“Are You Going to Stay in NYC?!”

The most-asked question since we first shared that we’re expecting a baby this fall has been “are you going to stay in New York City?!” And we of course completely understand why— in so many instances having a baby is the number one catalyst for a move out to the burbs. 

And believe me, we’ve thought about and gone through a number of scenarios. New York City is one of the fastest-paced, loudest, busiest cities in the world. How could we have our first, precious baby girl here?! We seriously considered moving to Hoboken, the suburbs in the tri-state area, and even other states, butttt we kept coming back to where we live now, in the Upper East Side.

Yes, NYC is an incredibly bustling city. But we’ve managed to find a little pocket of peace in our neighborhood (the little restaurants, the beautiful brownstone-lined streets, the proximity to Central Park, and the sweet families who live here are just everything!). And we just couldn’t seem to ignore all of the reasons this city makes us so happy in this season of our lives. Johnny’s job (which he loves!) is a 15 minute Subway away, and all of our siblings and so many of our best friends live here. 

We’ve seen Johnny’s brother and his wife raise our adorable nephew here so far (though they’re sadly moving out of state this fall!), as well as our best friends raise her darling little girl here too. And through their experiences we’ve realized all of the benefits to having a baby in NYC. 

The healthcare is world-class, the ease of access to everything we could need is right outside our door (in most cases a short walk away!), and most importantly of all, our baby girl could be born in the city where the majority of our community and dearest friends are ready to welcome her with so, so much love! She’s already so incredibly beloved. 

How often do you get the chance to raise your first baby only a few minutes away from everyone who loves them most?! The only thing this city is missing is our parents. BUT it’s incredibly easy to fly in and out of NYC, so our parents can visit at a moment’s notice. And we *may* have an extra bedroom for them to come stay with us too. 😉 

The Decision to Move & The Apartment Search

So, about a month ago we decided we wanted to move before Thumbelina arrived and go all in on looking for a new apartment on the Upper East Side. We love our apartment building more than anywhere else we’ve ever lived (it’s been the biggest blessing ever), but they sadly don’t have any bigger units coming available in the next few months, and we decided we need more square footage asap. Can we talk about the size of strollers these days?! 😅 

Though it is an incredibly expensive and competitive rental market right now (with it being the start of summer and also the FARE Act having just gone into effect), we are so thrilled to share that we found an absolute unicorn of an apartment, only a few blocks away from where we live now. 

We hired the same broker who found us our current apartment five years ago, Clarence Onyiriuka, and absolutely credit him for being so on top of it with this most recent apartment search too. Long story short, but we identified apartment buildings that we loved and stayed extremely on top of what was becoming available, and applied to our new apartment within five hours of it being on the market (and it already had two applications in for it!!). We signed the lease no more than 24 hours later. Clarence’s diligence and sense of urgency was key in making this happen. I was texting him at all hours of the day for weeks… He truly earned every cent of the broker’s fee we paid him 😂.

Another shoutout belongs to my accountants at Countless. Because I’m self-employed, proving my income and financial history can be a tad trickier than if I had a traditional job. And NYC apartment applications are notoriously insane (I joked that they’d ask for our first born if we had had her by now😅). Thanks to Countless, I was able to gather all of my financials (as well as Johnny’s since they also file our joint tax return each year) within a day and we were approved instantly. If you’re self-employed, or have ever applied for an apartment, you know how big of a deal that is! Also, btw Johnny was in South Dakota for a work meeting when this all was going down. 😅 

The New Apartment + What’s Next

But at the end of the day, this apartment that we’re moving into is a gift from God (though there’s nothing free about this gift 😂). I gave Clarence a price range and asked him to find us a three bedroom with two full baths, ample closet and storage space, a balcony, natural light (south facing… am I insane yet?!), in a full-service amenities building with a doorman and package room… and bonus points for herringbone floors 😉. And well, we got it. I walked in the apartment and pretty much immediately burst into tears upon seeing it. It checked every single box on my insane wishlist. 

We move this week, and despite how excited we are, the nerves are starting to set in about leaving our cozy spot that we love so much. Our current apartment has been our home through our biggest life moments and memories as a couple. We moved into it during the fall of 2020, rode out the rest of Covid in the apartment, got engaged in 2021, married in 2023, came back from our honeymoon to a flood in our apartment (such a dose of reality post-honeymoon and so funny to look back on!), and hosted countless dinner parties, Masters Sunday viewings, and of course our Christmas parties here too. There have been 50 friends plus bartenders in our apartment, and truly too many laughs and bottles of wine to count. It’s been nothing but a joy-filled space, and such a true reflection of our relationship as a couple so far. 

I’m nervous that this next spot will feel the same, and am praying that it will be the cozy, comfortable, safe, and happy home that we envision bringing our baby girl back to. We’ve gotten so close with the incredible people who work in our current building, and are already planning lots of future visits. Luckily, we are only moving a few blocks away. And goodness knows that I’ll be picking up packages there for years to come, I’m sure. 😂 

But, I know that God has our back and that this is the right move (literally) for our little family. I actually LOVE the process of a move and cannot wait to get in there and start nesting. I’ve never decorated a balcony or a nursery before… !! And cannot imagine anything more fun to keep me busy before baby girl takes over our world come October. 

In the meantime, I’m taking any tips for moving (six months pregnant mid-summer lol lol) and making a new place feel like a home. Thank you all for being here in this exciting transition period of our lives!

p.s. It’s apartment C 😭