With the upcoming move to the new station, I realize that there are many things that I should be doing right now. For instance:
1. Go through all of our clothes and see what needs to be donated and what is going with us.
2. Finish up a scrapbook before all of our household goods go away for the next 3 months.
3. Research more into how we need to ship our kitty cat.
4. Plan out a menu that actually uses all the food we have before we leave, since the military doesn't let you ship it, even if it is in a can.
5. Sort through the spare room and see if some things can be tossed.
6. Go ahead and pack the suitcases traveling with us with our winter clothes (it is not like we use those clothes here anyway) and get those out of the way so the movers don't take them.
7. Gather up all our info for our taxes.
8. Clean up the kitchen (that always needs done)
9. Wash laundry (that always needs done too)
10. Go through Connor's toys
11. .......12.....13.... and on and on and on. By the way, we are not even going to mention the garage.
The list is never ending. However, with all that to do, I find myself sitting on the couch with my laptop and cruising around on Facebook.
We did get some good news today!!!! Everyone under the sun has been telling us that there is over a year wait for housing at the next base, and that you practically have to give them your first born child to get into a house. I talked to them today, and since Travis is going up in rank, there is no wait for his rank/housing. With us going straight into housing when we get there, that means we will be able to keep our kitty!!!! All the places that we were looking at online would not let us have our cat. We were heartbroken to think we would have to give her up. She is so wonderful and tolerant with Connor. Plus, she is just a sweetheart. Living in housing means that we can keep her.
We have less than a month now until all of our goods are shipped and we check into billeting. It is crazy to think that we are about to be homeless again for awhile, and that we are excited about that.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Friday, January 14, 2011
In the Land of Eternal Summer
My family has lived in Hawaii for the last 4 years. In that time, we have been able to go to the beach and play in the water in January, camping in February, and cook outs anytime of the year. In fact, our grill has been used more in the last 4 years then most people will probably use their grill their whole life. When you live in the land of eternal summer, you do miss the season changes. However, when my in laws are talking about having to take the 4-wheeler up and down the hill because of snow and ice, I realize that going to the beach sounds like a lot more fun than bitter cold and sliding sideways down hills.
Travis was deployed during the major holidays for 2009, but I was determined to make everything extra special for Connor since Daddy was gone. For Halloween, we went down to the pumpkin farm and picked out our pumpkins. I carved mine, and we stuck Mr. Potato Head things in Connor's. I took pictures and we took our beautiful pumpkins outside to be displayed. By the next morning, mine had a big roach in it. Luckily, we live in a new house here, so no roaches inside. Outside though, they are huge. They never die, so they are big enough to eat a small child. LOL! Anyway, I ignored the roach and moved on. By the next day, my pumpkin was moldy and sunken in. It looked so rotten, like maybe I had it out on the porch for 2 months instead of 2 days. Oh well, that it a draw back with pumpkins and 90 degrees.
Next comes Thanksgiving. Normally, back in WV, it is getting cold. Most of the guys are gearing up to go Deer Hunting and we try to decorate the porch with scare crows and hay bales. In Hawaii though, you are sweating like a pig just trying to hang up some fake Turkeys on your living room windows. LOL!
By Christmas, it gets really funny. You pass houses that are putting out their blow up snowmen, and you can't help but think that snowman sitting next to the palm tree just looks wrong in so many ways. It is right about this time that you wish it was no longer 84 degrees and you are dreaming about a White Christmas. For Christmas 2009, I put tons of decorations up outside since Connor was starting to really notice the lights and got so excited to see them. I had some friends help me put the lights up, and then I did the rest of the yard decorations. We had presents, a Santa this way sign, candy canes along the walk, and a huge blow up Santa on a John Deer Tractor. It looked perfect - well for about a week or so. Then I realized that I needed to mow the grass. Santa and his big John Deer are actually quite heavy to move on your own. Not too mention again that it is 84 degrees and you are sweating when you are trying to lug the jolly old man around. I was in the middle of moving old St. Nick when my phone rang. Of course, when your husband is deployed, your phone stays attached to you at all times, so it was not hard to answer. It was my father-in-law calling to check in on us and see how we were doing. He said, "Amy..you ok? You sound out of breath." I told him that I was trying to move all the Christmas decorations around so I could mow the grass. He immediately started laughing at me. I was thinking to myself that I really didn't see what was so funny until he said, "Well that's a first for me. I can honestly say that I have never had to move our Christmas decorations in order to mow the grass." Then I started laughing too. He was right, most of the time WV has a blanket of snow and there is no need to mow grass for several more months.
