Settling In

In the morning, the bug-bombed moving truck needed to be aired out, the vehicle titles needed to be found, the seven vehicles (not counting Mr. Budget) needed to be rearranged in the driveway and throughout the neighborhood while being packed with last minute items like massive boxes of plants, electronics, clothing, luggage, a dog kennel, snacks, etc. etc. etc.—and it was trash and recycling day, which means we were dodging those big rigs, too. Whew!! And my van was out of gas. And there was a barefoot lady wandering aimlessly into traffic at the top of a hill t-intersection where we didn’t have a stop sign. Gah!

But we got successfully on our way and made it to the hotel pretty uneventfully. Just out the window (we could read the drive thru menu if we squinted just right) was a Steak n’ Shake. Buck and I decided to walk across the parking lot to eat there, while the kids decided to drive to a Chipotle. It was like a date night—something we haven’t had in who knows how long. Kind of a desperate attempt, but certainly solitary. There weren’t even people to take our order, it was all done on a kiosk. Eventually a voice called quietly from some remote part of the kitchen, “Buck.” And there was our food. Huh.

Up in the morning at the hotel, we sort of realized that we needed to get moving earlier than the earlier we’d figured out earlier. Because I was the only one driving solo with an open seat, I was going to slingshot around Buck near the airport and meet Gabby when we got close enough. But we got off to a bumpy start when a rainy morning and a large landscaping rock put a thump in our moving truck’s progress. Farm and Fleet took a sledgehammer to the problem, and--with a subsequent full tank of gas--we were back on the road (thankfully this all happened basically at and next to the hotel), but behind the Crew. They got far enough ahead of us that we decided they would go together to get Gabby, while I continued to stick with Buck and the truck, and Daisy baby, too. Teamwork makes the moving dream work!

So that was like 8 a.m. to 3 or 4 p.m. with the time change mixed in; the kids got to the apartment a bit ahead of us even with the key pick up. Caelan was understandably disappointed with the apartment’s size and cleanliness, but after a few legitimate tears she chose to see the potential and jumped into making it beautiful. Gabby and I ran to Dollar General along with ONE MILLION high school students who were doing a Young Life summer camp—oh my golly!! Amidst their happy chaos we bought bright, daylight bulbs to lift the yellow gloom of the apartment and bug bombs to mediate the various crawly/fly-y things. I don’t know if our AA batteries or Noah’s YouTube tutorial got the air-conditioner working, but we were knocking out the discomforts one by one!

Also, we were all hungry—hotel breakfast doesn’t go far, especially when you choose not to eat it, lol We shuttled the carloads of plants to the very near (wow!) VRBO, dropped off our bags, and decided to fellowship over a meal. The newlyweds treated us to a delicious pizza place in town (their cheesy breadsticks—chef’s kiss, as Gabby might mime :)—we sat outside, so Daisy could join us. Cute setting, overly-familiar/friendly staff (?? we’re trying to categorize the culture :), happy Daisy, eyes bigger than our stomachs, so hooray for leftovers! It was nice to sit down and regroup. It was nice to take in the green trees, the colorful flowers, the little creek mostly hidden nearby, and the rustic charm of the building behind us. It was nice to be together refreshing our bodies with food and our tired moods with cheerful conversation. There is so much to be thankful for!

Back at the apartment, some sidewalk weed removal and dancing took place while we waited for the apartment to air out from the bug bomb. Inside, the kitchen fridge was tippy, but it kept the pizza cold (once we remembered to bring it in from the car, ha!) Moving all the boxes in to get to the beds at the back of the truck became a priority as sleep time approached--a time both wanted and needed! The boys worked on reassembling the main bedroom furniture, while Gabby built the desk/murphy bed (that Caelan ordered months ago) from scratch—that was the first of her big projects!

The good news is all that hard work meant . . . everyone had a comfortable place to rest that night. Even G$, who opted to crash on the brown couch next to the giant kennel, Daisy, and a wall of boxes, rather than an air mattress in the VRBO kitchen. Brennen came back to the VRBO with us and snoozed on the couch bed. It’s a cute place, with lots of Jesus things on the walls and nice smells and soft textures. Good books, too! Not that we had time to read any :) Next time we visit perhaps. It could maybe use some more snacks, and a washing machine . . .

