We are....

Moving to Arizona!!!!!!!!

A few weeks ago Wesley applied for a job in Scottsdale Arizona. Wes has always loved the Phoenix area (ever since he spent 2 years there for his LDS mission). My sister Jessica and her husband are down there for another year finishing up Dental school, so I thought, "why not go ahead and apply? we could live with the 70 degree winters ;) And I could spend a year near my sister! The job opening kind of fell into our laps. In all honesty, I didn't believe we were seriously thinking of taking the job even if they offered it to him. We knew that at some point Wesley would probably want to switch jobs, but we are genuinely happy with our life in Pleasant Grove, Utah. Wesley has good friends at work, we LOVE our apartment, (and the fact that its less than a mile from work), and most importantly--Utah has truly become our home! Wesley's parents retired and moved here about 6 months ago from Thailand, so our kids have been able to enjoy having two aunts (Sydney and Melanie) and one set of grandparents around all the time.

When the job offer came, the opportunity seemed worth considering. The job is with the company Prudential, and Wesley would be able to continue doing the same kind of things he does here in Utah, but with more opportunities for advancement. They also have an excellent tuition assistance program. After A LOT of late night conversations together, and countless talks with family and friends, we were able to make a pretty good pros and cons list based on our priorities as a family. Wesley and I decided that our highest priority for his career was to get him through grad school, and we hoped to do this with minimal debts. So the opportunity to work at a company that is very pro-continuing education seemed like the best way to go.

Prudential gave Wesley a few days to make a decision, and I still remember how I felt the night when we really thought we might go for it and move. We were spending the evening with Wesley's family--just watching movies, building legos, and enjoying each others company. Jake and his cousin Scott were watching a show with their Grandpa, and Wesley and I were sitting on the couch talking about our options. We could see Jake snuggled up happily with his cousin and grandpa in the next room. Without completely realizing it, tears began to roll down my cheeks, as I thought about all the things we might be leaving behind.

It brings us so much joy to see Jake spending time with so many people who love him--For the first time in about 10 years, Wesley is living near all of his family, and it's been a wonderful experience. I've gotten so used to having Sydney nearby. Whether she is coming over to babysit, or do her laundry, or hanging out with her and Mitch for family nights--it's been such a comfort to have one of my best friends here, and Jake loves them sooo much. And speaking of best friends, I have developed some amazing friendships over the past 7 years. All of them are important to me , and have truly shaped my adult life. One friend in particular has been with me through each and every phase of my life here in Utah. We lived together in college, found our husbands and got married around the same time, and then had little boys 6 months apart, followed by little girls 4 months apart. Our sons are best friends, and I had high hopes that our little girls could be great companions too.

All of those reasons, plus countless others, added up to equal one thing: Utah is our home.

As I sat there on that couch with Wesley, thinking about all the things we would be leaving behind, my strongest feeling was this--Yes, I would be sad to leave. But even while I thought about all those things, I could still feel logic and peace and a sense of rightness behind the idea of moving away.

We wrestled with the decision a little longer, but ultimately decided it was the right choice for our family. Since then, I've had a roller coaster of emotions. I have cried a bit (okay, a lot), but I'm beginning to feel the pre-moving jitters. I'm excited to start this new adventure with my little family. It's very bittersweet. Wesley leaves in 2 short weeks to start his job, but due to issues with getting out of our current lease, I will be staying behind for a month to pack things up and slowly say my goodbyes to everything and everyone that I'm leaving behind.

I was able to make a last minute trip to Phoenix last week with Mia to do a little apartment hunting. Wesley and Jake stayed with grandma and grandpa while we were gone. (thanks, guys!) Being there and becoming more familiar with the area made me excited to explore the city with my family! I stayed with Jessica, and the timing couldn't have been better. She was less than a week from having her second baby, so my mom was even coming out to help her. The trips overlapped, so not only was my mom able to spend some unexpected time with Mia, but I was able to see little Violet Abigail Larson on the first day of her life!

I think posts are a lot more fun when they are tied to pictures, so I will end this by putting up a few favorites from my week in Phoenix.

I'm very excited about the upcoming climate change. I love the snow during Christmastime, but it pretty much ends there. So even though the summers will be 120 degrees, at least we will be able to enjoy the sunshine for a lot more of the year!

I've heard that the shopping in Scottsdale is fantastic. So far it seems to be true. I can't wait to explore all the different shopping centers :)

Mia slept in a little Moses basket all week. It was so cute, and I loved being able to tote her around the house.

It made me so happy that my mom was able to snuggle with her granddaughter for a few days!

Violet Abigail Larson made her debut on April 11th, weighing 7 lbs 3 oz.

Although we are leaving so many people behind in Utah, I am definitely looking forward to spending a little mommy time with my big sister. I love that our sweet baby girls are only 4 months apart! And Jake and Sawyer are already thick as thieves, so I think we will have lot's of great adventures in the upcoming year.

Incase you were wondering, Jake had a blast at the grandparents house. They watched him while Wesley was at work each day, and he loved all the attention! Here are a few pictures of the "G.I Joe room" that grandpa built. It has a ball pit, a rock wall, a slide, and tons of nerf guns and ammo. Pretty much a little boys paradise.

Seems kind of mean to take him away from all this huh?

***adorable Jake moment***

I was a little worried that Jake would cry when I came to pick him up after my week away. I kept hearing about how much fun he was having, and while that was a huge relief, I was a little concerned that he wouldn't want to go back home with boring old mom afterwards! But he was so happy to see me :) On our first night back home, as I tucked him into bed, we were snuggled up, and talking about life. Jake was struggling to explain something to me, and couldn't seem to remember what words he wanted to use. I told him to take his time and think about what he was trying to say. After about 10 seconds of silence, he finally said "Jakey missed mommy!" I missed Jakey a lot too, and it made my heart melt to hear him say it.

Change is never easy. I'm scared to move away and start somewhere new. But I have faith that it'll all work out. And I know I will be happy, because my home will always be where my husband and kids are. They are my family, and I'm so grateful to be surrounded by so much love.

Thanks for reading. If you could all send some positive energy into the universe for us, that would be great! (I will definitely need it--packing and moving totally sucks, and I'll be a single mom for most of the experience.. wish me luck!)