I just realized that it has been a little while, or a long while, honestly, since I updated the blog. Well, as the story goes, life got a tad insane. Obviously, moving across country is a big thing. I just wasn’t prepared for just HOW BIG of a deal it was going to be. I about lost it. No lie.
Funny thing about being born someplace and staying there for 30-something years, is that when you do move, and you tell yourself that you’re “so excited for a change,” what you *think* moving is like verses reality are a tiny different. I felt like a part of me had died and life kept moving around me. It was fun. Real, real fun. It literally took me months of self-pity, being depressed, hating my new life, and being perhaps a tad dramatic before I finally decided that I could not go on like that anymore. So, long story short, now I’m better. Which is just a fancy way of saying I’m still as crazy as ever, but I’ve put my big girl pants on.
Here are a few things that I was dealing with:
Mourning the loss of HEB. For real, y’all. You just don’t understand how good it is until you don’t have it anymore. The idea of a coupon that wasn’t yellow and stuck in front of my face on the shelf or scanning a card that saves me a little in exchange for my personal identity probably being sold just had not entered my mind. This was me: “Aw, look how cute this little Publix is. Where are the red corn tortillas? Why is there no queso fresco?? Why is the produce section the size of my living room???” It wasn’t pretty.
Mourning the loss of fast food. Love it or hate it, Taco Cabana was my secret food lover. I could write poems and romance novels about bean and cheese tacos and flautas dipped in queso. Queso is my love language. THERE ARE NO BREAKFAST TACOS IN ATLANTA. The loss doesn’t end there. If Taco Cabana was my fast food lover, then Whataburger was my fast food BFF. Monterrey Melts, Chicken strips with gravy, just a classic Whataburger…sigh. One more thing – Shipley’s Donuts. I can’t even go there.
Mourning the loss of Texas soil. You guys, I have always thought I knew a fair amount about gardening – the flower bed kind, not the veggies. Then I moved and I realized that all I know how to do is xeriscape. That’s all. This was my method, “Is it drought tolerant? Yes. Good, I can plant it.” My dirt is not dirt. It is red clay. I could make you guys pottery from it for Christmas. I have to condition my soil with lime. I have to figure out the mysteries of non-drought tolerant plants. Will I kill them all from under watering? Probably.
Mourning the loss of insta-tainment. I just made that word up. What I mean by it is that Fiesta Texas and Sea World were within a ten minute drive from our house. Yes, Atlanta has a Six Flags. Yes, it also has an aquarium. Yes, it also has this thing called traffic. I thought I knew what traffic was. I did not. I am not going to fight across the world to take the kids to either of those places for a leisurely afternoon when we are bored. Friedrich Park for nature walks, Guadalupe River State Park for swims on hot, sunny afternoons; I miss them all.
More than all of those things combined, except maybe queso (kidding), I missed the people that we left behind. Family, friends, a church that was our second home. Each and every person that was a part of our lives were gone. I had a San Antonio sized hole in my heart.
Family. I never really realized what a blessing it was to live near most of our family. Sure, it was nice to have grandparents around for babysitting – my kids had their first real babysitter a few months ago! – but for the relationships that were able to form because of our proximity, I will hold forever close to my heart and look forward to our visits that much more.
Friends. How did you crazy losers end up being so stinking awesome? I miss so, so many of you. I would look at the stuff you guys were doing together on Facebook and be mad that life was going on without me. Don’t worry, I have let it go. It is hard to move because life does go on without you. Missing friends makes me value these new friendships that are forming that much more.
Church. Where do I even start on this one? A group of people that loved on us and held us up in prayer during the time I was sick. A place where we made friendships that transcended decades age differences. A place where best friends were met, relationships forged, lives changed, kids baptized, marriage strengthened, and truly worshiping and growing closer to my Lord and Savior happened. Missing Castle Hills and looking back on how much of an impact it had in every single person in my family’s life helped me find a church home right away. It helps me feel excited and expectant about what the future holds for us.
I won’t lie. Moving to Georgia is without a doubt the second hardest thing I’ve ever dealt with (the first being having cancer). It has challenged me in ways that I didn’t expect. I still miss San Antonio and all the things that go with it, but I know that even though there are no breakfast tacos, delicious donuts, or HEBs here, Roswell is a pretty cool place to call home – now that I’ve climbed out of my self-made pit of despair. I look forward to all the new memories and adventures we will have here. And also, come visit.
Lastly, a shout out to all you military families who do this moving thing way more than me. You make me look bad, in the best way.
