Honestly - it's amazing. I mean that in & of itself is something to consider when planning out the next 3-5 years of your life. That's 1,825 days of bouncy, shinny, manageable hair - can you imagine? In all seriousness, my whirlwind trip to L.A. was an awesome experience. The firm was amazing - they are the top estate planning firm in Southern California and represent huge charitable clients like The Getty Foundation & Ceders-Sinai Medical Center (where famous people have their babies). Not only are they the best of the best attorneys, they are really cool, nice people! So pretty much, the firm's perfect, the people are perfect, and the location is perfect (my fellow curlyheads out there can vouch for me on that one) . . . except for one thing - it's 32 hours driving distance & a full day of flying away from home. It's so tough knowing what the right decision is - should we live somewhere that would be amazing for both mine & Chris' careers, or live somewhere we can be close to family & friends? We both realize that life is about so much more than your career, but at the same time, successful careers provide the financial freedom to allow one to experience so many amazing things and a give you a very real sense of pride & accomplishment.
So, I'm soliciting your advice. I would love to hear about your experiences - 1) Do you live in your home town (either where you grew up or where you or your spouse have family), 2) How did you end up where you are, and 3) Are you happy with your decision - why or why not. Feel free to provide as much or as little detail as you want & don't feel limited by these questions.
In return for your sharing, I will post some pictures from the awesome hotel the firm put me up in (that no lie, is bigger than mine & Chris' apartment here in NYC) as well as some (admittidly not so great) night shots of Century City. I know that's not much of an offering, but considering the fact that I was only there for about 18 hours, it's the best I can do! =)
Living Room which was separated from the Bedroom by French Doors - where the curtains hang was all windows opening up to a wrap around balcony!
Wonderful, comfy bed!
Half of the bathroom - the tub was so deep and inviting, I just had to indulge before bed (even though I was so incredibly tired that I eventually told myself, I had to get out that very minute or meet a tragically premature death by drowning in a hotel bathtub). On the other side was a little room with the toilet & an awesome glassed in shower.
The Century City skyline view from my balcony.
Living Room which was separated from the Bedroom by French Doors - where the curtains hang was all windows opening up to a wrap around balcony!
Wonderful, comfy bed!
Half of the bathroom - the tub was so deep and inviting, I just had to indulge before bed (even though I was so incredibly tired that I eventually told myself, I had to get out that very minute or meet a tragically premature death by drowning in a hotel bathtub). On the other side was a little room with the toilet & an awesome glassed in shower.
The Century City skyline view from my balcony.
6 comments:
Oh, such wonderfully tough decisions! Katy, you are so blessed to have these decisions to make! Thanks for sharing it with us! Okay...now for the goods...I totally see both sides of your situation. This is something that Rob and I had to decide when we graduated college and he had an offer in PC and in Rhode Island. Obviously, we decided PC. The reason was that we felt we could earn more money in the long run due to the cost of living (which is definitely something you'll have to take into account living in CA). On the other hand, NOW is the time to live far away because I honestly believe that once there are children you will want to be close to all your family. Does that help? Or complicate things even more for you?? ;) I know you and Chris will make the right decision no matter what! And, don't forget to keep us updated on your decision!!
Well, you know what we chose...:) It is certainly tough to say "later, family and friends and everything we know!" and move across the country. Like you guys we had a glorious window of time where everybody lived all in one place, and that was wonderful...that said, we felt there is much to be said for making use of your gifts to the fullest, and I don't just mean professional gifts--I think it's a gift to have the spirit of adventure and the temperament to live someplace that's very different from what you know, too. And when all those factors align and enable you to live in a place that expands your view of the world and humanity and is really cool to boot, why not do it? Not everyone has those chances, or the desire/inclination to take them.
And YES, the West Coast is ahhmazing for hair. I have never looked better than I did when we were bicoastal and I spent every other weekend in Vegas--I never had a bad hair day there and didn't even use product! It was like hair heaven.
