Team Atogwe is off to the Lone Star State! O and I moved to Virginia in 2011. It was the year of the NFL lockout and after playing for the St. Louis Rams for six seasons he was a free agent and we had no idea where we’d end up after our wedding. Right before the lockout started, we signed with the Washington Redskins and waited months (and months) for the lockout to end so we could get settled! That day finally came in late July which meant O left the next day, I finished packing up the house in St. Louis and after looking at hundreds of houses online, flying to Virginia to see 13 houses in one day, we walked into this house and knew it would be our home.

We said we’d never stay longer than the contract. With my family in Dallas and O’s family in Canada, we had no reason to…and when O was injured and retired earlier than we ever expected in 2013, he wanted to stick to the original plan and leave immediately. That sounded like the right option on paper, but without even meaning to, I had fallen in love with this place. Our church family and Redskins family had become like real family, one small group, couples study, and holiday at a time. We moved here after being married only two months, but as soon as we knew Virginia would be home, we began praying for couples to raise us up and show us how to do marriage God’s way. We prayed for lifelong friendships to shape us and enrich our lives. We prayed for a home that would bless everyone who entered it. And God, as He always has been and always will be, was abundantly faithful.

Still, we’ve known for a few years this wouldn’t be home forever. It became more and more apparent as our babies entered the world that we needed to be surrounded by family. We didn’t know exactly where and we could not for the life of us decide when. But after two conversations in early January with some of the dearest friends we’ve made in Virginia, the decision finally became clear. It was time to move to Dallas.

We’ll be moving into a rental early June and will likely be there for a year until we wrap up our current renovation projects. Since we always knew our time here would be temporary, I’ve had to keep that in mind when decorating and changing our home. I’ve made plenty of updates-but always having to think of the next buyer and “if we’d get our return on investment,” and for someone so passionate about interior design that has been more difficult than I’d like to admit. The thought of moving from one temporary place to another temporary place is a little disheartening but knowing we’re that much closer to our forever home more than makes up for it!

We haven’t told the kids yet, partly because Oshiolema would ask every minute of every day if it was time to go, abut mostly because he’ll miss his friends here so much. We start packing next week and I’m ready to hear all the tips!!

I’m so thankful for all of you that have followed along on this journey and I’m so looking forward to the wonderful things this move will bring.

If you’re interested, here’s a post from one of our first weeks here in Virginia back in 2011 that I transferred over from my old blog! Oh what sweet memories.