Home, Sweet Home!

Dear community friends,

Hello! We are so excited to become a part of the Dexter community!

Why Dexter? Why now? Why are we so excited?

Our family (comprised of my husband, Ben, my son, Logan, my daughter, Paige and myself) moved here on February 11, 2011. We had been living in Ann Arbor prior to that. I grew up in Chelsea, and Ben is from Saline, so we are familiar with the area. My parents live in Ypsilanti, so we knew we wanted to stay close to them.

Let's flash back to February 2010: Ben is an extremely knowledgeable computer geek and intuitive, compassionate manager. His position (along with numerous others) was eliminated at an automotive-related intelligence corporation in Southfield, MI., in 2010. Yikes! We went from a single-income household to a no-income household in the matter of, well, about five minutes (and five years, really, if you consider the alarming decline of jobs surrounding the automotive industry in Michigan).

So, that was scary (insert "major understatement" here). Within three months Ben became re-employed, this time in Dearborn, at a reasonable job. Lessons learned? Job security is an outdated notion; we love being together as a family -- all four of us!; and it's time to dramatically cut our expenses and downsize.

Enter, stage right (August 2010): An audition notice for Damn Yankees! at the fabulous Encore Musical Theatre. With two little kids at home and practicing attachment-style parenting, I hadn't been doing much in theater, about which I am also passionate. With our toddlers' growing independence, however, it felt like the right time for me to return to the stage. I tried out, I got cast, and I was even the assistant director. I fell in love with the theater, the people, and the Dexter community.

Downsizing was explored with increased zeal during Damn Yankees! as we knew simplifying our lifestyle would not only reduce expenses, give us an improved sense of security, and more family-time; it would free us all to discover and pursue our creative endeavors.

House shopping was pretty easy. The moment we pulled into the driveway of this house for our first showing, I had a visceral response: a soothing, calm feeling came over my body and heart, and I thought, " I am home."

Is it because I grew up on Second Avenue as a child? Is it because the house was built in the 1960s (as was I)? Is it because my father was a computer genius, my mother was a homemaker, and both had a passion for theater? So many similarities to my earliest years may help explain my immediate connection to the place.

Fast forward past selling a big house in Ann Arbor, buying our cozy tri-level in Dexter, moving a family of four, oh! I also directed a show this winter (The Sound of Music in Saline), and whew! Here we are!

WE LOVE DEXTER! Every single person we've met has been open, friendly, laid-back, helpful, gracious, and welcoming. The sense of community here is remarkable, and we are thrilled to join in.

So, thank you, dear community friends, for your open arms, open hearts, and a terrific house for playing games, t-ball, dollies, forts, and cards; for cooking vegetarian meals; for walking right out the front door to all of the wonderful treats downtown Dexter has to offer: The Encore, Dexter Daze, parks, gazebos, unique shops, and of course, The Dairy Queen.

See you sometime in person! I'll be the mom with two beautiful children, a peaceful husband, and a huge smile on my face.