I'm here again with a new story to tell.

Here is what has been going on in my life...

The craziness really started on the last Tuesday of January 2014. It started like any other Tuesday. K went to work. I took O to her school, and I drove to Trader Joes to get out groceries for the week. What made this week extra special was our trip to Mexico which we were all waiting for eagerly. On my way home from the store, I decided to stop by a toy store to get a little surprise for O for the plane ride. I was 10 minutes early, but I decided to wait. I had no other plans for this ordinary Tuesday.

My phone rang. It was 9:52 am. It was K.

Me: Hmmm...that's odd. He never calls me this time in the morning. They always have a meeting on Tuesday mornings.

I pick up the phone.

Me: Hello.
K: Hi.
Me: What's up? Why are you calling me this time of the day?
K: Lay offs.
Me: WHAT? WHO? Please don't tell me it's you. You did not get laid off, did you?

(Panic is starting to rise in my voice as I wait for his answer. The answer I knew was coming but did not want to hear. I was 7 months pregnant with our second baby girl. I needed an insurance. This baby was coming out in May.)

K: Yep. I'm packing my stuff right now.
Me: What? You are coming home NOW? I'm not home!!
K: Well. There is nothing else to do here. We are done. The project is closed. We are all leaving.

Sigh! Turns out that K and all of his 80+ coworkers were all laid off that Tuesday morning. They all walked into work that morning thinking that it was going to be an ordinary Tuesday, but instead they were all individually called into offices and told that yesterday had been basically their last day. The project was shut down, and they were all looking for jobs.

We were shocked. We joked about it. We cried about it. We did not know what to do. We went to Mexico and had a great time.

After Mexico and a long cold snowy Jersey winter came spring. We spent all of the months together which was wonderful, frustrating, terrifying, odd, and fun. O loved having isi around the house. I liked having him home, so I could nap whenever I wanted during the last trimester. It was different. During all of that, K was looking for a new job, of course. And, after months of searching and trying and applying, we had to face the reality. We wouldn't be staying in Jersey very much longer. The move was coming, and so was the baby.

As we prepared to welcome a new member to our family, K interviewed for a job in California, got an offer, and accepted it. The plan was to move after the baby was born and a few months old. And, O would be able to finish her preschool. That is what we did.

On the first day of May, we welcomed our second beautiful baby girl. I will call her M. She is a mellow sweet baby, and she is perfect. Big sister O is over the moon in love with her baby sister. And, baby sister thinks O is the most incredible creature there is in this world. She saves her best giggles for her big sister. It is precious.

On the last day of June, we said good-bye to New Jersey with many tears, and flew back to the San Francisco Bay Area. After three years of living on the east coast, we had returned where we left. It was bittersweet.

I was not happy. I missed my Jersey friends. I missed the seasons. I missed everything that I had created during our three years there. I missed New York City. I missed the "short" flight to visit my family in Finland. I even missed pork roll. I missed everything. I was homesick.

Today, after three months, I am happier. I still miss all of the above, but mostly I really really miss my friends in New Jersey. I am very lucky that we moved back to the area where we left because all of our friends are still here, and we are making new friends. We are also lucky to have family near us. I am happy that my children will get to spend more time with their grandparents. It is very special. I like our new home. I like that I can easily walk to the library or Jamba Juice. I love having O's school next to us. I am not excited about the weather, but I guess I will again get used to the every day sunshine and blue skies. I find it boring.

M is 5 months old now. She is an easy baby. She is a great sleeper. O goes to school every morning. This means I have a few hours in the morning to myself. I decided it was time to start blogging again. So, I am back. It's good to be back. Enjoy!