No Way! November 2015

No Way! We are really moving!
Tyler started his new job as a juvenile attorney for Mohave County on November 2nd.
 With 2 other jobs lined up that withdrew offers the day before he was to begin, we didn't make a single long term plan, half expecting the same withdrawal to happen. But no, it was the real deal! When he actually began working, I began boxing.

November Week 1

He moved into a hotel 3 1/2 hours away Monday to Thursday night and came to help us on the weekend and to attend to his Bishop duties. We began plans to find a renter or try to sell our underwater house.

When Tyler left, Aunt Luise and Uncle Van came to town on a temple tour. They attended the Gilbert temple with Scott and Janice and invited us to join them.  I sat in the temple crying, worrying about how everything would work out. I saw the picture in the chapel of the Savior holding a little lamb and felt the message spoken that I was in his hands too, all would be well.

And all was well. We had perfect timing. Our calendar is usually bursting with appointments and concerts, but after the first week of November our calendar was magically empty, so we could go to our next adventure.

I love these people so much. It was such a tender mercy to have them visit at this time.

We are going to miss our beautiful temples. 

We had dear friends to say goodbye to.

Lou Felton, Sarah's orchestra conductor.

Hwone, dgwhoo, drhee, fuh,

1, 2, 3, 4 

Sarah had her final concert with the Metropolitan Youth Symphony. She was Concertmaster with mulitple solos and all, perfect for her finale performance. Like I said, perfect timing. I'm so glad she didn't have to miss it. The MYS staff was nice to refund our tuition for the remaining part of the year.

Bishop's last Phoenix temple trip with the youth, Rachel's first.

November Week 2

We drove to Kingman Tyler Monday morning to stay in the hotel with him and look for a place to live. We got in town in time to meet at this park for lunch, then canvased the areas real estate offices and rentals they had to offer, and checked into a cheap hotel.

We found a park with a bench swing to meet at before dinner.

After the week of hunting for a home (and finding one!) we drove home to Phoenix Friday for packing up the rest of the house. We still had to be based in Phoenix to attend to Bishop duties, but during the week we planned to take up the essentials and do school out of the new home so we can be by Tyler. This is us Sunday evening choosing what to fit in the 2 cars to bring.

November Week 3

Things were just about ready to load when the time comes. The garage was full of neat lines of stacked boxes. For a self proclaimed minimalist, I sure have a lot of stuff.

Breakfast smoothies Monday morning...the kids had to make do with chairs because the table was loaded under all our stuff in the back of the station wagon. The meals started getting strange. I didn't want to buy food and move it, so I got creative with using up what was in the pantry. The kids say the strangest meal was old ice cream cones with Nutella. We ate a lot of popcorn. We learned how to cook it in a pan oil and found it is rather filling.

Monday Dad drove up at 4 am in his white car so we could leave it there and he could drive the moving van the following week. I drove the kids up in the afternoon with the wagon trunk filled with essentials to camp in an empty house with no fridge. I bought a microwave from a college kid in Tempe and threw it in the car with our vacuum and cleaning supplies, table and chairs and sleeping bags/pillows and a few dishes. We had also packed Tyler's car full of whatever we could fit. We were supposed to get to the real estate office by 5 and sign the lease together and pick up keys. However, there was a big race at the Raceway and traffic put us a couple minutes behind so the office wouldn't wait and give us our keys. We had to stay in a hotel down the road that Monday night and couldn't get to our sleeping stuff because all the randoms were packed in so well. If we got stuff out, we'd never get it back in! So we roughed it and bought a couple loaves of french bread and some cucumbers for dinner. We learned we like "everything bread." In the morning we were up early to get Sarah to seminary and get a cashier's check from the Circle K for the real estate office. 

By 9:00 am we were camping in our new home. And freezing! The gas company wouldn't turn on the gas, because they said the furnace was too dirty and needed servicing. So we had to freeze for quite some time until all that could be sorted out. I love that our bare essentials include a music stand for my Sarah.

We vacuumed each room 12 times both directions to eradicate all dog hair remnants.

Such pretty skies in Kingman. This is the view from our dining room to our backyard. 

The snuggle-fest. We spent a great week getting established in town. All our utilities and internet on, getting library cards, Sarah attending seminary and young women's activities, babysitting already (thanks to Kim Demke), and doing our school work.

That week Tyler's first pay period was came and the girls surprised him before work with a Payday candy bar to celebrate his first payday. 

A real live paycheck! Haven't seen one of those in a while!

