Down Day

Michael declared today would be a "down day."  We got a surprise call from Discount RV Repairs in North Highlands - the Caboose was ready! We drove up to pick er up. The AC looks great, all the work looks nice....done 2 days early (6 days before original date given)....and about 1/2 the price of the quote from the jokers in Yuba City.  I can't believe they had great Yelp reviews. Lesson learned?


Not an actual photo of the Caboose - we have significant delaminating in the front

 

As we drove home with the Caboose, Michael got a huge grin on his face. "We're going to do this! In four days."  It was worth the work to see the total joy on his face in that moment....and that expression will keep us moving through the next four days of hard work to actually pull away from our "home."

 

 

Other fun for a down day - we checked out a historical spot we'd drive by for two years.

We finally grabbed lunch at 3 p.m.  I checked out the mega blenders at the BX and then met the family at the bowling ally.  (Photos compliments of Stacia).



Our next stop was Lowes for a quart of eggshell white paint, Sam's for a trailer size grill and Walmart....Walmart was a bust. We're looking for a 1 watt wifi antenna....need to find time to look at other places. We did get the measurements for a folding table we plan to use in the van while traveling.  Oh and Michael picked up ICE CREAM.....somehow tonight feels like a Sunday?

Four days and a wake-up......so much to do...but Michael says 80% of the work is behind us.

Fun Memories

The sorting, cleaning and rearranging of the past week often brought a smile to my face. Why? I continued to find nerf bullets in the most unlikely (and likely) spots.  Such great memories of battles past and battles recent.  We've made some great family memories in this house.

 

Here are the ones we found before the movers came.  

 

This one I see - but can't figure out HOW to get it down! This window is VERY high up...see the bullet laying on the edge?????

 

The first day the movers unearthed only two bullets. I knew there were more to come. Sure enough - when they moved the china hutch, I heard a, "Come quick with your camera." I couldn't figure out WHAT could be going on. Ah.....they found the mother lode.

 



I commented that this should be the last ones. No, Kenny insisted there was on "in the blind." I'm not sure there was. I suspect he said that because he knew I'd spend hours looking for the bullet in the blinds. LOL 

 

Yes, they ARE going in to the Caboose. The kids saved their guns and a couple of extra for Michael and me. I predict rousing Nerf Wars to continue.

 



Houshold Goods Gone

It is over....or at least the moving out of the house part of it is over. 

 

Next is the cleaning and prepping this house to hand over the keys part.

 

The sorting through the piles of "trailer stuff" to see what will really fit part.

 

The painting trim inside the trailer part.

 

The finding a bike solution part.

 

But for now....

 

We're just happy the moving household goods part is done. 

 

Our movers  are usually very appreciative of us - Michael used to drive for a moving company. I heard a couple of discussions and was told face to face how nice it was that the house was "so organized" and "so clean." They appreciated our signs and got a kick out of how prepared we were for them. One told me how kind my signs were, "Most don't say 'please' when talking to us." It always makes the work worthwhile. There was only piece of furniture that I didn't know what they would find when they  moved it....more on that later.

 

The ice water is greatly appreciated in this heat - and lunch goes a long way to making friends. LOL  Fetching ice, water, snacks and lunch also keeps me busy so I don't freak out about odd noises. Today, I took another load to Airmen's Attic.

 

As they become comfortable with us we hear the most amazing stories...like the man that told them, "If you get thirsty there is a hose on the side of the house," or the ones who refused to let them use the bathroom. We also heard of four families that decided to sign up for ONE military move....thinking no one would know there were actually four families moving. The military family was allowed 15,000 lbs and the move came in at 42,000 lbs. They were furious when they realized they had to pay $100 per pound over 15K. I'd say someone missed a briefing or two.

 

We haven't experienced many of the horror stories we hear about. These guys were equal to the famed Japanese movers...

 

Five dish packs out of the China Hutch. They were doing well until they realized they had to LOAD the China Hutch on to the truck. There was no way it was going to fit. Our rescue truck arrived and saved the day.  I was a bit alarmed at the clanging going on as they packed the china. Michael told them it was "high value," and it got instantly better.  We found evidence of past family fun behind the hutch....

Joel - I never got a photo of Dre

 

While they packed, we filled nail holes and removed wall decals.

 

The kids were happy to occupy themselves upstairs in the AC cooled rooms. 

