Saturday, April 19, 2014

Day 5:
Chevy Chase to Columbus, OH

Well I missed Day 4 - it was mostly an overwhelming day of trying to tie up loose ends and to create closure with folks.  Overall it went fine but it was hard.  Drove by our house for the last time on the way home from work.  I hope the next family has as much happiness and fun in that house as we did!  I indulged the kids and let them bring cupcakes into school for their last day snack (after checking with their teachers).  They both loved this although Wyatt now thinks it is his birthday again - hah!

On to day 5.  Not surprisingly, we got a late start out of DC.  It started with the waffle iron not working and ended with too much stuff and an emergency stop to go potty before we'd even started - oh my!  We did make it to Columbus, OH which should be much but considering our longest stretch in the car was 1:30 - that's pretty good.  One of Katie's little friends left a scavenger hunt for us at a park along the way - too fun!  I did enjoy driving today and all the things we saw - Boonsboro (from the Inn Boonsboro Trilogy fame), the Flight 93 Memorial, Zanesville (home to Zane Gray), and a couple of others I can't put my finger on right now.  We drove through MD, PA, WV, and OH.  It was really fun to tell the kids stories about Pittsburgh and CMU.  Katie wanted to go but the idea of driving out of the way was too much for me.  We'll get to Pittsburgh someday!

So we continue on well and good!  I think we might see a fire breathing dragon and the Arch in St Louis tomorrow!  :)

Thursday, April 17, 2014

Moving to Colorado!!

Hello there folks!  We are undertaking another adventure and someone suggested it sounded like a blog.  And I thought, why not?  It'll help keep me focused on the fun, new, exciting things we are doing.  So the story goes something like this - Frank got a transfer to the NIST Boulder campus.  We are thrilled - to be West, to be nearer family...  We undertook some updates to our house in Chevy Chase, sold it , went to Boulder to try to buy a house, finally bought a house, and now are on our way to Boulder where we will live in a hotel for more than 100 days while we wait to move into our house.  BTW - the house is awesome, right by a park with a lake, in a great school district, with aspen in front - the whole nine yards!  So, when I figure out how many days we'll be in a hotel, this chain of thoughts will be tied together in the blog 1XX days in a Marriott or some such title.  I hope you enjoy glimpse into our craziness, and if you don't, at least now it is in a blog and, you won't see it on your news feed.  :)

Days 1, 2, and 3 from Facebook:

So today marks the start of a serious adventure... Me, my husband, two kids, and two cats, will be spending the next nearly four months in hotels while we relocate and wait for our new house in CO. The first night has gone fantastically - dinner was provided - yay! - there are two tubs so the kids raced through bath time and they were both asleep within a reasonable amount of time. I know it won't always be this smooth but I'm glad tonight is - I'm a little overwhelmed by the reality that all our stuff is loaded up and on its way as we speak. Lots of change - but this is going to be fun!

Report on Day 2: Humor for the day - Wyatt seems to be adjusting famously. He is now the lighting coordinator and he has figured out how to turn every light on - by moving furniture and suitcases and climbing. Nice problem solving and really fun to watch how he works. The hotel continues to rock - breakfast for all needs and hot dogs and hamburgers for dinner. And the staff are great - actually got us drinks at dinner and cleaned to a T - maybe we should move here! Frank and I got the minivan completely loaded today - by 2 PM no less. I have no idea how the pioneers did it with only a wagon and needing to have everything!! Makes me grateful for what they did and grateful for all I have.

Day 3: Definitely a bittersweet day - I locked the door to our house for the last time and I sat in the swing swinging and thinking for the last time. Life here in DC has been wonderful with many lovely friends and happy memories - so glad we had this time here.