Here's a brief (yeah right -- you know me too well!) summary of what the last week of our lives has looked like......
Friday 9th December -- we sign a million papers (I only had to sign half) and the very thoughtful mother of the owner brings the keys to the closing so we can start moving in whenever we want to!!! So after going home and having a quick dinner, we take our first load of items over to the new house!
Saturday 10th December -- we take over another load in the morning, then head over to Meijer (having their super sale) and buy a vacuum cleaner and a couple of throw rugs for the hardwood floors and some other random household cleaning items. Then to Lowe's for some firewood -- the fake logs you just light and leave. We go to Sams club with Dad and back to the house with another load of things. Steph & Adam and Mom & Dad come over around 7ish -- before they come, we light one of the logs and sit together in front of the fire (very romantic!). This is the first time Adam & Steph have been to the house, and only the second time Mom and Dad have been -- so they all get the grand tour. We have a blast with Steph & Adam (Adelyn is so cute! We discover she adores dried mango!) and Mom & Dad. Our first entertaining session is a success even though we're in "minimalist" stage at this point... sitting on outdoor furniture in the living room, with just pop to drink and candles lit... cozy mood! The worst part was having to say goodnight to them in our new home, and then having to leave it to come back and sleep in our beds! (The new bed arrives on Tuesday the 13th and we don't officially move in until the 19th).
Sunday 11th December -- We head off to Sunday School (tired b/c of the late night) and after church we meet up with the Pastor and 2 deacons about membership. They mention sending a letter of thanks to Wheelock Heath and I ask them why would they want to start Pastor Danny crying all over again?? He's only just now started to sniffle instead of sob! (Just for the record, Danny, we miss you as much as you miss us!!!! And when are you going to send me some sermons on mp3!!????) After that, we head out into the countryside to find Kathy & Larry's house for a lovely British Sunday lunch -- they're from our church and are an international couple like us only she's British and he's American. We are slowly adopting them. (not in the legal sense so don't anyone send any comments or emails!! -- long story) After that we head straight back to church for the final Managing your Finances evening bible study and when that finishes we run to Wendy's for a quick burger (poor Andy's tummy was a rumblin' all through the study!!!!) and then scoot to the new house to meet Steph & Adam and John & Tracy there. Light another log (I am really getting spoiled by those things!!) and have great conversation (once I've given John & Tracy the official tour). A wonderful time was had by all (again still in the minimalist stage) and another late night... again the weirdness of having to leave your own home after entertaining guests there.
Monday 11th December -- Mostly running around with errands etc. and then staying at Mom & Dad's organizing things. Mom and I go to Oakland Nursery for her to buy a live wreath to hang over their fireplace and I see a wonderful artificial tree that is 8 feet tall and doesn't look fake and is 50% off!!!!
Tuesday 12th December -- I call to find out the delivery time for the bed and they tell me 10:30 - 12, so I swing round to Andy's workplace to drop him off some coffee and the cds he needed and then I scoot over to Oakland to pick up the tree -- it is so amazing... it comes in three pieces, top piece is just like a lil mini tree, but the other two pieces, when you lift them up and turn them upside down, it is like closing an umbrella -- they are all hinged and all the branches immediately fold up near to the base!!! Mom has graciously agreed to loan us their christmas lights and ornaments (about 40% are mine due to her tradition of giving me an ornament each year) and she brings them over after her haircut. We put the lights and ornaments on the tree and it looks AMAZING! At about 3:30 in the afternoon I phone to find out about our things in storage (when they might be delivered -- the woman was meant to call me back on Friday with a date) and am told it will be tomorrow (Wednesday!) and that she'll call back with a time. She does -- between 8 and 10 am! WOW! So plans change and we head back to Mom & Dad's house so I can get ready to go to the last "Believing God" bible study. This is a sad thing... because I have really been impacted by this study. After the study is over, I meet Andy at the new house and we tinker a bit putting a couple more things away that I picked up at Target.
Wednesday 14th December -- I am at the house at 7:45, tidying up the countertops (which had been covered in items we'd brought over and hadn't figured out where they'll go yet). No sign of the guy at 8:15 so I continue to tidy until about 8:45 and sit down and finish writing a letter and make some lists. Still no sign at 9:45 and I begin to wonder... at 10 I call to find out if perhaps he might have called Mom & Dad's number and nobody answered so therefore he isn't coming? No, the lady assures me he is in transit to my house and will have him call me. He does, and he is very happy and sweet on the phone. I immediately notice a difference between him and other movers I've encountered. When he arrives he continues being considerate and as he moves the boxes he handles them extremely carefully, like handling a baby or something! I am impressed. When the bin-men's truck comes up the road, he stops what he is doing and moves our two bins out to behind the truck so they can easily reach them. I am dumbstruck. What a thoughtful thing to do! As it turned out, it was the recycling truck, so he moved them back, but again I was struck by how considerate he is. We start to have a conversation as he brings each load of boxes in. I am doing the inventory part, checking off the box numbers as he brings them inside. When he finishes, I ask him to open the things that are most likely to have been damaged... the table & chairs... my gallery of cross-stitched pictures (my ladies!). We joke about it being like Christmas as he opens the table. When he opens my ladies, he is gob-smacked. He takes several minutes looking at each one and falls in love with the Angel of Love and Winter Queen. He calls me an artiste! As he drives off, I am just amazed and still impressed by his professional attitude, his pride in his work and his gentleness with the boxes (even though they weigh a TON). A make a mental note to remember his name -- Brandon Cloud -- because he says he moves pianos. We may need him in the future! After the truck is gone it occurs to me he said Have a Blessed Day instead of nice day -- and I wish I'd asked him if he's a Christian. I would bet he is. Fruits of the Spirit in evidence there. Big style. I spend the rest of the day opening boxes (I now have about 12 cuts on my hands) and putting things away in the kitchen. Andy comes home from work a bit early (didn't get a break at lunch -- ate while he worked) and he joins in -- we get about a third of the boxes open and emptied.
That's my plan for today too so I'd better end this long missive (I did warn you it would be long!) and head over to the new place.
Posted by kristen at December 15, 2005 12:54 PM*mutters under breath*.... congratulations... *mutters quietly*