talked about moving closer to his family for a couple of years now.  Just talking, not acting!  I honestly didn’t think we’d go through with this type of change for a couple more years.  First it was the crash of the housing market.  Then we received Hadley’s Cystinosis diagnosis.  That first year required a lot of medical appointments and it took time to get her stable and doing well.  Now the housing market has somewhat improved and so has Haddie!

We decided to dive head first into making this all happen the night before we left for vacation to California last month.  We met with our Realtor and looked at what we could get for the house and decided then and there we would put the house on the market after we returned home the following week.  In fact, we arrived home Wednesday night and had the house staged and ready for the photographer the following Monday.  In that short weekend we fixed a few things around the house, Ben painted our bedroom and I packed up a ton of our stuff and staged the house.  We tend to work well under pressure and thankfully we pulled it off!

We received an offer on the house over the weekend.  This morning we heard back from our Realtor that our counter offer was accepted and we are moving ahead with the sale of our house.  Holy crap!

After we found out our counter offer was accepted, we immediately told work.  We wanted to wait until we had a secured offer before announcing to the world.  Ben and I both became a bit emotional when we told our boss about our plans to leave Seattle.  Ben has been with our company for 12 years and I’m a month shy of 9 years.  It’s where we first met, where we’ve gained lifelong friends and has provided us with a solid foundation for many years.

Now we have to get down to business!  We need to secure a place to live temporarily, find jobs and pack all our crap.  Yeah, we made this HUGE decision prior to finding a home or jobs.  I’m confident everything will fall into place, but I’m still a little…or maybe a lot freaked out!  It’s no secret I’m a big time planner and like things to be organized and figured out before I dive in.   This move couldn’t be more outside my comfort zone.  But…I know it’s absolutely the right choice for our family and that’s how I’m able to set aside my normal control freak-ness (I made that up)and just go for it.

There are so many reasons we are looking forward to our move.  Obviously family is the main reason.  We want to spend our lives with Ben’s brothers and their families.  It’s very important to me for the girls to grow up with their cousins.  They are all close in age and love spending time together.  Now they will have the opportunity to see each other all the time!   Another very compelling reason is the climate.  Boise’s weather is much more appealing to us than rainy Seattle.  We are looking forward to four distinct seasons and a true summer filled with sunshine and outdoor fun!  We’re also ready for a change of pace and cost of living.

While all our reasons to move make sense and are exciting, I can’t help but feel my heart breaking a little bit.  We leave behind an amazing network of friends and family.  I wish I could bundle everyone up and bring them with me on our new adventure.  What am I going to do without my mom?  She and Brian are a huge part of our lives and I’m so sad to leave them behind.  The good news is that we’re forcing them to move to Boise in a year (hopefully).  I think it will only take my mom a month of being away from the girls before she’s ready to pack up and head our way.  I just can’t picture my life without her or Brian being there with us.  I want my girls to grow up with BOTH sets of her grandparents in the same place.   In addition to my parents, we have a large extended family whom we adore and loving and supportive friends that I will miss terribly!  We expect lots of visitors once we get settled.

So there you have it!  We are embarking on a new phase in our lives and are excited and scared at the same time.  The next month is going to fly by in the blink of an eye.  We have so much to get done that I’m a little overwhelmed right now.  I know we’ll pull it off and the stress and pain is only temporary.

I’m excited to see what’s in store for us next.  Boise…here we come!  Hope you’re ready for us!