Moving Day

The whole family helped Sarah and Chris move into their new home.

May 24, 2018: Sarah's Jeep, Brenda's truck, Jake's Kia, my Traverse.

It took two days longer than predicted, but yesterday my daughter Sarah and her husband Chris finally closed on the house they've been working on buying. They are now proud and thrilled to be first-time homeowners!

Chris's mom, Brenda, in the enclosed porch at the front of the house.

Due to the deal taking longer to close than expected, and due to everyone's crazy work schedules, we had to get them moved into their place last night while everyone was available to help. I wrongly thought that it wouldn't take long. After all, they didn't have that much furniture in their tiny apartment, right? I should have known better. We all own so much more stuff than we ever realize...until we move. What I expected would take just a couple of hours actually took closer to five hours in total (Chris and his mom, Brenda, got started before we joined in at 5:45). It was 9:30 before Mark and I got home last night.

Brenda's truck carries the second load from the old apartment.

Sadly, that meant I missed the high school graduation of my niece Haley last night. I'm so sorry, Haley! I truly wanted to be there to celebrate with you. But congratulations on a job well-done. We're all so proud of you!

Two of the Webb boys on their way to grab more furniture from the truck,

while Chris, Mark, and Dylan carry in a long, heavy dresser.

Honestly, I hate to think how long this task would have taken us if it weren't for Aaron Webb and his two sons, who came immediately to assist, even after being asked at the last minute. Their three pairs of tireless hands and their trailer made a HUGE difference. We are so grateful for them.

The Webb trailer holds the larger items from the third and final load.

This was taken right outside their former apartment, by the storage shed.

Although I knew that Sarah and Chris had a large storage shed filled with boxes of the things they couldn't fit into their apartment, I don't think I realized the actual scope and sheer number of the belongings they'd had to put on hold for the past almost-seven years. (Their seventh anniversary is coming up on July 30th.)

Chris and Jake (my two sons-in-law) chat while emptying out the

storage shed that held all the stuff that didn't fit into their apartment.

I wish that I'd taken a picture of the storage shed before they'd started removing things from it. There were boxes on the shelves in back, plus the entire floor was covered with stacks and stacks of boxes, literally up to waist-high and taller. No walking room between piles. Unbelievable!

The storage shed was entirely emptied after all their belongings came out.

A great many of those boxes in the storage shed contained gifts from their wedding in July 2011. They'd received so many nice things that they haven't had the space to use...until now. What fun they'll have going through those gifts now and deciding where and how to use them in the new home. It will be almost like everything is new again. In fact, many of those gifts have probably become forgotten over the years, so they can be happily surprised all over again!

The Webb family trailer at the new house with the final load.

Sarah and Chris's new place is a single-wide mobile home, about the same size as my small house. Mine is 1,200 square feet and theirs is 1,100. They have much more storage than I do, though. I notice mobile home designers have a great gift for efficient usage of limited space. So, while their new place isn't huge, it is spacious enough, especially when compared to their former apartment, which was extremely small. (See the last five photos at the end of this post.)

They worked so fast, the trailer was nearly empty by the time I took pictures!

Sarah picked up several pizzas and some soda to enjoy after the bulk of the work was done. She sent one whole pizza and a 2-liter soda home with the Webb men, and then the rest of us relaxed amid the boxes and piles while munching on slices of pizza. There was a tangible sense of a job well-done.

Looking from the front door, across the living room, to the kitchen.

Let's give them a month or two (or three; we all know how long it takes to get totally moved in) to sift through all their goods and organize their new home. Then I'll be back with a another blog post, to share what their new home looks like once they're all settled in, with everything in its intended place!

Jake, Brenda, Dylan, Chris, and Sarah check out the living room window.

It was about eighty degrees in their house by the time we were done!

As a parent, there really isn't anything more satisfying than seeing your children happy and settled into a good life. It brings me great peace to watch my kids working to build a strong foundation, even while facing the hardships and challenges that inevitably arise. I'm so proud of them all.

The kitchen counters hold their share of moving boxes, etc.

Congratulations on your new home, Sarah and Chris!

The master bedroom with a corner tub in the attached master bath.

A nice, roomy closet in the new master bedroom. Compare to the

tiny closet space in their former apartment, at the bottom of this post.

The futon is nestled into the third bedroom.

The room I'm most jealous of: an actual laundry room!

All I have in my house is a cramped laundry closet!

This was the entire kitchen of Sarah and Chris's former apartment.

These final five photos are a last look at the now-empty, tiny apartment Sarah and Chris have shared since their marriage almost seven years ago. It's been a nice little place, allowing them to live cheaply while they saved money for a down payment and closing costs on their own home someday. However, it was also a minuscule little place to live in!

This other half of the room with the kitchen was their "living room."

Can you see why I thought we'd be able to move them within a couple of hours? After all, how much could they squeeze into such a small apartment? However, much of what we moved came from the previously-mentioned storage shed behind their apartment.

This 8' x 10' space was their bedroom. Nice tiled floors, though.

This was Sarah and Chris's total closet space, before.

Very nice bathroom, although the shower was quite small.

Again, these final five photos show their former apartment.