On Earthly Detachment (We Know Our Next Base)

So it's official as it's gonna get until we actually arrive on base and the powers that be tell us we're in the right place (as far as I'm concerned). 

We are moving tooooo . . .

. . . 

. . . 

Edwards AFB

(That's the little red blob IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MOJAVE DESERT.) 

Edwards is very isolated, about 30 minutes from the closest city. BUT! Year-round sunshine. Los Angeles is a 2 hour drive away, Las Vegas and San Diego are 3 hour drives away. And other cities like San Francisco and Phoenix are within reasonable driving distance. There will definitely be a lot to explore on the weekends. Not to mention we get to talk like The Californians. "Take the 40 down to the 405 and hit up Santa Monica, bruhhhhh!"

And if you are like me and have no idea where the Los Angeles really is on a US map, here you go:

Seems like a doable walk with the Duallie. 

It's definitely farther from family than we were hoping for. You know. We were hoping to move to the right on that map, but instead we're going wayyyyyy left. But we do have some west coast friends and family that can hopefully give us a warm welcome. And I'm hopeful that our desert locale means the kids will be less prone to contract runny noses and I'll be sucking out less boogers. 

Will also got the position he was hoping for, Area Defense Counsel (ADC), so it's an exciting career move for him. He'll be the boss of his very own little unit and get tons of really great trial experience. But back to the boogers. No one gets runny noses in the desert, right???? 

Some other good news is that we have actually been getting to know our new neighbors for a while now:

I've got lots of desert jokes. 

The move will take place sometime in July, which gives me approximately four months to KonMari the crap out of this house. We will definitely be downsizing in square footage and there's also a pretty good chance that we'll be spending a few months in temporary housing while we wait for a house to become available on base. So just when I'm ready to say all my stuff "sparks joy" - I'll get to say goodbye to it for an undetermined amount of time. 

My initial reaction is one of "EHHHH" (high-pitched, nasally whine), because who wants to be without their precious stuff for months, but then Colleen shared this quote in her post today: 

Oh, Christian poverty. How very poignant. 

I've always thought I'm pretty detached from all my stuff, bragging that I am basically a minimalist,  the one in our relationship that throws everything away. I barely shop and I'd be pretty darn happy wearing the same three outfits on rotation, I am soooo laid back, ermahgerd. And then you are faced with the proposition of actually doing without your precious King-sized bed, KitchenAid mixer, and random assortment of baby gear/furniture for a couple of months and you discover you are a big fat phony. I am a big fat phony. I am weak and I need a heck of a lot of grace to help me detach from earthly cares, St. Therese. Help me out, please?

So the thought of getting organized for a cross-country move is a little daunting. (Heaven help me if we ever go overseas! I'm exhausted just thinking about it.) And the clock is ticking to check off remaining items on our Scott AFB bucket list. (We still haven't been up to Chicago, etc.) We will miss St. Louis so much, but lots of pretty darn exciting times ahead. 

And we can't wait to meet our new neighbors! 

;)