The Move to the East Bay

I’ve been a Sonoma County resident for most of my life. I moved from San Jose to Windsor, California in 1998 with my parents and little sister, out of my parents’ house to Napa for the first time at 19, and then to San Diego/Sacramento for college. After that, I moved back to Santa Rosa after four and a half years of being away.

Since then, I’ve lived in several houses in Healdsburg and Santa Rosa, never staying in one place for too long – not on purpose, but simply because that’s the nature of the beast when you rent.

Saying goodbye to Sonoma County

We said goodbye to the house that Rye grew up in (well, grew up in for the first 3 1/2 years of his life). We said goodbye to where our baby took his first steps, said his first sentence (“Bye bye, kitty!”), and learned to sleep in a big boy bed.

And now we are officially residents of the East Bay in Concord, California, just between Clayton and Walnut Creek. During this first month, I’ll be watching Rye full-time until he starts school in September.

Work from home mom life

I still have work to do and magazine writing deadlines to meet, so my husband and I devised a schedule in which I spend the first 45 minutes of every single day writing. Once my time’s up, he takes off for work and I watch Rye.

Because our almost 4-year-old gets up at 5 AM on the dot – no matter what time he goes to sleep – we have become morning people, whether we like it or not.

In terms of productivity, I’ve learned that I am the most resourceful and creative in the morning. Doing work after 7 PM is kind of like pulling teeth for me, especially when my bucket of energy is drained after watching a feisty three-year-old all day.

Kid activities in the East Bay

One thing I wasn’t expecting to get out of the move is the amount of activities for kids here in the East Bay area! There seems to be a park on every corner, plenty of Discovery museums, and lots of splash pads to cool down from the East Bay heat. There’s also a multitude of recreational swim classes, soccer practices, etc., etc., etc. We’re excited to visit them and find out which ones are our favorites!

So far, Rye is loving the splash pad at the Clayton playground and the green rolling hills of the Heather Farm Park in Walnut Creek...not to mention the two mini playgrounds that are within walking distance from our house. Perfect for walking the dogs and the toddler to!

Work life balance

We moved to the East Bay so my husband Jeff could be closer to his work. Commuting 89 miles, one way, 3-4 times a week was just not making either one of us happy in Santa Rosa.

So, now we can have an arrangement that includes him watching Rye for 45 minutes every morning, AND him coming home by 5 PM (or even earlier) for us to enjoy happy hour and one of the exciting new restaurants here in the East Bay.

Let me know if you have any happy hour recommendations in Concord, Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill, Danville, or Lafayette! I’m excited to try them all!