After 13+ years living in Redding, CA, I am excited to announce that myself and my family are moving...to Bucks County, PA!
This move has been a while in the making. My parents have recently found many acquaintances in the East Coast. Last year, 3/4 (or more!) of my Dad's work trips led him to the East Coast. When my sister mentioned she would be ok moving before she had graduated High School, we realized it was time.
Why Bucks County?
We feel drawn to the place. After deciding we wanted to make the move, we began looking at where. Some of the things we had in mind to help guide us to the right place were:
close to an international airport
close to good high schools for my sister to attend
has God's blessing on it for us
When my parents took a trip around Pennsylvania, looking at some of our options, it was Bucks County that they could feel God's blessing on.
Not to mention Bucks County is beautiful. I haven't yet had the chance to see the area we will be moving to but did have the opportunity to get a taste of the East Coast on a recent medical trip. I was astounded by the beauty and enjoyed plenty of the little things I got to experience on my trip.
Like gold kiwi fruit which are impossible to find here but in all the supermarkets where we went. Why they are shipped from NZ to the East Coast but not to the closer West Coast, I don't understand.
What am I looking forward to about the move?
More Independence: We are currently seeking out a home that has a basement apartment or guest house. Here, I will still live with my parents but will receive more independence and a better understanding of what it would be like to live alone. I'll begin to buy my own groceries, make my own meals, and have my own space. Meanwhile, I won't e so far from my parents that if there is an emergency (such as a medical emergency) I couldn't call for help. It is a great next step for me and I am excited!
The Beauty: I have heard a lot about the East Coast and seen some pictures so I have some idea of the beauty I might find over there. I have never found Redding to be all that beautiful (sorry Redding!) and am excited to find a new place that reveals the artistry of God!
The Lack of Heat: Here's two things I'm excited for that I cannot begin to explain my excitement about: the temperatures in Bucks County and the lack of wildfire. In Redding, temperatures in the summer can reach nearly 120 degrees (we stayed in the range of 111-116 most of last summer). The average highs for Bucks county appear to be in the 80s. Now, I know that lower temperature is matched by (much) higher humidity but here's the difference: on the East Coast, you feel like you are sweating (because of the humidity) and in Redding, you are actually sweating 24/7 in the summer (including inside at night). I'll take the East Coast thanks! My excitement revolves around more than the temperature, however. In fact, it more closely relates to the lack of wildfire. In 2018, my family and I were evacuated from our home for months thanks to the Carr Fire. While we thankfully didn't lose our house, we returned to a mess that had to be cleaned up. It was an unpleasant time made more unpleasant by the snow that followed, breaking most of the trees that hadn't been burnt. In recent years, there have been more fires, each one striking fear into our hearts and making us pack bags of our most important belongings just in case of evacuation. I am ready to leave that behind and live through summer, not on the edge of my seat waiting for fire to expel us from our house and potentially take all we own with it. I am also ready for a place where the trees are used to snow and won't break under the pressure!
The Bookstores: In Doylestown, PA alone there are at least 3 independent bookstores. In the wider Bucks County, there seem to be too many to count. My hope is to find a job working in one of these bookstores so that I can learn the trade. Either way, I am sure being around so many bookstores will give me new ideas and feed my imagination and love of books. They also might be a place to meet fellow booklovers! The East Coast is a better place to be both for my writing (many of the literary agencies and publishers I might look into are located on the East Coast as well as plenty of authors) and my bookstore. I hope to be able to continue to grow in the knowledge of these two things and eventually, begin a business over there.
Decorating: This is one of the things I am admittedly most excited for. Supposing that we find the kind of house we are looking for (with some kind of apartment for me), I will get the chance to make the place my own. I'll need chairs for the living room, kitchen supplies, and new bookcases (I'm not taking my Walmart shelves with me!). I have been planning for this since we began thinking about the move and can't wait to really get my hands on this massive project. Look for upcoming posts about my process and DIYs I take on throughout it!
Honestly, this move is simply the thing my family and I need. My brother graduates High School about a month after I graduate college this coming Spring. My youngest sister is happy to move (and hoping for a place at a prestigious boarding school). The older of my two younger sisters is already attending college...at Cornell! And my parents have been making friends on the East Coast for some time now. We are ready, and we are excited!
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