Portland

I got home late last night from a 2 day whirlwind trip to Portland. I had 3 job interviews, drove all over, found some sweet eateries and shops, got to hang with a great friend, and most of all fell even more in love with Portland. I'm really excited for our move this summer. Hopefully one of the jobs will work out and all the necessary pieces will fall in to place and we'll be making our move in August.

House

As I was walking through our house tonight after putting Amalea to bed I couldn't help but think about how much I do love this house. I will miss this house. It has been the perfect first home for us - not too big and not too small. In all honesty we have talked already about the things we would want different in our next house and how it would be nice to have this or that new thing in the next place, but in the end I really do think this place is great. We aren't selling it yet so we may end up here again, but I really feel like when we leave in August it will be for good. We'll sell it eventually, but it will always be our first home and the home in which Amalea came to when she was first born. Those are things I will never forget.

Simplicity

Yesterday Jim and I looked at getting a new car and selling our truck. Well, the car we looked at really isn't new - it is actually 10 years older than the truck we have. When we were talking about doing this last night Jim made a comment about wanting to simplify our lives. I loved that he said this because it made me realize that sometimes we love the things we have so much and getting rid of them can be hard, but that there is value is simplicity. He made the comment with excitement in his voice even though it meant selling a truck that he loves. I love Jim so much and his desire to live more simply makes me smile.

Moving

I feel so many emotions all at once about our upcoming move. Now that it is public knowledge it feels a lot more real which heightens everything I feel. I feel excited about the new adventure, I feel ready for change, I feel nervous about meeting people, I feel anxious about finding jobs, I feel scared that we won't like it, and overall I feel like it is the right thing for us. However, even trusting it is the right thing doesn't mean that all the other emotions are eliminated.
From the moment we began seriously talking about moving it has been a lot of up and down emotions for me. Some days I cannot wait to get out of here and other days I feel sad to be leaving wonderful people and a good job. I guess the biggest thing that makes me nervous is that neither Jim nor I have found jobs yet. To be honest that has been discouraging for me - I have applied to a lot of teaching jobs and have not gotten any calls or interviews. I know I am a good teacher and not getting interviews makes me feel like maybe I am not. In this area I am trying my hardest to stay positive.
Lately, my prayer has been for Jim to find a job that pays enough so that I don't have to work. Then I could tutor or do something small on the side until the kids are in school and then I can go back to teaching. We don't know what is in store for us, but we know that it is an adventure that we are excited to embark on come August.