We’re moving. Again.

I counted how many times I’ve moved since I left for college. This will be the 14th move. At age 41, this puts me on average of moving every one and a half years. Oh my God.

I’m trying to decide if this typical for us Millennials. 14 might be a little much, but I’m willing to bet we move more frequently that Gen X or the Baby Boomers.

As I reflect on first moving to college, I fully embraced and welcomed change. So after having my dad sweat it out with making furniture in my dorm, I shortly thereafter announced I was joining a sorority and wanted to live in the sorority house. The reality of living with 60 (this could be an exaggerated number but it definitely felt like this number!) other women soon set in, and I moved into my own apartment after that. The last two years of college, I lived with friends in different apartments.

Of course there is a move after college. Here there was some stability, as we rented an apartment for a few years and then bought our first home.

Then a divorce, which ended up with two different moves until a third move into a home in Farragut, where I became principal.

I would not have anticipated the next move as quickly as it happened, but with the dissolution of a school district, a move was imminent. We moved to a rental where my next job was and then moved again when we bought a home. Shortly thereafter, we moved into our next home that had more land and space.

At this point, I was working at a job that was two hours away. We made the decision to move closer to my work. The real estate transaction was nearly complete, and the new owner had her stuff in our basement. We were packed, had moving trucks coming in the morning and at 9:00 pm I got a phone call from the buyer. She/her bank didn’t realize they needed flood insurance on the property (although this was disclosed many times) and the bank would not allow her to move forward with the purchase. Completely devastated. However, looking back, this was the best thing that could have happened. At the time, I was working for an Area Education Agency (AEA). Iowa Republican legislators had started to pick at these agencies and during the 2024 legislative session Republicans nearly burnt them (AEAs) to the ground.

When the move didn’t happen, we changed directions and I started looking at job opportunities in different areas. With a new job secured, we made a quick move. During that time (2022), there were not a lot of real estate options available, so we picked a house that had many great features but one we knew we would grow out of soon.

Now we are ready and able to move into our next home that will provide us some more space again and fit our needs.

What I forget about each time that we move is how stressful a move is. And I don’t mean stressful as in finding the right property, working through the mortgage application, etc. I mean stressful in the way that it completely disrupts order, structure, and routine.

With about three weeks to move, I started packing things, as I wanted to feel somewhat productive. With two weeks to go, packing even more. Then with a week to go, I got stuck. We still needed items to live for a week, so I couldn’t pack much more. But now it’s this off balance place in which most of our things are in boxes and I can’t do much more. And it feels horrible to be unproductive and also feels ick to not have things put in places. I feel like it’s this unproductive spiral that I don’t have any control over.

And then everything else spins out of control…kids have been on their iPads waaay too much but we keep promising this will change when we move…meals have been half-assed attempts which I also promise myself will change…bedtime has become staying up late…and you get the idea. All of this has definitely led to me hulking out on the kids more than usual, and I’m pretty sure by this many moves my husband has learned to stay out of the way. 😉

Gosh, as I reread the last couple of paragraphs, I feel there are a lot of great spin-offs for future blog articles. Stay tuned for “Being a Control Freak,” “Wanting to be Organized but Failing Miserably at It,” and “Feeling like a Terrible Mother.” That was said tongue in cheek but I also think there could be some great content there!!

I’m hoping this is the last move until we’re retired and can float around in our RV permanently. 🙂