About the Move: ABF

This move was both one of the easiest, the hardest, the quickest, and most drawn out of the many, many moves of our marriage (this was #7).  We normally go with the DIY method of renting a large truck with car trailer, but I this time I took a risk and we moved by "container".

After surfing the interwebs and price comparing, I decided that ABF was the way to go.  ABF offers a number of options, but we chose the container move.  This means that a 28' truck trailer is delivered to your home, and you pack it.  Then, THEY move it.  YES.  No driving a giant truck while hauling a car trailer behind you.  No $150 fill-ups so you can drive 100 miles and do it again.  And best of all, we had 5 days to pack it up!  

(picture from justinsomnia.com)

The 5 days is where it started to turn into the "longest" move thus far.  5 days meant we didn't have to rush, but it also meant that it felt like FOREVER.  Add to that the transit time (2 days for us), and that the pick-up doesn't count, and well, it turned into an 11 day move.  Despite the drawn-out process, I was totally impressed with the customer service, the price, the timing, and the outcome.  Let me break it down.  

Customer Service:  I first submitted our info for an online quote.  Within 2 days, I had a call from customer service to go over the details.  I didn't make a reservation at that time (this was about 6 months before our actual move), but once we nailed down our timeline, I called and locked in the quote. About a month before the move, I was contacted by customer service again. He verified that I had received the documents I needed, and walked me through the process.  He also answered all my crazy questions, and directed me to some online videos for clarity.  Super helpful.  I scheduled the drop-off, and although I wasn't there when the trailer arrived, the driver was professional, helpful, and very fast.  Same for the pick-up, scheduling the delivery at our new house, and the actual delivery.  Top-notch. 

Price:  Price is determined by number of rooms you are packing, and is approximate.  Cost was comparable to the truck+trailer+pay-for-gas-drive-it-yourself method. They did extend us a $50 veteran discount (I asked).  And we saved another $60 by using 2 feet less than we reserved.  I was very pleased.

Timing: The trailer was delivered on a Wednesday (it was a little cheaper to have it dropped off on Tuesday or Wednesday), and we were given 3 days to pack it up.  BUT weekends don't count!  So we actually had 5 full days to pack it up.  The trailer was picked up on Monday, and there was a 2 day transit time to our new house.  The bonus is that they are flexible on delivery, so I was able to schedule delivery for that Friday.  We took the weekend to unload, and it was ready for pick up on Monday morning.  

Outcome: Our stuff was delivered safely, and any damage incurred was definitely our fault.  I would absolutely use them again, and would recommend them without reservation.  Unpacking was the most interesting part of the journey.  We were light on help when we packed up, and didn't expect much for our move-in (although I had asked for help, and was assured a few people would come).  We got started at about 7am on Saturday morning, and plowed through about half of the truck.  And then we had a dozen people come help!  I was blown away.  They knocked out the rest in less than 30 minutes, put our washer & dryer in place, and then stayed to mow the lawn.  Now that's a warm welcome!

Other tips & tricks:  

• I had a terrible time finding boxes this time, but was so, so lucky to get boxes from an aquaintance whose family had recently moved.  It was a military move, so they had tons of boxes & paper to share.  I also bought 10 small boxes from Lowe's (super inexpensive & good quality).  
• We didn't have a hand truck & ABF doesn't rent them, so we rented one from our local Home Depot for $6.  
• ABF also doesn't rent moving blankets & I blanched at the cost of renting from the other usual suspects ($50 for 12 small blankets).  I got around this by visiting my local thrift store!  I spent $12 and got 6 very large blankets.  Add in our own stack of blankets, quilts, tablecloths & beach towels & we were all set.  
• I picked up a set of Space Bags at Costco for $20.  This was a huge help in packing blankets, bedding, clothes, pillows, towels, etc.  After sucking out the air, I put the compressed bag into a heavy-duty garbage bag.  Easy!

