Okay, so, I don't even know where to start. I'm sitting here in our new house, enjoying the cool night air carrying ocean breezes as well as marine layer. It's gorgeous here! I have missed San Diego. It's a relief to finally be here. The last couple of days in Utah were a mad scramble to tie up loose ends with utilities, packing, condo, etc. It took my in-laws, Grandma and Grandpa Bagel, coming to the rescue to get everything under control and moving in the right direction. I totally thought I was on top of things when I started packing weeks in advance of our move. I thought most everything we had was in boxes when a bunch of wonderful men (you know who you are, and thank you!) came to help get the huge furniture to the big moving truck. But when I got home from the airport with Grandma and Grandpa Bagel, I was greeted with rooms full of odds and ends and knick knacks. It was ridiculous. And there I was telling Grandma and Grandpa Bagel how proud of us they would be for getting most everything done. :) Can you say embarrassing?! But, they were wonderful, as usual. They rolled up their sleeves and took control of the situation. I just wanted to sit down and give up. It was so overwhelming considering everything I had already done! And this is just the packing that we're talking about. Don't forget that we had to clean everything still. Luckily, Bugga took care of that for us as you can see in these pictures. :) And the Merry Maids were called upon to take care of anything Bugga missed.
So, with the help of Grandma Bagel's incredible spacial relation skills, we got everything packed up snugly in the Penske truck, handed the keys over to Uncle Bob and Aunt Brenda who will be managing our condo rental for us (thank you, thank you, thank you!), and left for California on August 1st. The Chief and Buddha were in the Penske truck; Bugga, Grandma Bagel, and me in the Element; and Grandpa Bagel in the Civic. We decided a while ago that we would break up our trip into two segments for the boys' sake. The first leg ended in Primm, Nevada, and oh boy am I glad that we decided to take our journey in two parts. We left our home later than we would have liked, and after about one mile, The Chief phoned from the truck to let us know the surprising and frustrating news that the truck had a governor on it at 65 MPH! I wanted to cry. We knew then and there that it was going to be a LLLOOONNNGGG trip! And we were right. We left Utah at 5:15pm MST and arrived in Primm at 12:45am PST. That's 8 and 1/2 hours of driving that normally takes us between 5 and 6 hours! It was insane. Buddha did great. He took naps every now and then. He loved riding in the yellow Penske truck with Daddy and had been talking about it every day for weeks before our departure. Bugga was a different story. He did well for the most part, but he got fed up with being in his car seat for so long. He cried off and on. A couple of times we had to just sit and listen to him scream until he fell asleep. It was rough and we're glad it's over. After spending the night in Primm, we took off the next morning bright and early, drove 5 hours, and pulled up in front of our new home.
And so, that brings us to...well, here. :) We love it! Travis and Trina and kids were so wonderful to come down from Orange County to help us move in (and boy were they a HUGE help!). We're especially grateful since it was Jessy's birthday (Happy Birthday, Jessy!) and seriously, who wants to spend their birthday helping someone else move in?! We appreciate your sacrifice, Jessy! :) Our home is so cute and so much more spacious than our former home. We have a lovely backyard and an awesome 2-car garage. We did have one little scare (well, it was big until it was resolved). When we got here and set about exploring our surroundings, we quickly discovered that there was no washer and dryer. I about had a heart attack. I was sure the Craigslist ad had said there was a washer and dryer included, but, alas, they were no where to be found. So, I called our landlord and got no answer. I remembered she was on vacation, but felt that this was urgent enough to impose. I called her again the next day and she answered (thank goodness). She apologized and said that she had forgotten that she allowed the previous tenants to sell the washer and dryer on Craigslist and get them out of the way because they had their own. She told us to just look on Craigslist and try to find a washer and dryer for $400 or under and she would reimburse us when she got back. Thankfully, we still had the Penske truck with us. The Chief found a washer and dryer being sold by a guy who was selling all his worldly possessions in order to stay alive in San Diego (poor guy...but good for us). He was selling a three-year-old Frigidaire set that was in great condition for only $350. The Chief picked it up and he, Grandma Bagel, and Grandpa Bagel hooked them up and they are now working wonderfully. HALLELUJAH! :) Our landlord, Vicki, came by the other day to check out a cracked tile and a gouged wall...moving damages from the previous tenants. They really weren't