New Beginnings

Quick recap on what's been going on...

Bipul and Rose both celebrated their birthdays on Friday!!!!!!!!! Happy Birthday to you both!

Rose with her stack of b-day ice cream

Sadly Bipul was in Omaha, but we got to say hello via FaceTime while we were hanging out over at Will and Rose's place. We also played a hysterical round of "The Game of Things." Katie... it is your game... Anna just found it at her apartment! You are going to have to come back to get it. ;-)

Other than that there's just been a lot of working, unpacking, eating baddies, and zero exercising. That combination does not make for a happy Babs. However, the weekend (although at times it felt like it) was not completely bleak. Andy and I did go to the cheap movie theater to see Star Trek (which I actually enjoyed), and Lisa, Anna, and I went to a farmer's market on Sunday, which was very nice.

Moving on...

Now that the Gorton's are back from their lovely trip to Cape Cod, I am finally officially living in my new place. Seems like a good time to start fresh as not only is it a new place, but also is only one year (369 days to be exact) until W-day.

This morning started off with group training with Vinny. Anna joined Sarah and I, making it more of a party! Fun and hard! And then... the moment I've been waiting for...

I RODE MY BIKE TO WORK!!!!!!!!

First big trip!

Here I go!!!

I will admit, I was nervous, lol. I'd never taken a bike onto a real road, so I made sure to pick less busy streets to get to work (even though it probably was a little further). It was both thrilling and terrifying!!! And it was also a lot harder than I thought it would be! My legs are tired as I type this, and I still have to bike home. Of course my legs could be tired because of training this morning too. But anyway... it was fun! I'm glad I have that as an option.

Tonight I will go home and cook dinner for the first time in the new kitchen. As promised, here's a shot of my newly organized fridge. Gotta love that Dollar Store!

It has more groceries in it now

Alright time to get ready for my bike trip home. As I told both Sarah and Andy this morning... if I become paralyzed and mute, I'd like it to be known that someone needs to train for the NYC marathon and push me along in a buggy someday. Hopefully that won't be an issue. ;-)

It feels so good to be back on the healthy path!!

Room reveal: dining room

Now that my friends Anna and Nicole have each started their own blog, and my friend Sheena has revitalized her old blog, I'm feeling more inspired to keep posting on a more regular basis.

It's mostly been more of the same... working, trying to unpack, and spending my nights with Sass. However, something happened to me on my drive home after work yesterday that has not happened to me in years.... I got rear-ended. Awesome.

I was stopped at a red light in a long line of cars... and then, bam, the guy behind me hits me. Now... he had been sitting there too for awhile, so my assumption was that someone hit him, and he slid into me. We pulled over to the side of the road, and out gets this older man, probably in his late 60s. He apologized - turns out his foot just slipped off the brake and he rolled into me. My car looked fine, I was fine, so we just parted ways. He probably rolled into me at 2 miles an hour, so it genuinely was not a big deal, but at the time it was a "you have got to be kidding me" moment.

Red light menace

Anywho, I got back to the new place and began doing all the things. I cleaned out the fridge...

See? They did NOT clean before they left

I got the fridge all organized thanks to some Dollar Store purchases (I will take a picture of it for next time). Once I got the kitchen cleaned up, I turned my attention to the dining room. That mostly consisted of moving boxes/furniture/giant bins to the rooms where they actually belonged.... that meant lots of stairs.... I was dripping sweat. But the end result was a cleaned up (although pretty bare) dining room!

Check out our beverage bar! (still in progress)

The night ended with a trip to Wegmans to eat some dinner (I usually really like their prepared foods, but I would now advise staying away from the vegetarian indian meatballs...gross), followed by a little grocery shopping for the new place. Then it was back out to Sarah's parents to hang out with Sass.

Considering the short amount of time I had after work to actually get some work done on the new place, I'm pretty pleased with the progress I made. More of the same tonight!

PS - The grass has now been mowed! However, he doesn't cut it very short, so I'm sure it will be looking unruly in the near future.

PGA comes to town

Yesterday was pretty blah except for about a total of 5 minutes at Job #2 last night.... the PGA is in town this week and all of the golfers have access to the club. I checked in probably 6 different golfers last night, but honestly didn't know any of them. Apparently earlier in the day Tiger Woods came in, and Rory McIlroy the day before... those are about the only two I would have a chance of recognizing. So, not really that exciting, but it was kind of cool nonetheless. I'm not really into golf at all, but Andy is - he actually went to the practice round yesterday and said it was VERY cool. :-)

And now for some pictures.

A close-up of my scarf (still drying)

 

Outside of the new place

I'm not sure if you can fully appreciate how unruly the grass is in this picture, but seriously... it's out of control. I'm about to ask if I can borrow the mower and do it myself. Also keep in mind we only have the left half of the house... there's no way I could keep that whole thing clean!

