If you know me, then you know that change is not exactly my thing. Reliability and stability are kind of my jams.

Now, if you don’t happen to know to me. I can quickly paint you a picture.

• I am refusing to change out my debit card until I get a notice from the bank saying it absolutely has to be done.  The new one is different and I don’t like it!
• Yesterday I wore shoes I bought while I was in 7th grade. I’m 38 years old.
• I looked at my high school yearbook recently and noticed I still  have the exact same haircut.

And finally….

• I actually still live in the house I grew up in. Sure, it’s with my husband and child now and we changed some paint colors and such, but still, it says a lot.

This past week or so, however, I’ve had to face it. Changes are happening no matter how uncomfortable it may make me.

I’ll start with the one I have the least control over:

My child is growing up despite my best efforts.

He’s about a day away from absolutely having to shave his mustache and he’s started hunting with my dad which often has him out later than Justin and me.  I really love that he’s spending time with his grandad and that at least one of us will know how to procure food during the apocalypse, but it is odd not to have him home with us every night.

Another major change is that my mom retired from her career with the United States Postal Service this week after 25 years. (Mom, if that number is wrong, blame Brody. He’s my numbers man.) 

I could not be happier for her and I truly think she’s going to love retirement. I’m excited for her to be at home with my dad and get to relax a little, although I know it’s definitely going to be an adjustment. She’s basically an encyclopedia of postal knowledge whether she will admit it or not and I imagine that several people are currently freaking out about not having her and that knowledge in a post office anymore.

My mom started working at the post office when I was around Brody’s age. She completely shifted lanes and started a whole new career. I’ve always admired that she took the opportunity when it was presented and went with it, even though I’m sure it was pretty scary at the time.

So now, since I couldn’t ask for a better segue, it’s time for the biggest change. (For me anyway, not for the world or anything.)

I’m also making a pretty big change and leaving the newspaper I’ve worked at for 14 or so years in a couple of weeks and starting something new by accepting a position at the library. It was hard! And scary! And exciting!

Brody was, of course, super supportive and understanding when I told him. His exact words were, “What? How can you betray the newspaper and your friends like that?!”

After I stopped crying, Justin was much more helpful and reassuring since he also went through a major career change a few years ago.

I’m going to miss my newspaper people horribly. It’s a small staff and therefore they have become my family over the years. They’re also just delightful, fun people to be around and I hope they’re ready for me to drive them crazy with texts trying to stay in the loop with everything. On the bright side, I will now get to call them when it’s time to renew my “prescription.”

As sad as I am to leave them, I am also so excited to go to work for our library system. I have sang their praises for years and it’s been something I’ve always wanted to do.

Because, guys, LIBRARIES ARE WHERE THE BOOKS LIVE! I’m not sure how you get more exciting than that.

I just hope I’m as successful in my career transition as my mom was in hers. I’ve had the best role model I could ever ask for; now it’s time for me to embrace the change.

I’m still not giving in on the debit card though.