After a 14-year career with Kimberly-Clark and four and a half years of living in Atlanta, we are sadly saying goodbye. After much prayerful consideration, we will be taking a new job and moving to Knoxville, Tennessee. We are excited for the adventure that lies ahead - a new career, a new area, a new journey. We are sad for what we will leave behind - amazing friends, great neighbors, a wonderful neighborhood and church. We are so grateful for the priceless friends we have had the awesome privelege of knowing. It will truly be very difficult to leave, but we know that we are only 3 1/2 hours away, so we will remain close.
John and I spent this past weekend in Knoxville looking for homes. (Ansley stayed here with Joe and Tiana - big thanks to them! It would have been nearly impossible to do all we did with Ansley!) We were looking at homes from early in the morning to well after Ansley's bedtime. :) Rubbermaid arranged our hotel reservations for us for the weekend, and when we got into our room (after a long day of looking at homes) there were two surprises - one was a huge welcome basket for me and John, filled with Tennessee things: a bottle of Jack Daniels Tennessee whiskey (when the househunting got to be too much LOL!), a beautiful book on the Smoky Mountains, Saltwater Taffy, and pens engraved with each of our names; the second surprise was just for me - a beautiful bouquet of flowers that said "Megan, Welcome to the team!" We were so delighted at the thoughtfulness, not only of making John feel so welcome, but me as well. John
will be the plant manager for Newell Rubbermaid, a large manufacturing facility just outside Knoxville, with 650 employees. You are familiar with their brands for sure - Calphalon, Sharpie, Little Tikes, to name a few. The area is absolutely beautiful, with many lakes and rolling hills and the Smoky Mountains. It really is a beautiful area. And a big plus, my brother Jonathan and sister in law Missy are in Nashville, plus my parents will be retiring in Nashville this September, which is about 2 1/2 hours from Knoxville. And, the rest of my family - my aunt and uncle, cousins and their families and grandparents, live in Johnson City, TN, about 2 hours from Knoxville. Previously we have only gotten to see them once a year, so it will be so nice to be in the middle of my family, visiting (and having visitors!) often. :)
We will be here for probably a few more months, waiting for our home to sell. We are hoping to get it on the market next week (anyone you know looking for a home? send them our way! ;)) and John will be starting his new job in May. Definitely lots to do! Fortunately Rubbermaid will be handling our move for us, which is definitely a plus.
I will continue the blog as often as I can, keeping you updated of what's going on. I'm so glad I have the blog to keep you all informed, and especially now for everyone to keep track of what's going on even from Knoxville!
I'll keep you all updated! : )