The Move

Phase 1: Packing (Monday March 1 - Tuesday March 2)

I always underestimate the amount of stuff we have. I figured everything we owned was already packed up and in boxes in the garage so it really wouldn't take very much time to finish up the rest of the stuff that had made it's way into the house. Wrong.

Monday was a slow start as I was hit with a violent stomach bug. I spent the entire morning heaving my entire body in efforts to eliminate the nasty thing from the depths of my stomach. After several hours, I was finally successful and started to feel like I could begin to recover. Poor Roland was left with a helpless wife lounging around due to lack of energy and unable to keep any food or fluid down at all. He therefore was privileged to not only watch the kids but attempt to pack all of our clothes. Fortunately the children were uncharacteristically little angels.

As I found an ounce of strength here or there I would try to organize piles of paper or fold up clothes into a box. But, I was pretty much no help at all. After nap, we had to run a few errands so the kids sat in the car, I slept in the front seat, and Roland ran in and out of the stores. Once again, I was no help at all.

On the way home, we stopped off at the kid's favorite park for the last time. I of course slept in the car while Roland watched the kids outside. Natalie of course had to leave with a bang as she slipped while walking in the sand and hit her cheek just under her eye on the metal shovel of the backhoe. It left a pretty big cut. Poor thing.

That evening it was Roland's turn. Roland spent the whole night in the same situation I found myself that morning. Our roles reversed for Tuesday. Somehow we still managed to get our room and the kids' room packed up and organized.

Sam arrived with the truck and trailer and the puzzle began. Our first snag was when we realized we should have gotten a larger trailer. Oops. After placing our couch in the trailer and realizing there was no room for anything else, we decided to try the couch in the bed of the truck.

We had the silliest looking setup. The couches were hanging out the back of the truck with a mattress on either side. We used painter tarp to cover our furniture and and seal off the bed in case of rain. I was quite impressed although after looking at it after all of our hard work, we decided there were a few other probably more effective ways to do it. Oh well.

Then came the real puzzle work. I have never seen anything like our packing job. We had everything fit into every possible nook and cranny. I felt like I was playing Tetris. Anything that was not in a box was somehow squeezed into an open space between boxes or tubs. I was laughing as we were placing each item in. We filled it to capacity.

Phase 2: Drive to Tucson (Wednesday March 3)

Wednesday morning we threw all of the last minute items in the car and cleaned. We decided it was best to drive down during nap time since the kids didn't really have any other place to sleep. Roland hopped in the truck and I took the kids in the car. Natalie of course was off in dreamland the second her head hit the car seat but Weston stayed wide awake the entire drive. Bummer. The drive was uneventful which is always the way we like it.

It was strange to think this would be the last time we would drive to Tucson from Phoenix. I always love pulling up to Tucson and seeing Pusch Ridge off in the distance and the beautiful blue skies. Hopefully we won't be gone too long.

We spent the afternoon with Roland's family. It was nice to be able to spend that time with them. Weston and Natalie even took a little walk to the chicken coop and said hi. Weston seemed to be a little nervous. He was excited to see the chickens but didn't like being in their coop at all! Natalie was trying to walk everywhere and look at everything. No fear there!

That evening we met up with Grandma and Grandpa Romero at Golden Corral. Natalie was a little piggy. She ate and ate and ate. I don't know if more ended up in her belly or on the floor! Weston enjoyed wandering around and people watching. Not very conducive to sitting down and eating a meal. We enjoyed spending that time with them and Grandpa Romero even "caught" two little stuffed animals for the kids. They love them!

After the kids went down for the night I stayed up and talked with Andrea while Roland went out and visited with Adam Call and his wife.

Phase 3: Drive to Texas (Thursday March 4 - Friday March 5)

The day finally arrived. We packed our overnight bags and got on the road.

We dropped the truck and trailer off with Sam an got on our way. Our first stop was St. David to visit with Roland's grandparents. We had a great time visiting with them. They are so much fun. Grandma was showing us all of her new hobbies on the computer with her geneology work and Grandpa was more animated than I have ever seen him. Roland always tells me about how spunky and full of life his Grandpa has but I have never had the opportunity to see it. He talked, smiled, and teased Natalie while we were there which was a joy to watch. He even looked up one time and gave a big cheesy grin that had Roland written all over it! It was so cute! Now I can see where Roland gets it. We had a lot of fun. I even learned where Natalie gets her little personality from. Her Grandma Clea Brown! They are like two peas in a pod with their spunky spirits. So cute.