What an easy decision.... I live in my same hometown that my high school sweetheart and I were raised in. After college we opted to pass on what we thought could be a better town for our careers and have never looked back. It was absolutely the best decision we could have made. We actually raised our three beautiful children in that same hometown. It was great having them around their grandparents, great-grandparents, great-great-grandmother, aunts, uncles and cousins. What a special relationship my middle daughter had with her great-great-grandmother! Anyway, I hope this helps. Love... aaaah I mean sincerely, Dad... aaaah I mean Anonymous
katy, i think you are wise to consider the impact that your moving would have on your family as a whole! i will give you my "mom with 2 kids" perspective... i don't really know if you and chris are hoping to have kids in the next several years, or if that's part of your long-term plan, or if kids aren't in the picture at all... so i'll apologize up front if this advice is totally off-base!!
if you are hoping to expand your family in the future, but you are wanting to focus on your career for a little while, i would say that it wouldn't be a bad idea to live that west coast adventure for a few years. (sorry mrs. marsha!!) i LOVE to travel and i had a wonderful time visiting other countries before i got married & started having children. (not that you can't travel with kids, but it does change some things.) if it is your dream to live out there and work for a big firm, i would say do it now while you can.
on the OTHER hand, i would strongly encourage you to position yourself closer to home when (if) you are ready to have children. i say this for your sanity as well as your mother's survival :) :). just kidding, mrs. marsha! but seriously, let me just tell you WHAT A HUGE BLESSING it is to have grandparents down the street. i tell people that we are blessed to the point of being spoiled. our children know their grandparents and see them several times a week. while i always dreamed about living in some other beautiful, more exciting city than our hometown, i can say now that any living experience can be topped by the smile on my kids' faces when their nana or gram just stops by to see them! and that's when i'm having a good day. on a bad day, when there's sickness (either brian or me or the kids) or when i'm just up to my eyeballs in motherhood, there is always someone ready to take a child off my hands for the morning or to help me catch up on laundry. and i know my mom & brian's mom can vouch for the blessing of being able to see their grandkids on a regular basis. though today is a world of webcams & blogs, it is not quite the same as getting that hug in person! and even if you guys just ended up somewhat close to home, your parents are so good about visiting kristy... but she's definitely not 32 hours away! i honestly can't imagine not living in the same town as family now that we have kids. i know people do it all the time, but i'm so spoiled that i don't ever want to know anything else! do we get to go to great concerts? no. do we get to eat at amazing restaurants? no. but i wouldn't trade our time with family for anything.
so that's my 2 cents. (more like 50 cents, huh?!?!) i'd love to hear other moms' perspectives on this, especially those that don't live near their families.
katy, i will be praying for your decision. in the end, what really matters is that you are glorifying God wherever you are, whatever you're doing. so rest in the peace that God will use you for His purposes wherever you decide to go. i'll be praying that He makes the way clear for you.
I'm so torn on this one, Kate. One side of me is screaming COME HOME! COME HOME! (much like the church song, "Softly and Tenderly") :) The other side is telling me that if you're ever going to go far away and pursue your "dreams", now is the time. I guess the question that it all comes down to is "What ARE your dreams?" Are your dreams to live in a big city, have a fab job and make lots of money? Or, are your dreams to be able to see your family at church every Sun/Wed and to be able to eat meals/hang out with friends/family whenever you want? I don't think there's a right or wrong answer. It's just what's important to YOU (and Chris, of course).
Personally speaking, I've been away from PC since I was 17 years old and I DO miss being around family. I can tell you with all honesty that I look forward to the day when I'll be able to see family and PC friends whenever I want. Will I miss things about B-ham? OF COURSE!!! But, in my mind, does being closer to family outweigh these things? DEFINITELY!!!
Just so you know, we will support you 100%, no matter what path you and Chris choose. You are such a wonderful person and Payton and I are SO PROUD of you and Chris. We will be praying for both of you as you decide what path to take :)
Dearest Katy
This is such a personal decision for you and Chris with no wrong answer. However, some scriptures that point to the advice I give are as follows: "Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." Jeremiah 33:3 "pray continually; I Thes. 5:17 "I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go." Isaiah 48:17-- "Be still, and know that I am God; . ." Psalm 46:10 Therefore, my advice is to relax, pray, keep your spiritual eyes and ears open, and see/listen to God's direction. He will make your path clear. I love you-Mom
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