We are moving back to the Midwest!
My dear husband knows I'm just not a good Texan and he knows that while God placed us here for a reason, one day his wife would like to be home in the good ol' Midwest. Between the extreme summer heat that melts all of us (especially our 8 year old), the extreme allergies that pain all of us so, my horrific reaction to fire ants, the rattlesnake that killed our dog, Texas just isn't a good fit. Add to that our rising property taxes (you'd be appalled at what we are paying) and our lousy HOA increasing rules and doubling their fees for basically no amenities and we just need to get out of this neighborhood.
I always felt kind of forced here in Texas. After all, when the church in California let Jay go, Texas was our only option since my mother-in-law had the condo here big enough for our family where we could set up shop and hunt for work. We didn't have any other place to go. It was Texas or nothing. It was a good place for a while, a season. And now the season is over.
Edward Jones blows me away with their understanding of family values. Jay's Regional Director here in Texas has agreed that family comes first and is fully supportive of our decision and reasoning. Jay has been offered an office with Edward Jones up in the Minneapolis area. Talk about going home! That's where I was born. This Minnesotan is happily going home, don't 'cha know!
As joyous as this sounds, this wasn't an easy decision, friends! We honestly, truly agonized over this for months! It really came down to these 3 points. Three points. That's it.
1. This move brings us closer to some of our very best friends who are our biggest support crew. One of my very dearest, closest and best-est friend who was a friend in Lincoln is up in The Cities. My best friend from college is out towards the St. Cloud area. One of my sorority sisters is up there and she is also an adoptive mama. And one of my very close friends from high school is up in the Minneapolis area with her husband and crew of boys - instant friends for my kids. Many of my college friends whom I'd love to reconnect with are also up there. Jay also has numerous friends in the area. His Godparents are there as are all of their kids who are our age and their kids who are my kids' ages. More instant friends for our kids. Our awesome friend Jake who lived with us in Lincoln and worked for Jay at the church is back home in Minnesota. He and his family are great friends to Jay and all of us!
2. It also brings us closer to family. With aging parents who won't be around forever, we were just so far away from them in Texas and dropping everything to go be with them when they are in need would just be very difficult and expensive. Jay's dad and brother, my mom & stepdad, my dad & his wife are all in Chicago. That's only a 6 hour drive away from Minneapolis. Jay's mom spends half of her year in Hayward, Wisconsin on a lake where we tube and waterski and swim. That will be only 3 hours away. Moving to Minnesota means keeping that property in the Collins family far into the future for our kids to enjoy. My brother is just down the street from my closest friend in a Minneapolis suburb too and I'm thinking he will love going to Hayward with us, given the chance! I have aunts, uncles and cousins all over Minnesota too.
3. My biggest concern about life in Texas was if anything happened to me or to Jay, we don't have family here to come to our rescue. We'd have to depend on friends for help. I know my friends here would help, but it's still a stressful situation to be all alone in a time of great need. Besides, San Antonio is a military town. My kids have already lost good friends due to a move, and more friends are moving this year to their next military assignment, making our support system much, much smaller and ever changing. It's a fact of life in a military town. In Minnesota, we'll have a much bigger support system for those times when we'll need it. And if life has taught us anything, it's that trouble will come our way and we'll need a little help from our family and friends every now and then.
I'll surely miss the mild winters here in San Antonio. Yes, I'll groan at having to clear snow and ice (Jay is still on doctors orders for no shoveling thanks to his back history and surgery). Believe me, the first thing we buy will be a snowblower and enough shovels for my children to share the task! I'll miss the low cost of living, the zero state taxes and the conservatism and politics of Texas. We'll all miss our pool and that will be one of the first things we'll look for in Minnesota too - even if it's just a cheap pop-up above-ground pool from Costco or Sam's Club. I'll miss the friends we've made here, particularly Jay's assistant and her family who have served us in countless ways. Saying goodbye to them will bring tears.
At this point, the move is merely a lateral move for Jay. He won't be taking over an office bigger than the one he has now. It is still a good move for us though. Waiting any longer to make this move would be a bad decision for the career. It would likely be a big, giant step backwards if we waited any longer. It is really a "now or never" kind of thing.
There's so much more to the story, but I'll stop now.
Jay's replacement is officially, slowly taking over things in the current office today and our house went on the market yesterday. We'd appreciate prayers for an astonishingly quick sale of the house and all the details that need to happen in the in-between. We'll update when news warrants.
Lastly, to keep apprised of updates, my family blog address will be changing in the future! It won't change until we move, but just wanted to let you know to keep an eye out.
Soon we'll be of to....
