July 28, 2008

It’s Done

My fingers hurt.  My toes hurt.  My back kills.  I’m exhausted and grumpy; but the move is finally done. 

We started bright and early on Saturday morning and we weren’t at my parent’s house until after 10 p.m.  Yesterday, Mr. BBM and I took the girls back to the house to get the last minute stuff and clean the house.  We were there for almost the entire day.  The last minute stuff pretty much filled up the truck (yet again) and it was miserable.  The girls were upset and unhappy at seeing their vacant rooms.  I was overwhelmed with stuff; and we had to load everything in between two nasty storms.  We had to drive through one of them with hail, crazy winds and thunder that even made me scream. 

We are now officially living with my parents and trying not to step on any toes will be a full time job.  I have two little girls who think that Mom-Mom and Pop-Pop are their personal play toys 24/7.  I have three rooms to unpack and organize, and absolutely no energy.  Two cups of coffee couldn’t even cure my lack of energy today. 

I think I need to hibernate for about a week.

I’d like to thank Renovation Girl who helped me pack and prepare.  Without her, I can’t even imagine how awful it would have been.  I’d also like to thank Eric and Matt, who arrived just when Mr. BBM and my Dad were really getting tired, after putting in a full day at the dojo work day.  Without your help, I don’t know what we would have done.  I’d also like to thank my Dad (who doesn’t even read this blog, but oh well) for working non-stop and carrying things he really shouldn’t have been carrying.  Then there’s my sister and her boyfriend, who took two loads in their truck and also came back to rescue my cats from moving insanity to take them to their temporary housing for a few months.  There’s also "Fancy" who helped me pack up the last few things, offered hugs when I felt like I was going to break down and cry or kill someone or both, and spent one of her precious days off helping out a friend.  I also can’t forget to mention my lovely neighbors "K" and "S" who supplied me with a shot glass full of wine when I had a little break.  I so needed that.  Nothing would have been accomplished if not for my Mom who volunteered to keep the girls the night before the move and the entire moving day.  Clearly, you’re all owed big time.

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart. If I could lift my arms, I’d give you all a giant hug. 

Posted by on July 28, 2008 in Moving | 7 Comments

July 25, 2008

Last Night

It’s my last night in our home of almost five years. 

The closets are empty (Thanks to Renovation Girl who followed me around the house forcing me to pack, pack, pack 24/7).  What’s left is the mess that will go in "misc" boxes and the furniture which will go to the storage unit tomorrow.  The girls are already settled in at my parent’s house, complete with all of their clothes and their beds.  Lil C was a very unhappy girl until she saw her bed all set up in Mom-Mom’s house.  She asked me lots of questions and seemed to be more at ease when I kissed her good night and headed back home to finish the last minute packing. 

While leaving this wonderful house is sad, I know that we’ve made the right choice.  Clearly, we’ve grown out of our current home and it’s time to move on.  That doesn’t mean there won’t be tears.  I brought Lil C home for the first time in this house; and Big I was only two when we moved in here.  We’ve made some excellent friends in the neighborhood; and I’ll miss stopping over for a glass of wine and a chat.  Moving out now, when our new house consists only of basement walls, is difficult.  Squeezing all of our stuff into two closets and a bathroom we’ll all have to all share for a few months is also going to be difficult. 

I know it will all be worth it.

Right now, all I know is that I need a shower and some ibuprofen for my aching back. 

Posted by on July 25, 2008 in Moving | 5 Comments

July 23, 2008

I Should Probably Warn You

Dear Friend (coming from hours away to help me pack today):

I should probably warn you that I went on a cleaning strike about two weeks ago.  I have kept true to my word.  I’ve found that when the strike hits the crucial point of 14 days, Mr. BBM will indeed, pick up a toilet wand and go to work.  Remember this number, because it may come in handy for you too one day.  Regardless, I’m staying firm in my anti-cleaning stance and hope you’ll understand. 

I should probably warn you that there’s not a single room in my house that one can walk through without tripping over boxes, random packing peanuts, and miscellaneous items that are just waiting to be put in the dreaded "misc" box. 

I should probably warn you that the only things we have to eat in this house are: one can of beans, one can of Sloppy Joe sauce, and some crackers.  It should make for an interesting couple of lunches. 

