Last Thursday and Friday was a huge step forward toward our move to Aviano. The movers came to pack and ship all of our household goods. The following Monday, they were back for our unaccompanied baggage (express) shipment. We have been looking forward to and thinking about this day for months. To say we were excited was an understatement for sure!
We spent the days beforehand trying to sort our house into 4 categories: household goods to be shipped to Aviano, our express shipment (things we need immediately such as linens and pots & pans), airplane luggage, and storage. Stressful? Um, yeah. Let’s just say, by the time the movers left on Friday, there was no going back, no changing our minds, so we had to be sure.
Once the movers arrived Thursday morning, we walked through the house explaining what was staying and what was going. Within a few minutes they had their boxes and tape out and set off to work, beginning with the guest bedroom.
Once the guest room was packed up they moved on to the master bedroom, bath, and closets. To give you an idea of just how quickly they move, while I had my back turned explaining something to one of the other movers, one guy packed my travel bag that I had set aside to get us through the next month without my notice. It included contact solution, toothbrushes, floss, my contacts & glasses, deodorant, etc. I had heard that if it’s not nailed down they will pack it, and boy did I learn the truth behind that statement! They packed every roll of toilet paper in the house but one! When I realized the mistake it was of course too late to get it all back. Oy!
Our 2nd guest room became the room were we stashed everything that was either meant for storage or going with us on the plane. It was/is chaos!
Here are a couple of shots from packing up the living room and kitchen. You can see all of the green post-its I used to remind us which cabinets had items that were going into storage.
Slowly but surely, box by box, our house began to empty.
I need to get a couple photos of how things look now. It’s a bit reminiscent of our college days. We have a couple of twin mattresses on the floor of our bedroom that we pulled of the beds that are going into storage. Our neighbors we kind enough to loan us a wicker loveseat and coffee table they had in a spare room. It’s been fun to see how much of our stuff we can live without! We’re still cozy and happy. The dogs love that we’re sleeping on their level now too! Just last night I woke up with an 80lb greyhound in my bed!
Moving day was one hurdle we have been anxious to get over for awhile. It should be smooth sailing from now until we leave in August. There is little left for us to check off our to-do list. The excitement of this new adventure is really settling in on us! Only 34 more days!
