On the move

This is a picture of our truck. It is slap full of everything we own and headed to GA! Whew! What a crazy few days.

The packers had to come back on Friday morning to finish up. The truck with 4 dudes arrived at like 7:30 Friday morning, and they were off and running. They were all really nice and patient with me (I'm not used to be the one "in charge," that is usually David) and the kids who wanted to help a lot. I had just gotten back from picking up pizzas for their lunch when I heard them talking and laughing. I looked up and there goes Jessa up with ramp carrying one of their chairs from their play table. I went running out there to get her off the truck and she was so proud because she was "helping the movers load the truck!"

The kids were such troopers throughout the whole process. I was a little worried that when they came home from school on Thursday that they would be upset. I mean, they left in the morning and everything was normal. They came home and their rooms were completely packed. But they were cool. They loved the boxes and crazy empty stuff.

I had big plans of cleaning a room as they emptied it. Most moves we have done (this was our 8th, can you believe it? 8 in 10 years!), the movers put all the boxes, furniture, and everything in the driveway and then put it on the truck. It really is like putting together a heavy, expensive jigsaw puzzle. This time, they did not do that. So, I was unable to really clean anything until they were gone. This made for a stressful evening. The kids were so TIRED (Spencer missed his nap because there was nowhere to sleep) and BORED. There were no more TVs, radios, or toys. They were fighting over random things like "I had the mop first!" or "I want to sweep the garage by myself!" So I finally said, let's go to the hotel! Which meant that I would then have to come back to the house the next morning to finish, but at that point, I was so tired that I was cool with that.

First we went to the Marble Slab Creamery, or as the kids call it: "the ice cream shop" for supper. Yes, that's right, we all ate ice cream for supper! When we are in the middle of something as stressful as a move, we all need to do fun things, right? So we went on post to transient lodging for military people in the midst of a move. We thought it was a hotel room. BUT it was a house! This was an adventure because I knew where the hotel was, but not the transient houses. It was DARK. I had some trouble and Jessa was in the back saying, "Alright, I think we are going in circles!" It was old housing, like apartments. We had our own carport, 2 bedrooms, a kitchen, a balcony, a washer and dryer. . . If I had known all of this, we would have been staying there for days. We did have to pay a $100 non-refundable pet deposit, but the apartment was only $50, so I was ok with that! Both kids wanted to live there! Jessa said, "I like this house better than our boring old empty house!"

I got up at 5:30 Saturday morning and headed to the house to finish cleaning. David is always the one left behind to clean and call all the utilities. I always knew he worked hard, but now I have a whole new respect for him!! At 10, I was finished and headed to pick everyone up at the hotel. Momma stayed with them so that I could work faster AND they could sleep. By 11:30, we were leaving Ft. Polk.

After 12 hours in the car, at 12:30 AM, we were at Momma's in Atlanta. I swear, I almost did not make it. I was so tired. Mom was hitting me in the arm periodically to wake me up. Luckily, the roads were almost empty by the time I hit 285, so I was not too dangerous. And the little troopers watched their new Disney movies Daddy sent most of the way. We all slept until after 11 this morning! We are all so glad to be at "May's" with familiar things and a house that acutually has furniture. The kids are so much more relaxed. May's house is always sort of a constant in all of our lives. I keep telling her she can never move since we are always having to.

So Phase 1 is complete. I could not have done it without so much help from our friends Roy and Peggy, Mimi and Poppy, Daddy, and most especially Momma. I am so blessed and lucky to have so many people who are willing to pitch in and help a poor Army wife in need! Our things will be in storage in Hinesville until I sign for our new quarters on post at Ft. Stewart on October 30. Fingers crossed the house sells before then. Someone looked at it Thursday during the packing (what a joke! they could not even walk, much less see anything) and then someone else looked Saturday after we left. They seemed interested. . . I can hope, right? But in the meantime, I don't think I have mentioned this before, but we are trying to sell our house, so if you know anyone who is interested, let me know!! Ha!