If there’s one thing I’ve done a lot in my life, it’s moved. My gosh, have I ever moved.
One Christmas several years back, my brother and I got out a notepad and listed every single home we’d each lived in just for fun. It started out as one list, split into two separate ones during our teenage years, and then came back together for several summers while I was in university. It was LONG. And thank goodness I had Gar there helping sort it all out, because sometimes my memory is total crap.
In order to get through our move, Miss G spent a lot of time playing independently, which is difficult when the majority of your things are packed and life as you know it is being turned upside-down in front of your eyes. In order to make things a little bit easier for her, each day that we spent packing, I’d set out a couple of very simple invitations to play with whatever was around at the time. I have to say, she handled the situation very well and even created a few fun activities of her own. Here’s some of what our little lady did last week…
Only 5 days to pack and a ton to do.
A going away gift. We have the very sweetest friends.
Progress…
All of the toys, books, games, and puzzles Gracen will have in Kuwait are in these two bins.
2 a.m. and finally feeling good enough about the progress made to go to sleep before picking up the moving truck the next morning.
Loading day.
Nearly finished.
A sad final dinner in her 2nd home… A towel as a picnic blanket, a bento box for a plate, a spoon borrowed from the downstairs tenants, not a vegetable in sight.
Farewell, little house.
Halfway through the 6 hour drive back to the Okanagan.
An hour away from our destination and dinner is served… In a car seat. Sardined between bins.
Whew! What a week it’s been. I’ve got to say that moving is probably one of my least favourite things to do ever. Several Christmases ago, my brother and I sat down with a pen and paper and listed off all of the houses we’ve lived in in our lifetimes and if I’m correct, this move will be my 52nd. Oy. I must say, it does get easier… Moving frequently has caused me to really think about what I hang onto and in most cases, if I haven’t used something within the last few months, I’ll happily give it away, recycle it, or get rid of it rather than moving it just so it can collect dust somewhere new. That being said, moving with a toddler {and only 5 days to pack an entire house} is not, in any way, easy. Gracen was wonderful through it all, but it was definitely tough. Between trying to be an engaged parent, keeping up with making healthy, homemade meals, attending final play dates and outings, and packing everything into boxes while a curious little somebody wants to take everything out, I felt spread thin to say the least. Sleep was even less plentiful than normal, which means patience was too. Buuuuuut, thanks to a lot of help from Brad’s parents in the final two days, we did it. We packed everything up into a moving truck {and two vehicles}, scrubbed down the house, handed over our keys, and said goodbye to the little old house that has been our home for the last two years {since we arrived home from our first stint in Kuwait}. Now we’re in the Okanagan for the next few weeks until our big, BIG move and I’m happy to report that we should be able to get the bulk of our stuff sorted/stored/put away this morning. Here’s to a little bit of downtime before our next adventure begins!
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