five acres in florida

friday was a big day after all... not only did i have my interview at the birth center, in which they offered me the job by telling me i'm "the one," but we ended up buying a bigger place than the one we planned on for the same amount of money! thank you, lake city. it's not quite as bright inside as the original pick but it's a 4/2 with a few hundred extra square feet and lots more closet and cabinet space, so the trade-off was ok in the end.

working backwards from furthest to soonest:

on monday i have to go into work and tell them that i am moving and can no longer work full-time. i have decided if they are willing to let me be part-time i will stay (2 days a week commuting), so it will be up to them what happens. it's not going to be a fun or pleasant conversation, but it has to be done. there will be tears on both sides.

also on monday, i meet with a potential nanny just in case i need one. she sounds good so far and has an 18-month old for rowan to hang out with, which is nice. i hope i don't need her; i think between my mom and my best friend we will be covered if i do end up working.

on friday i will be going to buy our new home! i'm so excited, but trying to stay calm and focused and really ponder what it will mean to leave gainesville, so that i don't get overemotional after the fact. mental preparation is important, here.

tomorrow i go for an interview with the birth center to be their receptionist two days a week. even though the pay is very little and it will be 35-mile commute one way, i would love to work for them. it sounded like they really want me, too, but i will only be able to accept if things don't work out with my current job to stay part-time. i'm not sure what i hope happens--staying at my job will be more money (and benefits) but working for the BCOG will be really fulfilling, i think.

in the meantime, we've been planning our first steps while the house is being built. we need to get fencing up, a workshop built, and acquire some animals. pretty straightforward, though finding sheep has not been easy. i still don't know if we have a source for the florida native breed that matt wants to get.

i'm also going to have a truckload of flowers to transplant to the new yard, since i am not wasting all the effort i put into growing them by leaving them to rot! i just hope they survive the move. we have a small apple tree and a rose tree that i cannot bear to leave behind... i have to say, i will really miss the 24/7 access to the prairie that i have now. it's beautiful out there this time of year.

anyway, that's the agenda for now. i think we found a family friend to dig our water well at a dramatically reduced rate, which is lucky. every $ we save is one more that can go towards the rest of the necessities...