January arrived with many new year's resolutions as well as my birthday, my new nephew Brodie, and the beginning of another semester at school. I was nervous about this semester because I would be taking two classes that I knew would be tough. I love history but have never made good grades in the course. I was also taking government which was even worse. The semester was rounded off by a dance course which would complete my visual and performing arts requirement and my final English comp class.
Stephen had been talking about moving to our new property but had not made up his mind. There was nothing on the property but the outside kitchen that we had built. I knew there was no way we could make the move. I told him that once the semester started we would not be able to move until it ended. So January meant that we were staying where we were until at least May.
He was unhappy working for other people and never having time for his own company. He had vacation time at work but every time he asked to take some time off they said they needed him. He had been working non-stop for 14 years and he was burned out. I just wanted to hurry up and finish my degree so I could get a job in journalism and let him stay home to work in his shop and build his company.
In February he was again talking about moving so I told him that as soon as the semester was over we would go. I applied for school in El Paso so that I could enroll for the summer semester. It was the closest college to our property outside of Sierra Blanca, just over an hour away. I knew Stephen was pretty serious and he wanted to make a trip out to the property to start building a shop and house. Only having weekends off made it very hard. Each trip was an 18 hour drive (9 hours each way).
I had to miss some days at school and began to worry about whether or not I would pass some of my classes. I was only allowed to miss five classes and I had missed seven. The semster was nearing an end and finals were just around the corner. Stephen and I had discussed it and he was going to give his notice the week before my finals. Once he gave notice he took off a few extra days at work to get some things done on the property. The shop was currently nothing more than a pole barn. No walls, roof or floor- just a frame and the house was only partially built without the trim boards, no inside walls, no plumbing, and part of the floor was still not completed. I was worried about the move.
Stephen decided to head out west on the day of my final for history. I had to arrange to take my final early and had no time to study. I was so afraid that I would fail. When my grades finally came in I was surprised. I received an A in dance and a B in all three other classes. I was enrolling for the summer semester in El Paso although I was still unsure if we would make the move.
By the end of May we were still unsure if we would be moving or staying so I added Austin back on my list for school just in case I would need to attend the summer there. We put the house up for rent and when we were contacted by thirty or more people, we knew that we would be making the move. It would all have to be done quickly because the summer semester started the middle of June and it was close to the first already. So we began to pack up. Everyone was shocked that we were going to be moving so suddenly. I was worried too because nothing was finished... we would soon find out just how hard things may be.
