Life of a Dr Wife

Moving in Medicine: The Chaos

Morgan Monti Season 1 Episode 8

Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.

0:00 | 43:07

In today’s episode, I’m sharing the behind-the-scenes reality of relocating for residency while balancing marriage, parenthood, homeownership, and all the emotions that come with closing one chapter and beginning another.

From moving trucks and endless to-do lists to saying goodbye to the community we've built over the last four years, this transition has been equal parts exciting and overwhelming. I’m talking about the stress, the unexpected challenges, the moments that tested us, and the lessons we've learned along the way.

If you're preparing for a move in medicine, supporting someone who is, or simply navigating a season of major life changes, this episode is for you. Because while medicine often focuses on the next step in training, there’s an entire family moving through the chaos, too.

Join me as I share the highs, the lows, and why sometimes the most meaningful growth happens in the middle of the chaos.

I’m so glad you’re here 🫶🏻


Apply to be on the podcast | 
https://forms.gle/JzRPXWi1fb4H2vLy7


UPSIDE APP |
https://upside.app.link/cf39NBorXxb USE CODE: MORGAN45393
MY LTK | 
https://www.shopltk.com/explore/Lifeofadrwife?tab=posts
COMFRT |  https://comfrt.com/MORGAN1123
MONARCH |  https://www.monarch.com/referral?r_source=copy&code=vbxf53xf27
FABLETICS SCRUBS | https://www.fabletics.com/?irclickid=SnAWKDx8rxyZTA3TnI3Wn3kcUkuya5UVR0cAVI0&irgwc=1&afsrc=1&utm_medium=influencers&utm_source=impact&utm_campaign=flwomen&irmp=FLW001

Follow the Life of a Dr Wife:
Instagram |
https://www.instagram.com/lifeofadrwife
Tik Tok | https://www.tiktok.com/@lifeofadrwife

Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61573291431207

Youtube | https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCwzHHkRBz6XuzEfKZW36SHRG6x3askHk

