aka Budget Boycott (both the truck company - read below - and the monetary one as moving has caused us to hemorrhage money)
So, some of this blog is for going back and filling in the blanks, and sometimes it's going to take me a little while, and sometimes it isn't going to be in chronological order. This is the story of our move. Many of you were involved somewhere along the way, here's the whole story...
We reserved a 24' truck from Budget for Friday, June 27th at 11:00 a.m. Ryan and his dad went to pick up the truck, only to be told there wasn't one. The lady there had 2 trucks, 8 reservations for Friday, and 6 more reservations for the next day. And, yes, she had 2 trucks. The best they could was a 16' truck. Uh oh. Ryan and his dad called every moving truck rental place within 100 miles. Nothing. Meanwhile, the first of our friends had arrived to help load. So we took at 16' truck. We're sorry if you were the person who reserved it.
In case you're wondering, no, all of our stuff did not fit. Not even close. Many of our dear friends helped us load up, and Casey and Barrett were pretty amazing in their determination and organization. But it didn't fit. So our little caravan left Saturday morning between 8 and 9 a.m. for PA with Dad driving the truck; me, Ashtyn, and the fish in the car (with a ton of stuff); and Ryan in the minivan stuffed to the gills (oh yeah, one top of everything we bought the minivan I swore I'd never drive on Tuesday of that week). We got to our new home in East Greenville around noon, were met by family and friends who quickly unloaded the truck and helped us reassemble our furniture.
That afternoon Ryan and my dad drove back to VA to reload the truck (thank God we had unlimited mileage!). The main level of our townhouse was pretty full of all kinds of random junk, plus our patio furniture was still outside. Ryan and Dad loaded the truck (things always take way longer than you expect) and got on the road back to PA again. Meanwhile, my mom and I were at the new house trying to sleep. I struggled to sleep knowing they were on the road so late. They arrived back in East Greenville at 4:30 a.m.!!! Talk about endless night. My parents drove the hour home to their house, we got a couple of hours of sleep, and then Ryan's parents came over to unload the truck and get it returned on time. What a day/night/day?!?!?!
It isn't over yet. On Monday afternoon, we left Ryleigh with her grandparents at the farm and took Ashtyn and drove back to VA for closing the next day. I found way more stuff than I imagined waiting for me at the house. (No, all our stuff didn't fit in even the second load with the truck. Yes, we have way too much stuff.) Samantha saved me by coming over and helping me with the rest of the packing that night.
Tuesday was a very rough morning. The realtor called with a glitch and wanted to know if we had title insurance. Yes, but it was in PA. They were trying to contact the lawyer we closed with when we bought the house and we called Ryan's parents to go search our files. Meanwhile, we were discovering that everything would not fit in the minivan. Uh oh. We left a few things in the Mattoxes' shed. And we left a few things in the trash pile that weren't exactly trash. :( We went out for breakfast (oh yeah, no coffee and no food until after 11:00 made our tempers a little more short than our already stressed-out selves) and got to Vienna for closing at noon. The title insurance had been located, but now there was some kind of problem with the walk-through. Luckily, our friend Ryan stepped in and saved us and closing went smoothly the rest of the way.
Being the nuts that we are, we left there and went to... the dentist! We left the dentist, fortunately no issues, not even for Ryan, and drove back to PA, again. No more events to write about. Now to make it feel like home.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Saturday, July 5, 2008
God's Plan (Amanda)
"For I know the plans I have for you,"declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11
Thank you, Inez, for the reminder. Most of us are familiar with this verse, have heard it a thousand times, especially at momentous occasions in our lives (graduations, etc.). But are we familiar with the chapter of the Israelites' story that elicited this promise? I was led to read over this chapter where God speaks to the Israelites who have been captured and kept in the strange land of Babylon.
God has a plan for each of us, even when we find ourselves in uncomfortable places. And as I sat in Ashtyn's room and rocked a fussy baby (teething, general discomfort, who knows?), I was reminded of God's provision for us. How in His infinite wisdom, He knew to give us precious Ashtyn at just this time.
