when life gives you the opportunity to move to seattle...

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since our early days together, thatcher and i have often talked about moving to another part of the country for a few years. he occasionally applies for a job if it sounds like a really good fit in a really cool city. he always asks if i mind if he applies for it...and i always say "go for it". mostly because these jobs have never gone anywhere in the past and i've never really had to think seriously about it.

fast forward to about 6 weeks ago when he was contacted for an interview by a transit agency in seattle where he applied. i was a bit surprised, but he wasn't - he told me when he applied that he felt like the job description was practically written for him. i still wasn't convinced it would actually go anywhere. i mean...he lives halfway across the country, surely it would be easier for them to just hire someone local right? a phone interview was scheduled for the following week. 

"it's just a first interview, melissa. no need to get ahead of yourself." i thought. the day of the interview came. (side note: they conducted pre-screen phone interviews for all the candidates for the first round, regardless of where they were located). the woman he spoke with seemed very impressed/interested in his background, and his expertise on a region outside seattle. he told me afterwards that he felt like the call could not have possibly gone better. she told him he should know within a week if they would like to do a second interview. gulp! 

...can you guess what happened next? yep! an email came in the next week saying they would like to move forward with a final(!) in-person interview in the next couple weeks - all expenses paid. with a mix of excitement/fear, it was time to talk to my parents (who were still in florida at the time). we talk on the phone with them that night and while it was a tough conversation at times, we hung up feeling mostly at peace with the idea of moving if a good enough offer were to be extended. i'm sure you are thinking "but what about your dad?" even with his uncertain health, he is a realist and doesn't want us to stop living our lives just because of him. even so, i know it will still be hard to be away and to this day it is the only real reservation i have about this whole thing. 

once the idea of relocating went from hypothetical dream to some what of a possibility, i started to panic. our family, friends, and our whole lives are here! but a little part of me also thought..."wow, what an amazing adventure this could be." "it wouldn't have to be a permanent move" and "am i going to regret never doing something like this?" the fact that we have kids certainly complicates things, but thankfully they are young enough to not have opinions about moving. home is wherever mom and dad are and we think it'll be a great adventure for all of us. 

back to the interview process: so, thatcher flew out to seattle for 2 days in early april. explored the city (which we visited together in 2010, he has been there a couple times without me), and checked out some potential neighborhoods. the second interview didn't leave him feeling as confident as the first did, but it was mainly because there was a panel of 5 interviewers and they didn't give him much of an impression of how they felt about him. he wasn't totally sure how many people were being interviewed at this "final" stage since it was the first round that was in-person, but we guessed 2-3. they told him he should hear back in 1-2 weeks. 

throw in a couple weeks of every emotional extreme from getting excited and looking at housing online, to me sobbing that we can't possibly do this and we should just pull the plug. it's been an emotional roller coaster if i've ever been on one ;) we ultimately decide to just wait and see if they offer him the job before deciding. 

on april 20th the offer came in. a good salary, re-location reimbursement, good benefits, flexible start date. basically it was everything we hoped for. we told both sets of parents, who are happy for us, but sad for them. i'm sad for them too, but i'm thankful we live in such a digital world, which will make being far away a little easier. 

so, here is where we are at: 

- thatcher starts on june 1st. he will be driving our car out there by himself a few days earlier. 

- thatcher, ashford, and myself are going out next weekend to look at some rental housing on the market. it would be so nice to sign a lease then and there, but we want to be sure it's a good fit. seattle is not cheap, which means we'll be renting something "cozy" i'm sure. 

- our house is going on the market soon. we are finishing up a few small projects to freshen it up and purging what feels like half of our belongings (moving sale this weekend - let me know if you want more info). then we cross our fingers that it's under contract ASAP. 

- i am planning to stay on with my company as a remote bookkeeper (probably fewer hours than i work now, but that's still tbd). i'm so thankful that i get to bring this part of home that i love so much with me. 

so.much.stress. 
so much excitment
someone pinch me!