The time has come. As a military wife, every three years it is time to uproot and move our life and go somewhere new. Being a business owner also mean starting over somewhere completely new which poses its own challenges.
So, this is the is this beginning of a new series where I will document what it looks like to make the huge move from Tulsa, Oklahoma to Twentynine Palms, California six months from now.
Being a military spouse is a rollercoaster ride, especially when it comes to PCS season. If your wondering what PCS stands for it means permanent change of station. When my husbands orders came down the metaphorical tube today we were shocked to find out we are heading back to California. We have been waiting for this information for months. Then as soon as it settled in I called everyone back home because I’m originally from Cali.
First things first
We have already been in the planning phase for a week because we found out his reenlistment was approved. So, Monday I had our realtor meet me at the house and together we figured out what improvements needed to be made to get it ready to put on the market. Shameless plug! If you need a great realtor in Tulsa check out Ashley Cooper Ross with EXP HERE. So, the first thing I did was call her and we decided that August is the best time to put the house on the market. It is far enough away from the holidays to still garner plenty of interest. We may need to rent an Airbnb or VRBO for a short time. But, we can figure that out as it comes.
Next was picking the exact day we are going to leave to head West. When I am handed information like this I prefer to get a big jump on it and then I can relax just a bit. We picked our date, within the window we were given, and I was able to start booking our rooms. My favorite website for booking hotel stays in Booking.com. It gives me the ability to book now and pay later without penalty.
The downside to the time of year we are moving isn’t preferable though. We will be moving right in the middle of the school year. So calling and finding out what I would need to do to precedence. The last time we moved wasn’t such a big deal since we were settled before the school year began. This time is different. But, without a new address yet I won’t be able to do anything until later in the year. No problem any information in good and I’ll take it!
Legalities
It’s time to turn my attention to the business side of it. Moving a business is no easy task. Moving it across the country? A monster of a task. Every state has it’s own rules and regulations as one would expect. So I dove in head first. Today it was all about finding out what permits would be required to shoot in Joshua Tree National Park, where and what business licenses are required, if I need permits for each county and city that I’m shooting in (still working on that), and more. I go a lot of great information today and will be handling that at a later time this year. The biggest thing I learned though, I need to figure out where we will be living exactly before I can do anything. Everything will fall where it needs to be though. I’m sure of it.
The Moving Binder
Okay, if your a military spouse and you have made a big life changing move you know all about the binder. If you don’t, the binder is the place where every piece of important paperwork goes while the rest of your belongings are on a truck that you can’t get into. The binder holds things like passports, birth certificates, shot records, orders, travel documents, etc.
But Elizabeth, why not just keep that all digitally? Because technology can be fickle and when your in the middle of nowhere you want to be able to access that important items.
Our binder was started today. I started throwing in what I could and it will start to fill over the course of the next six months. If I could encourage you to do one thing regarding this though? Purchase one that you can zip closed. You don’t want important documents falling out somewhere.
But that’s it for today. I will keep you update along this journey so if you are interested in following along on this journey subscribe and comment what questions you have about this process. Until next time!
Elizabeth Kane Photography is a luxury wedding and lifestyle photographer currently scheduling 2023-2024 weddings in Joshua Tree, Palm Springs, Temecula, San Diego, Orange County, and the surrounding areas. If you are currently planning your wedding connect with me though the Contact Page for more information on packages and pricing.
