Almost 3 years ago, in August 2009, I wrote on this blog about being at a crossroads. Several of our friends were preparing to move out of Baltimore City, and I knew change was on the horizon. Little did I know exactly how much change was in store. Several months later, I found out that the company I had worked at since I had moved to Baltimore in 1998, would be reorganizing their technology group, and eliminating hundreds of jobs in the process. Were all given ample notice (14 months to be exact!), as well as generous severance packages, and retention bonuses for staying on board through the 14 month transition period. Tim and I had always thought that when we left our Baltimore City house, we would head north - to New England, where almost my entire family lives, and only a few hours from most of his immediate family. We knew it didn't make sense for me to leave before this 14 month period was over, as the lucrative package would be a huge boost for us in upgrading to our next home. So we decided that we would wait it out, and plan to make the move shortly after my job was done, in July 2011.
The closer we got to the end of my job, the less I could think about leaving Baltimore. It had truly become a home for us. We had created a life here, and we were (and are!) happy here. I won't lie - it is not always easy to live far away from family, but our friends have become our Baltimore family. When people asked about our future plans post July, I usually brushed off the question or changed the subject. Deep down, I knew that if I couldn't even talk about leaving, actually going through with it was even LESS likely to happen. Finally, a couple of months before my employment ended, Tim and I were out one night alone, and over Orange Crushes at Mamas on the Half Shell, we decided to officially make Maryland our home. And as much as we loved our little city house, we knew it wasn't our permanent home. It was time to move on.
That was almost one year ago, and a lot has happened in the past year. My job ended, and I split the summer of 2011 between having fun, and getting work done. When I wasn't on vacation in OBX, visiting family in MA, or attending bachelorette parties in Ocean City, I was hard at work, decluttering our house and getting it ready to put on the market. In late August, I got a new job, just as my work around the house was wrapping up. And on September 19, 2011, I started a new job, and our house was listed for sale. With the market not being the best, we knew it would take awhile, and I breathed a sigh of relief that this would give me time to get used to the idea of leaving our first home. Six months later, we found a buyer. Then we found a new home. And in three weeks we will become residents of Howard County, in a new house with a garage (!), a yard, a back deck, a pool and a swing set.
I know this is the right thing for our family. Ryan deserves a yard and a place to ride his bike (other than the alley and strip of sidewalk in front of our house!) I am excited about not having to double park when I bring in groceries, and getting in a warm car in the winter in our garage, as well as tons of kitchen counter space, with more than one drawer. Tim is excited about ALL of it - from an office, to the yard, to the pool, to even having a lawn to mow and take care of.
As anyone who knows me will attest to, I don't deal well with change. I soak up every bit of something before I leave it behind, taking comfort in all of our "last rituals." And Ryan has jumped on this as well - talking about our last dinner at Panera, last walk to the library, last dinner at Tutti Gusti. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree I guess!
So onward and upward, there are plenty of new memories to be made. But for now, I will cherish the memories in this little house as I look around at everything for the last time...
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