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

SPEAKER_00

Hi guys, welcome back to The Life of a Doctor's Wife. Today's episode is gonna be all over the place because we're talking about moving in medicine and moving with a toddler, and let's just say it's messy. Normally I am a little more prepared than this, but this is real life right now. I almost didn't even put out a podcast this week, but then I got thinking, this is the life. The life of a doctor's wife. It's messy, it's unpredictable, and it's all over the place. But we love this little life that we do have, and I want to share it all with you. I know many of you are living this season right now, either moving for med school, moving for rotations, moving back home while your spouse travels for away rotations, maybe even moving for residency or fellowship, or maybe even for your first big attending job, you can probably relate. But even if you're not living it right now, you will at some point. So maybe through my chaos, you can take away a few tips to make sure you don't end up in our boat. So let's get to the chaos. Let's backtrack a little bit to graduation week. So David ended up being hooded on Thursday evening, and we were leaving to move from Virginia to South Carolina on Friday morning. Now, my parents flew in on Tuesday to help me finish packing and kind of help us get situated, and then obviously we're there for David's graduation and then to help move. Also, David ended up having an event Wednesday night prior to graduation, and we needed care for Mia, so it all kind of ended up working out really well. But when my parents arrived on Tuesday, my dad entered the apartment and literally took one look at the amount of stuff that we had, and he was like, We cannot fit this all in your truck. And I was like, Dad, I got the biggest Penske truck there is. How is this all not going to fit? And he was like, No, we need another truck. And already at that point, we already had set up the drivers and where people were flying into, and like my sisters were coming down afterwards to kind of help with Mia while we unpacked and all these things that we had set up. I kind of felt like the entire plan just like completely like blew up basically in my face. But I was like, okay, you guys keep packing up some stuff. I'm gonna hop on my laptop and look for anything that's available. And if you know Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, a we're in the middle of nowhere, Virginia, but then at the same time, there's thousands of people here. People book their hotel rooms years in advance because of how booked up it becomes and how expensive it is. So I was like, oh my gosh, getting another moving truck and finding another moving truck right now is not it. But I quickly got on my laptop and I found another U-Haul truck, and I was like, oh my gosh, we need that. Like, reserve it now. I was like, I don't even care how much it costs. There is a U-Haul truck available. Give it to me. I need it. So we ended up actually getting the smaller U-Haul truck on Tuesday night or like Tuesday afternoon. And we were able to load up majority of the boxes into that truck and then use the bigger stuff for the big Penske truck, which I think was like 26 feet, guys. Like, I don't know where we came up with so much stuff, but I don't know. But then I guess like as we started talking about it, we filled like a 24-footer when we moved from our old apartment to our new apartment that we were living in in Virginia. We filled up majority of that truck with like some space. So I was like, oh yeah, between now having a baby and things, like we probably filled to the end of the truck, but like we don't need that much space. We accumulated so much because since we had moved, we not only had Mia, but we also had gotten married, and we had all of our wedding gifts and things that were like originally at my parents' house that had been slowly coming down to Virginia because we knew we were probably moving further south for residency. So all of that stuff had come in, and then of course, you do accumulate some things like different outdoor furniture. I got like a coffee cart and like different things. Although I did try to like sell off the things that I knew we weren't going to use, but still I was like, holy moly, how do I have so much stuff? So we ended up doing the boxes on Tuesday, so then come Wednesday, we were able to load up everything except for like mattresses and like last-minute cleaning supplies, and not to mention trying to wrangle a toddler in the mess of like all this was like an absolute nightmare to even think about. So bless my friend's heart, she was like, Let me take Mia. She was like, I don't have another car, but she was like, just come drop her off, we're home, and the kids can play outside. So thank you, Maddie, for that. Because literally the biggest lifesaver trying to like think about feeding snacks, keeping her entertained, keeping her out of things that she can't touch or fragiles or different things. Find a friend or someone who will just take your kid and leave. Because honestly, that was like the biggest blessing in all of it. And she didn't only take my kid once, she took my kid twice. So even to allow David and I to like take beds apart before my parents had gotten there, and then also during the moving chaos, it was just the biggest blessing. Also, probably two weeks before graduation, David and I decided we were selling the couch. Which, like, if anyone knew that couch, I know some people said that they loved our couch, but David's butt was in that couch, like, no tomorrow, because that's where that man studied for the last four years was on the couch. So his butt was literally indented into one side of that couch, and we decided to sell it. So we sold it, and then we were gonna try to like buy another one