New Chapter Update 2: Hubster & the Move

THE MOVE

Memorial Day: I got a job offer in Indiana; Hubster's army paperwork wasn't signed yet so he can't leave Texas. What to do?  We already had the moving truck reserved and my father-in-law and sister-in-law were flying down to help us load up and drive.  Figuring that Hubster would only be in town a few more days, we were unsure if he should try to couch-hop, stay in some extended stay motel, or try to get him a short-term lease.  We didn't want to try to find storage for all our stuff and have to move it again a week later, so it seemed to make the most sense to drive north with the dog and baby and truck, with Hubster following in his own car when he cleared post.  We rented him a furnished apartment for June and rolled up our sleeves to tackle this move.

The moving weekend was nuts.  Friday, May 29, I had my school district's faculty and staff convocation, then said my goodbyes to my teacher friends.  One of my coworkers kindly carpooled with me, so I could stick the last big bookcase from my classroom in her truck to move with me.  We took my car into the shop that day; it needed a freon recharge for the AC.  I didn't want to take a 2-day drive to Indiana with a baby and dog and no AC.  Spartacus stayed at daycare until they closed so we could work on packing the house.

After hours of packing and feeling like we made no progress (the mantra of moving families everywhere..."How did we accumulate so much crap?"), we got the call from the mechanics that my car would not be ready that day; it was a weird Mercedes computer glitch, and they hadn't figure out how to fix it yet.  I asked if I could get it Saturday: "We're not open on weekends, ma'am." Well shoot, we had planned to leave Monday, but if the car wasn't ready...this of course left us with just my Hubster's little Mazda RX-8 to cram into for the weekend - including picking up my FiL and SiL at the airport.  We picked up Spartacus and said goodbye to the wonderful women who have loved him so much the past seven months when I went back to teaching.  I got a little teary; they have been such a blessing.  They even made him a little "We'll miss you Spartacus" poster with pictures.

Spartacus and his wonderful daycare ladies, Miss Sarah and Miss Betty

Part of our dear moving crew

Saturday: we picked up our Penske truck, no problems.  Dropped off Spartacus with one of his wonderful daycare ladies who was happy to watch him for the day. Lots of people came to help us load: our neighbor helped us with the massive gun safe; a teacher friend came for the bigger furniture; and a dear family from church and their kids came to help us pack the kitchen and load the rest of what we had packed.  We didn't realize until later...when we ran out of boxes...that their sweet 4-year-old and 18-month-old were helping load the only boxes they could lift...the empty ones. 

We got about half the truck loaded, and walking around the house, felt pretty good about getting the rest of it loaded on Sunday, the last day of our lease.  We went to church, then Hubster picked up his dad and sister at the airport (we didn't all fit in our one car, of course). 

They arrived around noon, and after estimating we had "Two, maybe three hours, max" to finish packing before we could clean, we commenced...by nine PM, NINE HOURS LATER, we had all the stuff loaded on the truck, but still needed to finish cleaning the house; the baby was cranky, there was no where to sit, and no one had eaten.  Recipe for family bliss of course.  Our neighbor stopped by - he's our landlord's brother, and their on-site property manager.  He said he planned to do his walkthrough at 10 AM the next day, so we planned to come back at 7 AM to finish the sweeping and clean up.

Our giant truck, ready to go.

We made it to Hubster's apartment around 10, and thankfully it gave us all somewhere to sleep that Sunday after packing.  We returned early the next day and cleaned the oven, fridge, freezer, floors, carpets, dusted fans...with four adults and a baby we were done by 10 AM, and our neighbor did his walk through...and told us that, no matter how long we stayed to clean, we couldn't get it clean enough to avoid a cleaning crew.  Disappointed, but exhausted and reaching that point in every move we called the "Screw everything" point, we locked our truck and drove it to Hubster's furnished apartment.  My car was finished Monday afternoon, too late for us to leave that day.  We made plans to leave Tuesday morning.

Spartacus and Annabelle, bonding in the backseat

My FiL drove the truck and my SiL, Annabelle, Spartacus and I followed in my Mercedes.   We made it in two days, and it went better than I expected. We did learn that Spartacus is afraid of grass.  We stopped at rest stop and tried to have a little picnic under a tree, and he screamed every time we tried to set him on the grass or even just touch it.  We unloaded our truck into a storage unit, which we now can't locate ANYTHING in...since we unload the truck backwards, the stuff we put on last (e.g. the stuff we use the most/until the very end) is at the back wall and the stuff we put in first (the couch, mattresses) is at the front.  So basically we have to find a house in order to unload our storage unit and find anything.  I will have to buy new socks because those have yet to resurface in my limited unpacking...

HUBSTER

You may have read my involved post about our frustration with my Hubster's job withing the army.  When we were packing up to leave Texas the last week in May, we still thought his paperwork was close to being signed. After all, his ETS date (Expected Termination of Service) was June 1. Summer classes began June 15, so even if he wasn't out by June 1, we still thought he had 2 weeks to make it in time.  June 15 came and went.  Unlike the previous nine months since filing in September, Hubster has a contact at the Pentagon who has kept him updated on the progress of his packet, though it feels like that State Farm commercial with the fisherman with the dollar on the end of the fishing pole - here's what you want! Yank back - keep reaching!  Haha you didn't get it!  Except the fisherman is some bureaucrat at the Pentagon. The person who needs to sign it should be in the office Tuesday.  It got kicked back to Legal for some review but call back Friday to see where it's at.  I'll try to get it through sooner.  Et cetera. Et cetera.

So Hubster is still in his little furnished apartment in Texas.  He's heard something about his paperwork almost every day, so we feel like it's got to be close...but he's bored out of his mind. He doesn't really have a job on post; all his friends have PCSed (moved) in the last month, and it's summer leave, so nothing is going on.  He has no family, and only his Xbox for company.  The limbo continues. 

The first week in July includes our 4-year wedding anniversary, my birthday, and Spartacus' 1 year birthday, so please keep us in your prayers that Daddy can be back for those. He already missed his first Father's Day; I'm so hoping he'll make it up north in time to not miss anything else but it doesn't look good...