Another Bend in the Road

One thing is for sure:  We never lead a dull, boring life.  Just when things seem somewhat status quo, there is a change headed our way.  Once again, we have a new bend in our road and are going to be relocating to Florida! 

When we originally left Florida in 2009, it was a VERY hard move for me.  I was at a point where I was very settled in my job, career in general, home, friends, etc. and certainly didn't imagine moving.  Mat had a great career opportunity though, and we made the decision to move to Iowa for him to pursue a career in college teaching.  It was with the understanding that he would gain some experience here, continue his education most likely, and then be able to be a bit more marketable and move on elsewhere (hopefully either back to FL or to MO).  Well, he ended up loving it here at Loras, we settled into Dubuque and enjoyed it as a great town to raise our family in.  Not to mention it didn't end up working out as easily for him to continue his education here.  We were beginning to think that Dubuque might be where we were meant to be long term, hence why we bought this house and spent so much time and money fixing it up. 

Mat has always continued to keep an eye out for jobs that sounded appealing either in MO or FL though.  Despite a couple possibilities in MO over the last couple years, nothing ever amounted to much or seemed more appealing than what he was already doing, so we were getting more and more settled into Dubuque.  I must admit though that Dubuqe has never truly felt like "HOME" to me.  I have found many great qualities in it, and I do believe it's been a great city to have our children in and think I could be happy continuing here.  Something has just kept me from fully connecting though and the winters are just brutal.  I don't like them and can't imagine spending decades enduring the harsh temps and snow.  This winter was especially tough and even had Mat dying for a warmer climate.  It was almost uncanny how right after the New Year there were suddenly a few job opportunities in Florida that Mat was qualified for.  One in particular really stood out as a job he was extremely qualified for and sounded very appealing.  It was for Assistant Professor of Financial Services at Florida State College-Jacksonville.  He applied for this job as well as a couple others, but had a really strong feeling about this particular job. About a month after applying he was contacted for a phone interview.  Shortly there after they asked him to fly down for an on-campus interview, and within days he was offered the position!  It all happened relatively fast, and was very exciting yet nerve wracking. 

Overall, we are SO excited for this opportunity.  We are thrilled to be heading back to Florida, to be able to live close to Jeff once again, and hopefully have my parents down there one day once they are able to semi retire.  It's bittersweet and challenging though as well.  I have felt quite tired and stretched thin as is already.  The idea of a huge move sent my anxiety through the roof!  Not to mention I have finally in the last year felt like I've made some good friends here in Dubuque, and I also hate to see MJ go through a big transition right before starting kindergarten.  On the flip side though, this move comes at a good time so that MJ can in fact move and make new friends now rather than later once he's formed more school friendships.  It's also at a good time in Mat's career before he were to go go through the tenure process at his current job next year.  I know the next couple months are going to be challenging and tiring, but I feel like if we can get through this, we can really get settled into a nice family lifestyle once again, and I overall feel that this will be a great opportunity for our family.  We have a great feeling about the area and school district that we will be moving to.  The job Mat is taking will allow for even more time at home and family time.  We are extremely excited to be able to spend a lot more time with Jeff and look forward to being closer to some friends in FL as well. 

I'm nervous about starting over in a city that's new to us though, and we'd love your prayers for a smooth transition for our family.  We have sold both our homes in Dubuque.  We closed on one already and are set to close on the other on June 2nd.  We will then be staying in St. Louis for a month before moving down to Jacksonville.  Lots of changes ahead!