when we got down here or try to like figure it out. And I happened to be walking through a thrift store or consignment, I don't really know the difference between them, but in Lynchburg, and it's like a high-end, more upscale consignment shop, and they had a large, beautiful couch, exactly what we were looking for, brand new, listed. They have like a lot of brand new couches there, actually, because like I had gone in there a few times for different things, or like just looking at their women's clothes, and I would see their couches in there. And I took a picture and I sent it to David, and I was like, Look at this couch, thinking that David was gonna be like, No, we'll find it. I don't know. I sent him the price tag on it, and he was like, get it, buy it. He was like, Can they hold it for us though until we have the truck? But like, if not, we'll come get it. And I was like, Are you kidding me? Like, I didn't think he was just gonna be like, buy it. I literally had been in that store for I think less than five minutes, and he was like, Nope, we're getting it. And I was like, You don't even want to look at the couch or like sit on it. He was like, Nope, that's exactly what we're looking for. A great price, buy it. So luckily they were so kind too, and it was a sweet blessing that they were like, Oh no, we'll take it off the floor, we'll put it in our back garage. We like you to pick it up within like four or five business days. But they were like, if you have a planned moving truck, which honestly is nice because they're also getting a high ticket priced item off their floor, and they are like, You're gonna come in and buy this, and I paid for it right then and there, so it's already paid for. So at this point, it's on me to pick it up. Um, so they were so sweet. So that honestly took up more room in the Penske truck than I ever imagined. And thank goodness my dad on Tuesday, and he hadn't even seen the couch yet, and he was like, No, we're not gonna fit this all, and then a couch too. So, and we had both of our cars, which is like David's is a pickup truck, and then my SUV, but he was like, Yeah, we're not footing this. So then we also had to scramble for another driver, and at that point, how do you convince somebody to drive a U-Haul truck six and a half, seven hours in a truck to another state at the last minute? So, luckily, David's brother decided, you know what, I'll just fly out of South Carolina that night instead of flying out of Virginia. So, bless his heart, he woke up bright and early and ended up driving David's truck behind David's U-Haul all the way to South Carolina. And then literally, the moment they pulled into the driveway here in South Carolina, he was like, Okay, switch drivers, get in the pickup truck, and they went off to the airport to bring Joey back to the airport, and then they picked up Justin, who was a good friend of David's from college, and he had flown in from Boston to come help us now on this end unload the entire truck. And not to mention on the other end on Wednesday when we loaded the entire truck, good friends of ours from medical school who are now in residency in Indiana ended up driving all the way down to Lynchburg, Virginia, or across, I guess. I don't really know. Yeah, down and across. Um, to help us pack up our truck and to attend graduation and to see all of us off. So not only did they spend their vacation and things during intern year helping us load up our truck, it was truly amazing. And that's why you need good friends in this season, guys. I cannot stress it enough. We have been so, so, so lucky to have so many great people here with us. And honestly, that's what almost makes this transition so difficult, though, is because I love, absolutely love where we live, and I'm so happy in our new house, but I just want to take my people with me. And that is probably the hardest thing. Yes, I do think sometimes it makes it a little bit easier that a lot of other people are kind of moving on and changing and going different places. Like our best friends are traveling now for fourth year rotations, so they were also packing up their house to move to, but it's still so hard. It is so hard, guys. And especially trying to do that with a toddler, like the first few days of moving in with Mia just like running around, half of her toys in her playroom with like no outlet plugs, and I'm like, oh my gosh, who's like looking at her? Who has eyes on her kind of situation? Until my sisters had gotten down here to South Carolina to help us and to kind of like take on Mia duty. It was a hot mess, it really was, and but I'm so so thankful for all of their help. And between my parents and Justin and everyone for helping us move, it honestly they did so much work in like 72 hours. The only room in our house that is still not done is the podcasting room right now that I'm currently in, which will hopefully one day become another nursery. But right now, it's just gonna store another mattress and some chairs. There are no wall decor up on the walls right now, and the chairs are literally just built, so this is kind of also why there will be no video this week with this podcast, because this room is not ready to be out there in the world. So hopefully, here shortly, I will get this room back up and running and be a little bit more appealing than just some very white walls. But overall, we are absolutely loving this house. I think Mia is definitely so happy to be here. She loves running outside, she loves going outside, being able to go out in the backyard, the different water features that we have for her out there, between her little slide that like sprays water at her, or the water table that my mom and sisters had gotten her when she was here. This kid just loves water and loves being outside. So this house has been such a blessing in that way. Also, we