 

 

We booked our first week's worth of campgrounds. I am ready to PLAY come 31 Aug, but Michael wisely shares our priority is to get settled in the trailer. This means we need to take things to the girls and storage to my parents. We'll put off playing another bit of time.  He's right - it will be a colossal pain to haul around so much stuff we plan to deliver at some point to OR. LOL

 

 

It's always sort of sad when movers leave. 



Kenny was an interesting character to talk with and kept the team moving well

 

We are settling into the minimalist lifestyle - few things but lots of space. LOL This is how we began our time at Beale. We were in the house a good two weeks before household goods arrived.

 

Michael fashioned a pan from the box so we could reheat pizza.

Life is good if you have Monopoly...

 

Look what they forgot to pack! We'll be the life of the campground. I envision inviting many camp hosts over for hot chocolate. ::snort::

We're done with the pack out a full day earlier than predicted.

Gherkins on the Move

Note to my OCD friends - while this isn't written in order of age, it is written in order of their moves. ::snort::

This is the summer of Gherkins on the Move....I thought I'd update a bit on the Gherkin movers.....seems appropriate as our house is currently filled with boxes and movers.

 Jamin (Gherkin 4)  established himself at Texas A&M at the Bush School of Government and Public Service. He's the vice president of a graduate student organization. He secured a job at Outback and then secured a couple of jobs which are geared more to his interests. He's tutoring history and political science majors - seems to be mostly athletes. He's also been offered the chance to oversee the energy sustainability program at A&M. I don't have numbers, but he saved quite a bit of pocket change for ASU with the program he instituted there. The difference is A&M is willing to give him a living salary for his efforts.  He's also finished a complete rewrite of a novel.  AND yes, he began classes yesterday and loves the classes to this point. I believe he is pursuing his second Masters in "International Affairs." He is looking to work in Foreign diplomacy and/or National Security.


Josiah (Gherkin 3) moved to the Seattle area. He's loving the change of weather and scenery which the state of Washington affords.

He does miss friends and brothers in Texas.

He's busy building a team of LEADERS (vs fast food servers), fielding questions and making a difference in the operation of a store with last month's 3rd largest sales in Chick Fil A. He's already seeing some low scores turn around. He's also had other operators call to chat with him about his leadership development system. We're proud of the steps he's taking.  We hope Chick Fil A will soon give him his own store - but nonetheless - he's learning good things and able to stretch in areas of leadership which excite him.

Arielle (Gherkin 6) moved to Oregon next. She's landed a job and a work study. She found a Japanese church she loves and she's conquering mountains.  Today is her first day of college classes at New Hope Christian College. She plans to major in Cross Cultural Ministry. The obstacles finally cleared and in God's perfect timing she and Krista (Gherkin 2) were able to move into a HOUSE to make a home. They've been busy settling in since the retirement - while we've been busy pulling up roots. ::Snort::

Arielle and Krista

Krista (Gherkin 2) deserves a post of her own, which I will write shortly. However, she's been accepted into a masters program at George Fox and will begin working towards a Masters in Education in January. She continues to work as a one on one aide in the Springfield school district and as a Children's Pastor at Lively Stone Fellowship.

Lindsay, Krista and Arielle

Meanwhile, Jared (Gherkin 5) has landed in D.C.  He's conquering the phone lines in Congressman Conaway's office and learning the ropes of his new position. ASU has given him permission to finish his last classes online and independently with a professor. This means he will not have to move back to TX for a final semester of college. He hopes to be able to find a job in DC and stay. We plan to be back in San Angelo for his graduation in May.  He's making the most out of his college years.

Jared in D.C. - lucky dog

 He has already been able to meet up with Arielle's best friends. This photo makes me miss all the families involved.

Miss these gals moms dearly!

As this is a post on moving Gherkins, I'll add our "first day of school" photo again - Nolan (Gherkin 7), Alex (Gherkin 8) and Stacia (Gherkin 9) are gearing up for a season of full timing in the Caboose - lots of transition and moving in their future too.

Nolan, Alex, Stacia

And Gherkin #1 - BreAnne? She and Izaak are settled into their darling apartment and are busy conquering new ministry and jobs. They haven't physically moved this summer - they're our anchor "Gherkins." Izaak works at New Hope Christian College and Bre serves as the Children's Pastor at Calvary Open Bible Church. They are expecting their first baby in April 2016.

Izaak and Bre

Eight of the nine Gherkins are moving around this season. It's a great season full of fodder for prayers.

Yuuki's Moving Day

Guest post by Yuuki

 

Its become apparent  Mom and Dad are preoccupied. I've done my best to remind them  I am HERE.