Excuse Me

We interrupt this move to bring you the following Deep Thought of the Day:

You know that point you get to when you're moving - when you look around you and simultaneously think: "This will never end.  It will seriously NEVER END." and "Would I really miss any of this stuff if it spontaneously combusted?"?

Yep, that's where I'm at right now.

PS - my kids are riding both ends of the behavioral spectrum.  Big Sis has been great, wanting to help out whenever she can.  Big J is on day 5 of having a preschooler-sized nervous breakdown complete with backtalk, meltdowns, and refusal to eat or listen or obey or sleep.  Good times.

Back From the Longest, Fastest Weekend

We rolled into our weed-filled driveway at 10:30 last night.  After a slow start to the weekend, this was a quietly emotional return.

I stared at the green front door, and willed myself to exit the car.  I didn't want to go into the hot, smelly house.  Entering meant that we had to return to our Michigan life, even if it was just for a few more days.  I will miss the friends, but not the place.  No, not the place.  Time in our new house solidified my belief that your home is not only your physical castle but much of your mental castle, too.  If you dislike what's around you, it casts a pall over everything else about your life.  Putrid house, I will not miss you at all.

I crawled into my bed and reflected on this and more.  This was a trying weekend.  Emotional.  Physical.  But as with so many things that require fortitude, we emerged better than we entered.

On Friday we took possession of our new castle, and immediately went to work cleaning and tearing out old carpet.  It was shocking to see the rooms uncluttered and full of potential.  We noted new problems and reviewed our plan of attack.  We cut and bundled the disgusting old carpet, and hauled it to the garage.  We swept, vacuumed, scrubbed, washed walls.  What was frustrating was that it was ALL filthy.  Not dirty.  FILTHY.  Husband, who is mostly immune to dust & dirt, was even disgusted when he got a look at the black dirt ground into the window sills. After scrubbing spills from the insides of drawers, wiping cat hair from the freezer, and sucking up years of dust from forgotten corners, this epic scrub-down may have put me off all furry pets for many years to come.  And given me a true appreciation for liquid Lysol, cleaning wipes, and my Dyson.

Even in the midst of hours of mindless scrubbing (is it really mindless if you're constantly wondering how on earth it didn't bother them?) I felt content.  This house really feels "right" for us.  Sure, it's bigger than we need - we don't even have enough furniture to fill it up - but the layout is great, the bedrooms are spacious, and the work that needs to be done is manageable.

The transformation began with ripping out the bedroom/hallway carpet. Despite the muck we unearthed, the splintery sub-floor was still better than torn, stained carpet. The painting began, and although our backs suffered, we managed to do everything we set out to do.  It already feels fresh, clean, and more OURS.  Paint truly has transformative powers.

Here is just a tiny peek of what we did.  I will post more pictures when each room is fully done.  We plan to paint every room, paint the trim white, and replace all the almond outlet/switches with white.

Master bedroom, before. 

Master bedroom, halfway through.  

Paint color is "Yachtsman" by Allen + Roth for Lowe's.

It looks very light blue in this picture, but it's actually blue, with greyish-greenish undertones.  

House Hunting: SUCCESS!

Moving to Ohio means we'll be settled for four years.

FOUR.

I know it will go by in a blink, but after moving every 2 years for nearly the last decade, 4 years seems semi-permanent.  And as such, we decided to look into buying vs. renting.  Part of this is because we are all craving a little stability (4!  Years!).  And part of this is because of where we are moving.  Our new town has a small population, and this means that there is a limited market for both rentals and purchases.  Cheap housing can be found, but the condition and/or size of said housing is just not acceptable.  I have to keep reminding myself that we will be living on the edges of Appalachia & the standard of living is a little different from what we've been used to.  I am not saying that we will be surrounded by shotgun shacks inhabited by meth-smoking hillbillys..... but the extensive selection of throwing knives (with how-to guide included) found at a local convenience store speaks for itself.

