How to prepare for a new home, phase, adventure:

1. Sign up for the neighborhood newsletter. (Check!)
2. Like the neighborhood on Facebook. (Check!)
3. Order moving announcements for the family members who use magnets on the fridge instead of Gmail contacts. (Check!)
4. Sell all furniture you can get away with selling. Take similar approach used to clear Mom’s estate, only harsher (if it ain’t useful, beautiful, or irreplaceable, get rid of it). (Half-check.)
5. Purge love letters from high school (finally) and most of the photos from wedding 1.0 (except family photos, of which I can never have enough) that you thought had already been sorted (crap). (Check.)
6. Find new local cheese shop. Lament that it’s probably not within walking distance. (Check!) (With thanks to Alicia’s brother’s awesome girlfriend)
7. Plot route — southerly, with a possible swing up to see the Grand Canyon because why not? Plan with mapquest, but trust Google Maps nav for on-the-road decisions. (Check.)
8. Admit that you really do have to at least prime the walls you painted such lovely, rich colors when you moved in. Purchase giant bucket of cheapest white paint available. (Half-check.)
9. Argue with moving cube company that said one thing, wrote down another, and met you halfway in the end. (Win!)
10. Make nice cup of chai and get a decent night’s sleep. (Getting right on that.)