Cheers

Yesterday someone asked me what my tips for a newly relocated SAHM would be. I thought of the usual tips. But after sitting with it I thought of something no one tells you.

When you move to a new place, especially if you have left a place you were really connected to, the thing you miss is being known. It's hard enough not knowing where to go. You'll spend weeks finding all your new stores and services. But the hardest part is that nobody recognizes you.

There is no way you can feel at home while you feel like a stranger. But there are some surprisingly easy ways to fix that.

Become a regular.

Go grocery shopping at the same time and day each week. If you can keep checking out with the same cashier. In a couple weeks that will be one person who recognizes you. You can do this with all your errands (and should). In a month's time when you go get your prescriptions, pizza, movies and 3 more people recognized you... I swear... you will feel more settled.

Ever since moving here Mr F had ordered the same pizza from the same place every Friday. One week he changed our order and they said "What you're changing it up?!" We hadn't even been here 5 months and the pizza guys knew our order... Mr F left there feeling like a rock star. Same thing goes with going out to eat. If you go out... especially true if you stick to small ethnic restaurants... give it a couple of weeks at the same place and pretty soon the waitress and hostess will remember you. That's two people for the price of one!

And for my last bit of advice... if you are home when the mail comes go out and take it from the mailman by hand. It's easy to do... heck the mailman might even appreciate a little decency anyway... and pretty soon someone will know you. You might not have friends yet (although who knows maybe your mailman ROCKS and you'll be BFFs in no time), and you might never have family nearby... but you will no longer be an invisible stranger. And that helps immeasurably. Because the worst part of making a big move is feeling isolated.


(Oh and if this doesn't work... just go online and order a Book Of Mormon... boom... you'll have 2 friendly faces knocking on your door)