We Moved! And Other Stories.

Well, we made it. Packing sucks, but driving across the country in three days is surprisingly way better. America is, indeed, beautiful. I would totally live in Omaha, for the record. In case you didn't catch it on Facebook, Ralph upgraded to captain and we moved to Leesburg, Virginia, where he's flying out of Dulles Airport.

This is our empty apartment. The moving truck still won't come for another week....but at least I have my herbs, right??

Ralph has had to work pretty much every day since we got here, but I found some time in my incredibly busy, unemployed schedule (read: lies) to stalk him from an airport window:

If you're wondering, I've pretty much been sitting at home all day every day looking for jobs online. I remember when I had a full-time job for years and years and all I ever really wanted was to have more time at home to do whatever cool things I wanted - read, DIY some Pinterest projects, exercise in a way that I actually enjoy and thus require more time for, cook desserts 24/7 and miraculously have a crew of besties who were equally available to help me eat them all, etc., etc.

As it turns out, I would much, much rather be employed. Sitting at home all day was fun for....less than a day. And then I started panicking about how we are very much accustomed to two paychecks and how is this all going to work and this "at home all day" thing gets lonely and old real fast and I sure as heck better find a job STAT.

So I have applied to many, many jobs and I will keep you posted on that if you agree to keep me in your prayers/thoughts/pleas to the universe that I will find something FAST. In the meantime, my mood alternates between "I'm so tired of sitting unemployed in my empty furniture-less apartment I might as well just sleep all day" to "Woooooowwww there's so much to do here and life is good."

 I start most days on the computer looking for jobs, and then when my legs go numb from sitting for so long (they're numb right now) I venture out into darling Leesburg to be around some people and enjoy the place a bit.

One of the highlights was the Only-Happens-Twice-A-Year 3-hour guided walking tour of Leesburg. Our tour guide was Jim, and he was born and raised in Leesburg and knows everything (e.g. "A man by the name of Wallace used to live right there. He didn't have any hands, only nubs. He could do more with those nubs than I can do with my hands.") Jim's tour was less about the history of Leesburg and more about the history of his life, which is infinitely more interesting. So included on the tour were the house where his grandmother was a slave as a little girl, the cemetery where his family is buried, the school for black children he attended, and the old shed his carpenter grandfather built that is now located in Jim's brother's backyard.

This is the entire tour group walking around Jim's brother's backyard. How did we know it was his brother's backyard? Because when a strange man walked up next to us, Jim said, "Hello, Brother Charles!" and then to us, "That's my brother Charles."

Ralph had a day off last week, so we went down into DC. I've always wanted to go to the Holocaust museum, where the following conversation happened:

Me, handing Ralph my camera: "I want to take a jumping picture."

Ralph, looking skeptical: "Umm...are you sure? In front of the Holocaust museum?"

Me: "Oh. Right."

This is why I married him.

Then we walked inside and I immediately started crying because there was such a special feeling inside that building. If you ever have the means to go, I highly recommend it.

That's all for now. Please pray that our furniture will come this week. I need the company.

ALSO WE HAVE INVESTED IN A VERY COMFORTABLE MATTRESS PAD AND YOU ALL SHOULD COME VISIT AND KEEP ME COMPANY. Seriously, it's just as comfortable as our bed. You'll love it.