“Being a part of the NFL nearly guarantees at least one move.  From the moment a player is drafted or signed, the chances that they get to play in their hometown are slim to none.  With that comes an adventure that is well worth it, but the hard work to get situated in all the facets of life in that new city can be daunting.  When a player is young, maybe it’s just themselves or them and their spouse.  After that rookie contract (or even before) a move is often likely and from there on out, there can be several.  During that time the years pass and often that player now has a spouse, kids, pets and more. For Nick and I, we’ve done 7 major moves in just 11 years to completely brand new cities in different areas of the country. PHI—>STL—>KC—>PHI—>JAX—>CHI—>INDY. Within each of those years there was also moves to California and back for the offseason and 3 kids added to the mix! They say moving is one of the four major stressors in one’s life. Without the proper efficiency and resources, this type of life for 11 years can make for chaos. The family is required not only to orchestrate their actual move, but to figure out where to live, to rent or buy, what schools for the kids, how to find babysitters or nannies if needed, a local church if desired, doctors, pediatricians, and more. Sometimes we’ve even moved in the middle of a pregnancy where finding the right doctor for delivery is actually rushed depending on the due date of the baby. Nonetheless, the day to day things like where to grocery shop, work-out, find the best parks for dogs or kids and more. A lot of this usually falls on the wife as the husband is gearing up for training camp or even already in training camp or spring practices. Their focus has to be 100% on football and they cannot give it there all if they come home to another full-time job of figuring out all these logistics. Over the years and the 7 moves, Nick and I sort of built a well oiled system. Each move we became a little bit more efficient. Going about finding all of the nuances in every city came with tons and tons of conversation, connections, research, and more. A concise and central location to find all of these necessities would be unbelievably helpful for families. It would save time, money, and most importantly it would ease the stress that families face when presented with a transition, in turn making the family perform well in all areas. Even better, the player would have peace of mind going to work knowing he can put all focus on where he’s at. He would know his family is taken care of and that they have an efficient system to get settled. It truly is a system and it’s difficult, but rewarding when you finally feel at home. Many would tell me just to rent, don’t fully unpack, you’ll only be here for a bit, and it’s not “home.” I always did my absolutely best to make it home because otherwise, for the last 11 years, we’d never feel “at home.” That was not how we preferred to live. However, as the NFL goes, often we’d get settled and the next move would come, proving the importance of a well oiled machine, ready for the next adventure!”