The Future Looks Bright?

I'll admit, while this is an adventure I'm really excited about, I'm bracing myself for some harsh realities. Read on.

I'm most looking forward to: Spending quality time with my family while the children are still small, and the privilege of shaping those little minds. But, I'm really worried they are going to get the best of me! I'm not sure I'm tough enough for this stay-at-home-mom business! Currently, I really enjoy my Monday mornings, where I can sit in the quiet comfort of my office and drink a cup of coffee in peace. Will I ever get to sit quietly and enjoy coffee again? Am I publicly admitting my kids intimidate me?

I'm most dreading: The trip over there. 3 flights, 23 hours of travel, and a 12 hour time change with 2 small children and all the things we think we'll need for the next year? I'm convinced it will be a special kind of torture. And the time change! Seriously, we can't shift Finn's bedtime (or 5AM wakeup, for that matter) by 15 minutes! HOW are we going to flip him to the other side of the clock?! Send help.

I'm looking forward to: No more car seats! We won't have a car, thus we can forego car seats! Obviously public transportation will introduce some different challenges, but I'm looking forward to lots of walking. One challenge will be naps for the kids; currently they fall asleep in the car a

lot, so we are refreshed and ready to go when we reach our destination. I'm not sure how that will work with public transportation. Hopefully it will just work itself out. The jury is still out on whether or not we will bother bringing a stroller, as I hope to mostly wear Lev when we are out.

I'm dreading: Quitting my job. I really like my job and as much as I'd like to think I have enough experience to get another one like it someday, I'm worried I won't. But maybe I will love my newfound position as Full-Time Mother and we will perfect the art of living on a shoestring such that I won't need another job. Unlikely, but one can dream.

I'm looking forward to: Simplifying! We will be packing extremely minimally (3 checked bags) and sticking to a tight budget, so there just won't be room or money for unnecessary things. It will be wonderful. Except for the part where I'll be Momming 24/7; but I still look forward to the change. Maybe I will learn to love Pinterest, or make crafty little things out of paper plates.

I'm looking forward to: Myself and the kids learning Russian! I have tried learning Russian off and on over the past decade or so, and I'm really hoping

this time I'll be successful. Bonus points if the kids learn some too! I am worried about the language really frustrating Finn and causing behavioral set-backs. Does anyone have any advice? Currently, he gets really mad when Matt "reads" any of his books in Russian; not looking good so far.

I'm looking forward to: main floor laundry. I know it sounds silly, but peeling children off me and getting downstairs is the hardest part of doing laundry. In Russia, most washing machines are tiny and located in the bathroom. They don't have clothes dryers, and we'll have a limited amount of clothes, so I'll have to be diligent about doing laundry daily. Maybe I'm delusional, but this all seems oddly therapeutic. Check back next year.

I'm dreading: Not having a dishwasher. Thankfully we should have a flush toilet, hot water, and a clothes washer, but next in the lineup of things-I-don't-want-to-live without is the dishwasher. Life is so rushed right now that I just can't imagine finding time to wash each and every individual dish we dirty. I know I should have infinitely more time, but will I have to wash them with a toddler on my back and an infant on my hip? I'm having a really hard time imagining how this will go.

Other frivolous things I'm going to miss: space for the kids to play -- inside and out, unlimited dairy and maple syrup, my bed, being able to call mom on a long Saturday afternoon, my parents visiting (even if they never stay a full 24 hours), Bennett, the chickens, the singing in gospel meeting, Lake Superior, time with cousins, the deck, wood stove, and jacuzzi tub, Papa Murphy's Pizza, Dairy Queen and Culver's, high heels, online shopping with free shipping.

So, now that I've put this down on paper it seems like the cons outweigh the pros, but I'm confident there will be many privileges and blessings that we can't foresee. I have no doubt that in the long run, someday 5 or 10 years down the road, we will look back on this experience fondly and be so glad we did it.