For instance, our belongings are still on a van line slated to arrive 3 weeks after we packed the last box! Three. Weeks.
Three weeks from when we last slept in our own beds.
Three weeks from the last time I had a functional kitchen.
Four weeks from when we started living out of suitcases.
Although we have lurked in parks, churches, and libraries, I haven’t met any other families. Where are they? At the very next church we visit I will be asking every usher or Sunday school teacher who greets us to introduce us to other couples with kids. I will attempt not to look wild-eyed when I ask! Whether this is just the normal stage she is in, or her stage is heightened by loneliness, Thacia constantly plays with her imaginary friends. This does not worry me, but I do wish I could bring some new flesh and blood friends into her life. While I am at it I will be looking out for friends of my own.
There was no last minute panic with packing. Our boxes were all taped and our car was packed about an hour before the moving truck arrived. It was a long day of waiting! We all went and watched pewee football one last time at the stadium behind our house. It was about 3 pm before we were able to pull out, not knowing how far we would get. Our next door neighbor gave us a gift certificate to eat out, and we used it for dinner that night. We had planned on going to Dallas at the most, but as the girls fell asleep in the car when the sun set, I urged us to push on so we could rest more during daylight hours.
We made it to Sulfur Springs, TX near the Texas/ Arkansas border. Sorry about the photos. We only used phones on our trip!
In Memphis, TN we ate at a cute restaurant called Beauty Shop on the hipster side of town.
We stayed with friends in Knoxville, TN. Thacia had her first sleepover. We settled in with one of Daniel’s aunts for a few days in the DC area while we found an apartment. We saw Daniel’s sister for the first time in over a year. I lost my IKEA virginity.
We found all but 4 states in the license plate game. I went to a Goodwill Outlet for the first time. The girls got their first coats.
Our first long-haul move as a married couple with children feels a bit like a first childbirth. You know it will be hard so you prepare. You don’t really know what for, so you spend effort and energy planning for the wrong things. We were pretty focused on keeping the car ride comfy, but it did not dawn on us how long it might be before the rest of our belongings arrived. I would have packed more/other things to bring with us. No one told me how tired I would be. I have circles under my eyes, which has previously only happened to me right after childbirth.
3 things I miss that are on the truck: Radio Flyer Classic Walker Wagon for Damaris, formal shoes, the double BOB running stroller.
3 things that are getting me through: A $2.99 frying pan from IKEA, an electric griddle I brought with us, Jane Eyre.
Life was really beautiful at our home in Texas. Even though I know that this is absolutely the right thing for us to do, I still miss our routines, I still miss our friends. It feels like I have lost IQ points in the shell-shock of learning new grocery stores. Our marriage feels different as we literally negotiate new territory. Yesterday evening we went walking at a state park (unfortunately sans camera) and it was overwhelmingly beautiful, but I got the feeling I didn’t even know what I was looking at! The truth is, I didn’t. None of the plant life is the same here. It feels like the culture is the same way too, I don’t know what am looking at yet. We are just gazing around with wide eyes trying to assimilate what we are seeing and trying to remember that God is the same and we are the same regardless of our geographic location.
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