Kitchen

The kitchen is the room that's the most unpacked at this point, which is why I chose to show you guys this shot. More pictures of other rooms will come shortly, I promise. :-)

Well that's about it for now... after work I'll be going back to the new place to try to get more done. Since I worked both jobs yesterday I wasn't even there for a second, so I lost a day... which means I've got some work do to. Wish me luck!

Make It Work

Where to even start...

Guys, I'm not going to lie. I'm tired. I'm overwhelmed. I'm eating like Michael Phelps' (minus the swimming to burn off the thousands of calories). Weight gain and no tanning for two weeks means I feel extra ugly. I need a pause button.

The move from hell is over, and now I've entered the black spiral of unpacking.

Counter of death

For better or worse, we've unpacked the kitchen and the bathroom, put the bed together (after sawing the box spring in half to get it up the stairs...dead serious) and arranged our bedroom, and also figured out (I think) where furniture will go in the guest room. Then there's the living room. Furniture placement for the living room is still up for debate (maybe), but let's just say... we see things differently.

While the new place is in a MUCH better location (we seriously love where it is), it is challenging in that it is an older property and does not have the same amenities (mainly closets) that we were so used to having. It's going to take some creativity to make it all work, but eventually I think we'll get it sorted out. So far, this is my favorite storage solution we've come up with...

Measuring cups inside the cabinets

Andy stayed at the new place for the first time last night. I'm still hanging out with Sass, so won't be staying there until the weekend, which gives me a little more time to get things in order before having to live in the thick of it.

In addition to unpacking, Andy and I spent a good portion of the weekend bargain hunting. Thanks to Craigslist we now have two new (to us) bookshelves and a bike for Andy - we actually rode our bikes across the street to CVS, so that was very exciting. We also hit up a community garage sale at the public market and got a few things there too.

One of our Craigslist purchases in the back of a pickup truck

On Sunday afternoon we took a break from bargain hunting and met up with Lisa, Will, Rose, and Rose's mother Judith at the Park Ave Festival. The weather was perfect, and even though my body was tired from all the moving, it was nice to walk around at an easy pace just to look at things.

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My favorite part of the festival was making my own silk scarf. I watched people do it at a different festival earlier in the year and had thought about it multiple times since then, so I knew if I had the opportunity to make one this time, I'd do it.

Making my own scarf

The trough is full of water, and you basically sprinkle paint into the water, run a straw or comb through it however you choose, and voila! They lay a blank white scarf in the trough and all of the color transfers to it instantly. It's currently hanging up to dry, but I will make sure to take a picture of it to post on here.

After the festival we stopped at Will and Rose's for a bit. I'm not sure if finding new solutions for things while unpacking stirred up my creative juices, or if bargain hunting sparked something in me to keep looking for deals, but while at Will and Rose's place, I spotted a pile of old fence pieces that were going to be thrown away. I dug through them, and now I'm saving three of them, in hopes I can somehow use them for the wedding.

Free wedding decor

 Any ideas?? I have a few already but am not sold on any of them quite yet. After some serious review of the wedding budget I now realize I'm going to have to be quite creative and make a lot of things myself. Hopefully I'll keep stumbling across free things that I can re-purpose!

Alright that's all for now. Basically what it comes down to is there is just too much to do and too much going on right now. I will need to prioritize, and make sure I put 'taking care of myself' at or near the top of the list. Ugh. Why is everything always so hard?

The Perfect Storm

I'm not a stranger to moving... even as a kid we moved from Texas (not sure how many places we lived there) to Washington (lived in 3 places there), then a quick move to Pennsylvania... then back to Washington (4 more places). Then I was off to college, lived in the dorm, then two different units in the Wilsonian, and then a move to Radford Court... followed by a drive across the country into Manhattan Square while I went to Eastman... then Andy and I moved out to Greece, then the Mills (where we've been for 4 years), and now finally... our new place.

As you can see, I can count 16 different times I've had to move... and more than one of those times being thousands of miles away. But this one just might take the cake.

1) We arrived at the rental place on Wednesday morning to pick up our U-haul that we had reserved for 48 hours. They had our reservation in their system as only being for 26 hours. Problem.

2) As we pull the U-haul into our apartment parking lot we were greeted by... another U-haul. Turns out another family was moving out the same day. Let the battle over the elevator start... Problem.

Ours is the little one

- Do you notice how they've positioned their truck so their ramp completely blocks the sidewalk to our truck? Let that be a small indication about how fun it was to move with these people. To say I hated the guy that was moving is the understatement of the century. I wanted to punch him on multiple occasions, but based on his girth, it would have hurt me a lot more than it would hurt him. I did give him the stink eye though... a lot.

