Four Years in Texas

Settled. I moved to Texas four years ago today, but who's counting? I am, apparently, even though this year I had to go back and double check the date I moved, way back on that blustery winter day. I guess the number of years I've spent down here aren't feeling as relevant to me anymore as I settle deeper into life with my husband, pets, home, and career. And I don't think that's a bad thing; the more I lose track of the time, the less I feel like a transplant trying to grow roots. At the risk of a bad analogy, my roots have finally dug deep into the red dirt of the Piney Woods in East Texas. And so, what has the last year brought for me?

Jared and I have finally settled in to our new house. Everything's unpacked, and if it's not unpacked it's because we rarely need it and it's sufficiently organized. I've been working on home improvement projects that make our house more of a home, including finally putting together a vegetable garden. I've wanted one for years, though we weren't quite settled enough by the time growing season in Texas came around last year for us (read: me) to be able to plant anything. This year's my year, though! I've been prepping my not-so-little garden plot since September, and already have potatoes in the ground for the spring/summer growing season. If I do things correctly I should also manage to hit the summer/autumn growing season for most veggies, and get even more out of year one.

Our personal zoo is thriving. While we unfortunately lost a few within the last year, including my first hedgehog, Chesler, we also added to the family. Hoodoo and Rey, a brother/sister pair of kittens came to us at the end of July. Just this past weekend, I traveled up to Julia's house in Oklahoma to pick up our newest adoption: Bullet! Julia has been fostering this German Shepherd pup for a local (to her) rescue, where my husband saw his pictures. Jared saw something in Bullet that called to him, and so he applied for adoption. A couple weeks later, and here we are! Ghost and Bullet are around the same age (and size) and we expect them to get along like brothers. Speaking of dogs, we're almost at the one-year mark since Marley's last seizure. Marley seizured frequently after moving to Texas, but his last seizure was six weeks after we moved into our new house. Our lives have changed drastically on so many levels since moving that we can't pinpoint a single thing that may have been triggering those terrible fits, but if he's no longer having them I am definitely not going to question it.

Jared and I both still work at Tiger Creek, which really has been business as usual.  I never, ever want to take my experiences for granted, but working with and raising new animals has become such an integral part of my life that I can't imagine myself without it. We raised a lion cub, you guys. A lion! And a cougar cub. And a lemur. And I may or may not be able to scratch an itch and go to work to get raccoon cuddles whenever I want. Because I love domestic animals with all my heart, but the wild ones are something special.

My traveling hasn't stopped. As a matter of fact, my (new) fridge is already becoming overwhelmed by the magnets I collect from the places I visit. I'm actually looking at magnetic alternatives, because I might be running out of room. You can read about the last year's adventures here, but suffice it to say I'm still travelling at every chance I get, with or without a partner. I've been developing my style as a hobby photographer as well, focusing on landscape but also fairly proud of my animal photography. It takes a certain amount of skill and no small amount of cooperation from your subject to get a good photo of an animal, whether in the wild or in captivity, and I feel like I'm taking strides in learning how to do so.

I remember those first few months after moving down here and feeling like my life never settled down, even though I expected it to. Now, I feel like my life has settled, but at a faster pace. Not so much a high-speed wobble anymore, more like cruising along the interstate with nothing in your way to slow you down. And I don't intend to slow down. I enjoy being busy, always having something going on, whether it's work related, something to do at the house, seeking new adventures on the road, or caring for animals (which can be either work-related or personal - or both). I am somehow managing to balance my home life, my work life, and my travel life, with a fair amount of finesse. I'm not saying it's perfect; I'm not saying me taking off on my own is easy for Jared, left to take care of all our animals, go to work, and come home to do it all over again by himself. I'm not saying I don't miss him, my animals at home, and my animals at work when I'm gone. And as much as we try, Jared and I still slip up and bring work home with us, especially if there's an animal that requires extra care. But we make it happen. I am able to work, yet I have a life at home, and I'm able to be home, yet still travel to my heart's content. And all the while there are threads of something animal-related in every aspect of my life. And I wouldn't have it any other way. Four years in Texas. Here's to another one.