bad and we told her they didn't bother us at all, so she's going to give them their full deposit back. She said she doesn't like to keep any part of anyone's deposit (sounds good to me). :) She promptly handed me a check for $350 without even asking to see the ad or the washer and dryer. She is awesome. We love Vicki! She told us to do whatever we wanted with the house. She wants us to feel like it's our own home. We kept asking her if we could do this or that and she finally, very adamantly, ensured us that we could do whatever we want. She said we could paint a Sesame Street mural for all she cares (I told her I cared). :) She really is awesome. She didn't even require a credit check from us. We know the Lord led us to Vicki. She's amazing. We're so blessed. We love our house, we love our location, we're thrilled to be here, and everything really is falling into place. Hindsight is absolutely 20/20, I know, but looking back I can't help but feel like I wasted so much time and energy stressing out about finding a place to live, when I should have been more trusting and had more faith in the Lord. He calmly prompted The Chief that morning to check Craigslist before starting his studies for the day. The Chief found the ad with Vicki's home and I called and caught her before all the hundreds of other calls she got that day. She liked us from the start, said she felt good about us, promised us the house without a credit check, and started turning away other callers...and I could go on and on and on. We truly are blessed. Oh, and we went to our new ward on Sunday and it's equally as awesome as everything else in our new life. :) The only other Mormon at The Chief's law firm also just happens to be in our ward. How's that for a small world?! Well folks, I'm sure there's much, much more that I'm leaving out. Right now we're just trying to get all our new loose ends taken care of. We got the cars registered today and The Chief took the written exam to get his California driver's license. It's my turn tomorrow if I can find our official marriage certificate for proof that I am who I say I am. On Friday we have fumigators coming to spray for spiders (I hate spiders). We still need to set up a bank account with WaMu and unpack our last few boxes. And all that other boring stuff. After that, we'll get down to vacationing while we still have The Chief and while The Chief still has no duties. He'll start work at the end of August. I can't wait to post some pictures of all the fun we're going to have! :) As you can see, I didn't get too many pictures during the move...it was just too crazy. I'll also be posting pictures of our new house, inside and out, once I get all the finishing touches taken care of. I can't wait to show off my mother-in-law's decorating genius to you all! Thanks for reading this lovely novel I've just written. I'll try to keep it shorter in the future. Huge, huge, huge thanks to all who helped us through this summer with prayers and physical labor and babysitting (that's you, Amy). You are all wonderful and we've felt you pulling for us. And a special thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Bagel for carrying us through crunch time and beyond. You two work harder than 20 men combined. It never ceases to amaze me how much you can do in so little time! And you just keep going, and going, and going.... I hope you're resting well now. We can't wait to see you next week! The End.
So, with the help of Grandma Bagel's incredible spacial relation skills, we got everything packed up snugly in the Penske truck, handed the keys over to Uncle Bob and Aunt Brenda who will be managing our condo rental for us (thank you, thank you, thank you!), and left for California on August 1st. The Chief and Buddha were in the Penske truck; Bugga, Grandma Bagel, and me in the Element; and Grandpa Bagel in the Civic. We decided a while ago that we would break up our trip into two segments for the boys' sake. The first leg ended in Primm, Nevada, and oh boy am I glad that we decided to take our journey in two parts. We left our home later than we would have liked, and after about one mile, The Chief phoned from the truck to let us know the surprising and frustrating news that the truck had a governor on it at 65 MPH! I wanted to cry. We knew then and there that it was going to be a LLLOOONNNGGG trip! And we were right. We left Utah at 5:15pm MST and arrived in Primm at 12:45am PST. That's 8 and 1/2 hours of driving that normally takes us between 5 and 6 hours! It was insane. Buddha did great. He took naps every now and then. He loved riding in the yellow Penske truck with Daddy and had been talking about it every day for weeks before our departure. Bugga was a different story. He did well for the most part, but he got fed up with being in his car seat for so long. He cried off and on. A couple of times we had to just sit and listen to him scream until he fell asleep. It was rough and we're glad it's over. After spending the night in Primm, we took off the next morning bright and early, drove 5 hours, and pulled up in front of our new home.
