We Moved!

Moving just sucks. But it had to be done. So friends helped us acquire LOTS of boxes and packing material- 

And our dining room became command central. It was such a blessing to us that we didn't have to buy even one single box.

Move in day was originally July 15. Then our landlords told us they would be back July 7- so we needed to get in faster for sure. The current tenants were awesome and rearranged their move to allow us to get in June 30. We were even able to start on July 29 by filling the garage.

So on Friday July 29 (a SUPER hot, humid, swampy like day- which would continue ALL weekend long) we picked Tate up from his week away at summer camp at 2pm, ran home so he could shower and friends showed up at 3 to help us begin the move! Poor Tate.

Our crew that afternoon were my friends Andrea S, Tiffany (and her 4 kids age 16 to 6- and that 6 year old was our rockstar), and Andrea M and her 2 kids. Dreamteam! We had 5 cars and made 2 giant trips- thank goodness the new house is only 4.8 miles away.

Saturday morning we got up at 5am for a swim meet (thankfully it was a home meet) and afterwards, Brian went to pick up this bad boy- 

I thought it was a little overkill- but boy did we use every inch of that truck several times! Here is a picture of it in front of our new house-

People came out of the woodwork to help us on Saturday- it was like every time I came outside, there was another family there! Neighbors- new and old, swim team friends, church friends, school friends, military friends- they just kept showing up. I was overwhelmed with emotion at time because we seriously had no idea who would help us... because moving sucks! And we have zero family here.

And Sunday people showed up to help us again!

Then on Monday we hired 2 movers to lug the big heavy/awkward stuff- we didn't want our precious friends to have any career ending injuries from helping us!

It was an exhausting few days, but it got done and we had so great laughs along the way! Stephanie and Jose drove through the neighborhood like this-

And Jose and Brian decided to try to move the box like Christine and I row a canoe- 

They even found the paddle we forgot to bring along!

This was Monday. When the movers were there and Verizon was there setting up internet. We hadn't even slept there yet and we had internet! All was going grand...

until on Wednesday we tried to fry an egg for breakfast and realized we had no gas. Gas? What?!? Oops. That was not on my radar to set up when I switched all the other utilities over. So Brian and I took cold showers until the following Monday when the gas company could come, and the kids showered at the pool after practice!

Because we moved in 2 weeks early, the landlord had zero time to do anything that needed to be down before we moved in- he was literally here fixing some things while friends were carrying in boxes. What desperately needed attention was our jungle like yard. We even had ivy growing in through a basement window- 

And boxes would barely fit down our sidewalk because everything was so overgrown in the yard-

Oh boxes. They wanted to be the death of me. BUT- thankfully, we moved in during a few dry- albeit hot- days. So as we unpacked, the kids piled them up on the lawn. I would snap a pic and post online and people came every single time for free boxes. I loved that we didn't have to trash any of them- and that people out there weren't having to spend money on darn boxes.

It seemed that this to-do list for the Cantilever (old) house was never ending. We took good care of it and it was in great shape, but the little fixes were many. It felt like we were getting the house ready to put on the market for sale.

But when the time came, we turned that house over in perfect condition- and even left a welcome home gift basket for the landlords! And boy did I have a good cry when I walked out of there...

We loved living there. It was a beautiful home with a fun backyard that was often filled with kids laughter while jumping on the trampoline, zip lining or just running around with sticks. The sleepovers in our basement were endless and our guest room seemed to always be full- as was our dining room table. We lived on a cul de sac that had 16 kids on it and I could see the bus stop from my window- it was dreamy for this stay at home mom. But there were some monumental things that happened in that house that didn't feel so dreamy. Like standing in the front room on the phone when I found out my had cancer again. Like being in my closet feeling paralyzed because I just couldn't pack another suitcase to go be with her when her life was ending. Like laying on the couch for days after she died just sobbing. All 151 days of Brian's deployment to Iraq in 2015, wondering how the heck I was going to get through 5 months of being solo. And every single one of Brian's 212 day deployment to Kuwait last year, plus the very dark days that followed upon his return. And finding out in March that his career was at a stalemate, thinking for 3 painful weeks that we wouldn't be going overseas, but that we would remain in Virginia for additional years.

Phew.

So, saying goodbye to this house was bittersweet. We were also leaving it with VERY different kids- when we moved in, Tate had just finished 2nd grade and Macy had just graduated from preschool. Now we move out with Macy going into 4th grade and Tate a 7th grade middle schooler!

Monday night when all was said and done (our at least moved, as we still needed to get Cantilever all polished up to turn in the keys on Tuesday afternoon), I loved sitting on the couch in our new house next to Brian while watching the news together and seeing our old girls all snuggled up in their beds-

And this too- having them rest assured in their new beds in our room that we didn't forget them and they came along with us for yet another new house!

We haven't seen much of Macy since we moved in... with her 2 besties in the neighborhood and a few other bonus girl friends here too, she is often gone. "Bye mom, I'm going to the pool with so-and-so, Be back when it closes at 8pm."

It's amazing what a new front mat and some fresh flowers can do to make it feel like home-