Feels Like Home

 Two months. We've been here for two months and it is now feeling like home. And I don't just mean the four walls of this house. I mean this town. It is growing on me. I think I am meant to live in a small(er) town. I think this place is a good fit for our family. I think we are home.

It started slowly. I missed my friends (I still do). I missed knowing where everything was in the grocery store. I missed my favorite restaurants. I missed the familiarity of Atlanta.

But Macon has welcomed us with open arms and when someone hugs you, you can't help but hug back. The kindness of the people here has blown me away. People are genuinely nice and glad you are here. My neighbors have opened their homes and dinner tables to us. A coworker I'd never met called her daycare to see if they could work me in after she heard I'd fired our nanny without a backup plan (another story for another day). My sorority sister who I hadn't seen in almost ten years invited us to trick-or-treat with her family and friends. We have truly experienced Southern hospitality at its finest.

I'm still figuring out my new job, which comes with its own set of difficulties. But I'm home by 4:45 almost every afternoon and I spend only 6 minutes commuting to and from work. That's not even two songs on the radio! By moving here I have regained time with my family. I no longer have a commute that leaves my knuckles white from stress and my mind frazzled from trying to cram family and dinner time into an hour before the boys' bedtime. My husband is home at 5:30 most days and we eat dinner as a family. We may not make as much money as we used to, but there's no amount of money that can buy you more time with your loved ones. The drop in income has been worth every lost penny.