The Stars at Night, are BIG and BRIGHT....

So - word's out...after four amazing years here in NYC, the Nelsons are moving back to Dallas!!!

It's funny - because for us, this decision has been in the works for a bit. We finally got clarity on some things recently and everything has started to fall into place. But most people - while excited - are like "you're moving - WHY?!?!" And for some reason, I feel the need to justify it. I told Jimmy that it'd almost be easier to just say that I'm pregnant (which I'm not). So...for those who are curious - here's how it all came about...

Once upon a time...kidding...

Where to start...it's a bit of a tangled mess, but put on your seatbelts and try to follow along!!!

It all started back in July - we went to visit our friends, Dave & Erin, in Jacksonville for the July 4th weekend. They have a GORGEOUS, spacious house - 3BR, 2 1/2 baths, back yard, the works - really nice. And Jimmy and I forgot how nice it was to have space - to sort of "spread out" in a home. We currently live in a 2BR apartment in NY which is nice, but we are surrounded by neighbors. So being at the Cohen's house for a few days got our wheels turning.

We started talking about moving out of the city. We're getting to the age where kids might come into the picture in the not too distant future and we realized that while yes, there are people that do have and raise kids in NYC, it's not necessarily something WE want to do.

We'd also talked about moving out of the city once we were both able to be full time Beachbody coaches. We're not quite there yet - so thoughts of moving out on that account weren't in the forefront of our brains.

But we got to talking one day about where we'd move - we weren't sure that we'd want to back to TX and we didn't want to live full time in New Orleans (that's where our families live) - so I thought - ok, if I can pick anywhere that I want to live, it'd be near a beach on the East Coast. So I opened up google maps and looked at cities on the eastern seaboard and Charleston, SC jumped out at me. So I began to do research on it and thought it'd be a great place to raise a family. Only problem being that we'd still be away from our families. We'd be closer, but still a plane ride away. I casually looked at the area, talked to a friend that lives there - who had GLOWING reviews of it - looked around at the neighborhoods and looked at what some job options might be, but that's about as far as it went. We figured that if Charleston was meant for us, everything would fall into place for us to know that it was right. But nothing really came out of it.

August 10th...the place I was working announced that they were closing two of their three portfolios (it's a hedge fund) - which meant most people were getting let go. I was given Sept 4th as my last day there, so I immediately began the job hunt. I literally was offered a temp to perm position at great company on my last day - literally hours before I was going to walk out the door!!!

So new job is temp to perm til the end of January when a perm offer would be made if they were pleased with my work. No biggie.

Fast forward to two weekends ago - Jimmy went to Dallas for almost a week to spend time with his family and to do a Beachbody workout. He was surprising his family with tickets to the big Monday Night Cowboy game at the new Cowboys Stadium!!! Usually when Jimmy's back in Texas, he's ready to come back to NY on or about Day 2. He called me on Day 2 and said...something's different. I knew exactly what he meant and I knew that this was the sign we'd been waiting on. He said it "felt right" there now. I was on board immediately. The decision had been made.

I miss my family LOTS - and so does Jimmy - so being this far away for the past four years has been tough. For us, family comes first. So we decided that Dallas was the place we needed to be. Close to Jimmy's family (they live in the suburbs of Dallas), closer to my family (they're in New Orleans and south Louisiana) and close to friends.

Then there were the logistics. We had just begun year 2 of our 2 year lease on our apartment in Astoria, so the initial thought was to move Sept 2010. Then we started talking about it and realized that we were both kind of at a crossroads with our jobs.

The place that I worked for did offer for me to stay on thru year end, but it'd be a mayyybee kind of situation in January, so I decided to leave while the job market was good here in NYC. Then I get a temp to perm offer which wouldn't be perm til February. So my thought was let's move in February. I think that kind of shocked both of us. But it made sense. If I'd accept a permanent offer (or if it'd have been a perm offer from the beginning or if I'd not been let go from my previous job), none of this move stuff would have been given a thought. I'm not the kind of person to commit then walk away. So I'm not tied down here, so I thought Feb would be a good time to make a clean break from corporate America in NYC.

Jimmy can do both of his careers anywhere - having done theatre and print work in Dallas, he knows how things work down there, so the learning curve wouldn't be bad (just getting reacclimated) and he can do fitness stuff anywhere! So for him, the transition would be almost seamless (minus finding representation...which he's currently seeking!!!).

So Jimmy called our landlord and told him of our decision. He was super cool. He said he would put our apartment on the market in December or January. Then, our neighbor across the hall has a coworker that was interested in taking our apartment - and for him, the sooner the better. Wow...ok!

We have commitments in NYC thru the beginning of November, so we thought December 1st would be a great move in date. That would give us time to finish our commitments here, come to TX to get an apartment, car and for me to interview for jobs, and pack the apartment here.

Then...yesterday morning we found out that the guy backed out...sigh...I was really bummed, but thought, ok, it's not in our time - we'll move when we're supposed to move.

So we figured we'd start spreading the word to see if there are any takers for a December 1st move in date. It would work out best for us - we'd be able to start making plans now and the new tenants would get to move in before the brunt of winter arrived.

We're both really excited about the move and being closer to family and friends and the new opportunities that will come our way. We're ready to settle down and plant roots that way when kids do come along, we're already established. This is a very positive move for us.

But it's weird - we've gotten mixed reactions. I think that some people think that if you move to NY, then move back, somehow you've failed. I don't think that at all. Jimmy and I have grown tremendously in the past four years and we know that all the nuggets we've learned here will only benefit us in Dallas. Will we miss New York???...yes, parts of it. But it will hold a very special place in our hearts and we know that there's always time for visits back!!!

It's just crazy to make these grown up decisions without being prompted by the start of a school year, or because it's something your parents tell you to do. This was solely our decision and it came about in such a natural way that we knew it was right. And I'm SOOOO thankful that we're on the same page about it. We know we're doing what's best for our our family (even though that's just the two of us for now).

So that's the gist of it. If we move down at the end of November for a 12/1 move in date, we'll go to Texas the second week in November to buy a car, secure an apartment and for me to get a job. If you know of anyone that's looking for an Executive Assistant in Dallas, please let me know!!! :)