I should probably warn you that the radon guy will be here bright and early at 7:30 a.m. so you’ll have to leave your perch on the sofa unless you don’t care about Stan seeing you in your jammies.

I should probably warn you that Mr. BBM and I study our house floor plan every 15 minutes or so and also randomly say things like "I wonder how many pendant lights we’ll need," sometimes while someone else is in the middle of telling us something important.  We’re kind of house-obsessed these days.

I should probably warn you that each and every night, we drive over to our lot and analyze the size of our backyard, the angle of our driveway, and discuss various other ridiculous things like how we’ll arrange our furniture.  You should know that we fully realize they have only just poured the basement walls, but these things are of crucial importance to analyze for the next three months.

I just wanted to give you fair warning before you make the trip. 

Oh wait, you’re already on the road.  Oh well.

Sincerely,

A VERY grateful BBM

Posted by on July 23, 2008 in Moving | 4 Comments

July 22, 2008

Best Friend for a Reason

I was feeling emotional and grumpy yesterday.  I’m overwhelmed with packing, grumpy about having to move out of my house before I wanted to (and into my parent’s house, who seem to be grouching to everyone in my family about us moving in), and the sadness about leaving this house after almost five years was setting in as well. 

Going to see our new house progress last night barely cheered me up.  They had put stone in the footprint and had the forms there to pour the basement walls (probably happening right now).  It didn’t matter.  The negative feelings were overwhelming. 

I came home and was just settling in for a long night of grading thesis statements with no capitalization when my best friend called me.  She started with an apology for calling so late and then quickly launched into her reason for calling.

My best friend, the most amazing kitchen packer I know, informed me that she is driving out tomorrow and staying until Friday to help me finish packing.  I instantly burst into tears.  She has always been there for me through the years, but this went beyond the status quo of being there for your friend. 

It wouldn’t be a big deal if she was driving 30 minutes.  The big deal is that she’s driving 4.5 hours to come and help me, with her 4-year old son in the back seat.  Not only that, but she insisted on bringing her own bed linens, towels, toiletries and even dinner for all of us. 

I have been overwhelmed with a completely different feeling since receiving her phone call and I can NOT thank her enough.  I figured that all of you who have offered virtual support through this moving process could go and thank her for me too. 

So go visit her site, tell her how amazing and wonderful she is, and think happy thoughts about an easy drive for her tomorrow.

Packing just got a whole lot more fun.

Posted by on July 22, 2008 in Mental Strain for Mama | 7 Comments

July 21, 2008

Completely Overwhelmed

We’re moving on Saturday and I feel like we’ll never be ready to go.  I am completely overwhelmed with all of the crap we’ve accumulated over the last five years.  I don’t even have time to go through it and get rid of things, because there just isn’t time to do anything but throw it in a box and send it away. 

Besides a little help from Lil C, I have had no help with packing.  I can’t even tell you how much I miss my best friend (the most amazing kitchen packer I know).  She helped me when I left Pittsburgh many years ago and I’m about ready to overnight her a flight ticket so she can fly out and help me again.

Although I packed up much of the basement and loaded it into the van for yet another trip to my parent’s house tonight, there is still so much more that needs to go and I just don’t know where to even start.  I’ve found myself wandering from room to room today, feeling on the verge of tears and like I’m drowning in packing peanuts.

Literally, because the girls thought it would be a good idea to dump all 4000 of them on the dining room floor today while they were playing "Marshmallow store."  I was too overwhelmed to do anything but calmly tell them they better pick them all up and now before "Mommy has a complete and total melt-down."  I’ve also found myself murmuring, "There’s just no way" and "I can’t possibly do this" all day long. 

Something tells me that the rest of this week will only get worse.  The only bright spot is that I’ve managed to recruit some wonderful young guys from my dojo to help us out on Saturday.  For their help, I will be eternally grateful. 

Hmm, I wonder if they’d come help me pack too.

Just kidding guys. . .

. . . or not.

I feel terrible even writing this post because my blogging friend Lisa is going through something much, much worse right now.  Please go visit her and offer what support you can. 

Posted by on July 21, 2008 in Moving | 8 Comments

« Previous Page — Next Page »