have like a really long strip of hallway when you first walk in the front door, and Mia just like runs up and down that hallway or like rides her scooter thanks to Uncle Justin because she'll just go up and down, up and down the hallway, and she like giggles and laughs and wants to be chased. And honestly, like every time I hear her laugh or hear her running around in her playroom downstairs, it honestly just brings me so much joy that I'm like, I know we made the right decision because I was like, either we can go back to apartment life living much closer to the water and kind of living that city life a little bit more, or we can live a little bit on the outskirts, be like 20 minutes into the city, and be able to kind of have the best of both worlds and still have that like suburban lifestyle and allow Mia to like be in a house and have so much more space, and I was like, I know deep down that this is exactly where we're supposed to be, and not to mention living and moving into a brand new house was so nice, I have to say, because after driving six and a half hours with a one and a half year old from waking up like at 7 a.m. in Virginia, or I guess waking up earlier than that, I think we ended up waking up at like 5:30 and tried to pull out of our apartment by 7 a.m. And we got here and then started unloading everything because also when you rent the U-Haul at the last minute, you don't have very much time with it. So we ended up unloading all of the boxes that day and returning that U-Haul. I just couldn't imagine trying to do all of that work and doing such a long drive and everything, and then having to get into this house and then trying to like deep clean it because they say that they clean them, but like let's be real guys, they're definitely not clean to my standards at least. Okay. So being able to move into a brand new house, like we were pulling plastic off of the refrigerator and freezer when I was like emptying the coolers in. So that did feel really nice. That like if people started bringing in mattresses, I wasn't like, oh no, like, did I vacuum that yet, or whatever. Also, we don't have any carpets in this house, other than carpets that like we laid down ourselves, like little area rugs and things. So that is also a huge blessing, especially with all of Mia's allergies. It's like I can just wipe up the floor, or Mia pees on the floor, and you can just wipe it up so easily, or water from the water table outside. She tracks that in. That has been so nice to be able to just easily clean up messes. I want to take a quick break and let you guys know the best way to make some extra free cash. If you're anything like our family, you're constantly filling up the gas tank, grabbing groceries, or picking up dinner on a busy night. And with prices seeming to go up every week, I'm always looking for simple ways to save money without changing my routine. That's why I've been using the Upside app. Upside gives you cash back on everyday purchases like gas, groceries, and dining at participating locations near you. All you have to do is open the app, claim an offer, shop like you normally would, and earn cash back. You can even stack those savings on top of your existing credit card rewards and loyalty programs. As a busy wife, mom, and soon-to-be residency family, I love anything that helps stretch our budget a little further. Those small savings really do add up over time. Plus, cashing out is easy. You can transfer your earnings to your bank account, PayPal, or choose from a variety of gift cards like Amazon or Starbucks. If you'd like to try it for yourself, download the free upside app and use my code Morgan45393. That's M-O-R-G-A-N-45393 when you sign up. New users can earn a referral bonus on their first qualifying purchase. Again, that's the free upside app and use the code Morgan45393. Start earning cash back on purchases you're already making. Now let's get back to the episode. I did want to talk a little bit about Mia's room in Lynchburg and how it was empty, and it kind of came back to me yesterday because one of my dear friends had sent me a photo of her daughter standing in her empty bedroom. And ugh, it literally brings like tears to my eyes every time I think about it. And so sad because I loved our apartment oh so much. And like I hold such dear memories in that apartment. Like, that's where we brought Mia home. And that's like her first bedroom, and that's what she knows. And like I have the same picture that she sent me of Mia standing near her windowsill in her room and like looking out at the trucks in the backyard. And it's hard, it's really hard to close that chapter, as exciting as this next chapter is for us. It's hard. And I knew that apartment wasn't our forever home, it was never gonna be big enough for us. It was perfect in that season of our life, but you still hold so many memories. And as much as David doesn't really necessarily want to go back there, I think it would be fun one day to try to go back there and see that home and show Mia when she is a little bit older. Like that was where you came home from the hospital for the first time, or I don't know, like that's where your best friend lived, and that's where what parks you used to go to. I think that's like really hard to think. Like, we're not on a little mini vacation. Now that we've been here almost two weeks, it's hard. And especially for being here for two whole weeks and not really building as many friend connections as I think I thought I would or hoped I would by now. But trying to understand that like it takes time to move in, it takes time to when your priority is your child and working and getting your feet wet and learning about the area and the community. We did enroll me in gymnastics nearby, and honestly, that was so great for her. I think she loved every second of that class and