Movin' to the country, gonna eat alot of peaches

[stef]
A thousand apologies for getting the Presidents of the United States of America stuck in your head, but hey, if I have to suffer every time I think of our future plans, then so should you.
But, alas, it's true! We are moving to the country. We are going to eat alot of peaches. Or at least can them. Or maybe I should change peaches to perogies. Either way, by December 16th, we will be out of our apartment, out of Winnipeg's west end, out of the city all together. It happened like this:
Sometime in the fall, we realized just how many sub jobs Tyler was getting in his hometown of Rosenort, a 50-90 minute drive from our end of the city (depending on road conditions). And then the possibility of Ty getting a term position in the school there (grade 5/6 - his absolute ideal classroom) in April came up, and it was time to start making some decisions for the future.
See, all along, we figured that we would move to BC this coming spring or summer. I've been away from my family for over 5 years, going on 6 next summer. I miss my sisters and brother terribly, and want to be a part of their lives again (come on people, we shared a womb for goodness sake - there's a part of me that never feels quite right when I'm away). And Hudson is my momma's first grandbaby, and neither of us wish for them to miss out on that relationship. When I left in 2005, I knew I wouldn't be back for awhile, and that change was beyond necessary. But now, especially with the losses and gains of this past year, I feel like it's time to be back in a place where people at the very least know my background, and can identify with some of the things I've been through, where people can be downright honest with me, and me with them. It's hard for me to be completely authentic with just anyone that comes around. I am not, for the most part, an open book. But at the same time I crave real relationships, not always just surface stuff. Also, moving to BC would be a big step forward with sort of "getting on with life." I've decided I want to go back to school for my BN, but I want to wait to do it in BC. We are very excited about going overseas for missions one day, but again, we will wait until we are in BC to start that process. So, another year here would mean putting those things aside for awhile. Do you see our dilemma? Anyways, you're probably throwing crumpled up paper and shouting "Digression!" at the computer, so I'll move on.
We finally decided that if Ty was offered the term position in April (which would take him until sometime next year), then he would take it, and we would look into moving to Rosenort in the spring. Then, around November 13th, we decided we would go to BC for Christmas (my first one in 5 years!), and went to book our tickets. Upon discovering that we could go to New Zealand and back for cheaper than going to BC over the holidays, we decided to rather go on a little vacation to NZ...okay, just kidding. Actually, we found that if we booked earlier in December, and a little ways into January, we could actually justify the plane tickets. So that meant being in BC for around 3 weeks, which is actually pretty darn exciting (sitting on the heater and listening to Amy Grant, here we come!). Except for one thing we didn't consider: since we're caretakers at our apartment building, we are required to find a replacement for us while we are away. And who the heck would agree to do it over Christmas? This is something we didn't think about until after the tickets were booked. The solution? Give our one month's notice two days later, so we could be out by December 15th, as we would be leaving for BC on the 16th.  
Enter stress.
That meant finding somewhere to live, getting everything packed up, and leaving the city. As if Christmastime isn't busy enough, plus with figuring out what I all need for BC, working around a four-and-a-half month's old feeding schedule, and the list goes on. Oh, but I'm not done yet. We happened to notice that there are brand new duplexes being built in Rosenort right now, and looked into the possibility of renting one. But, for many different reasons (I will not go into them at the present), we decided to rather just go for it, take out a mortgage, and become home owners! So right now we're in the midst of signing papers, finding lawyers, meeting with realtors and credit unions, putting down deposits, with the hopes of getting possession on January 7th, 2011! Cra-zy! But I must say I'm super excited about living in a brand new home, and already scheming about how I'll decorate, and picturing Hudson toddling around in there.
This decision has created a big mix of emotions for me. I spent a short amount of time in Rosenort when I first moved here, and had a bit of a negative experience. Hence the vehement "I will never move to Rosenort" claims over the past few years (ha!). I guess I am not particularly a small town type of person. Forget small town...I believe the sign actually says "The Village of Rosenort".  No kidding, village! But there will be good parts about moving there. I'd say the best is that Hudson will get to spend some extra time with his grandma and papa, aunties and uncles, and beautiful little cousins (who have already dressed him up in girly clothes and love to hold him and kiss him and make him a very loved baby cousinI). Plus,  Ty really enjoys working in Rosenort, and if he were to get to gain a year of experience in his ideal classroom, then there's no way I wish to deny him that opportunity.
Another thing is I love this part of Winnipeg. I will be sad to say good bye to it. Despite some of the things that we have to deal with in our  neighborhood (vandalism, theft, the occasional stabbing), here I've felt "at home." I love my little grocery store. And that Tim Hortons and the post office are just a hop, skip, and a jump away. I love the weird little restaurants and my beloved Cornish Library and the short walk to downtown. I love that we're starting to build relationships at our church (this is something we'll continue with, even living outside of the city). Most of all, I love my jogging and walking routes. They have been a lifeline for me for relieving stress, getting things sorted out in my brain, praying, and dreaming.
But I also know from moving seven times in the past seven years, there will always be a new walking route to explore, a new grocery store to frequent, new relationships to nurture, and so much more. I'm choosing to see this as an adventure rather than a big crimp in our  plans. With adventure comes challenges, with challenges come growth and change, new attitudes. I love new! Life isn't meant to be stagnant. I think of some of the bigger decisions I've made over the past few years, and I see that so many of them have involved some sort of hasty, last-minute move - and they've all generally worked out for the good.
So that's pretty much the gist of it. I'm surrounded by a sea of boxes and feeling a tad overwhelmed, but we'll make it like usual. I thank you for your prayers and encouragements and please don't hesitate to keep 'em coming.
And what would a post be without a recent picture of the little guy?

Hudson in his big people clothes