Life Lately: Our Move to PA
It’s been quiet around here for a combination of reasons. We had our big move from CO to PA three weeks ago and my computer went on the fritz so that’s down for the count currently. The disconnection has been so good for me though. Lately I’ve just wanted to dive back into this space, so I’m tapping out this life update from my phone because so much has gone on lately. 
First I’ll start by saying hello 2017! I’m excited for a new year and although 2016 was good to us, I’m excited for a new year. December was nothing short of chaotic, busy, and life changing for us. In the midst of it all it felt long and relentless, but it’s behind us. Remember when I said that come January we would exhale in relief that we made it through. We are here and settled….mostly…in PA. Getting here, that was a doozy.
Our last weeks in Colorado went quickly for us. Ryan had to be in PA part of it, things were busy for family members so we didn’t get as much time as we hoped, etc.
Ryan and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary on the 5th. We didn’t do anything to celebrate really but it seemed to fit just fine this year. A simple normal before the chaos of moving broke out.
We had movers this time which I was really looking forward to…until the first 20 minutes they arrived. Now I just wish I would have packed myself. Maybe I’ll elaborate more on that at a later time but let’s just say the two days of movers was a bit….rowdy.
Our very last day in CO went extremely fast and there wasn’t nearly enough hours in the day. We finished up cleaning our CO home for the new owners – which always takes longer than planned – and squeezed in visits with both my mom and my grandparents. It was crazy and a wee bit stressful but we knew we needed one last “see you soon” with both.
Sunday was nothing short of a circus. We had early flights, pets to get to cargo, final things to stuff into our suitcases, and none of it went nearly as smoothly as we had in our minds it would. Our day involved everything including but not limited to: migraines, cat bites, sickness, Ryan + our Yorkie boarding as the last passengers, and two trips to our airport in Philly.
Phew. Just replaying it all in my head made me tired. Let’s just say I’m glad we made it through.
Monday we closed on our house (hooray!!) & dealt with a kiddo with a 24-hour tummy bug. Tuesday we got our new carpet installed and had our house cleaned (the sellers left it a mess). Wednesday we moved in officially to our house and the movers brought our stuff.
The following days were just trying to get through the sea of boxes that were a total cluster-mess. The movers didn’t pack in any sort of fashion that made sense for most of our stuff which was a total bummer. It was quite the ordeal and really made us reconsider having any sort of movers again in the future. But we made it through.
Ryan got a Christmas tree for our home that first Saturday during a trip to the hardware store and surprised the kids. They were so excited to have one in our new house. We spent Sunday evening decorating the tree as a family.
We kept things simple with decorations around the house and it was perfect. The tree was the spotlight of our home with no furniture in the living room it took centerstage. I always love watching the kids grow and change for each holiday.
Our first Christmas in our home was low-key and exactly what we needed. In some ways it didn’t feel like Christmas but we did Chicken and Noodles for Christmas Eve dinner like I’ve done every year for quite some time now. My sous-chef was quite the helper.
Christmas morning was filled with a happy set of kids with their Santa gifts – a scooter and a ride-on toy. They spent all day on those gifts. We had presents from all of the grandparents to open so we spread it out all throughout the day.
I love how it worked out because they got time to see what they got each round we did of opening presents. We didn’t do a specific order really but we did a few at a time and told them who they were from. It seemed like the kids really were able to see what they had gotten before moving on to the next thing.
Ryan surprised me with a new oil shelf for Christmas! I can honestly say I was totally surprised this year. Usually I get tipped off on a gift when we exchange them but this year I was completely clueless. His tools are still packed in the garage (the one place we haven’t gotten to yet) so getting this done was quite the effort but oh my goodness I love it so much! It’s so beautiful and I know how much work and thought went into it.
So here we are, at that point of feeling like we can finally breathe. Being on the flipside of the move is a weight lifted. Everything in the house is unpacked and has found a home – excluding a few boxes in the basement. It’s feeling like home, for all of us. It feels good.
I’ll be back very soon with more writing. I’ve been missing this space. 🙂