Anyway.... we decided to use the extra long weekend and take the whole family on a house hunting adventure.  I've been in communication with our realtor for months & we had about 10 houses to see over 2 days.

I know.

Those of you moving to or living in larger cities are probably laughing right now.  Because 10 houses?  Not a lot.  But it was the best we could do in our price range.

What we saw ranged from the disappointing to the nightmareish.  We saw houses with leaky basements & moldy carpet.  We saw houses that had a new security system and 35 year old carpet.  We saw houses that stank of pets.  We saw houses cantilevered on 45 degree hills.  We saw houses that had been on the market for years.  We even saw a house that had so much junk piled up that I did not realize the room I was looking at was actually a bathroom (I thought it was a closet or storage room).

After nearly weeping with frustration by Friday afternoon, we saw IT.

Our last house of the day was not perfect, but it was close enough.  The lot is flat, the street is quiet.  The 4 bedrooms are big, and we have THREE full bathrooms.  There is space for guests, an inside laundry room, and even a kitchen that looks out into the backyard.  It does need paint (lots and lots of paint - unless of course you love the Browns and the Steelers), and new flooring in the Master Bedroom & hallway.  But otherwise, everything is solid and workable.  I may even be able to carve out a space for my own workout room! 

We were close to sure that this was IT, but we continued to look on Saturday.  We had to drive back home that afternoon, so we left a verbal offer with our realtor & then hit the Interstate.  The house had only been on the market for 18 days, so we had no idea what to expect.  Sure, it's a Buyer's market, but were they really eager to sell and be done with it?  Or would they sit on our offer and think they could do better?  We spent the entire drive offering and counter-offering, and were left hanging all night.  I'm not sure either of us slept.  Sunday afternoon we finally received the call that we are under contract!  

Let the packing begin!  And the planning!  And the mental remodeling!  I can't wait to start painting!

Oh yeah, and if you're thinking of a housewarming gift (or really, any gift for us in the next 4 years), I have three words for you: "Lowe's gift card". 

Home Again, Home Again

Wednesday was a busy day for us.

I took my Mom to the airport, ending a 5 day visit filled with nailpolish, glitter, stickers, and treats. What are grandmas for?

I wrapped up a shortened work week, which was filled with late nights and many projects.

We played at the park with Big Sis' preschool class, ending her tenure as a "little kid", and officially readying her for the move into kindergarten. I'm glad one of us is ready.

And we packed up the car, loaded up the kids, and headed to Detroit to find a place to live. Big Daddy stayed behind to finish up the last of his finals {hooray! one more year down!}, so it was just the kids and I. 600 miles, 3 days, 2 kids, 1 crazy Mama.

Everything actually turned out well. I found a place that has 90% of what we wanted, which is about 50% more than I expected. It's less than 2 blocks from the hospital, and 3 blocks from an elementary school. It's small, but much more roomy than where we're at now. And it has a 2 car garage! No more scraping ice for twenty minutes before heading to the grocery! And a fenced yard for the kids. I am so, so happy. (As an aside - I never heard back from the owner of the other house I was interested in. I really thought that in this economic climate, a vacant house would mean money out the door & a landlord eager to secure steady tenants. Apparently that is not the case.)

It was not all work & no play. We took a break to search for Detroit cupcakes, and ended up here:

This little shoppe is located in Birmingham, a cute, upscale suburb with a rehabbed downtown. The cupcakes were decent, but nothing remarkable. I'm glad I know now, so I don't have to make the drive again. The quest begins....

We also swam at our hotel pool - OK, it was more like me bobbing up and down with the kids hanging on to me like howler monkeys - visited Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Baja Fresh, and even tracked down H & M!

An extremely long 3 days, but a success all around. Now the packing (and the sorting, the discarding, the trips to Goodwill...) begins. Let me know if you have a good source for boxes. I'm going to need plenty of them.

Oh yeah, and Happy 300th post to me!