My first thoughts were of the difficulties of moving and settling with an infant and a preschooler, etc. But then I realized as I rocked my little angel, that God knew that in these days I would need reminders of His love for me, and that Ashtyn is that reminder. That every couple of hours I must stop what I'm doing and be still, so Ashtyn's basic need for nourishment can be met. I am reminded that my most important job right now is not unpacking boxes, but cherishing this priceless gift God has given me to care for. God's plan is for me to be a mother, and that calling trumps all others. He has led me here to a place where my girls can truly be my first priority. And sometimes I must stop what I'm doing and just hold my babies, because they need me.
I was reminded of that little poem that talks about how sweeping and scrubbing can wait, because babies grow up so quickly, etc. As I held Ashtyn, her life flashed before my eyes, not the short one that she has already led, but I realized that, God willing, I will someday rock her babies, and I faced that horror that every parent must face: she will become a teenager first. She will date, she will leave us to go off to college or whatever path life leads her down, she will probably marry and have children of her own someday. Stop. Cherish the moment right now where she is in my arms. Because it won't be long until she is running around chasing Ryleigh, and neither of them will want to stop and let Mommy just hold them. I thought of how my own mother and grandmothers rocked me and now rock my babies. I thought about that pain I feel at seeing Ryleigh and Ashtyn in pain, and the joy I feel when they smile. The joy on Ryleigh's face last night as she licked her huge pink and purple ice cream cone (cotton candy flavor -- it was disgusting) was priceless. And how magnified God's pain and God's joy must be as He watches His children travel this earthly journey. Samantha shared that thought with me last week as we watched Maddie's tears as she and Ryleigh ended their last playdate before the move.
God is great, all the time. He has a plan for my life. I'm just trying to stay in the center of His will, even when it isn't exactly what I wanted. His plan is always better than mine.
Thank you, Inez, for the reminder. Most of us are familiar with this verse, have heard it a thousand times, especially at momentous occasions in our lives (graduations, etc.). But are we familiar with the chapter of the Israelites' story that elicited this promise? I was led to read over this chapter where God speaks to the Israelites who have been captured and kept in the strange land of Babylon.
God has a plan for each of us, even when we find ourselves in uncomfortable places. And as I sat in Ashtyn's room and rocked a fussy baby (teething, general discomfort, who knows?), I was reminded of God's provision for us. How in His infinite wisdom, He knew to give us precious Ashtyn at just this time.
My first thoughts were of the difficulties of moving and settling with an infant and a preschooler, etc. But then I realized as I rocked my little angel, that God knew that in these days I would need reminders of His love for me, and that Ashtyn is that reminder. That every couple of hours I must stop what I'm doing and be still, so Ashtyn's basic need for nourishment can be met. I am reminded that my most important job right now is not unpacking boxes, but cherishing this priceless gift God has given me to care for. God's plan is for me to be a mother, and that calling trumps all others. He has led me here to a place where my girls can truly be my first priority. And sometimes I must stop what I'm doing and just hold my babies, because they need me.
I was reminded of that little poem that talks about how sweeping and scrubbing can wait, because babies grow up so quickly, etc. As I held Ashtyn, her life flashed before my eyes, not the short one that she has already led, but I realized that, God willing, I will someday rock her babies, and I faced that horror that every parent must face: she will become a teenager first. She will date, she will leave us to go off to college or whatever path life leads her down, she will probably marry and have children of her own someday. Stop. Cherish the moment right now where she is in my arms. Because it won't be long until she is running around chasing Ryleigh, and neither of them will want to stop and let Mommy just hold them. I thought of how my own mother and grandmothers rocked me and now rock my babies. I thought about that pain I feel at seeing Ryleigh and Ashtyn in pain, and the joy I feel when they smile. The joy on Ryleigh's face last night as she licked her huge pink and purple ice cream cone (cotton candy flavor -- it was disgusting) was priceless. And how magnified God's pain and God's joy must be as He watches His children travel this earthly journey. Samantha shared that thought with me last week as we watched Maddie's tears as she and Ryleigh ended their last playdate before the move.
God is great, all the time. He has a plan for my life. I'm just trying to stay in the center of His will, even when it isn't exactly what I wanted. His plan is always better than mine.
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