so excited to go back. I think if I brought her there every day, she would be happy to be honest. Okay, also about moving, guys. I don't know what it is in our family, but I feel like every time our family picks a weekend to move someone in or out of their like living arrangements, whether it's college or medical school, we always happen to do it on literally like a heat wave week. We moved into this house during like the most humid and hot days. We were in the Publix, which is the grocery store near here, and let me tell you though, guys, I love Publix. I love Publix. It is my favorite store ever. I told David wherever we were moving next, it had to have a Publix. I am like Publix's biggest fan. We always went to Publix when we would visit family in Florida. A good pub sub, guys. Come on. Like Publix has everything you could ever imagine and more. I love that store. And everyone in there is so kind, so kind. And did you know? Kids get a free cookie every time they go into Publix with you. Mind blowing. Didn't know that they still did that. I feel like they did that a lot as a kid, like when I was a little kid in the grocery stores with my parents, but then I feel like they like phased it out. But now, like if you just go up to the bakery section, it says like free cookie for kids, and then you just tell them what one you want, like sugar cookie sprinkles or chocolate chip. I'm like, ugh. But anyways, this would never happen in the northeast, guys. At the checkout at Publix starts talking to us, and she's like, Oh yeah, you guys just moved here, blah blah blah. And she's like, It is so hot. She was like, This is not like May here. She was like, This has to be like the massive heat wave, which I think ended up being like across the whole East Coast. But I was like, for this woman here who has been a resident here almost her entire life, is telling me that this is like the hottest few days, and here we are moving in again. But it's okay. I was outside in our garage one of the days, off across the like three, four days that we had some stuff like piled up in our garage, and I was like building things, and I think I spent probably three quarters of the day out in the garage that day, and I was soaked, like my shirt and shorts were just filled with sweat just from the humidity. I think, and I was like, Wow, it feels good to get like a good sweat in, but then I was like, this is something, like my body is not used to this yet, but I will be so I am definitely so excited for the pool to open in our community because we have tried to go to the pool that like we got a membership to, which is like a little pool club in town. But I think having that pool like in your community, like where you can just like walk over, and it's like a five-minute walk or two-minute walk in your community to literally go swimming for however long, and like if it starts raining, you walk home. Where I feel like we're like, uh, we gotta load up the car, get me in the car, get out of the car. What happens if it starts raining? I don't want to get over there, and then the pool's closed for a pool party, so I don't know. We'll see. But we're hoping to meet some more friends at the pool too, and continue to put Mia in maybe some other classes. I'm thinking like a little ballet class or something because this kid loves to dance and she loves music. But one of the closer dance studios that I was looking at, which I was shocked to see, requires you to be potty trained to attend class. And I'm like, if I'm right here with her the entire time, like I get it, it's not a mommy and me, but like I'm not dropping my one and a half year old off at dance and like leaving. But I don't know. We'll see. Hopefully, there's some other classes out there for her. But seriously, major shout out to my dad for driving that 26-footer Penske truck because I don't know who could. Like, it's almost scary that you don't need a CDL to drive that big of a truck. Also, hold on, the story gets better. How could I have forgotten? While my dad was driving the truck, he got to I think like the South North Carolina, South Carolina border, I believe. Wherever there's a Bucky's around there, he stopped at Bucky's. I like had gotten on the phone with him and I was like, hey dad, like you're not far out from a Bucky's, like that is gonna be like a huge parking lot for you to like be able to park the truck, go in, use the bathroom, like a bite to eat for lunch or whatever you need. And I was like, you should stop, encouraging him to take a break too, because he had been driving at this point probably like four, four and a half hours in the big truck. And obviously it takes longer for him than us. And he is now at the Bucky's, gets out, goes in, uses the bathroom, gets his food, comes back out to the truck, goes to turn on the truck. The truck thankfully starts, and he's getting back on the highway. Because you know, like Bucky's isn't like completely like its own entity, it's like an on-off ramp of the highway there. So he gets back onto the on-ramp. Now he's in a 26-footer truck and he realizes he has no brake lights, no headlights, and no air conditioning. Like, I cannot even fathom. I would have been so anxious trying to drive that truck, and now you have no brake lights, no headlights. Luckily, it was midday, but like what happens if he comes up and brakes or he starts to slow down, and that person behind him doesn't realize he's actually braking because he has no brake lights. I don't know. And then to top it off, you know, hottest, most humid weekend of all, he's now driving this massive truck in the South Carolina heat with no air conditioning. So, Dad, I have no words for you. All power to you. Thank you. We love you so, so much. Because honestly, he saved us thousands of dollars than hiring a moving crew and people. Also, okay, guys, I love