Our first full day in town was very full indeed! We met at the apartment and drove up to a cool breakfast/coffee shop inside one of the renovated 1800s buildings on the town’s main street. Fueled up, Buck, the girls, and I decided to visit the local grocery store which was part of the gas station—they have Dolly Parton cake mix, frosting, pancake mix, etc. there. I find that odd. No one else seems to. Lol. Anyway, we looked at prices, grabbed some drinks and snacks to go with leftover pizza lunch, then headed back to the apartment.

We did some more organizing and unpacking while the newlyweds went to turn in their move-in fix-it checklist (it’s kinda long) and to learn how to submit maintenance requests (for their air conditioner which drips in the bedroom and percolates in the closet and hums in the office and their water heater which pops when the shower runs . . .) Job security for maintenance or homecare learning opportunities for the newlyweds, I guess! They also got their gym passes and took care of some other on-campus business (I’m 99% sure it was this day, but I could be off by one).

I do know Caelan researched like crazy to find all the best renter-friendly products to maximize the storage space and aesthetic she and Noah hoped for in their new space. She totally nailed it! The boys helped moved the previous day’s impressive pile of boxes out of the way to create a sort of runway for wallpaper layout—the project Caelan most looked forward to completing. She and Gabby problem-solved through it like pros! The end result is suuuuuuper cute! Somehow Gabby still had the patience and steam to stick-tile the kitchen—a tedious and detailed effort that looks quite marvelous. I saw the same product being promoted on an HGTV renovation show the same night, so it must be legit : ) Not easy, but legit.

While I unpacked kitchen boxes, Buck worked on scrubbing out the bathroom with his drill and all the chemicals we bought at the store. It needed it. Badly. Noah took a run at the bathroom sink with the same items the next day. There have certainly been some apartmental updates over the years, but not all at once. So, there are some things that are still waiting their turn for retirement after maybe 20 plus years of good usage.

We also think they may have hard water—Noah tried using the kitchen sink sprayer and it WOULD NOT turn off! If it was a prank by Gabby, it could not have been pulled off more perfectly (it wasn’t :) The kitchen got a good floor wash, and it took Buck and a bag of tools to get the faucet to work properly again (the sprayer is still broken, but at least not showering the kitchen).

The days kind of run together, but this might have been the day the boys went to the auto parts store to get Caelan a new tail light for her car. And also perhaps the day Caelan’s over-the-toilet shelf arrived. G$ built that for her and she is delighted with it! Before, there was this off-centered, paint-splattered, golden-oak, mirrored medicine cabinet hung awkwardly above the toilet. I’ll spare you Graysen’s thoughts on that, lol! They kept it in case the college wants it reattached (stuck it up in a closet), but it really looks like dumpster furniture. The replacement piece is bright white and matches the sink cabinet and looks cute with the sunburst shower curtain Caelan selected. They did have to prop the new storage shelf up on some stilts, because the toilet is for giants, tall giants, but it all came together really well, yay team!

Hmmm, I might be off on a couple of events, because I just remembered this was the day I needed to log in for a work webinar. Buck and I went back to the VRBO; he took a nap while I took notes on the future of the blue-collar workforce. An hour later, I tuned in to my dear college friend’s dad’s funeral service. Sometimes technology is amazing, and I loved hearing her husband and boys’ stories about her quietly funny, gently courageous, God-loving dad. It’s hard losing your dad.

Well, soon Caelan wondered what we were thinking for dinner. I texted back a taco emoji. We knew there was a good Mexican restaurant in town from our previous visit. We walked over, Buck and G$ drove. The weather was so nice! The waiter joked with Buck when he asked if they had hot sauce that if they didn’t have hot sauce, they could not be a Mexican restaurant. He gave Buck the level 1 and told him there were two more levels of hot if he wanted to keep trying. Buck was happy with the flavor of level 1—so maybe next time :)

After dinner, the newlyweds offered to buy ice cream, so we walked (Buck and G$ drove) up to the local ice cream shop. Caelan wanted to show Gabby the campus, so we walked across the street with our treats. Buck and G$ headed back to the apartment, while we took our tour of the lake, helped a high school student with an Amazing Race challenge question, got to recognize some locals by sight, and meandered back to the apartment. 

Lots of cute houses with lots of different architectural styles, lots of interesting businesses and more empty storefronts with potential—Caelan’s got her mental wheels turning—it just feels safe and quiet. We met Buck and Daisy out for a walk of their own, coming to meet us on the other side of town. Fancy that, we know people here :)