On the road again. Stopped in Wilcox for food and gas. Kept going on and on with nowhere in sight. By the time we hit Las Cruces it was time for a break. We let the kids stretch out their legs in WalMart, changed diapers, and even stopped in Payless to buy Natalie some much needed shoes. After we felt the stop was sufficient, we felt we should probably hit the road again. Oh, and I had my first experience with a horizontal stop light. I didn't even know those existed! So weird.

Next stop was El Paso. People were not kidding that you are in touching distance of Mexico. It was very strange to see (as it was very dark outside) the difference between the left side of the freeway and the right side of the freeway. Mexico looked like a sea of lights. No zoning at all. After a quick stop for more gas we were on our way yet again.

The next stretch was very difficult. The kids were asleep and Roland and I were trying to stay awake by talking and listening to audio books. There were no cities for hours. Just black. Just flat.

Roland and I had a difficult time staying awake. We pulled over three times to sleep. The first rest stop lasted only a few minutes. After we both realized that neither of us would be able to sleep as we felt uncomfortable, we were back on the road. I tried to get some rest while Roland drove. We stopped at another rest stop and switched. I was good for a little while until sleep hit me about an hour into it. I was dying but I was determined to get further. Two minutes after passing a rest area I regretted my decision not to stop. The next forty minutes was spent frantically trying to keep my eyes open. This was quite the task.

The most amazing sign finally came. "Picnic area 1 mile." Oh hallelujah. I pulled in behind a semi and parked the car. I surveyed the area trying to determine if I was going to survive the attempt at rest. All of the same scenarios were flashing through my mind as with the other rest areas. Someone is going to sneak out of the woods and kill us. Someone is going to drive up to us and shoot us. My paranoia was in full force. I kept the engine running and the lights on. Roland was asleep within minutes. I only allowed myself to drift off for thirty seconds at a time. I kept reopening my eyes to look off into the distance behind the picnic tables and around all surrounding vehicles. Once I determined the coast was clear, I allowed myself to drift off for another thirty seconds. Pathetic, I know. After about a half hour of this, the sun finally started to rise over the horizon. What a welcome sight! Once the sun was out, I allowed myself to sleep. I slept for a solid fifteen minutes when Roland woke up and wanted to get back on the road. By all means. I traded him spots and I went back to sleep.

The kids were wonderful this whole time. They fell asleep without too much trouble and slept until about 7 or so. Weston was so tired. Poor guy kept throwing his blanket over his head trying to stay asleep. He did finally give up by about 8:30 and realized that he wasn't going to have much success.

Ft. Worth was a happy sight for us. We were closer! By the time we hit Dallas, we were giddy with excitement. Unfortunately google maps gave us incorrect directions and we quickly found ourselves lost somewhere in Dallas. We stopped for gas and got directions. The people here are so friendly. Roland walked into a gas station to ask for a map and three people popped their heads around the corner offering their assistance.

Finally some places I recognized. Plano. Allen. McKinney! We're here! We stopped at Tom Thumb (aka Safeway) - I know, very strange name - and picked up some breakfast. We drove to the apartment, walked in, and signed a lease without ever reading it. The kids were at their breaking point so it was not conducive to sitting down and reading all of the logistics.

We were finally here. We stepped into our new apartment and took it all in. It was nice. Small, but nice. I wasn't expecting anything huge but was pleasantly surprised by the openness of the floorplan. There is lots of closet space and the bedrooms are giant so it at least gives me room to put stuff.

After breakfast came time to unpack. Sam and Clary arrived with the trailer about two and a half hours later. Poor Roland was so tired and then had to carry all of our belongings up the stairs and into our apartment. He looked so horribly exhausted.

I went out and got Taco Bell for everyone as we still had no food in our apartment. That evening Roland's mom and Annika (their friend from Germany) arrived with the Chrysler. It was interesting with six adults and three children in a little two bedroom apartment. We were certainly cozy. Poor little Sammy was a trooper too. He made the trip with strep throat and mono. Roland, Roland's mom, and I spent our time running around after Sammy with Clorox wipes. I felt ridiculous running around with my container of wipes wiping everything his little hands touched or anything he breathed on. We finally got smart and just wiped his hands, then rewiped when he touched his mouth or face, sneezed, or coughed (which was often - but still easier than wiping everything in sight). We went through an entire container of Clorox wipes in one day! What did we ever do before those things were invented? He was a trooper though and didn't resist our attempts at sanitation. Poor guy. Now here is to hoping we don't get any outbreaks of mono in our home in 4-7 weeks. Pray for us! My kids are notorious for having everything in their mouths, so I sure hope I didn't miss anything before it made its way into their mouths. Weston of course did find the one ball I had not gotten to yet and shoved it right into his little mouth. We shall see I guess.

