I realize that it's been a while since I last posted. But I'm still here, in case you (yes, I mean that in the singular) were wondering. Right now I'm writing from our new home, no not in Idaho--still in Ogden, just a bit further south...in the in-laws basement. It's not the ideal situation (in fact, far from it), but until we can get a source of income coming from an Idaho employer, we can't very well move into an Idaho house. Hence the temporary move into the basement, an outwardly simple thing that's taken us all week to finish (and I don't mean to sound ungrateful about it; Jess' parents have been more than accommodating to put us up while we look for something in Idaho and while our renters are paying the mortgage on our house...).
Hence the lack of new blog posts. That and I've been trying to reimagine what I'm doing here, to give a new shape to "Chasing the Long White Cloud." So, if you see some changes in the near future, don't get angry and don't say I didn't warn you... Because I just did...
So there...
In answer to your question: actually, yes. And I feel for you. My wife and I lived with her parents for three years :( before we bought our current home. I know what you mean when you say that you're not trying to be ungrateful but the situation is far from ideal. I completely get it. Trust me. Finances make it tough and we wouldn't have made it without my in-laws help, but we also wouldn't have gotten out of their basement even now if we hadn't been expecting another baby. My good wife and I said to each other, "we are not going to bring another baby into this home." Our family wouldn't have survived it. So we did what we had to to make it happen. We moved about a week before my fourth daughter was born and everyone said to wait a bit, but we did the right thing. And we're making it now.
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, I didn't realize you lived in Ogden. Maybe my head is on backwards. I live in Clinton. I guess that makes us neighbors, so hi neighbor.
I'm glad to know someone did miss me, Adam. Lately blogging has been my last priority; with trying to get our family moved and with the increasing demands of my doctoral program, I haven't had much time to spend at the laptop (hence the reason I haven't responded to your comment on my last installment of AMV--I'm hoping I can get to that later this week, BTW). I'm also glad to know that someone else has had to take up squatting in the in-laws' basement. This is the third time since we've been married that we've done it (yeah, we're bums, that's right...): the first was right after we were married, but only for about a month; the second, while we were looking for a house in Ogden after I transferred to Weber State (just after our first daughter was born); and the third, well, now, with three little girls, a Mini Schnauzer, and six years worth of stuff stuffed into the garage and two small rooms. We're desperately trying to get to Idaho so we won't be in such close quarters, so I won't have such an awful commute three times a week, and so we can have a place of our own again, but it seems that God presently has other plans for us. (And if anyone knows what those are, please let us know because it seems that every time we try to take a step forward, we get knocked onto our butts.)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I'm glad things are going well for you and your family. You deserve all the best (and I mean that).
And thanks for stopping by, Neighbor...
"it seems that every time we try to take a step forward, we get knocked onto our butts."
ReplyDeleteHahahaha!
Oh, I'm sorry. I couldn't help myself. I know that feeling, too, which is why I laughed. Although I probably haven't tried as often or as well as you. Thanks for your kind words, by the way. One reason we stayed so long with my in-laws is that we were worried we'd just have to come right back if we moved out. My wife has some siblings who had that experience, but it was for different reasons than you describe.
We first moved in because the basement we were renting from a friend of mine was reclaimed by its owner in the name of making room for a new baby. He quite suddenly decided he needed the extra space and asked us to move. We were not prepared for that. No hard feelings, though. We're still friends. It was just after our second daughter was born and our third was born while we were at the in-laws'.
I hope I can honestly say that I love my wife's family, but their standards for raising children are not the same as those we decided together to adhere to, which made it difficult for us to live there with children. Oh well. It's in the past and we're on the mend. We've only been out for about three months. It feels good.
I can't tell you how much I admire you for doing all this while working on your doctorate - not because I know what a doctorate is like to work on, but because I know what "all this" is like. I'm still doing intermittent work on my bachelor's, and that continually proves itself more than a match for me in terms of time, energy, and (yuck) money. All my siblings but my youngest have at least one degree (I'm second oldest of five) and the youngest is well on her way, but I've still got a way to go.
On the other hand, I was the only one with a family for almost five years, or until not quite a year ago. There are still only two of us married, so this isn't a sob story. We just did things in a different order, and it's one that has brought us great joy, if great hardship.
Since we're swapping personal anecdotes, My wife and I put up a Christmas tree on Saturday. That's right. The day after Halloween. I wanted to do it before, but there was no time and it was a little early even for my wife whose name (Noel) has caused her to grow up completely enamored of the upcoming holiday. There is no end to Christmas music in our home and now we will have lights as well for the next three or four months, probably. I love it. But I'm weird that way. :)
So if you're ever in Clinton and see a small house with a red door and a big lighted "NOEL" on the front lawn, stop by and say 'hi.' It would make you the first of my online friends I've ever had an easily conceivable chance of meeting in real life, which would be nice.