Packing Up...

Due to the patient hints of both friends and family alike, and the fact that today marks the one month anniversary of our move in date, I think it is high time I started this series ;)...

The week before we moved was spent saying goodbye to many dear friends. Abbi was thrilled, not to say goodbye, but to get to see so many people ;). She is very much a social little creature, and she came to Mommy the night of our last visit, and asked Mommy "Do we have anymore people we can tell goodbye tomorrow?!" Stinker ;). Sunday through Wednesday was full of friends and packing (and picking up bibles that I left at church while trying to make sure that I did everything else I meant to do. For the first time ever, I could not believe it! But a friend gave it to one of the deacons when she heard how worried I was about it, and the deacon was able to hand it right to us when we pulled up to church :).), and, of course, welcoming Daddy home to SC for the last time before we left :)!!!

We got to bed late Thursday, the night before the movers arrived to pack us up. It could have been later though- a sweet lady from church called at supper time and asked if we had eaten yet. When we replied no, she asked if she could bring us some supper she had made  :). That was such a blessing- and Emmi especially was thrilled, because she brought cookies ;). Emmi had been asking all day long "Bri, can we make cookies? Bri, lets go make some cookies now!" :).

 In fact, we didn't have to do much cooking at all those last few days, partly thanks to the several meals worth of food that Miss Mary brought us :). Thank you so much, Miss Mary :)!

Tiny little sleepy baby :)...

We were up by six thirty the next morning (I think Mommy was actually up earlier...), and we finished up as much as possible before the movers arrived. We still had to clean some of the appliances that were going, pack all that the movers could not take in their truck (flammables, liquids, etc.), and gather all the items that we were going to need before we got to VA. And then it was breakfast time ;). We ate outside to stay out of the way, as the kitchen was being packed up by the time we got to breakfast (and the table had no surface area available, anyway, haha!). The little ones thought that was the greatest thing ever, haha :). After that we worked a little more on folding clothes and packing up trip items, and then Tori and I took all the little ones outside while Mommy and Daddy finished up. Daddy sent the CD player outside, and we spent the morning blowing bubbles, skipping rope, and listening to the Piano Guys (namely "Cello Wars", as Andrew knows how to operate the CD player and would listen to only that song if we let him ;). Unfortunately for him, everybody else has a favorite as well, so he has to listen to others. Haha!).

*Love* those eyes :)...

 Bubbles :)!

Dancing, hugging, I'm not sure... but I would 

remember if it was fighting, so it wasn't that ;).

After a little over an hour we went inside... and were horrified to learn how early in the day it still was, hahaha! We bounced between playing outside, playing in the upstairs bedroom (that was mostly empty... and yet, they played longer there than they usually do. I think it was due to the novelty of empty closets and shelves ;).), and using the laptop for the little ones to watch shows while we did other projects. Three o'clock came, and we were ready for bed, haha! Much of the day was spent doing nothing much at all, but that can be exhausting for some reason! We are so glad that we didn't have to move ourselves! I can not even imagine how we would have made it, haha. I was thinking the whole time "How in the world did we do this a few years ago?!!"! It was a wonderful blessing to have, not only others moving us, but also Lifeway paying for it :).

After the men finished packing up everything, they left and we finished up a few little things before heading out to eat one last time at La Fagota. That restaurant has been our go-to when we eat out for years, we all love Mexican food (and Abbi loves chips ;).)! But it was kind of sad, they had remodeled it and we couldn't help but wonder why they couldn't have waited ;). Our favorite park there has been changed, as well, along with a few other smaller things. Mommy said she guessed it was a good time to move, all the changes were just depressing ;).

We had been planning on leaving for a hotel that night, thinking that the bedding was going to be packed, but we were given a choice of leaving the bedding to be packed the next day, which we gladly took :). We wanted neither to have to drive there the next day while the truck was loaded, or to have to load and reload the car of trip necessities an extra time if we didn't have to ;).

We spent that evening fairly quietly, getting ready for bed fairly quickly ;). Well, as quickly as a family of nine can, while all trying to get their clothes out of a small closet with a note saying "Please do not pack :)" on the door, while having to duck into the library to avoid collisions in the hall ;). We were all very excited to know that it was our last night sleeping there :)...

 And, although this isn't related to the trip, I have to mention that there is a Hidden Treasures auction up and running right now :)...