We had a very fun week and made do with what we had building new family memories. By the end of the week I met a friend named Sara Peterson who was also moving and had an extra fridge she said we could buy from her. I was so glad we would have a fridge! We helped her pack and move her appliances to her new house and on the way stopped to drop the extra fridge at our house.

At the end of the week we returned to Phoenix and prepared to move the furniture. Saturday afternoon we loaded the truck with sweet friends to help.  We had a problem getting everything to fit, so we sold the bunk bed to a friend who was helping and had to figure out a solution for the 4 bikes. I got on craig's list (it's a lifesaver) and found a guy in Awatukee who was selling a 4 bike carrier that could strap onto the back of the wagon and arranged to pick it up early Monday morning. We hurried to buy and install a washer and dryer off craig's list for the house hoping it would help attract renters and shampooed the carpet. Busy weekend.

Saturday and Sunday night we all slept in the master bedroom. I didn't want a bunch of stuff in every room. It made it much easier not to leave anything behind, and to have rooms cleaned and ready.

November Week 4

Sunday night we had our last midnight snack in the kitchen and planned out Monday, what a day it would be. At 3 AM Tyler drove the moving truck to Kingman with the plan to park it at the house and drive the white car we'd left there to work. That night we could unload with the two strangers we hired.

Monday morning I took Sarah to seminary at the crack of dawn, drove to Awatukee to get the bike rack, picked up Sarah, and got the kids breakfasted and ready. We did the last bit of final cleaning of the house Monday morning, and were thrilled when my friend Rita decided to come do the vacuuming. That was such a blessing. 

We finished in time to get Sarah to Estrella Mountain Community College for her appointment to take her proctored final exam for one of her online classes. After we dropped her off, we raced back to the house where I met with the rental agent who we hired to help us manage the property. We handed over keys and on our way to pick up Sarah we stopped by Scooptacular to use up our last free scoop coupons. They wouldn't do us any good in Kingman. It was a crazy day. We were grateful Sarah's ice cream didn't melt and that she did well on her test. Then we hopped on the freeway toward Kingman!

Definitely ready for Kingman. There are a lot of bikers.

Sarah being freezing cold after getting home from seminary. We don't own warm clothing for this kind of weather! It is bitterly cold with icy wind and hail. Such a change from our 80 degrees in Phoenix. About seminary, during all of the back and forth Sarah worked really hard to not miss even one day of seminary so she could get the perfect attendance award between the two classes, only come to find out that Kingman Stake doesn't have that award.

3 days after moving in was Thanksgiving. Amidst the chaos we began writing our traditional thankful cards. The thing that was hardest for me to leave behind was my beautiful Phoenix Temple, but I'm so thankful we had the experience of being part of the cultural celebration with Sarah dancing in it and that I got to teach the dancing, and that our family got to sit in the Celestial room during the dedication. Rachel is thank for Benton. That was her hardest thing to leave behind, the sweet little boy she loved to babysit.

We are also thankful for our beds. I went and bought this daybed off craig's list the Saturday we loaded the truck. In the end because we couldn't fit the bunk bed, I was really glad we got it. However, when we put it up, it was so rickety that Sarah starting having bad dreams. Still, the mattress is good and we are thankful.

Thanksgiving. 

Given the workload I'd been under with moving, I simplified. 

I asked everyone what they would be most sad not to have at our feast. They answered Rhodes Rolls and Dessert. So we had turkey (lunch meat) and cheese sandwiches on the rolls, with pie and a veggie platter.

We all worked together to make the desserts from scratch. 

There are the rolls, apple strudel, apple pie, and a chocolate meringue pie.

We had a great little feast full of gratitude in our hearts for the many blessings we'd been given. 

 It was my first attempt at a chocolate filling without a pudding mix and I really wondered if it would be good. Sarah helped by talking to me while I stirred.

Rachel made the crust for the chocolate meringue pie. She put in 1/4 cup salt instead of 1/4 teaspoon. It was so bad! The salty crust had infected the entire pie. I'll never know how that chocolate filling really turned out.

The next morning I awoke to these little cuties snuggled up reading their Grandpa Cole's personal history. More to be grateful for.

The tradition is to put up the tree Thanksgiving night. I was grateful the kids were willing to wait until the next day to put it up.

Adam really needed a haircut, I'm glad he sat still. 

The couch broke again, but I'm grateful we were able to fix it again. Some of these are not the typical festivities, but you do what you have to do. 

Sarah and Rachel helped me make lime rolls. They turned out so yummy. It is so nice to have a fridge and be able to shop for ingredients again.

 It was a wild wild this November, but we got through it, made great memories and learned much.