The L.A. Dime

Big news!!! After many weeks of soul searching, pro’s and con lists and talking it over (and over, and over), we’ve decided to move to Syracuse, NY this August.

Several factors led to this decision:
- For a while now we have watched the screenwriting market contract and even the Writer’s Guild reports show a very low number of movie scripts being sold
- Brad’s next step in his teaching career is a full-time, tenure position and even though USC is very happy with his performance there, no such positions are (or will be in the near future) available
- We want a more kid-friendly house/neighborhood
- While I love my job and appreciate the opportunity to contribute financially to our family, I would love the chance to stay home while the kids are young
- We miss seasons…yes, I know…it’ll be cold…but we’re ok with that
- A change in scenery, pace and environment creates learning opportunities and experiences we both find important for us and the kids

So, that’s the list of why and what we weighed to make our decision. Obviously there are also some downsides: Brad will be more removed from the industry so will need to work even harder to stay connected; we have an amazing group of friends who have been there for us in the good & bad times; we love Sophie’s school; the weather is great and I have a good job.

Overall though, we look forward to the change and are both excited about the opportunity for Brad to help continue to build the screenwriting program at SUNY Oswego while also having the chance to teach some production classes which will add resume-building experiences.

Right now we are burried in to do lists ranging from finding a renter for our house here, finding a rental house for us to live in there, finding a school for Sophie and figuring out how to get all of our stuff (literally) across the country.

So, there you have it. It’s a very bitter-sweet time for us right now and we are trying to get to see as many of our friends as possible before we go. We are going to take full advantage of what LA and its surrounding areas have to offer over the next couple of months so we can take those memories with us as we embark on our next, great adventure!

We colored, hunted and ate eggs. We also hosted an Easter Brunch where we had ham, cornbread casserole, carrot/cauliflower casserole, fruit salad, chocolate chip cupcakes and (my very first ever) Lemon Meringue Pie. The Dempseys came and brought a hashbrown casserole and the Perdue/Okano’s brought their green beans. We also had the Dodes’ come by and they added some broccoli to the mix.

Here is a video of Clay on the day he began to crawl.

And here he is cracking up in laughter at his sister, watching her throw legos.