New Work Location

So, I found out a few months ago that my work group is moving to a new location, in MY neighborhood,  5 minutes from my house!  That was the 4^th happiest day of my life!  (The first two being my wedding day and the girls’ birthday, in no particular order, and the 3^rd being the day the girls could bathe themselves independently :))  This is going to improve my quality of life exponentially.  Instead of getting home at 6:30 or later and never getting to eat dinner as a family except on weekends and never being “done” for the day until at least 9:00, often much later, and never being home when the girls get home from school and never being available to drive them to their activities (although I do get to pick them up sometimes) or volunteer in their class (although I have taken days off to chaperone the occasional field trip), I will now get home at a reasonable time between 5:30 and 6:00.  We can eat dinner together as a family.  I can come home on my lunch break and let the dog out (she is currently going to “doggie day care” at a friend’s house).  And on Fridays when the girls have pain-in-the-ass early dismissal, instead of scrambling for a sitter I can take a late lunch, be home when they get home and then work from home the rest of the afternoon or even work from home the whole day.  If I get the dreaded call from the school nurse I can be there in 5 minutes instead of 35 or more.  If there is an event or program going on at school I can go!  This is the best thing EVER!!  Factor in the new Safeway minutes from home that saves me a good 30-40 minutes a week by not having to drive 15 minutes to the next town and the fact that the girls are involved in fewer activities this year, and my stress level should drop dramatically!  I am SO excited!  

I was a stay-at-home mom for the first 6+ years of the girls’ life.  Then, 3 ½ years ago I returned to work and I have been a stressed-out wreck ever since.  All I ever do is work, get ready for work, commute to and from work, fix meals, clean (we have a housekeeper but she only comes once every two weeks), grocery shop, run errands and help with homework and next-day prep.  Like I said, I’m never “done” until at least 9, sometimes later (and that’s because I’ve given up and not that I’m truly “done”), and then I watch a little TV or read for a bit before bed.  That is literally all I ever do, even on weekends, with very few exceptions.  I mean, I do go to most of the girls’ soccer games, and occasionally I will find time on a weekend to organize a closet or go for a walk or something, and we certainly have the occasional family outing but the fun stuff is VERY limited and has been a constant source of stress since I started working.  I rarely get to scrapbook or paint or craft or work on my long list of projects.

So in light of all that, I am over the moon about this move.  I still won’t have a ton of time for fun stuff, but getting home a little earlier and being able to grocery shop on a weeknight (or, get this:  I could shop on my lunch break, take everything home and put it away, let the dog out, and then go back to work!  Ha!) will help.  AAAAGGHHHH!  I’m so excited!

One more week at the current location, then the weekend of the 4th/5th the movers will move us, and we will report to the new location on the 6th! Can't wait!