Phase 4: Acclimating

It is hard to think this place is our new home. It is so foreign from anywhere I have even been. I have been a lot of places, but this is just so strange. Even the east coast felt more like home than here. I keep feeling like I am on vacation. I look out my window at grassy hills and trees everywhere. I walk outside and hear chirping birds in the trees and feel a chillness in the air. I can feel the humidity and the "lighter" air due to the higher elevation. My only experiences with these "sensations" is on Mount Lemmon so it is strange to think that now I live on "Mount Lemmon." This is why I can't get past my vacation mentality. Everyone says that it takes six months to a year to have a new place feel like home. I am hoping for the six months because right now I am feeling like a fish out of water.

Grass and trees. One of the strangest shockers is the grass everywhere. The freeway shoulders are rolling hills of grass (and are actually well kept and look nothing like the hills off of the California freeways). There are no mountains. This is freaking me out. I love the feeling of being nestled right up to a mountain. It gives me my "saftey" boundaries that I need. It is like a child and his or her crib. You need that boundary of comfort. That is what a mountain is to me. No mountains here. No comfort boundaries. I feel like I am just free falling and there is nothing to stop me. But, it is not like I can see too far anyway due to the insane number of trees everywhere! I feel so claustrophobic. I am used to being able to see miles off into the distance. I think here I can see 100 feet away. All of the trees are in the way! I think this will take some time to get used to. I am sure it will be absolutely beautiful though. We did go to a nearby park on Saturday though and Weston and Natalie had a blast playing in the fallen leaves. I don't think either of them had even seen leaves in their entire lives. It was really funny to watch Weston run and jump in the piles and throw the leaves up in the air. Natalie loved walking around the hill and listening to the leaves crunch under her feet. I think they are going to love it here.

Water and humidity. This is another foreign concept to me. I washed some food off of Natalie's shirt, crumpled it up, and set it aside. Upon visiting it some time later, I was shocked to discover that it had grown mold on it! That's right, mold on her shirt! What is this strange phenomenon? I quickly learned that I need to be much more careful about leaving things out to dry. What a strange concept. I am also shocked by the number of lakes and ponds here. There is standing water everywhere. It is very pretty but honestly it makes my nerves go through the roof. At least in Arizona they teach water safety and it is pretty easy to control as a parent. You watch the bathtub and you watch pools. That is pretty easy to handle. Here, you have to watch water everywhere! You can't let your child out of your sight or your grasp. I am already having nightmares about finding Weston or Natalie in some body of water. I can't handle it.

Weather. Where is the sunshine? I was spoiled. I never watched the weather forecast. I knew that it was going to be sunny and beautiful - perfect short sleeve and flip flop weather. On the rare occasion that it was cold or somewhat overcast you stepped outside in your short sleeves and flip flops and wondered what happened this morning? You were upset that your routine was so rudely changed without warning. I have learned that here I must be a slave to the weather forecast. No longer can I rely on sunshine and blue skies. Bummer. Yesterday it was pouring rain and everyone was walking around without umbrellas like it was no big deal. Who does that? That is so strange. I was frantically looking about for sweaters that we had not even had out all winter yet. I tried to muster up some courage to get wet so that I wouldn't be the only weirdo carrying around an umbrella. It was already bad enough that Saturday at the grocery store Roland and I were the only ones with flip flops on. Trust me, I looked. The weather will definitely take some acclimating.

Driving. The roads here are very confusing. Their on and off ramps are set up strangely and I keep getting lost when it really shouldn't be that difficult to find what I am looking for. Oh, and their traffic lights are horizontal instead of vertical. I didn't even know that existed. That was an interesting sight to see for sure. I felt like I was in a whole new world. It is growing on me already though.

I enjoy our new home so far. It really is a beautiful place. I am excited to get out and explore our surroundings. I just hope that this will begin to feel like home soon. Right now everything is just too strange. We will give it some time.