Moving and Gratitude

Since I am STILL in the throws of moving and having such a hard time dealing with all the chaos, disorder, cleaning, packing, unpacking, rearranging, getting rid of things, etc. etc. I've started having a bad attitude about the whole thing. I realized how bad it had gotten when, one night, I had a dream the Mr. had died. And, though I was, of course grief-stricken at losing him, what bothered me the most (in the dream!) was that I would have to move again! This was a sign to me that I need to change my attitude about moving, since it seems to be my lot in life to do so frequently (we've been married just under 8 years and have already moved 10 times!)

So, I've decided to compile a list of things for which I am grateful, with regards to moving:

Moving has made me appreciate:

~The opportunity to declutter. I am, by nature, a 'pack-rat', so frequent moves have forced me to learn to let go of excess and simplify my life!
~The opportunity to deep clean regularly. I manage to stay on top of the day-to-day cleaning (for the most part) but I'm not very good at the whole 'deep cleaning' you're supposed to do every 6 months or so. Moving forces me to do this, since we're almost never in the same place for more than a year!
~The opportunity to make new friends. I am somewhat predisposed to being shy, but frequent moves have afforded me the opportunity to meet new people and make new friends everywhere I go.
~The opportunity to find things I've been missing. Once we lost a library book, and I was certain I had taken it in. When we moved we found it behind/underneath the bookshelf (where I had looked, but would never have found until actually moving the entire shelf!) Woohoo!
~The opportunity to develop a list of likes/dislikes. Moving so frequently and living in so many different homes/apartments/states/cities/etc. has really given me a taste of what I want in a location, home, neighborhood, ward, school, etc. I've got a good list going so that, when the time (finally!) comes for us to get a house of our own, I will know exactly what I want. Living in our last home (5800 sq ft), for instance, has taught me I do NOT want an excessively large home and yard (unless I intend on having hired help). It is SO much work to keep up! Big homes are overrated, in my opinion.
~The opportunity to have a fresh, new start. This is one reason why the Mr. LOVES moving.
~The opportunity for physical activity. Let's face it. I'm a lazy couch potato. Moving gets me off my duff and gives me that little kick in the seat I need to get moving. Packing, cleaning, carrying boxes up and down stairs. Quite a workout, I must say. Goodbye, love handles! :)
~And, finally, and most importantly, my children. They have truly been troopers through all of these moves, and have even been such good helpers - packing up their things, carrying little loads in and out of the house, being told they couldn't play with things that were already packed, being neglected while their parents spend hours packing/unpacking/cleaning/etc. And, their enthusiasm about our new place has been enough to keep me going.

So, in 10 months when I'm moving yet again, I'll look back on this list and try to buck up instead of moping around feeling sorry for myself.