I am moving to NYC.

Yup, Nika and I are packing up this summer and heading east. We’re going to miss our friends and family in Iowa terribly, but it’s time for our next adventure in life!

Why NYC? For starters, it’s something that I need to get out of my system. I’ve always wanted to live there for a while, and my circumstances when I was younger just didn’t allow it to happen. But it can now!

There are a lot of work opportunities. It will be nice for Lullabot to have someone on the ground in the city that can work with clients and take meetings there. Also, we are doing exciting things with Buzzr, which is based in NYC.

Nika is looking forward to exploring the history of the city and hopefully making some new friends that share her passion for that. We are excited to explore the museums in the city, and enjoy the classical music scene. (LOL. Can that be called a “scene”?) I am also excited to dive into the foodie scene - Brooklyn is known for that. And, let’s be honest, I’m looking forward to being immersed in a more fashionable environment.

Last but obviously not least, it will be nice to live in the same time zone (and a direct flight!) away from my lovely boyfriend and his kids. Yay!

There are 1.1 million kids in the NY public school system - more people than in 8 US States. And there are 1,400 schools. Yeowza! So how to handle it? File this under “only in New York”: I hired a public school consultant. She was awesome. We knew that we wanted to live in Brooklyn, so she interviewed us about academics (Nika has been in public school, Waldorf, Montessori, and been home schooled, so our background is pretty diverse). She also asked us about extra-curricular activities (Nika plays the violin, takes Irish dance, has taken acting lessons, and is a huge history buff). Our consultant then narrowed down her recommendations to three schools.

Nika and I went visited NYC in February, and walked around all three neighborhoods. We narrowed our choices down to two - PS 29 in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn and PS 58 in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn. Both are really great schools. Now, the challenge is to find a place to live within the (relatively small) school zones, and pray that once we sign a lease, they will still have space available in her grade. *stressful!*

However, this is only the beginning. In fourth grade, they test for middle schools, and in fifth grade, the kid’s select and apply to middle schools. (There are no geographic zones for middle schools, the kids have to apply and do visits, much like college.) The process repeats again for high school. Ouch.

So the two neighborhoods we have narrowed our choices down to are both great places. Only one or two subway stops from Manhattan with skyline views over the East River, tons of brownstones, little parks, and streets lined with boutiques, small ethnic restaurants, local art galleries, and mom-n-pop shops. They are both very family friendly neighborhoods with youthful, energetic vibes.

What’s next? Our lease in our current house is up 4 weeks from the time I write this. I am currently consolidating our stuff from a small 4 bedroom house with a basement and a garage into what can (hopefully) fit reasonably in a small NYC apartment. The process of sorting and getting rid of stuff has been awesomely therapeutic. (Why the hell have I been hanging onto so much of this stuff?!)) In classic midwest style, we’re going to be having a huge garage sale, and the rest of the stuff will be donated. It’s been a neat process to deal with my stuff - touch, remember, feel, weigh, sort, and about 80% of the time, get rid of!

Anyways, logistically, we go “homeless” on June 1st. This actually means that we’ll be going to stay with my parents for a while. I also have trips planned in June & July to Vancouver, Toronto, NYC, and Boston, so there’ll be a lot of on the road time. In late June, Nika and I will be flying out to NYC to (cross your fingers!) find a great new apartment and sign the lease. Our goal is to find a place to move to on August 1st. Nika is signed up for an awesome Brooklyn-based day camp in August, so we’re committed to being there by then. w00t!

We’re going to miss our Iowa people something fierce. We have a loving family, and wonderful friends who we care for deeply, and have been great support. The reality of leaving the people who I share my life with is just starting to sink in. I am going to miss you guys so much!!! It’s scary to pick up and move to a new place! Luckily, I also have some good friends in NYC, and I am looking forward very much to having them in my life on the regular. I also casually know quite a few people in NYC, and I am excited to get to know you guys better, too. :-)

There is one super-awesome thing that will make our transition easier. My amazing sister, Cassie, and her boyfriend Mike, are going to come live in NYC with us for a year. Mike is just graduating with a business degree, and so he’ll be looking for an entry level job with a cool business in the city. (He’s whip smart with a midwestern work ethic - if anyone in the city has any open positions for a guy like that, let me know!) Cassie will be going to FIT (if they ever get around to accepting her!) to get her degree in Advertising and Marketing Communications. She has enough credits already that she can get the degree in a year. We’re super psyched about them coming to the city with us. It’ll be such a fun adventure.

If anyone has any tips about the city, let us know! :-)