The Next Chapter

So, we've entered that proverbial "next chapter" in our lives, sort of.

The Hubster retired, after 21 years in the Marine Corps. It was an amazing ride, but we decided it was just time to end it. We were blessed to have been to some awesome places, with awesome people, and awesome experiences and really didn't see where there was anything awesome out there for us anymore. Fourteen moves to ten different locations in twenty-one years was enough.

I would like to say that the transition was easy, but it wasn't.

The retirement date he chose was January 31, because beyond that they would have given us orders to somewhere yucky, like Washington D.C.

January is the middle of the school year, and we didn't want to move the kids in the middle of a school year. We tossed around a few options, but kept coming back to the fact that our tenants were moving out of our house in Florida in July. It would be vacant, the kids and I could live there while the Hubster finished up his time in the Marine Corps and settled wherever fate led us. The Blonde One wanted to go to a college in the area and would be guaranteed admission if he transferred from a community college just a few miles from our house.....otherwise, he wouldn't stand a chance as an out of state transfer student. Plus, the Hubster's family was only 2.5 hours away, his father was battling terminal cancer and it would give the kids a chance to spend time with their Grandpa before he passed away.

It was a tough decision, but the boys and I packed a few things and moved to our house in Florida while the Hubster and Crunchy Girl stayed behind in California.

It was a tough year. The boys and I lived like college students in Florida, made frequent trips to visit the in-laws, took care of some maintenance issues on the house, and waited to see how the job market gods would bless us. The Blonde One was accepted to his college of choice and FIL passed away in February, so I will never regret the decision. As much as the entire year sucked, I would make the same choices again.

The Hubster accepted a job in Hawaii, but it was not without drama. It took several months for the dust to settle, which coincided with the end of the school year, so we headed to the islands at that time. Again, more drama ensued, but we are now settled in our new home and starting our life as semi-empty nesters.

Crunchy Girl continues her studies in California, while the Blonde One is loving college life in Florida. I went back to work full-time, something I really haven't done in the 21 years the Hubster was active duty. It's an adjustment for all of us, but it's all good.

:)