Moving Day

The day finally came that our house was vacant, not one piece of furniture was left in. We held the key and now only waited for the furniture shipment to arrive. Before it left Norfolk, Virginia I had carefully gone over each and every box that was packed and with a permanent marker identified each box and what room it was packed in. That insured me against finding kitchen boxes in the bedroom and bathroom boxes in the kitchen. I had learned this the hard way on a previous transfer. When I was complaining to my mother about having to move boxes from one room to another, she gave me that handy little tip and it served me well. We had gone into the now empty house and looked around. The sweetest note from the former tenants enjoined us to have a good time and not let the days slip away without exploring our surroundings. It was getting closer to Christmas and I was anxious to get a tree and start decorating, but we still had about a week before we could do that. We had the power to the house put in our name, opened a bank account at Lloyd's Bank, made arrangements to have the phone turned on...there was so much to do before the arrival of the furniture, that I knew in no time at all the days would go by and we'd be settled in. We priced the live trees in the village, picked up a few things for the house and then returned to the Lodge. I was getting so excited about the prospect of moving into the house within the week, that I found myself getting very little sleep. My mind was busy doing what my grandmother called "wind work". I had unpacked and placed every piece of furniture where I wanted it, but only in my mind! Mac (WTHF) kept asking me if I was alright, that I looked tired. Well, I guess I was tired, what with all the work I was putting in and accomplishing nothing! The day finally arrived for the furniture to be delivered and I was so happy. We had arranged for the boys to take their new bus route that afternoon. I was still trying to get use to the sun being down by about 4 pm (or earlier). You know after a few weeks of nothing but a bedroom with TV to live in, the very thought of an entire house to explore was making me giddy. The day was here and the truck pulled up and you would have thought it was Christmas already. I poured over the boxes being brought in as though I had never seen their contents before in my life. Box after box was brought in, then the furniture began to come off the truck. My own bed. My own pillows. Now, anyone can tell you that vacations are great, but getting home and into your own bed lets you know you are home. I saw my bed being taken up the stairs and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I was home. For at the very least, three years, this was going to be home and I knew in my heart that I was going to love it! You know, my son has all our pictures and he is putting them on cd's for us. As soon as I can, I will post pictures of the house and the village. Some of you have asked if we enjoyed our time there and if I'd do it again. The answer is yes and in a skinny minute. My dream is to return one day, dragging a certain Kari with me...oh, she would be so at home, there.