First week in South Carolina :)

So I've officially been here a week. So far, I love it. I cant find anything to complain about besides missing my family and friends. But, that's what planes are for right? :)
The internet got hooked up yesterday and I couldnt be happier, I lagged on updating this blog, despite my moms request (sorry mom), but im glad I waited...now I have so much to share......

So I left off in Tennessee...eh hem...loved it!
The next state we went through was Georgia. Although it was dark, the city lights in Atlanta reminded me a lot of  downtown LA. We stopped in a city named Dallas. Omar's aunt lives there. It was a small city close to Marrieta and about 4 1/2 hours from Aiken. It was good for him to see his family, they stayed up and waited for us to stop by. We both felt bad because it was late, 12:30a eastern time, but his aunt really wanted to see him so we made the detour stop anyway. I was tempted to just stay the night there at his aunts but we were so close to South Carolina and we wanted to keep going. All I kept thinking was a few more hours.... a few more hours.... So we said our goodbyes and promised to come back soon to visit. She will hold us to that promise im sure!
We left his aunts at about 1:45a, we were all exhausted. Marcy knocked out and I kept drifting in and out of sleep. I was trying to stay up and talk to Omar as he drove so he wouldn't be the only person awake, but the damn sleep monster was winning! lol
We finally get to Augusta, Ga. Stopped for gas at a Circle K, our last gas stop. Its 5:15a, 2,058 miles driven, Gas spent: $802.
We were almost there, I couldnt wait! I was awake now so I drove from Augusta to Aiken.  As much as I love Cali, the weather there, the buildings, beaches and fun, I instantly fell in love with Aiken's main street. It seriously looked like Main Street at Disneyland, there was even music playing and birds chirping. A great welcome to Aiken.

It was almost 6:00a est and my excitement overrode my body's need for sleep.
The tree lined streets that led us to our new house were awesome.

The house is in a area called College Acres, every house here has a huge yard with a lot of trees. My dad left a key under the mat for us and when we walked in, there was a cute lil note that said  "Welcome to your new home" Love Dad, Kathy and Dylan (my lil brother), It was very thoughtful and we felt welcome right away.   (I actually framed that note and hung it in the kitchen)
So after we explore the inside of the house, we head out to the backyard. There is a deck off the house that leads to our own private forest. Its amazing. Walking out to chirping birds at dawn was something ive never done before. I could feel and smell how clean the air was.

Behind us is a huge house that has horses in the yard. Because there isnt big gates marking the property lines, it seems like our yard went on forever.

Heres a shot of one of the horses that are practically in our yard.

Even though we haven't had a good nights sleep in a few days, the excitement of actually being here wound us up. Marcy was even wide awake. I text my Dad to let him know that we were there and he said he would come by in the morning to see us. We all went to sleep for a few hours and my Dad came over around noon. We got to meet his new wife Kathy, shes very nice, and see him and Dylan whom we haven't seen in a few years.

After we caught up, we went to a lil restaurant down the road called Maria's. It was good, and refreshing to see people speaking spanish! lol For the rest of Sat we hung out and Sun my dad came over again and we went to eat together. Our first few days were kind of a blur to me. I think the mix of exhaustion, excitement and nervousness clouded my days.

Me and Omar spent the rest of our first week here driving around town and exploring. We wanted to get used to the streets and find out where everything is. Its crazy, where we lived in Sylmar, its a rural community. There wasn't a lot of big stores near us, everything was pretty much mom & pop stores. I was expecting Aiken to be the same....man was I wrong! Right down the road from us is everything! seriously every store you would ever need...Target, Lowe's, WalMart, Home Depot, Ross, TJ Maxx, a mall, more restaurants than I've ever seen in one area and so much more. Its perfect here! We get the best of both worlds, nature and the convenience of shopping. I thought we would have trouble finding jobs but everywhere we go I see now hiring signs. That was one thing that worried me, jobs!
All i know is this:I DO NOT WANT TO WORK IN AN OFFICE SETTING EVER AGAIN!!
I figured, why am I going to move my whole life clear across the country and still do the same crap I was doing before. I want a completely new life; new occupation, new relationship and new way of living. I have another chance at making a path for my future that will make me happy and the only thing that would hold me back now is ME.
**Warning** The following is a touchy subject:
I know some of you are quite aware of me and Omars separation. We will be legally divorced on July 8th 2011 and even though its still a tough situation for me, I do know that I still love him.Seems like a very grim topic to be blogging about but I figured what are blogs for? Im seeing this as my virtual journal for all who cares to see, if im not being honest with myself, than how can I say I want a fresh new start?
My situation with Omar may seem confusing to my family and friends, I know you might think....what the hell is she doing? Hell, its still confusing to me, but I knew deep down inside I did not want to come out here without him. This was something we always talked about doing together... moving away, living a more relaxed lifestyle, starting a family....we never had the opportunity to do so before.
Then, when I felt my life literally fell apart piece by piece, my Dad brings this offer to me... come to SC and I will help you establish a new life here. It felt like everything fell into place when I finally decided...hey, I really want to do this!
At the time I made up my mind to move, me and Omar were not living together, we werent even together, together. Ok, if im going to be honest, we had literally just started talking to each other again.
I swear, as soon as I told him I was seriously moving, I saw a change in him.... I felt a change in me! I was so sure I was 100% done with trying to mend anything with him, but then, it just changed and I cant really explain it but I felt like something was guiding me, step by step to make this move....with him.
I know Omar may get upset or hurt that Im writing about this for all to see but Im not ashamed. Trust me, I was really embarrassed to tell anyone that we weren't together anymore, embarrassed to be divorced, embarrassed for my family and friends to find out, but im not anymore.
Hey, life happens, its shitty sometimes and we make mistakes, but its life. We are allowed to fall and get back up again, thats the point right?? I dont care if anyone judges me or has any opinions because Im doing me, and from this point on, Im living for me and my happiness.

The title to my blog "The Long Road Ahead" means way more than my road trip to get here. Its literally the long road I need to travel to get to the new me. Im excited and I cant wait to get there.
I wake up every morning here and go outside to make sure its real. I feel like Im on vacation and soon I'll have to go back to my old life, like its waiting for me to see it through. I hope this feeling lasts, I want everyday to feel like a vaca away from the old me. :)