CA to IL to PA to UK...Here we come!!!

Easter Sunday started bright and early, as we got ourselves up and ready to head to LAX. David was flying to New Jersey for work and his flight was leaving a good hour+ before the kids and I were to head to Illinois. Wonderful, wonderful hubby that he is, knowing how much I was dreading being in the airport that extra hour alone with the kids and then alone with them on the flight, he offered to call a shuttle to take him to the airport. He had to get up around 3am in order to do it, but he still did.

I LOVE THIS MAN!!!!!

Steve and Nicole got us to LAX in plenty of time, but I didn't realize how hard it would be to get packed up and inside! By the time I got both car seats out and into their travel bags, loaded the cart and stroller, we were heading to check the bags just 45 minutes before the cutoff. When I finally got to the counter to do so, the WONDERFUL woman at the counter asked me if I was traveling alone with the kids and if I wanted either Steve or Nicole to go through security with me to help. Um...YES!!!!!! Yet another tearful goodbye (at least there wasn't a curb right there that time) as we hugged and said our adieus to Nicole.

Steve helped us take off shoes, fold up the stroller and get everything under the xray machine. That was the part of the airport that I was dreading most, so I am so grateful that he was able to help us! We got to the gate and were the last people on board, so we had a quick goodbye with Steven. He was supposed to be my rock, the one to keep it together, so when the tears flowed from not only my eyes but his and Maxwell's, it really was a final goodbye to California. The gate attendant helped us get everything and everyone down to the plane, just in time to get settled and head to Chicago.

I was really scared to fly alone with the kids, but the were amazing on the flight. Aside from hitting the attendant button a few too many times (it's their own fault, really, for moving it from the ceiling down to the armrest), they were awesome travelers!

While we "flew in the airplane in the clouds WAY up in the sky!" (as Maxwell liked to say), I shed a lot of tears over all the family and friends we just had to say goodbye to, all the gatherings and events that we would miss, and hoped that everyone would make good on their promised to try and come visit us!

Daddy's Home (The real Moving Day has come!)

It really was amazing how much stuff was still lying around on tables and countertops even after the movers took everything we were shipping away. I had been to Goodwill about 40 times, and the storage unit was quickly filling up. Where does all this stuff come from?????

On Friday morning, Nana Paulette came over to play with the kids while I ran some last minute Burbank errands. It was Earth Day, so picking up my free Origins face wash was top priority!! :o) I also had to take the cable box to Charter, stop by to say goodbye to Susie and Jenna, and make a couple other stops that now I can't even remember.

The biggest one? DRIVING TO LAX TO GET DAVID!!!!

It had been a long month apart, and I was looking forward to having a couple days with my hubby! As I pulled up to the terminal to get him, I started crying. I couldn't believe he was finally home!! But even better, was seeing how excited both he and the kids were to see each other. It was really a wonderful moment, and I hope they are never apart for that amount of time ever again!!!

After plenty of playtime with Daddy, a nice pizza dinner and the wonderful familiarity of our regular bath, books, and bed routine with Daddy, David and I had a chance to sit down and relax. He was incredibly jet-lagged and wanted to sleep, but there was still work to be done. I needed help going through through the pile of mail that had accumulated, backing up the computer files before we put the big guy into storage, packing up all the other electronics, and packing the suitcases (after doing his laundry!!).

David passed out around 11pm, but I was still packing and getting things ready. Around 1am he woke up and couldn't go back to sleep, so the two of us plugged away until about 4am. When we finally did get to sleep, it wasn't but a short 3 hour nap before the kids were up and we had to get moving for moving day!

Thank you to Nana for coming over to play with the kids while we loaded. Thank you to Monica and Josh, who helped load a TON of stuff for us. Thank you to Steve and Nicole for bringing tools and helping us take apart the cribs and load the rest of the truck. Thank you to Jamie and the kids for coming over to say goodbye and pick up the highchair. It was a crazy, hectic, emotional morning, but the house was suddenly empty and it was time to say goodbye. I wish I had taken a photo of the empty place. ;o(

Mom stayed around to help me perfect the cleaning job. It would have been really hard to lock the door and walk away from 3200 Riverside one final time without someone there to support me, so thank you Mom, for that and so much more.

After a tearful curbside goodbye, I hugged Mom one last time, "Until we meet again" and headed off to Corona. I was met by Shelly, Jill, Brady, Addison, Steve, Nicole, my beautiful babies and a very sleepy husband. We ate, chatted and said more goodbyes. What's with all the curbside goodbyes?? Shelly and Jill loaded up the babies and we shared hugs and tears, and Steve took me to CarMax to sell the Rav4.

Check in hand, we headed back to Corona where I packed us up one last time, and we got some much needed rest before the big day!

Moving Day (More or less)

Wednesday, April 20, 2010

The movers were on their way to pack up and take away the stuff that we were having shipped to the UK.

