In June of 2013 we made the decision to move to a town here in Oklahoma called Oologah. Its about 45 minutes outside of Tulsa. At the time it seemed like the right decision and I really felt like God was leading us out there. He was, but not the reason I thought at the time. Ill get to that in a bit.
The first year out there was really nice. It was a huge change from the bustling city of Tulsa. Gone were the sounds of sirens several times an hour and the Wednesday testing of sirens. I no longer heard cars with bumping sound systems. It was quiet, peaceful and beautiful. I made some friends. Being a homeschooling family made things awkward as I only knew of one of other family in the whole town who homeschooled. But Claremore was only about 15 minutues away and I was able to find a group of homeschool moms there. The kids seemed to like being in a place we could go the lake when we wanted, go hike on the trail or hit the local shops.
I hear all the time about people who think moving out to the country would be so great. Here's why it wasn't for me. 1) The driving long distances every time I needed something major. Yes Oologah has a grocery store but its way over priced. 2) The money we spent on gas was ridiculous. Mike driving to work everyday and then anytime I wanted to do something with the kids Id have to think about did I have enough and gas and if not could I afford gas. 3) Our utility bills were sky high. I'm guessing this was because the house we were in was super drafty but still. 4) THE ISOLATION! I know some people might find this appealing. However being far away from family and friends was hard. When I needed something I had to think about who I could ask to drive all the way out to us. Not to mention the fact I was 20 minutes from the nearest hospital. I know that doesn't sound far but a lot can happen in 20 minutes. Being away from family and friends was even harder on my kids than me I think. 5) The clicks, and by clicks I mean people who grew up in the town their entire lives. It was like being in a giant high school. Not all people are like that mind you but I did run into this. Especially when I told people that my kids are homeschooled. Anyway its a small town so what can I say. 6) BUGS! The house we were in had so many bugs. Not to mention the giant yard we had to care for, with a push mower. I am so tired of ants, spiders, wasps, mice, large field mice, bees, and mosquito's. Now I realize all these things are in the city, but it felt amplified out there.
A few months after that first year I felt a change. I started to really miss the Westside of Tulsa. Mikes childhood side of town and the place where I felt I grew up. We had talked about buying the house in Oologah but the longer we were there the more we realized it was not in the best condition. We started to talk moving and buying.
The first thing I did was get us qualified. Once that was done I found a realtor. I wanted someone who not only knew the Westside but lived here too. I found one and she was great! She worked with us and was always there if I had a question. She took me around to look at what seemed like a ton of houses. I fell in love with two of them immediately but by the time I drove all the way back to Oologah they had contracts. I started to think we'd never find anything in time. I asked my loan guy how much we were qualified for and was happy to discover it was more than we had been looking at. So I started to look again and that's when this house popped up. In the neighborhood I wanted to live in. I called my realtor one night and asked if we could see this house and she met us that night! The second I stepped into it I knew it was the one. Spacious, open, updated and in our price range we signed a contract and the next day they accepted our offer. And a bonus: we did it all on our own. We didn't borrow from anyone or anything. I am beyond proud of my husband because hes the one that facilitated this whole thing. Without his wonderful job and hard work it wouldn't have happened. As I said in the beginning, God sent us to Oologah for a reason. I believe that reason was so we could save enough money to buy our own home.
I want to thank all those who prayed and helped along the way. I look forward to the years ahead with my family here.
