A lot has happened since the last time I posted here, but probably the most important thing is that Sean and I moved from Atlanta to Lexington, Kentucky. I’m living in my home state again for the first time in 20 years!
The reason is family, but there were other circumstances that contributed. Rent in our area of Atlanta (technically Marietta, but pretty close to Vinings) was inflating like crazy; a new complex that was built down the street from us had apartments that cost twice as much as ours, and rather than going up by $20/month or so, our rent went up by $80 this past year. I was starting to worry we would be priced out of our home. A third factor was my job being mostly remote, which made moving out of state possible (though still a risk). Anyway, we did it, and we’re here, and I see my mom and brothers all the time now, and it’s great.
This is the big project I was referring to several posts back when I didn’t want to say what it was. I was trying to figure out how to make all this work.
We looked at so many apartments, and rejected so many more. There wasn’t a single place that had a two-bedroom as large as what we had at Rockledge, because our Rockledge floor plan had a whole extra room (the sunroom). We ended up downsizing from about 1330 square feet to 1070, which was pretty much the largest size available anywhere that wasn’t a three-bedroom. We did consider a three-bedroom, as it still cost less than we were paying in Atlanta, but ultimately we decided to take the even less expensive option.
The layout is…not my favorite, and the finishes, materials, and colors are also not what I would have chosen. I had to donate/give away a lot of furniture, and some of it was hard to let go. For a long time most of our stuff was in boxes stacked up all over the place, and I wasn’t sure how we were going to live here.
But over time we have made this place our own. We’ve gotten three new furniture pieces: a pantry, a bookcase, and a futon to replace the old guest bed. We’ve also had extra shelving installed in both bedroom closets and the laundry closets (thank you, AJ). Now there is finally enough space to put nearly everything away. We’re not quite done, but this place actually feels like our home now.
There are some things I actually like better about this place than our old apartment. The ceilings are higher, and they’re smooth rather than having a texture painted on them. Our refrigerator here is much nicer than the one we used to have, with more room in the freezer. Our outdoor space is fantastic. We have a huge deck and outdoor storage! All my patio furniture fits out there, and my bike and many less-frequently-needed things fit in the huge closet. There is a walking trail nearby that is not down a cliff; the only obstacles are the stairs down from our second-floor apartment and then another tiny set of stairs going up to where the trail is. I can also walk to several restaurants!
Kristanne was in town visiting and I was actually really excited to have her come over and see the place. I’m proud of what we have managed to accomplish and looking forward to finishing up what we’ve planned.
Since we moved here in late February I have been over to Mom’s place a lot. I’ve started watching Demon Slayer with Logan, and I’m really enjoying it. AJ has invited me out to his favorite campsite twice. Sean and I went to see Oppenheimer with AJ and Krystal the other night. For Mother’s Day AJ and I went to Ben and Trinity’s to recreate a photo from our childhood. We’ve had a ton of other family gatherings, too. It’s so different from the past few years of rarely seeing anyone, and also different from the past 20 years of rarely seeing my family. My heart is full.
Sean and I are still wearing masks everywhere and avoiding crowded places. (The theater for Oppenheimer was IMAX, pretty spacious, but still a calculated risk. Neither of us took off our mask at all.) It’s strange to see so much of the rest of the world going “back to normal” and just accepting that people are going to get Covid and die; I’m always glad when we see another masker out and about. I’m really trying not to let my excitement at spending time with family override my common sense about safety.
But I am just really happy that I’m able to be here, that we were able to move and create a home for ourselves.