Brooklyn: The City of More and Less!

so, we are officially moved-in (see pic above of our living room - so cozy!)  we are "brooklyn-ites".  jeff and i have learned a lot about ourselves over the past week (learning is usually an unpleasant, difficult process.)  i understand why people don't move frequently: it's a pain in the butt and can really test your marriage. my girlfriend, leigh-anne, recently blogged about one of sara groves' songs that says, "loving a person just the way they are it's a hard thing. it takes some time to see things through." during the moving process, i quickly began to understand some jeff's weird quirks - and he definitely started to learn about some of mine!  our exhaustion and frustration led to calloused hearts. gratefully, some quality time this weekend together really forced us to dig into our issues and heal. marriage is good.  

so, there are many things i love about brooklyn.  i'm quickly learning how much MORE it has to offer versus manhattan. 

1. space: we have more space in our apartment (almost twice the amount of space versus our old place!) and there are MANY more parking spaces (so important!)  jeff and i have even found some grocery stores nearby with parking lots! oh, the joys of semi-suburban life.  we also live 1/2 block away from a large park.  Barnabas (our future dog) will love this.
2. restaurants: don't get me wrong - manhattan has some of the most acclaimed restaurants in the world... although brooklyn has LESS choices, there are more QUALITY restaurants available within walking distance of our apartment that don't break the bank.  jeff and i tend to be cheap and indecisive so brooklyn is perfect for us.  
3. grocery stores: brooklyn has grocery stores that are more accessible for drivers and cheaper. woohoo! 
4. local markets: lastly, there is a fresh outdoors farmers market at the end of our block on Saturdays. fresh seasonal fruits, veggies...YUM.  last weekend, jeff also discovered a flea market two blocks away that sells antique furniture, gifts, art, books, personalized knick-knacks. pretty neat!
5. families: our neighborhood has a lot of cute, young families pushing strollers around and playing in the parks.  it feels so much more "homey" than manhattan

Brooklyn also has LESS of a lot of things I loathed about Manhattan:

1. birds: pigeons have infested manhattan streets. they are ALL over the place. since i was little, i have been terrified birds - especially the big, ugly dirty ones.  brooklyn has less of those ugly, flying rodents
2. traffic: i drive for my job and have really appreciated the minimal amount of traffic i encounter throughout my day. it's glorious.
3. hustle-and-bustle: there is so much pressure in manhattan. everyone is in a rush or competing with someone else.  i hate that tension. jeff and i have both experienced less of this here in brooklyn.  it's like a breath of fresh air!

as you can tell, i love brooklyn and am excited to experience it more with my hubby.  we now have two bedrooms, so please come and visit us! 

i have also learned a lot about how hurtful my bitter comments during a stressful situation can be to jeff.  i am really going to spend some time finding the root of this bitterness so i don't take it out on him anymore.  i am grateful and he knows it "takes some time to see things through".

much love.