My life in a [fairly large] nutshell
September 12, 2016
A little background...
I was born in Dallas, raised in Illinois, began my marriage in Arizona, and started a family back in Texas. I always seem to do things the hard way, and never learn from that mistake. Consequently, it has made me who I am today.
My name is Chelsea and I have a wonderful husband (Ryan), beautiful baby boy (Jackson), 3 dogs and 2 cats. I am a stay at home mom in my mind, but work outside of the home. With the holidays approaching, I am more excited than ever to start traditions with my little family of three.
My husband and I got married in 2010 at Sea Breeze Point at Walt Disney World. To say it was perfect would be an understatement. We had made the decision that two weeks after we got married we would move across the country from Chicago to Phoenix with no jobs and nowhere to live - seriously! We stayed with Ryan's parents for about 6 months while we found jobs and saved up some money to move out. We both found jobs within a month of moving out there and built a pretty awesome life out there.
My husband is a fitness fiend, and although I love the idea of being fit and healthy, I really hate the fact that you have to work to get any kind of real results. He works for a gym and runs the fitness department there. He has moved laterally in the company multiple times and has had promotions here and there. It wasn't until this November of 2015 that everything would get turned upside down. His gym was closing in the area and he was offered a position to stay with the company, but move out to California.
I went to school to be a teacher and for the last 7 years, have absolutely had a passion for teaching middle school students and being a positive role model in their lives. I taught 6, 7, and 8th grades in multiple subjects over that time span, but my niche was 7th and 8th grade science. I dedicated every waking moment to my students and my school and loved every minute of it.
When my husband found out he was getting transferred to California, I couldn't consciously leave in the middle of the school year. I would feel like I was abandoning my students, my coworkers and my friends. I didn't want to sever all the relationships I had so intentionally built. So started the longest 7 months of my life (to this point), while we decided to live apart until the end of the school year when I would join him by the beach.
The following four weeks were a whirlwind of ups and downs. Ryan's father passed away unexpectedly just one week after he packed up and moved out there. We went to Cabo San Lucas with my parents for a pre-Christmas getaway. I visited the beach cities where I would soon call home. And then, we found out that after 5 years of 'not trying,' we were pregnant!
There were so many emotions running through my mind that I didn't even know what to do or think. Should I continue with the plan and stay at school and live apart from my husband during the first 6 months of my pregnancy? How would I go through that all alone? When I move, could we afford to live on the coast in California where Ryan got transferred? Would I be able to find a teaching job out there in time to qualify for benefits and get myself grounded before I had this baby? How would I find a doctor out there? How will we raise a family with no help from family in the area?
I was completely overwhelmed by my own thoughts.
By the time March came around, I was so distraught about money and the daunting fact that we wouldn't be able to afford life in that area that I looked anywhere for a solution. Ryan started looking for jobs that would move him back to Phoenix, or would take us closer to my parents in Dallas.
In the beginning of May, we found out that the company Ryan was working for would transfer him to a location near Dallas so we could be near family. It was the answer to all of my prayers! We would be near my parents, I would finally live back in Texas (something I had wanted since my parents moved me away back in 1998), and I would have a job and be covered by health insurance by the time the baby arrived. While I am not teaching at the current time, I am beyond grateful for the opportunity that was provided.
We had Jackson on September 7 and it changed our lives completely! He is an absolute blessing and the center of my world. Everyone always says that you don't understand how you could love someone so much until you have a child of your own - and that is so true! When he cries, my heart hurts... when he smiles, it brings tears to my eyes. How can such perfection come from two very imperfect people?! I may never know the answer to that, but I will enjoy every second of this blessing.
Like I said, we don't do anything the 'easy' way by any means, but it's our life and I wouldn't want it any other way!
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