Boxes everywhere!

The movers were able to come back today and box up the rest of the house.  This works great because otherwise they would be doing it the day they load into the cargo container and hectic would be the word there!  We are thinking of the next week as a camping trip with minimal gear and hot showers.  I pulled the real basics to cook with and we have access to the contents of the dresser drawers, so this is a good thing!  The food level in the pantry continues to drop and some interesting meals will begin this week.  Biscuits and gravy for dinner are making us happy, but hamburgers for breakfast?  We'll see how that goes over with this crowd.  Annika and Ian will continue with daycare until the day we load so we are spending quality time with Alex.  A hike to Saddlerock is on the list to do and a visit to Starbucks for drinks all around is on the agenda tomorrow.  Alex will also be spending a gift card at Target on a nice red handbag she spotted today while getting new shoes.  She forgot to set hers on the bed, AKA the NO PACK ZONE today, so only has flip flops.  Wearing a size 8!  Stop growing child!  Also planning a movie night with popcorn with the kids tonight-Netflix does not work overseas, so getting in all we can before we go!  Alex said it best, this has felt like a loonnggg weekend and has been a nice break for everyone.  Drinking a nice bottle of Smoking Loon out of San Diego Zoo plastic cups.  Nice night for everyone.

Tomorrow!

The movers will be in tomorrow to pack up the drawers, cupboards, shelves, and closets!  We can't get a load the truck day until July 5, so we'll be playing hide and seek among the boxes for a week.  Going through the house today to set aside the last clothes, kitchen stuff, bathroom stuff, etc. so we can live with it.  Lyle may be leaving this week as well to start work on July 4.  I think it will be the first July 4 he has had to work!  Reality is setting in fast and we are riding the wave. . . wahoo!

Visas are done!

Now the fun can really begin! We got word the visas cleared on Wednesday, and have been trying to get things going ever since. Movers are tentatively scheduled for Monday to pack (my birthday!) and not load until July 5. Hmmmm. Otherwise we will have to wait until mid July to do both back to back, which may still happen anyway. Flexibility and the rest of the wine should help! At any rate, Lyle is looking at a July 4 start in Brisbane and I will follow with the kiddos sometime after the boxes are on the truck heading for the dock. Hoping to spend several days in the Boise area before we depart as well. Need to hit the apple store in Boise as the shuffle Lyle finally bought doesn't hold a charge worth beans and the retailers won't take returns! Will update as the chaos unfolds!

And waiting yet. . .

So, school is out and waiting for the call that the visas are done to kick this into high gear.   Meanwhile, I read a great book on my Kindle this weekend - recommended by a parent at our daycare.  It's called In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson.  (I also had to download his Short History of Nearly Everything since I loved his style so much).  In it he travels and writes about his jaunts to various places in the country, many which most Australians haven't seen!  He seems to dwell on the various ways the country and its flora and fauna can kill you, but I guess that only makes it more interesting that way.  Australia has the most lethal spiders, snakes, jellyfish, crocs, sharks, and poisonous plants on earth.  Let alone be an idiot and go Outback without proper preparation!  I guess I have to roll my eyes a bit at those parts, and map out our travel adventures in our new continent.  Bring on the dangers, but stay out of croc infested waters mate!

Bittersweet

Starting to feel a bit more real now that things are coming to a close in Wenatchee.  The last day of school and saying goodbye to my kiddos.  My own kids graduating from their levels-Alex from Elementary and Annika from Kindergarten.  Both are hard in their own way-as mom I am so proud of what my kids have learned and how they have grown this year.  As a teacher I am also proud of how far my kids have grown and matured, after all, they are MY kids too!  I gave them my email and blog address-I just hope they actually read this-so guys, leave me a comment once in awhile!  Otherwise, I just feel like I am speaking to an empty auditorium!  I get to stay in bed until one of the kids comes in to get us tomorrow-must remember to turn OFF the repeating alarm on the iPad!  I did have to laugh though.  Lyle told me that I did not get into my usual spring teacher freak out until just this last week!  Usually that starts after Spring Break, so maybe the distraction of the move has made me more "normal?"  I'd love to know what that is sometime!

Red Tape no matter the country

Ah, the red tape is wrapping us up!  The visa applications have been submitted, and now we have been told it will take another 2-4 weeks, so our departure will not be happening this week!  We have to wait to get the movers in as well, so, we continue to eat out of the pantry and freezer.  Our grocery bills have never been smaller!  By the way, who ordered this extended spring/winter weather?  The wind has been blowing for 3 days and at the park today I never did take off my sweatshirt!  The Pendelton blankets are still on the beds and it is the middle of June!  But the bright side again, the utility bill has been great!  Hope Summer doesn't start all at once.  It will be a bit of a shock to go from sweats to swimwear!

And it really begins. . .

Dad came up on Friday night and picked up a U-Haul trailer Saturday morning.  Task-clean out the shed and garage and send home items that we can't or won't be able to take overseas.  O.M.G. is all I can say about that process!  No mineral samples, fossils, old wood, soil, exotic leathers, and nearly all food items.  So, the Baba made moccasins, trilobites, geodes, blah, blah, blah that we have been hauling around for years-boxed and ready to store.  Food will be given to those who need it.  I'm ticked that my tea can't even go.  Really, my decaf Constant Comment is a contamination hazard?  Those are the rules though, so we play by them.
The move date is still up in the air as the visas have not cleared yet.  Once they do, the movers can schedule. Seeing as this is Saturday, I really can't see them clearing Monday for a Thursday-Friday-Saturday pack and load.  Set to leave Les Bois on Tuesday following, but betting Lyle will have to change plans to leave from good old Wenatchee Town and I'll get to go solo with kiddos halfway around the world.  On the plus side of version #2 though is I don't have to spend 1-2 months with the kids in a hotel while Lyle goes to work every day!  Only a month or so. . .
At any rate, this is really happening and we are up for it.  Lots to look forward to and do.  I downloaded an Australian slang app for the iPad.  Hysterical!

Honda Sold!

Yes!  Another hurdle down, several more to go.  The Honda sold today to a dealer in Coos Bay Oregon.  They offered more than the local dealer and sent up a driver this morning to take it back.  Lyle was the research man to ensure there was no fraud involved-called the bank down there, verified the sales manager was really the sales manager via several independent sources, etc.  Now if only the house would sell!  Wouldn't that be nice to announce.  In the meantime, getting accounts transfered and consolidated so we have access to our money on both continents.  We plan to depart from Boise on June 24.  We'll see how close we can come!

Address Changes galore

So, moving today is a lot different than our first move!  Cell phones keep everyone in touch, Skype and email will be a godsend for keeping up with family and friends, let alone the marvels of Facebook!  With the super popularity of the internet we can also manage our financial paperwork from our email inbox.  This week-address changes for accounts and a shout out to my folks for accepting the snail-mail that will come their way.  We owe them big time and will be paying for it with every trip home.  Australian Wine perhaps?   Hoping to hear from the moving company tonight or tomorrow-they now have less than 3 weeks to complete their intial survey, schedule the pack and load, and get our stuff on the way.  Lots to do