In the end, I managed to mow every week and Connor loved the decorations. Me, maybe not as much, but it was great to see my little man so excited.
Fast forward to now - January 2011. We have finally put up all the Christmas decorations, so we no longer have to mow around them. I also went to work this morning with the heat on in my car and a sweater to stay warm. See it was only 68 degrees this morning, which for someone who has lived in Hawaii for 4 years was FREEZING!!!!
Our time in the land of eternal summer is almost up, and Hawaii, we will miss you. In just a few short weeks, we will be making our way to our next duty station in Virginia. I have a feeling that it will not be 68 degrees and that we will be in for a rude awakening. We will miss going to the beach anytime we want and wearing shorts all year long. However, next Halloween it will be nice to have a pumpkin minus the roaches and the mold and Christmas decorations that you do not need to mow around.
Travis was deployed during the major holidays for 2009, but I was determined to make everything extra special for Connor since Daddy was gone. For Halloween, we went down to the pumpkin farm and picked out our pumpkins. I carved mine, and we stuck Mr. Potato Head things in Connor's. I took pictures and we took our beautiful pumpkins outside to be displayed. By the next morning, mine had a big roach in it. Luckily, we live in a new house here, so no roaches inside. Outside though, they are huge. They never die, so they are big enough to eat a small child. LOL! Anyway, I ignored the roach and moved on. By the next day, my pumpkin was moldy and sunken in. It looked so rotten, like maybe I had it out on the porch for 2 months instead of 2 days. Oh well, that it a draw back with pumpkins and 90 degrees.
Next comes Thanksgiving. Normally, back in WV, it is getting cold. Most of the guys are gearing up to go Deer Hunting and we try to decorate the porch with scare crows and hay bales. In Hawaii though, you are sweating like a pig just trying to hang up some fake Turkeys on your living room windows. LOL!
By Christmas, it gets really funny. You pass houses that are putting out their blow up snowmen, and you can't help but think that snowman sitting next to the palm tree just looks wrong in so many ways. It is right about this time that you wish it was no longer 84 degrees and you are dreaming about a White Christmas. For Christmas 2009, I put tons of decorations up outside since Connor was starting to really notice the lights and got so excited to see them. I had some friends help me put the lights up, and then I did the rest of the yard decorations. We had presents, a Santa this way sign, candy canes along the walk, and a huge blow up Santa on a John Deer Tractor. It looked perfect - well for about a week or so. Then I realized that I needed to mow the grass. Santa and his big John Deer are actually quite heavy to move on your own. Not too mention again that it is 84 degrees and you are sweating when you are trying to lug the jolly old man around. I was in the middle of moving old St. Nick when my phone rang. Of course, when your husband is deployed, your phone stays attached to you at all times, so it was not hard to answer. It was my father-in-law calling to check in on us and see how we were doing. He said, "Amy..you ok? You sound out of breath." I told him that I was trying to move all the Christmas decorations around so I could mow the grass. He immediately started laughing at me. I was thinking to myself that I really didn't see what was so funny until he said, "Well that's a first for me. I can honestly say that I have never had to move our Christmas decorations in order to mow the grass." Then I started laughing too. He was right, most of the time WV has a blanket of snow and there is no need to mow grass for several more months.
