Last days

I have to apologize. These last couple weeks have been crazy busy - not necessarily in a good way - and I didn't have the time I thought I would have to write about our great adventures of the last few months.  Several people have been pushing me for a blog update (I kinda didn't think anyone thought it was that important), so here I am, in my almost-empty house, sitting on the floor in what is left in the living room (some baby stuff, the air conditioner, the vacuum cleaner, a lamp, and the cooler the laptop is sitting on... not to mention a whole lot of dust, some residual cat hair, the box that needs to go back to Comcast, and a box of wrapping paper I'm donating to my sister).


That says a lot about what just happened. Yesterday was a frantic "organized chaos."  I was stressed out from the moment I got up. I'm not a fan of getting the moving started mid-morning. I'd rather pick the truck up the night before, start loading at 7:00 am, and have the whole day to figure the rest out. What happened, however, went nothing like that. 


Scott had planned on picking his brother up at Mamasan's house, they'd go pick up the truck and trailer, drop the trailer back off at Mamasan's, load up all the stuff in our storage unit, then head to our house by 10:00/10:30 where our other burly man-friends would be waiting for them. 


That plan was immediately thwarted when his brother knocked on our door at 8:40 when Scott was in the shower - bringing a gift offering of donuts. You'd think this would be good - and it was.... (Yea, for brother arriving first, and yea, for donuts!) But it was probably just the first sign of things to go as "unplanned" for the day.


Second, I was just about to send an email to our other burly man-friends to tell them when to show up... But a second knock at the door, followed by a doorbell ring at around 9:15 changed that plan.  It was Dale - another pleasant surprise. (And we totally called it. There's just a certain knock and ring that says, "Buddy the Elf." We were right.)


Third, our truck was "guaranteed" by 9:00 am. So, when the boys arrived at 9:40 or so, we figured it would be a go. But it was a no-go. The truck was not there. They were told 20 minutes, so they went over to the Original Pancake House for coffee (and most likely breakfast) to wait. See? Not all bad. The OPH has the best coffee in town.


Meanwhile, Jeff had let me know that Adriane (wife of brother Jeff) was planning on hitching a ride over with Jeremy (the other burly man-friend) around 11:00.  When I got the call that the truck was late, I figured that they would also let Adriane know. That was not the case. The doorbell rang at 10:00, and in walked Adriane, Jeremy, Bella and Brayden.


**sigh**


Normally this would be a joyous occasion. I love Bella and Brayden to pieces. They're my Picklebean's best-est friends. However, the Picklebean was at Gramma's for one last sleepover (from the night before) and she was planning on keeping him all day to keep him out of the way while we were moving. Totally not a problem to have the kids here. Bella is old enough to stay out of the way and be optimistically encouraging, but Brayden just turned 2 and I was concerned for his safety in a house stacked with boxes and busy people.


As we were figuring this all out, I looked at the clock. It was 10:14. Scott had gone the day before to pick up my contacts, but was told that I needed to come in for a quick fitting since they were a new kind, and made an appointment for 10:00. Obviously, I was late. I forgot all about it. Jeremy took the kids back to his place with the hopes that his mom would come watch them for a few hours while he helped move, and Adriane, Eden and I took off to the eye doctor.


Then, we hit unexpected road construction. Another delay.


Then, I got a text from Scott an hour later that the truck still wasn't there.


Well, I picked up my contacts and got to visit with my trusty eye doctor and friend (and Bible Studier), followed by a nice hug. We piled back in the car and headed home (following a different route to avoid the road construction). We got back home; still no sign of the boys.


What to do? We decided to start scrubbing bathrooms. Adriane tackled one, and I tackled the other. We finally got word that the truck had arrived, and they were on their way to Mamasan's to drop off the trailer....


I called Jeremy to let him know they'd be at our house by noon.


By NOON!!!!!!  


So the rest of the day was pretty much the same. What would normally take 2 - 3 hours of packing the truck, took more like 4 or 5. See, we have a lot of large and heavy furniture. I gotta hand it to the four men. They worked their tails off and packed that truck like sardines in a Tetris competition. Our stuff ain't movin'. I was very skeptical seeing all our stuff in the driveway, boxes stacked the ceiling of the truck that everything would actually fit. But, the geniuses of the men proved me wrong. I asked Jeremy (former professional mover) if our stuff would fit, and he kept assuring me that it would.... Although at one point mid-afternoon he was less enthusiastic about that answer, but was still pretty sure. 