 

I've laid on the stairs as they scurried up and down.

 

I've tried to tempt them into walks - Mom hasn't taken me walking four FOUR DAYS.

 

Looking longingly at the leash resulted in it being put in a giant pile and a label affixed.

 

This morning three strange men took over our home. I howled an alarm, but no one seemed to care as they carried box after box out of our home.  I continued to whimper and howl until I realized my family simply didn't care if they were robbed blind.

 

I noticed all the most prized possessions had a special sign affixed to them. I wrangled this most audacious badge of honor from Stacia.

 

These men like music unlike any *I've* ever heard before.  I finally had all I could take and escaped to the neighbor's house. They knew the family would be lost without me and so I returned to guard the family until the men left.

 

The family keeps talking about the big pile moving into "The Caboose."  I'm not sure what has gotten into them. What could full-timing mean? Will I have a house to guard? I hear lots of talk about 6 foot leashes and stakes.  Stacia keeps talking about snow and Mom and Dad keep mention Snow Birds. I've hunted a lot of birds before, but I can't remember this type. I sense my life is about to change. 

 

It was a long day. Moving is tiring.  

First Day of School????

I've noted everyone posting "first day of school" pictures online today. Here's ours....

Nolan 10th, Alex 7th/8th, Stacia 5th; subject to change

 

We are off until after Labor Day - I think. We have enough days banked from the summer.

 

The movers showed up today at 1045. Significantly later than 0830, but they called to say they'd be late. They did work until 1845. The asked to use Stacia's CD player; we said yes.... and we listened to loud rock all day.....  I was glad when they went home.

 

I was also glad to run an errand for bottled water, ice and lunch for the packers.

 

I love how this illustrates their personalities

 

The house is emptying out - upstairs and garage is done. 

 

Edward, co-owner of the company, called to ask if we could skip a day of packing. Um....no. We need to get this part of the show done....so we can clean, and sort through the many trailer piles.

 

We heard from Discount RV repairs again. It seems that Carrier made our AC unit - and the furnace is integrated into it. Carrier went out of business five years ago. No one else makes this type of unit. He is buying a new AC to install and it will pump through the ducts....and the furnace will get a separate thermostat. This is going to take longer than he expected. He's still thinking Thursday or Friday...we prayed for Saturday.

 

We're getting there. That light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter. 

Minimal Wardrobe

We have no drawers in the trailer. We have a closet and a tiny shelf above our bed.  Ignore the peeling trim - fixing it is on the to do list.  There is no storage space under the bed; no room to put anything extra in our room.  I kept hearing about capsule wardrobes in full timing forums.  I simply couldn't limit my choices to  one or two colors.

Michael had no trouble picking out clothes for the trailer. He put the rest into storage. I thought I had my closet whittled down. Close comparison of these two photos raised a few suspicions.

 

I happily loaded the clothes into a suitcase...and went a long way to filling a second. Reality hit. There was NO way I'd get two suitcases of clothes into the space in the first photo. I put the clothes back in the closet and stared at them. These were my favorite clothes. I had to reduce by another 50%. I donated several items and gave myself the freedom to put the rest in storage. 

Yes, I pack on hangars. It's nice to have the hangars and they don't wrinkle.

I decided denim was my core color. LOL Jeans, capris, shorts, jacket, skirts...and they'll go with any color shirt. I also have a pair of gray and khaki pants. They'll also go with most anything. Each piece (except the dresses) can be paired several different ways. As for winter - I'll add long sleeves and jackets - included here.  I narrowed down the shoes to these and a pair of shower shoes, sandals and tennis shoes. Michael said he thought this would fit in the trailer. I'm not 100% sure.

 

The shoes and sock proved to be the hardest to downsize. I did NOT donate any socks to Airmen's Attic. I pitched them. LOL These socks prompted Stacia to suggest we buy a pair of socks from each stop, rather than a magnet. I approve - not sure the rest of the family will.

New Mexico, Arizona

 

To the above I added jeans, workout clothes and undergarments. It all fit in one suitcase. Why a suitcase? Because the trailer isn't here to pack!  It's not a capsule, but it will work. 

 

I still have never soaked in this tub. Why soak inside when you have a backyard onsen? LOL We stored the mattresses from the trailer here - ready to camp out at home until we can load into the trailer.  And all my clothes are in that one suitcase.

I keep reminding myself this downsizing, this tiny living - is all training to live in a small Japanese apartment. We can do this. We can do this with a sense of humor and joy.