So after what was sort of the move from hell, we did eventually make it over to our new place.  Our poor movers were so tired by the time they got to the new house.  It went from empty, to suddenly filled with boxes and furniture in no time.

My first day in my new kitchen!  I’ll try to give a more formal tour of the kitchen space once we’re settled.  It is big and gorgeous!

Once the movers were finished, we got to work putting things back together…

We started unpacking pretty much right away!  My mom unpacked the entire kitchen onto the countertops, while I tried to organize and figure out how to set things up.  I absolutely love organizing, but I take forever to figure out how I want spaces to flow and function.  I must have rearranged the cabinets five times, and I’m still not sure I’m done!

The next day, we woke up and got to work right away.  We ran a lot of house-related errands, went back to our old place and scrubbed it for hoouuurs and hours, and then headed out to the dog ranch to pick up the rest of our family.

The pups were definitely weirded out by the new space, and probably confused to see all our things in it, but they settled in pretty quickly.  One of the most fun parts of this move is that we can finally use our giant living room couch again!  (It didn’t fit up the stairs during our last move, and has lived wrapped in plastic in our garage for the past year!)

At some point during the weekend, I got really ambitious and decided I wanted to do some painting before we actually got settled (figuring it would be easier without furniture in place).  And then after hours of exhausting work later, I realized that painting was probably going to have to wait.

We have moved many times, but this one was so different now because of Cullen.  During past transitions I’ve always pulled long days, worked late into the night, and had our place unpacked and settled within just a few days.  This time, I’ve had to just admit that I can only do so much, and I’m trying to just take it one project and box at a time.  It will all happen eventually.

Speaking of Cullen, he loves the new house!

We have a lot more space here and room for him to crawl and roam, and he’s taking full advantage and exploring every inch that he can get to. 

And also performing new tricks (he’s sitting up now!).

Casey headed back to work on Monday, and mom and I continued to tackle the boxes.  While Cullen napped, we did the bedroom closets.  It took us almost the entire day to get the master bedroom set up!

And in between naps, Cullen got to play with Grandma.  No matter how often we try to visit, it just never feels like it can be enough.  I wish they could play together every day!

The other babies are adjusting too.  They love their new yard, and I think they will love the space once it’s settled.  For now I think they are still a bit wary of the mess and the boxes.

My mom took the red-eye home Monday night, and I did my best to keep from crying the whole way home from the airport.  When I lived in Cincinnati, she was just blocks away and we saw each other almost every day.  Our whole family is close, but the two of us went through some really tough times together, and it left us with a really special bond.  I love her so much!

And now it is just us three, settling in and trying to feel out our new digs.  We still need to do a lot more unpacking, but so far it feels great!

A few people asked me about our moving boxes in my last post, so I thought it was worth mentioning since I think it’s a great concept.  Rather than using cardboard moving boxes, we actually rented reusable boxes from a company here in Seattle called KarmaBoxx. 

When we moved to Seattle we had a million cardboard boxes, and it took us about 20 trips to the recycling center to get rid of all of them.  It felt like such a huge waste!  I was thrilled when I found Karmaboxx – renting and reusing boxes is such a great eco-friendly way to move.  They drop them off and pick them up, and you choose how many and how long you want them.  It was very affordable, and I’d definitely use them again!

Even though this should be our first weekend in the new place, we’re actually getting on a plane tomorrow to head back to the Midwest for a racing weekend!  Updates on that tomorrow…

Wow wow wow.  Remember me?  I feel like I’ve been running a marathon.  So last time I checked in, I told you that Cullen was sick, I was starting to get sick, and I still had a whole house to pack.  Yikes.

Unfortunately, things went pretty far downhill from there.  Thursday was one of the worst days I can remember in quite some time.  You know sucks worse than feeling like you have the flu?  Feeling like you have the flu and nursing/taking care of a baby. 

On any other day, Casey would have stayed home to watch Cullen so that I could crawl into bed.  But my sickness happened to land on the day he was taking a 9-hour exam (for work) that they only offer twice a year.  Double yikes.  So as I continued to feel worse and worse, I knew I wouldn’t be able to get ahold of him. 

I pretty much spent the day laying on the floor or couch and throwing toys at Cullen while he played.

When he napped, I napped.  When he was awake, I counted down to the next nap.  I knew it was mastitis again – my whole body ached and it hurt to even carry Cullen against my chest.  I fluctuated between being freezing cold and drenching my clothes in sweat.  By the time I finally tracked down a thermometer and took my temperature, it was close to 103.  A call to my midwives got me immediate antibiotics, and Casey rushed to go get them the minute his exam let out. 

When we started planning our move a few months ago, my mom offered to fly out to help with Cullen so that Casey and I could focus on packing and moving.  Her flight got in late Thursday night, and I have never been so happy to see her.  We needed her help even when I was at 100%, but with me feeling terrible, we needed her more than ever.  Cullen was pretty happy to have here here too. 

Unfortunately, all week I had procrastinated packing because I found it hard to do while watching Cullen.  Instead, I had told myself that I would do it in the last few days once my mom arrived.  But me being sick sort of derailed those plans, and we started out Friday morning with all our boxes pretty much empty.

My mom was completely amazing, and somehow managed to watch Cullen while also packing up my entire kitchen.  Casey worked at home so that he could help move and pack boxes, and keep an extra eye on Cullen as well.

For some reason, I found packing up Cullen’s room to be much harder than I anticipated.  There was so much love in that nursery.  I know stuff is just that – stuff – but I spent a lot of my pregnancy working on his room, picking out his things, and rocking in the glider just thinking about his arrival. 

I bought my baby home to this house and this nursery, and I found myself very emotional as I took down his pictures and packed up his toys.  I know his new nursery will be (very similar) and even better, but this was his first, and that made it tough.

Mom and I spent about 30 minutes trying to figure out how to save the wall decal.  We got about halfway through before I gave up and said forget it.  I’m going to get another one for his new room, but this one just wasn’t realistically salvageable. 

By Friday evening, we still had a lot to do and I could tell I had probably overdone it during the day.  Casey and my mom stepped in and let me rest while they packed up our entire master bedroom and closet.  Casey drove all the clothes over to the new house in several car loads.  I think packing and unpacking closets might be the worst job!

We ended Friday night with the house (mostly) packed, and all of us totally drained and ready to crash.

And we shared one last Friday night takeout order from Revel.  I’m sure I’ll still be eating there plenty, but it will be very different from when it was literally around the corner.  Probably much better for our bank account.

Saturday morning – moving day! – came early.  Cullen hung out in the jumperoo with Grandma, while the movers emptied out the space around him.  Casey and I tied up all the loose ends and packed up the last minute boxes.

And before I knew it, it was empty.  Sniff.

We moved into our little townhouse in Fremont almost exactly a year ago (next week!).  I arrived that day in Seattle by myself.  I remember taking a cab to our empty townhouse, and thinking it was so strange to be in such a far away city all alone.  Shortly after, Casey and the dogs arrived in the car, and our life in the northwest began.

We celebrated that night, which happened to be our wedding anniversary, with dinner out in our new neighborhood.  I was 18 weeks pregnant and still sick as a dog.

And here we are just one year later, but with lives that are so drastically different and full

It was a great starting home for us as we figured out life here in Seattle.  Our first home as a family of three.  It certainly had both pros (so walkable!) and cons (so loud!), but it was Cullen’s first house, and I know I’ll always have special memories of his first days, weeks, and months here.

Scenes from the other side – the new house – to come!