3) We ended up using the stairs a lot more than planned because of the elevator situation. Remember, I recently had knee surgery. Problem.

4) As Andy and Will (omg thank you SO SO SO much Will for all of your help!!!) were moving the couch down the stairs this was happening.... "watch the light... good... just a little more... watch the light... good.. ok... watch the light..." Problem.

We did not watch the light...

5) As you might be able to guess by the earlier picture, our truck was too small and we weren't even close to fitting everything in. Problem.

6) We weren't able to get the keys to the new place until 6pm. We told him about our truck situation and asked if we could start unloading (we weren't really supposed to move in until the next day). He said we could in a few hours because... the old tenants still had to come back to clean. Problem.

7) We came back at 8pm with a brigade of 5 cars full of stuff (THANK YOU WILL, LISA, AND ALYSSA!). Our new landlord was feverishly trying to clean as it appears the old tenants decided not to actually come back and do that themselves. Now we are trying to empty the cars, while not getting in the way of him doing a rush job to try to clean up after delinquent tenants. Problem.

8) Next day... we woke up at 6am and go to unload the U-haul. It is POURING rain. Problem.

9) Because we were in a rush to get things off the truck so we could get it returned, we pretty much just put everything on the first floor. Side note... Andy's dad woke up at the crack of dawn to drive out to help us (another HUGE thank you!!!). Because of the rain, the new place is now covered in mud. Problem.

10) Now it's time to get the furniture in the right rooms. Mattresses go upstairs. Box springs...do NOT go upstairs. WTF?!? Seriously you have got to be kidding me. Massive Problem.

- We paused here because we seriously were about to lose it. Andy and I took Lisa and Will out to lunch at Wegmans (they both came over that morning to help with coffee and donuts...so so so nice of them).

An assortment of cookies - we ate our feelings

11) After lunch, Andy and I headed back to the old place to clean. It took a long time but I will say... we did a mother f*cking good job. However, even with wearing gloves, my fingers felt raw and my cuticles felt like they were on fire. Problem.

12) Finally at 6pm we decided to call it a day... a very busy 12 hours. We headed back to Sarah's parent's house (thank God for house/cat sitting) and ordered a pizza. It came (cold) at 8:30pm. Problem.

- I had dealt with enough problem's already so I called that place and gave them a piece of my mind. I now have a credit for a free pizza in the future.

13) This morning before work, we stopped by the new place again. Andy tried his key for the first time. It does not go in the lock. At all. We both tried many times. Problem.

- Thankfully the hardware store is right down the street, so we just went and had copies made.

14) Then we went to the old place to meet the professional carpet cleaners that we hired (mandatory for our complex). A woman (about our age) named "Essence" showed up 40 minutes late with basically a vacuum and spot bot. We could have rented something and done better... Problem.

15) Due to an unfortunate accident several years ago with super glue and the refrigerator, Andy had ordered parts for our old fridge so he could fix it himself and not lose money out of our deposit. They were supposed to be in already. After tracking them down all day yesterday and this morning, we found out they didn't actually send the order to the factory until today. Our walk through is this afternoon... Problem.

Is that enough for you? Because it's enough for me.. and honestly those are not even the only problems... there are many more. But before I leave for our walk through, let's end on a good note...

Andy and I are so lucky to have the support system we have here. My boss at Job #1 loaned us his dolly and even offered us a bedroom to stay in during the move (which of course we didn't need, but that was so nice of him to offer). My boss at Job #2 offered to let us park the U-haul at her house overnight so it would be in a safe place. Will busted his butt to help us get in and out of each place, and did it with nothing but a smile and some much needed optimism. Alyssa and Lisa both came over at the drop of a hat to help us load and unload things using their cars. Also a double "props" to Lisa and Will for surprising us with some Thursday morning sustenance. That was amazing. Andy's dad was able to adjust his work schedule to help us unload the truck at an ungodly hour... and remember he had to drive an hour just to get to where we are... so he was up REALLY early. We are so lucky.

And on top of that Andy and I worked side by side the whole time and only yelled at each other once, which considering all that's listed above is a freaking miracle. Things are not always perfect between us (which is perfectly normal) but the fact that we can make it through something so trying together and be such a good team... well, it makes me even more excited to marry him. Honestly, I think training and running the marathon together really helped us over these last two days - we both know we both have the ability to work hard and endure, even when times are miserable, to make it out on the other end. Shoot, if we can make it through this, we can make it through anything.

Ok, time for the final walk through to be officially done with State Street. Although I'm so glad to be in a new area, I will admit, I'm a little sad to say goodbye.

