BIG BLOG BOMB: (NOT BABIES)

Well now that I've told my besties about the big news (NOT BABIES), I can safely tell you all that Matthew & myself are looking for houses… in Burbank, CA. 

Burbank. Hometown of Tim Burton. Which has a few movie studios. An airport. And its own Ikea.

This has been a very difficult and thought out decision a long time coming. After I swore that you'd take me out of La Mirada when I was deep in the cold cold ground and even then you couldn't 'cause as I mentioned where I'd be, it would be deep. And cold. I'LL NEVER MOVE OUT OF THIS TOWN EVAH! 

Yeah... about that...

As I mentioned a few weeks ago I had been working at Warner Bros for a week and some change and one of those days Matt drove up to visit me. He stayed 'til I was done with work and we went to visit a few friends of his that lived nearby. On the drive home as he drove his car and I drove mine, I called him and we weighed the pros and cons of moving up to Burbank. It was during this drive and during this conversation that we decided the pros were stronger than the cons and our realtor has been instructed to look for houses in that area. And we've already seen two.

So how do I feel? More excited than sad but I am a little sad. It really came down to the future of our family which would involve those two legged creatures that wear diapers should we ever do that, it would be better to spend time with them than the freeway. Matt being the considerate person that he is mentioned how much healthier this decision was for me since I wouldn't have to wake up significantly earlier than everyone else on the crew. More sleep. Less driving. More time together. Less gas. Less wear and tear on my car. More being on time to work.

The parts that are difficult for me to let go of are the fact that my family won't be about 7-30 minutes away. And when we all gather together, we'll be gathering in places where Matt & I are the ones that will be doing the driving. I'm sure they'll make the drive up now and then and it's not like we're moving to Arizona but it won't be so easy to just drop by my mom's on the way home any more. 

And I love La Mirada. I know where everything is. I know where to eat and where to shop and well, it's home and has been my home for the past three years and during my Biola years. I can't say I really want to leave it and I can say I imagine myself living here for the rest of my life. But for now, we'll leave it behind for awhile with the hope that once it's retirement time, we'll be able to come back home. 

And the knowledge that Matt's family will still be in La Mirada in the same house we live in now no less, that fills me with a sense of comfort. Our future Biola alumni children will have the pleasure of having their grandparents in the same town as them just like Matt did. And in my idealistic fantasies, Matt and I come down and spend the weekend with Matt's parents in the guest room and use the pool, make dinner in the old kitchen, shop at the local haunts. Eat local eats. Like our own little mini vacay spot, just enough away from Los Angeles proper.

And realistically speaking, how often do we see the people we like? For reals m'kay? I see my family about once a month. I drive to work about 20 times a month. That's 40 hours of driving vs 2 hours of driving. These are the stats I have to tell myself to help me cope with leaving La Mirada! Even friends wise, the only one that lives nearby is Man-D and I hardly ever see her. Maybe I'd see her more if I was on her way home from work, a place for her to crash waiting for traffic to die down. The rest are in Boston, Santa Maria, & Indio and I see them once maybe twice a year. And then there's loads that'll be near our future home: Miri & Aaron will be minutes away as will a bunch of RTF friends.

Aside from being closer to work, Matt will be closer to Silverlake and all that indie music scene stuff he likes. We'll have tons more veggie restaurant options for dinner. Like I said, a lot of pros. But the cons and the life change keep running in my head but as I've told person after person about the decision, they have been so supportive and encouraging that I know it's God confirming that it is the right move for our little family and our future.

So here we go. Burbank or Bust.