AND THEN WE MOVED TO THE MARRIOTTS

Hello, friends. Thank you for your kind words, e-mails and requests for more information.

In May, Paul began working with a company based in New Jersey, U.S.A. He is excited for this new endeavor and has offered his company a long-term commitment, so it seems that our days as expats are paused for now. Rest assured, however, that we have every intention of moving abroad again when the time is right. For now, God has us home with our families, so we are officially beginning the newest chapter of our lives: the repatriation chapter.

We have spent the last month in Marriott hotels: two weeks in one while Paul was in training, and two in another closer to our ideal new home location. The house hunt has been both arduous and enlightening. With Paul in training 13 out of 14 days, I was initially responsible for scoping out cities and narrowing down neighborhoods. I felt the pressure to fulfill my assignment of finding three solid, potential homes by the time Paul finished training, so house hunting became my full-time job.

One beautiful day I spent so many hours in the car that I actually got sunburned. In between appointments, I had to make a stop at a grocery store for sunblock and healing lotion.

Paul decided that he would like to be within an hour and a half drive from his airport since he will likely only be making the trip once or twice weekly. For those not living in America, it is typical for people to commute 30 minutes or more to work. The closer one works to New York City, the longer the commute time. When I worked in New Jersey several years ago, some people from my office drove an hour and a half one way, five days weekly. 

With the hour and a half radius, my search zone became all of New Jersey and the eastern portion of Pennsylvania, from the North Philly suburbs all the way up to the Pocono Mountains. And I drove almost every bit of the go zone; I did not make it to South Jersey. 

I was able to find an area that we both love but we have yet to find the right place for the right price. When Paul finished training, he came with me to see the contenders and instead caught the search bug. He wanted to see more! So we continued searching, made some more appointments and continued to view potential places for the next week. 

Together we looked, found potentials and started narrowing down options. Together we sorted through the possibilities and sifted through the properties. Together we decided we are done, for now. We’re just going to continue to live in the Marriott. 

And I’m not joking.

We are currently living in a hotel near Philadelphia while we wait for the right place, now that we are in no rush to sign a lease. Paul is flying across the country, gradually filling up his calendar. I am doing my best to get myself back into a schedule now that the pressure of house hunting has dissipated. I discovered that I am a much better person when I have a routine that includes workouts, coffee and writing, so here goes nothing.