The Times They Are A-Changin'

There's been so much going on and so many changes. I'm not going to attempt to get everything in the right order, so here's a random account of this transitioning time.

Job #1
My best friend at Job #1 is Rebecca. Sadly, Monday was her last day as she is moving to Cincinnati to become a prick - err, I mean, a conductor. ;-) She's starting a very challenging masters program in conducting at CCM - which means I am sure to be entertained by her crazy stories, but sadly it also means I won't get to see my friend Monday through Friday anymore. Who will rescue me from office baddies with her stash of carrots and hummus? Who will I get an afternoon diet coke with? Who will save me with a fake important phone call when someone annoying comes in my office? :-(

Rebecca at her going away cake party

The cake I actually wanted to give her

My parting gifts

Besides the fact that Rebecca is kind, caring, wickedly smart, very witty, and obsessively organized (something I admire very much), she knows about my food weirdness and still likes me just the same. I LOVE my very healthy snacks box... I promise to only put healthy things in it!!! And also the food permit (it's my pass to have baddies), which sadly I should have used last night... stupid baddies. Anyway, all that to say, I WILL MISS YOU RE-DOUBLE B- ECA!

Packing/Moving
We are, dare I say, finally packed. Andy and I spent the entire weekend packing things up. Even after getting rid of a ton, we still have so much stuff... it's ridiculous. Anyway, we get the truck tomorrow morning, will load it up and clean clean clean. Then Thursday we unload at the new place. I'm so glad that this is almost "over" - which it's totally not because then I have to unpack, but you get the gist. I'm also very nervous about moving without tons of help. I know I'm fairly useful but even just packing has really made my knee flare up... stupid knee. I just hope it lasts me enough to make it through Wednesday and Thursday. Of everything, I think I'm dreading cleaning the most. :-/

So many things....

House/Cat Sitting
The light in this whole moving transition time is the ability to escape to a calm house each night for house/cat sitting. After a request for a picture of Sass... here she is!

Sass! I think she's about to fall asleep :-)

Wedding
Ugh. My mom and I are trying to "finalize" a budget outline by Friday. It's overwhelming to try to guess how much things will cost, making sure we don't forget about things... It all costs so much money, and added up it seems even worse. She's talking about getting a second job, my dad writing more articles... I feel like I should get a second job too, but wait, oh I already have one just to afford to breathe each month. How can it be that something I've dreamed about as a little girl can turn out to be so stressful once the time comes? But it isn't all stressful... when you can ignore the finances, it's actually very fun. On Saturday Andy and I went to look at wedding rings so we knew how much they cost. This one was my favorite...

Much more sparkly in the magic lights at the store!

While there, I left my engagement ring to be sized. It takes two weeks, so I figured it was a good time to do it - it will be in safe hands while I'm using mine to schlep boxes on and off a truck.

Ok friends, I know there's more to write about like: how my upper back is sore (in a good way) from training with Sarah on Monday morning. How we went to celebrate Andy's dad's birthday in Buffalo last night, got back way too late, and how I devoured a sleeve of crackers with peanut butter. How I had lost another 1.6 pounds last week (but gained them all back post-cracker fest). How I feel ugly because I've stopped drying my hair, but it saves time and I'm having a hard time caring. But we can save all of that and more for another day.

Time for lunch.

Packingpalooza

Guys... this is my 200th blog post! That's a lot of typing and picture taking lol. Thanks for sticking around and continuing to read the play by play of my days - the good, the bad, and the probably somewhat boring.

Currently Andy and I have initiated our "packing plan of attack." With less than a week until moving day, I've assigned rooms for us to tackle each day. Over the last two evenings we've managed to basically get everything upstairs packed away. We. have. so. much. stuff. And when I say we have so much stuff, I really mean I. have. so. many. clothes. Andy's decided I'm a hoarder. But he didn't think that until we started packing... so at least I've been able to hide it, which must mean I'm an organized hoarder, haha.

Everything was going well until a shelf fell on my bare foot.

Return of the frozen peas

Yes, those are the same peas that lived on my knee for at least a week after surgery. Those things have thawed/frozen/thawed/frozen so many times... they're bound to be riddled with E. coli, salmonella, etc. I will definitely throw them out rather than taking them to the new place!

All in all, Andy and I are making a very good team - he is excellent at throwing things away, we are both good at setting things aside for donations, and I am a good packer. We've made some good progress.

Piles of boxes

Thankfully house/cat sitting starts tonight. Our apartment is half covered in boxes and half destroyed. It's getting tough to live in, so I am VERY thankful we have a calm place to retreat to each day. Which also means when we're in our apartment, we can really get down to business - this weekend we are tackling the bathroom and kitchen. Yuck.

Wish us luck!