I'm Moving!

It's an inevitable change for a renter to move every few years or so. Sometimes we plan it, sometimes we are expecting it to not come so soon. But we all know that our home isn't permanent, and that one day we're going to leave it. Normally this thought has been a happy one for me, and I crave the change. This time around, I'm a little bit apprehensive.

Cell phone photo of my cute little street and a particularly beautiful sunrise | Rental Revival

Growing up, my family moved a lot. I have lived in a total of seven houses, not including the four places I've rented and the five college dorms in which I've resided on my own. If you do the math, that means I've moved a total of about fourteen times. 14 times! That is a lot of packing and uprooting. It's probably why I crave change in my life, because I'm so used to it. I've always told myself that I refuse to remain stagnant, gather dust, and get in a routine for too long. So moving is always a natural progression.

Packing has commenced. Books are usually the first thing to go in boxes | Rental Revival

Why am I apprehensive this time? Partially because I was expecting this to my last rental home until, well, marriage. But life throws curve balls sometimes, and things don't turn out the way we expected. We can attempt to predict our futures until we're stubbornly blue in the face, but somehow our guesses are almost always off. Somehow--and I'm not sure why this is--things turn out even better for us than we could have imagined for ourselves. I wouldn't have thought that at this point, most of my life would be getting the "reset" button. My relationship, job, schooling, and now my home are all starting over. But I am happy that is where I am. That is why I am actively pursuing things I want for myself, finally.

One always acquires the most random assortment of boxes from friends and family... | Rental Revival

My next move is to a home about thirty minutes outside of Cleveland. My parents built it, for the purpose of being their future residence in the next stage of their lives. Right now, they live in Cincinnati, so they will be splitting their time between there and here in Northern Ohio. So not only am I moving out of my dream rental home, I am moving a bit of a distance away from my friends, to my parents' house. It's a little nerve-wracking changing all of those things. I'm used to being independent and spontaneous, and I'm going to have to give up a little of that. But I have my reasons for doing it.

I want to buy a house to call my own and to take care of, in which to settle for some time. I don't know what the future holds but I'm excited about this decision I'm making. There are so many bafflingly inexpensive houses in Cleveland, and so many first-time homebuyer programs. I can buy a house and own it, paying a lot less for mortgage than I do for renting. It makes sense, and I am so looking forward to this new chapter in my life.

The chaotic mess has begun | Rental Revival

There will be some adjustments, like having to drive a distance to be social. To top it off, at the same time as my moving, I will be starting a new job and applying for graduate school. It seems to be all things happening at once, which is exciting! I just really can't wait to get out and begin my new routine, you know?

Petunia doesn't seem to care one way or another | Rental Revival

Have you made any recent changes in your life that took a bit of tough decision-making? What worries you about committing to big decisions like moving? What are your favorite parts about relocating? My friends Allegra Stein and Jacqui Amidon and I will be doing another (Re)invent Life video soon on the subject, and we'd love to hear some input from you! You can leave a reply below, or tweet me with the hashtag #reinventlife, and we'll discuss your comments on the episode.