Back up about a week, and those who were around for it would remember that this was my Hell Week. I was so overwhelmed and exhausted. My goal was to have everything neatly arranged so that all the movers had to do was get to a pile, pack it up, and be on their way. Ever since the day I had the moving company rep over for our estimate, I was still deluded into thinking that we weren't shipping that much stuff. And if you were to go look inside our storage unit right now, you would agree. We certainly left a lot behind!
(This was obviously taken after we had moved everything out of the condo)

Yet as moving day loomed closer and closer, the piles started to get bigger. We took toiletries, clothes, linens, toys, books, a random selection of kitchen utensils and gadgets, and several boxes of "extra stuff:" picture frames and albums, office supplies, etc.

I had pretty much stopped sleeping for more than 4 or 5 hours a night. I had to stay up until at least 11pm to talk to David when he got up at 7am in Oxford. We might talk for a few minutes before he went to work, but then he had to go and I was wide awake. Cleaning, organizing, sorting...my new full time job on top of my already exhausting full time job: my kids. And it was really hard to make the transition to stop using the things we were going to ship. Because obviously if they were important enough to ship to the UK, I needed them right up until we left!

The Sunday before the big move, I stayed up working on the task until about 330am. When the kids woke me up and 6:30 I just was not prepared for the day. But we had a play date to go to! We went to Teresa's house for some much needed mommy time, and the little ones got to cruise around for eggs, make crafts, and eat lots of goodies!

I had to apologize to my friends that day. I was just not myself. I couldn't stop thinking of the overwhelming amount of work I had to do, and the fact that I could never even start it until 9:00 at night after the kids were fed, bathed, dressed, read to, and FINALLY in bed. Luckily, my bestie best, Jamie, and fellow supermom caught me coming out of the bathroom, crying. The stress was getting to me, I didn't like the person I was because of it, and I didn't know how to change that on my own.

She gave me a much needed hug and graciously offered to do whatever she could to help us out. So Tuesday she brought Gwen and Grayson over to play, and my friend Annie brought Torin. Between the two of them they kept all five kids happy and occupied so that I could get to packing. We needed to transition to suitcases, as after the movers took away our things, we had four more days in CA and then a little over a week traveling to IL and PA.

Even with all the help, I was still up until 4am the night before the movers came, or the day of, I guess! Again, Jamie and Annie were superstars! The movers were supposed to be coming over between 12-2, so I dropped the kids off at Jamie's to play so that I could finish up and be at the house for the big event. Later, when Annie had to leave, Sarah and Clementine came over the help Jamie out with the kids. MY FRIENDS ARE AMAZING!!!!

Around 12:15pm, I got a phone call from the moving company saying that my movers were on their way and would be at the place by 1pm. They must have stopped for lunch, though, because they didn't get there until almost 2! By this time, I was missing my kids, struggling to stay awake, and honestly, getting a little angry.

Finally, they arrived. But shortly after they came through the door, I wish they hadn't.

YUCK!!!!

They hadn't even done any work yet, and already they were leaving a trail of disgust as they walked through my house. Poncho and Earl. By their names you may unintentially get an image in your head of what these guys may look like, and you'd be right. Poncho was really hard working and incredibly sweet, but he barely spoke English. Every time I asked him a question he told me to go talk to Earl. Ah, Earl. He was huge, balding, and had no front teeth. And he was dripping with sweat before he even started a thing. But he was really nice, too...so smell and appearance aside, I guess this wouldn't be too bad. The lady on the phone said it would only take them about 2 hours...
It was all organized and totally ready to go!

Four and a half hours later, they were done. I couldn't imagine why it took them so long, since I was so totally organized and had everything all laid out and ready for them. I was cringing with each sound of the tape gun closing a box, and I knew the contents of the package would need to be wiped, cleaned, laundered or disinfected after it was unpacked. Those guys were GROSS!

I called Jamie on my way to pick up the kids and apologized for being late. I brought pizza to make amends and told her that I was going to keep an image in my head of what I hoped the movers on the UK end would look like: Polo-shirted Oxford University boys!!! (She said, "Good luck with that!")

It was a long, exhausting couple of days, but our stuff was on it's way to the UK. I had been preparing Maxwell for a while about his toys, books and clothes being gone. Packed into boxes and shipped to our new house in England. Luckily, when we got home and he saw the empty space, all he saw was an opportunity to run around and play!

Ahhh...to be three years old!!

But the absolute BEST thing that came out of that day, was this note that I got from my friend, Sarah.

April 20 Sarah Madden
Not to upset you about today, I'm only telling you b/c I thought it was so sweet. When I was leaving & you were already on your way I told Maxwell we were going home & he said he wanted to go home & had a little lip quiver. I asked him if he wanted a hug & he put out his little arms & said "yeah" so I picked him up & hugged him. Then I asked him if it would make him feel better to hug Darian & he said "yeah". Before I even put him down Darian was walking over with her little arms open to hug him. Oh the 2 sweetest little kids in the world. You are doing such a good job. They were so cooperative & sweet today! We are really going to miss you guys!

April 21 Jennifer Ingham
Thank you so much for this. It was about time I cried some happy tears. Thank you, Sarah.