In the end, I managed to mow every week and Connor loved the decorations. Me, maybe not as much, but it was great to see my little man so excited.
Fast forward to now - January 2011. We have finally put up all the Christmas decorations, so we no longer have to mow around them. I also went to work this morning with the heat on in my car and a sweater to stay warm. See it was only 68 degrees this morning, which for someone who has lived in Hawaii for 4 years was FREEZING!!!!
Our time in the land of eternal summer is almost up, and Hawaii, we will miss you. In just a few short weeks, we will be making our way to our next duty station in Virginia. I have a feeling that it will not be 68 degrees and that we will be in for a rude awakening. We will miss going to the beach anytime we want and wearing shorts all year long. However, next Halloween it will be nice to have a pumpkin minus the roaches and the mold and Christmas decorations that you do not need to mow around.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
WV to NY to HI to VA: Its all about what you are used to.
Before Travis came into my life, I lived in WV. I had visited other states, but I had a house, a good job, and great friends all around me, so I had no desire to ever live anywhere else. I was happy. I really thought I would retire from my job at the phone company and grow old with all my friends and family. Then the love bug bit me. Boy did it sink its teeth in and bite hard. It didn't take long until I realized that I would live under a bridge with this man if I had to, as long as we were together. Granted, life as a troll under a bridge may not have been fun, but at least we would have each other. He was stationed in NY and property of Uncle Sam. I was was thinking NY sounded scary,but fun, and I didn't belong to the phone company, so I was able to quit my job and follow this whole love thing.
We got married, packed everything up and headed to upstate NY, Ft. Drum to be exact. It was summer time, so I was naive and did not realize that when people talked about a foot of snow at a time, that they really meant it. Shortly after getting to NY, I got a job at Sprint. I figured I used to do landlines, now I will do wireless. After all, how different could it really be? THANK GOD for the wonderful people I worked with who were very patient with me, because if you haven't guessed, there is a HUGE difference. Anyway, my new friends/co-workers were telling their stories about winter, the cold, snow, etc... etc... etc... and I really didn't believe them. However, I did not have long to wait - see winter comes early in the North Country, and it does get really cold, and there is also tons of snow, etc.... etc... etc...
I remember hearing their stories and getting a little anxiety ridden about it all. I was at home one day and I was flipping through the stations on the TV and I found a news program. It was probably towards the end of October or so, and I saw the weather man predict negative numbers for that night. I was stunned!!! I knew that everyone at work said that when it came, it came hard, but would it really come that fast? Needless to say, I was really worried. I called Travis at work, hysterical, to let him know and express my concerns, and he got really quiet for a minute and then started to laugh. Little did I know that being only a few miles from Canada, that we picked up the Canadian stations and I was really seeing the weather reported in Celsius and not Fahrenheit. LOL! It didn't take long though, and the NY weatherman was predicting the same weather, and it was not Celsius this time.
I tell everybody that they do not know what cold is until they walk outside their house and it literally hurts to breathe, and that is when you are breathing through a scarf because there is no way in you know where that you would expose your skin to those elements. After all, -30F HURTS!!!! The Sprint store was located in the mall, so it was possible to go to work and the roads were clear, and then come out of work and your car was buried in snow. Believe it or not, it was the first time I truly used the whole packing list of safety items to always keep in your car during the winter.
Fast forward a few years down the road, several Columbia jackets, lots of winter snow boots, and blah blah blah.....and we have orders to Hawaii. The day that we left NY for HI, there was a huge blizzard dropping over 10 ft of snow. We sat in the airport for 13 hours before we even stepped on a plane. Luckily, we were able to fly south and then across the US. With delays and layovers, all total it took us 37 hours to make it to Hawaii.(Oh - did I mention that by this point in our journey that I am 6 months pregnant!! That made traveling really fun!) We exited the plane wearing pants, boots, heavy socks, layers of shirts, and holding our Columbia coats good to -30F. We see the ocean, palm trees, and a blazing hot sun. By the time we got our luggage and got to the hotel, I thought we were going to pass out from heat exhaustion.....it was 70F, but with all our NY cold weather gear, it felt like 120F.
