You guys, this has been a crazy year so far for us! We started out January just thinking our lives were pretty much going to be business as usual, and only a few weeks later were seriously discussing and then deciding to move to Nashville, TN this year. We actually were watching the Super Bowl at a friend’s house when we got a text from Elsie and her husband Jeremy asking if we would consider moving to Nashville to with them, and all I could think was, “First of all, woah, second of all, there are sharks dancing on TV right now, I can’t even deal with that question…” Once we started talking and praying about it though, it didn’t take long to come to the conclusion that we wanted to try and make it happen. For years we’ve talked about moving to either Nashville or Austin so we could be in a bigger city where Todd could make the most of his musical abilities and connections, but it always seemed like such a far away idea. I’m from Pittsburgh, PA, so I was used to living somewhere with more options for arts and entertainment, and even though I’ve come to love a lot of small town things about Springfield, I’ve really missed that those bigger city options that I used to enjoy. We’ve been to Nashville several times together over the past few years (and Todd goes there for work a lot) so we’ve already started to compile our favorite places to hang out in town (see here and here). Nashville is also a lot closer to my Pittsburgh family and my sister who lives in Atlanta, so those are big perks for me as well.
As much as I’m looking forward to all the perks about the move, I know it will also be a really emotional and difficult transition as well. Almost every memory I have with Todd has taken place here in this town, I’ll be leaving some of the best friends I’ve ever had, and we just finally got our house set up the way we want it after almost three years of work so it won’t be an easy move for me. I really love my house. But doing something good isn’t always easy. It was certainly tough for me to come out to Springfield 12 years ago, but it was the right move and I’ve never regretted it. In case you are wondering, I’ll still be keeping my job as a staff writer over at ABM, we are just formatting our days a little differently with the location change and I’ll be working from Elsie’s house and my house most days.
Speaking of houses, we are still house hunting but we are hoping to move sometime this summer. The market in Nashville is beyond crazy at the moment. We’ve gotten into bidding wars over houses that weren’t even on the market yet and we have to do Skype tours since we can’t be there to see the houses in person. It’s stressful!! We are really trying to be positive and patient through it all though, although I’m doing a pretty terrible job of it most days. The right house will come along at the right time. All I can think of though is that I literally cannot move without Todd this time—no way, no how. Moving in town by myself almost killed me last time, I can’t even imagine trying to do it out of state while he’s on tour!
Since we don’t have a new house yet and haven’t put ours on the market yet, it doesn’t feel totally real to me yet, but I’m sure it will soon. I’m so glad to have Elsie and Jeremy moving with us and we were thrilled when Stacy and Darren King told us recently that they are moving there too! Yay!! I’m sure I’ll have plenty of time for the big wave of emotional sadness/excitement to hit me later, but for now, we just have to get through the stressful house hunting part—I swear it’s taking up all of my brain power! Send some happy thoughts and prayers my way if you think about it, I could sure use them lately!
xo. Laura
*Opening photo by Sarah Rhodes
Congrats! My fiancé and I moved here about two years ago, and it was a mix of scary and amazing. He is a musician and it just made more sense for us to be here. Now everybody is coming to this town and it’s exciting to see how much it has grown in two years. What a great move for you guys and I’m excited to keep on reading about your new Nashville adventures. Welcome! (Well, soon.)
P.S. There’s like a zillion waterfalls close by. Get ready for an amazing summer!
Aw, thanks! The waterfalls sound awesome!
Laura 🙂
welcome to Tennessee!!
I think this is very exciting and even more so that you get to keep the job you love and move with some dear friends. I think it sounds wonderful. 🙂
Thanks Mekeesha!
Laura 🙂
Sooo exciting! I (selfishly) can’t wait to see how you style your new home! ❤️
I just can’t wait to HAVE a new home, but yeah, that part will be fun too! 😉
Laura
What an amazing way to kick off your 30th year! : – ) It’s a brave decision, and what an adventure it will be! Thinking of you as you house hunt and get ready to move. I remember going through this 2 years ago, and juggling everything with work is such a challenge isn’t it? It’s so worth it when you’re in your new place. Just think of the blogging opportunities as you put your signature stamp on each room ; – ) Best wishes for a smooth move! I’ll look forward to reading about it.
It is so hard to do it on top of everything else! It feels like another full time job for sure! Thanks for the good wishes!
Laura 🙂
So excited for you!
Thanks Sarah!
Laura 🙂
It is really crazy to read this! So exciting! My husband and I live in Indiana and he just accepted a job in Washington DC and we’re moving at the end of the summer. I just know that somehow it will be so comforting to read about your move and transition while I go through mine.
Oh man, well you are not alone then! We can do this!
Laura 🙂
Congratulations!! My husband (who is also in the music industry) and I made the move to Nashville in January… after years of him commuting from Chicago to Nashville, it was just time. You guys will love it here!!
(PS- We had to go house hunting while out of state too… we had a friend of ours look at a few for us and take videos and then send them to us 🙂 Good luck!!)
Oh man, isn’t house hunting over Skype the CRAZIEST! Glad to know you eventually got something!
Laura 🙂
What a fantastic opportunity for both you and Todd! How awesome that you have both another band member as well as Elsie and Jeremy going with you! 🙂
Will be sending you all good thoughts – moving house can be tough, but also really fun too! 🙂
Also, can I just say how cool that Mutemath and ABM are linked – I loved ABM and Mutemath separately before, so was super excited when I realised there was a connection between the two!
Thanks Bekah, I hope it gets fun soon!
Laura 🙂
So excited for you Laura!
It will be fun to see your style transformation. New city, new home, new influences, new life!
Bring it on!
Congrats how exciting! i just moved to Austin from Pittsburgh! (Nashville ended up being my runner up city.) I’ve been in Austin for a little over two months so far. I thought it was going to feel more immediately different, but it seems like it’s a gradual adjustment to your new surroundings. My advice is don’t force yourself to do too much when you are first settling in. SXSW happened two weeks after I moved here and I attempted to go because i felt this pressure like “I have to do this I live here now it’s what people do”. I got overwhelmed with the whole thing and decided to just go back to my apartment and watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer and eat pizza. I realized I do live here now and there is no rush to experience anything. Take your time and slowly adjust into how you want your new life in Nashville to feel 🙂
TL;DR YAY! And ease into your new city, it will be a mix of fun/exciting/terrifying/repeat.
Congratulations for moving! It will be very exciting but also pretty hard for you… Try to stay positive and jump into the new adventure! I wish you lots of luck! Greets, London Removals Ltd.
I am SO excited for you and Elsie and your hubbies!!! Can’t wait to see you girls decorate new spaces perfectly 🙂 I’m curious, why did you move to Springfield in the first place?
Love your blog! Xo
It was actually for college that I made the move here!
Laura 🙂
This may be a weird question, but my husband just got a job offer in Springfield and we are moving there. Are you considering putting your place up for rent?
Oh cool! We aren’t renting it but we’ll put putting on the market probably sometime this summer. Hope you love it here!
Laura
Congrats! Moving to a new town is always so exciting. It definitely is sad to leave the place you were living for a long time but personally, I feel the excitement much stronger! 🙂 I wish you a great time in Nashville! Thank you for sharing! 🙂