Boarding the Happy Train

Yesterday was an interesting day.  It was the first time I went grocery shopping as a married woman.  I know this sounds pretty silly (what difference does it make that she's married?).  But it really was different. Somehow I walked the aisles with a whole new perspective.  Buy the $5.99 jar of fancy salsa or the $2.99 jar of generic salsa?  Generic.  We're on a budget.

Once I purchased my bag of mostly-generic or on-sale groceries, I drove home, to find my new husband mowing the lawn.  Another first.  The sight of my hubby pushing the lawnmower up and down the backyard helped me to feel a tiny bit more at home with our new home.

I went inside to prepare dinner and decided I'd start making note of all the little things that were helping me feel good about the day.

1.  Left over cake.  Need I say more?

2.  New pot to cook the potatoes in.  By habit, I grabbed an old pot out of the cupboard to use for dinner prep, and then it dawned on me... "you have NEW pots!  Use them!"

3.  Lots of sunshine - at least for a couple hours.  There really is a link between my mood and the amount of sun in the sky.

and, 4. Dinner served on our new plates, with new knives and forks.  It wasn't my best meal in my collection of throw-together meals, but it hit the spot.  And after mowing an acre of yard, I think my husband would have eaten spam and been happy.





During dinner last night, my husband and I talked about my current job and things I need to do to be happy up here.  I'm going to start looking into new art classes....maybe a knitting course at the local yarn shop in town.  I also need to either find a fitness class or gym to start using regularly.  In Chicago I saw a therapist for a short time during a bad period of my life.  She literally wrote me a prescription for happiness.  It read as follows:

1.  Plan a vacation
2.  Exercise every day

I did both of these things and probably felt better faster than I would have if I did nothing.

I guess it's time for some more medicine.

The Honeymoon is Over

Hello there.  My name is Meredith and I recently had my world turned upside down because of...well what else...a man.  That's right...I am no longer a single, independent woman living in her condo in Chicago, IL. I am a married, co-dependent woman, living in a house rental on the other side of the lake in Traverse City, MI.  My new husband and I met in Chicago and had one heck of a good time living it up in the big city.  We ate together, played together and loved every minute of it.  I think I was so caught up in glow of meeting the man I was sure I would one day marry (and I did), that I didn't so much as bat an eyelash when he submitted his paperwork for a first call as a Lutheran Pastor.  To me, it was an opportunity for a new adventure...something we did really well together (and still do).

What I didn't realize, is the major chain of events that would be set off once his paperwork was sign, sealed and delivered.  The following...is what followed.

• Received word that my boyfriend would be interviewing for a position in Traverse City, MI.  
• Boyfriend offered job in Traverse City
• I accepted proposal from my fiance, beachside at the Boat House in Traverse City and was now a newly engaged happy person
• Returned to Chicago and put my condo on the market in the worst housing market in recent history
• Started planning a wedding that would take place in Chicago
• Fiance and I adopt a dog (Rebel) 
• Fiance moves out of his apartment in Chicago and on to greener pastures up north
• Start looking into renting options for my place as I have an NO bites since putting it up for sale
• Head to St. Louis (my fiance's hometown) for his ordination ceremony
• Head to Traverse City for my fiance's installation as the new pastor of the church
• Finally rent my condo out and move all my things to Traverse City, except for myself and a suitcase for which I lived out of for several months at my parents house
• Find a job in Traverse City
• Quit my job in Chicago
• Move up to Traverse City where I have reside with a parishioner
• Start my new job
• Two months later, head back to Chicago with my fiance to get married
• Get married (so much fun!)
• Head to Kauai, HI for our honeymoon (have an amazing time)
• Return from our honeymoon (boo.)
• Husband and I return to work (boo hoo.)
• I fall into a deep, dark, bridal-blues slump

Okay...so I know that was a long list and I applaud anyone that made it all the way through without skipping to this point.  Looking back, there are several steps I would have liked to bypass as well.  But in order for you to understand the point of this blog, you also should know what I've been dealing with for the past year or so.  In a word...TRANSITION.  Lots and lots of transition.

This is where I am today.  In a funk and hoping that this blog will serve as a way for me to find my way out of it.  So I'll be here...keeping track of the things that inspire and motivate me.

I welcome you to follow me on my journey as I explore life on the other side of the lake.