I have excavated myself from the moving boxes and it is glorious!
We signed the papers and moved into our new home November 20, 2015, just a few days before Thanksgiving.
We decided to host our annual Friendsgiving again this year for those friends of ours who do not have family close, or other circumstances that want a place to eat, relax and enjoy the company of friends. Some of our usual cast of characters was absent this year, choosing to make the trek to their hometowns to visit relatives. No matter, we pressed on. Derick smoked a turkey in his smoker for the first time at our new house (buckle-up, I have a feeling I will be using that phrase a lot this coming year 'the first time.'). I was buzzing around the kitchen making all the glorious side dishes synonymous with Thanksgiving. My sister arrived earlier in the day to assist, but I had most everything down to a scheduled science that she just mastered the art of the green bean casserole for me: add, stir, add, stir.
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| Derick injecting the turkey with his secret recipe marinades in preparation for the smoker! |
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| Getting a final "crisp" cycle in the oven |
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| Our spread! |
Once we had eaten our fill and had thoroughly discussed our fill, we moseyed over to the family room to sift through the mountain of Black Friday ads. After post-it-ing, dog-earing and list-making, We determined that we would embark on a journey to Target to purchase a few key items. I had two items on my list: a DVD and an inflatable air mattress (for future potential guests). My sister had a few big things on her list, so I planned to help her locate and carry her items. When we arrived, there were already a few people coming out of Target with their purchases. There were TVs in carts EVERYWHERE. At one point, my sister decided, on a whim, that she needed one as well...that is until I talked her out of it because, well, she didn't really
need one, and more importantly for her wallet, she didn't
need to spend the money on it for the lukewarm deal for that brand and model. Once we had our loot, we crawled through the checkout lines and made it back to my house unscathed. She had a plan to hit a few more locations after that, so we packed her some leftovers and sent her on her way. I was looking forward to more unpacking and turning our new house into our new home.
Side Note - looking back on it now, we got everything done - unpacked, cleaned and put away - in short order, though, at the time, it seemed to take an eternity to see all of the boxes broken down and leave the premises.
The Move
We started moving items from the storage units in Rogers, MN to our new place almost immediately after signing the papers to make the house ours. We sure had some awesome friends come and help us in our moving journey! One of Derick's teaching colleagues and college friend, Pete, helped us move almost all of our things to the new house on that first afternoon and evening - with the use of his truck and trailer. We borrowed a trailer from a friend as well, so we had ample means to move all our things in a few trips.
Seeing the storage lockers empty was one of the best feelings in the world. After months of beginning to forget what items I owned anymore, all of them started making their way to our new home.
The next day, my friend Kim arrived bright and early and eager to help move us in! My sister soon followed, bringing with her most of my houseplants that she had been fostering for me. The rest of my plants we had moved to Derick's classroom. Pete also returned the next morning to assist with the move. We can not thank these people enough - we love you!!
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| Room Signs I made for the garage so labeled boxes and specific furniture could be stacked in piles for that intended space |
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| The first sunrise witnessed in our new home. |
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| A new home celebratory ice cream cake from Dairy Queen (a tradition started with our Townhouse purchase) |
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| It has begun! Our stuff! Everywhere! |
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| Oh so many boxes! |
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| Moving Crew Fuel from a local pizza shop that delivers to us way out in the boonies! |
I now know a sure-fire way to feel as if I am 100 years old - spend three days moving everything you own. out of trucks, out of trailers, up three stairs, up one flight, up two flights, down two flights. whew. Every muscle seemed to ache, but we kept pushing to get as much done as we could. Both Derick and I had time off work to make it happen, and we MADE IT HAPPEN! What we did not accomplish during the week of Thanksgiving, we plotted to tackle during the Christmas holiday.
As it turned out, we did not end up hosting Christmas for Derick's family this year, but instead, we traveled to Medford, WI to spend it with his family. We made it a very short trip this year, driving over Christmas Eve Day and driving back the next afternoon. We had prioritized finishing some move-in items for the house that we were excited to get back to.
We bought a real Christmas tree this year - the first real tree in a few years for us. We had a couple real trees in our townhouse, but we decided that we would take the plunge and do it this year as well.
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| Entryway guest coat closet |
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| Guest Bedroom - Parisian Themed |
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| Guest Bedroom - Parisian Themed |
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| Guest "Ducky" Bathroom |
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| Guest "Ducky" Bathroom |
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| Derick's Garage Workbench (built by him and his cousin, Joe) |
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| Christmas Baking Begins! |
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| Decorating for the Holidays |
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| This is what the kitchen island was MEANT for! |
This year I made 13 different types of cookies and three kinds of truffles. Needless to say, there were plenty to share with coworkers and friends!
We celebrated Christmas, first, with Derick's family, then with my sister, and still to come, with our friends that we have made a tradition of alternating houses to get together and share a meal and some small gifts. Buying for their kiddos is so fun!
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| Jana's plate of goodness! |
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| How fun are these Star Wars cutouts?! |
In short-order, we were forecast to get a pounding amount of snow around the holidays. So, in anticipation of this, we decided to put our adult pants on and get a snowblower.
While we didn't ever get that big snowstorm, winter finally came in the form of cold! So, that meant more time indoors to do one of my favorite things - organize!
I tackled the areas of my closet that had been silently taunting me to pay attention and take action. Derick actually commented,
Every time I come to look for you, to see what you are doing or where you are, you are always hiding in a closet!
But...that didn't stop him from requesting the organizational guru's assistance for his own closet. We had that thing looking ship-shape in no time! Complete with a purge and laundry-sorting mission included!
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| Derick's newly organized closet |
Kim came over one Saturday and helped me hang a LOT of our artwork in our house. It was so great to have a like-minded person there to help me design our space. We still have some pieces to hang, but it will come. We are still figuring out where some items will fit the best, not wanting to rush into a hasty placement.
We look forward to entertaining more and more family and friends over the coming years, landscaping in the spring and summer and really, just living life in our new spot!
-LD