We have lived on this little island now for 4 years. I have a baby boy who has the forever sun tan and the brown hair that has blondish sun kissed tips. He doesn't know cold and only see snow on the TV. We have also become very climatized to this weather. We love going to the beach in January and playing in the water all year long. The temperature is pretty constant here, and will only get a little chilly in the winter time at night. Just the other day, it dropped all the way down to 66F. I was so cold that I had on my winter clothes I brought from NY and the heater on in my car. If the temperature drops below 70, I want a sweater now. I know it may sound ridiculous to all my friends in NY and WV, who are right now experiencing snow and bitter cold, but it is really all about what you are used to.
We now have orders to move to Virginia. We will be arriving in the winter time, which I am sure is very cold (well to us anyway) and there will be no more playing in the water all year long, unless you count the bathtub and a heater in the bathroom. I have a feeling that we are in for a big shock and will be missing our forever summer island the first time we slide down the road on some black ice, or have to scrape the ice off the car windows. But then again, when the love bug bit me, it also bit a guy who is nice enough to let me stay in the warm house while he goes outside to warm up the car and scrape the windows.
When it is all said and done, whether it is hot or cold, I thank God everyday for love bugs.
We got married, packed everything up and headed to upstate NY, Ft. Drum to be exact. It was summer time, so I was naive and did not realize that when people talked about a foot of snow at a time, that they really meant it. Shortly after getting to NY, I got a job at Sprint. I figured I used to do landlines, now I will do wireless. After all, how different could it really be? THANK GOD for the wonderful people I worked with who were very patient with me, because if you haven't guessed, there is a HUGE difference. Anyway, my new friends/co-workers were telling their stories about winter, the cold, snow, etc... etc... etc... and I really didn't believe them. However, I did not have long to wait - see winter comes early in the North Country, and it does get really cold, and there is also tons of snow, etc.... etc... etc...
I remember hearing their stories and getting a little anxiety ridden about it all. I was at home one day and I was flipping through the stations on the TV and I found a news program. It was probably towards the end of October or so, and I saw the weather man predict negative numbers for that night. I was stunned!!! I knew that everyone at work said that when it came, it came hard, but would it really come that fast? Needless to say, I was really worried. I called Travis at work,
I tell everybody that they do not know what cold is until they walk outside their house and it literally hurts to breathe, and that is when you are breathing through a scarf because there is no way in you know where that you would expose your skin to those elements. After all, -30F HURTS!!!! The Sprint store was located in the mall, so it was possible to go to work and the roads were clear, and then come out of work and your car was buried in snow. Believe it or not, it was the first time I truly used the whole packing list of safety items to always keep in your car during the winter.
Fast forward a few years down the road, several Columbia jackets, lots of winter snow boots, and blah blah blah.....and we have orders to Hawaii. The day that we left NY for HI, there was a huge blizzard dropping over 10 ft of snow. We sat in the airport for 13 hours before we even stepped on a plane. Luckily, we were able to fly south and then across the US. With delays and layovers, all total it took us 37 hours to make it to Hawaii.(Oh - did I mention that by this point in our journey that I am 6 months pregnant!! That made traveling really fun!) We exited the plane wearing pants, boots, heavy socks, layers of shirts, and holding our Columbia coats good to -30F. We see the ocean, palm trees, and a blazing hot sun. By the time we got our luggage and got to the hotel, I thought we were going to pass out from heat exhaustion.....it was 70F, but with all our NY cold weather gear, it felt like 120F.
