Goodbye, Durham

We’re moving.

It’s something that I have anticipated for such a long time that now that it’s finally happening, it’s completely surreal. My husband has been a graduate student in Chapel Hill for the past several years and we’ve always hoped that we could stay in this area, but known that we would most likely move out of the state for his next job after graduation. This week has been monumental. He finished his degree and received the official offer letter for a position in Baltimore. So now it’s time for boxes.

This area has meant so much to me. It’s the first place I moved after graduating college and here I transitioned from a recent college grad to teacher to wife and mother. I spent most of my 20s here and learned about everything from cloth diapers to web design. It’s where my children were born and took their first steps. I’ve made lifelong friends here. Friends who knew me when I was single and before I had kids. Though thanks to the Internet, they will still remain connected to my life even I never meet them again. And since this is my last 10 on 10 here in North Carolina, I wanted to pay tribute to that.

It was a cloudy, rainy day with a few bursts of sunshine. I know I’ll miss this tree-filled landscape. I’ll miss our favorite playgrounds and restaurants and stores. I’ll miss my friends. But there are new adventures to be had. Those will pop up here in the months to come. For now, I’m just enjoying our last days here in Durham. In boxes:

10 on 10 is a monthly photo essay project designed to help us see the beauty amidst the chaos in our everyday lives. I’m so thankful that I learned about this project (several years ago!) and look forward to continuing it into the future. It’s such a perfect way for me to check-in each month. I love looking back to see how my life has changed through the years.