Moving!

This has been a weird moving process. Since we bought a foreclosure it takes nearly 2 months to close the deal with all the banks and loan people. (BTW, buying a house these days = crazy amount of paperwork and processes!) So I've actually been packing for almost that long. I started with all our books. Easy thing to pack and I used all the little boxes from the local grocery store my MIL kept bringing me. Then I moved on to my dining room. Since we were selling two hutches and the table and chairs I needed to unload all my china and serving dishes and RANDOM other stuff I had stuffed into those hutches. After the dining room I packed my sewing room and the garage. I've been in a bit of a holding pattern since then. 

I mostly have been prepping to pack. I went through each closet and threw away or donated a TON of stuff and organized the things I want to keep. Then I brutally went through the kids' room, throwing away and donating "stuff", then packed up things like Hailey's tea set collection and Ethan's erector sets. I weeded out a bunch of kitchen items and clothing. Our closets only hold what we are actually going to wear and that fit us. Amazing, I know. This almost daily cleaning out and organizing has been so cleansing for me. My motto has been " If we don't need/want it, we're NOT moving it!"

I love the fresh start. I anticipate the organizing of empty closets in our new home. I never thought of myself as a mover. I always wanted to put down roots and watch them grow. I only moved once growing up and that was only 1 mile up the road to my Grandfather's homestead that my parents remodeled when I was 15. But Russ and I have moved 4 times in 10 years and this move will be our 5th. That's not a ton to some people, but we always move because we choose to move, not because we have to. We love the new beginning that moving poses. Now, I really have put down roots that I am unwilling to uproot, but those are placed in relationships and ministry, not necessarily a house.We always stay in the area, close to family and church, just a new adventure in a different house, another neighborhood.

I'm excited to show you pictures of our new home in all it's 1970's glory. (the fireplace is out of this world!) We will begin demolition and updates soon after we move and I'll be documenting and updating you here as we go along. I'm looking forward to a busy week of power packing the sorted and organized closets and EVERYTHING else. Then we'll sign papers and begin to move bedrooms first so we can sleep there and get the kids to school in the mornings easier. Once we're in we will have the carpets cleaned and windows washed in out current home and fix a few minor issues too. After that we'll start the kitchen update in our new home by painting cabinets first thing. Should be exciting! All I have to say is that packing with a 1 year old is challenging to say the least, he follows me everywhere pulling things out of boxes and diving into piles and eating paper and anything else that looks appetizing to him. It's a crazy crazy life, but a happy one. Have a blessed Monday!