We have lived on this little island now for 4 years. I have a baby boy who has the forever sun tan and the brown hair that has blondish sun kissed tips. He doesn't know cold and only see snow on the TV. We have also become very climatized to this weather. We love going to the beach in January and playing in the water all year long. The temperature is pretty constant here, and will only get a little chilly in the winter time at night. Just the other day, it dropped all the way down to 66F. I was so cold that I had on my winter clothes I brought from NY and the heater on in my car. If the temperature drops below 70, I want a sweater now. I know it may sound ridiculous to all my friends in NY and WV, who are right now experiencing snow and bitter cold, but it is really all about what you are used to.
We now have orders to move to Virginia. We will be arriving in the winter time, which I am sure is very cold (well to us anyway) and there will be no more playing in the water all year long, unless you count the bathtub and a heater in the bathroom. I have a feeling that we are in for a big shock and will be missing our forever summer island the first time we slide down the road on some black ice, or have to scrape the ice off the car windows. But then again, when the love bug bit me, it also bit a guy who is nice enough to let me stay in the warm house while he goes outside to warm up the car and scrape the windows.
When it is all said and done, whether it is hot or cold, I thank God everyday for love bugs.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Friends that come and go.
Life in the military (or in my case as a dependent - we won't get me started on calling me a dependent) can sometimes be very hard. We move frequently - which means that the people we meet will only be in our lives for such a short time. In that short time though, we are able to bond so fast and so deeply. We live through the same horrors, and we celebrate the same victories. It is bittersweet to say goodbye, but at the same time, with a career field so small as ours, we will more than likely see them again.
Ok - before I go too much into this, I should first say that I am sorry if I use any acronyms and forget to explain what they are. The lingo becomes second nature and you forget sometimes that everyone doesn't spend their lives spewing out letters of the alphabet instead of talking in complete sentences. For reference to this blog - and many more to come - a TDY is a temporary duty. Usually this is a trip somewhere. You are not changing where you are stationed. That would be a PCS - Permanent Change of Station. A TDY just sends you somewhere for awhile. It could be as little as a day up to months at a time. It can be to foreign countries, or right here in our own backyard. Either way, it means he is gone and not coming home at night.
As a military wife/family we understand how important it is to stick together. Deployments and sometimes even TDYs can be scary. You hear rumors and watch the news and wonder. Back in 2003, there were very little lines of communication. I can remember letters taking 3-4 weeks to go back and forth. No email and no phone calls. I can only imagine how my Grandma felt when it was my Grandpa during WWII and it was years - not weeks. You spend your life sitting in front of the TV watching the news. Hoping to catch a glimpse of your loved one in the background walking by, but then praying to God that he is not one injured and being worked on. Then you beat yourself up when you hear that someone else's husband was hurt or killed and you find yourself thanking God that it wasn't yours. I know it is only natural to think that way, because our hearts do break with those people who are living that nightmare and we try to support them as much as possible, but like I said, we also feel guilty for secretly being so grateful that our loved one is still ok. Going through these ups and downs, these emotional roller coasters makes you form friendships that will literally touch your heart and soul.
With this said, it is hard to say good bye. Sometimes you are the one leaving, sometimes you are the one being left. This week, I am the one being left. This week, I will be saying good bye to a dear friend who had shared baby stories, teething, walking, and diapers and everything else baby related with me and also deployments, and a bazillion TDYs (think at least 1 week out of every month, and many months it was 2 weeks a month) and did I mention that she is just cool to hang out with and have a drink. Although I will miss them greatly, I am so happy for them too. Their new duty station will place them close to home, and that is what we all long and wish for. So, Erika, Seam, and Skylar......you will be missed greatly, and I hope to see you all again one day. In the meantime, thank God for Facebook!!!!!!
Ok - before I go too much into this, I should first say that I am sorry if I use any acronyms and forget to explain what they are. The lingo becomes second nature and you forget sometimes that everyone doesn't spend their lives spewing out letters of the alphabet instead of talking in complete sentences. For reference to this blog - and many more to come - a TDY is a temporary duty. Usually this is a trip somewhere. You are not changing where you are stationed. That would be a PCS - Permanent Change of Station. A TDY just sends you somewhere for awhile. It could be as little as a day up to months at a time. It can be to foreign countries, or right here in our own backyard. Either way, it means he is gone and not coming home at night.
