The Biggest hold up was the littlest member

Nothing Holding us Back Now 

We thought we wanted to move in March 2015- but God had other plans.  For our first 3 children we were only able to conceive while taking Clomid.  <insert long story about infertility, nervousness to take medication in fear of multiples, leading to foster to adopt children that ironically started with twins, then to respite care for other foster parents to willingness to risk multiple births and give medicine a try>  We wanted a fourth so planned it all out that we would move and have our fourth baby sometime in Fall 2015.  We knew the drill and were all ready to take the medicine.  As a precaution I have to take a pregnancy test prior to the prescription- so I did and it came back negative- no surprise there.  Then I take another test prior to the first dosage of a medication to start a clean feminine cycle- which I did about a week later but this time the test came back... you guessed it - POSITIVE.  To top it off we were due right around our goal of moving- Spring 2015.  I just knew we were suppose to stay put until after this baby arrived.  It was such a clear message from God to "wait" on his timing- I felt it was a true miracle considering our long road to having children.  I kept the news to myself for a whole week- even from my husband.  I just wanted to be sure and those dollar store pregnancy tests weren't making me very confident.  I went to the doc even and once confirmed I came home to tell everyone at the same time.  I decided to "take" everyone picture but instead have my camera on video mode and capture their reaction as I systematically said "Savannah smile- say I'm a great big sister"- which she is and this wouldn't cause any surprise.  I did the same to Charlotte.  But when I got to Levi- then the baby.  I told him to say cheese and say "Im a big brother".  My mom immediately understood what I was trying to say- took Josh a minute to get it.  Want to see for yourself.  Here is a link to the video:

We were thrilled- but that meant we were to put our move plans on hold.  We continued to research areas and moving costs etc.  Cheyenne was born April 28th 2015.  Now that she is here there is nothing really holding us back except- work and transportation.

Here are some pictures of our family and Cheyenne on her birthday!  She fits right in and looks near exactly like her sisters with a little less hair then they had.

In between contractions walking in the Mall parking lot about 4 hours from her arrival. 

Her stats!  Our smallest babe yet.

They all ADORED her- so thanksful!

Meeting the siblings

Officially a family of 6

She looks so much like Charlotte and Savannah did at this age- here is proof- I promise these are actually pictures of DIFFERENT babies!

Cheyenne

Charlotte

Savannah

See the gloves in the bath pictures- all different colors- 3 different babies, 3 different nurses

Cheyenne

Charlotte

Savannah

Where are we going?

Where are we going? 

So we started with researching Greenville SC, we learned that the area is in a Bible belt (we like that) and that there are a lot of families that homeschool.  We even have FB friends out there now that we know through the grapevine of family- BUT we also learned that some of the areas have pretty heavy drug circles and the "good" areas that we think we would want to live aren't quite the prices we were hoping to pay... so I said COAST and we found ourselves looking at Mrytle Beach area.. ruling out the actual city of Mrytle Beach pretty quickly we found that Surfside Beach had a very simliar feel (on the internet at least) to San Clemente.  I was sold on the idea of getting a very large beach house/duplex and living in it short term until we found something with a bit more land and then renting it out.  I starting fantasizing about decorating it and setting out towel animals for guest.  That was short lived though since there weren't many jobs in that area and - though I had been pestering Josh to just do remote work with me- he insisted on a backup plan being a nearby city with alot of industry.  He pushed for Raleigh NC and I pushed us to culture in Charleston.  Neither won.  Then I started thinking that we should go even further south- but GA sounded like "the" south and Florida sounded much more appealing.  Why?  What in my life has influenced me to think that Florida is a tropical beautiful palm tree paradise and that GA is porches, gospel singers, sweet people but slower paced and full of rocking chair?  My stereotypes run deep I guess... media... I blame the media.  Either which way I was originally convinced of moving before we even conceived our 4th little angel.  Space for the kids to run, a room per kid, or close to, an office, a mother-in-law quarters, our own laundry, a dining room again... and all for the price we currently are paying for our 2 bedroom apartment with not a patch of grass in sight?  It sounded amazing.  Josh was sure he could make more out there too- so income going up and costs going down might mean I don't have to work so much.  I LOVE Southern California.  I really don't want to leave.  I grew up moving and I finally found a place I have history with... the weather is phenomenal, the family activities are great, I don't even mind the "Orange County Culture" since I don't think we really fall into it anyway.  My biggest up-heave is that the cost of living is so high that we can not really ENJOY the above mentioned things.  I rarely bring the kids to the park, or the zoo (though we have memberships) or do the family activities because I am working so much to be able to afford just to live here.  We don't want to just survive- we hope to thrive and have a legacy left for our children's children.  We just don't see being able to do that well in SC.  We are in our 30s and Josh is nearing 40, we have no plans for retirement, no assets of value and I am ready to change that because... I want to stay here BUT its not about me anymore- its about THEM and now there are 4 of them... phew.  So moving somewhere is definitely happening but the where has been a tough call.   Seattle was on the table for awhile, as was Temecula, Lake Elsinore, even Hawaii- but we just feel we can't decide until we see it, feel it, live it and fall in love.  Till this day we have NO IDEA WHERE WE ARE GOING... but we have to go.

Here is a pic of all the places we have seriously considered in order- nothing has been ruled out but instead we decided to visit each and then discuss- why not right?  :
Greenville SC
Mrytle Beach and Surfside Beach SC
Charleston SC
Hilton Head SC

Marys Island, GA
Northern Coastal, FL
Raleigh NC
Sequim, WA
Wildomar/ Murrieta/ Temecula and Lake Elsinore CA
Mukilteo, WA
Outerbanks (KittyHawk) NC
Hilo, HA

Pensacola, FL
Cape Canaveral, FL (our most recent possibility)

Big factors for us:
Weather
Safety
Local thriving Economy (we are Accountants so- that kind of work)
Laws (smoking laws, vaccination laws, homeschooling laws etc)
Affordability (anything LESS than San Clemente prices- especially home prices)

The Big Schuyler Family "move" Decision

About a year ago this time I wrote a diary entry entitled "Moving from SC to SC- that is San Clemente to South Carolina".  We have been talking about moving for over a year now, even came across friends that thought we already did it and came back (too much talking about it and not enough action... but we have had some hangups).  I was originally convinced of the idea of moving after looking at a home in Greenville SC where the home was just gorgeous- a craftsman style home on a large lot of grass and mature trees, a coloum entryway, a seperate mother-in-law quarters on the property, a well constructed outdoor shed all for the same mortgage (PITI> Principal Interst Taxes and Insurance) that we are currently spending to rent a 2 bedroom apartment.  To top it off Josh promised we would make a 10 day vacation out of it- driving up to the Redwoods, Mt Rushmore, St Louis Arch etc.  I had done something similar as a kid and thought it would be a great family adventure.  I was absolutely against moving for years, then hesitant for months, then conflicted and now I am just ready.... but its not as simple as "get up and go".  Follow us as we figure out how we are going to do this, where we end up and all the bumps and fun God has planned for us along the way!

Here is a map of our potential route around the country!