Cleveland - Not So Bad After All

I still remember exactly which parking spot I was in at work when I got "the call". I had been waiting all week, unable to focus on work and pacing the hallways throughout the office. With a debilitating fear, I spent the day anxiously biting my nails and watching the clock tick by. You see, I was left the fun job of selling our house while Derek was away and the idea of the next unknown looming over my head was almost too much. Derek was to find out that day where we would be headed to live for the next few years and the waiting game was killing me.

Before the call came, I tried to imagine my life in a new city with a fresh start and utilized a "glass half full" mentality. I told myself it was only for a few years and that all that mattered was that I had Derek and my girls with me. (Drew obviously wasn't in the picture yet!). Sure we got to rank all of the cities, but ultimately we knew they would send us wherever they needed Derek. He quickly learned from 'upper classmen' that some people got within their top 10 choices... but some people got their 2nd to last choice out of all the cities. I tried to visualize living in a tiny cozy apartment in NYC, or the possibility of living on the border in El Paso, or even far away in Alaska or Puerto Rico. The possibilities were endless.

Then my phone rang and I braced myself sitting in my car still holding onto my dreams that it would be Dallas, OKC, St. Louis, or maybe another one of our top choices. There was a limited amount of small talk and then Derek says "I'm not even going to joke with you about it babe" and I knew it was bad. My heart sank and I could feel the emotions rising when he said Cleveland. More because I had NO clue even where it was in Ohio, but more because the reality of what I had been mentally preparing myself for for months now has come full circle. We would be officially moving in a couple months to a city that we'd have to live in for 3+ years, yet never even seen before. It would be 13 hours away from family and there would be a lot of snow. FYI... I'm a warm weather girl.

I cried the nasty tears that evening for hours and hours.

I honestly don't think the majority of my sadness was because we got the worst ranking in Derek's class. I don't think it was even that much about Cleveland itself. I believe the reality of moving away had set in full force. Sure, Derek and I had already moved away once before when we spent a year in Jacksonville, but this was different. I knew we wanted to start a family, and doing it alone with only Derek was scary to me. Since Drew's birth I've become much more accustom to adapting my life in whatever way necessary, but before him was a different story. I loved our life in Kansas City and this change was going to turn it upside down and inside out. I simply didn't want to face this huge transition that was about to happen in a couple of months.

After researching online and finding people here and there that knew someone in Cleveland, a few silver linings began to show their face. The cost of living is pretty decent up here and we'd be able to buy a nice house with only a 10 min commute for Derek. Plus, Southwest flies here! There's also a lot to do in general with or without kids around the city and our future children would be able to experience a beach in the summer months. But the most important bright spot to our change was my work. I work for the most fabulous company and since I had been there for over 5 years, they let me begin to work from home so that I could continue working for them once I moved to Cleveland. I did have to step down from management, but I'm very thankful for the option to telecommute and continue my partnership with this amazing company.

Fast forward about 3 months to our arrival in Cleveland on February 10th, 2010. My first fear came to fruition as there was snow. A LOT of snow. And it snowed daily for three straight weeks, hitting heights of 2-3 feet on some days. I was overwhelmed with the fact that my in-laws would be leaving in a few days after making the drive with us and it would be Derek and I stuck in this city filled with snow. Working from home would keep me in the house all day and the weather would keep us there all evening as well. I went to some deep dark places those first few months where I had to really focus on the good in life. At that time, my opinion of Cleveland was probably a 2 out of 10.

That first year was pretty tough. We didn't really make a lot of friends since I worked from home and a lot of Derek's co-workers were older with families. Fortunately we got pregnant fairly soon after the move and just focused on the good in the city and getting back to KC as much as we could. Obviously when Drew was born it was the highlight of our lives and with his wonderful birth and amazing hospital experience came an increase of my opinion of the city. His January birth helped us survive our second winter in the city seeing as how we spent most of our time inside watching him grow. We slowly began to make some friends here and there and found ourselves enjoying what the city had to offer. Around this time my opinion of Cleveland had probably risen to a 5.

After this last winter (our 3rd here), things were even better. It was an extremely mild winter for Cleveland with  minimal snow and spring showed it's beautiful face early. We joined the zoo and the children's museum and have enjoyed so many events and festivals with Drew in the past 6 months that it's really become 'home' to us. Sure we miss our family and friends in KC, but overall I'd have to say that right now Cleveland is a 7 to me. Yes, there is crime, but that's over on the other side of the city. Yes, it's 13 hours drive from home, but we've gotten lucky with some cheap Southwest flights and parents coming in town often. Yes, we get a lot of snow overall, but based on how hot this summer is we might get yet another mild winter! WIN!

I can definitely say that this experience has brought Derek and I even closer. We had a wonderful marriage before, but not having family or friends to help you with your newborn added an even deeper level of connection between us. We HAD to rely on each other. Period. And I'm so thankful that I have been with my best friend every step of this crazy journey. I guess you could say that I'm eluding to the fact that I like Cleveland? It's weird thinking so, but yes, I honestly can say that I like Cleveland now. It gets a really bad rap in the media and it's reputation is pretty low, but in general it's got a lot to offer if you just open your eyes.

We still can't wait to get back to our true home, but for now the tears are completely gone. Cleveland is a-ok in my book and I'll be just fine if we have to stay a few more years!