As a military wife/family we understand how important it is to stick together. Deployments and sometimes even TDYs can be scary. You hear rumors and watch the news and wonder. Back in 2003, there were very little lines of communication. I can remember letters taking 3-4 weeks to go back and forth. No email and no phone calls. I can only imagine how my Grandma felt when it was my Grandpa during WWII and it was years - not weeks. You spend your life sitting in front of the TV watching the news. Hoping to catch a glimpse of your loved one in the background walking by, but then praying to God that he is not one injured and being worked on. Then you beat yourself up when you hear that someone else's husband was hurt or killed and you find yourself thanking God that it wasn't yours. I know it is only natural to think that way, because our hearts do break with those people who are living that nightmare and we try to support them as much as possible, but like I said, we also feel guilty for secretly being so grateful that our loved one is still ok. Going through these ups and downs, these emotional roller coasters makes you form friendships that will literally touch your heart and soul.
With this said, it is hard to say good bye. Sometimes you are the one leaving, sometimes you are the one being left. This week, I am the one being left. This week, I will be saying good bye to a dear friend who had shared baby stories, teething, walking, and diapers and everything else baby related with me and also deployments, and a bazillion TDYs (think at least 1 week out of every month, and many months it was 2 weeks a month) and did I mention that she is just cool to hang out with and have a drink. Although I will miss them greatly, I am so happy for them too. Their new duty station will place them close to home, and that is what we all long and wish for. So, Erika, Seam, and Skylar......you will be missed greatly, and I hope to see you all again one day. In the meantime, thank God for Facebook!!!!!!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Measure Twice...Cut Once
I love being a Mom. My little guy brings me more joy than I could ever have imagined. It is funny how this little person who was born 8 yrs after my father passed away and 7 years to the day that my mother passed away, can remind me so much of them.
My father was a tinkerer. I am not sure if that is really a word or not, but basically it means he liked to tinker around with things. Check them out, find out what made them work. This also made him quite the little handy man. Dad was proud of the fact that he changed his own oil, replaced his own fuel pumps, and everything else under the hood of a car. (Don't worry Dad - I won't tell them all about the bucket on the porch that held all the "extra" parts that the car really didn't need to work after all.) He mostly did it out of necessity, but even if we had the extra money, I am not sure he would have wanted to pay someone else to do something that he could do himself anyway. Growing up with a tinkerer meant that I heard sayings such as "Measure twice, cut once" lots of times. He even had my Mom saying it when she would work on crafts with us or when she made curtains.
Recently, my son started watching Handy Manny and Bob the Builder, and he now thinks that he can build anything! He grabs all of his tools (he recently got a huge kit made by Home Depot of kids toys for Christmas from our neighbors and dear friends) and he tries to stick them in the side of his pants, or in most cases, the sides of his underwear, and take off to fix everything in the house, and then of course, to "Build Mommy a Big House." The other day, I heard him say something that made me stop in my tracks and smile. He was holding up his toy tape measure and I heard those familiar words, "Measure twice, cut once." It literally warmed my heart. This little boy's voice flooded me with warm memories of loving parents and a wonderful childhood. He may have learned these words from his cartoon, but in that moment when I heard him say it, I could almost picture him tinkering around with my Dad and working on a craft with my Mom.
Thank you Handy Manny and Bob the Builder for making me smile.
