Our Next Big Adventure

Well, it's been in the works for about a year now and finally, FINALLY our family is about to take our next big adventure.  It's not anything as exciting as Morocco, London, Okinawa, or even Chicago, but it's something new and that is exciting.

Don took a job in Traveler's Rest, SC about 4 months ago. He doesn't like to mention that he's a Vice President of anything (in this case Marketing), and it actually kind of makes us laugh that anyone would give either one of us that much responsibility, but I'm super proud, so I'm mentioning it anyway. And perhaps you have noticed our frequent trips to Greenville over the summer?  It's a neat place as far as I can tell. The shopping is certainly better, and downtown Greenville has turned into quite a nice little spot to hang out, like this Saturday farmers' market that shuts down a few blocks every weekend during the summer. 

The parks and greenways are just beautiful.

There are waterfalls,which, of course, make the kids pretty happy. (Especially the ones that allow them to get wet).

And I won't lie.... I will be pretty glad to get a little closer to our Alma Mater. Especially after the rudeness Don encountered today at the grocery store. He wasn't even wearing orange - just had a paw on his car. Geesh, people!

I wasn't really looking for a job. I was going to hang out in Lexington as long as possible - help the lab out while they were looking for a director, let the kids go to school, try to sell our house. And then I found one, interviewed, and voila! I will be gainfully employed in Greenville on November 26th. Funny how those things work out.  I will be a Microbiologist at Greenville Hospital System. It's kind of my job now, just without anyone reporting to me. I love managing hard workers, but unfortunately they aren't all that way.  The good Lord knew I needed a break. Anyway.

One of the first things that people say when I tell them I'm moving is "I bet your Mom is so upset."  Well... my Mom was very unhappy. And if she is now, she does a fantastic job of hiding it.  One of the things I admire most about my Mom is that she may not be happy with a situation, but she's the most optimistic person I know and she will always embrace it and support us. Of course I will tell you that none of us are happy to be moving away from Nan and Pop. And it has nothing to do with the cost of daycare. We can afford that, and we should probably be paying them double because they are better than any childcare.  I am thankful that they have been able to keep Kate and Mason for so long. I will never be able to thank them enough.

I love the conversation that my Dad had with Kate the other day:

Pop - "When you move to Greenville, you will be far, far away from Pop."
Kate - "Yes, but you can drive a long, long way and then you will be there, and if you go too far, you'll be in Clemson"

Well, at least she knows how to get to Clemson. :)  I hear rumblings that my parents are going to buy a place to stay up there so they can visit as much as they like. And I hope they do.

And what about the kiddos?  Well, Kate doesn't quite understand what is going on. She knows that our house is for sale and some other people will (hopefully) buy it (before we're 80). She said that was ok, but only if we moved into a pink house.  I thought we could compromise with a pink room, but that was a no-go.  She also cried the other night because she was going to miss her bed when we moved to Greenville.  I gently explained that we would take her bed, her toys and her car seat (all concerns of hers).  To her, Greenville means a beautiful park and cupcakes, and she enthusiastically said "yes!" when I asked if she'd like to move there.  She even asked to go there one Saturday morning (we went to the zoo instead). Wait until she spends a week at the new childcare center and realizes that she has to eat gourmet lunches - then she will be begging to go back to Nan's, and it will probably make me cry.  But it will all be ok, and Nan will visit a lot and it will be good for our future.

So there you have it. We're looking for an apartment in Greenville - if you know of any good ones that would allow a cool Aussie and a fat tuxedo cat. We're also trying to sell our house. I'm trying to remain optimistic about that.

In other non-life changing news....

Kate loves Pinterest.

Mason loves to play at the big table.  And sometimes he and his Sis play together without any screaming.

There will be much more to come. I will have 3 wonderful weeks off after I wrap up my DHEC gig.  That's another blog I guess. So goodnight. And Tiffany, I made it long before 11:30 pm!