And so, that brings us to...well, here. :) We love it! Travis and Trina and kids were so wonderful to come down from Orange County to help us move in (and boy were they a HUGE help!). We're especially grateful since it was Jessy's birthday (Happy Birthday, Jessy!) and seriously, who wants to spend their birthday helping someone else move in?! We appreciate your sacrifice, Jessy! :) Our home is so cute and so much more spacious than our former home. We have a lovely backyard and an awesome 2-car garage. We did have one little scare (well, it was big until it was resolved). When we got here and set about exploring our surroundings, we quickly discovered that there was no washer and dryer. I about had a heart attack. I was sure the Craigslist ad had said there was a washer and dryer included, but, alas, they were no where to be found. So, I called our landlord and got no answer. I remembered she was on vacation, but felt that this was urgent enough to impose. I called her again the next day and she answered (thank goodness). She apologized and said that she had forgotten that she allowed the previous tenants to sell the washer and dryer on Craigslist and get them out of the way because they had their own. She told us to just look on Craigslist and try to find a washer and dryer for $400 or under and she would reimburse us when she got back. Thankfully, we still had the Penske truck with us. The Chief found a washer and dryer being sold by a guy who was selling all his worldly possessions in order to stay alive in San Diego (poor guy...but good for us). He was selling a three-year-old Frigidaire set that was in great condition for only $350. The Chief picked it up and he, Grandma Bagel, and Grandpa Bagel hooked them up and they are now working wonderfully. HALLELUJAH! :) Our landlord, Vicki, came by the other day to check out a cracked tile and a gouged wall...moving damages from the previous tenants. They really weren't bad and we told her they didn't bother us at all, so she's going to give them their full deposit back. She said she doesn't like to keep any part of anyone's deposit (sounds good to me). :) She promptly handed me a check for $350 without even asking to see the ad or the washer and dryer. She is awesome. We love Vicki! She told us to do whatever we wanted with the house. She wants us to feel like it's our own home. We kept asking her if we could do this or that and she finally, very adamantly, ensured us that we could do whatever we want. She said we could paint a Sesame Street mural for all she cares (I told her I cared). :) She really is awesome. She didn't even require a credit check from us. We know the Lord led us to Vicki. She's amazing. We're so blessed. We love our house, we love our location, we're thrilled to be here, and everything really is falling into place. Hindsight is absolutely 20/20, I know, but looking back I can't help but feel like I wasted so much time and energy stressing out about finding a place to live, when I should have been more trusting and had more faith in the Lord. He calmly prompted The Chief that morning to check Craigslist before starting his studies for the day. The Chief found the ad with Vicki's home and I called and caught her before all the hundreds of other calls she got that day. She liked us from the start, said she felt good about us, promised us the house without a credit check, and started turning away other callers...and I could go on and on and on. We truly are blessed. Oh, and we went to our new ward on Sunday and it's equally as awesome as everything else in our new life. :) The only other Mormon at The Chief's law firm also just happens to be in our ward. How's that for a small world?! Well folks, I'm sure there's much, much more that I'm leaving out. Right now we're just trying to get all our new loose ends taken care of. We got the cars registered today and The Chief took the written exam to get his California driver's license. It's my turn tomorrow if I can find our official marriage certificate for proof that I am who I say I am. On Friday we have fumigators coming to spray for spiders (I hate spiders). We still need to set up a bank account with WaMu and unpack our last few boxes. And all that other boring stuff. After that, we'll get down to vacationing while we still have The Chief and while The Chief still has no duties. He'll start work at the end of August. I can't wait to post some pictures of all the fun we're going to have! :) As you can see, I didn't get too many pictures during the move...it was just too crazy. I'll also be posting pictures of our new house, inside and out, once I get all the finishing touches taken care of. I can't wait to show off my mother-in-law's decorating genius to you all! Thanks for reading this lovely novel I've just written. I'll try to keep it shorter in the future. Huge, huge, huge thanks to all who helped us through this summer with prayers and physical labor and babysitting (that's you, Amy). You are all wonderful and we've felt you pulling for us. And a special thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Bagel for carrying us through crunch time and beyond. You two work harder than 20 men combined. It never ceases to amaze me how much you can do in so little time! And you just keep going, and going, and going.... I hope you're resting well now. We can't wait to see you next week! The End.
9 comments:
Glad to hear the move is done and went well. Thats cool that you can do whatever you want with the house, it makes such a big difference when you can make it more like your own. Enjoy the nice California weather and have fun!
I'm so glad that the hardest part of the move is over and that you love the house and your landlord. What a relief! I really appreciate your comments about how you spent a lot of time worrying when you should have had more faith that the Lord would take care of you. We are stressing and worrying about Peter finding a job before he graduates in just 4 1/2 short weeks and I am trying so hard to maintain my trust in the Lord and know that He will help us. Your comments really gave me a pick-me-up for the day - thank you!
Hey Dad, you're still the first to respond, and way to go! But you included our last name on there which is...well, taboo. :) I'm trying to keep my family safe, so no last names. :) I'll relay your thanks to Mary and Larry. We appreciate your prayers and thoughts and we'll definitely have the place ready for Granny and Grandpa when you come! We can't wait!
I'm glad you guys made it there safely...I missed not having new things to read on your blog!(: Sorry about the long drive...I can only imagine. That's so great that your landlord is so cool. What a great story about the reward after the trial of faith...that's something my mission always taught me, if I could just get over that dang wall of affliction, there were blessings there. I remembered thinking that over and over again out there in La Paz. I like the picture of Soren's shadow with the moving van out the garage and Dan out there...it's artsy. (:
That silouhette of Soren in the doorway is the best. And I love the oblivous Anders, drooling and grinning in spite of the dirty knees, toes, and clothes. Keep them safe.
So glad that major part of the move is completed! I am so excited to see how you do up your new house- I loved the way your old house was done up so I am every excited to see the evolution!
I hope things calm down soon so you can enjoy some family time, and more importantly so you can stay on top of you blog!
Hey Liz and Dan! We are so happy that you are so close now. We will definitely have to get together soon. I am so glad that you made it safely and that you love your new house! We hope to hear from you soon!
Liz, I enjoyed the novel. I am glad that you have made it and are loving it. I love the pictures of Soren in the moving truck. I remember him telling me how excited he was to drive to California in the Penske. I can't wait to see pictures how you decorated the place.
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