All Things Moving

We have one week left till our big move. Most of the house is packed up now, separated into rooms - boxes for right away, boxes for storage, furniture for right away, furniture for storage, furniture for refugees, and things we'll need on the road.

We'll be leaving May 8th and taking six days to travel across the country. We hope to arrive Friday the 13th. Tee hee! We moved into this house on April Fool's day, so it seems fitting we'd move into another house on another "memorable" day. I must say, I don't recommend moving in anywhere on April Fool's day; for quite some time I wondered if at some point our landlords would pop in and yell "April Fools! You didn't really get this house! Ha ha ha!" But they never did and we've been here three wonderful years. We'll miss our beautiful views of the mountains, living next door to an airport, watching the tractors and workers take care of the berry bushes and hazelnut trees and pretty much everything else about living here - minus the propane bill and the mice.

Once we arrive in Ohio we plan to stay with my parents until TJ secures a job. Once he's been working for a bit we'll begin to look at our housing options. It may even be cheaper to buy a house there as opposed to renting. Strange to imagine. TJ has a phone interview for a possible job this Monday. We'll see what the Lord has for us. All the family on both sides sound excited to see Ethan in person soon. He was 4 months old when I was home a year ago...he's a whole different little boy now! My parents have a fenced in backyard and it will be fun to let him run while sitting on the porch watching. I think Ethan will enjoy romping with my mom's dog also.

Needless to say we will miss our friends and church here greatly. I've been here 8 years, TJ 11, 5 of those married and we are leaving our home. While we know we will find a new community in Ohio leaving the dear friends we have is a parting of ways, and all such partings are painful.

I'm also thinking about how each person's response to our news reveals something about themselves. Example. Yesterday I told a woman we were moving to Ohio. Her strong first response was, "how scary!" Scary? Well, I suppose the unknown could be scary, but that would never be my first response! She couldn't imagine going somewhere not having a job lined up or a house of your own to live in. Some people say, "how wonderful to be near family!" (they have great families) Some people say, "oh, you're living by your family...?" in a dubious tone. (they don't have great families). Some say, "what an adventure!" (they like adventures) Some say, "Well, I'm sure the Lord will provide, it will all work out somehow" (they probably don't like adventures :)  ) I am thinking about my own responses and what they say about me: I'm practical with great friends and a great church. What do your responses say about you?

Now at the end of this entry we have 3 days left until we leave and are lost in the myriad of details a three way move entails. Maybe this made sense, maybe not. I probably won't really know until we're settled and my brain takes a rest! :D