My father was a tinkerer. I am not sure if that is really a word or not, but basically it means he liked to tinker around with things. Check them out, find out what made them work. This also made him quite the little handy man. Dad was proud of the fact that he changed his own oil, replaced his own fuel pumps, and everything else under the hood of a car. (Don't worry Dad - I won't tell them all about the bucket on the porch that held all the "extra" parts that the car really didn't need to work after all.) He mostly did it out of necessity, but even if we had the extra money, I am not sure he would have wanted to pay someone else to do something that he could do himself anyway. Growing up with a tinkerer meant that I heard sayings such as "Measure twice, cut once" lots of times. He even had my Mom saying it when she would work on crafts with us or when she made curtains.
Recently, my son started watching Handy Manny and Bob the Builder, and he now thinks that he can build anything! He grabs all of his tools (he recently got a huge kit made by Home Depot of kids toys for Christmas from our neighbors and dear friends) and he tries to stick them in the side of his pants, or in most cases, the sides of his underwear, and take off to fix everything in the house, and then of course, to "Build Mommy a Big House." The other day, I heard him say something that made me stop in my tracks and smile. He was holding up his toy tape measure and I heard those familiar words, "Measure twice, cut once." It literally warmed my heart. This little boy's voice flooded me with warm memories of loving parents and a wonderful childhood. He may have learned these words from his cartoon, but in that moment when I heard him say it, I could almost picture him tinkering around with my Dad and working on a craft with my Mom.
Thank you Handy Manny and Bob the Builder for making me smile.
Moving and Selling Everything Not Nailed Down
For those of you who do not know me, I am married to a military guy. With that, comes a lot of extra stuff that wouldn't be around with a "regular" marriage. In fact, there are days that feel like I am married to the military. When people ask, "How long have you been married?" I want to say....Do you mean civilian time or military time? Because, there is a difference. Technically, we have been married for almost 7 years, but if you take out deployments, TDYs, training, and any other reason they send him away, we are at about 3.5-4 years. LOL!
Being married to a military guy means moving from here to there, and doing it quite often. We have moved from WV, to NY, to HI, and now we will be moving to VA in less than 2 months. There are lots of rules, conditions, forms, appointments, and everything else under the sun when it comes to moving with the military. It is not just going to UHAUL and saying - umm... can I get a big truck? For this move, we will literally have to put our stuff on a boat and ship it.
When we first got married, we moved everything to our station in NY using a trailer and a Ford Escape. Since then, we have collected quite a bit more junk. When we first embarked on our journey to Hawaii, it was just the two of us. The military said that we could move 11,000 lbs for free, after that, we had to pay. So we threw out tons of junk, stored things with family that we didn't think we would need here (lots of winter coats and boots) and when the scales weighed it all, we only had 6,000 lbs. WOW!!! All of our stuff only weighed 6,000 lbs - and that included a motorcycle too!!!
Since then, we have had a little guy.....and I have to say, it is funny how one little person can add so much more stuff to this house. Not only did we add 1 more extra bedroom of things, we added a bazillion toys, inside and outside, and enough clothes that this child could become a fashion model. (However, I am quite proud of the fact that most of this was found super cheap or completely free.) So we have orders to move back to the East Coast, and the military says, you have 11,000 lbs for free, after that, we have to pay. Hmm....I don't think we are going to make it!!!!
Thus enters Craigslist. I have to say, I am in love with this site. I am not trying to promote them or anything, just telling it like it is. I have been placing everything that is not nailed down in this house on that website, and it has been selling like wildfire. I love how I can post something for sale and within minutes, I have 6 people wanting it.
However, I also have to say that I wish that all the wishy washy people would stay away from Craigslist or at least my posts. I had a wagon and tag a long trailer for sale on it. Posted it on Sunday night, and within an hour had 7 people who wanted it. Called the first person and they met my husband the next day. They had specs, pictures, and details about it. However, when he meets them to exchange the item/money - they didn't realize that it would be that big. HELLO - ITS A WAGON FOR TWO KIDS AND A TRAILER. So on to the next person. I called them, and come to find out, I am about 35 min away from them. I was heading their direction to go to Wal-Mart and sell another item along the way, so I offered to meet them about 10 min from their house. She said that wasn't really convenient for her. Again - HELLO - when do I have to make it convenient for the buyer??? After spending the next day trying to figure out when and where to meet her, she decides she doesn't want to pay the asking price. Hmm....shouldn't you negotiate price before you tell the person you will take it???? At any rate, I told her bye and moved on to the next person. The next person lived 40 min away. When I called though, she was so thrilled, she jumped in the car immediately and came to me. It all worked out in the end, just wishing the other two people would stay away from craigslist in the future.
