CreativeCritters Blog: New Beginnings

It's been a month since I last posted on here and in that time I left my emotionally abusive husband, cleaned out Gramma's house (it's still up for sale), packed up all my belongings, and moved myself and my two cats across the country to Arizona. Hey, no baby steps for me- when I go to change something I do it BIG! LOL Of course in all seriousness none of this has been easy, and none of this would have been possible without all the help and support I received from my family and friends. So here I am in Prescott Arizona, starting all over again, which isn't a bad thing- I get one gigantic do over. Marrying my husband was a mistake in the first place, and I was never truly happy in the marriage, although I desperately tried to convince myself otherwise. He was a cruel and controlling man who did his very best to isolate me from my family and any friends I might have. I may blog more about that part of life at another time. Right now I'm still sorting through the last 16 years and wading through that emotional minefield.
I will tell you about the trip from Ohio to Arizona though. Things worked out rather perfectly- my mom just rented the house in Prescott (she actually signed the lease before she even knew what was going on in my marriage). All it really took was her offer of a place to stay, and I ended up finally telling her the truth about my life. Up to that point no one knew the hell that I lived in. So she and my brothers began planning a way to get me out of there and out to Arizona. My youngest brother's fiance flew in from CA so she could fly back to Arizona with me. I needed someone along for the flight for a few reasons. For one thing I was flying with my cats, Calcifer and Ginko, and I needed someone to carry one of their pet carriers. For another thing I had never flown before and Sarah happens to have traveled quite a bit during her life, so she knew the ropes ;-) She also really helped to keep me calm and keep me laughing. This was the first time I had meet my future sister-in-law, and I must say, I love her already ;-) She was wonderful with the cats too- very kind and gentle, which was just what they needed. I sprayed the towels in their carriers with Feliway (calming cat pheromones) before we left, and I was really amazed at how well they did. They were scared, of course, but there was no yowling or total freak outs. Once we were on the plane they actually managed to fall asleep for a while. It was about a 6 hour flight and then at least a 2 hour drive from Phoenix to Prescott. And did I mention that I was doing all this after not sleeping for about a week? By the time we got to our new home the cats and I were all exhausted!
It took a few days, but once I was finally able to get some sleep and get over a bit of altitude sickness I was able to really appreciate the beauty of Arizona. Mother and I made a few trips back to Phoenix to move the rest of her stuff from her apartment, and I got to experience Phoenix in mid-summer. They say it's dry heat, but 108 degrees is just incredibly hot no matter how you look at it! Prescott, on the other hand is at least 20 degrees cooler and more of a mountain environment than a desert environment. It also gets more rain, which I didn't expect. We've actually had a good bit of rain each afternoon for the last 3 days. I really love it here. I'll have been here one week tomorrow, and already this feels like home. The West just feels so different from where I came from. The sky is clearer and bigger somehow, the landscape just takes my breath away, and the people are so open and friendly.
And I have everything I could ever ask for right in one place. In one direction I have a national forest within easy walking distance, and in the other direction I have the cool town of Prescott with all it's shops and neat places to check out. I don't believe I have ever felt so happy, calm, and relaxed. And it doesn't hurt to have most of the country between me and my ex. I think I'm going to split this into several posts, because I have so much to talk about. I'll let you know how the cats are adjusting and tell you about some of the awesome things I've seen. To end this post I want to share the view that I wake up to every morning when I look out my window. Seeing this every morning just makes me happy to be alive! :-)