Thursday, August 5, 2010

the last night

It’s our very last night in our very first house.  We have loved living here for the past four years and I still can’t believe that our time in Charlotte is already over.  This was the first time that we moved somewhere and really thought we could be here for a long time—well, four years is longer than we’ve been anywhere else, but it definitely doesn’t feel like we’ve been here a LONG time. 

I LOVE it here.  I’m sad to leave.  I was getting very nostalgic tonight as the girls and I ate our final dinner in our house of veggie meatballs, pickles, corn, cucumbers, and hummus (hey, I’m trying to clean out the fridge) while surrounded by boxes on almost every side.  The last two days have been crazy with packers everywhere and me trying to make sure the things that I need to take with us on the plane do NOT get packed.  (At one point, they had to unpack a large portion of the moving truck to find a stroller that I had told them NOT to pack because I needed it in the airport, but somehow it got tagged and shoved on anyway!)

I’m excited for this new adventure, but I am really having a tough time coming to terms with this move.  Charlotte has been feeling like home to me.  We have been very pleased with Kendall’s elementary school and many of the teachers there know Berkeley from carpool and other events and have been excited for her to start kindergarten this year.  It is absolutely beautiful here---for the majority of the year it is green and lush.  One of the reasons we chose the neighborhood we did was for its mature trees.  I never get tired of driving up our street when everything is bright green and in full bloom.  I just recently found enough friends who are interested in learning more about vegetarianism and finally got a vegetarian cooking club going with them!  We have great friends that we have met through church and school and the girls’ extracurricular activities and also wonderful neighbors.  I love being on the east coast.  The beach is just four hours away, it’s an easy flight up to NYC to see Patrick’s parents, or a doable drive up to DC to visit friends.

On the other hand, we never thought we would be in Charlotte forever.  Patrick worked WAY too much and never thought that banking would be a career that he could stick with for the long term.  Planning any kind of vacation or even an in-town Saturday activity was difficult because Patrick never knew when he’d get an email or phone call and have to drop everything for some work issues.  He started his new job on June 1st, and while it is still challenging and time-consuming, we’re hoping he’ll have a little more control over his schedule now.  He has completely switched gears and left banking for a role where he is head of finances for a division of a large company.  It should be a good career move in the long run, and an added bonus is that we will be close to a lot of my family.  My parents and three of my siblings live within about 20 minutes of where our new house is!

And speaking of our new house, that is one thing I am definitely getting excited about.  We have heard such great things about the neighborhood it is in, as well as the school.  We are very close to the neighborhood pool and tennis courts and the golf course is just a couple minutes away!  The house has a LOT more space than our house here in Charlotte.  We have 5 bedrooms plus a study and one of the bedrooms (along with a bathroom) is completely separate from the others because it is down in the newly finished basement—if that doesn’t just beg for lots of houseguests, then I don’t know what does!  We already have our first guests lined up—some of our friends from here in Charlotte are going to stay with us over Labor Day weekend since they have a wedding to attend!  We just love playing host and hostess, so please do give us a call if you’d like to come and visit!

Anyway, I’m sure that even though I have such mixed feelings about this move, it will end up being a very good thing for our family.  We felt like this was the right thing to do, and even though it’s hard (mostly because our house STILL has not sold) we are pushing forward.  These next couple weeks will be busy ones with closing on the house, getting the girls registered for school (they won’t let us do that till we have the deed to the house!), lots of unpacking, and then school starts on August 16th!  Is that really only ten days away?

*Sorry about the lack of pictures—I have some pretty cute ones of the girls amongst all the chaos, but apparently my camera cord got packed!

10 comments:

emilyaaa said...

mere-i'm freaking out for you! having been here exactly the same amount of time you were there, i totally get how you don't feel like it was quite long enough? or at least not long enough to feel like "a long time."
Good luck with all your goodbyes, your flight, your everything! And PLEASE call me the second you need a hand, a baby-sitter, a car (i've got room in my van for three extra car-seats). I'm here until next thursday, and then I'll be outta town for a bit.
good luck!!!

Andrea said...

sad!! i am excited for all the new things but it has been fun to see you so frequently over the last few years!

Megs said...

Good luck with the move! I hope everything goes so smoothly. Moving is always hard but it sounds like you are headed to a great neighborhood.

Maren said...

I live within 20 minutes of my parents, two siblings, and my mother-in-law, so I have two words for you...FREE BABYSITTING!

Good luck getting through all the craziness! Ernie said to say hi and congrats to Patrick.

Heather Hayes, Freelance Writer said...

Wow! I can't believe it. Just a year ago I was doing this same thing...leaving Charlotte. It feels like forever ago. I am so excited for you though. Can't believe you'll be somewhat close to us now. Wanna come for a visit? Sounds like we might have to come visit you sometime. Your house sounds awesome!
Good Luck!
-Heath

Anonymous said...

I hope all the moving and getting ready for school is going well. Sounds like Charlotte is just a fantastic place - I know Maria loved living there. But we also loved growing up in Colorado. So I hope you will enjoy your new home.

Marliese said...

Wow, Mer--moving is such a huge life-change. Maybe even bigger than having a new baby. I can understand all of your mixed emotions. Good luck with everything. You are good at jumping into new situations with both feet, and making your life great wherever you are.

We're excited to be able to see you on Denver trips now...

Unknown said...

Good luck with the move! It sounds like you're leaving behind one great place for another! I hope Patrick enjoys his new job.

Lauren said...

Good luck! You are so lucky to be moving close to family:)

Laura P said...

Meredith - I can so relate to your mixed feelings about the move since we're just two months ahead of you! Charlotte still feels like a place we could come back to and call home but Denver sounds like a really, really great option for your family. Stay in touch!