Now that I have sold quite a few things, I am starting to think that this 11,000 lbs weight limit may not be too bad after all. Especially since I have been eyeing a lot of my husband's things - I think I could get some money from them on craigslist. After all, how many fishing poles does he really need??? Just kidding. His stuff is safe for now....well at least until they tell us we busted our weight allowance.
Being married to a military guy means moving from here to there, and doing it quite often. We have moved from WV, to NY, to HI, and now we will be moving to VA in less than 2 months. There are lots of rules, conditions, forms, appointments, and everything else under the sun when it comes to moving with the military. It is not just going to UHAUL and saying - umm... can I get a big truck? For this move, we will literally have to put our stuff on a boat and ship it.
When we first got married, we moved everything to our station in NY using a trailer and a Ford Escape. Since then, we have collected quite a bit more junk. When we first embarked on our journey to Hawaii, it was just the two of us. The military said that we could move 11,000 lbs for free, after that, we had to pay. So we threw out tons of junk, stored things with family that we didn't think we would need here (lots of winter coats and boots) and when the scales weighed it all, we only had 6,000 lbs. WOW!!! All of our stuff only weighed 6,000 lbs - and that included a motorcycle too!!!
Since then, we have had a little guy.....and I have to say, it is funny how one little person can add so much more stuff to this house. Not only did we add 1 more extra bedroom of things, we added a bazillion toys, inside and outside, and enough clothes that this child could become a fashion model. (However, I am quite proud of the fact that most of this was found super cheap or completely free.) So we have orders to move back to the East Coast, and the military says, you have 11,000 lbs for free, after that, we have to pay. Hmm....I don't think we are going to make it!!!!
Thus enters Craigslist. I have to say, I am in love with this site. I am not trying to promote them or anything, just telling it like it is. I have been placing everything that is not nailed down in this house on that website, and it has been selling like wildfire. I love how I can post something for sale and within minutes, I have 6 people wanting it.
However, I also have to say that I wish that all the wishy washy people would stay away from Craigslist or at least my posts. I had a wagon and tag a long trailer for sale on it. Posted it on Sunday night, and within an hour had 7 people who wanted it. Called the first person and they met my husband the next day. They had specs, pictures, and details about it. However, when he meets them to exchange the item/money - they didn't realize that it would be that big. HELLO - ITS A WAGON FOR TWO KIDS AND A TRAILER. So on to the next person. I called them, and come to find out, I am about 35 min away from them. I was heading their direction to go to Wal-Mart and sell another item along the way, so I offered to meet them about 10 min from their house. She said that wasn't really convenient for her. Again - HELLO - when do I have to make it convenient for the buyer??? After spending the next day trying to figure out when and where to meet her, she decides she doesn't want to pay the asking price. Hmm....shouldn't you negotiate price before you tell the person you will take it???? At any rate, I told her bye and moved on to the next person. The next person lived 40 min away. When I called though, she was so thrilled, she jumped in the car immediately and came to me. It all worked out in the end, just wishing the other two people would stay away from craigslist in the future.
Now that I have sold quite a few things, I am starting to think that this 11,000 lbs weight limit may not be too bad after all. Especially since I have been eyeing a lot of my husband's things - I think I could get some money from them on craigslist. After all, how many fishing poles does he really need??? Just kidding. His stuff is safe for now....well at least until they tell us we busted our weight allowance.
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