Penske, but they were like, Oh, you should have stopped the Buckies, and like we would have brought someone out to you, or we would have brought you a new truck. And my dad's like looking at me, and I like said to them, I was like, So we were gonna unload that entire 26-footer on the side of the highway into another 26-footer truck with like no help because everyone else is already at the house. Like, oh my word, I like could not have imagined if that truck actually broke down or if they started like towing the 26-footer, and then like all of our stuff is going with it. Okay, but here I am, and I kind of need to come back to life because I'm kind of complaining about that. When some of our dear friends are in military, and maybe I'm wrong with this, but this is what I feel like I've heard, and hopefully I am projecting this correctly. But for those of you that don't know, if you have the military come and move you for residency, they will give you a two-week period and say we could show up anytime between the the next two weeks. So you don't know. They could show up the day after graduation, they could show up a week from graduation, they could show up three days from graduation, they could show up two weeks from graduation. So you don't know when you're gonna head out. You also have to decide what you want to keep with you and what you want the military to take. Yes, it is nice that the military packs you up and packs up all of your belongings, but like let's be real, I came across so much stuff as I was packing, and I was like, nope, donate, Chuck, donate, goodwill, like sell this on Facebook Marketplace, get rid of this, keep this, pack this, keep this out, that sort of thing. Like, I couldn't imagine having someone else pack me as much as like I feel like it is a ton of work. So, anyways, military comes out, they pack you somewhere within those two weeks. So now you're left with whatever you can fit in your one or two cars or whatever you have, and you then leave to your new destination. They have three months, three months to deliver all of your belongings. It could be sooner, it could be in three months from now. Like, how do you just say goodbye to your stuff and all of that for three months? And also, not to mention, one of our dear friends who this is legitimately happening to, her husband is not only starting residency, but they're also due with their baby. And she's like, I kind of need this baby stuff, but like I can't fit it all in my car, so like they're gonna have to take it. But I hope that they deliver it in time. I just cannot imagine. I so here I am complaining about 26-footer on the side of the highway of Bucky's that my dad is currently driving, when there's like military families in medicine that have to do this, but anyways, thanks for you know keeping me humble and keeping my head on because you know, so my sisters and my younger sister's boyfriend, who we love oh so much, ended up flying in, and it was such a blessing, like I said before, having them help with Mia and take her places, or like just take her over to the park, or get her down for a nap, or just like let her splish splash in the water table and be able to be like monitored with full set of eyes on her, around water, all the things. But they brought her over to the park, and I don't know. Someone in the south needs to tell me is this honestly something that I need to be afraid of, or is this like a freak accident or what? But all I do know is that Zave went down first, and it was fine. Mia goes down the slide, supposedly, like right at the beginning of the slide, she starts screaming. Guys, her back had streaks of burns on them. So I don't know if it was like a friction burn on the slide or the slide was hot to her, but this kid literally had like bloody streaks across her back, and most of them are scapped over and healed now. Two of them are still working on it. I've been like putting tons of stuff on her back to try to help speed up the process of the healing and to really make sure like she doesn't have these big scars on her back from this incident. But like, how? Like, I don't put blame on any of them, or I think it's just like a freak accident. But I'm like, is it because the slide is new because we're in a newer community, or was it because it's so hot? Like, I don't know, but the poor kid has now been like terrified of that slide, rightfully so. I probably would be too if that happened to me. But luckily, I had taken her over to that slide like a few days prior, so I knew she did it and she loved it. So I'm not really sure what happened that day, but you'll have to let me know. Or moms, tuck in your kids' shirts or make sure they're wearing like a onesie with the buttons at the bottom so it can't slide up. I don't know. But yeah, really, really scary. So while Zave and my sisters were all in town and Justin had been in town, we all decided to go out into the city that night. So we went into downtown and we barhopped, got different bites of food and desserts and all the things, and listened to some live music. And it honestly was such a fun night being back with my sisters in literally my favorite city. And huge shout out to my mom who put me into bed and then continued to spend hours and I mean hours organizing closets. Honestly, I don't know how she does all that she does. At 60 years old, guys, 660, she was going non-stop. I literally had to remind her to eat some days because I was like, Mom, you need to take a break and eat. So every time I would go get coffee or like Dunkin' or whatever before we actually set up the coffee bar and everything that I have downstairs, and like actually had like a full functioning kitchen, I would just grab her food or a frozen mocha or something and be like, mom, here, like drink this, please, because that woman, I don't know where she gets all of her