MOVING DAY!!!!

MOVING DAY finally arrived this past Saturday....here are some highlights from our adventure!

First of all we had been feverishly working to get it all packed up in time. We were up until 1:30 in the morning trying to finish up. Then..Brian got up at 5am and I got up at 6:30am and we continued to get ready!

The moment finally arrived when the truck pulled up at 8:45am! How HUGE I thought to my self.....little did I know......

The first thing you do is take the movers on a tour of your home and show them all that needs to be taken. I showed them the house first and they were pretty pleased at how organized everything was. All the boxes were labeled with color coded tabs on multiple sides stating what room they were to go into. I also told them that we had a garage full......they said...ok, no biggy, we'll pull the truck around back and start there.

When I met them back there and opened the door.....both of their jaws hit the floor! You see...I really meant it when I said that garage was "FULL". Allow me to show you....

This side of the garage is filled with all my things that I never got to open or put away from my old house.

And this side is all of Brian's things.....From over the years......

So....yes....it was pretty much full from wall to wall......They guys just laughed at themselves and said "this is going to be a long day" But, they joked and laughed and made the best of it. When they finally finished clearing out the garage; that "huge" truck was nearly HALF FULL!!!! They told me there was no way they were going to get it all in one load like they quoted us over the phone. They proceeded to load all the boxes from the house...

Which...as you can see....was a lot more boxes and "stuff". The Moving truck reached maximum capacity just as the last box was moved in.....and off we went!
After lunch they off loaded everything and had to come back for all the furniture (which...some had to be taken a part to move) By 5:30pm we were on the road again!

FINALLY by 8:45pm all was in the new house....put back together....and put in it's correct room.
So...if you've been keeping track of the times that was a full 12 HOUR MOVE!!!!!!
Needless to say the 2 men who moved everything were tired and soar...and so was our credit card! OUCH! But....at least our backs were saved along with those of our friends and family who offered to help us. I mean come on....if it took the pro's 12 hours...can you imagine how long it would take us???? with no pro equipment...and no big truck?????? NO WAY!!!

I'm soooooo thankful we were able to hire movers!!!! WHAT A BLESSING!!!!

All in all even though it was a long day, it was a huge success.....which, by the way, would not have been possible if it wasn't for my fabulous parents! They were there for us when ever we needed them....we borrowed things, they brought us food....and they helped us get our bed ready and our shower set up so we could go to bed clean and happy! Ah....what would we have done without them!

So...for your viewing pleasure....here is a before and after!

Now the fun begins as we unpack and organize our new home......

And sell the old one!

MY BROTHER THE SOLDIER!

My brother Thomas graduated from the Army on 29th of May in Fort Benning Georgia.
On the 28th there was a "Turning Blue" Ceremony.....Sort of like a right of passage type thing; to signify they were ready to be called Soldiers of the United States Infantry. It was something I will never forget!

They all marched in from the woods divided into their platoons. As they came in they were all saying one of their cadences. It sounded majestic! I tried to video record it on my camera but it didn't work. I wanted to remember that sound!

Thomas was apart of the Echo company. I spotted him out of the crowd even when he was far away. He's 4th from the right....in the front row!

This is a closer shot!



At one point in the service they had one member of the soldier's family come and pin on the blue chord. (I snuck up there too to take a picture!!!!) We couldn't miss this! Look how proud my dad looks!
Yeah us! We all took turns taking a photo with our brother....Our nation's next Hero!
After the service Thomas had a few hours to where he could leave the base and hang out with his family. We all went to Applebee's for lunch. It was so cool to see the brother I knew as a goofy, slouching, all around fun guy turn into someone who opened doors, stood up straight, say yes mam and no sir....but still that funny goofy guy I love. He had a different way about him. One that showed respect and demanded it in return. It's hard to explain....All I can say is I was proud! After a few hours of story telling and pool time he headed back to the base....Tomorrow was GRADUATION!

The ceremony started off with a band; when they left the field you heard all kinds of gun shots and what sounded like bombs going off. The field before us filled with green and purple smoke. Out from the smoke soldiers appeared....they were equally spread through out the whole field. Eventually they made their way up to us....It was a demonstration of all the different weapons they had learned to use. Riffles, grenade launchers, and I can't remember all their names...but one was used to blow up a tank!

(Thomas said that was really fun to shoot!!!)

Next, they had the drill Sargent's come together with men who carried the flags for the National Anthem.
Here is a closer shot of Thomas standing behind and to the right of his drill Sargent. He really had a lot of respect for this man; Drill Sargent Larson.
After they repeated the Soldier's creed and sang the Infantry song each platoon marched by us so we could see our soldier up close. Unfortunately, I didn't get a good shot of this.

Afterward we all got to go out on the field....which by the way, was made from soil that was collected from every battle ground the U.S. has ever fought on. (cool huh!)



While Thomas went back to get his gear....for he now had a weekend pass....All of us sisters took turns taking photo's together. For whatever reason; this one of Connie and I was the only one that would upload. Don't we look cool in our sunglasses?
Once our free weekend with Thomas began....the fun never ended. Unfortunately once the fun started.....the photo taking stopped! I'm not the type to stop and remember to pull out my camera! We did get some shot's by the pool....but I'll spare you having to see us all in swimsuits! Besides swimming we did a lot of shopping at the PX (a giant military mall where they don't have to pay taxes!!!!) And lots of eating out! We also had a game night by the pool and got to hear many funny stories about Thomas's adventure!
This was the only "fun" picture I got. It was our last day when we were all hanging out; Dad, Me, Connie, Mom, Thomas, and Trisha.


It was hard to say goodbye....but it wasn't that bad since we know he gets to have leave to come home sometime in July! I can't wait! From there.....it will be a little more difficult for he will be moving to Italy for sometime and serving over in Afghanistan. But for now....he is in Airborne Training! I know he'll have a blast with that! It was a much needed vacation with much needed family time! I'm sooooo thankful my wonderful husband was ok with me going!