Bye Bye California!

   Well, most of you have heard by now- Gary and I are moving out of California!

  We have been wanting to get out of Los Angeles for awhile now. Not only is it affecting Gary's health, but the prices of rent and homes keep hiking up to insane prices. Plus, him taking the subway everywhere was just being a little too overwhelming after some time. So, I asked him one afternoon if he felt like we should start looking for something out of the area- and he agreed. So, the job hunting began.

   He had several phone interviews over the course of a few weeks-month from companies in South Carolina, Tennessee, Montana, Oklahoma, Virginia, and a few other places. One company in Louisiana was really interested in him, but after some research on the location, we decided it wasn't what was best for us and declined to move forward.

    The one company Gary was hoping to hear back from was a golfing company in Texas. It was a job he knew he'd enjoy, and everything seemed very positive about it all. He had two phone interviews with them, then didn't hear anything for a few days. He started to feel a little down, but I had a good feeling and told him they'd call by the end of the week. Sure enough, the next day they called him and asked him more questions. This was a long, 2 hour phone interview from several different people. They told him they'd let him know by the end of the week. 2 hours later, they called and offered to fly him out to Austin to interview in person. He was so excited!

  A few days later, he was in Austin for his in-person interview. He flew out that morning, and came back that same night (long day! Alex and I spent time at the ocean). Then, the next day, they offered him the job! They told him they loved how he communicated with everyone and were impressed with his skills. So, he is now the new Business Intelligence Developer for them!

  So, we are moving to Austin! The company is north of Austin, right between Austin and Round Rock- and since we like the Round Rock area, we were able to grab a nice place there (so technically we're moving to Round Rock). It's next to parks and shopping, so we get to walk everywhere.

Veterans Park in Round Rock

      

Beautiful shot of the Pennybacker Bridge in Austin

Austin's skyline

   We are excited! It's located right on the Colorado River and many other lakes- and Austin is also considered to have the fittest and healthiest people in the nation. It's HUGE on sports and athletics, which probably explains it. Austin and Round Rock are on the list of the top safest cities, and the number one school district in Texas is in Austin. The housing prices are also great, so this will be a great move for our family.

     I understand all the floods and storms going on, which is crazy! We contacted our management to our new apartment, and they told us it's not serious in Round Rock, and it should be improved by the time we get there. Just some of the lakes are flooded. New adventures for sure!

    So, Gary starts on the 15th of June, and we fly out the 10th. This gives us only 2 weeks to get all the packing and moving done. C.R.A.Z.Y. YES, we have been busy! Thankfully his company is paying for a huge portion of the move. We are having our cars shipped, we're flying ourselves, and we are still in the process of finding movers. Most of everything else is settled. I seriously can't believe that in 2 weeks, we will be in our new place in a new state! 

     We will miss being so close to family for sure, but we're just a plane ride away. We are looking forward to this new chapter in our lives!

Family Updates

I haven't been so good at this blogging thing lately, especially keeping up with everyone else. But, while I have some free time, I thought I'd do some updates.

Alex is 11 months now, and extra mobile. He is into. EVERYTHING. He clears out shelves, reaches up and tries to pull items off of tables, etc, and just- well, a handful and a load of fun! Seriously, I love it. Well, except for the part where he got a little overexcited in the cultural hall at church, and face planted onto the wooden floor, causing him to bite through his lip. Gary had him at Mutual, and I received a text message picture of him with blood all over his face. Poor dude. But he was fine and playing, and he just had a bit of a swollen lip for awhile.

There's a place walking distance from us called Pint Size Kids. It's a big, indoor playground, with different rooms to explore- a workshop room (Legos, cars, tools, etc), a general store room with cash registers, shelves of food- kinda like a mini grocery store, a medical center with equipment, a "play house" room with baby dolls, strollers, stove, kitchen- you get it, and a special, gated area for infants and toddlers. The main floor is a huge track with fake grass for pushing around buggy cars and such. Alex doesn't have to be in the infant and toddler area, as the rest of the playground is safe (it's really there to keep him safe from bigger kids), but I just set him down and let him loose. It's nice because it's completely safe, the staff are obsessed with it being clean and disinfected, and I can relax while he plays with other kids and not have to worry about him getting into something he shouldn't. There's also an actual kitchen area in the back with an eating area, and you can order food from the Cafe a few doors down. So, when Alex and I visit, we have lunch together in the back (and of course they have a changing/bathroom area too). Outside the back is a soccer field (fake, safe grass), and there are also various classes like dance and sports. We love it! It's really his favorite place, and when he's worn out, he'll actually cry when I pry him away to take him home.

Playing with the boys

Throwing himself into stuffed animals and apparently having a blast from it

Shopping like Mommy

Our sign it's time to start heading home! Snuggling a stuffed lion.

          Anyway, I cannot believe this child is going to turn one in a few weeks. How crazy is that??

     The rest of the Pollock home is doing well. In fact, we are getting ready for some big changes, but that's a different post altogether! We've definitely been busy. Love my family!