energy from, but she just goes, goes, goes. We are so blessed. I literally have the best Mimi in the world. But overall, I'd say adjusting to life here has been pretty good. I am hoping to meet some new friends, get more involved now that we're a little bit more settled, and I feel like I have a little bit more time to do that, and I'm hoping to get Mia more involved and she can meet some more friends because David brought her over to one of the big parks actually earlier today, and he was like, Oh yeah, a little girl ran up to her, and Mia just ran away, and that's not my Mia. Like, that's just not her, but I feel like she just doesn't know, and that it does break my heart because I feel like she sees all these people coming and going and coming and going, and she's like, What is happening? I really tried hard to make her room pretty similar or identical to her room in Lynchburg as much as I could. We even bought her a new carpet for her room and things because she doesn't have that space, but making sure her bed and her bookshelf and rocking chair and changing area and all those things were very similar and her wall decor. So when she wakes up, it's kind of still appears very similar. She's struggling to go down sometimes. Normally, she's a rock star at going down. You put that kid in her bed, she may sit up for a few minutes, but then she'll just put her head down and she'll be out in five, ten minutes. But naps have been harder going down. She just wants to like contact nap. And she has been, I guess, doing a little bit better with the naps, in the sense of like sleeping longer stretches, but there were some very, very rough nights there. There was a couple nights I've slept on her floor with her, um, just to like kind of keep her in her own bed. That way it's not like another new room. But I just like pull in a pillow and a blanket, and she would cry out probably like every five, ten minutes, and I would just like reach my hand up and be like, Mia, like mommy's here, it's okay. But just really just trying to encourage her that like it's okay and that she's not leaving here, and as much as like my family is all in Ireland visiting my sister right now, it has been so nice to kind of stay put because as much as I really want to be there and be there to support my sister too and travel with my family, I think it would have been way too much for Mia, way too much change in this season of our life right now. And then with David starting residency here in a few weeks, it just wasn't in the cards for us. And also, I want to mention, like, as much as we tried to keep her room very similar, we also tried to prioritize her room because I was like, I want her room to be like her space. If we can get Mia's room and Mia's playroom kind of set up to a point, like, yeah, it wasn't finished, it wasn't perfect, but like get it pretty darn close or well, so she feels kind of moved in ahead. I was like, I don't care about my closet, I don't care about my bathroom, I don't care about my room. Our room was well, I thought our room would be last, but honestly, I think this uh podcasting room will be last. But I was just kind of like, she takes pro full priority. And I am definitely very thankful for the support of my family because they fully understood that, and that's exactly what they did. My mom, every time Mia would be up from just awake or up from a nap, she would be in that room organizing her clothes or her trying to put stuff together for me to then come in and just like finish hanging it up or just putting clothes on hangers for me. Um, she's like, I don't even know if this still fits her, but I'm just hanging it up in the closet, and then you can go through it, which honestly is so nice because then Mia doesn't feel like she's got piles of stuff on her floor. As long as it's hung up in the closet, it looks like a closet to her, so be it. And I'll get to it when I can. But honestly, those have been some of the best moments and spending time with family and really hoping and praying that our family moves a little bit closer because it can be really hard living further from family, but I really hope and pray it won't be much longer until we're all kind of living near each other again, because I certainly can't go back to the northeast. I don't really want to call that home again, so I absolutely love waking up every day and being outside, seeing the sunshine. Yes, we do get those afternoon thunderstorms or rain like you do in Florida, but seeing the palm trees, brighter moods, I can't wait for this winter. I normally dread winter and I am so excited. And even like the cooler days, I feel like just being able to sit outside on our back patio and eat dinner or work, even if you have to throw a sweatshirt on, like that's okay to me. As long as there's not snow and feats of dark brown snow eventually, I'm good. I'm happy. So here's to hoping that Mia sleeps a little bit better and start sleeping through the night again. And here's to me hoping to find some friends, find my mom friends, get into a little bit more of a routine, and hoping that our family can adjust well to residency life. That's a wrap for this week's episode. If you are still here in this mess, thanks for still hanging in there with me. It's a journey, and I'm so grateful you are here. If you enjoyed this episode, it would mean so much if you shared it with someone who might need to hear this. And as always, I'd love to hear from you, your experiences, your stories, or even things you wish you knew. So feel free to reach out or message me if you'd like to be on the podcast. You can find me on social media at LifeofAD Wife. Thank you so much for being here and for spending this time with me. I don't take that lightly. Until next time, take a breath, pour yourself an iced coffee, and be kind to yourself. I'll see you in the next one.