With all the delays, we decided that instead of rushing to clean the house, pack the cars, take care of a few last minute details and errands, that it would just be better to stay an extra day. Once we made that decision (and I changed all the hotel reservations, contacted our realtor and our friends in CO who planned on helping us move on Sunday of our later arrival in CO), we were very relieved. It feels good to know that we have an entire day to take care of the rest and prepare for a 1300 mile journey.


I emptied the freezer and fridge and took all the food over to Michelle & Jeremy's house, and Mamasan. All that's left is the stuff we'll take with us on our trip - stuff for sandwiches, snacks, cereal and a bunch of frozen breast milk. (Hey, baby has to eat, too, ya know!)


It was an odd feeling walking into the empty house last night. Minus all the random bits and pieces spewed here and there, I was reminded of our first viewing of this house.... What we talked about. The rooms we walked through. Where we sat when we talked about buying it. Where we laid on the floor to see where our bed would go. Where I stood when we contacted our mortgage broker. 


There are so many wonderful memories in this home. Even now as I type, my Picklebean is running around the empty house, happy as can be (as always) and excited for our move to Colorado. (He's bringing me the cereal. I think this is a hint of some sort....)


Before Dale left, he prayed for Scott and I, our family, our trip, the sale of our home, and the future. Dale and Susan have been such good friends to us. I can't tell you how much I love and appreciate them. Say what you want about my friend Dale - Ned Flanders look alike, Buddy the Elf incarnate - he is the most optimistic, joyfully happy, loyal, honest and caring person I know. One of the things that I loved about working with him is that on days I was feeling low, unappreciated, under-valued and just generally unhappy, I would go visit Dale in his office. Within seconds of my arrival, I would have a smile on my face. He just exudes joy out of every pore of his body. It's contagious. I've only seen him truly sad once - when his father passed away. Even in the midst of pain and sorrow, he would smile the most genuine smile. There is nothing fake or contrived or forced about his joyful attitude. It's just who he is. It's wonderful. (He would attribute that to Jesus and I think he's right. It certainly is a reflection of Jesus!)  And I'm grateful for him and his lovely bride for playing an important role in our lives. Friends, prayer partners, Bible Study co-leaders, and our brother and sister in Christ. We love you two.


Mamasan just called and asked if we needed anything. She's going to swing by with some eggs and bacon (protein - what???) and help us clean the house.  My dear friend (and ex-nextdoor neighbor) Katie is coming over this morning to see us one more time. Our friend Allison called a couple of days ago to see us off. I spent my Tuesday this week with Michelle getting manicures and pedicures, then we all went to her house for dinner and fun (and maybe a few drinks, **clearing of throat**). I ran into Cindy and Dave at TJ Maxx (of all places) where I was able to give Cindy another big hug.  Wes prayed for Scott when he went to pick up my contacts.  We were able to have one last dinner with our Bible Study group 2 weeks ago.  My sister came over last night to hold the baby, and she'll be back tonight to give the Picklebean another hug (and most likely cry her eyes out). And we've spent just about every day with Jeff, Adriane and Mamasan....


I couldn't think of people I'd rather be spending time with or talking to during our last days here in Oregon. These were the people who stuck by us during these last lonely 18 months. I can't thank you all enough. I just so appreciate your willingness to give us room to mourn and express our frustration without judgment or condemnation, your encouragement and prayers as we were making difficult decisions, and your shared joy and celebration as God unfolded His plan before our eyes. Good stuff. I'm going to miss you all tremendously. But I'm hopeful that you'll come visit us in Colorado. :-) You're always welcome.


So... this will most likely be my last entry for a little while. We hit the road at the crack of dawn tomorrow, have three days of driving with two little ones ahead of us, and arriving at our new home on Monday afternoon, followed by a ton of unpacking and settling in. I start my new job on July 1st, and the Picklebean turns three on July 4th (which of course will be a massive celebration for a number of reasons).... If I can squeeze in some time to update, I will. It may be a one or two liner... 


PS - if you know of anyone looking for a cute house in Salem, my house is still available! We'll leave it on the market through the summer. If we don't get a buyer, we'll get renters. We are praying for the former.




On the road again....
I just can't wait to get on the road again....