The big news is that Dear Husband is changing jobs! He has been hired as the music director and organist at Sewickley Presbyterian Church. We are sad to be leaving our friends at Third Presbyterian Church after 6 years, but this full-time position (with benefits!)(and a pay scale that reflects his doctorate!) is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that was too good to pass up. PLUS, the assistant music director is an old friend who used to live 2 doors down from us in Point Breeze until they moved to Sewickley for him to take his position. Pittsburgh really is a small town like Baltimore.
As soon as I knew when DH's last Sunday at Third Pres was, I dropped whatever I was doing to book us a weekend getaway. People who work Monday through Friday jobs may not appreciate how rare and exciting it was to think we could take off for 2 days without having to worry about being back in time for church on Sunday morning. On one month's notice so close to Valentine's Day, I couldn't find a cabin with a jacuzzi tub within an hour's drive, so I opted for one 2.25 hours away in "the heart of Ohio Amish country." I took my last available vacation day on Friday afternoon so we could leave at 1pm, and arrive for check-in at 3pm. As it was, we left a little late but had a lovely drive along Tappan Lake, arriving at the Pretzel Nook in downtown Berlin (emphasis on the first syllable) right before they closed at 4pm. He had the garlic and herb pretzel and I the cinnamon and sugar one. Here we are savoring our warm, baked to order snacks!
I had wanted to walk up and down Main Street to window shop, but the road was kind of busy and the weather too cool, so we moved on. It was 5 minutes down the road to a cute cabin on a hillside overlooking a pond. Out the front windows, we could see horses on the hillside of the farm across the road. Outdoor amenities included our own parking pad, a picnic table, a grill, a firepit, and wooden rocking chairs on the front porch. Because we came in February, we didn't avail ourselves of those. However, we did enjoy the efficiency kitchen, comfy couch and large flat-screen TV, king-sized bed, and spacious bathroom with both a shower and a jacuzzi tub (with a chandelier!). Everything was done in wood and stone, and there was plenty of light inside.
For the first time in our relationship, we took a trip for which I had planned no activities except for dinner Friday evening at one of the local Amish buffet restaurants, Mrs. Yoder's Kitchen. Rather than try to see cheese-making, Amish handcrafts, the railroad museum, the wood-carving museum, the Swiss-Amish museum, the world's largest cuckoo clock, or even the local state park, we stayed in, watched two movies, used the jacuzzi, read, sewed, cooked, ate, and napped. We did minimal emailing and patient care. It was the rejuvenating break from schedules and expectations that we needed--a "grand pause" in musical parlance. DH said the only thing that would have made it better would have been snow. As it was, we had sun and clear skies for the driving both ways.
DH's transition is actually almost a month long. While he is not playing for 3 Sundays, he is still going back to Third during the week to be let in to practice the organ. Next Sunday we will go to church with friends before flying out to Phoenix for our annual Spring Break vacation. The week after that we're going Sunday brunch (another first for us!) before putting me on a plane to Chicago for a nutrition in medical education conference. He starts at Sewickley after that, and of course I'll share photos.
